403 The Night Within His Fingers

Liang Xiaoxiao had died. The accusation that he made before his deathnaturally was incredibly powerful, but the only other witness to this event inthe Garden of Zhou—Zhuang Huanyu—besides giving an extremely conciseexplanation of the situation, had for the vast majority of the time maintainedhis silence, so the story given by the deceased was missing many details. Whenpaired with the fact that the target of Liang Xiaoxiao's testimony was noordinary person, this case concerning the Garden of Zhou had very naturallyfallen into a quagmire. After several weeks, there had still been no progress. Chen Changsheng's status was exceptionally unique, so the great powers withinthe Li Palace would definitely be keeping a close watch over this case. In theGrand Examination, the people had already noticed that the relationship betweenZhexiu and the Orthodox Academy was rather good. Moreover, in the snowy plainsof the north, this wolf youth had achieved enormous military merit, receivingthe profound appreciation of several of the Great Zhou Army's Divine Generals.As for how this matter would develop, many people felt that it would ultimatelydepend on the Divine Empress's decision. For this reason, the Zhou Courtyardhad become the focus of countless attentive gazes, because this was theresidence of Zhou Tong. The will of the Divine Empress had always expresseditself through this most crazed, most ruthless, wild dog. It was also becauseafter the Imperial Court had taken Zhexiu away from the Li Palace, he had beenkept there. Few people knew that the legendary Zhou Prison, that prison which could causecountless distinguished ministers and military officers to lose themselves infear upon hearing the name, was actually the same building as Zhou Tong'sofficial residence. They were separated from each other by only some ten-oddzhang and two flimsy doors that seemed like they could be blown over by astrong wind. ‘A fine time and beautiful scenery, helpless days.’ This sayingwas precisely about Zhou Tong's residence and Zhou Tong's prison. The formerhad the unceasing beauty of the four seasons, and the latter helpless days, noway out and inability to see the blue sky. The black rhino dragged a heavy metal carriage, passing through the stone archof the Zhou Courtyard and coming to the sinister building before it. Although the distance was so short, Zhou Tong still habitually used hiscarriage. Besides when he was in front of the Divine Empress, only when he was in hismetal carriage did he feel safe. The black rhino carriage pulled up to the tunnel that provided entrance to theprison. With a squeak, the door of the carriage slowly opened. Zhou Tong walked slowly out of the metal carriage, subconsciously looking upinto the night sky. Under starlight, his face seemed somewhat pale. The second he walked out of the carriage, the guard around the Zhou Prisonsuddenly increased by several levels. As for the shadows under those nearbyeaves, it was unknown how many cultivator experts were concealed within. Zhou Tong was no weakling. He was a Star Condensation expert, one of the fewexperts of the Zhou Imperial Court. Even so, he still lived very cautiously.Unless an investigation required it, he would very rarely leave the ZhouPrison. Even when he left, in the vast majority of cases, it was only to go theImperial Palace. Moreover, each time he left, he would bring countless imperialbodyguards. This was because he clearly understood that countless people wantedto kill him. If one were to rank people by how many people wanted them dead, SuLi would definitely rank behind him. Reaching that cold and gloomy prison cell, he looked at the mangled body ofthe wolf youth—not even a single part of his body had been left intact. ZhouTong's appearance did not change, nor did he show any of that pervertedexcitement of the rumors. There was only calm. Ever since he had accepted the Divine Empress's command and taken charge ofthe Department for Purging Officials, Zhou Tong had interrogated countlessprisoners and personally carried out countless tortures. He didn't even knowhow many people in conditions more miserable than Zhexiu's he had seen, so itwasn't possible for him to be moved by this scene. But he did not believe thathe had become numb, and he also would not permit himself to grow numb to thesebloody scenes. He insisted on the belief that only by protecting his initialmindset as he worked would he continue to preserve that sense of interest andfreshness, and it was only through this that he could maintain his sharp sensefor many