Chapter 812: Interrogation

On the way back from Yunshui City to Yanshui City, the group did not ride in a carriage.

Mo Hua had his hands behind his back, fingers subtly forming a seal, then, as if sharing a mutual understanding, walked ahead to lead the way.

Gu Changhuai and the other two silently followed behind.

Gu Quan couldn't help whispering: "Diansi, how is Young Master Mo finding the path?"

He couldn't understand a thing.

Gu Changhuai frowned slightly, "Just follow along..."

"Yes." Gu Quan dared not speak further.

Gu Changhuai silently watched Mo Hua, strutting ahead like a "little fraud," and sighed inwardly.

Even before, he had never understood this boy.

But now he found he understood him even less.

Where did he learn these strange and bizarre abilities...?

Mo Hua walked ahead, sometimes confident, sometimes pausing to look around, sometimes using his spiritual sense to investigate and discern cause and effect; after traveling this way for a while, he suddenly stopped and pointed to a small grove by the road:

"Here..."

The thread of cause and effect ended right here.

Or rather, it had been obscured by something, cutting off the deduction of cause and effect.

This small grove was suspicious.

Gu Changhuai nodded, "Let's go take a look. You stay behind me, be careful."

"Mm."

Mo Hua nodded.

He knew his limits on this.

With Uncle Gu around, he'd take any chance to slack off—anything he could avoid doing himself, he wouldn't do.

Gu Changhuai walked ahead toward the grove.

Mo Hua obediently followed behind him, treating Gu Changhuai like a "shield."

Gu An and Gu Quan flanked Mo Hua, one on each side, protecting him.

Thus, the four of them advanced toward the grove in this formation.

After walking about the length of an incense stick, the trees grew sparse, and ahead appeared a roadside station.

The station was dilapidated and isolated; nearby flowed a tributary of Yanshui River, its waters drifting slowly.

Before the station stood a stable, inside which were two horses and a plain-looking carriage.

Mo Hua and the others exchanged glances, all visibly puzzled.

"A roadside station?"

Why build a roadside station in such a remote place?

And it was hidden deep among mountains and forests, as if trying to hide from everyone.

Gu Changhuai released his spiritual sense, briefly scanning the area, then said: "Go inside and take a look."

"Yes," Gu An and Gu Quan nodded.

As they drew near, before even entering the station, a large man suddenly stepped out from the doorway, his face covered in thick facial hair, eyes fierce, shouting at them:

"What are you lot doing here?"

Gu Changhuai remained calm, "We're traveling and saw your station—want to hire a few horses."

"Traveling?" The big man frowned, his gaze sweeping over Gu Changhuai and the others, then blurted, "Ten thousand spirit stones as deposit. One hundred spirit stones per horse per day. If a horse dies, deposit is forfeit."

Gu Changhuai's eyes narrowed slightly: "Isn't that a bit steep?"

"If you think it's expensive, don't rent," the big man snapped. "You look like a noble young master—can't you even afford ten thousand spirit stones?"

Gu Changhuai raised an eyebrow. "Fine."

The big man extended his hand. "Hand over the spirit stones. I'll give you the horses."

"Not yet," Gu Changhuai sighed. "Traveling's tiring. Let me rest here a bit, have some tea."

The big man scowled. "No tea. Only horses. Pay me the spirit stones, take the horses, and leave."

Gu Changhuai said coolly, "You run a roadside station—don't you serve tea?"

The big man hesitated, then smiled. "Tea service? One thousand spirit stones per pot."

He expected his outrageous price would make Gu Changhuai back down.

But Gu Changhuai simply nodded. "Fine."

The big man froze. His gaze turned hostile. "Did you hear me? One thousand spirit stones per pot."

Gu Changhuai looked down his nose. "What? Do you think this young master can't afford a mere thousand spirit stones?"

Hidden behind Gu Changhuai, Mo Hua inwardly grumbled:

One thousand spirit stones per pot of tea?

Even with more spirit stones, you don't waste them like this.

Uncle Gu is way too corrupt.

Hearing this, the big man's expression changed. His gaze turned cold as he fixed Gu Changhuai:

"You're not here for tea, and you're not here to hire horses. Who are you, and what are you doing here?"

Gu Changhuai spoke calmly: "I came here to invite you for tea."

"Invite us for tea?" The big man frowned.

