Chapter 194
Chapter 194
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 194
Chapter Title: A Calculated Cruelty
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“Ugh!”
How long had he been unconscious?
Waking to a pain that felt like his head was splitting open, Black Cat swallowed a groan and quickly assessed his situation.
He could make a sound, and his fingers were twitching. It seemed his vocal and motor points hadn't been sealed.
But he couldn't act rashly. Realizing he was lying down, Black Cat cautiously tried to circulate his energy.
*Huh? It’s fine?*
*Did that Demonic Cult bastard really just knock me out and leave?*
He had heard the rumors, after all.
About Neung Un-bi’s journey through the Central Plains.
Didn't it all sound rather plausible?
But he had always scoffed at the idea, thinking it was just some Demonic Cult whelp ridiculously masquerading as a member of the Orthodox factions.
And now that same man had spared his life?
It was unbelievable.
According to the intelligence from above, wasn't the man on the run after his conspiracy to overthrow the Orthodox Murim Alliance—in collusion with the vipers growing like poisonous mushrooms within the Orthodox factions—was exposed?
The report said that because of their association with him, the Alliance Leader, the Sword Saint, Jin San of the Zhongnan Sect, and even Shaolin were under investigation. There was no way he was a good person.
Steeling his wavering heart, Black Cat slowly opened his eyes. The man might still be watching, so he peeked through his eyelids, carefully surveying his surroundings.
Lying down, he couldn't see much. Besides, it was absurd to think he could see anything in the pitch-black darkness without a single light.
However, the feel of grass beneath him suggested he was still in the forest…
Black Cat slowly turned his head.
Right next to him, he saw a dark shape.
“Chu-il!”
It was Chu-il.
But though his eyes were open, his pupils darting and his mouth agape, he couldn't make a sound.
*Could it be that Demonic Cult bastard?*
Springing to his feet, Black Cat scanned his surroundings sharply when a gruff voice suddenly spoke.
“What a show. What have you been doing all this time? Your friend woke up a while ago. He tried to fight and ended up like that.”
“...!”
It was Neung Un-bi.
Feeling his breath catch in his throat, Black Cat quickly reached for his Dog Beating Staff.
“That’s enough.”
“…”
“If you draw that thing, this time you’ll really die.”
It was a calm statement, but Black Cat froze awkwardly, unable to fully draw the staff. The moment his eyes met Neung Un-bi’s, his entire body felt paralyzed.
“Do it or don’t. Stop dithering.”
“…”
At those words, Black Cat slowly let go of the staff.
This was a master on a completely different level than him.
If he had wanted to kill him, he would have done it long ago.
And if he were to die, what would happen to Chu-il?
In times of hardship, one needs someone to rely on. Even if they were to die together later.
“Wise choice. Well done. If you keep being this obedient, you’ll live a long life.”
Neung Un-bi smiled faintly and gestured for Black Cat to take a seat.
“Come and sit over here. I couldn’t start a fire with all you damn beggars wandering around.”
The term “damn beggars” was incredibly grating, but for now, Black Cat did as he was told.
“Why did you spare us?”
“Why? Should I have killed you?”
“That’s…”
“Enough. If your behavior from now on doesn't please me, I might just kill you for real. For now, just think of your life as being on hold.”
“On hold?”
“That’s right. I’m about to ask you a few questions.”
“…”
At Neung Un-bi's words, Black Cat’s brow furrowed deeply. In a situation like this, anyone could guess what he wanted to ask.
“Hmph, do you really think I’ll talk?”
“No.”
“…What?”
The unexpectedly clean answer made Black Cat blink.
*He’s doing this even though he knows I won’t talk?*
“Ahem! If you’re thinking of interrogating me, don’t even dream of it. We have undergone training more rigorous than you can imagine. Even if you use the art of separating muscles and shattering bones, I will never talk.”
“I know, I know.”
He restated his resolve, but Neung Un-bi just picked his ear with a bored expression.
*Why bother with something as troublesome as separating muscles and shattering bones?*
There were dozens of easier and faster ways to make someone talk.
“But I still have to ask, you see.”
