Chapter 545: Chapter 545: The Local Wildmen

At this moment, the old man finally started explaining to the two burly men: "I met them on the road. They treated me to a meal and bought me a lot of things, saying they were heading to the Hidden Cloud Village."

"What are they doing in Hidden Cloud Village?"

One of the burly men immediately showed hostility, glaring fiercely toward the inside of the car.

"They said they wanted to buy medicinal herbs. He gave me a lot of things, and I couldn’t refuse, so I’m bringing him in to have a look."

The old man, somewhat resigned, pointed at the things in their hands. "You should put everything on the car; it’s too heavy to carry."

The two burly men nodded, handed their bundles to the old man, and turned away.

The old man got back into the car and said to Yang Cheng, "Let’s go."

Seeing the two burly men leave, Kong Lingwen and Ni Qingyao finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Yang Cheng continued to drive, while asking a question he had: "What did they mean by what they said just now? Why would driving be slower?"

"The terrain of Wangchuan Valley is peculiar. If you’re driving, you have to follow a circular route, meaning you’d keep going in circles, but if walking, you can take a shortcut."

"You have so many things in the car, walking wouldn’t be practical. I can only lead you by the detour."

The old man answered frankly, aware that these three were suspicious of him, but he didn’t mind at all.

"So that’s how it is. No wonder I felt like we were going in circles. I thought you were tricking me on purpose."

Yang Cheng, being a cultivator, could tell that the old man wasn’t lying.

"Since I’ve taken your things, I’ll guide you, but I don’t guarantee your safety."

He snorted coldly, clutching the bundle in his arms tightly.

The further they drove, the darker it became, until it was completely pitch black. Yet, Yang Cheng didn’t turn on the car lights and kept driving in the dark.

"Young man, you’re quite clever to know not to turn on the lights here. But it’s so dark, can you see clearly?"

The old man was quite surprised and turned to observe Yang Cheng beside him, in the dimness, only able to see his eyes shining brightly.

Living in this area for decades, he was familiar enough with the terrain to navigate in the dark, but this young man was here for the first time, and yet he was driving very steadily.

"I can see things in the dark."

Yang Cheng answered truthfully.

"One of those two young men you saw earlier has this ability too."

The old man smiled slightly, looking quite proud.

As soon as he spoke, Yang Cheng suddenly braked, and the car came to a slow stop.

"What’s wrong?"

Kong Lingwen asked nervously.

"There’s someone up ahead!"

Yang Cheng’s eyes shone as he clearly saw a group of people sitting in a circle on the open ground in front, with a bloody corpse lying in the middle.

These people were cutting up the corpse with knives, the meat they sliced off directly entering their mouths as they chewed hard.

Fortunately, it was so dark that Ni Qingyao and Kong Lingwen couldn’t see clearly, but Yang Cheng still felt his scalp tingle at the sight.

"Go around them. They’re all wild men roaming this area; they eat people. If you’re caught, there won’t even be bones left."

Though the old man couldn’t see clearly, at this time, those who could appear here could only be those wild men.

"There’s no road around; I can’t possibly go through the trees."

Yang Cheng was quite helpless. Cutting through the trees would definitely alert the wild men, who would nonetheless be forced to take action.

"Then let’s wait; maybe they’ll leave soon."

Saying so, the old man squinted his eyes, seemingly planning to take a nap.

Ni Qingyao’s stomach growled, but because it was too dark, she hadn’t eaten anything.

Yang Cheng was worried about her health and, staying there more, might cause them to encounter some demons or ghosts, so he wanted to leave early.

"You guys wait in the car; I’ll go drive them away."

As Yang Cheng spoke, he reached to open the car door, but the old man grabbed him.

"Are you out of your mind? Those people are wild men. To them, you’re just prey; they’ll tie you up and slice the meat off your body piece by piece!"

Hearing this, Yang Cheng looked outside the window and indeed saw the bloody corpse in the middle move a bit, realizing the person was still alive, which made him feel nauseous.

"Old man, didn’t those two guys who greeted you leave on this road? Could they be in danger?"

He suddenly asked because he found the clothing somewhat familiar.

"What do you mean by that?"

The old man stared wide-eyed instantly, realizing the seriousness of the situation.

"I’m not too sure either; it’s best to go down and have a look. You stay still for now."

Yang Cheng reassured him, opened the car door, and slowly approached the group of wild men.

"Crunch! Crunch!"

They were tearing meat from the bones, making a crisp sound as they chewed, which sent shivers down one’s spine.

The thick scent of blood filled the air. Getting closer, Yang Cheng confirmed that the person they were eating was one of the burly men who had greeted the old man earlier.

His clothes were soaked in blood, but the pattern on the clothing was unique, appearing embroidered, enough to confirm his identity.

Yang Cheng felt a deep pity in his heart. He slowly approached, finding another man tied to a tree, his mouth stuffed but still alive.

He silently activated his cultivation technique, channeling energy into his palm, then struck out forcefully.

With a ’boom’, several wild men engrossed in tearing flesh were thrown to the ground.

Though he only struck once, the powerful force caused multiple bone fractures, immobilizing them.

Only one person, who was further away, was not hit by the wave, eyes wide and mouth still smeared with dark red blood.

Yang Cheng observed the wild men, noting their appearance was similar to locals but with more prominent eyes and thicker lips.

"Wu wa wa!"

The wild man shouted something unintelligible, then charged at Yang Cheng with a sharpened stick.

With a quick shift, he kicked the wild man in the chest, sending him flying several meters and vomiting out the blood and flesh he had just swallowed.

Seeing this, Yang Cheng felt utterly sick, nearly vomiting out his dinner.

Not having time to deal with the wild men, he quickly reached the tree, patting the tied-up man gently, and spoke softly, "Brother, wake up!"

The man had no fatal wounds, only some scratches and stab marks, and seemed to have fainted from fright.

Sure enough, hearing Yang Cheng’s voice, he awoke, unable to stop screaming and trembling.

"Don’t shout, I’m the one who drove the car, here to save you."

Yang Cheng hurriedly stopped him, and he finally held back, trembling lips uttering, "Hu Zi was killed; they ate him!"