Chapter 79 Colleagues Eat Their Lives

At this moment, on the edge of the Yangu Pit.

The sky was neither dark nor light, precisely the moment when Yin and Yang exchanged, and the aura was at its most chaotic.

"Mmph... Mmmph..."

Liu Ziming was like a pig waiting for the slaughter, bound tightly with hemp rope, his mouth stuffed with a piece of moldy rag.

His clothes were tattered, his Face covered in black and blue bruises, and one of his legs was bent at an unnatural angle.

Clearly, he had been subjected to a brutal beating before being brought here.

Several burly, masked men held him on either side, dragging him mercilessly toward the depths of the Yangu Pit.

"Behave, or I'll slaughter you right now!"

A fierce voice rang in his ear, followed immediately by a kick that landed squarely on his injured leg.

Liu Ziming's vision went black from the pain, and he nearly fainted; looking around, he struggled desperately.

He could feel that the deeper they went, the lower the temperature became, as if countless eyes were peering at this fresh offering of flesh.

He knew this place was a true dead zone, a place of no return.

"Mmmph, mmmph!"

He twisted with all his might, but it was to no avail.

Finally, the group stopped in a relatively open clearing, where scattered white bones were particularly numerous, even piled into small mounds.

"That's enough, let's do it here."

A gloomy voice sounded.

The two men holding Liu Ziming immediately stopped and slammed him heavily onto the ground.

Liu Ziming was dazed from the fall, the rag in his mouth loosening slightly, and he immediately shouted hoarsely.

"Who... who on earth are you! I am an officer of the Demon Suppression Division! An official of the imperial court!"

"Kidnapping me is treason! It's a capital offense!"

His voice echoed within the vast, desolate Hell, sounding exceptionally shrill, yet trembling with a bravado that masked his fear.

"Treason? A capital offense?"

The leader of the men in black let out a sneer, then slowly turned around and suddenly raised his hand to pull off his black Face mask.

The faint light of a fire starter illuminated a gloomy and familiar Face.

Triangular eyes, a hooked nose, and corners of the mouth habitually turned downward, revealing three parts malice and seven parts smugness.

It was none other than Head Constable Wang!

Liu Ziming's blood seemed to freeze instantly.

Head Constable Wang had revealed his Face.

Having worked in the Demon Suppression Division for so many years, Liu Ziming knew all too well what this meant.

It meant the other party had no intention of leaving him alive! It meant they were absolutely certain that nothing of what happened today would ever get out!

"You little monkey, recognize me now?"

Head Constable Wang sneered and crouched down, patting Liu Ziming's deathly pale Face with a bony palm.

The force was not light, making a slapping sound.

"Are you surprised? Did you think I only knew how to hide in the county office, relying on my brother-in-law to throw my weight around?"

His smile became increasingly sinister, old grudges and new hatreds welling up in his heart.

From losing Face in public at the restaurant, to his plans being disrupted by Chen Mu, and Liu Ziming helping Chen Mu defy him time and again.

All of this made him want to tear the skinny monkey before him to shreds.

"Let me tell you, in this little patch of Yunmeng, if you offend me, I'll show you what it's like to suffer a fate worse than offending the King of Hell!"

Before he finished speaking, he suddenly lifted his foot and kicked Liu Ziming hard in the abdomen.

"Urgh!"

A painful groan was squeezed from Liu Ziming's throat; cold sweat poured down from the pain, yet he still glared fixedly at Head Constable Wang.

Since death was inevitable either way, he might as well show some backbone.

"You ungrateful wretch! That brat Chen Mu is arrogant because he has some skill."

"A piece of trash like you, with no connections and no skills, how dare you bare your fangs at me?!"

Another kick, this time to the ribs, and Liu Ziming's vision went black; he nearly passed out on the spot.

"Helping Chen Mu deal with me? You traitorous wretch! Today I'll let you know that in this Yunmeng, a piece of trash like you should know to keep your tail tucked between your legs!"

