The villagers were hiding something
This sounds a little like something out of The Deliverance, and it is. Jedah witnessed something similar to what we see in horror movies. There are numerous little villages in the Philippines where everyone knows everyone else.
The Manobo are one of 18 Lumad ethnic groups in Mindanao, Philippines. The several Manobo tribes are semi-autonomous from the Philippine government, with their own set of laws, customs, and judgments handed down by tribal chieftains.
It’s almost as if they know something about you that you don’t. And this was true for Jedah. While on her journey, she came across something so revolting that only the villagers in the area were aware of it. What was it that Jedah saw?