Great Zhou: Emperor Wu, I need to check your taxes.

With a long neigh, the horse's iron hooves left a trail of sparks on the bluestone slabs, abruptly changing direction.

"Let's go back to the manor!"

The guard was taken aback and hurriedly asked:

"Commander, are we not going to investigate the other suspicious locations? There are still a few brothers keeping watch there..."

"No need to investigate." A glint of light flashed in Shangguan Wan'er's eyes, and the corners of her mouth curled up into a smile.

"Since that kid went straight back to his residence, it means the biggest fish has already been caught."

"Let Lai Junchen deal with the rest of the small fry himself. Let him wander around Chang'an like a headless fly tonight!"

"yes!"

……

The Inner Guard Prefecture, Earth-level prison.

This place is perpetually shrouded in darkness, a terrifying place second only to the Imperial Prison and on par with the prison cells of the Judicial Office.

At that moment, outside the reinforced interrogation room, two figures stood somewhat awkwardly.

Lin Yun crossed his arms and leaned against the moss-covered stone wall, his face displaying a variety of expressions.

Even the usually cold and aloof Li Hong'er had a strange expression and her eyes were wandering, as if she didn't know where to look.

The sound coming from inside that heavy iron gate was just... off.

"Mmm... Ah..."

It was a suppressed, painful, yet strangely feminine low moan.

If this weren't the prison of the Imperial Guard, one would think the sound was coming from a brothel.

"Um..." Lin Yun coughed, breaking the silence.

"Miss Hong'er, that seventh-level expert we captured... is he really a man?"

Li Hong'er's lips twitched, and her grip on the sword tightened.

"When he was captured... it was indeed a man. Although his movements were unpredictable, his Adam's apple and bone structure were unmistakably those of a man."

"And this commotion..." Lin Yun pointed to the iron gate, his face full of unspoken words.

Just then, with a creak, the heavy iron door was pushed open.

Aunt An came out while wiping the bloodstains from her hands with a white cloth.

This usually gentle and elegant lady, who was always dignified, now had a strange expression on her face.

"Aunt An, how is it?" Li Hong'er immediately stepped forward and asked.

"You won't die, will you?"

"She won't die." Aunt An threw the blood-stained white cloth into the wooden bucket beside her and sighed.

"I've practiced medicine for most of my life and seen countless people, but this strange body... is the first I've ever seen before."

She suddenly glanced at Lin Yun, paused, and then continued:

"I've treated his injuries and used acupuncture to seal several major acupoints on his lumbar spine and dantian. He's now paralyzed from the waist down and can't move. You can interrogate him at any time."

"but……"

Aunt An pointed inside with a complicated expression.

"You'll see when you go inside. This guy practices... probably some kind of heinous and insidious kung fu."

Lin Yun and Li Hong'er exchanged a glance, took a deep breath at the same time, and stepped into the interrogation room.

The room reeked of blood.

The expert who was captured was sitting on an iron bed, his hands and feet bound by iron chains, and his clothes were gone. He was simply wrapped in bandages, leaving only his bare limbs.

Beside the rack, on the ground, lay a wooden basin filled with freshly cleaned rotten flesh and blood—a horrifying sight.

But what truly sent chills down their spines was the prisoner himself.

The ruthless and sinister man who had been fighting was gone.

Instead, there was an extremely slender, even somewhat "graceful" body.

His skin appeared sickly pale in the firelight, and his once-tied black hair had inexplicably turned gray and white, draped loosely over his shoulders.

Moreover, the rise and fall of his chest under those bandages was something no man could ever do!

Especially that face.

It was a face with delicate features, a masculine appearance but feminine features, exuding a breathtaking and eerie beauty.

Is this really the assassin at the seventh level of the martial arts realm?

Isn't she some sickly beauty imprisoned in the Imperial Guard?

"This..." Li Hong'er was stunned.

Hearing the noise, the "sickly beauty" slowly raised her head.

There was no trace of weakness in those eyes, only a venomous and insane rage that seemed intent on devouring anyone in its path.

The man stared intently at Lin Yun, as if he wanted to devour him.

Lin Yun subconsciously wanted to activate his Heavenly Eye to investigate the man's background, but felt a sharp pain between his eyebrows.

I used it far too many times today. Even if I use it again, I won't faint like before, but all I can see is a blurry speck of snowflakes.

"cough."

Lin Yun subtly shrank back, reached out and nudged Li Hong'er's lower back, and whispered:

"Hong'er, you go first. Ask this androgynous fellow which deity he is."

"What? Me?"

"Alright then... Phew..."

Li Hong'er took a deep breath and stepped forward.

Although the long sword in her hand was not drawn, the hilt was pressed against the person's chin, forcing her to raise her head.

"Speak," Li Hong'er said, her voice as cold as ice.

"Name, background, and who is directing them?"

The sickly beauty was forced to tilt her head back, a mocking smile curving her lips, her voice carrying an eerie magnetism.

"Name? Does it matter? I'm just unlucky today; I've been taken advantage of by you."

"But I killed two of my guards, so it's a good deal. Hahaha!"

She suddenly burst into laughter, the sound echoing eerily in the empty interrogation room.

"As for the rest... use whatever means you have. Branding iron? Or clamps?"

"Bring it on, if I even flinch, I'll admit defeat."

A cold glint flashed in Li Hong'er's eyes, and she sneered, "You've got some nerve. But you seem to have misunderstood something. This is the Inner Guard Commandery, not the Luoyang Prefectural Government!"

"Our methods are no less numerous than those of Lai Junchen from the Judicial Office! You think you can get through this by just gritting your teeth?"

"The Magistrate's Office?" The man scoffed, a hint of disdain flashing in his eyes.

"Does that kind of despicable place, which only uses brute force to pull out fingernails and force-feeds people chili water, even deserve to be called torture?"

"Little girl, you're still too green."

She slowly lowered her head, her gaze sweeping over her body wrapped in bandages. Her voice suddenly became somewhat ethereal, filled with deep resentment and despair.

"You think I don't understand the methods of the Magistrate's Office? Heh... What I've experienced is something you, a sheltered inner guard, could never imagine."

She raised her eyelids, looked at Li Hong'er coldly, and said, word by word:

"You know what? I was originally a woman too."

These words were like a thunderclap, leaving Li Hong'er and Lin Yun's heads buzzing!

Originally... she was a woman?

In other words, she was forcibly transformed into this neither-male-nor-female, terrifyingly powerful monster using some kind of evil magic or drug.

What kind of deep-seated hatred and cruelty must one possess to do something like this?!