At one end of the square near the village entrance, a group of burly men in sturdy outfits stood in a row, each brandishing a gleaming long knife, looking fierce and sinister.
Additionally, a table was set up with a Taishi Chair beside it, occupied by a fat bald man drinking wine. A scar ran across his face from the corner of his eye to his ear like a centipede crawling on his face, making him appear both menacing and sickening.
A young girl sat trembling in front of the table, her face pale as paper and streaked with tears, not daring to cry out loud.
"Old man, one more is missing. Hurry and hand her over. It's getting late, and we want to leave so you can rest, isn't that right?" The bald man spoke viciously to an elderly man with white hair and beard.
The bald man and his companions were Qi Refiners.
Those kneeling were all ordinary people, including the elderly man, whose unsteady gait betrayed his weakness.
