"You'll interrogate him like this from now on," Zhao Linchuan said unhurriedly. "Three times a day—morning, noon, and night."
"Keep at it until he's willing to hand over the Dragon Transformation Secret Technique he stole from my Spirit Hall. After that, you can decide whether to stop."
"He stole the Dragon Transformation Secret Technique from Spirit Hall?" Yu Xiaogang sprang to his feet like a cat whose tail had been stepped on.
He was soaked through, his hair plastered to his face. He looked utterly wretched, yet he pointed at Zhao Linchuan and cried out in a shrill voice:
"The Dragon Transformation Secret Technique is the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan's closely guarded secret! Since when did it belong to your Spirit Hall?!"
He did know the Dragon Transformation Secret Technique. Back then, he had once hoped that Luo Sanpao, his Mutated Martial Soul that couldn't break through level thirty and was a laughingstock, could bring him some Dragon Transformation improvements, just like the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon.
For that, he had cultivated bitterly for a long, long time. But things hadn't gone as he'd wished. Despite all those years of cultivation, he hadn't managed to gather even the slightest trace of Dragon Transformation.
To him, that secret technique was nothing but a scrap of paper.
But even if it was worthless, that didn't mean outsiders could snatch it away.
"Go get another water vat," Zhao Linchuan said without even looking at him. "Turn it up a notch and help him cool off."
"Yes!" the guard replied at once, hurrying off.
Yu Xiaogang's face was deathly pale, and his lips trembled. Still, he stubbornly held his head high and gritted out, "You... even if you kill me, I won't hand over the Dragon Transformation Secret Technique!"
He was certain Zhao Linchuan wouldn't dare kill him.
He was a direct descendant of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, Yu Yuanzhen's biological son.
Killing him would be tantamount to declaring war on the entire Upper Three Sects.
No matter how powerful Spirit Hall was, it wouldn't dare lightly provoke a conflict on that scale.
At last, Zhao Linchuan glanced at him. His gaze was so indifferent, it was like he was looking at a dead dog.
Turning to the red-robed Soul Master, he said, "From now on, you'll stay here and take care of him. Morning, noon, and night."
The corner of his mouth curled up slightly, as if he'd thought of something amusing. He continued, "After you've taken care of him, go catch some leeches."
"Let them get to know each other up close."
"You—!"
Yu Xiaogang's face turned from white to green, then from green to purple, until it was as red as a pig's liver.
His finger shook as he pointed at Zhao Linchuan. His voice shook with fury. "You bastard!!"
"Three times isn't enough," Zhao Linchuan said coldly. "Make it four."
He turned and walked out alongside Bibi Dong, his voice drifting back from the far end of the corridor.
"Also, don't let him sleep."
"If he so much as closes his eyes, throw him into cold water every five minutes."
"Keep it up until he's willing to hand over the Dragon Transformation Secret Technique he stole from my Spirit Hall. Then you can consider easing up."
"Yes!" the red-robed Soul Master and the guard answered in unison.
Yu Xiaogang collapsed onto the cold, wet floor, shivering all over. He couldn't tell whether it was from the cold or from anger.
Watching the two figures recede into the distance, he roared hoarsely, "If you've got the guts, kill me! Kill me!!!"
A long while later.
Outside the dungeon, Zhao Linchuan and Bibi Dong walked out through the heavy iron door side by side.
"I never would've guessed," Bibi Dong said, turning to look at him with a teasing smile in her eyes. "You're quite the expert when it comes to punishments."
"This sort of thing is nothing worth mentioning." Zhao Linchuan waved a hand.
"Oh, right." He suddenly remembered something and turned to Bibi Dong. "Are you free? Come with me to buy a few things."
"What are you buying?"
"Clothes and jewelry for a girl."
Bibi Dong's steps faltered. She turned to him, her lovely almond eyes widening slightly as she stared straight at him. "Clothes and jewelry for a girl? Who are you buying them for?"
Zhao Linchuan met her gaze without looking away.
"For the woman I'm engaged to."
He thought it over and decided it was better to make this public.
Yan Lingji had settled into this world. She wasn't someone who needed to stay hidden, and he had no intention of keeping her in the shadows.
At his words, Bibi Dong's eyes lit up at once. She practically quivered with barely contained curiosity and excitement.
"You have a fiancée?!"
Her speech suddenly sped up, the questions tumbling out like a string of firecrackers.
"Quick, tell me about her!"
"What does she look like?"
"Is she pretty?"
"How old is she this year?"
"What's her Martial Soul?"
"How talented is she?"
She counted on her fingers, unwilling to leave out a single question. "Where does her family live? What's her family's financial situation like? How many siblings does she have?"
"Have you two made things official?"
"How much betrothal money did she ask for? How much dowry is she bringing?"
"When are you planning to get married and have children?"
Bibi Dong's barrage made Zhao Linchuan's eyelid twitch. Looking at her eyes, so bright they could serve as lanterns, he felt an indescribable sense of helplessness.
"Miss Dong'er," he said, rubbing his forehead with a helpless laugh, "you are the Holy Maiden of Spirit Hall, after all. How come you're like a little girl who loves gossip?"
"But I am a little girl!"
Bibi Dong puffed out her chest as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. Tilting her head, she flashed him a teasing smile.
"Is there something wrong with that?"
"Or do you not think of me as a woman?"
Zhao Linchuan: "..."
He opened his mouth, only to find himself at a loss for words.
"Fine." He sighed and resigned himself to setting off. "I'll tell you as we walk."
Bibi Dong immediately caught up and walked at his side, light on her feet as a little bird.
She turned her head toward him, eyes shining as she waited for him to continue.
Zhao Linchuan thought it over. Where should he begin?
"She's beautiful—more beautiful than anyone I've ever met."
Bibi Dong blinked, waiting for him to say more.
"As for her age..." Zhao Linchuan mused for a moment. "She's a little older than you."
"Then what's her Martial Soul?"
"Mystic Bird Vermilion Bird."
"How did you meet?" Bibi Dong asked again. "What does her family do?"
"Her family..." He chose his words carefully. "It's complicated. She doesn't really have any family left."
Bibi Dong's smile faded a little, and a trace of apology flickered in her eyes.
She didn't press him further, only nodded quietly.
The two walked side by side along a covered walkway. Sunlight slanted through the pillars, spreading a patch of warm gold at their feet.
"What's her personality like?" Bibi Dong asked again, her voice softer than before. "Is she easy to get along with?"
"Not particularly," he answered honestly. "She's got quite a temper, and she doesn't hold back with her words."
Bibi Dong glanced at him, surprised. "Then what do you like about her?"
Zhao Linchuan didn't answer right away. He looked up at the clouds on the horizon, painted pale gold by the setting sun as they drifted lazily by.
"When you like someone, you don't necessarily have to say what it is you like about them."
"I see..." Bibi Dong nodded thoughtfully and didn't ask anything more.
Before you continue