Chapter Thirty-Three: Interrogation

Outside, everything suddenly fell silent, and the flickering flames extinguished, leaving an eerie stillness. Senior Brother Luoxi and I took Luyin's body to the bamboo forest outside Lingyun Temple and buried her there. As the first light of dawn broke, I stood before Luyin's grave for a long time, finally understanding something.

Human life, in the eyes of the Xinghuo Hall, was merely an obstacle to be removed when moving their chess pieces. These people would stop at nothing for their own benefit, their ruthlessness extending both outward and inward. Like a nest of venomous snakes, they could poison any other existence, while also being immune to each other's venom. Talking about the sparks of Xinghuo Hall igniting a fire was laughable.

Without the spark, how could the fire spread?

"Senior Brother, is that Xinghuo Hall member still alive?" I asked, staring at the grave.

"Yes, I've asked Daoist Lingyun to keep her locked up," he replied, then turned his concern toward me. "How is the poison affecting you?"

"Don't worry, Senior Brother. The poison was nothing; I've already neutralized it," I said, standing up and exhaling softly. "There's no point in waiting any longer. It's time to get some useful information out of her."

To deal with something extraordinary, one must use extraordinary measures.

When I saw the woman in black again, she had somehow dispelled the frost I had cast on her and was adjusting her internal energy. Noticing someone approaching, she hurriedly ceased her efforts. Upon seeing me, she recoiled in fear, her disrupted internal flow causing her to spit out a mouthful of blood.

I clapped my hands, smiling at her. "Why do you look like a mouse seeing a cat? You haven't tasted any wax yet, and you're already spilling your insides. How amusing."

"Despicable."

Did she just call me despicable?

I squatted down, scrutinizing her closely. "That's not fair. It's your Xinghuo Hall that always operates in the shadows, doing despicable and disgusting things. Compared to your Xinghuo Hall, I'm merely a novice in treachery." I snorted at her, conjuring a black box from my palm. Seeing her shrink away, I purposely brought it closer to her face, raising my voice a few notches. "This is a special gift I prepared for you. Care to guess what's inside?"

"I don't have time for guessing games. Do what you want," she snapped, stubborn as ever.

I opened the box and poured its contents over her, ignoring her terrified screams. I grabbed her chin, forcing her to look at me. "No time? Well, I have plenty. You'll endure this every day, whether you like it or not."

She stared in horror at the black beads crawling all over her, clutching at my robe and screaming, "Just kill me!"

I hadn't even done anything to her yet, and she was already breaking down. Her reaction both surprised and disgusted me.

"Kill you?" I pried her hand away, laughing. "Why would I kill you? That would be too easy for people like you."

"You just want information. Dream on. I won't tell you anything. Never," she said, still defiant.

I caught a black spider from her body and started to play with it in my hand. "Don't be so sure of yourself. Why do you always assume you know what I want?" I reached out to touch her forehead, leaving the spider in her hair as a decoration. With a smile, I continued, "On the contrary, I simply want to test what people from Xinghuo Hall fear and what they don't. I plan to note it all down, day after day, year after year, for future reference."

I chuckled inwardly at my own words.

There was no real future reference. What I said was full of holes. She was just one individual from Xinghuo Hall. What she feared didn't necessarily represent the fears of everyone there. Besides, the spider was just something I caught randomly, and it happened to be her nemesis. She was too scared to think through my words.

Seeing her silence, I pressed on, "However, I prefer hearing the truth. If you're willing to answer some questions, I might remove some of your fears and make your life a bit easier."

"No… impossible!" She was sweating profusely, yet still stubbornly refused to speak.

"Fine, if you won't answer, I will," I said, pulling out some insect-repelling powder and sprinkling it on her. I stood up, "Your purpose in coming to Lingyun Temple was to obtain the refined elixir and to control Lianmu, who harbors evil energy, correct?" She nodded, so I continued, "Can you tell me what your next move is?"

"I won't tell you!"

"I believe you will," I retorted, twirling the ice lotus in my hand.

She crawled back a few steps, trembling. "What is that?" she asked.

"Good question." I blew on the ice lotus and drew a mist to my fingertips, moving it closer to her face. "Guess what this is? Oh, right, you don't have time to guess, so I'll tell you. This is a soul trapped in my Nine Nether Ice Lotus. The more souls it consumes, the stronger it gets. It can also imprison souls eternally, which suits someone as vengeful as me perfectly."

"It's the Mingli Formation…!" It seemed I had successfully bluffed her.

I slowly retracted the ice lotus and asked, "So, are you ready to talk now?"

"The young master needs to set up the Mingli Formation, and the elixir along with the Chi Ming are necessary to activate it. She's currently in the Maple Leaf Forest in the eastern suburbs of Luoyang. That's all I know," she answered cleanly enough.

So, all the answers lay in the Maple Leaf Forest.

With my mind made up, Senior Brother Luoxi arrived just in time. I quickly instructed him to keep an eye on the woman in black, then set off for the Maple Leaf Forest in the eastern suburbs.