It was as if he were trapped in a nightmare in broad daylight, except every ounce of pain in that nightmare was real, vivid, unforgettable.
The torment had drenched Jiao Lie in sweat. He could no longer even release his inner energy.
The demon of terror had devoured every shred of his reason.
He had completely lost all will to fight.
“Tell me where Gao Yangjun is. And who exactly is he?”
Ling Xiao looked down at Jiao Lie with indifference.
He was in no hurry to kill the man. There were things he needed answers to first.
“I know! I know!”
Jiao Lie nodded frantically.
At this moment he was like a prisoner who had endured endless torture and finally surrendered all resistance.
Whatever he was asked, he would answer, terrified that the slightest hesitation would enrage Ling Xiao and earn him a swift sword through the heart.
Even now he could still feel that long sword buried inside his body.
One tiny push forward and he would be dead on the spot.
He did not want to die.
He was Sea Clan nobility. Deep beneath the vast Storm Ocean he had family, a clan.
If he died here, he would lose everything.
“Very good. Speak.”
Ling Xiao said calmly.
Jiao Lie hesitated, afraid that even if he told the truth Ling Xiao would still kill him.
“Jiao Lie, you had better think carefully. Some things must not be spoken carelessly.”
The instant he wavered, one of the men seated to his right spoke in a sinister, icy tone.
Pfft!
A sharp sword suddenly appeared in Ling Xiao’s left hand and plunged without hesitation into the speaker’s body.
As easily as slaughtering a dog.
Most terrifying of all, when the sword was withdrawn, the man burst into flames from within and, amid ghastly screams, turned to flying ash.
Killing the chicken to frighten the monkey.
That was exactly what Ling Xiao intended Jiao Lie to see.
“I’ll talk, I’ll talk! Gao Yangjun is one of theirs. He is the son of Gao Yangwen, leader of the Heavenly Principle Alliance.”
Jiao Lie no longer dared hesitate. Even if he was going to die, he did not want to die so horribly, without even a complete corpse.
“Oh? So the Heavenly Principle Alliance is involved? I was under the impression the Alliance opposed the True Devil Empire just like the Holy Dynasty Restoration Society. How did they end up colluding with you?”
Ling Xiao asked mildly.
“It was all a façade. Ever since the True Devil Empire was founded, the Heavenly Principle Alliance has supplied us with information on resistance groups and their locations. Without them, we could never have wiped out so many rebels.”
Jiao Lie answered.
“Those few are from the Heavenly Principle Alliance?”
Ling Xiao was not the least surprised by what Jiao Lie revealed. Ever since the Alliance had settled in one corner and set up that puppet state, he had felt nothing but contempt for them.
The reason he forced Jiao Lie to speak was for the benefit of the Restoration Society members listening.
Many in the Restoration Society still wanted to cooperate with the Heavenly Principle Alliance. Wasn’t that the same as conspiring with a tiger for its skin?
Once they knew the truth, they would stop being so foolish.
“What is Gao Yangwen’s cultivation level?”
Ling Xiao asked.
“Rumour has it that Gao Yangwen once trained overseas and visited Black Water Immortal Island, one of the Five Immortal Islands. Some say he is a Yin-Yang Realm expert, others say Tenth Cave Heaven Realm. Regardless of the rumours, he is an extremely ruthless figure. Within our True Devil Empire, if not for the Lightning Demon King and the Yin-Yang Demon King keeping him in check, he would be the strongest.”
Jiao Lie answered truthfully.
“Did you hear that? Our Alliance Leader is a Yin-Yang Realm expert. So what if our young master harmed your elder brother? What can you possibly do to us?”
Feeling they now had Gao Yangwen’s backing, the remaining Heavenly Principle Alliance warriors suddenly turned arrogant.
“A Yin-Yang Realm expert? So what? I’ve killed one before. Sikong Zun, also known as the Lightning Demon King, how does he compare to your alliance leader? I still killed him.”
Ling Xiao’s smile turned icy. “Since Gao Yangwen is tired of living, I will grant his wish. The Heavenly Principle Alliance, and that nation he founded, no longer need to exist.”
“You’re insane. You’re delusional!”
“Whether I’m insane or not, you’ll find out soon enough. I’ll give the few of you one chance. Take me to Gao Yangwen and Gao Yangjun. Whoever steps forward first, I spare.”
Ling Xiao smiled faintly.
“Me!”
In that instant, four of the five remaining Alliance warriors stood up almost simultaneously.
“You then. The rest may die.”
With a casual swing of his sword, four heads hit the floor.
Borrowing Butterfly Maiden’s power, killing them required no effort at all.
“Senior Brother Wu, take control of the City Lord’s mansion. Show no mercy to the Sea Clan, kill them all. As for the blue-eyed clan, accept the surrender of any who are willing, but make them swallow the pills I gave you. Otherwise they cannot be controlled.”
In the end Ling Xiao could not bring himself to massacre the entire population of Lanton City, so he handed Wu Xiang a large number of the control pills he had refined long ago.
Once ingested, the pill would remain dormant in the body. If the person behaved, nothing would happen. The moment they harboured thoughts of betrayal, the poison would kill them.
It was a miraculous pill linked to the soul, something Ling Xiao had found in the Eternal Divine Pill Scripture.
“Leave it to me.”
Wu Xiang nodded.
Ling Xiao then turned to Jiao Lie. “Don’t worry, I won’t kill you. But you will need to sleep for a while. I’ll release you after everything is finished.”
With that, he forced open Jiao Lie’s mouth and stuffed in a blood-red pill.
This was different from the ones given to Wu Xiang. This pill would plunge the taker into complete unconsciousness, even a death-like state.
Unless Ling Xiao personally woke him, no one else could.
Any attempt to force him awake would only kill Jiao Lie.
“Ling Xiao, you aren’t really going after Gao Yangwen, are you?”
Wu Xiang asked with concern.
“Of course I am. If we don’t eliminate Gao Yangwen first, he will cause trouble for tomorrow’s operation. Rest easy, Senior Brother. I have a plan.”
With those words, Ling Xiao shot into the sky like a streak of light and vanished beyond the horizon.
He still carried the Heavenly Principle Alliance member who would guide him. That speed left Wu Xiang and the others sighing in admiration.
“Big Sister Moon Maiden, I’ll have to trouble you this time.”
Ling Xiao knew his own limits. Against Gao Yangwen, he stood no chance, even with Butterfly Maiden’s power.
After all, Gao Yangwen was very likely a Yin-Yang Realm expert.
“Your business is my business. There’s no trouble.”
Moon Maiden nodded.
“Heh heh, only Big Sister Moon Maiden treats me so well. Still, from now on I’ll try my best not to rely on you taking action.”
Ling Xiao laughed. If Moon Maiden acted too often, he feared he might grow dependent, and that would be bad.
