As the words left his mouth, the woman holding the infant hugged the child tightly, her face filled with reluctance.
Seeing her reaction, Village Chief Feng shook his head slightly. "You’re not the only one making a sacrifice. Every year, the village chooses one newborn infant to offer to the Kitchen God. If you carry on like this, what will the other villagers think? This is for the future of our village."
Upon hearing this, the woman gritted her teeth and nodded.
The reluctance in her eyes was gone, replaced by a steely resolve.
The sounds of their conversation seed unnervingly desolate in the inky blackness of the night.
In the shadows of the Sealed Village, Shen Bai and his n hid in a corner as dark as the night itself. As they watched the scene unfold, they were beginning to get a grasp of the situation.
A flash of anger appeared in Huang Guang’s eyes, and he clenched his fists. "To think sothing so vicious could happen in a small village like this."
Kong Fang wore the sa expression. He was already circulating the Qi within his body, ready to step out of the shadows and deliver a heavy blow to those bastards, who were no better than beasts.
Shen Bai stroked his chin. "Let’s go."
’We’ve already figured out the cause. Now, it’s ti to deal with it.’
Without a mont’s hesitation, he was the first to step from the shadows, the Cold Moon at his waist glinting with a frosty white light.
The people of the Sealed Village were arranging the next steps when Shen Bai and his n erged from the shadows, startling everyone.
They were just ordinary people and lacked the keen senses of Cultivators, so they hadn’t noticed the three n lying in ambush.
Village Chief Feng had the most extre reaction. His face turned livid as he leaned on his cane. "Surround them!"
’Now that this is exposed, everyone in the Sealed Village will be implicated.’
Gritting their teeth, the villagers actually followed Village Chief Feng’s orders. Wielding an assortnt of farm tools, they closed in and surrounded the three n.
"The world is a tangled ss. I’ve seen a situation like yours once before."
Shen Bai said slowly, "Except you’ve gone even further. Wanting to live is one thing, but you have to have so principles. Even a vicious tiger won’t eat its own young."
Village Chief Feng sneered. "You three are Lord Officials. You don’t see the hardships of this world. Back when the people of the Sealed Village were so hungry they were gnawing on tree bark, the relief funds from the Court were just a drop in the bucket. If we hadn’t done this, how could we have survived?"
Shen Bai shook his head. "Leave one alive. There are still so things we need to find out."
The mont he finished speaking, Huang Guang and Kong Fang blurred into action, attacking the surrounding villagers.
The villagers were ordinary people; how could they be a match for Cultivators? In less than the ti it takes for half an incense stick to burn, they were cut down like stalks of wheat, littering the ground.
Seeing this, Village Chief Feng tossed aside his cane and turned to flee.
The leg that was supposed to be crippled now moved with nimble speed.
Shen Bai chuckled. "So he’s a Cultivator after all. No wonder he’s so agile."
He rely spoke and didn’t make a move, confident that Huang Guang and Kong Fang could handle the man.
Village Chief Feng hadn’t managed more than two steps before Huang Guang caught up to him. A silver light flashed from Huang Guang’s long saber, and in an instant, both of the village chief’s legs were severed.
Kong Fang followed right behind, hoisting Village Chief Feng up by the collar. "You old bastard," he snarled, "if we weren’t ordered to keep you alive, I’d smash your head in with a single punch!"
With that said, Kong Fang dragged Village Chief Feng over to Shen Bai.
With both his legs severed, Village Chief Feng let out a shrill scream, as grating as the caw of a crow in the night.
Shen Bai casually cleaned his ear. "Too noisy. If soone else knows the inside story, just kill him."
Hearing this, Village Chief Feng’s screams died in his throat. Cold sweat, born from the excruciating pain, stread down his face.
"Start talking," Shen Bai said calmly. "What’s the situation with that Daoist?"
’He had a basic understanding of what was happening in the Sealed Village, but he didn’t know anything about a Daoist.’
Village Chief Feng said in a terrified voice, "Sir, our sacrifice went wrong this ti. That Daoist went to the real sacrificial site, saying he would help us eliminate the problem, but he never returned. We suspect he’s dead."
Shen Bai stroked his chin, thinking, ’So that’s what happened.’
’In fact, if he sorted through it carefully, the sequence of events was a simple thread, easily untangled.’
’First, the Sealed Village used infants as sacrificial offerings, selecting one newborn every year.’
’Over ti, the resentnt from this practice gradually coalesced, giving rise to a supernatural aberration.’
’The aberration appeared but hadn’t fully awakened, causing the phenonon of various offerings to go missing.’
’The people of the Sealed Village were terrified. Coincidentally, a Daoist was passing through, and upon seeing the aberration, he stepped in to help.’
’But sothing must have gone wrong, as he has yet to return.’
’anwhile, the strange happenings in the Sealed Village continued.’
’With no other options, Village Chief Feng turned to the Governnt Office for help, assuming all the villagers were of one mind and that the sacrifices could be covered up.’
’He never expected everything to be exposed so completely.’
Having sorted through his thoughts, Shen Bai asked, "You were originally an ordinary person. How did you suddenly beco a Cultivator? And where did you learn this Sacrificial Technique?"
After all, not everyone in this world had an unfair advantage like Shen Bai did.
For an ordinary person to beco a Cultivator was nearly as difficult as ascending to the heavens.
After all, every single Cultivator beca extraordinary only through years of tempering and tireless, accumulated effort.
The first problem to solve was obtaining a Cultivation Technique.
Village Chief Feng fell silent.
Shen Bai said, "Cut off one of his arms."
Kong Fang was already burning with fury. At Shen Bai’s words, he smashed his fist into Village Chief Feng’s left arm.
The roar of a tiger echoed out. Village Chief Feng’s renewed screams rose and fell, echoing through the ink-black night.
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