With virtue

The torture is in progress.

However, it was less of an interrogation and more of a one-sided questioning. The Taoist priest answered every question without any resistance. After all, he was knowledgeable and knew what the consequences would be if he refused to answer.

Everyone was happy with this arrangement, as it avoided bloodshed. You see, unless someone is a psychopath, even a normal person would experience psychological pressure doing these things. Often, even cruel officials would need to go to places like high-ranking monks or Taoist priests for psychological counseling in order to continue their work.

Of course, those notorious cruel officials must have had some personal quirks, so this is naturally incomparable.

But as he spoke, Zhao Yunshu frowned and asked, "The Prefect of Nanke and Lord Baoyu, they shouldn't be short of money, so why are they willing to risk their lives for King Liang?"

The Taoist priest replied, "Although the Prefect of Nanke is powerful and has many people offering incense and sacrifices to him, he ultimately has no official status in the previous dynasty and can be considered a licentious deity. However, because of this matter, he was granted an official title by the King of Liang and became a proper ghost prefect, becoming a powerful ally of the King of Liang. As for the Rainstorm Lord, she received a generous gift from the King of Liang. Her Sanyakou in Dengzhou is missing a few important things to create a grotto-heaven, and the King of Liang granted her that. As for us, the Blackhead of Lushan, the Li Witch, and the Gu Po, we all took money and promises from the King of Liang, which is why we were willing to go north to risk our lives."

They were talking about very normal things.

The King of Liang must have offered a huge amount of benefits to get everyone to work for him, which also shows that he was determined to take Dingzhou City.

With so many benefits promised, they will surely have to take them all back from Dingzhou City in the end.

Dingzhou may not be paradise on earth, but it's definitely much better than war-torn areas...

The Taoist priest, at this point, suddenly ran out of breath and coughed violently for a while, then secretly glanced at the person in front of him.

When he realized that neither Young Master Wang nor Zhao Yunshu reacted at all, he took a few breaths to catch his breath, and then immediately said, "That's all I know. In the end, I'm just a messenger, doing what I'm told, following orders from above. As for those military secrets, they can't possibly tell me. When the army will set off, when the operation will begin, which route the troops will take, which city to attack, who the inside agents are, and how to coordinate—that's definitely not something someone in my position could know."

"I have no intention of hiding anything from you two. I will speak my mind. All I know is... all I know is that by next month at the latest, the Yin energy will reach its peak. Moreover, King Liang is determined not to withdraw his troops until Dingzhou is captured."

He finished speaking in one breath, as if he were exhausted, as if he had used up the last bit of his strength. He leaned against the wall decisively, his eyes lifeless, and it was hard to tell whether he was really doing it or faking it.

Young Master Wang's eyes were low as he pondered. When he heard this earlier, his hands, which had been constantly moving, stopped.

When this man first started chatting with Zhao Yunshu, he was playing with a folding fan. Before, he was playing with chopsticks while eating. But now, this situation has cured his ADHD. He had already unconsciously put away the folding fan and was holding it tightly in his hand. The body that a martial artist has trained for a long time was now putting to use. The fan ribs were making a slight creaking sound, as if they were about to be crushed.

War is a disaster.

The world has suffered from war for far too long, and as a military man, Young Master Wang knows better what that situation is like. He has no pity for the soldiers and civilians of Dingzhou, but he must not let it affect him.

I have to go.

Thinking of this, he and Zhao Yunshu exchanged a glance, but neither of them spoke.

The refugees outside Dingzhou City, Taiping inside the city, various tests of curses, Lushan and the two great demons lying in ambush—everything is connected.

All that remained was a looming war, and a group of people caught in the middle, completely unaware of what was happening.

The Prefect of Nanke and the Rainstorm Lord, one is a ghost prefect supported by King Liang, and the other is a demon tycoon who received a generous gift from King Liang... It seems that the important matters have been asked enough.

Zhao Yunshu suppressed his anger, maintaining a calm expression. He stepped forward and asked him again, "You've talked a lot about the Prefect of Nanke. Now, let me ask you, do you know what grudge exists between the Prefect of Nanke and the old Taoist priest of Yuntai Temple? Why did they have to torture his three souls?"

Hearing this, the Taoist priest, who was clearly exhausted, immediately sat up and said, "I have indeed heard about the feud between the Prefect of Nanke and that old Taoist priest. It is said that it happened more than forty years ago. Although the Prefect of Nanke was also a ghost king at that time, he was not as powerful as he is now. In order to expand his power, he once led ghost soldiers to invade the city, intending to slaughter the entire county and turn it into a ghost realm, which would become his ghostly hill."

Hearing this, Zhao Yunshu felt a chill run down his spine.

