Xie Zhaolin walked forward step by step, each movement pressing down on the man's nerves like a heavy weight. She bent down, her cold fingers clamping his jaw and forcing him to look up at her.
"Let me guess…" Her voice was soft, yet colder than ice. "You lost money gambling, so you sold your sister to pay the debt, didn't you?"
The man's entire body shook. His lips trembled. "N-no…"
"No?" Her fingertip flicked lightly. Fiendish energy slipped into his meridians again, eating away at his flesh inch by inch. "Then where did all those whip scars on her body come from? And what about the rope marks on her wrists?"
"Ahhh—!!" His scream was raw and agonized, like every bone was being gouged out piece by piece. "I-I'll talk! I sold her, it was me! But I was forced! The gambling den said… said if I didn't pay, they'd chop my hand off!"
Her eyes turned darker. The fiendish energy around him tightened cruelly.
"So you threw her straight into the fire pit instead?"
Crack!
The man lost another finger in an instant.
"It wasn't me that killed you!" he howled, rolling across the floor. "It… it was the people from the gambling den! The debt wasn't enough, so they… they hung you from the beam and beat you…"
A chilling light flared in her eyes.
No wonder this body's stomach still burned with hunger. No wonder the old wounds pulsed with clotted blood.
"So," she crouched slowly, her bloodstained fingers closing on his throat, "you came here to collect a corpse?"
The man suddenly thrashed wildly. "No! A Xiu… she ran away! The gambling den said dead or alive, they had to see her! They told me to… to find…"
His words froze in his throat as he saw her smile.
That smile made his bladder tighten in fear.
"Good." Her fingers curled tighter. Fiendish energy poured into his veins. "The gambling den, huh?"
He stiffened, then his eyes went wide with terror. "W-what are you trying to do?!"
Her faint smile sent chills down his spine.
"Collect a debt, of course."
But just as she was about to press for the location, a faint rustling reached her ears. It wasn't from him. It came from another corner of the courtyard. Her gaze turned sharp. She almost laughed in anger. Her own courtyard had become full of holes?
She flicked her wrist, and the dagger in her hand flew straight toward the sound. With a metallic clang, it embedded itself deep into the wall.
"Don't… don't kill me!"
A trembling voice echoed from the corner. A thin figure stumbled out, shaking all over.
She frowned and focused. It was a boy, around ten years old. His clothes were ragged, his face filthy, but his eyes shone brightly. He raised his hands in fear, trembling, yet there was a hint of cleverness in his gaze.
Still, she wouldn't relax. Kids who survived to this age in such places usually had sharp minds. Kicking the man writhing on the ground aside, she walked toward the boy. Fiendish energy gathered at her fingertips. She felt it clearly—this boy was just an ordinary mortal. No trace of spiritual energy, even his blood was weak.
"Who sent you?"
The boy's face went pale. He stammered, "N-no one! I just… just heard this courtyard was empty and thought maybe… maybe I could find food…"
She stared into his eyes, watching every flicker, and only when she confirmed he wasn't lying did her nerves ease slightly.
"This courtyard's been abandoned for years. Why suddenly come here?"
The boy swallowed hard. "I-I saw you come in earlier… you bought cloth and rice…"
Her eyes narrowed.
Tracked? Careless…
Her voice turned cold. "Who else did you tell?"
The boy shook his head frantically. "No one! I swear!"
"So you came to steal?"
He shook his head even harder, his dirty little face red with anxiety. "Not to steal! I wanted to knock and beg, but then I saw the door was open and heard noise inside…" He sneaked a glance at the man on the floor, gulping hard. "S-so I hid…"
With a flick of her finger, the dagger lodged in the wall flew back to her hand. The boy flinched, but clenched his teeth and didn't scream.
Not bad. Some guts.
She turned her eyes to the man, who was secretly crawling toward the door.
"Trying to leave?"
His body froze.
She waved her hand, and fiendish energy wrapped around his ankle, yanking him back across the floor.
"Immortal one!" he wailed. "I told you everything! Please, just let me go!"
She ignored him and looked at the boy. "Do you know him?"
The boy hesitated, then nodded. "Zhang Laosan, a well-known gambler from West Street…" He lowered his voice. "His sister… was the one he dragged into the gambling den himself."
Her eyes flashed with cold light.
As expected.
She looked down at Zhang Laosan and smiled suddenly. "So tell me, how should I deal with you?"
His face went ashen, his pants already wet. "Spare me! I-I can take you to the gambling den! I know where they're keeping the girls!"
She stared at his tear-streaked face and laughed.
"Take me to the gambling den?" Fiendish energy tightened around him. "You think… I need you to lead the way?"
His body froze stiff.
"West City's Red Sleeve Gambling Den. Two red lanterns at the door. A dry well in the backyard." With every word, his face grew paler. "You really think I can't find that myself?"
She hadn't inherited this body's memories completely. But when she absorbed the fiendish energy, she'd seen it all.
The dragging, the despair, the prison. Every detail had carved itself into her mind.
His lips trembled. "Th-then keep me alive…"
She leaned close, her voice soft as a snake's hiss. "Because I want to see… how soft the bones of a man who sells his sister really are."
"No… no! Please! Spare me!"
"Spare you?" she whispered, the fiendish energy coiling tighter. "Did you ever think of sparing your sister?"
He shuddered violently, his lips trembling, but no words came.
She didn't look at him again. Instead, her eyes shifted to the boy.
He stood in the corner, pale, but his black eyes locked on her firmly, as if he'd already guessed her intent.
Smart.
Her lips curved faintly as she walked toward him.
"Want to live?" she asked.
The boy didn't hesitate. He nodded. "Yes."
Her dagger dropped with a metallic clang at his feet.
"Kill him," she said coldly. "You live."