“…”
“I don’t have much time right now. I need to find out if my subordinates are alive, grasp your movements, and figure out my next move.”
“Don’t waste your effort! Even so, I will not…”
“For god’s sake, I said I know! Why do you keep making me repeat myself?”
Neung Un-bi cut him off, and a flicker of irritation appeared in Black Cat’s eyes.
“You really think a Black Hound of the Beggars’ Sect wouldn’t be trained to withstand interrogation?”
“…Pardon?”
But that one statement made Black Cat’s eyes widen in surprise.
“What?”
“N-No. What did you just say…? You mean you knew who we were?”
“Of course. Who else but you guys would sift through fallen leaves to find footprints? Dammit, I tried so hard to leave no trace.”
Neung Un-bi cursed irritably as he recalled the current situation and the times he had been chased by them in the past.
“So, even though I doubt you’ll answer, I’ll ask anyway.”
“…”
“What happened to my subordinates who were discovered near Luoyang?”
Neung Un-bi stared at Black Cat with cold eyes.
But Black Cat kept his lips sealed and turned his head away sharply.
“Just as I thought.”
“…”
As Neung Un-bi sighed and stood up, Black Cat braced himself for the pain that was sure to come.
But Neung Un-bi stopped not next to Black Cat, but beside Chu-il.
Black Cat’s eyes widened, and Chu-il’s pupils were filled with evident panic.
“Hey? What are you doing right now?”
“Since you don’t seem willing to talk, I thought I’d change my interrogation method. I wonder if you’ve trained for a situation like this?”
“What?”
“The questions will be for you, but the pain will be for your friend.”
“What kind of—!?”
“From now on, if you don’t answer my questions… well, it’s faster to just show you.”
Neung Un-bi smiled coldly, pressed Chu-il’s neck down with his knee, and grabbed one of his fingers.
*Slice!*
There was not a hint of hesitation in Neung Un-bi’s movement as he cut off Chu-il’s pinky finger with his sword.
“...!”
Black Cat clenched his fists as he watched Chu-il’s eyes widen, bloodshot veins popping out all over his body.
Even though Chu-il's vocal points were sealed, preventing him from making a sound, Black Cat could almost hear his scream.
“You vile Demonic Cult bastard! What is this!?”
“I’ll forgive the insults. But don’t you dare answer. Not until all ten of this guy’s fingers are gone.”
Black Cat trembled and glared, but Neung Un-bi simply wore a cold, frigid expression as he reached for the next finger.
Interrogation is a battle of endurance.
Victory depends on who can more coolly comprehend their situation.
But who had the time to repeat a cycle of questioning and beating?
There were countless, more immediate methods like this.
“I heard from Chu-il that you two have been friends since you were young beggars.”
“…”
“Chu-il told me to let you live.”
“What?”
“He said he would tell me everything, as long as I let you go.”
As Neung Un-bi smiled coldly, Black Cat gritted his teeth and looked at Chu-il.
Chu-il couldn’t even groan, his pupils just trembled minutely.
He was probably trying to deny it, to say he had never said such a thing.
Of course he hadn't. Neung Un-bi had just made it up.
But to Black Cat, those trembling pupils conveyed a different message. His expression and gaze were clearly those of someone deeply moved, even in such a crisis.
“I wonder about you, though. Will you keep your mouth shut until the end, regardless of whether your friend dies?”
Neung Un-bi smiled faintly and brought his sword to Chu-il’s finger.
“Now, I’ll ask again. Tell me what you know about my subordinates.”
“Th-They… um…”
Black Cat’s lips twitched.
*He took the bait.*
Sometimes, inflicting indirect pain is far more effective than direct pain. Chu-il’s suffering had created an emotional fluctuation in Black Cat, and his once-firm resolve was already weakening.
The stage was set. Now it was time for the real interrogation.
A wicked smile played on Neung Un-bi’s lips, his eyes beginning to gleam with a strange light. A captivating voice flowed from his mouth, weaving its way into Black Cat’s ears.
