Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations

It was now winter in the 46th year of Chongming.

The emperor had fallen and Prime Minister Long had launched a rebellion.

Duke Weiyuan acted in place of the late emperor and led troops to suppress it. Andingmen1 was bathed in blood.

The next day.

The army of the Divine Capital was under martial law, searching for the remnants of the Prime Minister Long. Sky Prison was packed full.

..

Sky Prison.

Desperate people clung to the fence and begged for mercy.

“Your Majesty, I’m innocent!”

“I have nothing to do with the Long Rebellion!”

“We all rejoice in the punishment of Long!”

There were also some who knew that they would definitely die and cursed Emperor Chongming before they met their fate.

“Heaven is unjust. What right does a dog emperor have to be a herdsman?”

“The Zhao royal family deserves to die!”

“Useless Emperor, I hate you!”

“Old man, how dare you scold the late emperor? I will never forgive you.”

“Old Lu, you bastard, if it weren’t for the Long’s protection back then, your entire family would have been wiped out!”

..

The Celestial Dungeon had never been so lively. Now, it was as noisy as a market.

The two sides cursed and even fought. The courtier pulled at his hair, while the military attaché lifted his groin.

The guards on duty were dazzled and whispered about these big shots. They were unable to keep straight faces even in the face of death.

Prison cell C-9.

This cell had an inner and outer room, and both were clean and tidy.

Zhou Yi opened the cell door. There were two middle-aged men locked alone inside.

A large flail half the height of a man was looped around their necks. They could only kneel with their heads lowered, or the shackles would break their necks.

The prisoners heard footsteps and looked up with difficulty.

Zhou Yi smiled and offered a greeting. “Young Master Long, we meet again!”

“Who are you?”

Young Master Long’s voice was dry and hoarse. He was a completely different person from the arrogant and domineering man who had entered Sky Prison previously.

“That’s only natural. How can a noble young master like you remember a small fry like me?”

Zhou Yi smiled. “All these years that you have served here in Sky Prison, I was the one to deliver your food. If you don’t serve me well, you’ll be slapped.”

Young Master Long frowned, appearing to get the message.

However, he had killed too many people to count. He still couldn’t remember when he had fought Zhou Yi.

“Screw you!”

Young Master Long said disdainfully, “You’re like a dog. You only dare to kick me while I’m down!”

“Let’s hope you can always be so unyielding, Young Master Long.”

Zhou Yi was not angry at all. He never intended to be a good person because he did not want anyone to point a weapon at him.

So he would be the bad good guy.

Young Master Long had beaten him. Even after ten years, I must take revenge.

Forgiveness was a matter best left for Buddha. Zhou Yi was only responsible for sending him to the Western Paradise!

“I’ve learned a lot during my years in Sky Prison, but time is limited, so I won’t try them all on you one by one.”

Zhou Yi spoke unhurriedly, as if he was chatting with an old friend. “There might be a trial in a few days. The torture tools are useless. Young Master Long, please try this pill..”

As he spoke, he took out a pill from his sleeve. It was round, red, and had strange patterns on its surface.

“A few years ago, the Uniformed Guard captured a thief who had great knowledge of Gu worms. Before he died, he traded me this pill in exchange for a ten-year-old bottole of Pear Blossom White.”

When Zhou Yi spoke of Pear Blossom White, he would always think of Wei Chang. His resentment towards Young Master Long all these years stemmed from this.

A good man was decapitated, while a bad man was set free.

“According to the thief, this pill contains a certain parasite. After taking it, it hatches in the stomach and then feeds on the internal organs. Because of the small amount eaten, those who are poisoned can live for another year or so.”

Zhou Yi grabbed Young Master Long’s mouth and opened it with a little force. He flicked the pill into his throat.

“Hehehe..”

Young Master Long choked and couldn’t speak. Then the pill melted and he felt something crawling down his throat.

When it reached his lungs, and, perhaps because it was tired and hungry, it began to casually chew on the flesh.

