Interrogation

Chapter 47: Interrogation

"Your subordinate obeys!"

Ren Hong immediately understood Bai Yan's intentions. With a sinister grin, he picked up the leather whip from the table beside him and brought it down hard on Su Leng Huan.

"Crack!"

A sharp crack echoed, and a gruesome bloody gash immediately appeared on Su Leng Huan's body, her clothes instantly torn.

"Crack! Crack! Crack!"

Ren Hong showed no mercy, lashing Su Leng Huan repeatedly with the whip.

Each strike left Su Leng Huan's skin broken and flesh torn.

After more than ten lashes, Su Leng Huan's body was already soaked in blood, and her silk dress had become tattered and slipped off her body.

However, with her entire body covered in blood and grime, no one paid attention to her exposed form.

"Crack!"

Another whip strike landed, hitting Su Leng Huan directly on the face, leaving a long, bloody scar and disfiguring her beautiful features.

Yet, she seemed unfazed. Instead, she let out a mocking laugh:

"Heh... heh... Is this... all... you have...?"

Her jaw had been dislocated, making her words come out haltingly.

"Not bad, you really are a tough one."

"But it doesn't matter, I like people like you who are stubborn."

Bai Yan smiled and took another sip of his tea.

He wasn't in a hurry, his state of mind was calm. He had plenty of time to wear Su Leng Huan down.

Seeing Su Leng Huan's continued resistance, Ren Hong's anger intensified, and he increased the force of his whip strikes.

"Crack-crack-crack-crack-crack!"

For a time, the continuous sound of the leather whip echoed through the prison cell.

Li Kaiyao also stepped forward, picked up a red-hot branding iron from the brazier, and before Su Leng Huan could react, pressed it fiercely against her lower abdomen.

"Ugh—!"

Su Leng Huan let out a piercing scream, then bit down hard on her lip, swallowing the rest of her cries of pain as white smoke rose from the scorched flesh.

Her eyes turned bloodshot, her face covered in blood and grime. She stared intently at Bai Yan and the others with venomous eyes, a sinister smile spreading across her face:

"You... don't waste your energy... From me... you'll get... nothing."

"What... you see now... is merely... a corpse."

"Sir, these methods aren't working on her."

After dozens of lashes, Ren Hong stopped, panting heavily.

Li Kaiyao had also tried the branding iron several times. Seeing that Su Leng Huan's teeth remained tightly clenched, he could only reluctantly withdraw.

Subsequently, the two used various other torture instruments, but none had any effect on Su Leng Huan.

Su Leng Huan had been tortured into a bloody mess by the two of them, barely clinging to life.

But she remained silent, her resolve harder than anyone could have imagined.

The methods that many men couldn't endure, Su Leng Huan, a woman, had somehow withstood, demonstrating her incredible willpower.

The Imperial Guard actually had many other interrogation techniques, but those methods could no longer be used.

Su Leng Huan was already severely injured, and now she had been tortured by Ren Hong and Li Kaiyao.

Her external and internal injuries worsened, causing her consciousness to fade further.

If they continued to torture her like this, Su Leng Huan might die on the spot.

If she died, it would truly be a loss that outweighed any gain.

It seems I'll have to use my unique interrogation technique.

This is a good opportunity to test the power of the Talisman of Life and Death!

Bai Yan raised his hand and pointed at the teacup, drawing a wisp of water from it.

His palm surged with internal energy, and his Yin-Yang True Qi suddenly reversed. The scorching internal energy instantly turned into bone-chilling cold, freezing the water into a thin sheet of ice.

With a flick of his finger, the ice shard shot out like an arrow, piercing into Su Leng Huan's body.

As he injected the Talisman of Life and Death, Bai Yan also sent a stream of True Qi into Su Leng Huan's body to protect her heart meridian.

This was Bai Yan's first time using the Talisman of Life and Death. He was afraid that its power would be too great and kill Su Leng Huan directly, so he used his True Qi to sustain her life.

