I am the old, fiery-faced man from the senior department.

"No matter who it is, I feel sorry for the first person to suffer this punishment."

"If it were me, I would have confessed immediately. This kind of torture is unbearable for a human being."

"Yes."

"Speaking of which, how long do you think this guy can last?"

"How long can it last? That depends on how long this poor child can stay up."

"Hey, look! This guy is actually reacting!"

"Holy crap! It really is! This guy! He's a monster!"

"Damn it, I've been on the job for so many years and I've seen all kinds of people, but I've never seen anyone like this."

Every word of the crowd's discussion reached Chiwen's ears, and the dual torment of his body and mind nearly drove him to collapse.

but……

That's all!

That's all!

He can still endure it!

As long as I'm alive, I can see my white moonlight again...

■

"You still have some sense? I underestimated you, Mr. Dog."

Lu Boyun coldly looked at the messy, foul-smelling cell and spoke to Chiwen with a hint of respect.

"Ha... corrupt official..."

Chiwen almost spat out these words through gritted teeth.

"But it's okay."

Lu Boyun stubbed out his cigarette, completely ignoring Chiwen's curses.

"Mr. Dog, have you ever thought about why we treat you this way?"

Since Chiwen remained silent, Lu Boyun began to speak on his own.

“You are clearly a key witness in the attack on the prefect of Boyun Prefecture. Yet I dare to treat you like this, aren’t I just blocking the path to the truth?”

Aren't you curious?

Lu Boyun slowly approached the Chiwen, bent down and said something to it.

"Ha, you think I'd believe that..."

Lu Boyun abruptly interrupted him, grabbing his hair and turning his gaze away.

"no no……"

The sight before his eyes caused Chiwen's pupils to dilate instantly.

"No! No! Please! Please, please let her go!"

"You want to know who killed your father, right? I'll tell you! I'll tell you everything! Please! Please!"

Ignoring the physical pain, he struggled frantically.

He, who remained expressionless even when faced with torture that humiliated his dignity, was now weeping bitterly.

Even with his unwavering will, he disregarded his pride and loudly begged the enemy for mercy.

"Ha, too late, Mr. Dog. We already have a more suitable witness."

Lu Boyun ignored his words, released his left hand that was gripping his hair, turned and walked outside, raising his right hand at the same time.

"Prepare to interrogate the suspect."

"It was Qiu Hu who killed your father!"

The voice of despair cried out, and Lu Boyun, who was about to step out of the house, paused.

"Who...you said...it is?"

He turned his head and shouted, word by word.

"Chou Hu! It was Chou Hu who did it!"

The already broken Chiwen disregarded dignity and honor; he only wanted to tell her everything he knew in exchange for her freedom and innocence.

It's enough that he was the only one insulted by that beast.

Returning to the Twenty-Sixth Chouhu

"Chou! Hu!"

Lu Boyun's roar echoed throughout the prison, and all the soldiers stood at attention.

They could truly feel the anger that was spreading through everyone's hearts.

After much hardship, the true identity of the culprit who murdered the prefect was finally exposed.

"Wait! I've told you everything I know! You..."

The owl was kicked hard, and its blood- and filthy tail was stomped on.

"You have no right to make demands of me!"

Lu Boyun tried his best to remain calm.

"The person you're thinking of is right now crawling between Qiu Hu's legs, being your sister!"

Lu Boyun snapped his fingers and stared blankly at the chiwen (a mythical creature) in the opposite cell.

There was nothing there.

"Ah ah ah ah ah!"

Humiliation, betrayal, and pain overlapped, leaving the wounded unable to rise again.

■

"Qiu Hu...Mr. Huang, does Brother Lu know him?"

Bai Zhou handed the staff he used to unleash Originium Arts to a soldier next to him, then looked at Huang Wen'an, who was clenching his fists, with a puzzled expression.

"know……"

Huang Wen'an took a few deep breaths to calm himself down. He then explained to Bai Zhou:

"Qiu Hu was Lord Lu's close friend during his lifetime. He had fought alongside Lord Lu on the battlefield and saved each other's lives."

"But we never expected that this ungrateful wretch would be the one who killed our master!"

The enraged old man slammed his fist into the wall, leaving several cracks where the fist had struck.

"I see."

The bright daylight illuminated the prison cell.

No wonder the people here are so angry; it turns out they not only learned the identity of the real culprit, but also someone they never imagined.

"So, now that we know the real culprit's identity, we can make the arrest, right?"

"Not yet..."

Du Heng's face was gloomy, and the veins on the temples bulged with anger, but he was able to keep his composure and not let his emotions interfere with his thoughts.

"My master is very strong. He can defeat twenty or thirty fully armed and organized bandits on his own without using Originium Arts."

“Qiu Hu’s strength… is even greater than our master’s. Moreover, his Originium Arts can alter the surrounding landscape. We… are no match for him. We cannot rashly attempt to capture him, lest we suffer a lose-lose situation and needlessly endanger everyone’s lives.”

“Even more deadly…”

Du Heng gritted her teeth and continued:

"Qiu Hu is an infected person."

Upon hearing this, Bai Zhou fully understood everyone's concerns.

First of all, this guy named Qiu Hu is highly skilled in martial arts; no one present can beat him.

Secondly, he possesses powerful Originium Arts capable of altering the landscape. Rashly attempting to capture him could result in the annihilation of the entire team, causing the needless loss of many soldiers' lives, which is not worthwhile.

Finally, Qiu Hu's identity is extremely sensitive.

He is infected.

Infected individuals are patients whose bodies have been infected by Originium due to excessive exposure to environments filled with Originium radiation or long-term contact with Originium.

Black Originium crystals will grow on the surface of the infected person's body, and the affected area will be accompanied by long-term pain. This stone disease is incurable, and the patient will die in permanent torment.

In addition, patients may awaken Originium Arts due to the growth of Originium on their skin, and can release Originium Arts without a casting medium, but this is a life-consuming act and is extremely undesirable.

The most troublesome thing is the corpses of infected people after they die. The corpses crystallize rapidly and undergo a violent explosive reaction shortly after the infected person loses vital signs, eventually exploding into countless Originium dust. If the corpses are not dealt with immediately, people within a radius of hundreds of meters will become new infected.

"What a hassle."

He sighed softly during the day.

"Yes. It's troublesome."

Lu Boyun has returned. Although he has learned who killed his father, dealing with the perpetrator is also a problem.

"Brother Bai, thank you for your hard work."

The matter of how to capture Qiu Hu was temporarily put aside by Lu Boyun. He first expressed his gratitude to Bai Zhou, and then said:

"I need to do more research on Qiu Hu's matter and make sure that there are no mistakes before arresting him."

"...Brother Lu, what is your relationship with Qiu Hu? And what is Lord Lu's relationship with him?"

Lu Boyun frowned and thought for a moment.

"I don't get along with that guy..."

"Perhaps because of our camaraderie, my father trusted him a lot, but I always felt that this guy had ulterior motives. Now it seems that I was indeed raising a tiger to cause trouble."

"And, to be honest, Brother Bai, don't find this laughable."