Yaen and the others exchanged glances and then surrounded the group of yellow-robed men who seemed to be performing some kind of sacrificial ceremony.

The man in the yellow robe wasn't particularly strong.

The strongest among them is only at the ninth rank, and two of them are at the seventh rank.

They didn't even notice when Lu Ning and his group surrounded them.

The group rushed out, and Yann shouted, "Don't move! We are the Mist Bureau's Mist Exploration Team. You have been arrested for conducting illegal sacrificial activities."

Upon hearing this, the many people in yellow robes who were worshipping were startled and quickly stood up.

When they saw Lu Ning and the others, they looked nervous.

Lu Ning saw their faces at that moment.

These worshippers, dressed in tattered yellow robes, were as thin as their bodies and faces.

His face even bore the cracks left by the desert winds, making him look like an ascetic.

The leader was an elderly man with a wrinkled face and dark skin.

He spoke in a low, hoarse voice.

This was not the language of the Human Federation, but Lu Ning understood it.

"I sacrifice myself! For my Lord!"

The tension on the faces of the other ascetic-like men in yellow robes vanished instantly, replaced by fanaticism.

Just as their spiritual energy surged, seemingly preparing to sacrifice themselves through a ritual, Lu Ning uttered a depraved word: "Negativity!"

Lu Ning is now at the seventh rank, and the power of the Fallen Angel inherently contains a trace of divinity.

Even without the blessing of a soul weapon, an ordinary eighth-tier awakener would be greatly affected.

Even ninth-tier awakened beings cannot completely avoid it.

With the use of negative abilities, the spiritual power stirred up by the man in the yellow robe suddenly became negative.

Even though the dark-skinned old man at the head of the group was not greatly affected, he was still affected by his companions.

The sacrificial ceremony was abruptly interrupted.

The faces of the group of men in yellow robes were filled with a deathly aura, and a trickle of yellowish, putrid saliva oozed from the corners of their mouths.

It was then that Yann and the others realized that they seemed to be planning to sacrifice themselves.

Aishalin gave a soft snort and waved her hand, sending a gust of cold wind sweeping through.

All the men in yellow robes, including the dark-skinned old man, were frozen in place.

With a flash, Yann knocked out the group of frozen yellow-robed men.

Only then did Ya'en look at the group and ask, somewhat puzzled, "Who are these people? They must be from some cult, right? An Lan, do you know this cult?"

An Lan approached the dark-skinned old man and bent down to examine his clothes and the special markings on his body.

He then frowned and shook his head: "I've never seen this cult before. It must be newly formed, or a secret organization that has never appeared in the public eye before."

At this point, An Lan paused, then said, "However, this sacrificial ritual is very similar to the one in the stone house before, and it probably involves the evil god of death."

An Lan seemed to realize something and looked at Lu Ning: "Lu Ning, what was that old guy saying just now? You took action directly, so you must have sensed something, right?"

Lu Ning nodded and repeated what the old man had said earlier.

The crowd looked at these gaunt figures, who resembled ascetics, with some surprise.

“It’s not a language that humans have ever recorded.” An Lan’s eyes gleamed with silver light.

Lu Ning said, "This should be the same language as the one carved on the stone house."

An Lan pondered, "As expected... just as I guessed, these cultists do believe in death, and perhaps they are the Hand of the Underworld we encountered last time."

Lu Ning said thoughtfully, "Should I ask?"

Everyone was taken aback and looked at Lu Ning.

Jerry was somewhat taken aback: "What do we do?"

An Lan's eyes lit up as she realized something: "Is it the power of a fallen angel?"

"Um."

"Then give it a try!"

Considering that Lu Ning did not have a soul weapon that could amplify his charm ability, he chose a seventh-tier cultist for the sake of caution.

He was a tall, thin young man with black hair.

Although the young man's face was still relatively young, the marks left by the wind and sand were still deep.

Aishalin condensed icy water and poured it onto the young man's face.

The young man shuddered and suddenly opened his eyes.

When he saw a group of people surrounding him, his previously cloudy and dull eyes suddenly cleared.

He looked at the group warily, opening his mouth as if to say something.

However, before the young man could speak, a pink glint flashed in Lu Ning's eyes: "Enchantment!"

The young man stared blankly into Lu Ning's eyes, then his expression turned fanatical.

He struggled to his feet, prostrated himself at Lu Ning's feet, and kissed the ground with his chapped lips: "My Lord...have you descended?! Are you going to lead your devout followers to the eternal kingdom?! Praise be to you!"

The young man's voice was breathless, yet it contained a fervent determination.

Lu Ning was taken aback. Although he had used his charm ability, he hadn't expected the young man to mistake him for an evil god.

He's only at the seventh rank.

Lu Ning quickly understood what was going on.

He released a wisp of his own death power.

The young man trembled immediately, prostrating himself on the ground, not even daring to kiss the ground at Lu Ning's feet.

His voice was low and filled with fear as he asked, "Great Lord... has it been your followers who have angered you?"

Lu Ning calmly asked, "Where are you from? What was your original identity?"

The young man said, "I come from Base City 22. I was originally a Free Awakener."

Lu Ning raised an eyebrow: "What kind of organization are you?"

The young man was taken aback, then said somewhat nervously, "Great Lord...we are the returning wandering party that serves you. Do you think we are not devout enough?"

"No," Lu Ning said blankly.

After he finished speaking, he glanced at An Lan.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!