At that time, the governor of Nanke was already able to openly command ghosts and monsters to destroy a city. Although it was not a large city, the county town still had several thousand or even tens of thousands of people... At that time, what a desperate scene must have been in that city?

Ghosts devoured people, demons slaughtered all, and wept until the emaciated and destitute were gone. The land was filled with heartbroken graves, and no one ever crossed the wilderness again.

However, at this moment, the captured Taoist priest continued, "It just so happened that the old Taoist priest was in the city at that time. I don't know exactly what happened, but the city was saved. Although there were dozens of dead and wounded, things have improved a lot. The governor of Nanke had half of his body cut off. If it weren't for his deep foundation and loyal followers, he would have been killed in this incident."

"Later, the governor of Nanke was forced to retreat and recuperated for decades, but his injuries were too severe. That half of his body never grew back, and his soul was damaged. Even now, he still suffers from the pain of that sword wound at all times. The pain is unbearable, and he feels like he is living a life worse than death. Therefore, he hates the swordsman to the core and vows to take revenge."

He paused to catch his breath, then continued haltingly, "But that... old Taoist priest's whereabouts were unpredictable. Later, he hid in the deep mountains, almost never revealing his presence. The Prefect of Nanke searched for him for many years but could never find him. This time, it was a coincidence. It was because he was helping the King of Liang plot against Dingzhou that he learned that the old Taoist priest was outside Dingzhou City. He was wary of the other party's swordsmanship and dared not take action himself. So he first sent his subordinate ghost general Zhou Heng with a hundred ghosts to test him. He also urged the Rainstorm Lord to cooperate. The Rainstorm Lord could not deal with him, so he sent Mei San Niang to go with him. Later, when they arrived at the mountain, before they could make a move, they heard that the old Taoist priest had died. The Prefect of Nanke was overjoyed and ordered his three souls to be captured, saying that he wanted to keep them by his side and torture them every day to avenge the sword wound from that year."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Yunshu nodded: "I understand the three souls. But what about the remains? It was said that the elders took them to refine a corpse puppet, so where are they now?"

The Taoist priest seemed to sense some kind of pressure and looked up at him.

This young Taoist priest, so young he looked no more than ten years old and so handsome, didn't have a ferocious expression, yet he still gave the young man a chilling feeling, making him reluctant to face him directly. So, he lowered his head and whispered, "The corpse... the corpse was taken away by several elders from Lushan. They said they were taking it to the Liang army's main camp. The elders said that the old Taoist's inner cultivation was extremely powerful, and with that as a foundation, he could definitely forge a superior corpse puppet. However... however, An He stole the seven souls. Without the seven souls, the corpse puppet will be greatly inferior. So the elders are also looking for An He, wanting him to hand over the seven souls, but An He refuses, which is why several groups have their own ulterior motives..."

After he finished speaking, he lowered his head, not daring to look at Zhao Yunshu.

The dungeon was eerily quiet; you could hear a pin drop.

"Okay, I understand. By the way, you should know where the Prefect of Nanke is, right?" the young Taoist priest said.

When Zhao Yunshu asked about the lair of the Governor of Nanke, the Taoist priest could no longer be so defiant. Now, his only wish was to suffer less, so he continued speaking haltingly.

"The Prefect of Nanke is a powerful figure among ghosts. Since he is secretly supported by the King of Liang, he naturally wants to find a place that is both close to Dingzhou and in harmony with the Yin Sha region as the camp for this operation. That place is on a barren hill about forty miles southwest of Dingzhou, about a hundred miles from Dingzhou city. There is a huge tree on that barren land, with an extremely thick trunk that ten people cannot encircle. The locals call it 'Grandpa Old Tree.' There is a ghost gate at the base of the tree, leading to the Yellow Springs. His ghost soldiers and Yin cavalry all enter and exit through it."

"In normal times, that place is just an ordinary wild hill. But the old tree is at least several hundred years old, and the villagers consider it a god, so they often offer incense and sacrifices to it. But in reality, nowadays, as soon as night falls, the old tree is filled with ghostly fire and eerie winds, and it has become a haunted house."

The Taoist priest spilled the beans like beans from a bamboo tube, leaving nothing out, and immediately revealed more: "I also heard that the governor of Nanke brought five hundred Yin cavalry, four deputy generals, and the ghost general Zhou Heng as the vanguard when he came to Dingzhou. Zhou Heng has already been executed, and the governor of Nanke suffered a great loss, but his main force is still there and he still has the ability to set up an array."

Zhao Yunshu listened carefully, but noticed a flaw in the argument, and asked again, "With the cultivation level of the Governor of Nanke, does he still need to borrow an old tree as his lair? Isn't he afraid that someone will cut off his gate to hell, leaving him with no way to retreat?"