Gu Changhuai nodded. "Invite you to Dao Ting Si for tea."

The moment "Dao Ting Si" was spoken, the big man's eyes turned murderous, killing intent flaring instantly.

From the forest, the stable, the relay station, and the ruined building, each flew a sinister Ji Anqi, glowing green, aimed at Mo Hua and his three companions.

Gu An drew his blade and blocked one Ji Anqi.

Gu Quan blocked another strike, then stepped in front of Mo Hua, holding his long blade sideways to intercept the Ji Anqi thrust aimed at Mo Hua.

But Gu Changhuai merely reached out lightly.

The Ji Anqi, streaking straight for his heart meridian and coated in deadly poison, halted midair, then shattered under his fingers.

Seeing the Ji Anqi failed, several cultivators immediately surged out from the surroundings.

These cultivators mostly held Foundation Establishment mid- to late-stage cultivation, their expressions fierce, their techniques seasoned—they had clearly done this kind of ambush and murder many times before.

But before Mo Hua and his companions, especially Gu Changhuai, a Jin Dan cultivator and Gu Diansi of the Dao Ting Si, they were utterly insignificant.

Gu An and Gu Quan wielded their blades in perfect tandem, their blade-light sharp and brilliant.

Gu Changhuai condensed wind blades, his spiritual energy gleaming brilliantly.

Mo Hua used Fireball Technique to play along.

Though this was still a second-grade prefecture, where Gu Changhuai could not unleash his Jin Dan power, it took less than ten breaths to subdue them all.

The only one who slipped away was the big man.

When Gu Changhuai crushed the Ji Anqi with his bare hand, the big man's face turned terrified—he knew Gu Changhuai's cultivation was no ordinary thing; even if not Jin Dan, he must be at Foundation Establishment peak, so he had already fled at once.

But Mo Hua did not let him escape.

A Water Prison spell formed instantly, pinning the big man in place for two breaths.

Gu Changhuai flicked his finger lightly—a wind blade severed one of his legs.

A thin thread of blood trickled from the big man's leg, then he collapsed to the ground, writhing but unable to rise.

Gu An stepped forward and bound him with Dao Ting Si's Spirit-Binding Chains.

Thus, all the cultivators at the relay station were captured.

Gu An and Gu Quan dragged the relay station's cultivators up to the ruined building, barred the windows and doors, then demanded sharply:

"Speak—who are you?"

The cultivators hung their heads, silent.

Gu An drew his blade and pressed it against one cultivator's neck, his voice low:

"Will you speak?"

The blade's edge pressed into flesh, drawing blood—the cultivator clenched his teeth, still saying nothing.

Mo Hua shook his head, "They're not truthful, won't speak the truth…" Then his eyes lit up, "Should we use torture?"

Gu An and Gu Quan froze.

Gu Changhuai's eyelid twitched slightly.

Gu An hesitated, "Dao Ting Si's torture tools are not portable—we left in a hurry and didn't bring any…"

"No problem," Mo Hua beamed, "I brought some!"

Mo Hua pulled from his storage pouch a ritual torture plate, proudly declaring:

"This is the latest model, repeatedly improved—I added even more arrays to it…"

It was an Eighteen-Emblem array!

Earlier, Mo Hua had learned the Eighteen-Emblem array but had no chance to use it; unable to resist the urge, he'd hastily drawn it onto the torture plate.

But he hadn't used this torture plate in a long time.

After all, he'd been under house arrest, confined to Qianxue Prefecture, with no opportunity to use it.

Mo Hua had been deeply disappointed.

Yet now, just days after leaving, the chance had arrived.

Mo Hua was delighted.

He had long wanted to test the power of this latest version of the ritual torture device.

Watching Mo Hua's cheerful face, Gu An fell silent, then glanced quietly at Gu Changhuai.

Gu Changhuai looked at the torture device in Mo Hua's hand—familiar, yet improved beyond its former version—and sighed, nodding in silent approval.

Mo Hua handed the torture plate to Gu An, saying, "Make them kneel on it—they'll talk soon enough."

Gu An had no choice but to place the iron plate on the ground and force one cultivator to kneel upon it.

Instantly, light surged across the plate, spiritual energy interwove—and the cultivator screamed like a slaughtered pig.

The other cultivators turned pale, then glared at Mo Hua with fury.

"Why are you looking at me?"

