Chapter 126 One Hundred and Twenty-Six
Chapter Summary: These prisoners of war were all pale and their steps were unsteady and dragging. They were not allowed to use spiritual power and…
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The prisoners of war were all pale and their steps were unsteady and dragging. They were not allowed to use spiritual power or rely on external forces, not only because the Lanling Jin Clan was wary of them, but also because it was meant to be a form of punishment. A dozen or so supervisors, holding black umbrellas, rode through the rain, shouting orders. Wen Qing rushed into the rain, her gaze frantically scanning every dusty and tired face. One of the supervisors noticed her, raised his hand, and yelled, "Where did you come from? Who gave you permission to trespass here!"
Wen Qing cried out urgently, "I'm looking for someone! I'm looking for someone!"
The foreman spurred his horse forward, drew something from his waist, and brandished it, shouting, "I don't care if you're looking for someone or someone's looking for you, let's go! If you don't leave..."
Just then, he saw a young man in black walking behind the young woman, his words abruptly cut off as if he had a typo.
The young man had a handsome face, but his eyes were rather cold, making him involuntarily shiver. Soon, he realized that the young man wasn't staring at him, but at the iron brand he was wielding.
The branding irons in the hands of these supervisors were exactly the same as those used by the servants of the Wen family of Qishan, except that the shape of the branding plate at the top had been changed from a sun pattern to a peony pattern.
Upon seeing the familiar branding iron, the family heads simultaneously let out a cold snort.
Back then, the Wen family's branding irons were kept by various clans, but they were all used as spoils of war and as a means of admonishing and warning future generations.
As a powerful and influential family that protected the region, it was understandable that some local people in the family would do manual labor and odd jobs. However, using this iron brand as a form of torture was tantamount to enslaving them.
Unexpectedly, such sordid things actually happened in the dark corners of the Jin family, which is truly unworthy of being one of the four great families.
Wei Wuxian noticed this, a cold glint flashing in his eyes. Many of the supervisors recognized his face and quietly reined in their horses, whispering among themselves. No one dared to stop Wen Qing anymore; she searched and called out, "A-Ning! A-Ning!"
The cries were piercing, but no one answered. They searched the entire valley but couldn't find their younger brother. If Wen Ning were here, he would have rushed out long ago. The foremen quietly dismounted, all staring intently at Wei Wuxian, seemingly hesitant to approach him. Wen Qing rushed over and asked, "Where are the new Wen family cultivators who were sent over these past few days?"
Several people looked at each other in bewilderment. After a moment of hesitation, a seemingly honest and simple-minded supervisor said in a friendly manner, "All the prisoners of war here are cultivators from the Wen family, and new ones are sent here every day."
Wen Qing said, "He's my younger brother, Jin Zixun brought him! He... he's about this tall, he doesn't talk much, and when he does, he stutters..."
The supervisor said, "Hey, girl, look, there are so many people here, how can we possibly remember whether one or two people stutter or not?"
Wen Qing stamped her feet anxiously: "I know he must be here!"
The head of the guards was round and plump, and said with a fawning smile, "Miss, don't worry. Actually, other families often come here wanting cultivators. Maybe someone took them these past few days? We sometimes find people have run away when we take attendance..."
Wenqing said gently, "He won't run away! Grandma and the others are all here. My brother won't run away alone."
The foreman said, "Why don't you take your time searching? Everyone is here. If we can't find them in this valley, then we're out of options."
Suddenly, Wei Wuxian asked, "Is everyone here?"
When he spoke, the faces of the men stiffened. The foreman turned to him and said, "Yes."
Wei Wuxian said, "Alright. I'll assume that all the survivors are here. So, what about the others?"
Her warm body swayed slightly.
Seeing the usually arrogant Wen Qing so humbly asking about his whereabouts, a trace of self-reproach appeared on Wen Ning's stiff face.
He hesitated and tugged at Wen Qing's sleeve.
"Sister...it's all my fault, I'm so useless."
“Ah Ning, it’s not your fault. We always save people, we would never harm them. You’re a petty person, you can’t reason with me.”
She gently patted his head.
She might often nag her younger brother, but she never thought there was anything wrong with Wen Ning's simple and gentle nature.
