87: Chapter 87 The Feast Begins! If you don't want to eat, then you'll be eaten!

"Yinshan Village? How could Haicheng have such a gloomily Yin Qi-filled village? Shouldn't the village below Shouguo Temple be..."

Among the crowd following off the bus, a balding man wearing a gold watch who looked like a successful businessman spoke tremulously.

But before he could finish his sentence, all the villagers instantly froze and turned their gazes toward him in unison, their faces expressionless.

The balding man immediately shut his mouth, cold sweat pouring down his forehead.

"Stop trying to understand these things with conventional logic."

Old Wu glanced at the balding man and said calmly, "I helped your company successfully navigate a lawsuit. Is it too much to ask you to come here today and burn a stick of Sacrificial Incense?"

The balding man shook his head like a rattle. "No, no, it's not too much, not at all. Whatever you say, Brother Wu."

"Then stop talking nonsense."

As he spoke, Old Wu looked around at the rest of the group. "Soon you will discover that we really brought you here for your own good. Once you truly understand the benefits, you will appreciate our good intentions. You'll even bring your closest loved ones here in the future, and then we'll all be one of our own. As your Guides, we will also help you lead your relatives and friends here—it's what we call 'pulling from above and pushing from below, helping from the left and supporting from the right.'"

Old Wu paused for a moment, then looked at the five punks and smiled. "Look, I don't actually know you well, and there's no conflict of interest, so everything I'm telling you is heartfelt. This brother, Chen Yao, is your Guide. Once you truly experience the benefits, you'll thank him."

After speaking, Old Wu gave the tattooed man, Chen Yao, a slight smile as a gesture of goodwill. The latter nodded gently, accepting the sentiment.

The punks looked at each other, not daring to say a word.

"Alright! Guests from afar, you must be tired after your long journey. Let the feast begin!"

The leading White-haired Elder spoke in a raspy yet resonant voice and waved his hand. The villagers swarmed forward, leading everyone into the village with overwhelming enthusiasm.

"Come, come, this way please... Come, come, this way please..."

Consequently, those passengers who had intended to slip away unnoticed had to abandon the idea and obediently follow the crowd.

Chu Xuan held a 6.8mm caliber Type 08 Submachine Gun. Even Old Wu and his group were somewhat wary of this posture, yet the villagers seemed completely oblivious, inviting them in with beaming, enthusiastic faces.

Wang Ruozi looked nervous, sticking close to his side.

Chu Xuan frowned slightly. If this were still the world before his Transmigration, he would have been used to this and wouldn't have felt anything special.

But in this world, he felt a strange aversion to strangers getting close, fearing they might suddenly turn into a hideous monster and take a bite out of him.

Only after sensing the uncontrollable tension, fear, and cowardice in Wang Ruozi's emotions did Chu Xuan relax slightly, knowing she wasn't a Specter.

Furthermore, after Chu Xuan scanned the other passengers again, he realized that besides the seductive woman, the only other two female passengers were obese middle-aged women. He dismissed the idea of keeping more backup plans.

Relatively speaking, for the upcoming appearance of the Great Buddha, the young Wang Ruozi seemed more nimble and had better agility.

"Big brother, please, you have to save me..." Wang Ruozi whispered, biting her lower lip.

Chu Xuan lowered his eyes slightly. "If you want to live, you must listen to me from now on. No matter what I tell you to do, you must execute it immediately. Do you understand?"

"Mm-hmm." Wang Ruozi's face lit up with joy, as if she had finally found a glimmer of hope for survival. She was so excited she almost jumped.

"Don't get ahead of yourself. If you mess things up for me, I'll be the first to gun you down." Chu Xuan slightly raised his muzzle, warning her in advance to prevent any future trouble.

Wang Ruozi trembled and nodded repeatedly.

"Come, come, this way please... Come, come, this way please..."

Aside from the White-haired Elder, the rest of the villagers were somewhat stiff, repeating the same phrase over and over as they crowded the passengers from the bus forward.

The group walked through the village, and before long, they arrived at a plaza outside an ancestral hall at the foot of the mountain.

Crude sheds had been set up here, surrounded by dim candlelight. Inside were about a dozen scattered, worn-out round tables. Plates of vibrantly colored fruits and pastries were already laid out, looking completely out of place.

Chu Xuan looked up. Halfway up the mountain, a Buddhist temple was brilliantly lit, glowing with golden light. A huge plaque was clearly visible from below, with three characters written on it.

Shouguo Temple!

"Be seated!"

The White-haired Elder's shout rang in their ears, signaling everyone to take a seat.

Under the intense gaze of the villagers, the passengers were practically forced into seats at various round tables. Wang Ruozi stuck close to Chu Xuan and wasn't separated by the villagers, successfully sitting down beside him.

"This... we shouldn't eat this, right?" Wang Ruozi leaned in close to Chu Xuan and whispered.

Not just her, but the other passengers felt the same. Although the fruits and pastries looked very enticing and even smelled sweet, anyone with half a brain knew that in a place this eerie, you definitely shouldn't eat anything.

"Let the feast begin!"

At the White-haired Elder's shout, most of the villagers acted like starving beasts, scrambling to grab the fruits and pastries on the table, stuffing them into their mouths with reckless abandon and feasting greedily.

Juices flowed down their chins, emitting an even more refreshing and sweet aroma. Many passengers who had been resistant couldn't help but swallow their saliva, yet they forced themselves to suppress the urge to eat.

"Heh! These are all good things. Don't say I didn't warn you—if you don't eat now, there won't be any left later." Old Wu sat at the same table as the White-haired Elder, scanning the passengers scattered among the villagers with a playful glint in his eyes.

A small portion of the villagers, though eating heartily, managed to maintain some semblance of human etiquette; their facial expressions were vivid and not stiff or robotic.

While eating, these villagers stared at the other passengers at their table and asked coldly, "Why aren't you eating? Eat!"

Nearly every table had a few such villagers. They stared intently at the passengers who hadn't eaten, their expressions turning gruesome. Their skin quickly grayed, cheekbones protruded, and they bared their teeth, revealing wide, crimson gums.

Their teeth gradually sharpened, glinting with a chilling light.

This sight made many passengers want to bolt immediately, but remembering the fate of those who had disobeyed on the bus, and being surrounded by villagers, they feared a worse end and didn't dare act rashly.

However, one person couldn't help but stand up, saying tremulously, "I won't eat, I won't eat..."

The person stood up abruptly but was grabbed firmly by a nearby villager. Sharp nails pierced their arm, and blood flowed instantly. The person screamed and tried to resist, but was tackled straight to the ground.

In an instant, several surrounding villagers swarmed over like beasts pouncing on prey, their eyes gleaming with excitement and greed as they began to tear and bite at the person on the ground.

A thick scent of blood instantly filled the air.

Mixed with the enticing sweet aroma, it created a bizarre and unique smell.