Chapter 13 The Black Prison

"Calm down." Chen Qiang, lying on the bed, turned his head to look at Li Pazi on the adjacent bunk. "Pazi, this kid actually didn't die at the hands of that Demon Monster. That black pig was at the First Realm!"

"This kid is not simple..." Chen Qiang took a deep breath. "The grudge has already been formed; it is now a life-or-death situation. No matter what his deal is, he must not be allowed to live!"

"I know people in the Chu Prefecture prison." The more Li Pazi thought about it, the more terrified he felt. What if this kid got out alive and came to seek revenge on them...

Li Pazi dared not think any further. He added, "Brother Chen, that Old Zhao, Zhao Xiang, he's the one who went on missions with us before..."

Chen Qiang's heart skipped a beat upon hearing this. "Find him?"

"Damn it, it's already life-or-death anyway. As long as he lives, we won't have a day of peace. Old Zhao's men have never failed a mission; he has even had the blood of a First Realm Cultivator on his hands," said Li Pazi.

"Who's paying?" Chen Qiang asked in a deep voice.

"I'll pay! Damn it, spending money to avert disaster—I've saved up quite a bit over the years. I'll pay 60 percent! We'll pay the same price he charged for killing that First Realm guy last time!" Li Pazi gritted his teeth, saying with heartache, "But Brother Chen, I might need you to trouble your uncle. Didn't you say he just slaughtered a highly toxic Fate-Fallen Demon Monster a while ago? Let's ask him for some of this Demon Monster's venom; I guarantee it will leave this kid without a complete corpse!"

Although Chen Qiang spent his days hanging out with so-called "fair-weather friends," he was actually from the "Chen Family," the wealthiest household in Chu Prefecture. Chen Qiang had simply made a mistake, so the Family had sent him out to temper his character and had also significantly reduced his monthly allowance. Unexpectedly, after Chen Qiang became a "Loose Cultivator," the bandit aura about him had instead increased significantly.

Because he was short on money, he had set his sights on Yun Bai's medicinal herbs.

Thinking of his uncle, Chen Yuan, who was respectfully called "Brother Yuan" in the Northwest Army, Chen Qiang couldn't help but shudder. His uncle's methods were not something an ordinary person could compare to; back then, because of his own incompetence, he had been beaten by him who knows how many times. But he dared not tell his uncle about this matter even more, otherwise, he wouldn't be able to survive in the Family.

Asking his uncle for help was out of the question, but finding an excuse to ask for some venom should be fine.

"Fine! That's settled!" Chen Qiang agreed.

The two turned to look at each other, successively revealing cruel smiles.

"Ouch, that pulled my wound!"

"Idiot!"

After a whole day, Yun Bai had confessed nothing.

Staying in this prison wasn't as miserable as he had imagined; on the contrary, he was fed and watered well enough. Though the taste of the food wasn't great.

The government officials didn't use torture on him either.

The second day after being arrested.

Yun Bai had been untied; he was lying on the pile of straw in the cell, resting his head on his arms, staring blankly at the ceiling.

He looked at his interface.

[Yun Bai]

[Rank: First Realm Early Stage]

Within the major Realm of the First Realm, it was further divided into three stages: Early Stage, Middle Stage, and Late Stage.

Yun Qian should be settled in the State Religion by now... Yun Bai silently thought about his sister's situation.

Whenever he felt lost and afraid of the future, his Family members were like his "anchor," allowing him to rediscover his bearings.

And his hometown and Family were also where his lonely, steadfast beliefs in this world lay.

"Clang," the prison door opened.

Yun Bai withdrew his thoughts.

"Kid, I'm moving you to a better place to stay." The jailer didn't talk nonsense; he dragged Yun Bai onto a prison cart, covered him with a black cloth, and left.

On the way, a bag was shoved into Yun Bai's hand again.

Yun Bai felt puzzled.

He would respond to the changing situation with steadfastness.

When the black cloth over his head was lifted, Yun Bai found himself within high walls. The stone materials used to build these high walls were special, with mottled black patches on them; some stones were even completely pitch black.

The light here was dim, and the sky could not be seen.

Yun Bai walked forward and discovered that there were rows of cells in that direction. The doors to the cells were not locked, and there was no one inside. Dozens of steps further on, the view suddenly opened up; the light was bright, and it was surprisingly a small plaza.

