With that, Dugu Yan quickly disappeared into the alleyway, enveloped in a cloud of black mist.
Ye Lingling's eyes narrowed; why was this eerie aura so similar to that guy's?
Clank, clank, clank!
The sound of armor clashing drew a troop of well-equipped soldiers to the scene shortly after.
After all, this was within the Imperial City, and the large amount of purple poisonous gas Dugu Yan had released earlier had attracted the attention of the city guards, prompting them to investigate.
Upon seeing Ye Lingling, the city guard captain stepped forward and asked, "What happened here? Did you do this?"
The city guard captain glanced at the middle-aged man on the ground, whose face was purple and who was foaming at the mouth. He stepped forward to check and found that the man had already lost his breath. His sharp gaze immediately fixed on Ye Lingling.
Ye Lingling, slightly flustered, quickly explained, "I am a Heaven Dou-level student at Heaven Dou Royal Academy. Just now, we were attacked.
My classmate was abducted by them, and the person next to you is their accomplice."
The captain's expression grew serious. A senior student from the Royal Academy—this matter was a bit tricky.
Just as he was thinking this, Ye Lingling dropped another bombshell.
"My friend is Dugu Yan, the granddaughter of Poison Douluo."
"What?!"
The captain instantly paled in shock. Poison Douluo, Titled Douluo Dugu Bo. Who had the guts to kidnap the granddaughter of a Titled Douluo?
"Sir, could you please explain the specific situation?"
After learning Ye Lingling's identity as a Heaven Dou Royal Academy student, the captain's tone was no longer as aggressive as before, and he even used polite language.
"Before, we discovered someone following us…"
Ye Lingling briefly recounted what had happened earlier, then quickly returned to Heaven Dou Royal Academy to report the matter to the Three Education Committee.
The kidnapping of Poison Douluo's granddaughter immediately caused a huge sensation, like a giant rock thrown into a calm lake, stirring up enormous waves.
Even Prince Xue Xing of the Heaven Dou Empire personally inquired about the matter, pointing his finger at the Three Education Committee and scolding them, ordering that Dugu Yan must be rescued as soon as possible and the culprits brought to justice.
He appeared very concerned, so much so that anyone who didn't know would think his own parents had been kidnapped.
Meanwhile, when Dugu Yan regained consciousness, she found herself in a secret chamber.
She saw herself putting chains on her own hands and feet, with the other end of the chains firmly fixed to the ground and walls.
To be precise, it wasn't her; it was just her body doing these things. Someone had taken over her body.
After her hands and feet were completely bound, Dugu Yan saw a cloud of black smoke emerge from within her body.
And at the same time, she found that she could control her body again.
After regaining control, Dugu Yan immediately threatened the black-clad masked person in front of her, "Who are you? Do you know my grandfather is Poison Douluo? Are you trying to die by doing this to me?"
Dugu Yan was like a naive rich second-generation character from a TV show, immediately resorting to threatening and intimidating with her powerful background.
Lin Ye grinned. As expected of a Spirit second-generation. Didn't Dugu Yan understand her current situation?
"Oh, oh, oh, Poison Douluo, I'm so scared."
Lin Ye said he was scared, but his playful, smiling face showed no trace of fear.
This infuriated Dugu Yan.
"Ah, you scoundrel, you're asking for death."
Dugu Yan was enraged and lunged at Lin Ye, but was forced to stop just as she was about to touch him, unable to advance another inch. It turned out the chains on her hands and feet weren't long enough.
After struggling for a while and seeing that the other party ignored her, Dugu Yan gradually regained her composure. Once calm, she understood her predicament.
"Stop with the nonsense. I want to know what your objective is?"
Lin Ye smiled. This fellow was quite sensible.
"You do have some brains. If only your grandfather were like you, he wouldn't be sold out and still count money for the seller."
Lin Ye's tone was slightly tinged with emotion.
Dugu Yan frowned, a little displeased with Lin Ye's cryptic words. She said, "Explain yourself clearly. What does that mean?"
Lin Ye replied, "After things settle down, whatever you want to know, I can tell you as I see fit. For now, I'm afraid you'll have to put up with a few days of inconvenience."
"You want to deal with my grandfather? I admit you have some skill, but aren't you a bit too confident?"
Dugu Yan tried to trick Lin Ye into revealing information, but Lin Ye immediately saw through her.
"You don't need to test me. I know my own capabilities, and it's even less likely that I'd do anything to your grandfather.
It's just that the old guy is a bit of an eyesore, so I'm letting him wander around elsewhere. Old people should get more exercise, you know."
Dugu Yan was utterly confused, but there was also good news: her grandfather wouldn't be in danger, at least.
It made sense. If this guy had that kind of ability, he would have gone directly to her grandfather. Why would he bother kidnapping her?
Before leaving, Lin Ye took out a large pile of dry rations and a large bottle of water from his storage spirit tool and placed them on the table.
Dugu Yan, seeing this, angrily asked, "You're only giving me this to eat?"
"What else? It's good enough that you have something to eat; don't be picky. Do you think you're a young lady on vacation?"
Watching the thick metal door close, and then looking at the sturdy chains on her hands and feet, Dugu Yan couldn't help but sigh in dejection.
Spirit Masters are also human; they aren't omnipotent.
Not only was the door of this secret chamber made of metal, but even the walls, floor, and ceiling were reinforced with metal, making it a true steel cage.
Escaping from such a place would be incredibly difficult. Even at her peak, the chances of getting out were very small, let alone now with her hands and feet bound.
Low-level Spirit Masters truly have limited strength, and Dugu Yan's Spirit focused on poison, so her destructive power wasn't strong.
Now, she was truly like a fish on a chopping board, to be cut however the other party wished.
Lin Ye entered another secret chamber and looked up to see Zhu Zhuqing tied up on the bed.
Lin Ye first closed the metal door of the secret chamber, then stepped forward and untied Zhu Zhuqing.
Compared to when she first arrived, Zhu Zhuqing now seemed very calm, accepting everything peacefully, allowing those large hands to move over her body.
Lin Ye inadvertently glanced at Zhu Zhuqing. Whether it was his imagination or not, he felt that Little Cat's gaze towards him no longer held as much hatred.
"What's wrong?" Lin Ye asked tentatively.
Zhu Zhuqing sighed deeply and said in an almost pleading tone, "Lin Ye, please let me go."
Lin Ye froze. After so long, this was the first time he had heard Little Cat speak in such a tone.
This couldn't help but make Lin Ye feel a sense of guilt for bullying a young girl, and at the same time, he felt a little heartache. Had he been too harsh on Little Cat?
Although he felt some self-reproach, this still couldn't shake his plan. For the Immortal Herb, he could only make Little Cat suffer a little longer.