"You comfort them to stop crying and wait on the side." Ling Di’s head buzzed from the cries of the two children, so he urgently rolled up another gust of demonic wind to take Feng Ling and the two kids to a safe place away from the battle.

Seeing the broad range of protection this Demon Cultivator provided, it was certainly a formidable Great Demon.

The three of them were too weak; if they truly started fighting, even a stray hit would be unbearable for them.

Meanwhile, the villagers of Shiliang Village, under the High Priest’s orders, had already moved forward to seize Wang Wu and his wife. Many were yelling for each household to bring out wood, preparing to burn the family that brought demons.

Amidst the noisy cries and shouts everywhere, Ling Di sneered, "If we topple that statue of his, I don’t believe the Demon Cultivator won’t show himself."

Hu Zhile quickly stopped him, "Capture the leader first, catch the High Priest and surely we can lure him out. It’s best not to easily destroy the statue and protective barrier, or else without divine protection, the consequences for so many mortals would be troublesome."

When she served under the deity Tang Qin of Yin Mountain, she often handled trivial matters for villages and towns under the deity’s protection.

Therefore, Hu Zhile was well-acquainted with the practice of priests defending villages.

Usually, the revered cultivator would boast first to find a renowned deity as a replacement. It wasn’t out of greed to take over but rather because, without any reputation, it was difficult to earn the trust of mortals.

Gradually, in order to attract more believers, the boasting grew more exaggerated, starting with Mountain Gods and River Gods as basic moves and even claiming the Jade Emperor and Queen Mother weren’t beyond their reach.

The more famous the deity worshiped in the village, the more mortals would be attracted, and naturally, the more incense offerings the Demon Cultivator’s statue would receive.

After establishing this relationship, mortal villages would send sacrificial offerings annually; the Demon Cultivator would provide protection through the statue, with the priest acting as an intermediary to communicate with the "deity."

Many cultivators only cared for the incense offerings, ignoring everything else, letting human priests manage the human villagers.

In a completely hands-off approach, the cultivator would only occasionally bestow some medicine or tools as rewards while generally turning a blind eye to pleas, letting things take their course, regardless if the entire village perished.

Another situation, like in front of Shiliang Village—the revered cultivator grants some powers, allowing the mortal priest to borrow them.

This shows that the cultivator values the village’s safety, treating the mortals thoroughly as incense believers, even allowing priests to borrow power to fight external enemies if necessary.

Since they value believers but indulge priests in oppressing common folk, holding frequent sacrificial ceremonies four times a year, the large village with a gold mine leaves villagers hungry and underfed.

Hu Zhile surmised that it’s likely the revered cultivator is in good terms with the High Priest.

Just as Tang Qin treated Tian Changgui’s family near Cat’s Ear Ridge specially because of old ties with predecessors, striving to protect their descendants.

In this situation, toppling statues or shattering protective barriers to threaten villagers wouldn’t work; one must capture the main point.

"Such an arrogant demon, surrender your life!" Liang Shizhen was lucky, never having faced a stronger Demon Cultivator until now.

Occasionally encountering unmanageable Demon Beasts in the wilderness, he’d seek Mountain Granny to handle them personally.

She was a kind and easy-going old lady who never refused help requests and always emerged victorious. Hence, Liang Shizhen was accustomed to being arrogant and domineering. Seeing this, he immediately swallowed the "Divine Medicine," holding a sharp sword, darting out of the protective barrier straight at Hu Zhile.

"Is this all you’ve got?" Hu Zhile, having cultivated to the Peak of the Bone Refining Realm, coldly laughed at the Gathering Spirit Realm mortal borrowing a bit of power. With a flick of her fingers, colorful ribbons fluttered, knocking away his long sword and binding him tightly.

She walked forward gracefully, the nail on her right index finger growing long and sharp like a blade, pressing against Liang Shizhen’s chest, "Let me open your chest to see if there’s a black heart inside. Otherwise, how could you be so cruel to your kin?"

"Rip!"

The nail, sharp as a knife, tore through the silk garment, breaking the skin and drawing blood.

It all happened too quickly; only when pain struck did the always-tenacious Liang Shizhen realize he had encountered a tough opponent!

Damn, this demon surely masked her aura!

He mistakenly thought she was a helper to the Little Rabbit Demon, assuming what kind of Great Demon she could have befriended, hence his complacency and underestimation.

Mountain Granny had warned repeatedly that Demon Beasts could be slain at will; encountering a Demon Cultivator required no interference if it didn’t provoke or harm the village.

He paid it no mind, recklessly squandering the power granted by Mountain Granny, occasionally extorting Little Demons for profit. Greed led to an inability to stop and reconsider, failing to eradicate the Little Rabbit Demon, bringing today’s calamity!

Liang Shizhen pondered internally that he must never again be so careless, to avoid endless troubles ahead.

"Granny save me!" The demon’s claw dug deeper, pain signaled a dire situation, prompting him to hold his breath and burst the spirit bead worn around his neck.

Hu Zhile sneered, and isn’t this how the Demon Cultivator behind the scenes is drawn out?

"Whoosh!"

A demonic wind arose out of nowhere, turning the world dark and chaotic.

The colorful ribbons binding Liang Shizhen were swept away by the wind, prompting her to retreat quickly to Ling Di’s side.

"Woof! Indeed a Great Demon, not coming with good intentions." Old Dog scratched his ear with his hind paw, then stretched with his front paws, "You step back to protect Feng Ling and the two children, let me handle this!"