He changed Tiwat

"Xiao, can you break through space and enter the interior of the ruins directly?" Han Fulai asked.

Xiao shook his head speechlessly.

While his supernatural power, "Freedom in the Air," is convenient, it's not something one can go anywhere at will, especially in places like this where the earth's veins are disordered and space is very unstable. Trying it haphazardly might lead to getting lost in the spatial turbulence.

Han Fulai wasn't too disappointed, he just smiled and said, "Heh, the Fools have chosen a pretty smart stronghold. It seems we have no choice but to force our way in."

If Xiao could directly use his supernatural powers to break through space and enter the ruins, Han Fulai actually planned to entrust the rescue to Xiao, while he and Yura could just stay outside and create a good atmosphere. Unfortunately, reality wasn't as rosy as he imagined.

He took off his top hat and put it away.

"Yura, pack up anything that's easy to drop. The upcoming 'air journey' might be a bit bumpy."

Sergei was helpless.

He was quite certain that the old nobleman before him did not have the courage to lie in the face of death.

Just now, he had already put Schubert under water torture.

Water torture was a special form of punishment reserved for nobles during the winter months because it did not leave physical scars, which perfectly met the "decency" requirements of the noble lords.

Waterboarding is simple to administer—kick a chair over so that Schubert is upside down, then press his head down, cover his face with a towel, and then keep pouring water onto the towel.

Within a minute, the victim will experience the pain of suffocation, a terrifying punishment that can cause someone to "drown" even on land.

In essence, this method of torture is far more cruel and utterly indecent than ordinary whipping.

The victim will usually fall into a state of mental confusion within three minutes due to the inability to breathe. At this time, the victim will instinctively open their mouth and nose to force breathing, resulting in swallowing a large amount of water into their stomach and lungs.

This water would block the victim's trachea, causing vomiting and coughing, accompanied by extreme stimulation and pain, after which the person would usually lose consciousness.

But losing consciousness does not mean the end of the suffering. The victim's body will spasm unconsciously in an attempt to protect itself, a phenomenon known as "dying struggle," while simultaneously secreting large amounts of mucus—thick nasal mucus—in an attempt to flush out the water from the mouth and nose, which only exacerbates the feeling of suffocation.

In the end, the victim will drown in their own vomit...

Schubert was now covered in vomit, his pajama bottoms were dripping with yellowish liquid from incontinence, and he smelled terrible.

If Schubert hadn't gone without water for most of the day and hadn't vomited so little, he might have actually drowned.

Sergei was certain that whatever remained in Schubert's mind, there was no longer any "aristocratic dignity."

According to the torture manual of the Fools, about 80% of those subjected to waterboarding will talk, or "submit," and will say whatever they are asked to say; as for the remaining 20%, they are not physically strong enough and die within three minutes.

Of course, a one-fifth mortality rate was still too high, so the torturers of the Fools have been constantly improving their techniques over the past few centuries, striving to increase the suffering of the tortured while reducing their mortality rate.

They made many attempts, such as using ice water at the lowest possible temperature to carry out water torture, which could reduce the consumption of air in the victim's body to some extent and prolong the torture time—Schubert just experienced ice water.

If Schubert manages to pull through, Sergei has actually prepared another round of treatment with added chili powder...

Schubert has just confessed everything he knows, including the power of that god contained within the "Ice Seal" inherited by the Lawrence family. If they can find that "altar" and, by chance, unleash the true power of the "Ice Seal," the Lawrence family will dare to challenge the god.

If Sergei wanted, Schubert would even be willing to admit that he manipulated the Stormterror to attack Mondstadt, or that he was the mastermind behind the monster attack on Mondstadt—but that would be meaningless.

Schubert genuinely didn't know where that thousand-year-old temple was.

After the Lawrence family was expelled from Mondstadt by the Knights of Favonius, the terrain of Mondstadt was reshaped by Barbatos once again, undergoing a complete transformation compared to the era of the Noble Family. The temple recorded in the Lawrence family's records has disappeared from the map of Mondstadt, along with Mondstadt's historical records and the road leading to the temple.

But Sergei's superior, Chloe, stated with certainty that the temple still existed somewhere in Mondstadt...

The boss is always right.

The only explanation for not getting an answer is that Schubert was lying.

If Schubert wasn't lying, then Sergei was incompetent for believing the boastful words of this old nobleman.

