Chapter 179: Interrogation

Pan Yun's lightning was immensely powerful; even after Lou Tong treated him, the demonic sect youth didn't awaken until late afternoon.

The moment he opened his eyes, he met Pan Yun's sparkling gaze.

Pan Yun sighed, "Demonic sect, you really know how to sleep—I went to bed later than you, yet woke up earlier."

Zhang Ziwang pulled Pan Yun aside, frowned at the dazed youth, and held up one finger: "How many is this?"

The youth slowly came to, staring at Pan Yun's face; memories from before his coma slowly returned, and his eyes gradually filled with hatred.

Zhang Ziwang withdrew his finger and turned back: "He's not dumb."

Lin Jingle stepped forward, glanced at his face, and nodded: "I'll interrogate him. All of you, leave."

Pan Yun eagerly said, "Lin Tangzhu, let me join you."

Zhang Ziwang shot her a sharp look: "Pan Yun, you should be in class."

Pan Yun said solemnly, "This concerns me—I must know the details."

Zhang Ziwang: "How is this any of your business?"

"I found him, I struck him, I captured him—we're locked in a mortal feud. Of course I need to know if he has allies, family, friends, if anyone will seek revenge on me. Isn't that a huge matter?"

Zhang Ziwang fell silent.

Lin Jingle said, "Go back to class first. The interrogation will take time. You may participate in this case—the case files will be open to you."

Pan Yun finally smiled, bowed, and said, "Then I leave it all in your hands, Lin Tangzhu."

She didn't like digging into such things—doing grunt work. She preferred to reap the rewards, as long as she got the result she wanted.

Pan Yun happily went to class, leaving Chen Ziwu trembling in place, his mouth opening several times to speak, but he couldn't utter a word under Lin Jingle's piercing gaze.

He'd been questioned since early this morning, speaking for two full hours; last night he'd been terrified—he was exhausted, he really wanted to sleep~~

Not just Chen Ziwu—the five other youths from yesterday, including He Jie, were also brought in for questioning, every detail, from when they descended the mountain, asked and re-asked.

Only then did he interrogate the demonic sect member.

But the demonic sect member was arrogant—he had suddenly fallen from the sky, his mindset never adjusted.

He was brazenly unafraid.

Then, after Pan Yun finished class and came to see him in the evening, he looked entirely different—more pitiful, more covered in wounds.

Seeing Miao Zhen, who accompanied her, saw him for the first time; she felt nothing special, only curiously asked, "Little Master, is this the one who captured He Jie and Chen Ziwu? He doesn't look very powerful."

Pan Yun fell silent.

The demonic sect member's gaze had grown dull, yet his face still bore defiance; he looked at Pan Yun, and deep in his eyes flickered a trace of hatred and murderous intent.

Pan Yun sighed and asked Lin Jingle: "Lin Tangzhu, what's his name?"

Lin Jingle: "Mo Ru, a wandering Daoist from the Lingnan region."

Pan Yun: "He doesn't look like a wandering Daoist."

Lin Jingle: "Not all wandering Daoists are poor—he's one of the ones who aren't."

Chen Ziwu, awakened from sleep, murmured: "He can drain people's Qi and use them to raise insects—how could he be poor? Only someone like me, who honestly cultivates and struggles to earn money, stays poor."

Pan Yun: "How does he usually make money?"

"There are many ways—he smuggles life-transference, locates tombs for theft, and if he's ruthless, he wipes out entire families to seize wealth, and…" Chen Ziwu spoke with growing excitement, then caught Lin Jingle's icy gaze—he froze, changed tone, and forced a laugh: "Of course, those who do too much evil inevitably destroy themselves. Doing such things brings only fleeting wealth; one day they'll be investigated. If people don't come for him, the Dao itself will settle accounts."

"Evil cannot overcome righteousness—look, he's been captured now."

Lin Jingle gave a slight nod and handed her several sheets of paper before Mo Ru's eyes: "He's confessed to some things—here's his testimony."

Pan Yun quickly took them, skimmed through at a glance, finished reading in moments: "That's all?"

Lin Jingle: "More will come. He can't escape—he'll slowly spit out everything."

He met Mo Ru's mocking gaze and said coldly: "After all, if the Academy can't extract it, handing him to the Zhang Zhang Tian Shi's Office will be worse than death."

Mo Ru fell silent for a long time, then asked: "What do you want to know?"

Pan Yun: "I don't want much—just three things."

