"Your Majesty, the fifty strokes have been completed!"
The flogging on the square before the Imperial Ancestral Temple, carried out personally by Cao Jie, commander of the Spring Death Army, had finally ended.
For those receiving the punishment, it was torture. But for those watching, wasn't it just as nerve-racking?
The two nobles kneeling on the ground were both deathly pale. Their bare upper bodies were crisscrossed with identical purple welts, grotesque as snake marks.
The punishment was divided into five grades, with ten strokes to a grade. Fifty strokes was the maximum. In principle, this was the lightest punishment. But if the executioner meant to, it wouldn't be difficult to flog someone to death!
Cao Jie held out his right hand. Only after the eunuch standing nearby took the punishment whip did he turn and return to the raised platform.
The Emperor of Qi said, "Rise."
Tian Xili and Liu Yingqi each put their tops back on, then staggered to their feet.
Their cultivation and strength were not equal. As the one carrying out the flogging, Cao Jie had controlled his strength well. The lashes he dealt to each of them had been limited to the Divine Presence and Outer Tower levels, respectively.
So now, both men were on the verge of collapsing.
The Son of Heaven added, "If you can't stay on your feet, you may leave and rest for now."
"Thank you for Your Majesty's gracious decree!" Tian Xili cupped his hands. "I... can stand!"
Liu Yingqi said as well, "I... I can..."
Thump.
Before he could finish, he had fallen back onto the ground.
But the ground seemed to be covered in knives. The moment he landed, he sprang back up, somehow finding the strength to do so.
"I can stand!" he gritted out.
Green Sheep