"Good evening, Family Head Li."
Li Pingsheng had just finished his dicine, contemplating how to turn his fortunes around when he suddenly heard Qing Yu’s voice, his face stiffening.
Qing Yu looked at Li Pingsheng with a faint smile, his frozen grin still in place, and said, "It seems, Family Head Li, you’re in a good mood tonight. Is there sothing to be happy about? Share your joy with ."
The house servant feeding the dicine, seeing this, silently excused himself.
However, Qing Yu spoke up to stop him, "The journey to the Netherworld is long, and Housekeeper Li Qi, alone on the road, must be lonely. As his son, wouldn’t you want to show filial piety and accompany him?"
The house servant’s eyes bulged, but it was Li Xin from behind who had gripped his neck and with a twist, broke it. His eyes remained wide open in death, filled with shock and disbelief.
"Qing Yu, what have you done?" Li Pingsheng could not hold back any longer and tried to sit up, but his body would not obey. He could only glare at Qing Yu, seated beside the tea table, with the corner of his eye.
Qing Yu poured himself a cup of tea and took a sip before speaking, "What have I done...? Li Qi and his son were indeed loyal to the Li Family. I comnd their loyalty and have sent them below to continue serving your family loyally."
"Alright, Family Head Li, you must be in despair by now. Speak the truth nicely, and I will let you die peacefully."
Li Pingsheng burst into mad laughter, "I’ve lost all sensation below my neck, I fear no torture, no matter how brutal. Just wait to die in your ignorant panic."
"Brave on the outside, but cowardly within. Not speaking of death, even now you still cling to life. You must be very afraid of dying."
Qing Yu’s disdainful words, like Li Xin’s capturing hand, choked off Li Pingsheng’s throat, and his laughter stopped abruptly.
"Even though death might force you to talk, we are short on ti, and I don’t have the leisure to play gas with you."
Qing Yu took out a stick of incense and lit it, waiting in silence.
Li Pingsheng caught sight of Qing Yu’s action from the corner of his eye. Although he was unsure of its significance, his instinct told him sothing was wrong. Speaking up at this mont, however, would only confirm Qing Yu’s words and reveal his fear of death, handing over the advantage to Qing Yu. The temptation of life began to plague Li Pingsheng’s strategic mind with doubts.
Qing Yu remained silent, making Li Pingsheng anxious. He considered this to be Qing Yu’s ruse to force him to speak first. The information Qing Yu was interested in was his last leverage for survival. As long as he kept silent, he could stay alive, alive until the clouds cleared and the sun shone through.
Li Pingsheng’s mind raced with wild thoughts. Gradually, he began to feel sleepy. Drowsiness enveloped him.
’Is this... death... no...’ Li Pingsheng felt he was dying. Qing Yu really did not care for the information, but was going directly for his life.
Li Pingsheng tried to speak, but found he no longer could open his mouth. Like this, longing for life, Li Pingsheng fell into the abyss of a nightmare.
It was not long before Qing Yu guessed it was ti and spoke, "Li Pingsheng, do you want to live?"
"I do..." The sluggish words tumbled from Li Pingsheng’s lips.
Li Pingsheng lay on the bed, seemingly in deep sleep, but his eyes were still wide open, devoid of life, with dilated pupils, immobile.
’Success. This Li Pingsheng, indeed fears death.’
Qing Yu pressed on, "Now, your only chance of survival is to answer all the questions this person before you has. Answer his questions, and you can keep living..."
"Living..." Li Pingsheng’s voice echoed hollowly, repeating the word.
"Yes, living. If you want to keep living, then answer his questions." Qing Yu’s tone was gentle like he was luring soone into a dream, repeatedly invoking Li Pingsheng’s single obsession.
"I want... to live..."
He didn’t say "yes," but Qing Yu knew he had succeeded.
Then, Qing Yu asked him many questions, including the changes that had taken place within the True Martial Dao Sect that year, the situation in Yang City, and so on.
