Chapter 224: Better Off Dead

"Your village is just ahead, isn't it?" At this moment, the brocade-clad youth riding a fierce beast pointed ahead with an indifferent expression.

"Yes, Your Highness, it's just ahead." The man following beside Young Master Zou said fearfully.

"Very good. If this item truly exists, I, the Crown Prince, will guarantee you a lifetime of wealth and honor." A cold glint flickered in the eyes of the brocade-clad youth, Zou Sheng. If the item were real, it would be a favorable condition in his struggle for the throne.

The Qin Divine Dynasty had dozens of crown princes. To stand out among the many candidates required not only strategy but also strength.

"Your Highness, then the conditions I mentioned..." The guide cowered, but thinking of future riches, he was also extremely excited.

"Hmph, once I obtain the item, I won't shortchange you. But if I find you've deceived me, you know the consequences." Zou Sheng was one of the crown princes of the Qin Divine Dynasty, determined to win the throne. This country bumpkin had stopped his carriage, claiming to have a treasure and hoping to exchange it for sufficient benefits.

To Zou Sheng, such benefits were trivial. Still, he hadn't expected to find such a treasure in this mountain village—it was somewhat hard to believe.

"Y-yes, Your Highness, rest assured, every word I speak is true, not a single falsehood." The man said hurriedly.

"That's best." Zou Sheng nodded, then waved his hand. "Advance."

A large troop of black-armored knights with fierce auras followed behind Zou Sheng.

At the entrance of Rock Village, a group of children were playing. Suddenly, the large troop of black-armored knights appeared in their sight.

Some of the older children immediately ran back to inform the adults.

The village chief of Rock Village rushed over upon hearing the news. When he saw the men outside, his expression changed drastically. Then, among the crowd, he spotted the person he least wanted to see.

"You unfilial wretch, you dare come back!" The village chief roared, his face red with anger.

The man among the black-armored knights lowered his head in fear, not daring to meet his gaze.

Zou Sheng, riding the fierce beast, sneered. "Hand over the item..."

...

After flying dozens of miles, Lin Fan felt something was off. It was one thing for him to appear in this desolate wilderness, but what was that group of people doing here?

Moreover, the direction they were heading seemed to be toward Rock Village.

The more he thought about it, the more uneasy he felt. Lin Fan immediately turned back. Regardless, he had to at least confirm what was happening. Whether there was trouble or not, it would set his mind at ease.

Since he had encountered this, he could go back and take a look. If everything was fine, he could leave then.

As he drew closer to Rock Village, Lin Fan suddenly noticed that the sky seemed to have turned red. The stench of blood drifted in the air, pungent and nauseating.

Lin Fan's heart trembled, and he frowned. Could something have really happened? He couldn't help but speed up.

At that moment, wails, curses, and angry shouts reached Lin Fan's ears.

Lin Fan looked down, and a surge of anger rose in his heart. He gritted his teeth and spat out a few words.

"Beasts."

...

"Old man, hand over the item obediently, or this child's life is forfeit." Zou Sheng sneered, his long sword pressed against the child's neck, as if the child's life would end the moment the village chief said no.

"You bunch of beasts!" the village chief cursed angrily.

"Hmph..."

In an instant, a head flew into the air. Zou Sheng flicked his wrist, and a sword qi shattered the floating head into pieces. A spray of blood scattered in the void, a gruesome sight.

"Old man, just give that item to His Highness, and you'll have wealth and honor too. Do you want to die?" The guide's face was pale. He hadn't expected the crown prince to be so ruthless.

"Shut up, you wretch!" The village chief stared at Yan Xiong with bloodshot eyes.

"It seems you won't give it. This little girl is at most thirteen or fourteen, quite tender. Heishan, she's yours." Zou Sheng sneered, his expression cruel.

"Thank you, Your Highness." A black-armored soldier stepped forward with a lecherous grin. His towering figure was like a bear, and his eyes, as if devouring, fixed on the little girl cowering on the ground. With a loud laugh, he pulled her over.

"You're demons."

...

"It seems you still won't hand it over. Truly hard-hearted." Zou Sheng smiled cruelly, then a flash of light passed.

The little girl, pinned under the soldier, suddenly had her head separated from her neck. A column of blood shot into the air, splattering everywhere. Her death was horrific.

"I'll fight you beasts!" The village chief roared and charged forward, but in Zou Sheng's eyes, he was like an ant.

A sword pierced through the village chief's shoulder, then lifted him up and slammed him heavily into the distance.

Screams rang out incessantly. Yan Xiong, standing nearby, watched and trembled uncontrollably.

"Your Highness, this is my father, please..." Yan Xiong was terrified.

"Heh, with a lifetime of wealth and honor ahead, what need do you have for this old man? Unless you want him to kill you?" A cold sneer flickered in Zou Sheng's gloomy eyes. The feeling of holding everyone's life and death in his hands was simply wonderful.

"Y-yes." Yan Xiong shivered. "Your Highness speaks wisely."

Yan Xiong was the village chief's son. He had long known that Rock Village possessed a treasure passed down by ancestors, always kept by the village chief. Yan Xiong had conceived a crooked idea: to steal the treasure and sell it in the city in exchange for wealth and glory.

He had attempted to steal it several times but was caught by the village chief, who drove him out of the village with a stick. Eventually, he ended up in the Qin Divine Dynasty, where he decided to sell the secret.

In Yan Xiong's view, the treasure was certainly valuable. He couldn't approach just anyone, and he couldn't meet the dynasty's ruler. In the end, he set his sights on Crown Prince Zou, who often appeared in the city.

"Stop!"

At that moment, a rainbow streak shot rapidly from the horizon.

Lin Fan looked at the scene around him, his heart turning ice-cold. How could anyone do something like this?

Over a hundred villagers had died so tragically. What kind of beast could commit such acts, leaving bodies torn apart?

They hadn't even spared the children. They deserved to die.

"Sir..." The village chief saw Lin Fan, and his bloodshot eyes suddenly blazed with an unprecedented light.

The village chief crawled painfully to Lin Fan's feet, his trembling hands clutching Lin Fan's pant leg.

"Sir, I have a treasure guarded by generations, and I am willing to give it to you. It is buried beneath the floor of my wooden hut. I only ask that you avenge the hundred or so souls of Rock Village." The village chief roared in anguish, then his eyes bulged, and he breathed his last.

Lin Fan stood there, trembling with rage, his eyes tightly shut.

But the moment they opened, the wind and clouds shifted, and an unprecedented aura burst forth from Lin Fan.

"Very well. I will make you wish you were dead."