For ordinary people, the deadly trap set within that earth forest was inescapable once entered.

Since they were still relentlessly demanding to see the Yuanmou Man, we decided to indulge them this once. We would lead them into the village and then tell them: "See? There’s nothing here. Off with you now!"

With this thought, we changed our demeanor and actively addressed the adventurers. "You want to see the Yuanmou Man? There are plenty in the village. We’ll take you right now, but you’d best stick close to us, lest you get eaten."

The bespectacled leader was delighted to hear this and waved his companions on, ready to depart.

Number 12 asked them, "Aren't you even packing up your tents?"

The man with glasses replied, "Tents are hardly as important as seeing the Yuanmou Man. Tents can be replaced if lost. If we don't see the Yuanmou Man now, we might never get the chance again! Once we’ve seen them, we’ll come back for the tents."

Seeing how these people acted like they’d been injected with adrenaline simply at the mention of seeing something strange, I concluded they must be sick!

If they found out later that we’d been playing a trick, who knew what might happen.

There was no other way. If these fellows truly decided to cause trouble, we’d just have to find a way to slip away when the time came.

Besides, I wasn't lying to them entirely. The villagers were indeed monsters, though perhaps not every single one, but close enough.

While wrestling with these chaotic thoughts, we escorted the group of adventurers to the village entrance.

Looking into the village at that moment, we saw quite a few people moving about amidst the sparse fruit trees.

We proceeded into the village in a rather imposing procession. Several small children, dressed in ragged clothes, emerged from the village and, upon seeing us, shyly darted to the side of the road.

I’ve always been defenseless against children. Seeing their innocent faces, I genuinely couldn't associate them with monsters.

Yet, I knew such thinking was naive. If these children really did turn into monsters later, I would still have to end their suffering and karmic cycle.

The children had initially hidden themselves away rather timidly, but their expressions slowly shifted to excitement as they watched countless adults, laden with large bags, march into the village.

Then they bounced and ran into the village, shouting, "Business is here! We have customers!"

We all smiled at the children’s innocence, but at that moment, a slightly plump man dressed in white chef's attire ran out from the village entrance.

The three of us froze upon seeing his face.

After standing stock-still for three seconds, Number 12 finally spoke, "This! Isn't this Boss Bai? How is he still alive!"

I also frowned deeply, staring at Boss Bai’s figure. Recalling the events of last night, especially the part about the human jerky, I was instantly hit with a wave of nausea.

Yet, when Boss Bai saw us, he wore an expression of complete unfamiliarity and said to us quite naturally, "Guests have traveled far; you must be hungry. I am the proprietor of the restaurant at the village entrance, and my skills are the best in the village. Why don't you all dine at my place? I’ll give you a 20% discount!"

Before I could open my mouth to refuse, the bespectacled leader piped up, "Great, great! Do you have any specialty dishes? We haven't tried the local specialties yet."

Boss Bai quickly replied, "We do, we do! Even if you wanted to eat Yuanmou Man, I could get it for you!"

Hearing this, I saw Number 12’s face change, and he couldn't help but run to the roadside and vomit.

Everyone else, confused by the situation, turned to look at Number 12.

At that moment, fighting down my intense urge to throw up, I told the group, "It's nothing. Our comrade here has a stomach ailment. I think the three of us should skip eating here. You all go ahead!"

But unexpectedly, as soon as we finished speaking, the leading man with glasses rushed over, threw an arm around my shoulder and Number 2’s, saying, "Since our comrades in the PLA have graciously agreed to show us the Yuanmou Man, this meal is on me. I imagine your rations in the barracks aren't great; you all look a bit sallow and need building up."

I hastily waved my hands, glanced at Boss Bai, and said, "Really, we're not eating, not eating!"

Just then, several of the female comrades nearby came up and linked their arms through ours, saying, "Come on, come on, just one meal won't cost you a pound of flesh."

Number 2, his arm being held by a woman, turned pale with fright and quickly yanked his hand free, saying, "Ami..."

I winked at him, stopping him from finishing, and he switched his words to, "Uh... since you insist, we’ll reluctantly have a meal."

Seeing him flustered and yet agreeing to eat at Boss Bai's restaurant, I was left speechless.

Fortunately, Number 2 quickly added another sentence: "Before joining the army, I grew up at the Shaolin Temple, so I can only eat vegetarian food."

The bespectacled leader said, "Oh, no wonder I thought you looked bald, big brother, and you chanted a Buddhist invocation—you really were a monk! Alright then, tell the boss to prepare a few more vegetarian dishes."