The mistake lies in the fact that they were not born into their own family; being born into the Wen clan meant they were bound to encounter unfair treatment.
Not everyone in this world is Wei Wuxian.
The tendency to implicate others is the norm.
The only "other" that is the opposite of "living" is "dead".
The head constable quickly said, "You can't say that. Although we are all cultivators from the Wen family here, none of us dare to cause any deaths..."
Wei Wuxian seemed not to hear, and took the flute from his waist. Several prisoners of war who had been struggling to move forward beside him suddenly shouted, threw down their heavy loads, and ran away. In the valley, a large clearing suddenly appeared with him as the center.
In truth, these prisoners of war didn't recognize Wei Wuxian's face. Every Wen clan cultivator who had encountered him on the battlefield of the Sunshot Campaign had only one fate—annihilation. Therefore, most of the Wen clan cultivators who recognized him had become fierce corpses, manipulated and controlled by him, becoming his subordinates. But the black wooden flute with its bright red tassels, and the black-clad youth who controlled it, had long become their nightmare. People around exclaimed in alarm: "The Ghost Flute Chenqing!"
Wei Wuxian brought Chenqing to his lips. The mournful, piercing sound of the flute first pierced the night sky like a sharp arrow, cutting through the rain, and then the lingering sound echoed throughout the valley. With just one note, Wei Wuxian withdrew Chenqing, stood with his hands at his sides, a cold smile on his lips, letting the rain soak his black hair and black clothes.
Soon after, someone suddenly said, "What was that sound?"
Suddenly, screams erupted from outside the crowd, and people scrambled and broke through the encirclement, creating a clearing. In the space they had cleared, in the drizzling rain, stood a dozen or so ragged figures, some tall, some short, some men, some women, some emanating a putrid stench. Standing at the very front was Wen Ning, whose eyes were still open.
His face was deathly pale, his pupils were unfocused, and the blood at the corner of his mouth had congealed into a dark brown. Although his chest was not rising and falling at all, it was clear that half of his ribs had been broken. Anyone who saw this would not believe that this person was still alive, but Wen Qing was still unwilling to give up and tremblingly reached out to check his pulse.
She clung to it tightly for a long time, then finally burst into tears.
"This...this is Senior Wen?"
The younger generation are getting along very well with Wen Ning now. He is gentle and skilled in martial arts, making him a good companion for night hunting.
However, even those in the Heavenly Shadows dared not recognize that the person in such a miserable state in the rain was Wen Ning.
"Now, you have all witnessed it with your own eyes. This is irrefutable evidence of the Lanling Jin Clan's torture and killing of prisoners."
Wen Qing held Wen Ning's hand tightly.
She will never forget the excruciating pain she felt that night.
These past few days she was filled with fear and anxiety, running almost frantically, but she was still too late and didn't even get to see her brother one last time.
Wen Qing cried as she touched Wen Ning's ribs, seemingly trying to set them back together, desperately hoping to grasp at a sliver of hope. Her once sweet face was contorted with grief, becoming ugly and unsightly. However, when someone is truly heartbroken, it's absolutely impossible for them to cry beautifully.
Before the stiff corpse of her only brother, her unwavering pride crumbled completely.
The shock was too much for Wen Qing, and she finally collapsed and fainted. Wei Wuxian stood behind her, silently catching her and letting her lean against his chest. He closed his eyes, and after a moment opened them, asking, "Who killed this person?"
His tone was neither warm nor cold, as if he wasn't angry but rather deep in thought. The foreman, feeling a bit lucky, retorted, "Young Master Wei, don't talk nonsense. No one here dares to kill anyone. He was careless while working and rolled down the mountainside to his death."
Wei Wuxian asked, "No one dares to kill people indiscriminately? Really?"
Several supervisors swore in unison, "It's absolutely true!"
"Absolutely true!"
Wei Wuxian smiled slightly and said, "Oh. I understand."
Then, he slowly continued, "Because they are Wentworth dogs, and Wentworth dogs are not human. So killing them doesn't count as murder, that's what you mean, right?"
Upon hearing the last sentence, Wen Qing gave a mocking smile, knowing without a doubt that most of the people sitting behind her were thinking the same thing.
Because he had been threatened, persecuted, and even had his entire family wiped out by Wen Ruohan's henchmen, he wanted to do the same to the Wen family of Qishan.
