The villager’s expression gradually darkened upon hearing Zhang Nu’s words.
Initially, he had hoped to keep up the facade for longer, but these outsiders were being uncooperative. Since they refused to go along with his story, there was no need to continue pretending.
After all, so what if they were cultivators? No matter how skilled they were, this village had numbers on their side. Every single person in town shared the same belief as he did.
Still, tearing off the mask too soon was unwise. The true extent of these three’s abilities was unknown, and their status as cultivators meant they could still be useful. If another crisis arose in the future, having them around might be advantageous.
So, he held back his hostility, forcing his expression to remain neutral.
"But we didn’t lie to you," the villager insisted. "In the past, YaoGuais did kill people in our town."
"How are we supposed to know which YaoGuais were responsible? Just because some claim they never harmed anyone, does that make it true?"
"If the ones on the mountain didn’t do it, then who did? Surely, you’re not suggesting we turned on each other?"
Zhang Nu listened carefully, begrudgingly acknowledging that the villager’s words contained a sliver of truth. It was undeniable that people in the village had been killed by YaoGuais before. It was also natural for ordinary humans to fear YaoGuais. But then, he recalled Ling Xi’s oath—she had sworn that no YaoGuai on the mountain had harmed a human.
That raised a new possibility—what if the real culprits were YaoGuais from elsewhere?
"You make a fair point," Zhang Nu admitted, "It’s natural for humans to fear YaoGuais, and I won’t blame you for that."
"And yes, we did kill some of them. If there’s blame to be placed, I’ll bear it. But tell me—do you regret what you’ve done?"
The villager’s eyes flickered. To him, this was a loaded question.
Regret? Of course not. They had merely exterminated some YaoGuais. Creatures that shouldn’t even exist in this world. Not his kind.
However, he knew better than to speak his true thoughts. Zhang Nu would surely turn against him if he admitted his lack of remorse. So, he adopted a remorseful expression and lowered his voice.
"Master, I… I had no idea those YaoGuais were innocent," he said, feigning regret. "Had I known, I never would have asked you to kill them. I see now that I was wrong."
Zhang Nu’s expression softened slightly. But Lin Xiao wasn’t so easily deceived. Unlike Zhang Nu and Liu Hai, who still held some faith in the villager’s words, Lin Xiao could sense the lie.
There was no remorse—only calculation. This man wasn’t sorry. In fact, he believed what they had done was right. Had the three truly slaughtered the YaoGuais on the mountain, the burden of that mistake would have been unbearable.
"So tell me," Zhang Nu continued, his tone firm. "Are there any other YaoGuais nearby?"
"If it wasn’t the ones on the mountain, there must be others, right?"
The villager’s eyes gleamed with a hint of excitement. It would benefit their village if he could convince Zhang Nu to hunt down more YaoGuais. There was no reason to hesitate.
"Master, it’s true that YaoGuais lurk elsewhere," the villager admitted, "A short distance west of Apricot Spring Town, there’s a vast forest. That place harbors more of them."
"If the mountain YaoGuais weren’t responsible, then it must be the ones there."
Zhang Nu nodded. The truth of the villager’s words remained uncertain, but at the very least, it was worth investigating.
"Then we’ll head there tomorrow," Lin Xiao said. "For now, we need rest. And food—we’ve had a long journey."
The villager nodded eagerly and left to prepare a meal.
Meanwhile, Zhang Nu and Liu Hai exchanged a glance. They both understood what just happened—Lin Xiao had deliberately sent the villager away. Had he sensed something suspicious?
"Lin Xiao," Zhang Nu asked quietly, "Did you notice something?"
Lin Xiao met his gaze, his expression unreadable.
"It’s obvious," he said flatly. "That man was lying."
Zhang Nu and Liu Hai frowned.
"How can you be so sure?" Liu Hai asked.
Lin Xiao’s eyes darkened, "He wasn’t the least bit remorseful about what happened to the YaoGuais on the mountain.”
"From the start, he was using us to eliminate them. The real question is—why? What reason do they have for wanting all YaoGuais gone?"
Liu Hai exhaled sharply, for him, the answer to this question was painfully obvious.