"Go on… I am listening." It wouldn't be a lie to say that out of all the things, that black fog and the cave, as well as the water well, were the only things that attracted his attention. Since he couldn't go into them, he was hoping to find out about them in some other way, and now that there was finally someone willing to tell him about them, he couldn't help but hold his breath, waiting for her to continue.

"Our village doesn't have a name, and for as long as I could remember, the people here lived by hunting and foraging."

"A year ago…" Her voice trembled for an instant before she gathered her courage to speak further. "It all started a year ago when we angered the gods."

"Oh!?" Yang Ze's eyes narrowed into slits as he heard her speak. He wanted to ask about the so-called 'gods' but stopped and let her continue.

"Our village used to have a custom of sacrificing a pair of a boy and a girl every year to our patron god for safety and resources."

"A year ago, the village chief found an injured outsider in the forest. So, she brought her home and treated her."

"When the outsider was fully healed, and it was time for her to go, she discovered about the sacrifice ceremony and chose to interfere in it."

"She said that there were no Gods in this world and that it was just a demonic cultivator who had lost their mind."

"She said that she was a powerful cultivator and could help our village."

"And you believed her?" Yang Ze asked with some confusion. Could it be that these people were naive enough to believe whatever an outsider told them?

"Of course not." Qing Cao snorted in displeasure as if she was offended by the mere mention of this matter.

"No one took her seriously at first, but then she lifted her hand, and a big ball of fire appeared in her hands. After that…" Qing Cao didn't complete her sentence, and her eyes were in a daze as if she was recalling the outrageous scene of the woman summoning a fireball out of thin air.

She could still remember how she, too, thought that the woman was crazy, but the moment she summoned a fireball… At that time, for the first time in her small life, she felt like she had found a purpose. She wanted to be just like that woman… she too wanted to be as strong as her and explore the world outside.

After seeing her in a daze, Yang Ze didn't interrupt her, but instead kept quiet and silently recalled everything that she just said.

A person who could summon a fireball out of thin air… It was definitely a powerhouse in the realm of Core Condensation. Although he didn't know how a person like that ended up here injured and even tried to interfere in this village's personal matters, the fact that a Core Condensation realm powerhouse took action was enough to make him even more curious about what happened after.

It wasn't until a few more minutes passed that Qing Cao came back to her senses as her head lowered in grief and her voice dimmed.

"Some of the older villagers tried to reason with her, pleading with her not to do anything, but the woman was intent on taking action."

"She said it was her way of repaying us for helping her out."

"And then, what happened?" Yang Ze's curiosity was only increasing with every passing moment.

"And then she rushed inside the cave." Qing Cao replied with a whisper.

"We all were too weak to stop her, and she didn't listen to our words."

"We don't know what happened inside the cave, but after an entire day, the black fog burst out like a tide, dragging every person above the age of sixteen into the cave."

"And from that day on… every time someone from the village reaches the age of seventeen, they would be dragged inside the cave."

Listening till here, Yang Ze's expression finally changed. He finally had the answer for the absence of the villagers. But what surprised him more than that was the fact that even a core condensation realm powerhouse failed to defeat whatever it was in the cave. Not only did she fail, but she also angered it, causing it to drag in all the adults of the village.

No wonder… no wonder the moment the group of girls attacked him on the sight. In their eyes, he was an anomaly… his clothing, his lack of caution and his healthy figure, which was a far cry from the malnourished children… it was a dead giveaway of his identity as an outsider.

"I see." He thought for a moment before asking again.

"I saw you all throwing away a rabbit in the cave yesterday and in return receiving some white powder… What was it all?"

"Oh, that!" Qing Cao replied with a soft tone. "When the adults were dragged in, there was a voice that told us that if we offer carcases of living beings, we will receive food."

"....." Yang Ze's eyes narrowed into slits as he suddenly thought about something before asking.

"You attacked me to throw me into the cave for food, right?" Now everything made sense. He had been thinking that they attacked him because of being an outsider, but it looks like there was one more reason.

"I… we…" The moment Yang Ze pointed it out, Qing Cao's body trembled for a moment as she lowered her head, not daring to meet Yang Ze's gaze. She was trying her best to find words, but her reaction had told Yang Ze everything that he needed to know.

"Don't be afraid." Looking at her constantly trembling figure and a face that was almost on the verge of crying, Yang Ze couldn't help but let out a soft sigh before rubbing her head. "I am not going to harm you."

By now, he was starting to get a clear picture of the village and what was going on around here. It was impossible for the group of children to support themselves only by hunting. Not to mention how hard it was just to find a single rabbit, even if they managed to find it, sharing it amongst all the children of the village was an impossible task. Thus, throwing it into the cave for that white powder seemed much better. This way, at least they all could survive.

"But why don't you leave this village?" Yang Ze couldn't help but ask the question in a confused tone. Since there was such a danger in this village and the people would be dragged into the cave once they turned seventeen, wouldn't it have been a better option to just leave this village?

"Leave?" Qing Cao's already dimmed eyes dimmed even further as she let out a bitter smile. "And go where?"