“Ah—”

A miserable scream made the originally chaotic cell fall silent.

Young Master Long’s neck and hands were fixed to the heavy flail, and his legs were bound by leg shackles. Even if he was in pain, he could only struggle within a limited range.

His face flushed red and his veins popped out, making him look like a malicious ghost.

A moment passed.

The Gu worms began to rest after eating. The pain slowly subsided. Young Master Long looked up at Zhou Yi again and his eyes filled with fear.

“Young Master Long, rest well. The Gu worm will wake up at any time. It will be difficult for you to sleep peacefully in the future.”

After saying that, Zhou Yi turned his head to the other prisoner in the cell.

Young Master Long’s younger brother was still a young teenager. It must be said that Prime Minister Long was strong in his old age.

“Y-y-you stay away!”

The young man trembled. Seeing Zhou Yi staring at him, he was so frightened that he spouted nonsense. “My father is the Grand Secretary, my mother is a princess.. I have the royal bloodline. Don’t come over..”

Just then..

Commandant Niu brought prison guards in and was relieved to see that Young Master Long was still alive.

“I knew it. Say what you will about Zhou Yi, but he knows his place.”

It was normal to torture prisoners in Sky Prison. As long as it did not delay the execution, no one cared what torture the criminals suffered.

Zhou Yi stood up and bowed. He whispered, “Uncle Niu, have you seen Master Lei today?”

“Master Lei is collecting his thoughts in seclusion. Leave all matters in the prison to me.”

Commandant Niu’s voice was low, but he could not hide the joy on his face.

Warden Lei was involved in a conspiracy. It was very likely that he would not be able to come back, allowing Commandant Niu to take this opportunity to take over the position of warden.

The young teenager saw them leave the cell and his fear slowly dissipated. He turned to look at Young Master Long.

“Brother, are you feeling better?”

Young Master Long stared at the young man resentfully and gritted his teeth. “It’s all because of you, bastard. Otherwise, how could I have ended up in such a state? Father will definitely succeed!”

The young man muttered, “Brother, how can you say that? Mother and I support Father..”

“Don’t mention that bitch!”

Young Master Long cursed angrily. “That slut seduced Father, got him drunk, and gave birth to a bastard like you. You’re a pawn of the damned emperor’s. If that slut hadn’t spread fake news that the emperor still had a few years to live, Father wouldn’t have rebelled in such a hurry.”

“He would have stuck to the original plan of transferring 100,000 troops to the capital camp. It was foolproof!”

The younger brother’s eyes were dull and he said in disbelief, “Impossible! Impossible! Why would Mother lie to me? She even said that I have two generations of royal bloodline and will definitely ascend the throne in the future!”

“You stupid—”

Young Master Long was about to mock him when the Gu worms suddenly awoke and started eating his intestines.

The screams were endless.

..

That evening.

Zhou Yi carried a large wooden bucket and delivered food to each cell.

The civil and military officials, who had been hungry all day, were already famished. Ignoring how terrible the food was, they squatted on the ground and slurped porridge.

“Little brother, give me another spoonful, give me another spoonful!”

A familiar yet strange voice.

Zhou Yi carefully identified the person who spoke. It took him a long time to recognize him. “Master Liu, we meet again!”

As he spoke, he glanced at the cell number and couldn’t help but be surprised.

“Still in B-6!”

Assistant Minister Liu had been through a lot. How could he care about this ridicule? He said shamelessly, “Little brother, this is fate!”

Zhou Yi asked, “Master Liu, I just want to ask, Mr. Su had a close relationship with you back then. Why did you report him?”

“Old Su’s blabbering mouth never holds back!”

Assistant Minister Liu shrugged and said, “If I didn’t report him, something would have happened sooner or later. Since we’re all friends, instead of letting others benefit, why don’t you give me the credit!”

“I’m impressed!”

Zhou Yi was really convinced and hurriedly served Assistant Minister Liu good wine and meat.