As soon as the Talisman of Life and Death entered her body, Su Leng Huan's eyes bulged, and she let out a heart-wrenching wail.

"Ahhh—!!"

Su Leng Huan's body convulsed violently, her hands clenching the chains binding her so tightly that her fingernails broke during her struggles, blood trickling down the iron chains.

The sight of her agonizing screams made Ren Hong, Li Kaiyao, and the others' scalps tingle and their bodies turn cold.

They had no idea what their superior had done, only that Bai Yan had made a gesture, and Su Leng Huan couldn't take it anymore.

Previously, their tortures had been useless against Su Leng Huan.

But with just a gentle wave of his hand, Bai Yan made her wish she were dead.

Such terrifying methods truly chilled them to the bone.

"Kill... kill... kill me!"

"Aaaah!!"

Su Leng Huan's teeth had already bitten through her lips. She squeezed out these words with all her might, only to be overwhelmed by even more intense pain, letting out a scream that was not human.

A hint of pleading appeared in her venomous eyes.

This was the first time Bai Yan had seen a plea in Su Leng Huan's eyes since entering the prison cell.

Su Leng Huan was currently enduring unimaginable agony, feeling as though being sliced into a thousand pieces or tortured to death by lingering death was nothing compared to it.

Bai Yan said expressionlessly:

"This is a cultivation technique I learned by chance, called the Talisman of Life and Death."

"Once this Talisman of Life and Death takes effect, it gets worse day by day, with itching and pain escalating until the eighty-first day."

"Then it gradually decreases, and after eighty-one days, it increases again, repeating in a cycle, never-ending."

Hearing Bai Yan speak, Ren Hong, Li Kaiyao, and the surrounding Imperial Prison enforcers all felt a chill crawl from their heels to the tops of their heads, their bodies trembling uncontrollably.

If the Talisman of Life and Death was truly as terrifying as Bai Yan described, then this was the most dreadful method in the world.

This was only the beginning, and she was already in such pain. What level of torment would it reach at its peak?

Compared to the Talisman of Life and Death, the interrogation methods of the Imperial Guard were not even worth mentioning.

"As for its effectiveness, you've likely experienced it firsthand."

"With me here, you can't even die. You can only endure the torment of the Talisman of Life and Death indefinitely."

"If you want release, tell me everything you know."

Bai Yan stood up and sternly demanded:

"Speak! What is your identity in the Demonic Cult! Who is your superior! Who are your subordinates! How many Demonic Cult halls do you know of!"

"What is your purpose for infiltrating Yongtang! Do you have any spies within the court!"

Su Leng Huan, tormented to the point of wishing for death, finally couldn't bear it any longer and said intermittently:

"I'll... I'll tell you... but first, remove the Talisman of Life and Death..."

Bai Yan struck Su Leng Huan with his palm, temporarily relieving her pain, and then pushed her jaw back into place, shouting:

"Speak quickly!"

Su Leng Huan gasped for air, her voice hoarse, "I am a subordinate of the Ghost Venerable... Tian Qiao Xing..."

"My subordinates have already gone into hiding, I... I don't know their whereabouts..."

"As for the other Demonic Cult halls, I don't know either..."

"Ghost Venerable?"

"Is he one of the Demonic Cult's Six Great Protectors?"

Bai Yan's eyes narrowed.

If he could capture one of the Six Great Protectors, that would truly be a big catch.

"Yes..."

"Where is he?"

"I don't know..."

"You don't know? You dare to lie!"

Bai Yan's eyes turned cold, and he gave Ren Hong a look. Ren Hong immediately stepped forward, grabbed Su Leng Huan by her hair, and forced her to lift her head.

"You are one of the Thirty-Six Heavenly Gangs, a Master Hall Master of the Demonic Cult, how could you not know the location of a Protector's lair!"

"It seems you haven't suffered enough. Do you want to taste the Talisman of Life and Death again!"

"Rea... Really! I truly don't know!"