Chapter 1126: Interrogation

Hearing this, the expressions of Jian Changsheng and the others became somewhat strange.

"You aren't going to tell me that the sacrifice they prepared this time is..."

"Unfortunately, it's us."

"..." Jian Changsheng asked back, not believing it. "You aren't a member of the Jiangtian Sect, how do you know so clearly? What if it's not?"

"They said so when we entered the village just now. Didn't you hear?"

“……”

Jian Changsheng grabbed his hair in annoyance, as if he were so angry he wanted to pull it all out in one go.

"First the migration in the Sighing Wilderness, then being ambushed by the Jiangtian Sect, and now being caught as some bullshit sacrifice... What kind of shitty luck do I have?!! Didn't they say there was a turning point? Where is the turning point?!!"

Sun Bumian and Jiang Xiaohua opened their mouths, not knowing how to comfort him. Finally, Square J spoke up:

"Don't worry, there will be a way... The interval between sacrificial rituals at each Jiangtian Sect branch is fixed, and the time for each ritual cannot be changed at will. Looking at the speed of their preparations, it's probably tonight or tomorrow morning. Before then, I'll find a way to save you."

Jian Changsheng and the others were all Divine Path users, and they could barely exert any effect here. Right now, besides counting on Square J, there was no other way.

In the end, Jian Changsheng could only nod dejectedly, shrinking to the edge of the stone mound, wondering what he was thinking.

……

Chen Ling swayed through the village, pretending to glance casually toward the bonfire.

At this distance, Chen Ling could only see Jian Changsheng and the others tied in front of the bonfire, but couldn't see the details. However, the state of the three seemed not very good... Especially Jian Changsheng, whose face was depressed, and his whole body was radiating thick negative energy.

What's going on?

Are they just depressed to this extent because they were caught by the Jiangtian Sect?

This doesn't look like him...

Chen Ling had some doubts in his heart. You have to know, back then Jian Changsheng had withstood several soul-shattering interrogations and survived death countless times like a cockroach. How could he look so sensitive and fragile now?

Chen Ling temporarily suppressed his doubts and took the initiative to walk toward Zheng Ye.

At this time, Zheng Ye had already dispersed the Jiangtian Sect members, with some responsible for searching within the village and others going to explore the edge of the village. Chen Ling followed the previous instructions and joined the ranks of those leaving the village.

Chen Ling followed behind Zheng Ye and asked tentatively:

"Those few people, just leave them there?"

"They can't run," Zheng Ye said indifferently. "The sacrificial ritual is late tonight. When the Archbishop opens the altar, they will all become sacrifices... The meat and vegetables originally prepared can be saved quite a bit."

Human lives are not as valuable as meat and vegetables; this was the first time he had heard of this... But Chen Ling thought it was reasonable. This Jiangtian Sect branch was hidden deep in the Gray Realm, and it was extremely difficult for Jiangtian Sect members to sneak into human realms to purchase Earth's food. Meat and vegetables were probably not common. Compared to this, Jian Changsheng and the others who fell from the sky were the best sacrifices—they were Earth specialties, and it saved the trouble of disposing of bodies after killing them.

As for "people" themselves... The Jiangtian Sect was a group of anti-human madmen; how could they have any reverence for human life?

"The biggest trouble now is the culprit who caused so many people to disappear," Zheng Ye's tone was extremely heavy. "If we can't solve this problem before the ritual begins, it will be troublesome then..."

A faint light flickered in Chen Ling's eyes, and he guessed that the time of the ritual must be fixed. Otherwise, with such a large potential threat in the village now, the Jiangtian Sect's first reaction should be to postpone the ritual, but no one present had thought in that direction.

"With the Archbishop here, there shouldn't be any problems," Chen Ling said as if casually.

"That's what is said, but when the Archbishop opens the altar, he must inject the willpower in his body into the bonfire and cannot move at will. If that thing takes the opportunity to make trouble, it will be troublesome."

"Oh~"

Chen Ling's eyebrows raised slightly.

Just now, Chen Ling was still having a headache about how to solve the Archbishop and this nest of Jiangtian Sect members. After all, even if he wasn't affected by the Jiangtian Sect's power, the Archbishop wasn't a pushover. It was still difficult for him to challenge the entire village alone. But the information Zheng Ye revealed unintentionally gave him an idea.

"Is that thing so smart? It even picks the time?" another accompanying Jiangtian Sect member suddenly spoke. "Besides, maybe those who disappeared didn't die at all... We didn't even find the bodies, did we? Maybe they were hypnotized and left, just like those few Fusionists."

Zheng Ye was stunned, then thought carefully:

"What you said also makes sense... But even so, there must be someone behind the scenes."

As they spoke, the crowd had arrived at the cliff on the outskirts of the village. This place was already out of the range of the bonfire and was in the Gray Realm.

Zheng Ye scanned the dark, narrow cliff. Countless rock shadows clung to the upper sides. Looking at the sky from here, one could barely see a trace of sunlight.

"Everyone disperse and search. Once you find something, speak up immediately."

"Understood."

After everyone dispersed, Chen Ling found the most remote corner and walked toward it, pretending to search.

Chen Ling didn't choose to kill these few Jiangtian Sect members now. These four or five people meant nothing to him. If this group of people died here and he was the only one who returned alive, it would arouse the Archbishop's suspicion... As a gourmet hunter, the most important thing is to have patience.

Chen Ling walked to a corner of the cliff that no one was paying attention to, scanned his surroundings, confirmed that no one was looking here, and then raised his hand to tap lightly on the cliff.

A moment later,

A centipede head drilled out silently from a crack in the rock.

Chen Ling parted his lips slightly and said something to the centipede. The latter's figure flickered, and it hid back into the crack of the cliff.

Afterward, Chen Ling turned around in the vicinity and then went back to meet up with Zheng Ye and the others. The other Jiangtian Sect members naturally gained nothing, not even seeing the bones of those people, so they could only return to the village for the time being.

"Strange things... there's nothing unusual inside or outside the village. How did those people disappear?" Zheng Ye felt his neck go cold the more he thought about it.

"Could it really be hypnosis? Who did it?"

While everyone was confused, Chen Ling's peripheral vision swept across the bonfire in the center of the village again, and a thought flashed through his mind.

Chen Ling suddenly spoke: "Otherwise, I'll go and interrogate those guys who were caught back... Our people disappeared last night, and today they appeared in the vicinity. Maybe it really has something to do with them."

Zheng Ye had the same intention, so he nodded directly:

"Good, you go and see if you can pry anything out of their mouths."

"Yes."

Chen Ling was about to leave when Zheng Ye called him back from behind. He fumbled in a small hut nearby for a moment, took out a hideous-looking thorn branch, and handed it to Chen Ling.

"Don't be soft-hearted. Use harsh methods. They are already sacrifices. As long as they are kept alive, it doesn't matter what else happens."

Chen Ling: ...

【Audience Expectation +3】

【Current Expectation: 55%】