"That won't do. Even if you don't eat, you should at least have a drink. It's our village custom." The old man said, hurrying to instruct the villagers to fetch wine.
Xu Lei, sensing something was amiss, glanced at Yu Daohang beside him.
Yu Daohang pondered for a moment, feeling something was not right, and whispered, "Let's go!"
Xu Lei nodded and signaled to the disciples next to him, preparing to rise and leave, when he saw three burly men carrying three large jars of wine.
The old man chuckled, "Since everyone wants to leave, I won't keep you. The wine is here. Have a drink before you go."
After speaking, the old man gestured for the burly men to pour the wine.
Yu Daohang frowned as he watched the blood-red wine being poured, cursing inwardly.
"Is this even wine? I'd believe you if you said it was blood."
The old man chuckled when no one moved, "This is our village's specialty, bayberry wine. It can ward off the cold."
Bayberry wine?
Although Xu Lei's face remained expressionless, he was muttering to himself.
"Are you kidding me? This is clearly not bayberry wine."
Xu Lei might not be a drunkard, but he was usually drunk every three days and deeply drunk every five.
Yu Daohang and Xu Lei exchanged glances, suddenly recalling the reminder from the shifty-eyed driver.
"Whatever you do, don't drink any of the water inside."
Seeing the awkward atmosphere, Xiao Long picked up the wine on the table, ready to drink.
Just as Xiao Long raised the wine bowl and took a small sip, Yu Daohang suddenly reached out and grabbed Xiao Long's hand holding the wine.
Startled by Yu Daohang's sudden action, Xiao Long trembled, nearly spilling the wine on the ground.
The old man's expression visibly soured. He looked at Yu Daohang and said, "Young friend, what do you mean by this?"
Yu Daohang, seeing over a dozen villagers closing in and realizing the danger, reached for the Kanglong mace at his waist.
At this point, any reason was futile; it was time to fight.
Would he really be at a disadvantage?
The disciples behind them also entered combat readiness.
Just as the tension reached its peak, Xu Lei, with a cheerful demeanor, tried to smooth things over, "Village chief, it's not what you think. We cultivators have a rule in our sect that we cannot drink. My young brother here is a bit rash, I hope you don't mind."
The old man's icy expression softened, and he smiled, "This is the villagers' goodwill. Just have a bowl to show your respect."
"This might be a bit..." Xu Lei appeared embarrassed.
Whether the wine had a problem or not, they absolutely would not drink it.
Seeing Xu Lei still refusing, the old man was about to speak when a burly man beside him spoke with an unpleasant tone, "Are you not giving our village chief any face?"
Xu Lei shook his head and explained, "It's not that we don't want to drink, but our sect truly has a rule against touching alcohol. We hope you can understand."
The burly man stared at Xu Lei, his wooden stick held tightly in his hand, slightly raised, as if ready to strike at any moment, "Truly not giving any face at all?"
"This..." Xu Lei's face turned grim.
Yu Daohang beside him shook his head helplessly, patted Xu Lei's shoulder, and signaled for him to handle it.
Xu Lei glanced at Yu Daohang and took a step back.
Yu Daohang smiled faintly and stepped forward, his smile vanishing as he began to curse loudly, "Damn it all, do I need to give you face to get by in this world?"
Xu Lei was shocked!
The disciples were shocked!
Yu Daohang's sudden outburst caught everyone off guard.
Xu Lei couldn't believe these words came from the esteemed Yu Ye of Jiangdu.
Did experts on the Heaven Ranking speak like this?
The disciples behind him had their worldviews shattered. Was this truly the peerless prodigy Yu Ye, admired by all the younger generation?
What was the difference between this and a hooligan, other than his good looks?
As expected, Yu Daohang's sudden outburst stunned everyone, including his own people.
"I'm not drinking today, and I'd like to see who's fearless enough to force me."
Yu Daohang declared, drawing the Kanglong mace from his waist with imposing presence, adopting a posture ready to bite anyone.
As the saying goes, the soft fear the hard, and the hard fear the reckless.
To deal with these people, he had to unleash his former hooligan spirit to subdue these insignificant brats.
However, he had to admit that his temper had significantly calmed down since the Fengtian Assembly.
In the past, he would have drawn the Kanglong mace long ago.
Seeing that no one was speaking, Yu Daohang turned to look at the stunned Xu Lei and the others, "Let's go."
Xu Lei nodded, leading the disciples behind him in following Yu Daohang's arrogant stride out of the village.
The village chief and the villagers stood there watching. Perhaps they were stunned, or perhaps they hadn't recovered from their bewilderment.
After Yu Daohang and his group had gone quite a distance, the burly man who had spoken earlier asked, "Village chief, we're just letting them leave like this?"
The old man smiled sinisterly, "No rush. The hunt hasn't begun. When the moon rises, it will be time for dinner."
Leaving the village and stepping outside, the sun had completely set, and the surroundings were deathly still.