Head Constable Wang cursed in a low voice as he kicked, putting his full strength into every blow, aiming specifically for vital spots.

Liu Ziming convulsed with pain, mucus and tears streaming down his Face; beyond the pain, there was a profound despair and the madness of one nearing death.

Head Constable Wang seemed to tire of kicking and stopped, panting, as he stepped on Liu Ziming's chest, pinning him to the ground.

"Know regret now? It's too late!"

Liu Ziming gasped for air, mumbling as if trying to say something, but the pain made it impossible to utter a single word.

Head Constable Wang sneered repeatedly, lowering his voice, yet every word pierced into Liu Ziming's heart like a needle.

"I know what you want to say—officers of the Demon Suppression Division, murdering a colleague, the laws of the imperial court, and the rules of the Demon Suppression Division, right?"

"But today, only Heaven knows, Earth knows, you know, and I know, plus these few brothers I trust. Who is going to leak this, hmm?"

"Besides, I won't kill you with my own hands; it would dirty my hands."

He pointed to the surrounding eerie white bones, laughing with satisfaction and cruelty.

"See that? The Yangu Pit—you've heard of it, right?"

"In the middle of the night, there are all sorts of demons and monsters here—some missing arms or legs, some headless, some with their intestines dragging on the ground—they've been starving for hundreds of years."

"I'll throw you in, and I won't need to lift a finger; there will naturally be things to greet you. When you turn into just another pile of white bones on the ground..."

Head Constable Wang laughed even more crazily.

"Who will know how you died? The Demon Suppression Division will only record that Officer Liu Ziming unfortunately wandered into the Yangu Pit and his body was never found. At most, they'll send a few taels of silver to your family as a pension, and that will be the end of it."

"As for your good brother Chen Mu, rest assured, he won't live past tonight either!"

"Don't worry, we were colleagues after all, and I can't bear to see you leave so alone. Once he dies, the two of you can at least be companions on the road to the Yellow Springs. Hahahaha..."

Liu Ziming felt ice-cold all over, not because of the surrounding chill, but because of the certainty in Head Constable Wang's words.

Xu Changze had long been in collusion with that Ghostly Creature; Qi Huan had already fallen, and Chen Mu was likely in grave danger.

As for himself, being thrown into this Yangu Pit, a place even the Demon Suppression Division was unwilling to easily tread, the outcome was all too predictable.

"Alright, enough talk."

"Send our Officer Liu on his way."

Head Constable Wang waved his hand, and immediately several men grabbed Liu Ziming's arms, dragging him toward the depths.

"No! Let me go! Head Constable Wang, you will die a horrible death! Even as a ghost, I won't let you go!"

Liu Ziming erupted with his last remaining strength, cursing hoarsely.

But it was all in vain.

He was dragged over a dozen zhang, passing a broken stone tablet half-buried in the soil.

It marked the official entry into the dangerous area of the Yangu Pit.

Immediately, he was thrown away violently, landing on the edge of a large pit filled with black water and piles of broken bones.

"Let's go!"

Head Constable Wang glanced at Liu Ziming, who was still struggling, and without hesitation, turned and hurriedly left along the path they had come.

The surroundings fell silent once more.

Liu Ziming lay on the ground, his whole body in excruciating pain, especially his leg, which had almost lost all sensation.

More terrifying than the pain was the surrounding environment.

"Rustle... rustle..."

Something was stepping on the broken bones and mud, slowly approaching.

He wanted to struggle to sit up, but his hands were tied behind his back; the more anxious he became, the less he could move.

The thing drew near, and what came into view was a pair of eyes glowing with a green light.

Then, a mangled skeleton frame walked out, swaying unsteadily.

Its left arm was missing, and its right hand held a rusty, broken blade.

It's over... I'm really going to die here...

Liu Ziming closed his eyes in despair.