"Oh, I get it!" Mo Hua thought a moment, then exclaimed, "You're brothers—you want to share suffering! You want to experience this plate too!"

"Fortuitous—I made a few extras for testing; you can each have one."

Mo Hua pulled four more torture plates from his storage pouch.

At once, the cultivators turned deathly pale, staring at Mo Hua as if he were a demon from hell.

When Mo Hua looked at them again, their fear surged—they averted their eyes, daring not meet his gaze.

Mo Hua nodded, satisfied.

The big man, however, sneered, "Save it, brat—you underestimate us. Even if you kill us, you won't get a word out of us."

"Oh?" Mo Hua perked up, "A hard bone—I like that."

He stirred his spiritual sense slightly—the cultivator kneeling on the plate screamed louder.

The Eighteen-Emblem array was far beyond his capacity to endure.

He wanted to speak, but when he glanced at the big man's threatening stare, he bit his tongue and swallowed the scream—until he fainted from pain, still silent.

"This plate's power is sufficient, but the 'torture' process is still too monotonous…"

Mo Hua silently thought to himself.

On the other side, the big man sneered at Mo Hua.

"My brothers and I are all desperate men, living with our heads tied to our belts. You think this trick can force a confession? Kid, you're still too green."

Too green?

Then let's play something not so green.

Mo Hua smiled sweetly:

"Since that's the case, let's play a game."

The lead big man sneered: "What game?"

Mo Hua said: "You all will undergo Shen Shouxing. Kneel on the punishment board and answer my questions."

"Whoever speaks up first, I'll stop the punishment and spare them the suffering."

"How about it?" Mo Hua asked with interest. "It's time to test your brotherly loyalty. I'm very curious—can you truly share hardship together...?"

The lead big man's expression changed.

This kid has a cruel mind!

Mo Hua glanced at Gu An and Gu Quan; both understood his intent. They laid the iron punishment board on the ground and forced all the desperate bandit cultivators onto it.

Mo Hua activated each array one by one.

As the array runes flowed, the spiritual energy slashed like swords and daggers, burned like a sea of fire, and chilled like an ice cellar—unbearable in its variety.

The bandit cultivators turned pale as paper, sweat pouring from their foreheads; some even cried out in agony.

"Alright, first question!" Mo Hua said solemnly. "What did you eat for lunch?"

This question was utterly absurd.

Even Gu Changhuai and the others paused in surprise.

Why not ask something serious? Why ask what they ate for lunch?

The desperate bandits had no idea what Mo Hua was up to, so they clenched their teeth and stayed silent.

But since they didn't speak, the punishment array didn't stop—the alternating agony of blades, fire, and ice was unbearable.

Finally, someone spoke.

"Ate... beef..."

Mo Hua's eyebrow twitched. "Good!" He waved his hand lightly, shutting off the man's punishment board.

The man escaped his fate, gasping for breath, his face filled with relief.

The others, seeing Mo Hua truly kept his word and asked only these "harmless" questions, immediately began to waver.

"Now, second question!" Mo Hua said again. "How old are you?"

Within just a few breaths, someone answered: "One hundred and thirty years old..."

Mo Hua nodded and lifted his punishment.

Then he asked: "What is your surname?"

Before he finished speaking, someone replied: "I'm Zhao!"

Mo Hua kept his promise and shut off the array's punishment.

After this, Mo Hua asked another round, mostly trivial, "harmless" questions—aiming to train them to answer.

After one round, only the lead big man still clenched his teeth and said nothing.

Mo Hua ignored him and continued:

"Good. We begin Round Two."

He activated all the punishment arrays again.

Instantly, the cultivators who had just caught a brief breath faced a new round of "torture."

"Round Two, first question..." Mo Hua's gaze flickered. "What titles do you use on the road?"

This question was slightly more secretive, but perfectly balanced.

Soon, someone could no longer endure the array's punishment and spoke:

"Brothers on the road honor me as 'Poison Sixth Elder'..."

Mo Hua frowned slightly.

He had no memory of this title.

Could he be an outsider?

Mo Hua nodded slightly and asked the second question.

From this point on, the intensity would rise step by step.

"Why did you come here?"

The atmosphere grew solemn.

The bandit cultivators fell silent.

Some things they could say—but others, they clearly couldn't open their mouths about.

Mo Hua wasn't in a hurry.

