Human voices.
People.
And what did that mean, in Yi Tianxing's eyes? Population. The foundation of strengthening Xuanhuang Village. Even a single person was precious; every individual represented the village's heritage, the most valuable of all resources.
Let alone the fact that the voices he was hearing clearly didn't come from just one person—but from a large group.
Such a sizable group of humans—if they could be rescued—would mean a significant boost to the population of Xuanhuang Village. Genuine heritage, a real increase in strength. Without fresh blood, development would be impossible.
With the fusion of the myriad worlds, not only did the number of humans increase, but all kinds of monsters, fierce beasts, and even other races now roamed freely. Some had formed villages, others hadn't. Some had been scattered across different regions, and many were captured or imprisoned by monsters or other races. Nothing was impossible.
But now, it was certain: there were indeed scattered human survivors within this jungle. Judging by the situation, they were likely not doing well. Otherwise, they wouldn't be crying and screaming in fear.
Yi Tianxing carefully and swiftly crept forward.
The combat suit on his body helped him blend into the jungle, reducing his presence and concealing his movements to the maximum extent.
Before long, the view ahead suddenly opened up.
He hid behind a large tree and looked out.
A shocking sight appeared before him.
In front of him was a massive encampment.
At its center burned a bonfire. Surrounding it were cages, filled with a large number of human captives. Dozens, maybe over a hundred, cages hung from trees by vines. Each one held several people. They all looked worn out and terrified.
By the bonfire stood massive, hulking humanoid monsters, each towering at least twice the height of an adult man—three to four meters tall—like giants. Their limbs were thick, their claws menacing, and their mouths bristled with fangs. Their terrifying muscles exuded a sense of oppressive dread, stirring deep fear in the heart.
To ordinary humans, these creatures looked like demons or monsters from nightmares.
One of them, clearly the largest, stood at five to six meters tall, and the aura it emitted was terrifying. It was obvious at a glance: this one was no pushover.
"Ogres!!"
Yi Tianxing's pupils shrank. These creatures looked exactly like a type of monster he'd seen online in the past—Ogres. In biological terms, terrifying predators. They loved eating humans. Their brute strength was immense, and their combat style was savage and brutal.
What he was looking at now was clearly a small ogre tribe.
There were only seven or eight of them—but they had captured hundreds of people.
Near the fire, a woman's naked corpse lay bloodied and abused. Her fate was self-evident—brutally assaulted and killed. The pale faces of the women still in the cages told the rest of the story. None wanted to face that same fate. Death would have been a mercy.
The ogres danced around the fire, performing some sort of tribal ritual. The dance was rough and wild. With a group of ogres performing it, the atmosphere became outright terrifying.
Their stomping shook the earth.
Boom!!
When they finished dancing, one ogre strode toward a cage. Inside was a single human—fat. Enormously fat.
No ordinary fat—he looked like a walking meatball.
The man must have weighed over 300 jin (~150 kg). His huge body made the cage creak and groan under the strain, as if it were about to collapse. But it held firm.
The ogre came up to him, licked its lips, and drooled.
"Ucha-cha!!"
It reached into the cage, grabbed the man's thick leg, and effortlessly yanked him out.
The fat man turned ghostly pale, screaming and crying, snot and tears pouring down.
"Save me! Don't eat me! I'm the Prince of Fortune! I'm the Blessed King of the Ming Dynasty! Eat me, and you offend the royal family!"
"I don't want to die! Someone save me!"
"I'm rich! I have so much money! Don't eat me, I'll give you all of it!"
In the ogre's hands, the man was weightless, flailing helplessly. The other prisoners watched in horror, many so scared they lost control of their bladders and bowels, but didn't dare utter a sound. They clamped their mouths shut, terrified they'd be next.
"Blessed King? Ming Dynasty? And fat to boot—there's no mistaking it, he must be the infamous Prince of Fortune from history. Fitting. In the original history, he was served up by Li Zicheng in a feast. Now he's about to be roasted by ogres."
"Too much meat. He was always doomed to be eaten."
Yi Tianxing couldn't help but show a strange expression. He already knew who the fat man was.
But seriously—if you're that fat, and destined to be eaten, what else do you expect?
The ogres, though only at the Spirit Sea Realm, were still incredibly dangerous. Fighting one or two, Yi Tianxing didn't fear. But facing seven or eight at once, he'd be overwhelmed.
Especially with so many human captives around.
This wasn't a time for reckless bravery. Not to save some pig-like prince. That would be plain stupid.
Squelch!!
The ogres dragged the fat prince to the fire. They tore off his clothes, stripping him bare. One ogre pulled out a bamboo tube, shoved it into the prince's mouth, and poured in a full bucket of water.
The prince couldn't resist. The water forced his belly to bulge even more. When the bamboo was removed, an ogre pressed down on his stomach.
Hurl!!
The prince spewed a stream of water, vomiting out everything in his gut. A complete purge.
Then, they shoved a bamboo stick up his rear.
The prince screamed and passed out. The pain and humiliation were unspeakable.
A second bucket of water was poured in.
A full intestinal cleanse.
Even Yi Tianxing was stunned, mouth agape. He silently mourned for the prince. A vision of falling chrysanthemums filled his mind…
Squelch!!
An ogre expertly skewered the prince on a wooden spit, impaling him through the rear. The scream that followed was soul-piercing.
They set him over the fire. He was still alive. The flames licked his flesh—the pain, the horror—words couldn't capture it.
The ogres laughed at his screams.
"Ucha-cha!!""Ucha-cha!!"
Before long, the prince fell silent. Whether he burned to death or died from fear, it didn't matter. He was dead. His flesh sizzled, golden and glistening with fat. A fragrant roast pork aroma filled the air.
The ogres cheered.
They pointed at his roasting body, laughing and arguing over which part looked tastiest. To an outsider, it was a scene of pure madness.
Even Yi Tianxing felt sick. Watching a fellow human get roasted and eaten—it was deeply disturbing.
"They really are man-eating monsters. All these captives—they're food. Hundreds of them. That's not a small number. If I can save them all, the boost to Xuanhuang Village would be enormous. I have to find a way."
Yi Tianxing took a deep breath and forced down the nausea. His eyes grew cold as he stared at the ogres feasting. In his mind, plans started to form.
A direct assault was too risky. Seven or eight ogres at once—even he couldn't handle that.
Plus, there were hundreds of humans involved.
This had to be done smartly. No brute force.
Ogres were strong, with tough skin and vicious combat instincts. Not dumb, either—they were a full-fledged race on the Eternal Continent. They could coordinate and support one another in battle.
"Two options. One: isolate and eliminate—draw each ogre out and kill them one by one. Two: come up with a plan to kill them all at once."
Yi Tianxing's eyes flashed with icy light as he weighed the possibilities.