"Li Pingsheng, your second son Li Qiuran, where is he now?"
Li Qiuran, the second son of Li Pingsheng, was often away from ho, and the official story was that he was doing business for the Li Family. It was rumored that most of the girls from the Chun Gui Pavilion were provided by Li Qiuran from his travels. However, Qing Yu had found a ledger in Li Pingsheng’s study yesterday, which recorded no inco, only continual expenses. It didn’t say to whom the money was given, only a place, Ji Province, which was far away from Yang City and separated from Ling Province by a province.
After much deliberation, Qing Yu was certain that only Li Qiuran, who was always away, could be the one using this money.
Li Pingsheng’s voice hesitated slightly, but in the end, his desire for life surpassed everything else, and he slowly said, "Qiuran... he’s at Yu Jian Manor..."
"Yu Jian Manor... seems quite famous..." Forgive Qing Yu, who had just descended from the mountain, for not even knowing the nas of the other three sectors renowned alongside the True Martial Dao Sect.
Li Xin, who was beside him, couldn’t watch any longer and said, "Young master, Yu Jian Manor is one of the three great Sword Dao Holy Lands of today."
"Really famous?"
"Indeed, every swordsman in the worldly society aspires to visit the three great Sword Dao Holy Lands, and Yu Jian Manor is one of them."
"Tell more about it."
"Um..." Li Xin was at a loss for words. Yang City was located on the frontier, and combined with the deliberate blockade by the Zhen Shan Army, the flow of information was extrely limited. The re fact that Li Xin knew of Yu Jian Manor as a Sword Dao Holy Land was proof of its great renown.
Thinking quickly, Li Xin pointed at Li Pingsheng and said, "The young master might ask him..."
"Forget it. His answers are too slow, and even asking questions is troubleso. I’ll go back to Li Pingsheng’s study later and look for so related records."
Qing Yu glanced at Li Xin and asked, "Are you surprised?"
Li Xin’s face still retained a trace of astonishnt: "Yes, it’s hard to imagine that this is the sa Li Pingsheng who previously refused to speak at all."
"It’s not as magical as you think. Li Pingsheng’s desire for life outweighs all else. Didn’t you see him easily revealing Li Qiuran’s whereabouts? If we really had to endure it, we could also wait for the day he started speaking. It’s just that ti is pressing, and I simply found a way to skip the enduring process."
"This is called the Mind Control Technique, reportedly passed down from the Western Regions. It can exploit soone’s psychological vulnerabilities to achieve the purpose of controlling them. However, to truly control others, one must cultivate spiritual power, which at least requires reaching the Peak of Innate. Rember the dicine I had you gather yesterday? This was taking advantage of the dicinal effects to compromise his ntal clarity, nothing more than a clever trick."
"Moreover," Qing Yu glanced at Li Pingsheng, who was still staring blankly, "given my novice experience and the urgency of ti, without the leisure to waste on him, I directly administered a strong dose. The likelihood of Li Pingsheng recovering his senses is slim to none."
Qing Yu stood up, patted Li Xin on the shoulder, and said, "I’ve asked all I needed to; I’ll leave Li Pingsheng to you. His life or death is in your hands."
Having said that, Qing Yu left straight away, leaving Li Xin alone in the room.
Li Xin looked at Li Pingsheng on the bed, his expression fluctuating between ferocious and calm, the candlelight casting him in an eerie, ghost-like light.
"Li Pingsheng, did you ever love Tian Xiuzhen?" Suddenly, Li Xin spoke to Li Pingsheng. Tian Xiuzhen was the deceased mother of Li Xin.
Li Pingsheng answered with a hollow voice: "Tian Xiuzhen... who is that... I don’t know."
Li Xin’s face instantly turned ashen, his features twisting into a monstrous visage, like an evil ghost from hell arriving in the human world.
A cloud drifted across the night sky outside the house, obscuring the bright moonlight...
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