It turned out it was the prisoners' activity time.

The cell doors were even left open. It was evident that the jailers were very confident in the prisoners, having gone off to enjoy themselves somewhere unknown.

"Kid, stop looking. You don't know where this is, do you?" Suddenly, a rough voice said disdainfully, "Hehe, newbie, since you're here, you must first understand the rules of this place. Come, come, come over here, and massage your grandpa's back and legs."

"Me?" Yun Bai turned his head to look and saw a big man sitting on a stone, picking his foot with one leg crossed over the other.

"Unhuh. What? Unwilling?" The big man suddenly punched the wall next to him hard. A fist mark appeared where his fist struck the wall. "See that?"

The surrounding prisoners stopped in their tracks and gathered around as if to watch a show.

Yun Bai glanced at the opponent's cultivation level.

It was a prisoner at the Initial Realm Middle Stage.

"Sure." Yun Bai walked toward him with a wicked smile and kicked out.

With a muffled "bang," the big man was kicked flying directly, tumbling several times on the ground.

"Ow~" The big man clutched his stomach and curled up on the ground in pain.

"Now you can tell me the rules of this place." Yun Bai shook his leg. Must say, this big man's physique was quite tough; one kick had made his own foot ache a little.

"This place, ouch, this is the Chu Prefecture Black Prison, a place for holding serious criminals; generally, those who come in have high cultivation levels," the big man said, clutching his stomach. "What is your number?"

Yun Bai learned that the Black Prison was a prison for holding Cultivators. For Cultivators below the First Realm, this place was impossible to escape from. However, Yun Bai didn't intend to fly out; soon, he would be able to walk out openly.

Yun Bai lowered his head and opened the bag in his hand. Inside the bag, there was only a wooden plaque marked "153" and three Medicinal Pills.

"Three?" The big man saw the three Medicinal Pills Yun Bai took out of the bag; his expression changed drastically, and he looked at Yun Bai in terror.

"What's wrong?" Yun Bai asked.

"Depending on cultivation level and the degree of attention, before entering, the government officials will issue a certain amount of Medicinal Pills. You only have three; that's the fewest I've ever seen. In other words, you might die in a few days." The big man looked at him with a complex expression. "These Medicinal Pills have some effects for fasting and healing. In the prison, they are also used as currency for trading."

Pity, and also a trace of envy? Yun Bai thought.

"How long have you been here?" Yun Bai asked.

"Don't know, probably about thirteen years... You are number A-1-3-5; your room is over there." The big man pointed in a certain direction.

"Hm?" Yun Bai saw that the mark the man had just made on the wall had actually disappeared.

"This is a characteristic of the Black Prison. Any traces left on it will quickly recover. It also cuts off our thoughts of digging through the wall to escape." The big man gave him a deep look.

"Good, you can go." Yun Bai said.

The big man didn't want to cause any more trouble either, so he left on his own.

"Who else?" Yun Bai's voice was not loud, but it made the noisy plaza instantly quiet.

No one dared to come forward again.

These prisoners had been worn down in the Black Prison for many years and knew best when to quit while they were ahead.

Yun Bai walked to a stone table in the corner of the plaza and sat down, taking out one of the Medicinal Pills issued by the government.

The Medicinal Pill was grayish-black and emitted a faint herbal scent. Just as he was about to toss it into his mouth, he saw a tall, thin man lean over, holding a piece of dry, hard black bread in his hand. "Brother, want to trade the Medicinal Pill for bread? This stuff is filling."

"No trade." Yun Bai refused directly and stuffed the Medicinal Pill into his mouth.

Recalling the big man's reaction, this Medicinal Pill shouldn't be any poison.

The Medicinal Pill melted upon entering his mouth, and a faint, warm current slid down his throat. The True Qi in his Dantian seemed to become a bit more active, and the old wounds on his body also faintly itched—the healing effect was actually better than he had imagined!

Yun Bai's eyes lit up.

The tall, thin man was unwilling to give up. "Three Medicinal Pills are too few; you won't last a few days like this. Boss Zhao and his men will definitely come to cause trouble, and by then..."

Yun Bai sneered. To deal with this kind of persistent pest, he had to use intimidation. He held up three fingers and said, "I'll count to three. Three, two—"

"Ah, alright, alright, I'm going, I'm going, I won't bother you." The tall, thin man said dejectedly.