Shen Feng had no intention of falling out with them, after all, the other party was not a heinous criminal, just someone who stole his things. It was not a crime punishable by death, but that did not mean Shen Feng was willing to be led around like a donkey, letting others pull the wool over his eyes.
Shen Feng had given Talutz a chance. If he was willing to hand over the meteorite, Shen Feng would let him go. But now, Talutz, thinking he had Shen Feng cornered, continued to bluster. He had seen news about the meteorite online and knew its importance, so he believed Shen Feng wouldn't risk losing track of it, as a loss would mean losing it forever.
Shen Feng sighed helplessly and said to Yue Hengyi beside him, "Little Yue, double gravity!"
If Yue Hengyi had unleashed five times the gravity, half the people present would have died on the spot. Therefore, Shen Feng showed mercy. Yue Hengyi did not hesitate and instantly deployed the gravity field. Instantly, regardless of gender or age, all the natives knelt on the ground.
Shen Feng pointed at the kneeling crowd and said to Talutz, "Now, here's your chance. Tell me the whereabouts of the meteorite and return it to me! Otherwise, every ten minutes, I will kill one of you. I keep my word!"
Talutz replied with a cold laugh, "My friend, you seem to have misunderstood the situation. It's not you who are threatening me, but I who am threatening you. If you kill these people, then all three thousand of them will consider you enemies. And against enemies, they will fight to the last warrior."
Talutz was completely unyielding. Yue Hengyi found the situation difficult. He had never expected that the most challenging situation they would face would come from a group of natives. Even when attacked by other ability users before, he had never felt so stifled.
Shen Feng took a deep breath and then sighed, "I didn't want to resort to despicable and shameless means. A true man does things honorably. I didn't expect that a gentleman can be deceived. I am playing by the rules, but some people are not. I am forced to take this drastic measure!"
Shen Feng used "As the Wind Follows" to bypass the more than two thousand people surrounding him and headed towards the houses in the distance. The adults and teenagers were mostly suppressed by Yue Hengyi. What remained were a group of children, all following their parents' instructions to stay in the rooms.
Shen Feng's target was these children. There were many children aged two to three, but none under two. Most were likely not expected to survive infancy.
Shen Feng found a rope and tied up a group of children, stringing them together. More than twenty children were thus dragged to the side of the crowd, not brought into the gravity field. He then loudly declared, "Talutz stole my belongings. If you help him, then you are accomplices! Now, I need you to tell me the whereabouts of the meteorite. If you don't, I will have to take them away from the volcano and into the distant woods. There are monsters there!"
Shen Feng's words immediately drew a barrage of curses from the crowd. Shen Feng couldn't understand them, but he could imagine that most of these natives were calling him despicable and shameless.
Shen Feng didn't care about their curses. "Poor mountains and foul waters breed wicked people" was a saying that applied everywhere. A group of natives, thinking their unity made them invincible, acted with impunity. They had found the meteorite themselves, yet it was stolen, and now they were protecting the thief. Where was the justice in that?
Therefore, to deal with such people, one had to use unconventional methods.
Talutz sneered, offering no reply. He didn't believe Shen Feng would act. He had heard of Shen Feng's past deeds and knew he wouldn't do anything truly heinous.
Shen Feng turned and walked away, dragging the rope and forcibly taking the group of children out of the volcanic valley and through the canyon. The children didn't want to leave, so they lay on the ground, seemingly trying to stop Shen Feng with their actions.
But Shen Feng ignored them, dragging the rope and continuing forward. The skin of these children was immediately scraped by sharp stones, and blood flowed. They began to cry out in pain. Children's voices were naturally shrill, and even from a distance, their cries could be heard.
The natives heard the children's cries and became furious, struggling to rescue them.
Within the gravity field, almost everyone was unable to stand. Yet, even so, a group of people resisted the double gravity and crawled towards Shen Feng, their eyes filled with hatred.
Amiz was also furious. He had brought these two outsiders to the tribe, and now they were bringing disaster. He couldn't help but loudly accuse Yue Hengyi, "You two have no conscience! I brought you to the tribe, gave you fruit and food, and even cleared out rooms for you to live in. Now you are tormenting our children. This is repaying kindness with enmity!"
Yue Hengyi, being accused, knew it was true but didn't want to take the blame. He said directly, "One thing is one thing, and another is another. I am grateful for the fruit and food you gave me, but please understand, the one who stole our belongings is your prophet. Now, we are merely trying to retrieve our property. It is your stubborn protection of him that has escalated the situation. As long as you return our belongings, we will leave immediately without delay!"
As he spoke, Yue Hengyi glanced at Talutz. In the end, this prophet was the culprit. Everything had started because of him, yet now Talutz acted as if nothing had happened, lying on the ground watching the show.
Talutz knew that the more ruthless Shen Feng and Yue Hengyi acted, the more resentment the tribal people would have towards them, and his own prestige would not decrease. Thus, Talutz was now emboldened!
To add fuel to the fire, Talutz then loudly declared, "They are lying. Believe me, I am your prophet. I obtained the meteorite last night, and they tried to snatch it. Therefore, they are the real thieves."
As soon as this was said, the tribal natives became even more enraged, wishing they could rise up and beat Yue Hengyi.