Even among the same gang, even those who robbed together, called each other brothers, and were ruthless, their tolerance for pain differed.

Some could endure—but someone would inevitably break.

Indeed, after a moment, someone whispered: "We were... ordered to run this station..."

"Run?" Mo Hua sneered.

The man, having already spoken, had no choice but to press on: "This place is remote, few travelers pass. If any rich targets come through, we make extra profit..."

"You say you were ordered—who gave the order?" Mo Hua asked again.

"I..."

Before he could speak, the big-headed giant barked: "Shut up!"

Mo Hua glanced at the lead giant.

Gu An understood his meaning and immediately pulled out a black cloth, tying it over the giant's mouth to silence him.

"Continue," Mo Hua said.

The cultivator clenched his teeth, enduring the pain, and trembled as he spoke: "You said... you'd ask only one question—I've already answered two..."

Mo Hua suddenly realized, "Right!"

A man must keep his word—even when inflicting punishment.

Mo Hua truly let him go, turning his gaze instead to the remaining few: "This chance is yours to answer."

One of them, unable to bear the pain of blades cutting and fire and water entering his body, blurted out:

"It's Big Brother! Big Brother ordered us to guard this station!"

He saw that once his brothers answered, they were spared suffering—while he still knelt on the instruments, enduring unbearable pain.

People fear inequality more than scarcity.

He feared his brothers suffering.

More than that, he feared his brothers enjoying comfort while he suffered.

"Big Brother also said we must give our all, keep our hands clean and swift, avoid causing trouble; after the job's done, we'll get a large sum of spirit stones, and even be specially permitted to spend one night aboard the boat..."

At these words, Gu Changhuai and the others were slightly moved.

Mo Hua asked: "What boat?"

"It's... it's a flower boat."

"What flower boat?"

The cultivator said: "We're outsiders—we don't know the boat's name, only that it's filled with singing and dancing, with... many women..."

"How do you get aboard?"

"I don't know. Unless someone guides you, no one knows the boarding entrance—or can board at all."

Mo Hua nodded and spared him the punishment, then turned to continue questioning:

"Who exactly is this 'Big Brother' you speak of?"

He pointed at the bearded giant, his mouth bound: "... Surely not this useless fool?"

The lead giant groaned "Mmmph!" and glared at Mo Hua with fury.

"No..." said a cultivator with a scar across his face.

Mo Hua asked: "Who is he?"

The scarred cultivator looked anxious.

He wanted to speak—but he couldn't.

Mo Hua roughly understood, thought a moment, then said: "Very well. You needn't speak—I'll speak. You only need to nod or shake your head."

The scarred cultivator nodded.

"Your Big Brother..." Mo Hua's gaze grew deep, secretly calculating, "... is he skilled in water-based cultivation arts?"

The scarred cultivator looked startled, then nodded.

"Has he... killed many people?"

The scarred cultivator nodded silently.

"Then is his title..." Mo Hua's gaze sharpened abruptly, "... Water Yama?"

The lead giant grew frantic and furious, eyes bulging, unable to speak.

The scarred cultivator glanced at the giant, fell silent for a moment, then slowly nodded. "Yes."

Just as I expected!

Mo Hua's eyes gleamed faintly.

Finally caught a clue!

Afterward, Mo Hua asked a few more scattered questions.

These desperate bandit cultivators, after such torment, were no longer able to resist—they confessed everything, honestly and completely.

Brothers should share hardship and comfort alike.

Whoever answered slowly had to suffer more.

Naturally, they disliked it.

After finishing, Gu Changhuai bound them again and, with Gu An and Gu Quan, split up to search the station.

Gu An walked beside Gu Changhuai and remarked with a touch of awe:

"Young Master Mo is truly clever—so resourceful..."

Gu Changhuai's gaze paused, his expression turning solemn.

Not clever—too clever...

This child—raised by whom? Influenced by whom? His expression seems innocent, yet his eyes reveal a piercing insight into human nature.

He manipulated all these desperate bandits as if they were pawns.

Sowing discord, stirring rivalry, blending mercy and punishment—he forced these bandits to speak.

Such tactics even many veteran Gu Diansi couldn't master.

If this child walks the righteous path, all is well—but if he strays, becomes a demonic cultivator who manipulates hearts and minds... the image is too horrifying to imagine...

Gu Changhuai sighed deeply.

yifan

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