Schubert's high-profile display in front of Mikhail and Lyudmila last night certainly made it easy to believe that the Lawrence family actually possessed that important secret and was simply waiting for the right price to sell it.

However, in reality, this was just an exaggerated performance by the Lawrence family, or rather Schubert himself, in order to elevate his status.

Nobles, after all, will exaggerate even the smallest talent to the point of perfection...

Schubert is now tasting the bitter fruit of his actions.

However, Sergei was unable to report this result to Chloe.

"Let's move on to the next round and keep questioning him until he's willing to tell the truth."

Sergei waved his hand, and Daryl and Tris immediately stepped forward with sneers, ignoring Schubert's desperate pleas, and knocked him down again.

This time, the basin is filled with chili water.

Barring any unforeseen circumstances, Schubert is unlikely to survive.

Sergei and Schubert actually had no grudge against each other; he was merely completing a mission, and there was no real need to kill him. But Chloe had already said, "Honor is only useful to the living."

To prove he was a capable and worthy living person, Sergei had no choice but to kill Schubert and then fabricate a plausible address to fool his superior. Even if an investigation later failed, he could pin the blame on the dead Schubert, since there was no way to verify anything.

Too lazy to see Schubert's fate any longer, Sergei walked out of the interrogation room, closing the iron door behind him.

He wanted to breathe in some fresh air that wasn't so foul-smelling, and while looking at the map, he thought about how to come up with a lie to cover things up.

Just as he unfolded the map, a dark figure suddenly rushed out of the corridor window.

Before Sergei could react, the map in his hand had already been snatched away by that thing.

A black feather landed in front of Sergei.

—Eagle feathers.

The black eagle landed on a strong, powerful arm.

The owner of the arm patted the black eagle's head approvingly, then took the map from its beak and put it in his pocket.

The black hawk let out a low cry, took flight again, and disappeared out the window.

Sergei had already drawn his twin swords, his eyes beneath the mask fixed intently on the person who had suddenly appeared.

He had fiery red hair, wore a fiery trench coat, and wore a mask that resembled that of the Fools—but that mask was actually different from the Fools' "mourning mask," as the Fools' masks were not made in the "Night Owl" style.

Sergei racked his brains to think of enemies who matched these characteristics, and soon got his answer:

The Mondstadt Guardians, active only in the darkness of night.

Monsters that have plagued Mondstadt for so long lie dead in the wilderness; a wanted thief is hung upside down before a statue of a god; the Knights of Favonius march to confront a long-time abyss mage, only to find that the enemy has already been defeated and killed...

Through drunken gossip, the story of this guardian spread rapidly throughout Mondstadt.

Recently, he was given a specific title—

"You are Mondstadt's 'Night Hero'?"

Sergei shouted, hoping his colleagues in the room could hear him.

The fiery red figure opposite him frowned beneath his mask.

"This title... has terrible taste."

Chapter 209 Night Owl and the Pride of the Knights [4k]

Sergei tensed all his muscles, assuming a fighting stance.

The voice of the "Hero of the Night" was much younger than he had imagined, sounding like he was only in his early twenties.

For ordinary people, youth may mean a lack of experience and immaturity, but this is not the case for this "hero of the night".

Being young means he is likely to be stronger, faster, and more powerful than himself.

More importantly, Sergei knew that he had fought against "The Doctor" and escaped unscathed.

A year ago, during the "Badminton Festival," Sergei accompanied "Doctor" on a visit to Mond, where he met with Mond's senior management at the Dawn Winery for discussions.

During the meal, Krobor, the technical director under "Doctor," was assassinated in the cellar of the Dawn Winery, and Sergei was one of the guards present at the time.

He still remembered the red-haired mystery man wearing an owl mask who suddenly appeared, used specially made feather-shaped darts and strange chains to knock them down and kidnap Krobor.

I heard that the "Doctor" personally intervened afterward and managed to retrieve Krobor's body—but he did not leave behind the body of the "Hero of the Night".

As the "Doctor's" subordinate, Sergei knew better than anyone the power of that man... no, perhaps it should be described as "terrifying".

In fact, it's widely rumored that the top three Fatui Executors possess power comparable to gods. The dragon Usa, which has plagued Mondstadt for two thousand years, is nothing more than a giant lizard that can be easily subdued by the "Doctor." Sergei himself doubts that even with his Evil Eye fully activated, he might not survive a single move against the "Doctor."

