Search for Traces, Discovery!

This was somewhat troublesome. The Beast Tide in this town had already been going on for two days!

Many traces had long since vanished.

Chen Qinglin investigated the mountain ranges around the town one by one, searching for anything unusual.

With so many people missing, it was impossible that they had left nothing behind.

Even a single personal belonging would do!

Along the way, his anger had already clouded his judgment. He forcibly calmed himself and searched once more.

Northwest Mountain Forest...

There were pitifully few wild beasts in this forest—one could almost say there were none at all!

Yet the tracks left by the same beast packs carried an extra measure of silence compared to the forests in the other directions!

Chen Qinglin searched back and forth through this forest.

Finally! In one corner of the forest, he discovered something!

It was covered by fallen leaves, with only a small corner of its original form exposed.

Standing amid the woods, he bent down, brushed aside the leaves, and picked up a wave drum that had been smashed beyond recognition!

Looking toward the deep, shadowy forest around him, Chen Qinglin closed his eyes and spread out his Wind Intent.

The ever-present breeze filled the forest, setting the leaves rustling.

He strained to sense the abnormalities within this forest.

At last, in a certain direction, he detected a trace of an unusual beast's scent.

He swiftly vanished from where he stood.

Before long, he arrived beside a great tree.

He swept his gaze over the surroundings and the ground, but found nothing.

Looking up, he leaped onto the treetops.

When he came back down, he held a red cloth in his hand. His gaze fixed on the depths of darkness as Chen Qinglin continued his pursuit in the direction where he had found the wave drum and red cloth.

He crossed an unknown number of peaks and several rivers.

Whenever he pursued the wrong direction, he turned back again and again, searching anew for the right one.

As Chen Qinglin ventured deeper, he no longer knew where in the mountain range he was, and the trees grew increasingly tall.

Along the way, he found many rare herbs, and the number of wild beasts also increased.

Only upon reaching this place did he discover faint human footprints.

He pushed the Hidden Spirit Art to its utmost effect, concealing his aura as he silently followed the footprints.

Before long, he followed the traces to a valley.

Towering peaks rose on both sides of the Valley, strange rocks jutted from the cliff faces, and clouds and mist shrouded the sky above it year-round.

Looking at the entrance ahead, he saw that the narrow gap had been widened by some unknown means, with broken stones scattered messily across the ground.

It had only been widened within the past day or two! Chen Qinglin reached his conclusion and knew he had found his target.

Rather than entering through the valley entrance, he silently climbed the peak, took a roundabout route, and arrived above the Valley.

The thick weeds and vines, the lush forest and dense leaves, formed a natural hiding place.

The Valley was divided into two layers. If Chen Qinglin had entered through the valley entrance from earlier, he would have found nothing at all—only a deep, scenic valley.

But from above, he could see that beyond the valley ahead lay another area concealed by clouds and mist.

He patiently moved over to investigate. Passing through the clouds and mist, his view suddenly opened up.

Before his eyes lay an enormous expanse. Crudely built wooden houses were scattered everywhere, yet arranged in neat order.

The flat land had been divided into plots of farmland, and people could still be seen coming and going along the crisscrossing paths between the fields.

Peach groves and fruit trees dotted the area, and countless people lived here.

Had he not looked closely and seen that there was not a trace of light in these people's eyes, revealing nothing but despair, as though they were a group of walking corpses—

Chen Qinglin would almost have thought he had arrived at some Peach Blossom Spring!

On the western side of the Valley, a group of people was building houses. Unlike the numb expressions of those in the other directions, their eyes revealed fear and confusion.

Chen Qinglin made a rough estimate. There were probably fifty or sixty thousand people on the western side. It seemed they had not come from just one town!

There were others as well. Judging by the situation, they had been here for more than a day or two. Altogether, this group numbered thirty or forty thousand people.

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The Beast Tide had only started occurring recently. Why were there so many people here?

His doubts grew ever more numerous. Was it really a Second-order Mutant Beast or Demonic Beasts that had directed the Beast Tide to attack the towns?

Third-order? That was possible. Fourth-order? It was unlikely to appear in a place like this.

