The tall, thin man was jolted awake by a splash of water.

He was disoriented for a moment before the reality of his situation set in: he had been defeated and captured.

The tall, thin man was visibly nervous, but his expression quickly hardened into one of defiance.

"Do you have any idea what you're doing? You lowlife?" the tall, thin man snarled.

This just made Fang Zhen laugh.

"What should I even say to you? Are you a bit slow?"

"Can't you tell what kind of situation you're in?"

"If you're smart, you won't provoke the person who holds your life in their hands when you're at a disadvantage."

Fang Zhen said.

"Heh, you really think one lucky break means you can lord it over a Crystal Bone Master forever?" the tall, thin man sneered.

"Let me tell you, you might get away with this for a little while on the Isle of Rest. But I can see you're not a Crystal Bone Master. None of the people who've come here will allow a lowlife like you to get your hands on the secrets left behind by Anlon Lie Feng. No matter which faction it is, they won't let you come to a good end."

"If you have any sense, you'll let me go. In light of your skills, I might even give you a chance to serve my master. That way, you might just be able to keep your life."

Fang Zhen looked at the sallow-faced, tall, thin man.

He wasn't provoked, nor did he think the sallow-faced man was a true idiot.

On the contrary, he figured the man was deliberately acting high and mighty simply to bargain and seize a position of advantage.

'He's still worried about saving his own skin.'

Fang Zhen didn't argue with the tall, thin man. Instead, he simply took out the Silver Moon Treasure Box.

He opened the Silver Moon Treasure Box, and a moment later, a jar of ointment appeared in his hand.

The ointment was in an apple-sized glass jar. It was a pale green color, and inside the jar was a small glass rod.

Fang Zhen opened the jar, used the glass rod to scoop out a bit of the green ointment, and took it out.

The faint smell of alcohol immediately filled the air.

"What is that?"

"What are you planning to do?"

The tall, thin man's face went pale as he stared at the jar of ointment in terror.

"So you are afraid to die." Fang Zhen chuckled. "I'm just going to let you speak your mind for a change."

As he spoke, he began to smear the green ointment onto the tall, thin man.

He was applying the Truth-Inducing Agent he had gotten from Poisonous Jorent. 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

The ointment's effect was similar to a truth serum.

When applied to an untrained person, the Truth-Inducing Agent would put them in a state where they would answer any question asked, completely unable to lie.

This agent was even more potent than a typical truth serum. While inducing truthfulness, it also allowed the subject to maintain their linguistic logic in an unconscious state, making it possible to extract more detailed information.

Fang Zhen applied the Truth-Inducing Agent to the man's temples and below his nostrils.

The tall, thin man's face was filled with terror, but his struggles were futile.

After about two or three minutes, the man's eyes lost their focus. His pupils seemed to dilate, and he lost all his vigor, entering a state of deep hypnosis or drunken stupor.

"What's your name?" Fang Zhen asked.

"Avin Ice Wolf."

"Heh, you're not much to look at, but your name sounds nice enough." Fang Zhen smiled and continued, "Which faction are you from? Who is your master? What is his status? Why did you come to the Land of Rest?"

The tall, thin man was no longer conscious of his own words; he answered whatever he was asked.

"I am from the Lei Ming family, one of the Lansit Kingdom's thirteen families. My master is Aiden Leimeng, the current heir of the Lei Ming family. I came to the Land of Rest to find the treasure of the legendary king, Anlon Lie Feng."

"Oh? And what did Anlon Lie Feng leave behind?" Fang Zhen asked.

"I don't know. That's not something a person of my status would know," Avin replied.

Fang Zhen observed him. Avin was still under the agent's effect; he wasn't lying.

"Why did you ambush me here?" he asked.

"I was preparing to go up the mountain to observe the situation and use a strange artifact to transmit intel to my master. But then I saw you coming down the mountain. I didn't know who you were, so I wanted to capture and interrogate you," Avin answered.

"Where is your master?" Fang Zhen pressed.

"By the lake."

"What is he planning to do?"

"He plans to corner and capture Avera Feiniao."

"Hm?" Hearing this, Fang Zhen asked, "Who is Avera Feiniao?"

"She's from one of the thirteen families. Her family is in decline, but she possesses a great deal of information that others don't," Avin replied.

Fang Zhen asked a few more questions, and Avin was unable to hide anything he knew, answering everything truthfully.

Through these answers, a picture of the various factions on the Isle of Rest and their respective situations gradually formed in Fang Zhen's mind.

There seemed to be five factions on the island.

The once independent Thirteen People's Council had now become the so-called thirteen families.

Of those thirteen families, four had come to the Isle of Rest: the Lei Ming, Fei Niao, Sea Tide, and Night Shadow families.

These four families were all from the Lansit Kingdom, but each had its own agenda. They all wanted to obtain the astonishing secret left by Anlon Lie Feng and were at odds with one another.

In addition to the thirteen families of the Lansit Kingdom, a newly risen northern tribal coalition was also covetously watching, and had dispatched people who had infiltrated the Isle of Rest.

It was unknown who from the northern tribes was on the island, only that it was an assassin from an organization called the Black Garden Assassination Organization.

Fang Zhen now understood the general situation and had an impression of each faction's strength.

The Lei Ming and Sea Tide families were the strongest; each had brought eight or nine Crystal Bone Masters to the island. The Night Shadow family was next in strength.

The Fei Niao Family was the weakest, with only Avera Feiniao on the island.