180: Chapter 180: Torture Yields No Results

"Pah! You despicable humans! You still dare to quibble! Several years ago, our Minotaur Kingdom and your Purple Moon Dynasty signed a non-aggression blood oath treaty under the witness of the Continental Will!"

"Now you have brazenly torn up the contract, launched a sneak attack on my border tribe, and even captured a Minotaur Kingdom officer! Are you not afraid that the Continental Will will descend with divine punishment, causing your Dynasty's Luck to collapse and bringing endless disasters?"

"If you are sensible, release me now and retreat immediately! Otherwise, the millions of iron hooves of my Minotaur Kingdom will surely trample your East flat and make you pay a price you cannot bear!"

He spoke these words with force and conviction, making it sound entirely plausible.

In reality, it was a bullshit blood oath treaty!

Back then, the battle with the Purple Moon Dynasty had ended in mutual destruction; neither side gained any advantage. Eventually, both sides were too exhausted to continue and, with a tacit understanding, withdrew their troops, creating a de facto ceasefire line.

The so-called "witness of the Continental Will" was purely something he had made up on the spot, just to bluff the other party.

He wanted to see how much this guy, "suspected to be an Otherworld Lord," knew about the true power dynamics of this world.

Lin Tian listened to Captain Luoyi's "righteous and stern" accusations, and his heart did indeed skip a beat.

A treaty? Continental Will? Divine punishment? He had absolutely no knowledge of this information before.

Could it be that there are such highly binding rules between the indigenous powers of this world?

He kept a straight face and, instead, followed Captain Luoyi's lead, deliberately replying with an "everything is under control" and slightly arrogant tone:

"A treaty? Heh, times have changed. Our Purple Moon Dynasty has long since found a way to circumvent or even utilize that so-called 'divine punishment'."

"This time, it is not a simple border skirmish, but a move to completely wipe you barbarians off this land!"

He stared into Captain Luoyi's eyes, as if applying pressure, or perhaps stating a future that was about to be realized:

"So, don't try to bluff me with those outdated things. Tell me, where is your main army now? How many people are there? When will they arrive?"

However, the moment Lin Tian finished speaking, the "anger" and "fear" on Captain Luoyi's face receded like a tide.

Replacing it was a burst of wild laughter mixed with sudden realization, extreme absurdity, and a deeper, underlying fear!

"Ha... Hahaha! As expected! Just as I thought!"

Captain Luoyi looked up and laughed wildly, his voice raspy and piercing, filled with mockery and despair.

"Circumvent the backlash of the Continental Will's contract? Just by relying on you lot who suddenly popped up, stinking of the 'Otherworld' like Otherworld Lords?"

"You don't even know if there is a formal treaty between us and the Purple Moon Dynasty! You don't even understand the basic rules of the 'Continental Will Contract'! And you still want to impersonate the Purple Moon Dynasty to incite a bloody battle between our two great powers?"

He glared fixedly at Lin Tian. The last glimmer of hope in his eyes was extinguished, leaving only cold hatred and a sense of sorrow from "seeing the truth clearly":

"I admit, you have some strength; you were able to destroy the Split-Hoof Tribe and capture me. But with just this little bit of assets you have, you want to fight against our Minotaur Kingdom that has a Legacy of thousands of years? And you want to impersonate the Purple Moon Dynasty? Wishful thinking!"

"Just you wait, my reinforcements and the true powerhouses of the Minotaur Kingdom will arrive soon! They will wipe all of you 'enemies from beyond the sky' who bring chaos and pollution, leaving not a single one behind!"

"..."

The "in-control" expression on Lin Tian's face vanished.

He rubbed his nose, feeling a bit speechless and also a bit amused.

Well, he had been counter-bluffed, the interrogation failed, and his identity as an "Otherworld Lord" had been completely seen through by the other party.

However... so what?

Looking at the Minotaur captain before him, who was tied up yet seemed to have won some kind of moral victory as he glared at him while gritting his teeth, Lin Tian suddenly found the scene a bit comical.

"Tsk, it seems you Minotaurs aren't all just muscle-heads after all; you actually have some cleverness."

Lin Tian shrugged. The slight embarrassment of being "exposed" vanished from his face instantly, and he returned to his previous calm, even adding a touch of playfulness.

"That's right, I'm not from the Purple Moon Dynasty. So what?"

He walked up to Captain Luoyi, squatted down, and looked directly into his eyes, which were burning with rage. His tone was as relaxed as if he were talking about the weather:

"The treaty is fake, but the fact that your life is in my hands right now is real."

"It is also true that your army might come."

"But what a pity!"

Lin Tian reached out and patted Captain Luoyi's rough cheek. The gesture was casual, yet carried an unquestionable sense of control.

"You most likely won't live to see it. Besides, who will wipe out whom... that remains to be seen."

The interrogation room fell into a brief silence.

Captain Luoyi's wild laughter froze on his face, leaving only heavy, ragged breathing.

Lin Tian stood up and brushed off non-existent dust from his hands, as if he had just handled a trivial matter.

Identity exposed? It doesn't matter.

An unexpected drama of counter-bluffing and counter-counter-bluffing had concluded, but the real contest had only just begun.

"Why bother?"

Lin Tian looked at the Minotaur captain, Captain Luoyi, who was bound by iron chains and covered in wounds yet still held his head high. His tone carried a trace of genuine confusion, as well as a final attempt at probing.

"What's the point of resisting hard? Other than suffering more and then dying miserably here at my hands, what meaning does it have? Just tell me straightforwardly, how many more troops do you have behind you? What exactly is the situation in your Minotaur Kingdom now? Troop distribution, number of powerhouses, key defensive points..."

"Speak clearly, and I, Lin Tian, keep my word. I will spare your life and can even give you a cushy job so you can live on in this new world. Is it worth sacrificing your own life for information that is destined to be known?"

Captain Luoyi slowly raised his head. Blood and dust were mixed on his face, but the light burning in those bull eyes was exceptionally clear and fiery.

It was a fanaticism mixed with racial pride, military honor, and deep-seated hatred for the invaders.

He bared his teeth, revealing blood-stained fangs, and his raspy voice carried a sense of almost martyrdom-like joy:

"Heh... Hahaha! Spare my life? A cushy job? You damned Otherworld bugs that crawled out of the rift! Do you even deserve to negotiate terms?"

"I, Captain Luoyi, a warrior of the Minotaurs, a child of the mountains and thunder! Even if my body is smashed to pieces and my Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering, I will never utter a single word to you dregs who bring chaos and pollution!"

He glared fixedly at Lin Tian, as if he wanted to carve this face into the depths of his Soul:

"Just you wait! The iron hooves of our General Gelu will soon trample your dirty nest flat! He will personally tear you and these strange soldiers of yours into pieces, one by one!"

"Use your blood to wash away the shame of the Split-Hoof Tribe! Your death date... is right before your eyes!"

Looking at the unfeigned, faith-like, firm light in Captain Luoyi's eyes, Lin Tian knew there was no hope.