Setting up one's lair in the Ghost Gate is naturally more comfortable than in the mortal world. However, if someone cuts off the Ghost Gate, even if he has a thousand troops, he can only be trapped inside the Ghost Gate and can never come out again. He can only find another way out.

Isn't that too risky?

The Taoist shook his head: "He dares to set up his camp there, so naturally he's not afraid. Not to mention the tight defenses and the array formations there, besides, this old tree has already reached its full potential and has already generated good fortune. Anyone who tries to cut it down will likely suffer retribution first." "Generating good fortune, yet he still dares to station himself there?" Zhao Yunshu asked in astonishment.

The Taoist priest immediately said, "This is the ability of the Governor of Nanke. His presence there does no harm to the old tree, and may even be beneficial. He himself can also nourish this old tree that already has a spirit, and will not be punished by heaven for it."

Upon hearing this, Young Master Wang snorted softly, "The Prefect of Nanke, rooted in the tree roots, truly lives up to the historical allusion."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Yunshu didn't say anything more and stood up: "If you have any questions, please continue to ask. I've asked you about everything I want to know."

After saying that, he stood up and went outside.

He wasn't idle outside either; instead, he found a place to sit in the courtyard at the entrance of the dungeon and began to read a book, naturally the one called "The True Method of Playing with Truth".

This book is actually somewhat similar to his "Po Hou Ji".

The fundamental principle is that the practitioner believes that everything in the world has a corresponding qi, which is called: there are myriad qi.

After death, a person becomes a ghost, which is also a kind of energy. This is why ghosts wear clothes. Burning clothes for the deceased allows them to put them on. For example, some people die still wearing only a single layer of clothing. After their family burns their cotton-padded clothes, they are dressed in thick clothes the next day.

It is because the energy of the clothes came into the ghost's body that the ghost also has clothes. This is called "the essence and energy combine to form all things".

Therefore, according to this book, one can gather the energy of people or other things, collect it, and then cast a spell at the appropriate time to create an empty shell using a magic similar to that of a Vajra, and then inject the previously collected essence into it. This allows one to "cut a paper horse," which is essentially condensing the essence of the corresponding thing into a real object.

Zhao Yunshu was engrossed in his book, extremely focused, but there was no sign of joy or happiness in learning; he was simply studying the techniques within. (Go to Bing and search for "Deqi" to see the latest chapter!)

Half a day later, Young Master Wang came up.

Only then did he turn his head to look at Young Master Wang and say, "Young Master Wang, are you finished? I'm about to embark on a long journey. Could you find me a horse and prepare some dry rations?"

Young Master Wang did not agree immediately, but said seriously, "Don't be impulsive. I know you are in a hurry, but things can't be done this way. We have to investigate the details of that stronghold and what arrangements it has made. Going there alone is suicide."

"I won't throw my life away," Zhao Yunshu said. "However... indeed, this matter still needs further consideration. Farewell, Young Master Wang. I have done what I promised you. Now it is your turn to fulfill what you promised me."

"I will give you Anhe's whereabouts, but you'll have to wait a few more days," Young Master Wang sighed.

Zhao Yunshu nodded, packed his bundle, and put away the books and other things: "I will come to you in a few days to find Anhe's whereabouts. If you can't provide the horses, I will go find him myself."

"Oh well, you can come find me when the time comes. I still have a few horses." Young Master Wang waved his hand, letting Zhao Yunshu leave.

After leaving the governor's mansion, Zhao Yunshu walked alone through the streets of Dingzhou City.

It was just nightfall, so there were no more vegetable vendors carrying their wares. However, there was no such thing as a curfew these days. The curfew was strict in the previous dynasty, but now no one really cared about it anymore.

This led to the emergence of some simple night markets, with more and more vendors and small shops choosing to operate at night, and nighttime commercial activities gradually flourishing.

He walked along the roadside, where many stalls had been set up, wafting the aroma of fried food and sweet soup, mixed with the stench of donkey and horse manure... giving him a strange feeling. But it was precisely this chaotic scene that made Zhao Yunshu feel a little better.

What a peaceful scene!

Zhao Yunshu walked for a short while, then stopped in front of a small stall. He ordered a bowl of sweet syrup, drank it on the spot, put two copper coins on the counter, smiled at the stall owner as a greeting, and then got up and left.

He returned to the secluded courtyard, closed the door, and sat down on the bed facing the window.

Moonlight filtered through the cracks, falling on the young Taoist priest. He lowered his head and began to meditate.

Ok.

Let me take a nap first.

Let's take a break, and then... let's find out more about the Prefect of Nanke.