Chinese animation: Starting with Bad Guys

Qin Chuan's instructions were clear and unambiguous:

"Pay special attention to unfamiliar faces that look weathered, bear traces of the Baiyue people, or have a military air. Once you find any trace of Li Kai, invite him to Zilan Pavilion."

"Yes! Zi Nu, arrange it immediately!"

Zi Nu agreed without hesitation.

Protecting and finding Li Kai is a crucial step in fulfilling the promise of reuniting Nongyu's family, and also an important action to consolidate Qin Chuan's absolute authority in Zilanxuan.

She had to be absolutely certain.

Qin Chuan responded softly, his gaze returning to the zither table, as if the order he had just given was not a cold-blooded command concerning several lives, but merely a trivial matter.

He picked up his teacup and spoke to Nongyu, whose expression was still agitated and who was looking at him with tears in her eyes, his tone softening slightly:

“Miss Nongyu, await good news. Your mother will soon return safely. The whereabouts of your father are also known.”

"Thank you... thank you, young marshal!"

Nongyu's voice choked with emotion as she bowed gracefully once more.

Qin Chuan's strength, ruthlessness, and the promises and control he was displaying at this moment intertwined in her heart, creating incredibly complex emotions.

The fear had not completely dissipated, but the immense hope and gratitude to save her parents from their suffering had burned like a raging fire, overwhelming all her unease.

She knew with absolute clarity that the man before her was a ruthless controller, a player who could turn the world upside down with a flick of his wrist, but also the only rope she could grasp that led to the light.

Zi Nu looked at Nong Yu, then at Qin Chuan who was calmly sipping tea, and felt a mix of emotions.

This man controlled Zilan Pavilion with absolute force, his methods were ruthless and decisive, his plans were far-reaching and unpredictable, and he had a deep understanding of people's hearts.

He can be ruthless and treat human life as worthless, yet he is willing to take risks for his promises.

Under his command, danger and opportunity coexist, and fear and hope intertwine.

Without further hesitation, she quickly stood up and bowed to Qin Chuan again: "If the young marshal has no other instructions, Zi Nu will now arrange manpower to monitor Li Kai's whereabouts."

The posture is one of complete surrender and the executor's competence.

"Go ahead." Qin Chuan nodded slightly.

Zi Nu silently withdrew, leaving only Qin Chuan, Nong Yu, and the solemnly standing Bai Feng in the private room.

Before the music even began, the air was thick with the tension of an approaching storm and a strange tranquility under the control of absolute power.

Mo Ya has transformed into a vengeful vulture, carrying deadly intent and evidence to frame Liu Yi, and is pouncing on his residence.

Zi Nu's intelligence network, like an invisible spider web, quietly unfolded, waiting for the weathered avenger Li Kai to walk right into its trap.

Qin Chuan remained seated in the main seat, sipping his tea, as if the fate of the entire city of Xinzheng was at his fingertips.

The night outside the window grew even deeper, and a bloody storm, orchestrated by him, was quietly sweeping towards General Ji Wuye's seemingly impregnable night.

Chapter 23 Flame Spirit Princess in the Water Prison

Before the turmoil at Zilan Pavilion had subsided, Qin Chuan and Bai Feng had already blended into the nightscape of Xinzheng.

"Where is Tianze being held?" Qin Chuan's voice was chillingly cold in the night wind.

Bai Feng followed closely behind, her figure as light as a feather, her tone filled with undisguised awe:

"My lord, the whereabouts of Baiyue Crown Prince Tianze are extremely secret. They are kept under the control of Xueyi Hou Bai Yifei and are only responsible to Ji Wuye. Even Mo Ya, one of the Hundred Birds, only knows about Yan Lingji's prison and Tianze's cell. No one outside the core knows anything about them."

Qin Chuan continued walking, his gaze fixed on the shadows deep within the city walls: "Then let's go to Yan Lingji's place."

Bai Feng dared not say more and immediately led him away from the bustling streets, taking a detour through quiet alleys, eventually arriving at the depths of a seemingly abandoned noble villa in the west of the city.

This place was heavily guarded and filled with hidden sentries, but in the eyes of Bai Feng, who was once a top assassin of the Hundred Birds, these arrangements were useless.

He precisely avoided all the visible and hidden sentry posts, leading Qin Chuan like two ghosts as they sneaked into the underground entrance.

The entrance was a heavy, concealed iron door, which was slightly ajar at the moment, allowing a warm, ambiguous light to shine through, mixed with lewd banter.

"My little beauty! I went to great lengths to get the General to agree, so tonight I'll be the first to try you out! Everyone says that the Baiyue demonesses are fiery and untamable, especially you, Yan Lingji, even the General is wary of you... Today I'll see just how fierce your fire can burn in the Xuanbing Water Prison!"

The aged voice was filled with greed and lust, carrying the excitement of impending success, yet also a hint of nervousness—clearly, this was his first time.

Qin Chuan's eyes suddenly turned icy cold.

Bai Feng explained in a low voice:

"She's an old parasite of the Korean royal family, using her status to curry favor with Ji Wuye, and she just got 'permission'. The guards are all his private soldiers. Yan Lingji's fire charm technique is extremely dangerous. Ji Wuye imprisoned her here not only to extract information, but also to wear down her claws and teeth, and then... to enjoy her."

The implication was that Ji Wuye himself had not dared to truly harm her, regarding her only as a forbidden prey to be devoured.

Qin Chuan didn't say a word and stepped into the passage behind the hidden door.

At the end of the passage, outside a brightly lit stone room, several guards were peeking through the crack in the door, their faces bearing lewd and nervous smiles.

The old aristocrat's clamor still echoed in the room, as if he were bolstering his courage.

"Who goes there?!" A guard turned around alertly.

He was met with an instantaneous death.

