Zhang Nu and his companions closely observed the so-called "YaoGuai" that had pursued them.
At first, the creature’s form had seemed terrifying in the shadows, but now that they had a clearer view, it appeared... weak. Confusion flickered across Zhang Nu’s face. Why would a YaoGuai be this frail? However, everything clicked into place once they saw its true form.
This wasn’t a YaoGuai at all—it was a villager. A perfectly ordinary villager from the town. But why would an ordinary person disguise themselves as a YaoGuai? And more importantly, how did they possess such sharp hearing and eerie movements?
Zhang Nu’s thoughts raced, "It looks like they’re just regular villagers... but why do they look like this? And their hearing— it's too sensitive, far beyond human capability."
Though Zhang Nu spoke cautiously, they were still too close. The "YaoGuai" suddenly stopped, its head tilting as if it had heard something. A moment later, it lunged toward them. The three of them barely dodged the sudden attack.
When they got a clearer look at their assailant, shock washed over them. It was the same villager who had refused them lodging on their first night.
Zhang Nu, Liu Hai, and Lin Xiao exchanged glances. Since they knew these "YaoGuais" were the townspeople, they hesitated. They couldn’t just attack them.
But then... what should they do?
"Zhang Nu, what do we do?" Liu Hai asked, voice tight. "Are we really supposed to fight ordinary people?"
Lin Xiao’s expression darkened.
"Liu Hai, wake up," he said coldly, "They’re not ordinary people anymore. They might have been human by day, but at night, they are YaoGuais.”
Why? He didn’t know. But what he did know was that if they hesitated, they could all die here.
"We don’t know why they transform at night," Lin Xiao continued. "But our priority is survival."
Zhang Nu and Liu Hai fell silent. Lin Xiao was right—the longer they delayed, the greater the danger.
"If we don’t fight, we will die," Zhang Nu muttered, "But if we do fight, how do we make sure we’re not killing innocent people?"
Lin Xiao took a deep breath.
"We don’t need to kill them," he said, "We just need to restrain them."
Zhang Nu frowned, "Restrain them? How? Our magic is all offensive-based."
Liu Hai sighed, "Yeah, neither of us has any binding techniques..."
Lin Xiao’s gaze hardened, "Then I’ll do it."
Without hesitation, he stepped forward and raised his hand. A moment later, thick tree roots burst from the ground, twisting around the villagers-turned-YaoGuais and binding them in place.
Zhang Nu and Liu Hai watched in awe. They had always known Lin Xiao had sharp instincts—but they had never seen him use this kind of power before.
"You could do that this whole time?" Liu Hai blurted out, "Why didn’t you say something earlier? We wouldn’t have needed to run so much!"
Before Zhang Nu could respond, his attention snapped to Lin Xiao. Something was wrong. Lin Xiao swayed slightly, his face was unusually pale.
Zhang Nu immediately stepped forward, catching him before he could stumble, "Lin Xiao, are you alright?"
Liu Hai’s smugness vanished instantly. He hadn’t noticed before, but now that Zhang Nu pointed it out, he could see it clearly. Lin Xiao looked exhausted. No wonder he rarely used his abilities.
"Lin Xiao, you haven’t mastered your powers yet, have you?" Zhang Nu asked, concern evident in his voice.
"If you push yourself too hard, you’re going to collapse," Liu Hai added.
"We don’t want to see you like this." Zhang Nu’s words were gentle, but firm.
They weren’t just worried about his well-being—they needed him at his best. And pushing himself like this wasn’t worth it.