The Desolate Heaven Emperor's Dark History! Bei Village's Sneak Attack!

"Screech!"

The Green Scaled Eagle, witnessing this scene, trembled so violently that every feather on its body quivered.

It could sense that the life force within those three eggs had become unprecedentedly powerful and noble.

It dropped directly to the ground, kowtowing repeatedly before the willow tree, its eyes brimming with gratitude.

"Go on."

Ye Xuan waved a hand, speaking with a calm smile.

"Head into the Great Wilderness and catch some fresh prey—nourish your young, and add a meal to the village as well."

The Green Scaled Eagle let out an excited cry, spread its wings, and shot into the sky.

It was now brimming with energy, eager to drag back every Fierce Beast from the mountains to repay the favor.

Night fell.

Stone Village was filled with the aroma of meat and the sound of laughter.

Yet amidst the laughter, there were also bursts of pitiful wailing.

"Smack! Smack! Smack!"

"Waaah—I won't do it again! Dad, I'm sorry!"

"Grandpa, stop hitting! My butt's splitting open!"

In a corner of the threshing ground.

The brats who had just thought themselves heroes were now pinned over their parents' laps, pants pulled down, getting a taste of the shoe sole.

Sneaking into the Great Wilderness and provoking the Green Scaled Eagle—they'd nearly gotten themselves killed.

This beating was unavoidable.

Shi Yunfeng, though his heart ached, steeled himself. He grabbed a small wooden stick and set to "loosening Little Shi Hao's hide."

"Running off like that! Showing off!"

"Elder, I'm sorry... boohoo..."

Little Shi Hao, sprawled over Shi Yunfeng's lap, cried while still eyeing the pot of boiling Suanni meat.

Ye Xuan sat nearby, holding a golden, sizzling Suanni leg. He gnawed on it, watching the scene with great amusement.

The Desolate Heaven Emperor getting his butt spanked.

What a sight.

If he could record this and auction it off in the Above the Heavens, he'd probably trade it for a few quasi-Immortal Emperor artifacts.

"This is childhood."

Ye Xuan sighed, then took a big, satisfying bite.

Delicious.

The next few days passed in relative calm.

Ye Xuan settled into Stone Village, spending his days either cultivating beside the Willow Deity or teaching the village brats.

One evening, the setting sun bled like crimson, dyeing the endless mountain ranges of the Great Wilderness a dark red.

Stone Village's dusk was usually its liveliest time.

Normally, the hunting party would return carrying massive Fierce Beast carcasses, singing ancient chants amid the cheers of children.

The village women would set up large pots, boil water, and prepare to welcome their men.

But today, the village entrance was deathly silent.

The wind blew in from the forest, carrying not the gamey scent of prey, but a chilling stench of blood.

"They're back! The hunting party's back!"

Pi Hou, standing watch on the earthen platform, suddenly shouted. But his voice held no joy—only terror, even a hint of tears.

"Hurry! Uncle Lin Hu and the others... they're covered in blood!"

That shout jolted the entire village awake.

Shi Yunfeng, who was brewing medicine, flinched, dropping the ladle into the pot.

Ye Xuan, sitting cross-legged under the willow tree and meditating on the Suanni Treasure Art, snapped his eyes open.

His Double Pupils flickered, a cold gleam flashing through them.

"Something's wrong."

Ye Xuan rose to his feet, his form blurring as he appeared at the village entrance in an instant.

The sight before him made his expression darken instantly.

The hunting party had returned.

But not in triumph—in flight.

A dozen sturdy men, not one of them standing straight.

They leaned on each other, some even carried, shuffling step by step into the village.

Every man was bloodied, their beast-hide clothes soaked through, blood dripping down their pant legs and dragging streaks of glaring red across the yellow earth.

At the front was the hunting team leader, Shi Linhu.

This iron-hard man, who could normally lift a thousand-pound boulder with one hand, now had a face as pale as paper, his lips cracked and purple.

His left arm hung limp at his side—clearly broken.

Even more shocking was the black iron arrow lodged in his back.

The arrowhead was buried deep in the flesh, only half the shaft exposed, trembling slightly with each breath.

It was a Wolf Fang Poison Arrow, unique to Bei Village.

"Linhu!"

Shi Yunfeng rushed over, leaning on his cane, his old eyes instantly reddening at the sight.

"This... what happened? Who did this?!"

Seeing the clan leader, the taut string in Shi Linhu finally snapped.

His legs gave way, and he nearly fell, only held up by two clansmen gripping him tight.

"Clan leader..."

Shi Linhu's voice was hoarse, as if his throat were filled with sand.

"The prey... it's all gone."

"And Fei Jiao and Meng Zi... their hands..."

Shi Linhu closed his eyes in pain, pointing at the stretcher behind him.

Two unconscious men lay there, their entire right arms twisted in a grotesque way, the bones clearly shattered to pieces—broken by a heavy-handed technique.

In the Great Wilderness, losing an arm meant being crippled.

"This is too much!"

Shi Yunfeng trembled with rage, his cane thudding heavily against the ground.

"Save them first! Hurry! Bring the ancestral Purple Cloud Powder! And the remaining Suanni blood!"

The village erupted into chaos.

Women wailed as they rushed to their men, children screamed in terror.

Ye Xuan stood among the crowd, silent.

He walked behind Shi Linhu and glanced at the iron arrow.

Reaching out, he gripped the shaft.

"Bear with it."

Ye Xuan said quietly.

"Mm." Shi Linhu gritted his teeth, veins bulging on his forehead.

"Pfft!"

Ye Xuan's wrist twisted, and the barbed poison arrow was yanked out in one go.

A spurt of black blood shot out.

A green light flickered at Ye Xuan's fingertip—the life force of the Willow Deity Method.

He pressed his hand to the wound, and the green light surged in, instantly stopping the bleeding and forcing out the remaining toxins.

Shi Linhu grunted, his complexion improving slightly.

"Now, tell me what happened."

Ye Xuan tossed the bloodied iron arrow aside, his tone calm, but those who knew him understood this was the calm before the storm.

Shi Linhu gasped for breath, fury blazing in his eyes, his teeth grinding audibly.

"It was Bei Village! Those bastards!"

"We'd just hunted a Unicorn Dragon Beast and were heading back. Who knew Bei Village's men were already lying in ambush on the only path?"

"They outnumbered us and attacked straight away."

"That little brat Bei Feng..." Just saying the name made Shi Linhu's eyes nearly spit fire. "He was ruthless! Vicious!"

"He could have shot us dead outright, but he didn't!"

"He held his bow, like a cat playing with a mouse, aiming only at our joints! Our tendons and sinews!"

"Fei Jiao couldn't take it and charged in to fight, but that kid shot an arrow through his shoulder. Then the Bei Village chief actually had their Sacrificial Spirit step in!"

"Sacrificial Spirit?" Shi Yunfeng's heart skipped a beat.

"Yeah, that old wolf!" Shi Linhu said in despair. "It hid in the shadows and just released a wave of pressure. We couldn't move, forced to watch as Fei Jiao and the others had their hands crippled..."

"They took the prey and said... said Stone Village men were all cowards, and they'd beat us every time they saw us."

"If it weren't for getting back to report, we'd have fought them to the death!"