things. Yes, Zhou Tong had always believed this to be just a job. Originally, he hadstudied the holy books, but the essays he wrote were poor, so he switched tocultivation. His talent in cultivation was not bad, but because he was too old,he did not have the opportunity to enter the inner sects of those monasteriesand sects to learn. For this reason, he began to engage in networking. Finally,in the Hundred Herb Garden, he had become acquainted with the Divine Empressand obtained this job. When doing something, you must love it and earnestly doyour best, whether studying the holy books, cultivating Daoist rituals, orright now, torturing the people of the world—Zhou Tong had always required thisof himself. The facts were proof that he had truly accomplished this. "At six-fifteen, you fell unconscious from pain. By my estimate, you shouldhave woken up from the pain by now, so I have come to ask you again: if thosetwo women were Demon Princess Nanke's two wings, why did they not work togetherwith the Demon General couple and directly kill you? On the contrary, why didthey work separately, and in the end, give you a chance to divide and conquer?" Zhou Tong did not stand in front of Zhexiu and stare into his eyes to pressurehim, nor did he look at the file on the table. He stood at the prison cell's only air vent, quietly looking up at the starsin the night sky and appearing somewhat absent-minded. The file on the table consisted of statements Zhexiu had made to Mei Lishawhile on the road, but after Zhexiu was brought to the Zhou Prison, he hadn’tsaid a single word more. Zhou Tong was acutely aware that mental pressure meantnothing to this wolf youth. Zhou Tong had looked over the file once and hadalready memorized its complete contents, including those inconspicuous details.He felt it was just like Liang Xiaoxiao's dying words. Zhexiu's statement alsohad many suspicious points, but he still asked absentmindedly. He knew thatthere was no need to be so diligent since Zhexiu would still not admit anything. He asked this question only because it was a part of his job, a procedure or asequence. In his laws, it was a task that had to be performed—everything waspart of the job. Only after concluding this portion could he move on to thenext. Hearing Zhou Tong's voice, Zhexiu finally responded. However, he still saidnothing but rather just closed his eyes. After he had returned to the capital from Hanqiu City, the Li Palace had senta cardinal to personally treat his injuries. At the moment, the poison in hisbody had been mostly suppressed at the bottom of his eye. Although he stillcouldn't see, his condition would not worsen and his life was not in danger. Hewas not concerned about these problems, but rather about just what had happenedin the Garden of Zhou. Why had the Garden of Zhou's sky collapsed? Were Nankeand those demon experts dead? Could Chen Changsheng also be dead? And also…hadQi Jian's condition improved? Was she still unconscious in her coma or had shewoken up? He concentrated his thoughts on these things, hoping to alleviate some of thepain. However, his face was getting paler and sweat drops the size of soybeanswere continuously tumbling down his forehead. A very thin needle was inserted in the space between his eyebrows. The end ofthe needle was held in Zhou Tong's fingers as he softly twirled it. Zhou Tong was very calm. He didn't seem like a torturer but rather like adoctor treating his patient. Zhexiu's breaths became more hurried and his two eyebrows increasinglycreased. His body began to fiercely shudder. Those slender chains which ran through his body began to chafe against theflesh. Rotted flesh and tender, newly grown flesh alike were scraped off. Zhou Tong lightly brushed against the end of the needle. Zhexiu had alreadybitten down so much that his mouth was full of blood, but he could no longerbear it. He painfully yelled out, his hoarse voice reverberating through theisolated and gloomy Zhou Prison. He wanted to fall unconscious, but the pain made it impossible. Life and death, pain and its alleviation: all of it was in Zhou Tong's fingers. Mo Yu departed the Zhou Courtyard and headed back towards the Imperial Palace.As the wheels of the carriage rolled over the gray stones, it was somewhatbumpy. She felt that if it were the Black Goat pulling the carriage, it would befine. But the Black Goat did not like Zhou Tong and would never go with her tothat place. The carriage abruptly stopped. She calmly looked at the curtain hanging at the front of the carriage andasked, "Your Highness, what do you plan to do?"