“Yes, keep your mouth shut just like that. I will keep asking. And because of your pathetic loyalty to the Orthodox factions, your friend will have his hands, feet, eyes, ears… every part of him that can feel pain before death, cut off one by one.”
Neung Un-bi pressed his sword harder, and blood began to seep from Chu-il’s finger.
“Luohekou!”
At that moment, Black Cat cried out in terror. Even in his agony, Chu-il’s eyes shook with shock.
*Just as I thought.*
At times like this, he was quite fond of the fact that he was from the Demonic Cult.
People were prejudiced, believing his kind could commit murder without a second thought. This made his threats an immediate reality.
He had only cut off a single finger, but in Black Cat’s mind, an image of Chu-il dying in agony must have already formed.
But why had Hyang-i and the Lunar Eclipse Squad moved to Luohekou?
Even if the location of the Heaven and Earth Net had changed due to the incidents he caused in Mengjin and Yanshi, the number of warriors coming up from the southwest should have been substantial.
According to his calculations, Hyang-i should have taken advantage of the weakened northern flank.
The problem was that Black Cat wasn't lying. In fact, Neung Un-bi had been subtly using the Art of Hypnosis for a while now.
However, since his mastery of the art was not yet profound, he had deliberately created a provocative situation. He had been biding his time, using Chu-il to exploit a moment of emotional weakness and slowly ensnare him.
The man himself probably had no idea.
Like a person unaware their clothes are slowly getting soaked in a light drizzle.
“Why Luohekou? Weren’t the martial artists of Sichuan, led by the Tang Clan, supposed to be coming up from the southwest for the Heaven and Earth Net?”
“I heard there was a message from the Demonic Cult Leader.”
“A message from the Cult Leader?”
“The Orthodox Murim Alliance has ordered the entire Murim to prepare for war.”
“What?”
Neung Un-bi’s eyes widened.
What was this all about?
He couldn't understand what was happening.
War, all of a sudden?
“So?”
“The Tang Clan, the Kongtong Sect, the Qingcheng Sect, and the Emei Sect, who were supposed to cover the southern part of the Heaven and Earth Net, have moved to Qinghai and Gansu.”
“To block an invasion from the Demonic Cult?”
“Yes.”
“Dammit, so that’s what happened.”
Neung Un-bi thought he understood why Hyang-i had gone down toward Luohekou.
She must have seen the enemy’s cordon moving elsewhere and retreated to a safer location for the time being.
But she would return to Sanmenxia. They had agreed to meet there.
“The Beggars’ Sect is chasing them from behind, herding them into a valley between Luohekou and Sanmenxia. The Orthodox Murim Alliance plans to annihilate the Demonic Cult members there.”
As Black Cat started spilling everything he knew without even being asked, Neung Un-bi’s brow furrowed.
The focus was fading from his eyes.
He was falling too deep into the Art of Hypnosis.
This was getting dangerous. His mind could break.
And there was no time.
If the Orthodox Murim Alliance was setting a trap between Luohekou and Sanmenxia, Hyang-i and the Lunar Eclipse Squad were in danger. He needed to find out only what was necessary and go help them immediately.
“Hey, is the Beggars’ Sect also blocking the northern waterway?”
“Yes. The Sect Leader himself has already moved there.”
“Dammit, the Sect Leader himself is involved?”
“It was an order from the Alliance.”
“…Any news of someone being captured?”
“None that I know of.”
That was enough information for now.
As Neung Un-bi slowly withdrew the demonic energy he had used for the Art of Hypnosis, Black Cat’s eyes went blank.
It was likely a side effect. But he had no time to worry about some beggar’s well-being.
“Unfortunately, you two will have to stay here for a while. You can survive a couple of days without food, right?”
Those were the last words Chu-il and Black Cat heard before they lost consciousness.
To prevent them from being attacked by wild animals, Neung Un-bi tied the unconscious pair to a rather high tree branch before leaving.
He considered it a sufficient courtesy.
In two or three days, when their internal energy returned, they should be able to free themselves.
And by then, he would have joined Hyang-i and the Lunar Eclipse Squad, on his way to rescue Yoon An-ro.