"First, who is your master?"

Mo Ru: "I have no master."

Pan Yun sneered.

Lin Jingle: "If you have no master, where did you get these skills?"

Mo Ru: "I happened upon a scripture and taught myself."

Lin Jingle sneered: "We are both Dao cultivators. This lie barely fools outsiders. How could you possibly develop these skills just from a scripture?"

Mo Ru fell silent, still refusing to reveal his master: "Why must you know my master? I was expelled from my sect for raising insects—I have no face to mention my master."

"Many disciples who betray their sects exist in the Jianghu; no one goes after their masters just because an expelled disciple commits crimes," Pan Yun said. "So don't worry—I'm asking only to prepare myself. Later, if I meet your sect on the road, I'll keep my distance, so they won't be heartbroken."

Mo Ru: "They'll be heartbroken?"

"Of course. Even though you were expelled, you still trained together—you still have feelings. Even if you did wrong, they still care. Meanwhile, I'm clever, kind-hearted, and will surely win many people's affection as I travel the Jianghu. If I avoid them, we might accidentally become friends. When they later learn you fell into my hands, won't they be sad?"

"Since I'm kind-hearted, their sadness will affect me. If I'm affected, my Dao heart suffers. So to protect my Dao heart, I must stay far from your sect—never become friends. They can openly hate me, and I can openly dislike them."

Mo Ru: …

After a long silence, he said: "My master is a tribal chieftain in Guangxi. His disciples rarely leave Lingnan—you won't encounter them."

Pan Yun shook her head with a sneer: "You're lying, Lin Tangzhu. Let's send him to the Zhang Zhang Tian Shi's Office. He can't even answer the first question honestly—I don't even want to ask the second."

Lin Jingle paused, then nodded.

Mo Ru's chest rose and fell; after a long while, he closed his eyes, then opened them again: "Why won't you believe me?"

Pan Yun: "Did your chieftain teach you to swap lives? Did your chieftain expel you for raising insects?"

This clearly looks like Central Plains Daoist technique.

"Your skills—except for the insects—are probably not external," Lin Jingle said. "The swordplay and lightness techniques you used last night—you belong to the Zhengyi Sect. You're from a righteous school."

Mo Ru fell silent again, then said: "My master is Chengyuan Daoist of Physician Temple in Chengdu." This was the beginning.

Pan Yun indeed asked only about her lineage, not pressing further on that matter: "Second question: Where did you get the Qi-absorbing worms?"

Mo Ru answered without concealment: "I found a cocoon in an ancient tomb and hatched them using the secret method recorded in the manual."

Pan Yun: "Third question: What's special about Chen Ziwu?"

Mo Ru: "He has Yuan Qi. Few people outside possess Yuan Qi; finding one is rare."

"Rare enough to risk your life chasing him all the way to Long Hushan?" Pan Yun said. "Long Hushan has no shortage of Daoist Priests. Aren't you afraid you'll get caught here and can't escape?"

Mo Ru: "I'm confident you won't catch me."

Pan Yun: "Where are you now?"

After a moment of silence, Mo Ru said: "If not for your unexpected appearance, I could've slipped away. I planned everything: Chen Ziwu knows no one here; capturing him wouldn't draw attention."

"Near nightfall, capturing a low-level disciple takes me only three hours to complete the Qi transfer, using flesh to breed a new batch of Qi-absorbing worms. In three hours, based on my estimate of a boy his age, even after discovering their companion missing, they'll still first search nearby."

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"My corpse-hand will bring the fertilizer back, then drag them into the dense forest, holding them off for at least a night—maybe even turn them all into my fertilizer. By the time Long Hushan realizes a disciple is missing, it'll already be the next day."

"By then, I'll have descended the river and left Long Hushan. No one can catch me." Mo Ru looked at her. "I didn't expect your cultivation to be higher than it appears."

A venomous glint flashed in his eyes, half-smiling. "You're so young, yet your cultivation is this high. Isn't that the work of forbidden arts?"

Pan Yun: "Your insight is too narrow. You assume everyone is as talentless as you, forced to rely on demonic methods to advance. But you don't know the world has geniuses like me—I gain cultivation just by drinking water. Do you believe me?"

Mo Ru: …

Lin Jing, listening in: …

Only Seeing Miao Zhen and Miao He nodded repeatedly: Yes, yes, their little master really is like this.

