Ma Wukang's face changed color. Suddenly, they rushed out from the village! In an instant, a crowd emerged: they held bows and arrows, staring at them with murderous intent.

Feng Zikang paid them no mind, merely nodding slightly. Ghost King Tu Fei stepped forward, helped Man Jiao up, pulled out the arrow, rapidly applied pressure to stop the bleeding, and then asked about the elixirs. This entire sequence of actions was executed with lightning speed, finished in the blink of an eye.

The mortal wound on Man Jiao’s body instantly healed by half.

"You... you all..."

Man Jiao struggled to his feet, feeling the stabbing pain in his chest subside. He looked at the unfamiliar villagers before him in astonishment. "Why do you all look like this? I am Man Jiao! I brought the Immortal Lord back!"

"Immortal Lord?."

A loud burst of laughter erupted from among the villagers, and a young man with a sordid appearance stepped forward.

"There are no Immortals in this world! Only the Great Master is the true god! We people of Liyue Cave all worship the Great Master! You are all heretics—kill! Kill! Kill!"

The young man’s eyes were crimson, his expression bizarre. He waved his hands and shouted loudly.

Then the crowd shouted in unison, "Kill! Kill! Kill!"

"Man Jiao, run! They've all gone mad!"

Behind the crowd, a young girl was bound to a tall wooden stake, held up by two burly men, shouting toward Man Jiao.

"Little Stone, how did they tie you up? What... what is going on? Where is the Clan Leader?"

Little Stone was the Clan Leader's daughter and Man Jiao's childhood sweetheart. He was aghast and kept asking repeatedly.

"My dad... my dad was killed by them! Miss Mo has been captured by them! Don't worry about me, just run!"

Little Stone wept uncontrollably.

Feng Zikang frowned. "Save her first."

It was clear that, apart from Little Stone, the other cave dwellers had fallen into a state beyond communication. They were mechanical and numb, only knowing how to repeatedly shout "kill." As long as one stayed outside the village boundary, they stood still, their faces alight with fanatical fervor, showing no reaction; but if anyone crossed the line, they were met with a volley of arrows.

"Yes."

Long Que answered and lunged forward. Arrows rained down, but he ignored them completely. Reaching the stake, he snatched the girl, casually swatting the two big men away. He carefully untied the ropes and brought Little Stone down.

"Little Stone."

Man Jiao ignored his own injuries and rushed over, catching Little Stone. "This... what exactly is happening?"

The situation was bizarre. After securing Little Stone, the tribesmen became flustered, suddenly lost their target, and stood rooted to the spot, letting out low snarls, completely devoid of reason, ignoring Feng Zikang and his group who were close at hand.

"Brother Man Jiao!"

Little Stone burst into tears.

The change began after they took refuge in this cave.

Initially, when Mo Fenghuang was injured, their villagers guarded Liyue Cave tightly. They did not fear ordinary demonic beasts, and under Mo Fenghuang's guidance, their stores were plentiful. They could even cultivate inside the cave, meaning they could hold out for several years without issue.

But after Man Jiao left to seek help, Mo Fenghuang unexpectedly discovered traces of a Nascent Soul stage demonic beast!

When the tribesmen learned this news, they turned ashen with fear. Although they didn't know what a Nascent Soul beast was, they knew it was a legendary creature capable of destroying heaven and earth.

Frightened and alarmed, the Clan Leader finally remembered: beneath the cave dwelling was a very deep and mysterious grotto. He proposed that everyone hide down there until the terrifying demonic beast was gone before coming out.

Mo Fenghuang, unaware of the deeper intricacies, found the cave's ability to hide one's aura quite strange and did not object.

Man Jiao's father, the elder of the tribe, was deeply worried.

He had always felt the cave was too sinister and did not want the villagers to hide there. But given the situation, there was no choice; the danger and terror of a Nascent Soul beast were too immediate.

The several thousand people in their settlement began a slow migration into the grotto. They only intended to hide for a few days, expecting the monster wouldn't linger long, and they could return to the mountains once it was far away.

This underground grotto was exceptionally strange. Mo Fenghuang, being from the Mo family, praised the craftsmanship and engineering, yet could not fathom who could construct such a minor paradise in a place like the Southern Barbarian territories.