"Not to mention that we have this thing on our bodies." The moment she spoke, she took off the robe, displaying her naked, thin, malnourished body that was all bones.

What attracted Yang Ze's gaze was a long, harrowing, dark tattoo that spread from the middle of her chest to her entire upper half, like a mutated patch of flesh and veins that would pulsate every few seconds.

"What the hell?" Yang Ze immediately used his All-seeing eyes, hoping to understand what it was, but no matter how hard he looked, no information popped up. It was as if this thing didn't even exist.

"What the hell is this?" He couldn't help but slowly reach out to touch it. The first thing he felt was bones from her thin body, as well as that weird pulsating every few seconds. Yang Ze tried to use his internal energy, hoping to see any reaction, but no matter how much internal energy he poured, there was no reaction. That thing was like a sponge, absorbing every single drop of his internal energy without any changes.

In the end, he cast a puzzled gaze at Qing Cao, waiting for her to explain it to him.

"The day that the black fog erupted, taking every adult wasn't the only thing it did." Her breath trembled for an instant as she spoke further. "It also left this mark on us."

"If we travel too far away, it will spread and cause us immense pain."

"And if we still ignored it and kept on going further, it would make our bodies explode."

The moment she finished speaking, Yang Ze couldn't help but take in a deep, sharp breath.

"Hiss~" He wasn't expecting things to be this dire.

His gaze towards Qing Cao turned gentle as he picked up the stitched crude clothes from the ground and covered her body with it before gently rubbing her head while his eyes turned in the direction of the cave, as if wanting to see through it.

"Can…" Looking at him in a faze, Qing Cao, couldn't help but ask in a somewhat nervous and expectant tone. "Can you help us?"

Yang Ze's hands suddenly stiffened as he slowly turned to face Qing Cao. Looking at her eyes, which were full of hope and nervousness, as well as a look of defiance, he couldn't help but be in a daze as a familiar face with these same expressions flashed before his eyes.

'How similar…' He couldn't help but mutter to himself as his hands gently rubbed her head. In that instant, Yang Ze saw not Qing Cao, but another small figure who once asked him the same thing…

It took a while for him to come back to his senses as he slowly closed his eyes, but his trembling eyelashes, as well as the rapid breathing, were enough to show the turmoil in his heart.

Perhaps this was the reason why he didn't take any action against these kids, not even giving them a good beating.

Perhaps this was the reason why he felt like staying here and helping them out.

Qing Cao watched intently, with her heart in her throat, waiting nervously for Yang Ze's reply. She was afraid that he would refuse her request and be on his way. Even though she knew the boy in front of her was strong, she didn't think he was as strong as the woman who summoned a fireball.

She didn't want him to go and explore the cave… She didn't want him to avenge the fellow villagers. She only wanted him to bring them away from this place. She wanted to leave this damned hell. She wanted to go out and explore. She wanted to live a life that she had always dreamt of.

She waited patiently for an answer.

She knew she was asking for too much. She didn't even know if the boy in front of her could help her and the others. But she had no other option.

She was just a child… She might be a bit cleverer than others, but her mind wasn't shrewd or calculating.

A different person would have waited patiently, observed first and then talked to Yang Ze when the time was right, and the ball was in their favour, but not her… She didn't know how the adult's mind works.

So, the moment she was alone with Yang Ze, she immediately revealed his identity as well as her unique ability to smell scent.

Truly… a child's mind. Revealing everything about herself to a complete stranger without asking if he was a good person or a bad person.

After what felt like an eternity, she saw the boy open his eyes as if he had made up his mind. He then gently rubbed her head with a warm smile before giving her a nod.

"Okay." Yang Ze finally gave an honest answer.

For a while, he even asked himself why he was doing this. He knew in his heart that walking away from this damned place was the best course of action. He didn't need to take any risks here. He could simply walk out and explore other areas. He didn't even know these brats, and they were the first ones to shoot arrows at him, hoping to sacrifice him.

No matter how one looked, he was already showing mercy by not taking action against them. There was just no need for him to interfere in their matters.

And yet…

Yet… he couldn't refuse.

Not because he was a hero in shining armour. Not because he was a saint… but because of the fact that Qing Cao reminded him of someone extremely dear to him.

Someone whom he had always taken care of… someone whom he had always protected…

His younger sister.

Back on Earth, with his father dead and his mother's unpredictable personality, the two of them only had each other to depend upon. At that time, she was the one cheering him up, and sometimes even taking care of him.

She was the reason why he kept on struggling, even with such a shitty life. She was the reason why he tried his best to hold his family together, regardless of his suffering.

And now the girl in front of him… Qing Cao… she reminded him of his sister.

Those eyes which were filled with expectations… that face which was filled with hope and nervousness… Everything about her reminded him of his sister.

For a while, even her face seemed to overlap with his sister's, making it impossible for Yang Ze to refuse.

"I will help you guys." Yang Ze spoke in a firm voice. This was perhaps the first time he had made a decision for himself since entering the world. Till now, he had been dragged around by others. Until now, he had never asked, never questioned, and never refused.

And for the first time after coming to this world, he wanted to do something.

He wanted to help these children…

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