When their little master first arrived on the mountain, though she looked fierce in fights, her cultivation was truly weak—her face small and pale, clearly showing signs of deficiency.

But after only nine months on Mount Sanqing, her cultivation soared, her complexion grew ruddy, and she was clearly trending toward Miao He's vitality.

With cultivation rising this fast, isn't it natural that even drinking water boosts it?

Mo Ru, stung by her mockery, burned with rage—he'd always considered himself a genius, yet Pan Yun now claimed he lacked talent?

"At Da Fu Temple, I was also praised as a genius."

Pan Yun: "Clearly you know you're not one. Otherwise, why resort to Qi-absorbing worms to steal others' Qi, using human flesh to feed them?"

Pan Yun lifted her chin. "True geniuses disdain such demonic methods. The world is vast—Qi is everywhere. Why not cultivate properly? Even if you can't, you can still attain Dao through self-realization. Worms…"

Pan Yun showed a look of contempt and revulsion. "I find even looking at them filthy. How could I let them enter my body?"

Mo Ru spat blood. He hadn't bled under Lin Jing's torture, but Pan Yun's few words made him vomit blood.

Pan Yun sidestepped his spattered blood and said to the silent Lin Jing: "Lin Tangzhu, I have no more questions."

Lin Jing waved his hand at her.

Pan Yun left with Seeing Miao Zhen and Miao He.

Chen Ziwu stood aside, stunned. After a moment's thought, he chased after her.

"Pan Daoist, Pan Daoist…"

Pan Yun turned back. "What do you want?"

Chen Ziwu smiled. "Pan Daoist, are you still selling the talismans you set up yesterday?"

Pan Yun immediately smiled. "Of course. What kind of talismans do you want, and how many?"

"How much for one Lei Fu, sister?"

Pan Yun: "I don't differentiate by type. All talismans are twenty taels each."

In the Hushan Realm, this price equals that of a talisman drawn by a First Marquis cultivator.

Chen Ziwu felt his money pouch ache, but to build rapport, he gritted his teeth: "Then… give me five Lei Fu."

"Sister, I'm not in a hurry—I can come to your courtyard…" As Pan Yun handed him the Lei Fu, Chen Ziwu grinned. "Sister, you have so many Lei Fu on you?"

Pan Yun blinked. "When traveling, one must be cautious. So I prepared extra."

Chen Ziwu took them, pulled out a hundred-tael silver note from his sleeve, and reluctantly handed it over.

Pan Yun tugged twice but couldn't pull it free. "Honestly, in all my life, I've rarely seen a hundred-tael silver note. Brother, if you can produce this, you mustn't be short on cash."

Chen Ziwu: "This hundred-tael note—I've kept it for two years."

Pan Yun: "Then… brother, can you make up the amount with smaller bills? I don't mind if it's loose change."

Chen Ziwu pushed the note toward her and turned his face away. "No need. Sister, keep it."

Pan Yun knew he couldn't gather enough loose cash to make a hundred taels.

Pan Yun tucked the money away, puzzled. Are real wandering Daoists really this poor?

Pan Yun wanted to learn more about the outside world, so she invited Chen Ziwu to visit Fengqi Courtyard.

Though their methods differed, the goal was achieved: Chen Ziwu had indeed drawn closer to Pan Yun and was now invited to Fengqi Courtyard.

Chen Ziwu said: "Real wandering Daoists are this poor. I'm among the better ones—I have connections in the Jianghu, can make medicine or escort caravans. Those who rely solely on fortune-telling barely earn enough to survive, let alone buy cultivation resources."

"Most Daoists must support families too. Oh, I have brothers—my parents don't rely on me, and I don't plan to marry or have children. So I'm the only one who needs feeding—I have no family burden."

Pan Yun thought of Mount Sanqing and Datong, sighed: "I can't say that. I have elders above me and juniors below—I'm under heavy pressure."

Most of my cultivation resources now come from my senior brothers and sisters. When I grow stronger and go out on trials, I'll have to support them too—so I have two families to support.

Chen Ziwu: "Sister, don't worry. Your Mount Sanqing's medicines are famous—needed by cultivators and Jianghu folk alike. Master alchemy, and you'll never lack food or drink."

Unlike me—jack of all trades, master of none—so I only earn small coins.

Daily ten thousand words ends today. Tomorrow I'll begin traveling with family, so from tomorrow I'll post six thousand words daily, two chapters. I'll resume extra updates after returning next week. Love you all!

(End of Chapter)