Chapter 271
Chapter 271
In truth, we had already completed every task that had brought us to Chang City.
We retrieved the Golden Scale, rescued Hui Xiaotiao, and brought Salvation to all eighty-one zombies. We had done everything we came here to do.
But I knew that neither Liu Junyan, Hui Moqiong, nor I could simply wash our hands of this and leave now.
Hui Moqiong might have hurled all sorts of harsh words in his anger, but his sense of responsibility was stronger than anyone’s.
None of us could stand by and watch innocent lives be lost.
After suffering such a severe blow tonight, the Corpse Fiend would lie low for the time being. Its next step would be to seek out a large amount of nourishment.
And that nourishment would most likely be human flesh.
Liu Junyan said, “Send everyone available out to search. Gray Immortal Hall will interrogate Hui Cong through the night. Hopefully, they’ll get something out of him.”
That meant he had agreed to cooperate.
Fang Chuanzong and the others spent the rest of the night in the RV at the foot of the mountain. They stayed on guard and cordoned off the surrounding area overnight.
Liu Junyan and I accepted an invitation to spend the night at Gray Immortal Hall.
For one thing, Old Madam Hui had insisted. For another, we needed to wait for the results of Hui Cong’s interrogation.
Of course, Hui Moqiong had also been invited, but he declined. He intended to remain at the mountain and wait for any news of the Corpse Fiend.
Back in the tent, Old Madam Hui had clutched Hui Xiaotiao in her arms and wept without stopping.
Between the joy of regaining someone she had thought lost and the agony of seeing Hui Xiaotiao reduced to skin and bones, Old Madam Hui had nearly cried herself unconscious.
Yet on the way back, Old Madam Hui arranged for Hui Yumo and Hui Xiaotiao to ride in the same car. They left ahead of us without meeting up, while Old Madam Hui joined us in our car.
Holding my hand, Old Madam Hui said, “Xiao Jiu, I knew you could do it! I knew from the very beginning that if anyone could bring Salvation to those eighty-one zombies and rescue my Xiao Tiao, it would be you.
“Now that Xiao Tiao is back, I’ll have Yumo fatten him up a little, then send him to report for duty at the Pawnshop. From now on, Chang City’s Gray Immortal Hall and Wufu Town Pawnshop will be one family.”
I smiled and nodded. “It is Wufu Town Pawnshop’s great honor to have the support of Gray Immortal Hall.”
We talked about many things along the way, but Old Madam Hui never once mentioned Hui Cong.
It was not until we arrived at Gray Immortal Hall that I finally understood what Hui Moqiong had meant when he said Chang City’s Gray Immortal Hall was huge.
It truly was enormous.
How enormous?
Its grounds were measured in hectares.
Aside from the main hall where Old Madam Hui resided, there were also four major halls and eight minor halls under it.
Those branch halls had previously been controlled by her children, but after the recent purge, half of Gray Immortal Hall had been emptied out.
Old Madam Hui was already advanced in years. Now that Hui Xiaotiao had returned, he would have to shoulder responsibility for this sprawling operation. It would not be easy for him.
Her claim that she would fatten Hui Xiaotiao up before sending him to report for duty at the Pawnshop was merely a polite gesture.
After all, with such a massive organization waiting for him to manage, how could he possibly have time to remain at our Pawnshop?
It would be good enough if he could show up whenever we truly needed his help.
Besides, if Hui Xiaotiao managed Gray Immortal Hall well, it would benefit us in every way and bring us no harm.
Hui Yumo had prepared rooms and clean clothes for us in advance.
There were only a few hours left until dawn. It was still raining outside, but the downpour had dwindled to a light drizzle.
We both took showers, but neither of us went to sleep.
With no good news from Hui Cong’s interrogation tonight, there was no way either of us could rest easy.
Liu Junyan gently polished the Golden Scale we had just recovered. I sat beside him with my head resting on the arm he had deliberately lowered for me and asked, “Ah Yan, do you think Hui Cong will talk?”
Liu Junyan said without hesitation, “If the people of Gray Immortal Hall can’t make him talk, then I will.”
I neither agreed nor disagreed. “I doubt Old Madam Hui will show him any mercy. First, she’s been putting up with Hui Cong for a long time. Second, now that Hui Xiaotiao is back, she has a successor. If Hui Cong can withstand her brutal interrogation, ordinary methods aren’t going to work on him.”
“Then we’ll use something less ordinary,” Liu Junyan said.
Sure enough, just before dawn, Hui Yumo sent word that Hui Cong probably wouldn’t last much longer, yet they still hadn’t managed to extract a single useful piece of information from him.
Even Hui Yumo was at a loss.
Liu Junyan and I went over together.
To my surprise, Gray Immortal Hall even had a dungeon.
It lay deep underground and was heavily guarded. Escaping from down there would be extremely difficult.
Hui Cong was no ordinary man. He possessed considerable cultivation, and his will was far stronger than most people’s.
At that moment, he was bound to a cross-shaped torture rack. His entire body had been beaten bloody and raw, his face was bruised and swollen, and blood covered him from head to toe.
The moment he saw us, he spat a mouthful of bloody saliva in our direction and let out a vicious laugh.
Hui Yumo said, “We’ve tried every form of physical and psychological torture we could think of. We even used hallucinogens and hypnosis, but nothing worked. It’s as if he prepared himself for this day long ago. He isn’t afraid of anything.”
Liu Junyan asked, “Nothing at all?”
“Nothing,” Hui Yumo said grimly. “We even threatened him with his beloved youngest son, but he didn’t so much as flinch.”
Liu Junyan frowned. I said, “Maybe your threats never struck at what truly matters to him. Let me try.”
I strode up to Hui Cong.
Hui Cong bared his teeth in a savage grin. Clots of blood spilled continuously from his mouth as he spoke. “Don’t waste your time. I, Hui Cong, have already obtained everything I ever wanted in this life. I have nothing left to desire. You’ll never pry so much as half a word out of me!”
The corner of my mouth curled into a smile. “Is that so?”
Hui Cong lifted his chin and snorted disdainfully.
My hands were already forming a seal.
The Witchcraft Notebook left behind by the Grand Witch contained several forms of Ancient Witchcraft capable of clouding a person’s mind.
But I didn’t think Hui Cong warranted anything so elaborate.
I simply picked up a small Dagger from the nearby rack of torture instruments, reversed my grip, and stabbed it into Hui Cong’s chest.
I didn’t use much force. Only the tip of the Dagger pierced his flesh, but when I pulled it out, both its point and edge were stained red with blood.
Then I used the tip of the Dagger to draw a circle on Hui Cong’s forehead. Forming another seal with one hand, I ran my Sword Finger along the Dagger from hilt to tip.
I completed the entire process in one smooth motion.
The moment my Sword Finger came to rest against the spot between Hui Cong’s brows, his expression abruptly changed.
The mockery and disdain in his eyes vanished, replaced by a vacant stare.
He gazed blankly ahead, perfectly still.
But soon, panic seized him. He began struggling frantically, incoherent cries spilling from his mouth. He couldn’t even form a complete sentence.
I had used Ancient Witchcraft Dreamweaving — to weave a dream for Hui Cong.
In that dream, Hui Cong would find himself on the Ancient Battlefield, witnessing our final battle against the Corpse Fiend with his own eyes.
In that battle, the Corpse Fiend would be destroyed, and everything they had spent so many years plotting would come to nothing.
He would also see us cut him down with a single strike, leaving him to cling desperately to life.
He would beg for mercy. He would be struck by heavenly lightning. And he would plead with Heaven to forgive all the evil he had committed over the years…