Even hybrid monsters have their day

"A monster?" The old woman glared at her, banging her cane on the ground with great anger. Her wrinkled face was contorted in rage. "If I can catch that monster, I'll fight it to the death with these old bones of mine!"

"Oh? Didn't you catch it? Grandma, think about it carefully again. It was the one that the hunters in the village caught when they went into the mountains a few days ago."

“All the hunters in the village died half a year ago.” The old woman’s tone became mournful, but then, as if she had suddenly remembered something, she stared at Geng Miaowan and said sharply, “You’re not from our village. Who are you? Are you an accomplice of that monster?”

"No, no, I..." Geng Miaowan hadn't finished speaking when a young woman came running and calling out, "Dashan, Ershan..." Her face was full of anxiety. She quickly found them and asked, "Grandma Lu, have you seen my two children?"

Grandma Lu's expression changed, and she quickly asked, "Zhang family daughter-in-law, what's wrong with your child?"

Upon hearing this, the woman called Zhang's daughter-in-law burst into tears before she could even speak, choking back sobs as she said, "When I saw the water was gone, I went to Erli Village to fetch some, leaving Dashan and Ershan to play in the yard. I never imagined that when I came back just now, both children would be gone..."

"How could this happen..." Grandma Lu's hand, which was holding a cane, trembled, and she almost fell. "They are the only children left in our Woli Village. This is heaven's way of destroying our Woli Village!"

After saying this, tears streamed down her face, and she cried bitterly. Suddenly, she looked up, glared at Geng Miaowan, and said fiercely, "How come all the children in our village disappeared as soon as you arrived? Did you kidnap them? Are you in cahoots with the monsters?!"

Upon hearing Granny Lu's words, Zhang's daughter-in-law rushed forward without even wiping away her tears, tugging at Geng Miaowan's clothes and pleading, "Great Immortal, please give my child back! If you want to arrest someone, arrest me instead, but please spare my children. They're so young..."

"No, no, I'm not a monster, I was just passing by." Geng Miaowan waved her hand, trying to break free from the woman's grasp, but the woman had an incredible strength and held her firmly.

Such shoving at the village entrance attracted a lot of attention, and coupled with Zhang's wife's loud voice, other villagers quickly came out of their homes and rushed to the village entrance, surrounding Geng Miaowan.

"You monster, give our child back!"

"Monster, give our child back!"

I'll beat you to death, you monster!

Upon hearing that Geng Miaowan was a monster, the villagers all started shouting and yelling to kill her, a scene that seemed to transport her back to the time when she was killed, making her feel somewhat distressed. She shoved Zhang's wife aside and retorted loudly, "I already said I'm not a monster!"

At this moment, Luan Hao suddenly spoke up to warn, "There's a demonic aura on the mountain ahead."

For some reason, Geng Miaowan suddenly thought of the two children who had just run past. She pointed to the hilltop and said, "There, I just saw two children running that way."

The villagers who had been indignant all fell silent, their eyes filled with fear and deep despair as they looked up at the hilltop.

Zhang's wife's face turned as white as paper. Her lips trembled as she cried out, "My son!" and rushed toward the road on the mountain, but was stopped by several burly men beside her.

"Zhang family daughter-in-law, let it go."

"Yes, the child is definitely gone now. Don't drag yourself down with you."

"yes……"

The villagers all tried to dissuade Zhang's wife, but she struggled desperately to break free. Grandma Lu, meanwhile, pounded the ground with her cane, muttering, "You bunch of cowards, you bunch of cowards!"

“The demonic aura is getting stronger.” Luan Hao spoke again.

Geng Miaowan looked at Guan Tian. Although she still didn't quite understand what had happened in the village, she could tell that the child's disappearance was likely related to the demonic energy in the mountains. Otherwise, the villagers wouldn't have looked so ashen-faced at the mere mention of the child going up the mountain.

She turned to look at the peaceful hilltop, then at the strange villagers who had just attacked her without any explanation. She truly didn't want to get involved in their affairs; she just wanted to get to the bottom of what she needed to know and then hurry back.

But her humanity began to stir again. She remembered the two children's adorable smiling faces and their innocent appearance, making it impossible for her to ignore them.

Finally, she sighed helplessly, left with the words "I'll go take a look," and then quickly ran up the mountain with Little White. Hopefully, it wasn't too late.

The villagers stared blankly at the little girl's retreating figure, feeling somewhat ashamed of themselves.

The hilltop was incredibly quiet, so quiet it was almost unbelievable. There wasn't even a bird chirping, or even the sound of leaves rustling in the wind.

As soon as Geng Miaowan stepped onto the mountaintop, she sensed many wispy things swirling in the air with the mist. Luan Hao said this was demonic energy. The further she went, the stronger the demonic energy became, even obscuring the sun, making everything around her appear hazy and gray. A strange smell permeated the air, mixed with a faint stench of blood.

Xiao Bai walked along the side, looking around as she went.

After walking a few more minutes, as visibility decreased, the stench of blood in the air grew stronger, and there were few plants left on the surrounding land; the soil had turned scorched black.

At this moment, Xiaobai suddenly stopped, sniffed to the left, and said to Geng Miaowan, "Wait here for me, I'll go take a look."

Geng Miaowan stopped and waited for several minutes, but Xiaobai didn't return. She cautiously walked in the direction Xiaobai had disappeared, calling out, "Xiaobai, Xiaobai..."

"Don't come here!"

However, Geng Miaowan had already arrived behind it.

The ground was covered in a bloody red stain, with scattered pieces of corpses, as if they had been violently torn apart, the cuts jagged and uneven. Beside these corpses were several white skeletons, with a few pieces of flesh still clinging to them. Several greedy rats were gathered there, sharing what was a feast for them.

The bloody scene shocked Geng Miaowan, and her face immediately changed color. Although her expression remained calm, her stomach was churning violently.

Just then, footsteps echoed from the thick fog ahead. Though faint, they sounded particularly heavy on this eerily calm mountaintop. Geng Miaowan and Xiaobai exchanged a glance, their eyes fixed intently on the figure emerging from the fog.