Chapter 31 (1/2)
At night, Qin Mo really took Shi Qing for a walk around the tribe two full times.
However, at that moment Shi Qing was still a little furball. All he could do was stretch out and yawn, the moonlight casting its pale glow on his fur. He actually wanted to let it shine down on his belly, but considering that lying on his back will expose a few tiny secrets…Thus, he gathered his moral integrity and laid on his belly obediently.
With such a small body, he was naturally unable to guide the beastmen to prepare new dishes.
However, Shi Qing also had another plan. He intended to leave some finished delicacies around in this world and open up the sense of taste of the beastmen for development. Then they would realize that ‘there is such delicious food in the world, this dry bread these pickles are truly sub par’. They could learn the truth.
In fact, this was enough. After all, if they could make bread and pickles, they should not be ignorant about cooking. The most likely issue was that they were so busy fighting one another all day long and competing for resources that they did not have the time to develop their food very much. The foods they currently made lasted well in storage and were easy to carry, so it made sense that they would be widely promoted.
As time passed the beastmen grew accustomed to those foods. They were reduced to nothing more than a way to ensure that their stomachs were full. Shi Qing believed that as long as they had a little inspiration, smart sub-beasts would certainly be able to open up a new world.
However, this meant that their walk was not very useful.
At least it served to further wash Yalike’s reputation white, so it was not in vain.
He spent the whole day dealing with the tribe’s business. When, with great difficulty, he could finally rest, he still did not neglect to take a walk beneath the moon with his lover…
Their chief was indeed a good beastman! Yier was going to be so happy now!
Shi Qing merely wanted to chuckle.
After they had gone for a walk and then returned, Shi Qing had successfully fallen asleep. It was strange to say that he had not been so greedy in the past, but these days he was just lying around like a pig. He only ate and slept, then slept and ate—it was like he could not exercise any control over himself.
He did not even realize that at the end of the walk, Qin Mo did not head back to the dirt hut, but instead entered the prison.
Once he walked into the prison, the damp, gloomy and cold atmosphere assaulted his senses. Furthermore, it was accompanied by the heavy stench of blood. Once Qin Mo walked down further, he could slowly begin to hear the sounds of whipping, followed by the utterances of many insults, as well as a feeling of sorrow so powerful he could almost taste it.
He turned a corner and was immediately greeted by quite the scene.
The area was a simple and crude interrogation room. It was gloomy, with only a single white crystal light shining down, giving everything a sinister and frightening appearance. In the middle, a man with ragged clothing was laid out on the torture rack and it seemed that he was already on his last breath. His robust body was filled with lash marks and brand marks.
When the man saw who had entered, he looked up at him furiously, “Yalike! You sure have guts to think of killing me! If I die, you…”
He had not even finished spouting out those provocative words before the one torturing him had struck him across the face with the whip.
Qin Mo reached out, gestured to stop, before slowly making his way down. His neat and tidy clothes, tall and straight figure, clear and handsome complexion, graceful and unhurried pace; everything was inharmonious with this filthy place. Even so, he walked in calmly and seemed to fill the room with an even more powerfully dark feeling.
Qin Mo looked at Barui and asked softly, “Does Carter value you?”
Barui looked at Qin Mo, the malicious look in his eyes almost enough to pierce through the man’s body.
It did not seem like Barui wanted to answer, so Qin Mo smiled and went on to say, “Do you think I left you your life in order to obtain intelligence? In fact, there’s no need. The things you wanted to do, what I need to do, I have long been clear on.”
Barui snorted when he heard—he was not convinced.
Qin Mo patiently continued to explain, “Aimiya used to confuse me, so that I would be at odds with the people of my tribe, so that you could take advantage of the disarray. That would allow you to mount a sneak attack to seize our resources and then occupy the tribe.”
Barui’s face subtly slackened, but he soon realized Aimiya must have revealed something and in his mind he could not guess what to say.
It was Qin Mo’s subsequent words that genuinely alarmed him down to the bottom of his heart.
“You infiltrated the Yassin Tribe for two purposes…”
The chief listed off each detail of their plan, regardless of importance, word for word. Barui’s firm self-confidence began to collapse.
Why…why does Yalike know everything! Since he knows it all, why does he interrogate me day and night?
Qin Mo smiled, then kindly helped cleared up his confusion, “I merely wanted to see what was more important in Carter’s heart when all was said and done. Would it be wealth, or would it be you.”
There was a small change in Barui’s complexion. Some indistinct thoughts began to form in his mind, but he could not be certain.
Qin Mo’s next words were just like a boulder smashing into his heart.
“Three thousand crystals in exchange for your life, yet Carter tore up the ransom note.”
Barui’s calm expression finally showed a small crack.
Qin Mo was calm and unruffled in the midst of chaos and looked at Barui as he began to be filled with doubts and grew confused. Qin Mo graciously helped him affirm the truth, “Barui, Carter has abandoned you. Your chief, your tribe, they don’t want you.”
As each word dropped heavily in his heart, Barui grew more panicky and he began to refute, “You’re lying to me, impossible, no, these are all your crafty plots and machinations!”
“No need for that. Barui, as you know, I know everything. As far as I’m concerned, you have no value to me and I could kill you right away.”
“I let you live,” Qin Mo taunted with a cruel smile playing at the corners of his mouth, “Just because I want to have a look at an abandoned dog who has lost his family and home.”
Barui looked at Qin Mo with horror. He wanted to tell himself that this could not be true—it was impossible. However, the man before him stared at him with those icy-cold black eyes, completely merciless, his sneering look as sharp as a blade. It was as if he could cut open his flesh and gouge it out, and his heart began to beat violently within his chest.
He had been tortured day and night, and he was physically and mentally exhausted. On top of that, it was like he had been plunged into a bucket of freezing cold water. He felt an unprecedented despair invade his body, making him feel chilled. The tribe he loyally defended, the tribe he had loved and respected, that tribe had abandoned him.
All for a mere 3000 crystals.
In the chief’s heart, his value was actually no match for 3000 crystals…
His conviction crumbled. Loneliness and despair overtook him, causing him to curl his tall body up as much as he was able.
Once Qin Mo saw that, he had already completely lost interest. He restrained the mood in his eyes, then turned and left the prison.
A quarter of an hour later, Xing Guan[1], the one in charge of punishment within the prison, came to report.
At that time, Qin Mo was examining various markings on a map. He saw him come in and lifted his head towards him, “Speak.”
Xing Guan found that Yalike’s temperament nowadays was forbidding. He did not dare to flatter him carelessly, but instead quickly bowed his head and relayed the news he brought, “After you left Barui fell apart. According to your instructions, I employed several methods and he revealed everything…Carter has hidden a total of five people within our tribe. They are… “
After Qin Mo listened to everything, he proceeded to ask, “Their contact method?”