Rise of the Otherworld.

The leading black-robed figure was stopped by Zhang Hao, and a flash of barely concealed panic flashed across his eyes. His gaze resembled that of a trapped beast, filled with fear and anxiety. But he quickly forced himself to calm down, a feigned sneer on his face. He snorted, his voice dripping with disdain and determination, and said, "Do you think stopping me will reveal everything? Even if I die, you won't be able to uncover the true mastermind behind this. There's a lot going on here!"

Zhang Hao stared at him, his eyes sharp as an eagle's, as if he could see through his soul. His gaze burned with anger and determination as he spoke. "Do you think we can do nothing if you don't tell us? You must give us an explanation today. The crimes you and your accomplices have committed in this village will not be let go."

At this moment, Ling Yu and the others quickly gathered around, surrounding the black-robed man. Their eyes were filled with vigilance and anger, like hunters gazing at their prey, making the black-robed man feel unprecedented pressure. The black-robed man looked around, realizing he was trapped in a desperate situation with no way to escape. He suddenly threw his head back and burst into laughter. The laughter was sharp and frantic, echoing in the silent air. "Hahahaha, you think you can rest easy just by defeating us? The forces behind this are immense. You are just a mantis trying to stop a chariot, overestimating your own strength. Your resistance is like an ant trying to shake a tree in the face of our overwhelming power."

The mysterious man frowned, a thoughtful glint in his eyes. He stepped forward and asked coldly, "What force is this? You'd better tell the truth, and perhaps you can spare your life. Don't think you can escape from us. Confessing is your only way out."

The black-robed man put away his smile and looked at the mysterious man with disdain. He snorted contemptuously and said, "Hmph, you guys? I don't mind telling you, we are from the 'Shadow Cult'. Our mission this time is to use that evil formation to collect souls and enhance the strength of our leader. You ignorant people, I'm afraid you haven't even heard of the Shadow Cult."

"The Shadow Cult? I've never heard of this organization," the old man muttered, his eyes revealing a hint of confusion and vigilance. As an experienced elder, he was completely clueless about this suddenly appearing organization, which made him realize that the complexity of the matter was far greater than he had imagined.

Seeing this, the black-robed man revealed a hint of smugness, as if he had caught them. He raised his chin slightly and said, "That's because you're ignorant. We, the Shadow Cult, operate in secrecy, manipulating many matters from behind the scenes. Our tentacles are everywhere, and you're just minor figures who accidentally stumbled into our plans. You've ruined our plans this time, so expect retaliation. The Shadow Cult's wrath is more than you can bear."

Zhang Hao shouted angrily: "In order to improve your strength, you have done such evil things and hurt innocent villagers. Today is your doomsday. Evil organizations like yours should not exist in this world." After that, he opened his eyes wide, raised his sword, and the sword flashed with a cold light, ready to give the man in black a fatal blow to calm the anger in his heart.

The man in black robe was not afraid at all. Instead, he looked at Zhang Hao provocatively with a crazy light flashing in his eyes, and said, "If you kill me, you will regret it. The Shadow Church will not let you go, and the whole village will be buried with me. You so-called righteous people are just seeking your own death." His voice was full of threats, as if he was announcing a terrible future to everyone.

Ling Yu couldn't help but curse: "You evil bastard, you dare to threaten us when you are about to die. What you have done is intolerable. Today, we are going to enforce justice and eradicate you scum." Ling Yu was so angry that he was shaking all over, holding the dagger tightly in his hand, wishing he could rush up immediately and cut the man in black into pieces.

Just as Zhang Hao's sword was about to fall, the mysterious man suddenly reached out and stopped him. His eyes were filled with calmness and consideration as he said, "Wait, if we spare his life, we might be able to get more information about the Shadow Cult from him. We can't be impulsive. There may be a bigger conspiracy behind this organization. We need to know more so we can better deal with it."

Zhang Hao hesitated, his heart torn between anger and reason. Finally, he slowly lowered his sword and coldly gazed at the black-robed man, his murderous intent undimmed. He said, "I'll spare your life for now. If you don't tell the truth, I won't let you go. You'd better understand that your life is in our hands now. Don't play any tricks."

Seeing this, the black-robed man breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that his life had been saved for the time being. He rolled his eyes and said, "You want to know more? Sure, but you have to promise to let me go. That's the condition for me to tell you everything. Otherwise, you won't know anything."

"Do you think you are qualified to negotiate?" Zhang Hao stared at him, his eyes full of murderous intent, as if he would change his mind in the next second and raise his sword again.

The black-robed man felt nervous upon seeing this and quickly said, "I can tell you the location of a Shadow Cult stronghold and their next plans. As long as you let me go, I will never go back on my word. This is a good opportunity for you to get to know us, you won't miss it." He tried to use this information to lure everyone and buy himself a way out.

Everyone looked at each other, their eyes exchanging thoughts and weighing the pros and cons. After a moment, Zhang Hao said, "Okay, we promise you. But if you dare to play tricks, we will find you wherever you are and make you suffer a fate worse than death. You'd better remember that our promise is based on your honesty."

The black-robed man took a deep breath, secretly thankful that he had escaped danger for the time being. He said, "We have a base in Black Wind Valley, a hundred miles away. They are planning to launch a similar formation in another village soon to continue collecting souls. That village is called Qingfeng Village, and they have already been secretly preparing."

"Why do you want to collect souls? How will this help your leader improve his strength?" the mysterious man asked, his eyes fixed on the man in black robes, not missing any change in his expression.

The black-robed figure remained silent for a moment, seemingly considering whether to reveal the truth. He was torn between the fear that revealing his secret would bring him even greater trouble, and the fear that others would repent and kill him. Finally, after weighing the pros and cons, he slowly spoke, "Our leader cultivates an evil technique that requires the sacrifice of numerous pure souls in order to break through bottlenecks and reach higher realms. This technique is extremely evil, and every level of advancement requires the sacrifice of countless innocent lives."

Everyone was shocked after hearing this. They had never thought that there could be such evil people in the world, who would do anything to improve their strength and treat human life as worthless.

"Then who is your leader? What is your purpose?" Zhang Hao continued to ask, his voice low and powerful, as if he wanted to dig out all the secrets of this evil organization.

The black-robed man shook his head and said, "The leader's identity is extremely secretive, and I don't know it either. I only know that his strength is unfathomable, and the entire Shadow Cult holds him in awe. As for his goal, I suspect he wants to rule this continent and become the supreme being. His ambition is like an endless black hole, never to be satisfied."

Upon hearing this, everyone realized the seriousness of the situation. If the Shadow Cult's plan succeeded, countless innocent people would suffer, and the continent would be plunged into endless darkness.

"We must not let their conspiracy succeed." Zhang Hao clenched his fists, his knuckles turned white from the force, and his eyes were full of determination, as if declaring his determination to the world.

Everyone nodded in agreement, their eyes filled with determination and courage. It seemed as if the battle against the Shadow Cult had inevitably begun...