Yellow Village.
The messengers from Yellow Soil Village, consisting of only two adult males, had finally reached their first destination.
"Finally, we've arrived at Yellow Village. Let's hurry," one of them exclaimed, catching sight of the village in the distance and letting out a sigh of relief.
They had set out near midday, making it impossible for them to reach Yellow Village before nightfall.
Upon reaching the front gate, they encountered a lone guard.
"Halt! What is your purpose?" the guard asked.
The two messengers, without hiding anything, immediately divulged the details of their journey from Yellow Soil Village.
Upon hearing the purpose of their visit, the guard promptly left to find his resting partner.
Although there should have been two people guarding the gate at all times, the rules were rather lax. Hence, the night guard would often take turns, allowing one to rest while the other stood guard.
The guard returned with his partner and instructed the messengers, "Follow my friend here; he will take you to the village head."
Without delay, the two messengers followed the guard towards the village head's house.
The night streets were quiet, with only a rare sighting of one or two people passing by occasionally.
"Is this your first time visiting Yellow Village?" the guard asked without looking back.
"No, this is not my first time, but it is my friend's first time," the messenger replied.
In an effort to ease the cold and dark night, they engaged in casual conversation.
"Please, sir warrior. Please help me!"
As they walked down a certain street, a woman's plea shattered the calm atmosphere of the night.
"What happened?" One of the messengers asked the guard, his curiosity piqued.
The guard simply shook his head. "It's the wife of the Huangyu family. They have been waiting all night, but their daughter has not returned. The husband is still searching, and the wife, as you can see, is seeking help. The sound came from the vicinity of the only martial school in this village."
"The headmaster and instructors of the school, though martial artists, are humble and often lend a helping hand to villagers in need. That's why she is pleading for their help now."
To the two messengers from Yellow Soil Village, the Huangyu family were strangers.
However, if Niu Chang were in their place, he would recognize the voice of the woman pleading.
It was the wife of the place where he had stayed the previous night.
In the morning, before Niu Chang left, Huangyu Yao, the wife, had asked if he could accompany her daughter to play.
But Niu Chang had refused her directly, so Huangyu Yao could only accept it with a smile.
She thought that since Niu Chang was around her daughter's age, they should be able to play together.
"Sir warrior, please. I will pay you as much as you want. Please help my husband in looking for our daughter." Huangyu Yao continued pleading in front of the martial school.
"Let's go. Our business is more important," the guard called the two messengers.
Although Yellow Soil Village and Yellow Village were quite far apart, in the end, they were relatively close. Especially when it came to demonic beasts, the two messengers brought a scale found in their village as proof.
The two guards were frightened, and they became serious about this problem.
If Yellow Soil Village was destroyed by the demonic beast, they knew that they might be next.
The two messengers nodded quietly and followed from behind.
Unable to contain himself, the messenger who was visiting Yellow Village for the first time initiated a conversation. "Hey, Dalang, do you remember the mysterious disappearances in our village from last year?"
Xi Dalang, the other messenger, looked at his partner. Due to the lack of light, it was difficult to discern Xi Dalang's expression.
"You mean the disappearance of three villagers without any clues or whatsoever?"
"Yes, I clearly remember that incident. It happened back then when the youngest child of the Ning family, my neighbor, went missing. It all began with his disappearance, and in the following days, two more people vanished without a trace. The villagers were filled with fear, and many started grouping together and returning early from the fields."
The strange phenomenon that occurred in Yellow Soil Village the previous year was known to the entire community. It was shrouded in mystery, as no one could comprehend why or how it happened.
The first victim was the young boy from the Ning family. When night fell, and he didn't return home, his parents went searching for him, but all they heard throughout the night were the distressed cries of his worried mother.
News of the disappearance quickly spread among the villagers. Families with young children prohibited them from venturing outside their homes, while those without children could only offer their sympathy to the Ning family.
Two days later, a young man also went missing, leaving no trace behind. Some believed he had chosen to leave the village without informing anyone, but others grew suspicious and linked his disappearance to that of the Ning family's youngest child.
It was unclear who started the rumor, but it sparked a wave of investigation into any possible clues related to the first missing boy. Many questioned those who had played with the Ning family's youngest son on that fateful day, but no one provided any useful information.
Two days passed, and the hearts of the villagers were filled with tension, as if an invisible hand gently gripped them.
The following morning, everyone anxiously questioned each other, searching for any information about anyone who had gone missing during the night. However, in the first few minutes, none of them discovered any missing individuals.
