As soon as Ning Beichen finished speaking, the people in the village burst into loud laughter, probably finding his question amusing.
Ning Beichen's expression grew increasingly grim. He said to the black flood dragon Abu beside him, "Leave no one alive. Kill them all."
"Yes, Master."
The black flood dragon licked its lips, and a terrifying aura erupted from its body. With a deafening roar, a colossal flood dragon appeared before the villagers.
"A... flood... dragon!"
The villagers immediately wet themselves in fear, followed by screams. They watched as the black flood dragon shattered the bodies of everyone in the village.
For the black flood dragon, there was no room for pity.
The villagers were all cultivators, not weak in strength, but before the black flood dragon, they were like mere chicks, utterly incapable of fighting back.
"Evil beast, cease your slaughter!"
Just as the black flood dragon was massacring the villagers, a shout echoed from the sky. A man descended from above, his palm striking out in mid-air, sending the black flood dragon flying and saving one of the villagers.
The black flood dragon didn't care who it was and was about to lash out when it heard Ning Beichen's command.
"Abu, come back."
The black flood dragon gave the man a resentful glance and obediently returned to Ning Beichen's side.
"Who are you people? Why are you cruelly slaughtering them?" the man asked Ning Beichen righteously.
"Slaughter? You should ask them what they did," Ning Beichen replied.
"No matter what they did, it is wrong for you to use demonic beasts to kill people!" the man sternly told Ning Beichen.
"They cruelly slaughtered everyone in the village, do you intend to interfere with that too?" Ye Lanxin couldn't help but say.
"Villages massacred?"
"Hmph! That is merely your one-sided account. I did not see them massacre a village, but I do see you killing people," the man scoffed.
"So, you intend to interfere?" Ning Beichen had initially wanted to reason with him, but now he realized it was useless because the man refused to reason.
"That's right. Heretics like you deserve to be struck down by all." The man stepped forward and said sternly.
Ning Beichen was speechless, finding communication impossible. The moment this fellow appeared, he had already decided they were villains and gave them no chance to explain. Even if they did, he wouldn't believe them.
"Heretics, surrender quickly! Perhaps I can spare your lives!" the man shouted at Ning Beichen.
"I'll curse your ancestor, you heretic." Ning Beichen, despite being a civilized person, was pushed to the brink and uttered profanities.
"You court death!" The man pointed a finger at Ning Beichen, and a beam of finger light shot towards him.
Ning Beichen sidestepped to dodge it. As the black flood dragon was about to move, it heard Ning Beichen's cold voice.
"Abu, go back. I'll handle this." The black flood dragon retreated behind Ning Beichen.
Ning Beichen moved his arm. The man's expression changed drastically, and he spun like a top, but he still spat blood and was sent flying backward.
"Sacred technique!"
"Who are you?" the man asked, getting up from the ground, his face showing panic. Even in the Mortal Shedding Realm, few understood Sacred Techniques. Only core disciples of great sects and powers had the opportunity to learn them.
Ning Beichen didn't bother talking to him. He shook his arm twice again, using his dimensional attack ability, and punched him twice. The man hadn't even seen Ning Beichen move, but he could sense the danger and tried his best to dodge. However, Ning Beichen threw two punches; he dodged the first, but the second landed on him, sending him spitting blood and flying backward again.
Then, the bronze ancient sword behind Ning Beichen shot out like lightning, with a "whoosh," pinning him to the ground, causing blood to gush out.
"Wait... wait, you can't kill me, I... I am from the Heavenly Dao Sect." The man cried out urgently.
"Never heard of it." Ning Beichen walked over, pulled out the bronze ancient sword, and slashed it across the man's neck, ending his dog's life.
"I... I know the Heavenly Dao Sect. They... they are the biggest sect here," Ye Lanxin said, stuttering slightly.
"Are you afraid of them?" Ning Beichen felt like he had stirred up a hornet's nest. He knew Ye Lanxin well and knew she was very brave.
"Actually... actually, it's not that I'm very afraid, it's just that they are very powerful. If you kill one of their people, they will always find a way to track you down." Although Ye Lanxin claimed not to be afraid, her expression betrayed her.
"What's there to be afraid of? With Abu here, a mere Heavenly Dao Sect, I can extinguish them with a single spit," the black flood dragon Abu arrogantly declared from the side.
"If they don't offend me, I won't offend them. There's nothing to fear," Ning Beichen nodded, ignoring the Heavenly Dao Sect. He then crouched down to search the body. Soon, he found something similar to his jade gourd, used for storage. Ning Beichen remembered how Luo Yingying told him to open it. Although this item was not a jade gourd, the principle was the same, so Ning Beichen easily opened the storage item.
Upon seeing the contents, Ning Beichen was astonished. It contained a large amount of wealth, as well as many elixirs and similar items. It was undoubtedly a great catch. Although Ning Beichen was not interested in wealth in the Mortal Shedding Realm, he needed money if he were to find people in this world. Ning Beichen immediately transferred the items to his jade gourd.
He then left the storage item behind and ordered the black flood dragon to kill everyone in the village, creating a scene that suggested the Heavenly Dao Sect member had died at the hands of the villagers. As for whether it could deceive the Heavenly Dao Sect, Ning Beichen didn't care too much; as long as it could confuse their judgment, it was enough. Having just arrived, Ning Beichen intended to lie low. Even the powerful Abu was trapped for tens of thousands of years; Ning Beichen didn't want to follow in his footsteps.
"Let's go." To play it safe, Ning Beichen didn't linger or plunder the village's wealth. He immediately took them away.
Indeed, not long after Ning Beichen and his companions left, the people from the Heavenly Dao Sect tracked them to the village. Heavenly Dao Sect disciples had life tokens. The moment one died, the sect would immediately know and send people to investigate the situation. This was why no one dared to provoke the disciples of the Heavenly Dao Sect. Just like this man, who was so arrogant and unreasonable, people outside wouldn't dare to kill him for fear of offending the Heavenly Dao Sect. Only an outsider like Ning Beichen would ruthlessly kill him without hesitation.
Following that, Ning Beichen and his companions inspected several more villages and found that some villages had not been destroyed and were still normal. This relieved Ning Beichen; it seemed the Mortal Shedding Realm had not yet completely collapsed.