The true face of the monster

“Are you the Gao Family Clan Chief?”

Li Tan, through "Eye of Truth", had already sensed that the person before him was a Cultivator at the tenth level of Qi Condensation, but he still wanted to confirm it to be safe.

The man dared not delay and quickly reported his Daoist title: “This humble one is indeed the Gao Family Clan Chief, Gao Qingming.”

Li Tan nodded slightly:

“Gao Qingming, let me ask you, besides favoring women, does this Yao Beast have any other prey on its list?”

“Have Cultivators or residents ever been attacked?”

Gao Qingming dared not delay and quickly revealed the inside information he knew.

“Reporting, honored one, Cultivators and Mortals are all safe and sound; this Yao Beast only targets females!”

“I hope the honored one can capture this Yao Beast and bring peace to this impoverished land.”

Wang Longzhi readily agreed, his face filled with indignation: “Since we have come, we will definitely give you an explanation. Just wait for the good news.”

“Gao Qingming, you may rise. As a Clan Chief, you should not kneel so casually.”

Gao Qingming expressed another round of gratitude and hurriedly instructed his subordinates to arrange a private room.

..........

The scene shifted.

Before the three of them was a dark, murky river, filled with countless discarded items thrown in by residents.

A foul stench permeated the air, and there were even mischievous children urinating at the bridgehead.

Li Tan walked up to a group of children, squatted down, and asked softly:

“Aren’t you afraid of monsters in the river? They can eat people. If you get dragged away by it, you’ll never get to eat delicious candied hawthorns again.”

The children blinked their big eyes, very curious about the person in front of them.

A little boy opened his mouth with a smile:

“Are you an Immortal?”

“I am not.”

The little boy put his finger in his mouth, his face very excited: “Big brother, your robe is so beautiful, and your hair, it’s long and very clean.”

“My mother said that only Immortals of noble status look like this.”

“What’s your name?”

“My name is Hu Wa.”

“Then, Hu Wa, can you tell big brother why you’re not afraid of monsters?”

Hu Wa casually said: “Because my dad said that monsters don’t eat children, and they don’t eat my friends, and they don’t eat my dad or my mom.”

“Even the bad old man next door, whom I hate the most, the monster doesn’t eat him either.”

Wang Longzhi and Mu Xinling, who were beside him, had expressions of surprise in their eyes. They didn’t understand Li Tan’s intention behind this action.

Could it be that he liked young children? Seeing them cute, he couldn't help but want to tease them?

Li Tan tried to make his tone even gentler: “Then why doesn’t that monster eat Hu Wa?”

Seeing that Li Tan wasn’t a bad person, the children around Hu Wa gradually became bolder.

“I know this! My mom said monsters don’t eat children from poor families because our meat isn’t tasty, it’s very rough and gets stuck in their teeth.”

“Don’t talk nonsense! My mom clearly told me it’s because children from poor families aren’t good-looking, that’s why monsters don’t eat them.”

The children disagreed and soon started to loudly argue, each believing the other was lying.

The commotion quickly attracted the attention of adults, and women in their forties and fifties rushed over upon hearing it.

Upon seeing the attire of Li Tan and the two others, they immediately knelt down, kowtowing incessantly.

They sobbed, tears streaming down their frostbitten, rough faces, their hearts filled with both panic and fear.

“Honored ones, please spare us. These children don’t know anything.”

Passersby who saw this scene all detoured, fearing involvement.

A few Cultivators also observed the scene by the bridge, their gazes cold and mocking, awaiting the start of the show.

Hu Wa and the others’ smiles were replaced by sadness, and they opened their small mouths, crying uncontrollably.

Perhaps fearing disturbing the three, the terrified women tried to stop them but were blocked by Li Tan’s spiritual power.

“It’s fine. This Daoist was just bored and came to tease the children.”

The women, pulling their children, joyfully kowtowed repeatedly, continuously chanting: “Thank you, honored one, for your magnanimity! Thank you, honored one, for your magnanimity!...”

Li Tan smiled faintly:

“Brother Long, the Yao Beast has already shown its tail.”

Wang Longzhi was dumbfounded upon hearing this. He didn’t understand what Li Tan had discovered; this was clearly just a filthy, dead river.

Just going through the motions and teasing a group of children, and the problem that troubled everyone would be solved?

Mu Xinling also didn’t understand where the clue had appeared; the Yao Beast’s figure hadn’t even been glimpsed....

“Let’s go. Rest at the Gao Family for two days, and the result will come out.”

...........

On the first night, the Gao Family was very peaceful, with no suspicious points and no Yao Beast coming out to commit evil deeds.

Wang Longzhi didn’t believe in evil and insisted on staying up all night to wait for the Yao Beast. As a result, he didn’t even see a single human figure, only the whistling wind.

On the second night, the Yao Beast still didn’t come out to cause trouble, as if it knew of Li Tan and his group’s arrival and deliberately hid itself.

“This Yao Beast is so cunning; it hasn’t shown the slightest clue in two days!”

Li Tan patted Wang Longzhi’s shoulder: “Brother Long, I told you before, there’s no need to wait.”

“The Yao Beast won’t come; it has already hidden itself.”

Wang Longzhi pleaded: “Brother Tan, what was the Yao Beast clue you mentioned earlier? Don’t keep me in suspense; just tell me.”

“I’ve asked more than ten times these past two days, but you always say we still need to wait....”

Li Tan frankly confessed: “Before, I only caught some faint traces, so I dared not speak lightly.”

“But the peace of these past two days has proven what I thought in my heart. Such a clever Yao Beast, yet it only hunts young, beautiful women.”

“Doesn’t it know that humans and Yao Beasts are different? With this free time, it could have already become king in a remote mountain.”

Wang Longzhi speculated:

“Could it have some special Hobbies?”

Li Tan’s lips curved into a cold smile:

“That’s right, he does have a special Hobbies.”

.......

At the exquisite tea table, Li Tan and Gao Qingming sat facing each other.

Seeing Li Tan remain silent for a long time, Gao Qingming had no choice but to speak first: “Honored one, have you found any traces of that Yao Beast?”

“It’s just that the cunning Yao Beast hasn’t attacked any innocent women these past two days. It must have become vigilant.”

Li Tan took a sip of tea but didn’t swallow it: “You’re right, that Yao Beast is very intelligent. It must have heard something from somewhere and stopped its small actions.”

Gao Qingming smiled:

“Honored one, you really like to joke. How could a Yao Beast eavesdrop on people talking? If it were that intelligent, wouldn’t it be a great Yao Beast of the Foundation Establishment Stage?”

Li Tan smiled back:

“A Yao Beast in the Qi Condensation Stage naturally doesn’t have that ability. If it were in the Foundation Establishment Stage, it wouldn’t be my place to give orders.”

“Gao Qingming, what do you think if I ambush it for two days, taking it by surprise?”

Upon hearing this, Gao Qingming immediately cupped his hands:

“Thank you, honored one, for thinking of the people. This humble one represents the Gao Family and thanks you here. After this Yao Beast is eliminated, we will surely hold a feast for three days and three nights.”

But the next moment, Li Tan frowned slightly, his face filled with worry:

“It’s just that our conversation seems to have been overheard by him again....”