Chapter 235

“So, can you really promise to spare me? You know, like, put your honor on the line for our sect and your master?”

“Well, here’s the deal. If you spill everything you know without a single lie, I’ll let you go safely this time—just this once. But don’t go thinking that just because you shared some info, you’ll be off the hook forever, alright?”

Qing made that promise but then had to throw in a little disclaimer.

He understood that adding a touch of hesitation could actually boost trust.

“No, seriously, I’m Yu Sung-gwang, the senior warrior of this squad under the Blood Sect’s legendary Elder Gomo.”

“Elder Gomo?”

“Yeah, the one they call ‘Solitude with Two Stripes’—we specialize in dealing with creatures of solitude.”

The guard dutifully started to spill all that he knew.

With the unique mission of the squad, the goal was primarily to infiltrate and feed the Blood Solitude to secure their factors.

But simply feeding it wasn’t enough; they had to eliminate it using various methods.

So, the process of feeding, along with mentally and physically breaking it down, was necessary.

Even if they managed to eliminate the solitude, it would already be so ruined that it would obediently follow orders like a puppet.

“So, the discarded collaborators are used to either feed the solitude to important figures or extract information from them or even seek internal cooperation—”

“Hold on.”

Qing wasn’t too curious about everything he was being told, but a couple of points raised some eyebrows.

“Discarded collaborators? Doesn’t that just mean you tossed them aside? Is that the term you guys use?”

“Er, that’s the preference of the Great Lord and Deputy Lord…”

The rest of what he had to say was pretty horrific.

In the process of breaking down captured prisoners, at the very end, they’d feed them to pigs, dogs, or even beggars.

But before that, they’re not allowed to subject them directly to sexual torture. That would only come at the very last moment, to extract something valuable, which was just how the Great Lord and Deputy Lord liked it.

Once they experienced that kind of disposal, it was said nobody—neither man nor woman—would ever dare to resist again.

Qing casually commented, “Hmm. Now I just want to wipe them all out.”

“B-but you can’t kill me!”

“The promise stands. I put my sect’s and master’s honor on it, so I can’t back out. By the way, what’s this Blood Solitude all about? Care to explain more?”

Then he got a direct lecture from an expert on solitude.

“Well, I’ve said all I know.”

“Hmm. But how do I know you’re not lying to me? So hang tight. I’ll grab another one for some cross-verification.”

“I swear, I only spoke the truth—”

“Just wait. If you’ve lied to me, this is your last chance to come clean. I did say I’d spare you if you were honest, right? But if you tricked me?”

Qing’s eyes narrowed dangerously.

They called it ‘four-hundred-eyes’, a terrifying expression where all the whites of his eyes showed, glimmering ominously.

The Blood Sect warrior, Yu Sung-gwang, felt a tightness grip his throat and began to tremble.

Overwhelmed by the presence of the most evil celestial being, the Lonely Star of Heaven’s Kill, he felt powerless.

“I might as well ask to be killed. Should I start with peeling your skin off? Last chance. Anything hidden or any lies?”

“Actually, there’s something I…”

A few corrections were made to the information, revealing some utterly useless details as well.

Looking at his desperate expression, it seemed he might have spoken correctly.

“Alright then, I’ve told you everything, so now…”

“Fine. A promise is a promise.”

Qing nodded, then asked, “So, what’s the name of your father?”

The warrior gulped nervously.

“Why do you want to know that?”

“You didn’t share that part. I clearly asked you to spill everything. You’re still hiding stuff, huh?”

“No, no! My father is…”

And then he involuntarily went off on a tangent about his entire family.

“Really? Then, what’s your favorite food? What do you dislike? Anything you can’t eat?”

“Why are you suddenly asking about food…?”

“What about hobbies? What’s your type in women? Who are your close friends, and do you have any embarrassing childhood stories? Didn’t I ask you to share everything?”

Qing’s eyes narrowed further.

“Why are you telling me all this, yet I’m still left in the dark with so much? Were you planning to deceive me from the start? Seriously? You think you can trick me? As per our deal, if you’re hiding things, it’s your ticket to death!”

“That doesn’t even make sense.”

The Blood Sect warrior felt like he was being cornered.

With Qing’s bright smile beaming at him, it suddenly hit him.

He clearly had no intention of sparing him, to begin with.

Demanding everything be shared was just a ludicrous request, so naturally, it was impossible to meet it.

“I don’t know if this will comfort you, but you won’t be the only one to suffer. So, no need to feel singled out.”

Clearly, this wasn’t much of a comfort, as the Blood Sect warrior flailed desperately.

Then Qing clapped his hands and said, “Oh, did I say the soundproofing was perfect? Sorry about that! I’ll remove the gag. You must feel hurt and distressed. You might as well scream a bit.”

---

[Foreboding, Crisis Number (Unknown)]

[You have confronted the evil goals of the Blood Sect.]

Mission Objective…

“You’re just making noise after I’ve figured things out.”

I figured it out, and now you pretend to be doing me a favor.

Qing clicked his tongue and tossed aside the newly updated Martial Arts Inventory.

Still, hey, if I can bundle this enjoyable task with my mission to do some good and earn extra training points, that’s a win, right?

Honestly, if someone were to just tell me what to do directly, I’d feel more like I’m actually getting something done, but why the ambiguity? Whatever side I take, I really don’t care.

It just feels insincere, and I can’t get myself to sympathize.