Qin Chuan didn't raise his hand, but an invisible force, like the sharpest knife, swept past in an instant!

Several short, muffled groans and the sound of flesh tearing rang out almost simultaneously.

The guards at the entrance, along with the old nobleman inside the stone chamber who was making unwanted advances towards the figure in the water dungeon, all froze in their tracks.

Tiny bloody holes exploded between their eyebrows or in their throats, and their eyes held a mixture of shock, lust, or bewilderment; their life force had been extinguished in an instant.

"Bang bang bang!"

Several corpses fell like broken puppets, without the slightest struggle.

The killings were faster than the limits of vision, and quieter than a ghost committing the crime.

Bai Feng stood guard at the entrance of the passage, his back to everything. He felt the terrifying killing intent that erupted and then subsided behind him. A chill ran down his spine, and he whispered:

"Sir, I'll keep watch outside."

Qin Chuan didn't look at the corpse on the ground, as if he were merely sweeping away a few specks of dust. He pushed open the heavy stone door of the stone chamber, which was engraved with runes.

The area inside the stone gate is not directly a water dungeon, but rather arranged like a "viewing hall":

A soft animal skin rug, a luxurious low table set with fine wine and fruit.

In the center of the stone chamber stands a transparent cage carved entirely from millennia-old ice crystal—the water prison!

The crystal wall is crystal clear and only visible from one direction: you can see clearly from the outside, but from the inside you can only see a blurry and distorted light and shadow, as if you were looking through a thick fog.

Inside the crystal cage, the water shimmered with a deep blue light.

Yan Lingji floated in the water, her bare feet as white as snow, her black hair spreading out like seaweed in the water, a few strands of wet, dark cloth barely wrapped around her chest, abdomen and waist, outlining a breathtaking curve, large areas of her skin gleaming with an alluring yet fragile luster under the dim light.

Her hands and feet were unshackled, but the water dungeon itself was the most solid cage.

Her eyes were closed, her eyelashes trembling in the water, like a sleeping mermaid.

But the slightly furrowed brows, the tightly pursed lips, and the taut toes underwater all speak of the torment of being awake and the suppressed anger.

She may appear as fragile as a dying flame, but her stubbornness and fiery temper, which could erupt at any moment, are like a dormant volcano, brewing a silent thunderclap behind a crystal wall.

Outside the crystal wall, Qin Chuan's figure blended into the darkness like a reef.

His gaze pierced through the one-way transparent crystal and landed on the nearly naked body in the water prison.

It was a purely cold scrutiny, like looking at a piece of porcelain stripped of its dignity, assessing its value, examining its threats, without the slightest hint of intimacy.

He saw stunning beauty, but even more so, he saw the humiliation solidified beneath that beauty, the suppressed flames, and the sharp edge ready to devour at any moment.

Qin Chuan remained motionless, standing with his hands behind his back, his fingertips lightly stroking beneath his sleeves.

At this moment, Yan Lingji in the water prison seemed to sense the slight disturbance of the water flow, or perhaps it was her beast-like instinct, and she suddenly opened her tightly closed eyes!

Those were breathtaking eyes!

A fiery, inextinguishable flame seemed to burn deep within his pupils, crimson as fire and as unfathomable as an abyss. The confusion of being jolted awake from a light sleep was instantly replaced by a sharp, vigilant alertness.

Her sharp gaze swept across the crystal wall.

Although only blurry, distorted light and shadow could be seen, the body suddenly tensed up in the water like a fully drawn bow, the arms instinctively protecting the chest, the red lips slightly parted, a string of bubbles overflowing, the silent mouth shape clearly a question:

Qin Chuan saw the flame in her eyes, and he also saw the deep-seated vigilance and the resolute determination to destroy everything.

He waited no longer. Long, slender fingers emerged from his sleeve, his index finger pointing at the hard crystal prison wall, and he flicked it seemingly casually.

A crisp sound, so light it seemed to pierce the soul!

A finger gust of wind, condensed to its extreme and invisible to the naked eye, struck the crystal wall instantly with a sharp whistling sound that tore through space!

The crystal prison, which was said to be as strong as steel and unbreakable for a thousand years, instantly exploded with spiderweb-like cracks centered on the point of impact, spreading wildly, under this casual touch!

The deep blue light of the water refracted and shattered in the crack, making a piercing "crackling" sound!

The prison walls were not completely broken, but they were on the verge of collapse!

The enormous tremors and cracking sounds, along with the rush of air, instantly churned the entire water prison!

Yan Lingji's pupils constricted in shock at the sudden change!

The force of the water made her tumble and roll in the water, her long hair dancing wildly.

She steadied herself, her crimson eyes fixed on the crystal wall covered with hideous cracks. Shock, ecstasy, and even deeper vigilance instantly filled her heart!

Who possesses such power to shake a thousand-year-old crystal with a single finger?!

The next moment, a long, slender hand with distinct knuckles, carrying an irresistible force, reached into the largest crack!

Ignoring the resistance of the water flow, he precisely grabbed her arm!

A gentle, powerful force came, not a rough pull, but a steady pull, which suddenly dragged her out of the cold water prison, that long-imprisoned, dark blue hell!

"Crack-!"

Water splashed everywhere like shattered blue glass.

Yan Lingji was soaked to the bone, and with water droplets dripping from her, she fell heavily onto the dry ground, freeing herself from the bone-chilling cold.

The long-awaited air rushed into her lungs, carrying the cold, musty smell of the dungeon, yet she greedily inhaled it deeply.

She coughed violently, spitting out the cold water she had inhaled. Her wet hair clung to her forehead and cheeks, adding to her vulnerability and wildness.

She knelt on one knee, supporting herself with one hand, breathing heavily. Her skin, exposed to the air, sent shivers down her spine.