Suddenly, movement arose in the valley below!

From a spot concealed by a peach grove, more than a dozen people emerged and swaggered over to the group on the west side.

After saying a few words, they began picking out younger children and Martial Artists brimming with Blood Qi, leading them deeper into the peach grove.

Their eyes were filled with bewilderment and fear, not knowing what awaited them inside.

As for those numb, apathetic people, they too revealed traces of fear at the sight.

The depths of the peach grove were like the gaping maw of an abyss; hundreds entered, yet not a single ripple rose.

Having changed his clothes, Chen Qinglin silently arrived behind the group as a breeze swept past.

Not a single person noticed his arrival.

As they ventured deeper and deeper into the peach grove, they finally arrived before a cliff face.

The leader took out something unknown and placed it against the rock wall. At once, a deep cave appeared.

This was a Formation!

The cave looked narrow from outside, yet its interior was vast. Torches along the way illuminated the passage—it turned out the inside of an entire mountain had been hollowed out!

After walking for a short while on trembling legs, they arrived at a horrifying place!

Here, flesh had been churned into mud and corpses lay piled high. An unspeakable terror shrouded everyone.

From a chamber carved into a nearby cave, the faint cries of babies could still be heard.

Only after bringing them here did the dozen or so people leading the way call loudly into the depths.

"Great King, the Two-legged Beasts brought back the day before yesterday have been selected. Those suited to your tastes have been brought here."

"Would you like to enjoy them now?"

The group spoke while respectfully prostrating themselves on the ground.

The faces of the several hundred people behind them changed at once. They scrambled backward, each trying to flee the cave first.

The dozen people lying on the ground paid no heed to their escape—or perhaps they had long grown used to such scenes.

Several figures emerged from the shadows. They were three wolves standing upright on two legs. Two stood about ten feet tall, while the other was roughly the height of an ordinary person.

Their fur was a dark crimson.

Hearing their words, the smaller wolf in the middle opened and closed its jaws as it spoke.

"Very good! I am very satisfied with the tribute your Lin Family has offered this time. The meals you selected smell quite appetizing as well."

"I am pleased. After I have finished eating, I will reward your Lin Family. I also have rewards for each of you. Gah gah... gah...!"

"Thank you, Great King. Then we shall not disturb Your Majesty's meal." With that, the few people prepared to leave.

At that moment, those who had run to the cave entrance discovered that it had already been sealed by a Formation. Though they could still see the scene outside, a transparent barrier prevented them from leaving.

No matter how they pounded against it, it was useless. They collapsed to the ground in despair.

Other than Chen Qinglin, only a few whose legs had gone weak from fright at the sight of the three monsters remained where they were.

After hearing the conversation between the dozen people and the wolf monsters, some fainted on the spot.

Though several Body Tempering Realm Martial Artists could still stand, they knew full well what awaited them and only wished to preserve a shred of dignity before death.

"Oh? There is actually a guest among us!" Once the crowd scattered, Chen Qinglin, who remained calm and composed unlike everyone else, was revealed.

After carefully sensing his realm, the wolf monster found him to be a human Martial Artist at the middle stage of the Inner Qi Realm.

The wolf monster was intrigued. A little exercise before the meal would surely whet its appetite.

Chen Qinglin had already discerned the realms of the three wolf monsters the moment they emerged.

The two tall Blood Wolves were late Second-order strange beasts—or rather, demonized strange beasts—their realms equivalent to Martial Artists at the Late Stage of the Inner Qi Realm.

But the Blood Wolf in the middle, the one only as tall as a man, was the most terrifying of them all: a Third-order Late Stage Demonic Beast.

"Head for the entrance!"

After calling out to the group still standing there, Chen Qinglin produced the Human-grade Mid-tier Magic Tool, the Three Reflections Sword, in his hand. It was a gift from his Master, Fu Shenxing, when he had descended the mountain.

Seeing Chen Qinglin step forward, the crowd seemed to seize upon a glimmer of hope and found the strength to move. Watching his back, they headed toward the way they had entered the cave.

At that moment, the two ten-foot-tall Blood Wolves pounced at him from the left and right!