The following day, at noon.
Blood-red moonlight slanted down as the sinister wind howled, sweeping swiftly through one canyon after another.
In the "Yellow" district, shackled prisoners emerged from corners in twos and threes. They began swinging their homemade stone picks and hammers, quarrying stone.
They wandered about at will. Wu Xunan, whom Pei Ling had transformed into, mingled among them and trudged with the crowd toward a half-quarried cliff face, joining the stonecutters.
"Clang, clang, clang..."
The monotonous blows rang out one after another. As they worked, the prisoners began chatting. "...That Staff Officer Song—don't let that frail-looking little woman fool you. It's all an act! I heard the people she's tortured lately come out looking like their bones have been pulled out. They tremble just at the mention of her."
"Is it really that exaggerated?" someone immediately retorted. "Du'e Abyss has its rules, and besides, we're only in the 'Yellow' district."
"No matter how vicious that little Song woman is, she can't just kill us, can she?"
"I say those few were all bark and no bite. They looked fierce, but they were soft to the bone. Give them the slightest scare, and they were down on their knees in a flash."
At that, a prisoner not far away chuckled. "If you don't believe it, why not go try her yourself?"
"Take Qian Si yesterday. He was usually a real tough guy. After Staff Officer Song dealt with him, he became so docile and obedient that even a dog you'd raised for ten years wouldn't be as thoughtful and considerate."
"That's right." The prisoners around them nodded in agreement. "No wonder the righteous path chose Staff Officer Song for the job. At first, seeing how delicate and sweet she looked, we thought she'd be an easy mark. Now,