Yue Hengyi stared intently at Talutz. This guy, as the tribe's true leader, didn't care about his subordinates at all and was constantly using them. Such a person truly deserved to die!
Just then, Shen Feng returned, his hands covered in blood. He asked directly, "Can anyone tell me where the meteorite is? If no one answers, I will go find the next group of children!"
Seeing the blood on Shen Feng's hands, the natives' eyes turned red. What more needed to be said? The children must have suffered greatly. These two demons should never have been brought to the tribe.
Shen Feng saw that no one answered, only curses. He shrugged and walked away, heading back towards the adobe houses. As he approached, many children rushed out of the houses and ran towards the distance. Shen Feng, unhurried, found a rope and began to catch the children. He knew that to deal with these united people, unconventional methods were necessary. As long as he could divide them from within, they would have to tell him the truth.
The children wanted to escape and not be caught, but it was futile. In the face of Shen Feng's speed, escape was impossible. Shen Feng soon strung together another group of children.
"Now, tell me the whereabouts of the meteorite, and I will release these children immediately. Otherwise, don't blame me for being ruthless!" Shen Feng continued.
The natives still showed no reaction, continuing to curse Shen Feng and Yue Hengyi.
Shen Feng shook his head. As he left, he pointed at Talutz and said, "It is all your prophet's fault that you have become this way. If he hadn't stolen my belongings, you wouldn't be in such misery!"
At this point, some natives began to doubt the truth of Talutz's words. Had the prophet really stolen these outsiders' belongings?
Next, Shen Feng returned empty-handed, his hands still covered in blood. The difference was that Shen Feng's clothes now also had bloodstains.
"Has no one answered yet? How pitiful. I'll go catch the next group of children. Remember, the reason you are in this situation now is because of your prophet. If you want to blame someone, blame the prophet!" Shen Feng continued.
Shen Feng chose to break through the psychological defenses of these people. For them, family was the most important thing, and this was the tribe's weakness. As long as their families were threatened, they could compromise on anything.
Finally, Shen Feng's plan succeeded. When he returned with a group of children tied up, a woman spoke, "I know where the meteorite is. Don't hurt my children!"
Previously, this woman had been worried when she saw other people's children being taken away. Other people's children were never as dear as her own. But now, among the children Shen Feng held by the rope, her own child was present.
Instantly, the woman's psychological defenses collapsed. For the sake of her child, she had to reveal the truth.
Talutz's eyes changed, and he quickly shouted, "Don't believe their words! They are lying to you. The children are fine, they are all outside the volcano and safe!"
Shen Feng gave Yue Hengyi a look. Yue Hengyi, understanding immediately, took off his shoes, took out his socks, and stuffed them into Talutz's mouth. Talutz reached out to remove the foul-smelling socks, but Yue Hengyi stepped forward and broke the prophet's arms with two swift blows.
Shen Feng said calmly, "Outside, there is a leopard. I noticed its belly was quite thin. Alas, I am kind-hearted, so I let the children feed it. But I see a pack of cubs following behind it, and the cubs haven't eaten yet. If you don't answer me, the cubs will not go hungry!"
As he spoke, Shen Feng prepared to take this group of children away from the volcano.
The woman, breaking down, said, "I saw the prophet coming out of your room. I saw where he put the stone. I will take you to find it!"
Yue Hengyi immediately released the gravity field, and everyone regained their mobility. A group of hot-blooded men immediately rushed forward to fight Yue Hengyi. Yue Hengyi, unhurried, dodged their attacks and then broke the legs of the one who attacked him most aggressively.
Shen Feng grabbed the woman and pulled her aside. Yue Hengyi re-deployed the gravity field, suppressing the more than two thousand people.
The native woman led Shen Feng into a small grove. She dug up a patch of soil under a tree and found the meteorite hidden by Talutz. Thus, Shen Feng found the meteorite, and the matter was perfectly resolved.
Shen Feng, holding the meteorite, found Yue Hengyi and said, "Little Yue, let's go. This place is full of sinister people, and staying here makes me sick. I've found the meteorite!"
Yue Hengyi then withdrew the gravity field and followed Shen Feng's footsteps, preparing to leave the volcano.
Before leaving, Shen Feng turned back and said, "Your children are outside, tied to a tree by me. Go and bring them back. By the way, your prophet, if he can foresee danger, why didn't he foresee the danger I brought this time?"
After speaking, Shen Feng and Yue Hengyi left the place directly, leaving behind a group of natives, some looking suspiciously at Talutz, while others rushed outside the volcano to search for the children.
Talutz watched the retreating figures of Shen Feng and Yue Hengyi, a venomous look in his eyes. But being inferior in skill, he could only curse the two of them in his heart, unable to do anything else.
Walking on the road, Yue Hengyi looked at Shen Feng's blood-stained hands and couldn't help but say, "I thought you had actually killed someone back then. Where did these bloodstains come from?"
Shen Feng shrugged and said, "Of course, it's the leopard's blood. When you're acting, you have to be realistic!"
Suddenly, in the distance, the forest began to shake. Vines and aerial roots grew constantly in the air. Once the vines entangled the trees, they began their specialty: strangulation! Plants in the rainforest must have a specialty to survive, and the vine's specialty was strangulation.