jdhmnovel Chapter 792 The Guiding Light (Page 12)
Chapter 792 The Guiding Light (Page 12)
Zhao Hu's face was ashen. He knew that ordinary torture had lost its effect on this man. Whipping, branding with hot irons, needle pricking... all sorts of methods were used in turn, only eliciting a faint, mocking smile at the corner of the man's mouth, and the occasional low cough from his throat—the wounds left by previous tortures, but certainly not a sign of submission. His will, as hard as ancient iron, had not crumbled under the daily torment, but instead appeared increasingly unfathomable.
A more extreme method must be used, or... his weakness must be found. Zhao Hu's eyes flashed with a ruthless light in the candlelight. This man was a "spy" captured from the border battlefield, carrying a secret powerful enough to overthrow the dynasty. Countless comrades had perished because of him, and the court was pressing him relentlessly. Zhao Hu, the commander of the imperial prison, had no time left.
"Guards!" Zhao Hu shouted sharply, his voice echoing in the cold, damp dungeon passage, carrying a hint of barely perceptible anxiety.
Two burly jailers immediately stepped forward, bowing to receive orders. Their faces were expressionless, as if they were already accustomed to the bloodshed and despair here. The dungeon was filled with a mixture of rust, blood, and mold; every breath felt like swallowing razor blades.
“Use ‘pulling the mechanism’,” Zhao Hu said, each word seemingly squeezed out from between his teeth, carrying a heavy determination.
"Pulling the Mechanism" is one of the most insidious forms of torture in the imperial prison. It doesn't directly cause physical pain; for those with iron wills, that would merely be a physical trial, perhaps even emboldening them. The horror of "Pulling the Mechanism" lies in its direct attack on the mind. Through specially prepared drugs and precise acupuncture, it stimulates the central nervous system, plunging the victim into a boundless hallucination where they endure their deepest fears, pains, and unbearable realities. It doesn't harm the body, but it slowly and painfully tortures the soul, ultimately leading to a mental breakdown in endless fear and despair, causing the victim to utter their entire truth like an infant. This punishment demands extremely high skill from the executioner and inflicts a devastating blow on the victim's spirit. Furthermore, the executioner is often affected by the lingering effects of the hallucinations themselves; therefore, it is only used as a last resort.
The mysterious man, who had been silently leaning against the cold stone wall, showed a slight, almost imperceptible pause for the first time on his usually impassive, mocking face when he heard the words "Qianji Yin" (牵机引). Although it was only for a moment, as quick as a flickering candle flame, Zhao Hu caught it.
There's hope! Zhao Hu's heart skipped a beat. He knew that no one is truly fearless; it's just a matter of how deeply one's fears are hidden and what kind of key is needed to unlock them. "The Pulling Finger"—it seems—is the key to unlocking this person's Pandora's box.
The mysterious man slowly raised his head, his previously cloudy yet sharp eyes focusing on Zhao Hu for the first time. His gaze was complex and unfathomable, containing astonishment, anger, and… a hint of deep-seated fear? No, it was more like a warning that his sore spot had been touched.
“Commander Zhao,” his voice was hoarse like a broken bellows, yet unusually clear, “do you know what you’re doing? Once the ‘Tether’ is used, both the giver and the receiver may be doomed.”
Zhao Hu sneered, "Eternal destruction? I only know that if I cannot get what I want from you, then I, Zhao Hu, and even the entire Da Jing Dynasty will truly be doomed! Attack!"
Zhao Hu practically roared out the last two words.
Two jailers obeyed the order. One of them turned and left, returning a moment later with an antique black wooden box. The box was opened, revealing a set of silver needles neatly arranged inside, lined with dark red velvet. The needles were of varying lengths, as thin as cow's hair, their tips gleaming with a faint blue light in the dim candlelight, clearly coated with a special drug. Beside them were several small porcelain bottles containing powders and liquids of different colors, emitting a strange and dangerous fragrance.
Another guard took out a sturdy leather belt, preparing to secure the mysterious man to the rack.
The mysterious man did not resist, but merely glanced deeply at the set of silver needles and medicine bottles, his expression complex. He slowly closed his eyes, as if making some kind of preparation, or perhaps recalling something. His breathing became slightly rapid, and his chest heaved more dramatically than before.
Zhao Hu walked to the rack and looked down at him: "It's not too late to regret it now. Tell me who your master is, the network of spies you've deployed on the border, and the specific details of that 'Tianyan Plan,' and I can give you a quick death."
The mysterious man slowly opened his eyes, the mocking smile on his lips reappearing, but this time, it seemed tinged with sorrow: "Zhao Hu, do you think... prying my mouth open will solve the problem? Some things are more terrifying than death, more unbearable than torture. Are you sure... you really want to see this?"
His voice was soft, yet it possessed a strange penetrating power, sending a chill down Zhao Hu's spine. But what's done is done; there's no turning back. He waved his hand: "No need for further words, begin the torture!"
The jailer carrying the wooden box stepped forward, his hands unusually steady, without the slightest tremor. He first poured some pale yellow powder from a porcelain bottle, mixed it with a small amount of water to form a paste, and then evenly applied it to several key acupoints on the mysterious man's head, including Baihui, temples, philtrum, and Fengchi at the back of his neck. The paste immediately emitted a cooling sensation upon contact with the skin, but quickly turned into a burning sensation, as if countless tiny insects were crawling and gnawing at the skin.
The mysterious man's body trembled slightly, and fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead.
Next, the jailer picked up the shortest silver needle, held it with tweezers, heated it over a candle flame, and then aimed it at the mysterious man's brow, at the Yintang acupoint, gently twisting and inserting it. The movement was precise and steady, and the silver needle penetrated nearly half an inch.
The mysterious man grunted, his brows furrowed.
