Chapter 80: The Price of Loyalty and Tonight You Will Talk, One Way or Another

Yu Liang looked at the captive for quite a some time. His black robes were ragged, blood smeared across the expensive looking cloth. His cultivation was sealed by Yan Ruo’s formation, while his meridians had been sealed by the joint power of the twins.

Totally helpless.

Yet his eyes held defiance?

Yu Liang glanced at the others. "Didn’t you tell me he’d answer every question I asked? You also said he was scared. Then what’s with that look?"

Turns out Yan Ruo briefly explained what had happened through a spiritual message after they captured him, including the warning she had given him.

Others were also confused, seeing their reactions Yu Liang let out a small sigh.

"Let’s begin with something simple," Yu Liang said. "Who sent you?"

The man spat blood onto the warehouse floor. "Go to hell."

"Wrong answer." Yu Liang leaned back in his chair. "Allow me explain your current situation. You were caught spying on my property by four Peak Nascent Soul Realm cultivators. You have zero reinforcement coming your way. Nobody even knows where you are. Your emergency talismans were destroyed. You have exactly one option that doesn’t end up with your corpse being feed to street dogs."

"You think such threats can scare me? I’ve seen much scarier things than a Qi Condensation brat playing some big boss."

Yu Liang’s expression didn’t change. "I’m sure you have. So let me be more specific. Who hired you to investigate Heaven’s Table?"

Silence.

"What were your orders?"

Still no answer.

"Who else is involved?"

The man’s lips remained sealed, However, there was something in his eyes which convinced Yu Liang that he had made his decision.

It looked like he was ready to die rather than say a word

He found it rather odd. Earlier, the man had been so scared that he practically begged for his life and promised to answer every question they asked. Now, he was sitting there as though he had nothing to fear.

The difference was too obvious.

There must have been some reason behind it.

Yu Liang stood slowly. When he spoke again, his voice had lost all warmth.

"Three days ago, someone hired assassins to kill Wan Jing. He’s a chef at my restaurant. What was his crime? Preparing food that people enjoyed?" Yu Liang walked slowly around the prisoner. "Wan Jing has a wife and two children. He goes home to them every night after work, enjoys his time with them, and is always grateful for how much his life has changed. He likes to banter with Master Chen and somehow still thinks his cooking is better than everyone else’s."

Yu Liang stopped behind him.

The prisoner looked at him, clearly confused by the sudden change in topic.

"You don’t know him," Yu Liang continued. "You probably don’t care. But I do. Because he works for me. Because he trusted me to keep him safe. And someone tried to put a knife in his heart."

Yu Liang stopped directly in front of the captive, his Qi Condensation aura somehow felt far more oppressive than it should have.

"So when I ask who sent you, what I’m really asking is: who else wants to hurt my people? Who else thinks they can attack what’s mine without consequences?" His tone made it clear the matter was settled. "You’re going to tell me. One way or another."

The man in dark robes laughed. "Or what? You’ll kill me? Everyone talks about killing people when they want answers. But they won’t do it so will you because you only have me as a lead and if you kill me, you lose your only chance of finding out who sent me."

"You’re right. I won’t." Yu Liang turned to Yan Ruo and the other three Nascent Soul Realm cultivators standing silently around them. His next words were delivered with absolute calm. "I want information from him. Use whatever means necessary."

The temperature in the room seemed to drop.

"Whoever attacks my people has a place reserved in hell," Yu Liang continued, his eyes never leaving the prisoner. "Consider this your express ticket there. The only question is how long the journey takes."

He walked toward the door without looking back. "When you have answers, let me know. Take your time and be thorough. There’s no need to rush."

They all took a deep breath.

They had seen enough of Yu Liang by now to know he wasn’t like the people they dealt with before, he wasn’t someone who treated people as tools and they had always seen him smiling and laughing.

But this time, things were different.

This was Yu Liang protecting what was his.

In a world where people rarely cared about those beneath them, especially when there was nothing to gain, Yet Yu Liang was willing to go this far for one of his subordinates. It showed them that, to him, It didn’t matter what their cultivation or position was. If they belonged to him, he would protect them.

For the first time, Yan Ruo bowed slightly as he passed him.

"Understood, boss."

The twin brothers nodded and also bowed in unison.

Hei Lang murmured something that might have been agreement, his single eye gleaming with approval.

The fifth cultivator, same middle-aged man who had captured the spy simply smiled wider. That same pleasant, terrifying smile that never quite reached his eyes.

Yu Liang paused at the door, glancing back once. "And make sure he understands this isn’t personal. It’s simply business and bad business practices need to be corrected."

Then he was gone, the door closed behind him with a soft click.

The prisoner watched all of them, then somethinh clicked and the confusion in his eyes slowly disappeared as he finally understood what was about to happen.

"Well then," Yan Ruo said, her voice detached. "Shall we begin? We have some experience with this. You learn a few things when you’ve spent years as a slave."

She looked at him for a moment.

"And you made us look bad in front of our boss. That’s not something we can just ignore."

A faint smile appeared on her face. "So don’t worry. We’ll make sure you enjoy it."

The twin brothers moved to opposite sides of the room, setting up formations that would contain sound and spiritual energy. No one outside these walls would hear what happened next, not even disruption of spiritual energy.

Hei Lang cracked his knuckles, it sounded like breaking stone. "I’ll hold him. You three do the delicate work."

Just as they were ready for work.

"There’s no need for all of you to stay. And if we’re all here, who’s going to guard our boss?" the old man said. "Let me handle this."

The others looked at each other for a moment before nodding. They knew him better than anyone and understood what he meant.

One by one, they left the room.

He waited until the others had left, now it was just him and the prisoner in the room.

Then he approached slowly, pulling out a small case from his storage ring. Inside it were tools which were delicate, precise and somewhat medical looking instruments that gleamed in the lamplight.

"Do you know what these are?" His voice was still pleasant and friendly.

The prisoner’s face finally cracked. "Pleas—"

"These are acupuncture needles especially modified for spiritual energy manipulation." The man selected one, holding it up to examine in the light. "The Imperial Army used them during the Northern Campaign. It’s Very Effective for extracting information without causing permanent damage. Well..." He smiled. "Mostly without permanent damage."

He sat down across from the prisoner, crossing his legs comfortably like they were old friends having tea.

"Now, I’m going to explain how this works. These needles can stimulate pain receptors directly through spiritual energy. No, no, don’t worry, it won’t be an actual injury, your body will just thinks it’s being destroyed. The advantage is we can keep you conscious throughout all process. The disadvantage, from your perspective, is that there’s no merciful unconsciousness to escape into."

The prisoner’s breathing accelerated. "You can’t—"

"Can’t? What?" His smile widened. "My Friend, I spent nearly twelve years as a slave. Twelve years of being beaten, starved, and treated like livestock. Then a boy barely into his twenties came out of nowhere and bought my freedom, healed my wounds, and gave me purpose again." He leaned forward, and for the first time, something human like emotions flickered behind that terrible smile. Something grateful, fierce and utterly loyal.

"So when that boy asks me to extract information from someone who threatened his people?" The needle began to glow with spiritual energy. "I consider it an honor and a privilege."

He positioned the first needle near the prisoner’s shoulder meridian. "This will probably hurt quite a lot. But here’s the beautiful part, you can stop it anytime. Just answer the questions. Who sent you? What do they want? Who else is involved?"

"I-I can’t—they’ll kill me if I—"

The needle touched his skin, and the prisoner instantly screamed.

The old man calmly reached for another needle.

It was going to be a very long night.