Mountain Lord, Tiger's Minions, Redfang Village!

The situation had turned out unexpectedly well...

Wu Yu smiled and nodded. "You brothers all look like men of upright righteousness. To be honest... Evil Tiger Stronghold and I are sworn enemies!"

Seeing the fury on his face, the others exchanged looks.

The spear-wielding soldier asked curiously, "Could it be that you were also robbed by Evil Tiger Stronghold?"

"Exactly!"

Thinking of Liu Yu inside, Wu Yu deliberately let out a sigh.

"Speaking of which, our group was attacked by bandits. I don't even know how many made it out alive."

"Then you were quite lucky."

Several armored villagers showed sympathetic expressions.

One of them smiled. "In any case, once you've come to Redfang Village, you're safe. Those bandits wouldn't dare come near here! Some of your people arrived ahead of you, so you'll probably get to see them later."

"But sympathy is sympathy. The rules cannot be discarded!"

"Outsider, recite a sentence!"

"What sentence?"

Wu Yu asked.

"Mountain Lord, Mountain Lord! A bastard beast!"

The spear-wielding man spoke.

Wu Yu's heart stirred. Thinking of the words Evil Tiger Stronghold, could this sentence be connected to it somehow?

He did not hesitate and decisively recited it.

Seeing how naturally he said it, the villagers all breathed a sigh of relief.

"I told you, there was no need to be so nervous!"

The spear-wielding villager laughed. "This brother isn't wearing the Evil Tiger bandits' clothes, so he definitely hasn't undergone the Mountain Lord Rite!"

"If he isn't a tiger's minion or a petty wretch, then he must just be an unlucky fellow!"

Amid laughter and chatter, they opened the barricade and let Wu Yu enter.

Listening to their conversation, Wu Yu was astonished.

Mountain Lord Rite, tiger's minions, petty wretches...

This [Newcomer Secret Realm] probably hid far more secrets than he had imagined!

Upon entering the valley, a burly man immediately strode over.

He wore iron armor, his gaze cold and indifferent.

"Hmph! Another outsider!"

"I'm warning you! We welcome those who come to Redfang Village to rest and recover, but thieving and pilfering are not allowed!"

"You people..."

Listening to the anger in the big man's voice, Wu Yu frowned slightly and looked at the spear-wielding villager beside him in confusion.

The latter sighed helplessly and introduced him. "This is Captain Lu, captain of Redfang Village's guard!"

"Not long ago, a child and a young man were caught stealing. They were outsiders like you!"

"Oh?"

Wu Yu's gaze shifted as he immediately thought of someone.

"Looks like you know them too."

The spear-wielding villager laughed. "Stealing from other people's homes in broad daylight—what a strange thing to hear! The clothes you wear cost several taels of silver, enough to feed and clothe us for a long time!"

"It's the first time in my life I've seen rich folk steal from poor families."

Wu Yu's expression turned odd as he listened.

The young man was hard to say; it did not seem like Liu Yu's style. But the child had to be Bai Xiaotian.

His personality was impulsive, and he was convinced this was a game world. He did not have much vigilance in his heart. He had probably truly treated this world like a game and gone straight into a villager's home to loot treasure chests.

Suddenly, Wu Yu's heart stirred as he thought of the [Hundred Taels of Silver] resource card he had just obtained!

In this world, silver seemed to have considerable purchasing power!

The guard captain left with his men, while the spear-wielding man also prepared to return to the barricade.

Wu Yu immediately walked over to him and asked in a low voice, "Brother, may I ask your name?"

"My surname is Wu. Just call me Old Wu!"

Old Wu waved a hand.

"We share the same surname? Mine is Wu too!" Wu Yu said with a smile.

"What a coincidence?"

Old Wu looked at him suspiciously.

But soon, Old Wu's eyes widened.

Wu Yu opened his palm, revealing a gleaming piece of silver!

"I must thank Brother Old Wu for his help. This tael of silver is a gift for you!"

Wu Yu said loudly.

"This... how could I accept this?"

Old Wu frowned and said solemnly, "Those are Redfang Village's rules. Guests are always welcome!"

Though he said that, he swiftly took the silver and tucked it into his clothes.

"But I find Brother Wu quite agreeable. If there's anything you need help with... just say the word!"

"..." Wu Yu paused, then sighed. "It's rather laughable, really. I stayed at home for so long that I rarely went out. I never expected that the one time I traveled, I would run into Evil Tiger Stronghold. I'd never even heard of them before. Sigh..."

"So you're the son of a wealthy household!"

Old Wu immediately understood and enthusiastically began explaining Evil Tiger Stronghold's situation.

Taking the opportunity, Wu Yu began learning about this world.

Evil Tiger Stronghold had once merely been ordinary mountain bandits who robbed merchant caravans on the roads and collected tolls. They had posed little threat.

But after a Mountain Lord arrived, Evil Tiger Stronghold underwent earth-shaking changes.

They carried out a kind of "Mountain Lord Rite" and became tiger's minions beneath its command!

Of course, they did not truly become ghosts. Rather, they became villains who aided a tiger in its evil.

The price was that they had to wear specific clothing, offer blood every day, and periodically hand over a certain number of humans as food for the Mountain Lord.

That was why the villagers had immediately inspected Wu Yu's clothes.

Those who aided a tiger in its evil no longer behaved like humans.

Any tiger's minion who did not wear ritual garments would not only lose the power bestowed by the Mountain Lord, but also bleed from all seven orifices!

"That Mountain Lord has an enormous body, easily as tall as two men!"

Old Wu seemed to have seen it before, and a trace of fear appeared on his face.

"It moves like the wind and enjoys torturing humans to death. A hunter from our village was once captured by the Mountain Lord..."

"There are several hundred people in Evil Tiger Stronghold, and all of them have become tiger's minions!"

"Redfang Village can only protect itself because of the village chief and the guard!"

"The Mountain Lord once launched a surprise attack on Redfang Village. In the end, every tiger's minion it brought was slaughtered clean, while it was badly wounded by the village chief. Hopefully it's already dead! Otherwise..."

The enthusiastic Old Wu was extremely talkative. With only a little prompting from Wu Yu, he rattled on endlessly, as though he had rarely had such a satisfying conversation.

Not long afterward, a villager guard came running over and greeted them from afar.

Old Wu slapped his forehead and said helplessly, "Sorry, brother, I still need to guard the gate!"

"No, no, I should be thanking Old Wu! I won't keep disturbing you."

Wu Yu shook his head.

"Fine, brother. Call for me if you need anything next time!"

Old Wu replied, then ran toward the valley entrance in great strides.

Watching him leave, Wu Yu nodded faintly and headed deeper into the village.

As he walked, he pondered the information he had just obtained.

Evil Tiger Stronghold was actually a den of tiger's minions!

The Mountain Lord hidden in the shadows was undoubtedly a Transcendent lifeform!

"Redfang Village has martial artists!"

"It also has a Transcendent lifeform, especially the village chief..."

"Beyond that, there is nothing else."

After walking some distance, Wu Yu also took in the sights of the small mountain village.

Redfang Village was not especially wealthy, but neither was it terribly poor. Otherwise, that guard captain could not have afforded iron armor.

Suddenly, someone emerged from around a corner. He wore a crisp suit—it was Liu Yu!

But the once-talkative man did not come over to greet him. Instead, he took several steps back, gave a mysterious smile, and turned to leave.

Wu Yu frowned slightly but did not speak or stop him.

"This man is far too mysterious. It's better to have less contact with him."

"If anything goes wrong, make him explode where he stands!"