Then, the jailer moved with lightning speed, precisely inserting silver needles into various acupoints on his head, neck, hands, and feet. Baihui, Taiyang, Fengchi, Neiguan, Hegu, Yongquan... In the short time it takes for an incense stick to burn, the mysterious man's body was covered with dozens of silver needles, like a hedgehog pinned to a wall, only these "thorns" were even more deadly.
Each needle pierced his skin, triggering a different reaction. Some caused his muscles to twitch, some made him clench his teeth, and some made him let out a suppressed groan. His face changed from pale to flushed, then from flushed to bluish-black, and his breathing became increasingly rapid and erratic.
Zhao Hu stood to the side, staring intently at the mysterious man's face, not daring to miss a single change. He saw the man's eyes begin to glaze over, his pupils dilate, and the sharp light that had been there before gradually disappeared, replaced by a look of bewilderment and fear.
Finally, the jailer picked up a small silver pot filled with a colorless, transparent liquid. He carefully dripped the liquid onto the tip of each silver needle. When the liquid touched the needles, it made a soft "sizzling" sound, and the blue light at the needle tips deepened.
Having done all this, the jailer stepped back a few paces, bowed to Zhao Hu, and said, "Commander, the 'Tethering Technique' has been completed. Next, we only need to wait for the medicine and silver needles to take effect and trigger his inner demon illusion."
Zhao Hu nodded and waved for the two jailers to leave. Only he and the mysterious man, who was in a state of preliminary unconsciousness, remained in the dungeon.
Time passed slowly, the candlelight flickered, casting long shadows of the two people that twisted and shifted on the wall.
Suddenly, the mysterious man uttered a low murmur, as if calling someone's name, his voice indistinct.
Zhao Hu perked up and went over.
The mysterious man's eyelids began to twitch rapidly, and his facial expressions became increasingly varied, sometimes showing pain, sometimes terror, sometimes anger, and sometimes sorrow. His body began to writhe restlessly, and deep red marks appeared on his wrists and ankles, which were bound by leather straps, from the force of the straps.
"No...no..." he began to mumble in his sleep, his voice filled with terror, "Don't come any closer...ah!"
A piercing scream shattered the silence of the dungeon, causing Zhao Hu's heart to clench. He saw the mysterious man's face filled with extreme terror, his eyes wide open, yet his pupils remained unfocused, clearly immersed in an extremely terrifying hallucination.
"Water...give me water..." His voice was hoarse and desperate, like that of a dying traveler in the desert.
Zhao Hu ignored him. He knew this was just the beginning of an illusion. He needed to wait patiently for the other party to break down in the illusion and reveal the truth.
The mysterious man's hallucination seemed to have entered a new phase. He stopped screaming and began to sob softly, like a helpless child.
"Mother...Mother...I was wrong...I shouldn't have been naughty...Don't die...Don't leave me..."
Zhao Hu's heart skipped a beat. Was it a childhood trauma? It seemed that even the strongest person had a soft spot deep inside. He held his breath and listened intently.
"Fire... such a big fire... it's burning... everything's gone... my home... my home..." The man's voice was filled with despair and pain, his body trembling violently, his prison clothes soaked with sweat.
Zhao Hu silently took notes. A fire? The loss of loved ones? This might be a major trauma from his childhood. But what does this have to do with his mission, and with the "Tianyan Project"?
The illusion continued. The mysterious man's emotions fluctuated like a rollercoaster.
"General... I'm so sorry... I couldn't hold the line... All the brothers are dead... all dead..." His voice was filled with guilt and self-reproach, as if he were carrying a thousand-pound burden. "It's my fault... I'm the one who killed them..."
Battlefield? Defeat? Zhao Hu's eyes lit up. This seemed to be related to his identity.
"Why...why me..." he murmured, his voice filled with confusion and pain. "I just want to live...why is even living so hard..."
Zhao Hu frowned. Although this information revealed some of his past experiences and suffering, it was still too vague and fragmented for the intelligence he urgently needed right now.
"Speak! Tell me who you are! Who is your master!" Zhao Hu couldn't help but shout, trying to exert influence during the gap in his illusion.
The mysterious man seemed to hear his voice, and struggled suddenly. A glimmer of clarity flashed in his eyes, but it was quickly replaced by deeper confusion and fear.
"Master...heh..." He suddenly let out a low, eerie laugh, filled with mockery and sorrow. "My master...is you all...is all of you...is this cannibalistic world!"
Zhao Hu was taken aback, not understanding what he meant.
Immediately afterward, the mysterious man's expression turned incredibly ferocious, filled with crazed hatred: "Da Jing... Emperor... Zhao Hu... you all deserve to die! I will take revenge! I will make you pay for your blood debts!"
His voice was like the roar of a wild beast, filled with a mad rage capable of destroying everything. Zhao Hu felt a chill run down his spine. Was this his true hatred? Against the Great Jing Dynasty, against the Emperor, even against himself?
"Revenge? What kind of revenge? What is the 'Heavenly Evolution Plan'?!" Zhao Hu seized the opportunity and pressed him for an answer.
The mysterious man seemed to be provoked by the words "Project Tianyan". He stopped roaring, and the expression on his face became extremely complicated, with fanaticism, fear, and a trace of... despair.
“The Heavenly Evolution Plan… Heh… Heavenly Evolution… Destiny… Evolution…” He began to mutter to himself, his eyes staring blankly ahead, as if he had seen something unbelievable. “That is… divine punishment… the flames that purify this filthy world…”
"Flames? What flames?" Zhao Hu pressed, his heart pounding.
The mysterious man suddenly raised his head, his unfocused gaze seeming to briefly refocus before he stared directly at Zhao Hu, a strange and chilling smile playing on his lips: "Do you want to know? Zhao Hu... I'll take you to see..."