There's nothing wrong with seeking revenge, but the mistake lies in dragging innocent people into it.
When they lose their original intentions because of revenge and become cruel and tyrannical, how are they any different from Wen Ruohan?
It's just that they've added a seemingly righteous excuse.
The head constable had just been thinking this, and when Wei Wuxian suddenly exposed his thoughts, his face turned pale. Wei Wuxian continued, "Or do you really think I wouldn't know how someone died?"
The supervisors fell silent, finally realizing the gravity of the situation and showing signs of backing down. Wei Wuxian maintained his smile and said, "You'd better confess immediately who killed them. Step forward yourselves. Otherwise, I'll have to kill the innocent rather than let the guilty go free. Kill them all; there shouldn't be any survivors."
Everyone felt a chill run down their spines. The head eavesdropper stammered, "The Yunmeng Jiang Clan and the Lanling Jin Clan are currently on good terms, you can't..."
Upon hearing this, Wei Wuxian glanced at him and said in surprise, "You have a lot of courage. Are you threatening me?"
The supervisor hurriedly replied, "No, no, I wouldn't dare."
Wei Wuxian said, "Congratulations on successfully exhausting all my patience. Since you won't tell me, then let him answer himself."
The Jiang family members' gazes suddenly turned cold.
They knew that Wei Wuxian disliked being pressured by others using his family background.
In the past, they would fight with Jin Zixuan for Jiang Yanli, let alone these Jin family supervisors who bully the weak and fear the strong.
As if waiting for his words for a long time, Wen Ning's stiff corpse suddenly moved and raised its head. Before the two supervisors standing closest could even scream, each of them was grabbed by the throat by an iron-like hand.
Wen Ning, expressionless, lifted the two short, stocky supervisors high into the air, widening the circle around them. The foreman cried out, "Young Master Wei! Young Master Wei! Show mercy! Your impulsive actions will have irreversible consequences!"
The rain was getting heavier and heavier, and rainwater kept sliding down Wei Wuxian's cheeks.
He turned around abruptly, placed his hand on Wen Ning's shoulder, and shouted, "Wen Qionglin!"
In response, Wen Ning let out a long, deafening roar that made everyone in the valley's ears ache.
Wei Wuxian said, word by word, "Whoever made you all like this, you shall make them suffer the same fate. I give you that right to settle accounts cleanly!"
Upon hearing this, Wen Ning immediately slammed the two supervisors he was holding together, and their heads exploded like watermelons with a loud "bang," scattering red and white fragments like a shower of flowers.
The scene was extremely bloody; screams echoed through the valley, horses neighed, prisoners fled, and chaos reigned.
Wen Ning roared from within the Heavenly Shadow, and everyone in the space felt a sharp pain in their ears and even some tinnitus.
Lan Sizhui rubbed his ears and said something to Lan Jingyi.
Amidst the echoes of his roars, Lan Jingyi stared blankly at Lan Sizhui's lips moving up and down, blinking in confusion.
"What did you say--?"
Lan Jingyi shouted loudly, startling everyone around him.
"..." Lan Sizhui looked at this silly child speechlessly, wondering if he had really been deafened by Senior Wen's powerful roar.
Lan Jingyi picked at his ears and shook his head, and the stuffy atmosphere returned to normal.
Then he saw the younger generation around him, including Lan Qiren and Lan Xichen, all looking at him with concern.
"...I'm fine, my ears just felt stuffy for a moment..." Lan Jingyi smiled awkwardly. Seeing that everyone else had turned back to look at Tianying, he couldn't help but mutter to himself: Senior Wen's voice was too powerful.
No one noticed the faint light disappearing in the corner, and Xiao Niangui, who was invisible, breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that Lan Jingyi was alright.
If she really couldn't hear it, it would indeed have something to do with her. She secretly amplified Wen Ning's roar several times to teach these people a lesson, but it would be a sin if Lan Jingyi got hurt.
Just as Lan Jingyi finished muttering to himself, he looked up and saw the spectacular sight of the two men's brains splattering. He couldn't help but gag along with the sounds of vomiting behind him.
"vomit……"
Senior Wen, uh no, Senior Wei... is too ruthless.
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