Hearing him say that, I quickly raised my hand and said, "I’m vegetarian too!"

Number 12 also raised his hand and said, "Me too, I only eat vegetables!"

The bespectacled leader paused, then asked, "Did all three of you become monks before joining the army?"

I shamelessly nodded and said, "Yes, and we all came from the same temple. It’s just that we later grew our hair back, while our Eldest Brother got used to keeping his head shaved. Amitabha! Isn't that right, Eldest Brother!"

Number 2 shot me a sidelong glance and said, "A monastic does not speak falsehoods. Amitabha..."

His actual meaning was that he didn't want to help us lie, but to others’ ears, it sounded like, "I won't deceive you."

So the bespectacled man nodded hurriedly and said, "They say monks have excellent skills. Compared to that, you three PLA brothers must all be quite capable. You must be outstanding soldiers in the army, hah hah."

Seeing him laugh, we had no choice but to laugh along, with only Number 2 murmuring an Amitabha.

Next, we followed Boss Bai into his establishment.

As we approached the restaurant, we saw that the charcoal ash from where the person was burned the night before hadn't even been swept away. The nauseating smell of human jerky was still faintly perceptible in the air.

Despite the smell being revolting enough to induce vomiting, several of the amateur explorers remarked, "What is that smell? It’s so fragrant!"

Boss Bai turned back to them with a smile, pointed at the pile of ash on the ground, and said, "That's the jerky we smoked last night. See? The ash hasn't even been swept up yet!"

The bespectacled leader's eyes lit up upon hearing this. He said, "Make sure to serve us some of that jerky later; this jerky smells truly wonderful. Was it smoked with wild boar meat?"

Boss Bai shook his head and replied, "The texture is even more tender than wild boar meat. You’ll know when you taste it later."

Hearing this, my mind flashed back to the human flesh hanging in the kitchen earlier, and I almost threw up again.

Number 12, having less resistance than I did, quickly stumbled to the side to vomit once more.

The bespectacled leader remarked, "Is your comrade sick with dysentery? He really should see a doctor."

I said, breaking into a cold sweat, "Don't worry about him; it happens to him occasionally, on and off. He’ll be fine after a while."

But Number 2 interjected then, "I advise you not to eat that jerky. The meat in this village has an unknown origin; it’s best not to eat it. You should eat vegetarian instead, or you will regret it."

At this point, Boss Bai became unwilling. He said, "Comrades from the PLA, have you eaten in our village before? How do you know our meat isn't good? It won’t be too late to say that after it’s served."

Number 2 glared fiercely at Boss Bai. If so many people weren't present, he might have already let out a roar: "Vile creature! Accept your death quickly!"

Seeing his anger, I tugged at his sleeve and whispered close to his ear, "We burned all the jerky last night. He’ll have to find other meat for them. Look at how many people are in the restaurant; I don’t think it’s wise to cause a scene. Let’s see what happens first."

Number 2 looked up and surveyed the restaurant. The tables and chairs that Number 12 had overturned last night had been rearranged, and everything appeared orderly. However, about five or six tables were occupied by villagers—around thirty people in total—none of whom were using their chopsticks. Instead, they were staring at us expressionlessly, their gazes unsettlingly strange.

After looking around, Number 2 huffed and said, "Let's eat quickly; we have important things to do after."

The bespectacled man nodded eagerly. "Yes, yes, we have important things to do after eating. Come on, everyone, find a seat."

Once everyone was seated and Boss Bai and the others had taken our orders, he announced, "There’s been a slight issue in the kitchen the last few days, so we can’t use it. I’ll have to cook these dishes in the building next door. Please be patient; it will be ready soon."

Hearing this, I glanced towards the kitchen and bedroom we had raided the previous night; the doors were now tightly locked. I had no idea what was happening inside.

With this thought, I looked at Number 2, who simply looked impassive.

I thought to myself that I truly couldn't figure out what trick Boss Bai was planning, nor could I guess his true identity—the real Boss Bai was certainly long dead.

Honestly, these explorers were clingy, but they were just ordinary people. No one knew what might happen if they ate Boss Bai's food. We absolutely had to find a way to stop everyone from eating.

However, if we made any strange moves, it would definitely arouse suspicion. If they pressed us for answers, we would have to tell them about last night’s events, which would cause considerable panic.

Seeing my face changing expressions rapidly, Number 2 pulled out his phone, tapped it a few times, and sent me a text message.

I opened my phone to read his message: "The villagers are normal during the day; don't worry about the food being an issue. There is a very powerful evil energy surrounding us; we should avoid trouble. We’ll take things one step at a time!"