Chapter 526 - 527: Venting Anger

Chapter 526: Chapter 527: Venting Anger

The corner of Fengxuan’s mouth twitched. He suppressed his rage and said, "I’m the only one who can open the gate to the dungeon where Sanggu and the others are held. It’s useless for you to send them."

Qiao Xixi glanced at Kunlin, who was locked in a fierce battle with Jin Ling, then turned to Fengxuan and said, "Tell the beast soldiers to capture Kunlin."

Fengxuan wanted to scoff at Qiao Xixi, but he was afraid of provoking her into actually killing him. Besides, he genuinely wanted to capture Kunlin, so he ordered the beast soldiers, "Go. Capture that male Black Phoenix."

The beast soldiers, who answered to him, replied, "Yes."

Kunlin and Jin Ling were fighting neck and neck. Just as Kunlin unleashed his dark power in an attempt to suppress Jin Ling, the beast soldiers swarmed him.

Kunlin had no choice but to divert his attention to deal with them.

Qiao Xixi seized the opportunity to check on the captured females. Some of them must have been weaker to begin with; after having their blood drained, they were already at their limit.

Qiao Xixi’s brow furrowed deeply as she shot a cold glare at Fengxuan. "Are these the females you lured into the inner city and captured?"

Fengxuan shot the females a disdainful glance, utterly indifferent to whether they lived or died.

"Having too many females disappear from the city at once would cause problems. A good number of these were captured from other small- and medium-sized tribes."

Those tribes have a lower proportion of powerful males, making them much easier to raid.

Qiao Xixi clenched her fists in anger. ’Even if I’m no saint, I can’t just stand by and watch so many females die in front of me. I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if I did nothing.’

"Sprite, how can I help them?"

"Host, they’re suffering from excessive blood loss. You just need to give them Blood Pills in time. They’re available in the shop and they’re not expensive—only 5 points each."

"Okay."

Qiao Xixi quickly counted them. There were 110 in total, which would cost 550 points.

Once confirmed, she redeemed the Blood Pills from her system space and fed them to the females. After they swallowed the pills, Qiao Xixi could clearly sense their vitality returning.

BOOM!

Just as she finished, the sound of a heavy impact echoed from up ahead.

Kunlin was sent flying by Jin Ling, slamming hard against the stone wall.

"Jin Ling, don’t drag out the fight! We need to leave."

Jin Ling nodded and ran to Qiao Xixi’s side.

Kunlin tried to give chase, but the swarming beast soldiers blocked his path again.

"Let’s go find Sanggu."

Jin Ling nodded.

Xijing gave Fengxuan a shove. "Take us to Sanggu."

Fengxuan had been wondering why they were looking for Sanggu. He wanted to know their objective, hoping it might provide him with an opportunity to escape.

"Don’t even think about pulling any tricks. Otherwise, I’ll have no problem dicing you into pieces."

Fengxuan snapped back to reality and met Qiao Xixi’s icy gaze. He had no doubt this female would make good on her threat.

’She’s absolutely the most vicious female I’ve ever met!’

Kunlin saw Qiao Xixi’s group leaving and tried to follow, but there were simply too many of the pesky beast soldiers. They completely blocked his line of sight as he tried to pursue.

Fengxuan led Qiao Xixi’s group out of the passageway and back into the stone chamber where they had chosen an entrance before.

He lifted his chin, gesturing toward the nearest tunnel entrance.

"Go in that way."

Xijing shoved him forward.

"Why are you looking for Sanggu? If you’re willing to tell me, perhaps I can help."

Qiao Xixi scoffed. ’Does this guy really think we can’t see what he’s trying to do?’

’Then again, there’s no harm in letting him know.’

"You gave Sanggu the forbidden drug that was fed to Sangze. Where did you get it?"

In the darkness, Fengxuan’s eyes darted about. "I came upon it by a stroke of luck."

The words had barely left his mouth when the hand on his neck tightened its grip.

"Argh!"

"I ask you a question, and you lie to my face?"

Fengxuan’s face contorted in pain. Through gritted teeth, he said, "I gave it to him."

"What are the exact ingredients in the formula? List them."

Fengxuan hesitated for a moment. "I’ve seen so many... I can’t remember."

Xijing glanced at Qiao Xixi. She gave him a nod, and Xijing stopped. With a twist of his wrist, he slammed Fengxuan against the stone wall.

"Then you can stay here and think hard. We’ll leave when you remember."

Qiao Xixi added with a cold smile, "That medicine I gave you last time? I have plenty of other varieties. How about you try them all?"

Fengxuan’s face went pale. The memory of the agony he had endured recently filled his heart with a bottomless hatred.

"I remember! It was White Shu Fruit, Black Horse Grass, a Tibetan Bull Skull..."

Fengxuan rattled off a long list of items, and Qiao Xixi had the Sprite immediately record all of them.

"That’s everything."

Qiao Xixi nodded, and Xijing dragged him onward.

As they neared the end of the passage, a draft blew toward them, carrying a thick, sour, rotting stench that made Qiao Xixi gag.

"What is that smell?"

Fengxuan said nothing. Soon, they reached the end.

Xijing took out two Sea Pearls and tossed them inside.

The light from the Sea Pearls instantly scattered the darkness, illuminating the area within.

The moment they got a clear look at the scene inside, Qiao Xixi and the others froze.

Jin Ling stepped past them and went in first. Only after confirming it was safe did he nod to Qiao Xixi.

The stone chamber before them wasn’t large, but it was filled with rows of stone jars. Each jar contained an adult male beastman.

Without exception, they were all withered and emaciated, so gaunt as to be unrecognizable.

Despite the noise, the beastmen in the jars remained numb, their eyes shut, completely unresponsive.

"Why did you bring these people here?"

Just as before, when faced with these living, breathing people, Fengxuan remained utterly cold and emotionless.

"To test my formulas, of course. These are just the failures. If I could succeed... Argh!"

Before he could finish, Qiao Xixi had taken off her deerskin boot and viciously smacked him across the face with it.

One strike wasn’t enough to quell her rage. She beat him with the boot again and again until his face was bruised and swollen, only then did the suffocating anger in her chest finally begin to subside.

’She couldn’t bear to imagine it. If Jin Ling hadn’t been strong enough to save himself back then, he would be one of the men locked away in here right now!’

’But even then, Jin Ling was still what he would call a failure. If he hadn’t met her—and her system—he never would have survived!’

Jin Ling’s gaze grew darker than ever before. The veins on his neck bulged as he struggled to control his rage.

After venting her fury, Qiao Xixi sensed the shift in Jin Ling’s emotions. She stopped and returned to his side, gripping his hand tightly.

Feeling her warmth, Jin Ling’s breathing gradually steadied.

His gaze swept across the room, finally landing on a familiar face in the dimmest corner.