They settled in relatively comfortably, but after only a few days, the villagers began to change.

They suddenly reverted to their old, mysterious faith, believing only in the Southern Barbarian Great Master, and often gathered to discuss matters. The Clan Leader and Mo Fenghuang initially thought this was merely due to the emptiness of underground life, but it escalated until they actually attempted to secretly assassinate Mo Fenghuang.

Although Mo Fenghuang’s injuries had not yet recovered, dealing with a few mortals was still easy for her. Who knew what methods those people used? Suddenly, cultivators specializing in divine abilities appeared, ambushed her, captured her, and took her somewhere unknown.

The Clan Leader and Man Jiao's father were furious. When they rebuked the villagers, they were slain by these frenzied people. They seized Little Stone and planned to burn her alive to sacrifice to the Great Master.

"Great Master..."

Feng Zikang did have some memory of this title.

This person was clearly Wu Duya's master, who seemed to have long-laid plans for the situation in the Southern Barbarian territories. Unfortunately, Feng Zikang's defeat of Wu Duya had shattered his scheme.

He had another disciple named Da Shan, from whom Feng Zikang tricked away the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King Banner. Given the powers of these two disciples, this Great Master must also be extraordinary.

"What conspiracy does this Great Master harbor while the Southern Barbarian lands are in chaos?"

Feng Zikang himself was unafraid, but uncovering the Great Master's plot would take effort. With the current rampant demonic beasts in the south, even if he used the opportunity to unify the thirty-six Southern Barbarian Caves, it wouldn't bring much benefit.

"Immortal Lord, what should we do now?"

Man Jiao comforted Little Stone, looking anxiously at Feng Zikang, hoping he would decide their next move.

Currently, they faced a Nascent Soul beast above and demonized villagers beside them. Although these were the murderers of his father, they were still relatives, after all. He couldn't just kill them all; Man Jiao truly didn't know what to do.

"Though these villagers killed your father, their minds were deceived. The real culprit is the Great Master. Moreover, Mo Fenghuang has fallen into his hands, so we must find a way to rescue her..."

Thus, the immediate problem was: how exactly could they find the Great Master?

"Based on what you said, one of the Great Master's disciples appeared in this underground grotto?" Feng Zikang pondered for a long time, closing his eyes in thought. "They couldn't have entered from the outside; this underground grotto must have another passage leading to the Great Master's residence..."

In that case, this grotto seemed like a trap laid out by the Great Master long ago.

"You all go look for a passage!"

Feng Zikang gave the order. Long Que and the others, fulfilling their duties, searched everywhere. Although stepping into the village boundary resulted in a shower of arrows, they didn't care. They casually downed most of the villagers.

Fortunately, they were considerate of Little Stone and Man Jiao’s feelings and did not kill anyone, merely knocking them all unconscious.

Feng Zikang looked around the stone walls of the mountain cave, feeling a strange premonition.

This style of layout... it was remarkably similar to the small world within the mountain on Dragon Tooth Island...

Although the scale and design here were far inferior to Dragon Tooth Island, the overall tone and direction were identical. It was just that the person who built this grotto lacked sufficient resources, preventing perfection.

If the Great Master had a hand in laying out this grotto, could the small world on Dragon Tooth Island, or perhaps even the Xuan Realm, be connected to this mysterious Great Master?

Feng Zikang pondered deeply. After a long while, he suddenly heard the triumphant chirp of the little fox.

As expected, it was the first to find a passage!

It was beneath a stone stele in the center of the grotto. After being forcefully moved, a channel of deep azure light was revealed.

Feng Zikang was startled; he recognized this divine technique!

He never expected to see such a thing in the remote Southern Barbarian lands!

"Master, the stele at the entrance has inscriptions."

Ghost King Tu recognized the ancient demonic script and translated each character for Feng Zikang.

If his guess was correct, this passage likely led to the Great Master’s dwelling.

"He... He went to such great lengths to create this arrangement. What exactly is he trying to achieve?"

He has been operating in the Southern Barbarian lands for hundreds of years!

For what purpose?

"What purpose? We'll know once we go and see!"

Moreover, he felt a clue, something important, was slowly being grasped by him.

The Great Master's location might provide him with a satisfactory answer!

"Follow me!"