73: Chapter 73 The Strange Forest

Half an hour later, Mu Cheng and his group had gathered on the western city wall. Without wasting a word, they flew directly toward the Botanical Garden.

Chu Yaoyao was torn, but she finally decided... to reveal the general situation.

"Regarding the current situation at the Botanical Garden, there are several Tier 8 existences inside. Many powerhouses from other regions are also eyeing it."

"What do you mean... there are others besides us? Could there be Tier 8 powerhouses?" Tao Mumu asked, not quite understanding.

Indeed, Chu Yaoyao's explanation was vague. Powerhouses from other regions... she hadn't been very specific.

"I'm not entirely sure myself. The waters in the Botanical Garden are very deep... so we must be careful," Chu Yaoyao said, uncertain.

Rare flowers and exotic fruits weren't of much use to Tier 8 powerhouses, but their value was high... whether any would actually show up remained an unknown.

Mu Cheng thought for a moment and said, "Since we're already here, and we have Little Piglet... plus with Xiao Yao, dealing with a Tier 8 powerhouse shouldn't be much of a problem."

"You're overthinking it. I, Grandpa Peppa, haven't recovered yet and cannot act... even if I did, I couldn't beat a Tier 8."

Peppa's instantaneous slap in the face... left Mu Cheng feeling extremely embarrassed.

"Don't worry, so what if they're Tier 8? At most, they're just a bit stronger than Tier 7. If we attack together, we're not without a chance." Gu Na was more sensible.

This was the benefit of being well-read! The difference between Tier 8 and Tier 7 actually wasn't that large; both could shatter the void.

The only difference... was that the sustainability of Bloodline Power was stronger, and they could fuse with a Bloodline Spirit.

"Don't think Tier 8 is that easy, though if we join forces... we might have a fighting chance. The problem is, those with Tier 8 strength usually belong to a faction, they aren't just lone individuals," Chu Yaoyao added, being quite clear on the matter.

Tier 8 was indeed not easy to deal with, and anyone with that kind of strength would naturally be considered a local hegemon.

Never mind the leader... even their subordinates were not to be underestimated.

"This won't work... that won't work. How about we just turn back and focus on increasing our strength first?" Tao Shuishui said anxiously.

If they had no certainty of success, why force it? That was just asking for death...

"Enough, enough. Since we're here, we naturally have to explore a bit. If we can't win, we'll run," Mu Cheng said, unable to listen to any more negativity.

Gu Na also agreed. "Mhm, I agree with Brother Cheng. There's definitely no problem with us running if we can't win."

[Where's your brain? Can't you bring a bit of common sense? Of course we'll run if we can't win, otherwise who would be willing to take the risk?]

Hearing Chu Yaoyao's inner thoughts, Mu Cheng couldn't help but feel a bit of admiration. "So this woman came prepared!"

Leaving Mu Cheng's side aside, since Chu Yaoyao dared to come, she naturally had the strength to make a safe retreat.

Thinking of this, what was there to worry about?

As Mu Cheng and the others approached the Botanical Garden, a hidden prompt suddenly appeared before his eyes.

[Botanical Garden discovered four kilometers ahead. Tier 8 Zombie *3, Seventh-order Zombie *20, Sixth-order Zombie *50, Fifth-Order Zombie *100, Fourth-order Zombie *200, Third-order Zombie *300.]

[Tier 8 Iron-Armored Dragon *1, Tier 8 Demon Vine *1, top-grade treasure chest *100, high-grade treasure chest *500.]

Holy crap? The lowest are Third-order Zombies, and aren't there way too many treasure chests?

"Good grief, it seems this Botanical Garden is not simple," Mu Cheng couldn't help but blurt out.

Peppa also suddenly became very serious. "Of course it's not simple. I've detected several Tier 8 auras, and many Tier 7s..."

"If even the Little Piglet is like this... it seems this Botanical Garden is even less simple than I imagined. No wonder no one dares to touch it." Even after hearing about the Tier 8 auras, Chu Yaoyao remained completely calm.

On the contrary, Bai Yi started to panic. "Several Tier 8 auras... are you sure you're not joking?"

"Tier 8... for real? If I'd known, I would've brought Er Ha and Dun Dun. That way our chances of winning would be better." Tao Mumu was also quite shocked.

It wasn't just the two of them; Tao Shuishui and Gu Na felt the same way...

[Several Tier 8 auras, but Brother Cheng should have a way! Otherwise, he wouldn't take this risk so easily.]

[When the time comes, I'll just listen to Sister Na and Brother Cheng. Just tagging along shouldn't be much of a problem.]

"This woman is becoming more and more unpredictable. But it seems my worries were probably unnecessary." Hearing these inner thoughts, Mu Cheng became increasingly curious about Chu Yaoyao.

She didn't panic at all upon hearing about Tier 8s, which was enough to show that her strength had either surged or she had a trump card.

Before long, the group landed in front of the Botanical Garden's entrance. The path ahead was gloomy, completely shrouded in black mist.

"Are we going to fight our way straight in?" Gu Na took out a black gold sword, becoming extremely cautious.

Chu Yaoyao also prepared for battle and took the lead to clear the path.

"Of course, what else can we do?"

Indeed, since they didn't know the situation inside, the only way was to fight their way in.

"Mhm, let's keep up." Mu Cheng had no objections and followed closely behind with a black gold spear.

"Seriously... why not just fly in?" Tao Shuishui asked, completely unable to wrap her head around it.

Isn't fighting your way in the same? Why do it this way? Wouldn't it be more comfortable to just fly in from the sky?

"My dear sister, can't you use that brain of yours? If we fly in, the target is too big. What else could happen?" Tao Mumu was quite speechless.

But she was right; flying in made them too big of a target, and not knowing the hidden dangers inside made it far too risky.

In contrast, entering on foot provided many places to hide, and their profile wasn't very large... that was definitely better than flying in from the sky.

"You two... hurry up and follow!" Gu Na saw the two of them dawdling and quickly spoke up to remind them.

Soon... Tao Mumu and Tao Shuishui followed closely. Entering the Botanical Garden, they were met with a forest that looked gloomy and quite eerie.

"Wait... we've been here before. This entrance isn't a forest; there's definitely something strange going on," Tao Mumu reminded them quickly as she looked at the scene before her.

As university students, besides going to class, they often went out to have fun, so they were certainly very familiar with the Botanical Garden.

"I also remember it wasn't a forest. This is too strange." Gu Na looked at the scene, unable to figure it out, and became very cautious.

"No matter what, we just need to be careful." Chu Yaoyao didn't care about anything else; so what if things weren't right?

They would just deal with whatever came their way.

Bai Yi also nodded and said, "Mhm, we can't exactly turn back now. Since we're here, we might as well explore."

"Fine then! Just be careful." Mu Cheng naturally had no objections either.

Chu Yaoyao's strength was right there. If she wasn't even flustered by Tier 8s, then no matter how strange this place was...

So what? It was all a non-issue.

As the group continued deeper, it was still a forest. At first, no one paid it much mind.

But after ten minutes, Bai Yi finally felt something was wrong and said, "This... could we be lost?"