..

Prison cell A-12

Zhou Yi poured the porridge into a large bowl and let the prisoners distribute it among themselves.

The people in section A were all strong criminals. Most of them were proficient in martial arts and would be ranked according to their strength.

The strong slept in beds and ate their fill, while the weak guarded their piss buckets and starved.

A voice suddenly came from the corner of the cell. “Zhou Yi, brother, is that you?”

“Dojo Master Luo? Why are you here?”

When Zhou Yi heard this familiar voice, he waved the other prisoners away so that he could see the prisoner lying in the corner.

Indeed, it was Luo Hu from the Five Tigers Martial Arts School.

There were seven or eight knife wounds on his body. Blood stained his clothes. Broken arrows were stuck in his shoulders, and his legs were twisted irregularly.

Only then did Zhou Yi understand why the first-rate experts of the Visceral Tempering Realm were not locked up alone. Luo Hu’s injuries were too serious, and his strength was less than a tenth of normal. The shattering of his leg bones also prevented him from escaping.

Luo Hu leaned against the wall and begged, “Brother Yi, I have something to say to you in private.”

“Sure.”

Zhou Yi spoke to the prison guard on duty and moved the dojo master to another cell for the time being.

The prisoners didn’t dare to have any objections. If they dared to cause a ruckus and annoy the prison guards, they would no longer get to enjoy good food and would be taught a lesson every day.

In cell A-12, only Zhou Yi and Luo Hu were left.

Luo Hu began speaking right away. “There’s a house in the capital that bears the name of an outsider. There are thousands of taels of silver, the Five Tigers Fist Manual, and a recipe for nourishing medicine hidden at the bottom of the well. Go and get them, brother. It’s enough to cultivate all the way to the Marrow Cleansing realm.”

Zhou Yi asked, “First, tell me what’s on your mind.”

Luo Hu whispered, “Brother, you must think of a way to save my son and leave a descendant for the Luo family..”

“Your son can’t be let go!”

Zhou Yi decisively refused. The ten martial arts schools in the capital were suspected of treason, and their identities would all be verified when they were beheaded.

If it were a distant relative, Zhou Yi would be able to help. But Luo Hu’s biological son would be watched very carefully.

“Someone else, then.”

Luo Hu said, “I’m secretly in love with a widow in the capital. She’s already eight months pregnant. Brother, please take care of her for me.”

Zhou Yi pondered for a moment and nodded in agreement. “If the Uniformed Guard hasn’t captured her yet, I will help.”

Luo Hu lowered his voice. “Her residence is in Lechangfang..”

Zhou Yi wrote down the address and said, “Dojo Master Luo, you have to help me do something too.”

“What is it?”

“Go to B-6 and beat someone to death!”

“Who?”

“Kill whoever eats the last meal!”

Zhou Yi instructed him in a low voice and left the cell, sending the prisoner back where he came from.

A short time passed.

There was an argument in the cell, and it grew into a brawl.

Luo Hu was being bullied. This first-rate martial arts expert was surrounded by a bunch of farmers and beaten up, worsening his injuries. He almost died on the spot.

“What’s going on here? No food for three days!”

The jailer barked a few words. Afraid that Luo Hu would be beaten to death, the guards changed his cell.

Cell B-6.

Assistant Minister Liu was drinking and eating meat when the prison guard threw in a bloody prisoner. He couldn’t help but stare.

“What are you looking at?” barked Luo Hu.

“I.. Ah!” Assistant Minister Liu bumbled.

Luo Hu pounced at Assistant Minister Liu and slammed his head against his.

Assistant Minister Liu was a mere civil official and an old man. His brain exploded on the spot, splattering the surrounding civil and military officials’ faces.

The guard on duty quickly went in and pulled Luo Hu away. He punched and kicked him for a while before bringing him to another cell.

A short time passed.

A loud bang was heard in the cell. Luo Hu smashed himself against the wall and committed suicide.