But this person did it.

Why are you here?

Sergei gripped the hilts of his twin swords tightly, while secretly activating the Evil Eye hidden within his cloak. Considering the strength of his opponent, he immediately unleashed his most powerful weapon.

His heart began to pound wildly, and the power of the Evil Eye was slowly awakening.

Beneath the cloak, Sergei's veins were bruised and dark.

Regardless of how the other party sneaked into the stronghold or how they came to have their eyes on Schubert's map, he had to keep them there.

This is his duty, even if overusing the Evil Eye might kill him here.

He hadn't expected an answer, but the unexpected guest replied, "You think your actions are secretive, but you can't hide from the sharp eyes of an eagle."

It's that black eagle!

Sergei suddenly realized.

Although this stronghold is called "Eagle Gate", there are actually no eagles there.

Presumably, his men were secretly watched by black eagles in the sky while they were kidnapping Schubert and taking him back to the "Eagle's Gate".

Daryl and Tris are both elite warriors with the Evil Eye, making it extremely difficult for ordinary people to track them, but they are also vulnerable to the eyes in the sky.

and……

"So you're 'Sufa'!"

If it weren't for the mask, others would have seen the horrified expression on Sergei's face.

In the records of the Fools, there was once a man and an eagle that chased the Fools' strongholds in various countries for three whole years—by day, the eagle scouted in the wilderness; by night, the man hunted in the darkness.

"Sufa" means "owl" in the winter language, also known as "night owl" or "night owl".

In the countryside during winter, there's a folk saying: "Night owls don't enter the homes of the healthy," meaning these birds bring bad luck. It's said that being stared at by an owl's glowing eyes is often an ominous sign.

This person, codenamed "Sufa," suddenly appeared four years ago and specifically targeted the Fools.

Mondstadt, Liyue, Inazuma... and even the winter homeland, the seven kingdoms of Teyvat bear the traces of this person.

He was like a madman, never afraid of injury or death, fighting with a reckless ferocity, seeking only to exchange blood for blood. He once single-handedly destroyed dozens of the Fools' secret strongholds in other countries, inflicting enormous losses on the Fools.

His combat prowess was so great that several executive officers had to join forces to set a trap and personally deal with this troublesome madman.

—According to records, after that battle, the enemy codenamed "Soviet" completely disappeared.

A year has passed, and the Fools have long since concluded that "Sufa" is dead.

Unexpectedly, this person is still alive... and is even continuing to operate in the shadows as a Mondstadt Guardian, having earned the reputation of "Night Hero" in just one year!

Despite his youth, this person has already fought against the Executor several times and escaped unscathed!

"Your taste in naming people is still just as bad."

"Night Hero" tugged at his black gloves with a bored expression, then clenched his fist and relaxed it.

"Isn't your 'evil eye' ready yet?"

This sentence became the signal to start the war.

"Debts that must be repaid cannot be avoided..."

Flames erupted from Sergei's double blades.

Then, he threw the burning twin swords directly out.

"Debts are even harder to escape!"

The "debts" handled by debt settlement agents are not limited to the settlement of money and goods transactions.

"An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth" is also a debt. Whoever harms the interests of the fools must pay back tenfold.

The burning twin blades spun in the air into two fiery discs, drawing two eerie arcs as they attacked "Dark Night Hero" simultaneously from the left and right.

These two knives have an unusual design; unlike typical long knives where the hilt is located behind the blade, their hilts are positioned in the center of the blade. Holding them feels less like gripping a knife and more like holding two walking sticks.

The reason it's designed this way is, of course, because the purpose of this knife is not to "chop," but to "cut."

Its entire blade is sharpened, with an exceptionally sharp edge capable of cutting through gold and jade. The burning, spinning twin blades are more like "flame cutters," capable of tearing even thick steel shields or walls solidified with elemental energy to shreds like paper.

This grotesque weapon, crafted using the superior alloy technology of the Winter Kingdom and enhanced with materials from the Evil Eye, is called the "Sacrificial Blade" and is only supplied to officers of the rank of lieutenant and above. The special martial arts techniques for wielding this strange weapon are personally taught by the executive officer, "Captain."

As a captain qualified to lead a company, Sergei's twin knives had dealt with many "debts," and the crimson blood on their blades could no longer be washed away by water.

"Dual-wielding?"