Qianyuan Continent.
Jiuhe Village, under the Music Sect's jurisdiction.
Ning Xiaoxiao stared blankly at the severed limbs strewn throughout the village. Her face went deathly pale, and she took half a step back. The little sand rat perched on her shoulder covered his eyes and cried softly.
"These people died so horribly!"
Liuli, another member of their team, was already clinging to a wall, vomiting uncontrollably.
Zhuang Yusheng looked grim as well. He crouched beside a woman who had survived by hiding in a cellar and asked, "Miss, did you see who did this?"
Over a hundred people in Jiuhe Village had died violent deaths overnight. The Four Great Sects all suspected a demon was responsible, so they had dispatched this demon-slaying team.
With Lou Yunxiao, Ning Ke, and Wugou absent, several others had been added to bring their team to eight. While the Pill Cultivators went to clear away the bodies, Zhuang Yusheng tried to get some clues from the woman.
"The Demon Venerable... it was Demon Venerable Ning Ke..." The woman clutched her head as though recalling something utterly terrifying. Weeping, she said, "I've seen his portrait. He killed everyone, and he even transformed into a Nine-Tailed Fox and ate so many people! He drank the villagers' blood and bit through their bones! He really is as savage as the rumors say..."
Seeing her break down, Zhuang Yusheng hurriedly took out the Calming Flute he carried and softly played the Calming Melody. Only after soothing her did he turn to Ning Xiaoxiao, who had heard her words.
"Do you think she's telling the truth?"
Ning Xiaoxiao pressed her lips together and glanced at Zeng Xi, their Pill Cultivator.
Crouching beside a corpse, Zeng Xi said, "The bodies were indeed bitten apart and chewed up by a beast's teeth.