Too many female prisoners, a special forces soldier transmigrates and marries wildly.

Yan Qing's expression was cold and stern as he shook his head: "He's stubborn. He used some tricks, only admitting to passing on messages, saying he was coerced to protect his family's lives. He claims to know nothing about Di Rong, Feng Kun, or the seal. But he has an old scar on the inside of his right arm, the shape of which... is seven or eight parts similar to the seal on this iron plate."

As Yan Qing spoke, he handed over a rough sketch.

Lin Feng took it and compared it with the "three dots of the pupil" mark on the iron plate.

The old scar on Liu Neng's arm, though blurred and distorted, was still faintly discernible as the same pattern! This was not ordinary coercion; it was a brand! A mark of some organization or power!

"Bring Liu Neng along," Lin Feng said in a deep voice.

Before long, Liu Neng was dragged in by two soldiers. He was about fifty years old, short and stout, with disheveled hair, a wound on his face, and one eye swollen shut, but his eyes were still gloomy, revealing a ruthless and desperate spirit.

"Liu Neng," Lin Feng picked up the branding iron and the tracing diagram, and slowly walked up to him.

"This mark, is it yours? Whom do you serve? Feng Kun? Or the Di Rong Black Wolf Tribe? Is 'Laoguagou at three-quarters of a minute's time' your secret code for rendezvous? How many of you are still in Ironwall City?"

Liu Neng raised his head, squinted at the metal sheet and diagram with his swollen eyes, his Adam's apple bobbing, and hissed, "What are you saying, sir? I don't understand. I was forced into this. I know nothing about any markings or codes..."

"Don't know?" Lin Feng threw the iron sheet and blueprints in front of him, squatted down, and his gaze swept across his face like a knife.

"Then tell me, why would an honest fur shop owner have a brand on his right arm that matches the token of the conspiracy? And how could you understand and speak the Di Rong language? Wang Ermazi allowed you to communicate with the Di Rong people, and Zhang the blacksmith allowed you to brand him to pass messages. The secret letter clearly says the character 'Feng'! Liu Neng, the people behind you can't save you. Tell the truth, and your family might still have a way out. If you keep being stubborn..."

Lin Feng's voice suddenly turned icy, "I have plenty of ways to make you wish you were dead!"

Liu Neng trembled, his facial muscles contorted, and his eyes flashed with intense struggle and fear. He lowered his head dejectedly, and after a long while, he managed to squeeze out a few words through clenched teeth: "I...I'll talk...I beg you, sir, spare my wife, children, and elderly parents..."

"explain."

"Yes...it's for General Feng." Liu Neng's voice was hoarse.

"I am of mixed Han and Di descent from the North. I was a wanderer in my early years and was taken in by General Feng, who placed me here. The brand I bear was given when I joined the group; it is... it is the mark of the 'Listening Wind Guard.' After General Feng defected to the Di and Rong tribes, he ordered us to infiltrate the border city, gather military intelligence, draw up city defense plans, and... seize the opportunity to create chaos in the city, or... or open the city gates..."

Listening Wind Guard! A spy organization cultivated by Feng Kun!

"How many Listening Wind Guards are still inside Ironwall City? How do we contact them? At three-quarters past midnight, who did Lao Gua Gou meet with?" Lin Feng asked repeatedly.

"Inside the city... there are three others, including myself. One is a broker at the Mule and Horse Market in the west of the city, surnamed Gou. Another is a waiter at the Tavern near the East Gate, named Hou San. We communicate mostly using secret marks or by passing messages through Laogua Ditch. At three-quarters past midnight, we will meet with the liaison sent by the Black Wolf Tribe to exchange intelligence and receive instructions. The next meeting will be... tomorrow night."

After Liu Neng finished speaking, he seemed to have all his strength drained away and collapsed to the ground.

"Tomorrow night..." Lin Feng's eyes flashed coldly. "Han Tao, immediately take men and secretly arrest the man surnamed Gou and Hou San. Interrogate them separately, verify their testimonies, and make sure they are all caught in one fell swoop! Remember, don't alert them!"

"Yes!" Han Tao accepted the order and hurried away.

"Leopard, Yan Qing, you two take reliable men to Laoguagou tonight and set up an ambush. You must be familiar with the terrain; it must be concealed and all entry and exit routes must be blocked. Tomorrow night at midnight, I want to capture Di Rong's contact alive!"

"Understood!" Lei Bao and Yan Qing accepted the order and left.

Inside the lobby, only Lin Feng, the limp Liu Neng, and two guards remained.

Lin Feng walked back to the desk and sat down. Looking at the trembling Liu Neng, he said coldly, "Since you have confessed, I will spare your life for now. If the operation goes smoothly tomorrow night and proves that what you said is true, I may consider giving your family a lighter sentence. But if there is even a single falsehood, or if the news leaks out..." He didn't finish his sentence, but the murderous intent in his eyes said it all.

"I dare not... I dare not..." Liu Neng kowtowed repeatedly.

"Take him away, lock him in solitary confinement, and keep him under strict guard."

After dealing with Liu Neng, it was nearly dawn. The wind and snow subsided slightly, and a faint light appeared in the east.

Lin Feng was wide awake, his mind replaying Liu Neng's confession and their plans for tomorrow night. The Listening Wind Guard, the Black Wolf Tribe's liaison, Laoguagou tomorrow night… this was a golden opportunity to turn the tables, cripple Feng Kun's intelligence network, and perhaps even capture a key figure in the Black Wolf Tribe.

But Xie Wanqing… was her risky warning last night a coincidence, or did she already know something? How was she able to recognize the strangeness of the metal plate being passed around? Is she related to this “Wind Listener”?

He got up, walked to the window, and looked towards the west courtyard. Xie Wanqing's room was quiet, with a hazy warm light shining through the window paper, as if she, too, had not slept all night.

"Someone come here," Lin Feng called out softly.

"exist."

"Go and invite Miss Xie over. Tell her I have something to ask you. Be polite."

"Yes."

Before long, Xie Wanqing arrived at the side hall with her personal guards.

"Sir," she said, curtsying.

"Please sit down, Miss Xie," Lin Feng gestured, and then had his personal guards serve tea.

"Thank you for alerting me last night, young lady. How did you discover that the servant's behavior was suspicious?"

Xie Wanqing sat down in the guest seat, warming her hands with a teacup, and said softly, "It was just a coincidence. I was feeling down last night, so I took a walk in the courtyard and noticed that person acting suspiciously, so I took notice. I will never forget the kindness of Iron Wall City in taking me in, so I naturally informed the general about this strange behavior."

She spoke of it casually, but the courage and alertness of following a suspicious person alone late at night, retrieving evidence, and then risking her life to knock on the guard's study at night is something that no ordinary woman could possess.

"Your courage is truly admirable, young lady," Lin Feng said, looking at her. "There is one thing I don't understand, and I would like to ask you about it. Have you ever seen or heard of a mark that resembles an eye, with three dots in the pupil?"

Xie Wanqing's hand, holding the teacup, paused almost imperceptibly. She raised her eyes to look at Lin Feng, her gaze clear yet containing a hint of inquiry: "Where did you see this mark, sir?"