But despite the discomfort, things didn’t feel too uneasy.

Qing was feeling fresher and lighter than ever.

Now stepping beyond the role of a guard, Qing collected the keys for the Thunder Prison and stood up twice.

The reason for standing up twice was because he stumbled and nearly fell over, requiring him to rise again.

Ugh, the blood was just too much on my skin; it’s seriously overwhelming. Really.

But hey! It was all enjoyable. Good things are good, right?

With unusually bright eyes, Qing opened the door to the Thunder Prison, covered in blood, as he stepped outside.

I heard that one guard job rotates each day.

They spend all day torturing the prisoners for fun, then at night, they can either sleep on makeshift beds or mess with the prisoners to enjoy their time. It’s a pretty relaxed gig since nobody really bothers with you.

And the next day, they can take it easy, so it’s considered a sweet role only seniors get to take on.

Seems like this familiar culture must be pretty standard among squads everywhere.

And with Qing keeping his interests in mind, he never had to hold back.

Solitude is just an automatic purging parasite that eats toxic energy. It was an easy escape for someone like Qing.

The only thing that worried him was maybe picking up something toxic when he casually ate whatever was around.

Having taken two pills filled with evil powders made from people and yet still being under a hundred points, it felt right to do the decent thing if he had a chance.

As someone once said, “You didn’t imprison me; you got yourselves trapped with me.”

What was that line from a movie? Vampires? Aliens?

Answer’s neither, it’s the watchers, but Qing had no clue. Now his memories of his homeland were all but hazy, surfacing only in dreams, and even then they’re just fleeting recollections.

Waking up from a dream of his hometown always left him trembling with fear, unable to shake the panic when thinking, “What if I return?”

He was certain that he could never adapt to modern life again.

“Ugh, get those negative thoughts outta here.”

But with his body and mind feeling so unburdened, he was easily able to brush it off.

Qing pushed the heavy iron door leading outside.

The door screeched open like it was crying. They could have done with a bit of oil; the maintenance around here is abysmal.

After leaving the Thunder Prison, Qing verified the room numbers left and right before knocking on the heavy iron door of Room One.

Suddenly, the small flap at the bottom of the door slid open, and a voice responded.

“Who’s there?”

At the same moment, Qing pushed the heavy door with all his strength.

With a *clank*, the door, unable to withstand his superhuman strength, slammed against something, causing a significant resistance that struck Qing’s wrist.

Quickly stepping inside, he closed the door before kicking the small flap shut.

Now, it was completely sealed. No sound could be heard from the inside anymore, as the late prisoner had remarked.

Then he found himself in a bit of a predicament.

The guard of Room One was sprawled on the ground, bleeding profusely from the head.

“Oh man, you can’t die on me now. What a waste!”

Qing hurriedly checked the guard’s pulse.

He was fine with dismantling live ones, but he had no sadistic interest in the stench of rotting corpses.

Fortunately, the guard was just knocked out and seemed to be suffering from a mild concussion.

Qing pulled up his arms and legs and tied him up so he couldn’t escape.

Realizing that soundproofing was good enough to skip the gag, he understood that knowledge is power, just as the elders said to always learn.

Taking the keys to the Thunder Prison, Qing opened the door. In came the startled sounds of a resounding gasp.

“Eek!”

It was a voice coming from a tiny iron box in the center of the Thunder Prison.

There’s one in my room too, which I thought was a bathroom but turned out to be one of the torture instruments.

Apparently, they were supposed to squeeze themselves into that box and, whenever they came out, they’d unleash toxicity that would torment them further.

Letting out a deep sigh, Qing asked, “Young Lady? You alright?”

“I’m not a young lady; I’m livestock. I’m not a young lady; I’m livestock. I’m not a young lady; I’m livestock…”

Hmm. Looks like she’s in a pretty rough state.

Qing scratched his head.

Operation to Eliminate the Flower.

This was the goal Qing had determined from uncovering the Blood Sect’s plot.

As serious as it sounded, the details were a bit laughable.

It was an operation aimed at ruining the Martial World Tournament and humiliating the orthodox martial sect.

During the grandest events held in the city where the Martial Alliance dominated, they intended to brutally destroy a well-known figure and display the aftermath.

Given Elder Gomo’s capabilities, they couldn’t reach any top-tier masters.

In the first place, any warrior above the Transformation Realm would burn the poison instantly.

So, excluding masters, they’d aim for someone with fame but not too high on the rankings, especially someone as popular and adored by the Martial World and the orthodox sect as the White Lotus.

Thus, “Eliminate the Flower” became their operation to take out a blooming bud.

The first target was supposedly easy pickings like the White Lotus.

However, a new order was given from above, forbidding them to touch her.

Then they couldn’t do the poison thing, since it wouldn’t work on her.

As for the other pretty face, she didn’t even participate in the Martial World Tournament.

This left either Seolhwa or Geomhwa as their targets.

Seolhwa was holed up and hardly came out, so they were waiting for an opportunity, while Geomhwa, who’d embarrassingly lost to a ronin at the martial competition, apparently got caught while attempting to leave the city during training.

“Young Lady Mo Yong? It’s me, Seomun Qing.”

“I’m not a young lady.”

Seemingly peeking out nervously, the iron box shook wildly before eventually toppling over.

Amidst it, Mo Yong Joo-hee finally managed to wriggle out, or rather, she crashed onto the floor.

---