But soon, a report came in that the old man from the Jiu family had disappeared.
The man next to Xi Dalang paused his recollection of the events, overwhelmed by fear in the present moment.
'Will the Yellow Village suffer the same calamity as our village did the previous year?' he wondered.
Initially, he felt sympathy for the people of Yellow Village, but now, he couldn't help but tremble with great unease.
"If it truly is the same strange phenomenon as before, the first victim was a young child, and the next one should be a young and strong person," he thought to himself.
Lost in his thoughts, he unintentionally glanced at Xi Dalang, only to be surprised by the fearful expression on his face.
Both of them recognized the fear reflected in each other's eyes and inwardly cursed their luck.
"Why did this disappearance have to happen today? We only came here seeking help," they lamented silently in their hearts.
Regretting their misfortune, they suddenly remembered they only had to leave the village the next day in order to ensure their safety.
The pattern of the disappearances revealed an interval of two days between each incident. This was the only clue the Yellow Soil Village had gathered regarding the mysterious phenomenon of disappearances.
Just like him, Xi Dalang also pondered the possibility of the situation, and once again, their eyes met.
Silently nodding to affirm their escape plan, they were interrupted by the guard who was leading them.
"Tell me about the disappearances that occurred in your village," the guard demanded, standing upright with eyes sharp as a hawk hunting its prey.
People in this world were highly sensitive to rumors and ghost stories, and they tended to be quite superstitious. Due to numerous unexplainable incidents and phenomena, their thinking naturally guarded them against negative rumors that circulated in their vicinity.
Xi Dalang took the lead, keeping his composure rather than appearing anxious like his friend. "I will tell you about it once we reach the village head's house. Since you will also relay this information to the village head, it would be more efficient to address it all at once."
The fidgety man managed to calm himself, though he was still uncertain about whether to disclose the truth or not. He realized that revealing the truth could potentially lead to uncontrollable consequences, jeopardizing his own life. How could he make a rash decision in such a critical situation?
Observing the words of Xi Dalang and the demeanor of the other messenger, the guard sensed the urgency of the matter surpassing the threat of the demonic beast's presence near Yellow Soil Village.
While the demonic beast might target Yellow Soil Village first, the sudden disappearance of the Huangyu family's daughter and the rumors spoken by the two messengers held greater urgency.
. . .
In the forest near Yellow Soil Village, the duo, consisting of a senior and a junior disciple, made their way back to the village after an entire day of fruitless searching for the ferocious beast that had suddenly appeared.
"Senior brother, what are your thoughts on this sudden appearance of the ferocious beast in the village?" Wan You asked, feeling tired and disappointed by their unproductive day. She pouted and called out to her senior brother, hoping for a response.
Lost in his own thoughts, Wei Hong didn't initially respond to her. Frustrated, Wan You became even more upset. Not only had their search yielded no results, but now her senior brother was also ignoring her.
Finally snapping out of his reverie, Wei Hong turned his head towards the rebellious girl. "Ah, what is it?" he asked, noticing the change in her expression.
In a quick motion, Wan You transformed her pout into an adorable and innocent look, blinking her eyes innocently at Wei Hong.
Observing the obvious change in her demeanor, Wei Hong remained silent for a moment before releasing a heavy sigh that even made Wan You shudder.
"Senior brother..." She spoke softly, her voice low and meek.
"It's nothing. I was just contemplating how unusual it is for this ferocious beast to suddenly appear," Wei Hong replied, pausing to gauge Wan You's reaction.
Although they were on a training vacation, Wei Hong had already given up on the idea of fully training his junior sister. Instead, he referred to it as "vacation training" to alleviate the burden he felt.
As someone who valued discipline, he didn't want to waste any time. Thus, he had to make the best of the situation.
"As you know, what mortals call demonic beasts are referred to as ferocious beasts by us martial artists. It's because no matter how strong they become, animals will always be animals. Cultivation may enhance their strength, but their intelligence remains limited, except for some exceptional cases," Wei Hong explained.
"This also teaches young disciples not to fear the hidden dangers of this world. We simply refer to ghosts and evil spirits as spirits. The mindset and mental condition of martial artists are just as important as their cultivation level and understanding of techniques."
Wan You made an effort to resist rolling her eyes in front of Wei Hong's watchful gaze. Her mind quickly formulated a plan, prompting her to nudge her senior brother. "I remember a teaching from Martial Uncle Gong. By the way, senior brother, what do you mean when you say this case is strange?" she inquired, hoping to divert the conversation.