I Can See Your Combat Power-Chapter 1662 - 101: Cao Lie

Ascending the stone stairs along the inner wall, it took only a few steps to reach the second floor of the tower.

The layout of the chambers was the same as before, with prisoners chained and suspended in midair, but what was different was the expression on these prisoners’ faces.

Compared to the numbness on the first floor, these prisoners’ eyes burst with a strong desire to live upon seeing Shi Sanke and the others.

"Clang, clang!"

The twisting motion caused the chains to emit a metallic clashing sound. The prisoners suspended in midair desperately leaned forward, pleading in low voices to the newcomers: "Save me, save me! Once I get out, I will definitely repay you, save..."

Before the pleas could dissipate, a scarlet finger force pierced through the forehead of the pleader, who instantly breathed his last.

"What is the meaning of this, Chairman Shi?"

The question that came from their throats carried anger, and several people glared furiously at Shi Sanke.

"Struggling to rescue our comrades is already beyond our power, let alone wasting energy on others. If he screams, our mission will be doomed."

Shi Sanke replied in a cold voice: "We’ve come this far, and we can’t afford any risk."

To be honest, from the moment he stepped onto the second floor of the tower, he had already begun to regret this prison break.

Those imprisoned in the tower were practitioners, but the dozens of iron chains piercing through their bodies had already destroyed important organs such as meridians, the Sea of Qi, and the God’s Residence. Even if they were rescued, they would be no different from invalids.

If this was the case, how could he withstand the Dutian Heavenly King’s pursuit to kill him? By relying on his reputation?

As Shi Sanke was inwardly complaining, a bright light flickered on the second floor of the tower, dispelling the darkness, followed by the sound of "tap tap" footsteps.

Neither hurried nor slow, the steps increasingly weighed on their hearts with each descent, scattering the gathered Spiritual Energy as well as their courage to resist.

From afar to near, the sound of footsteps on the stone steps drew ever closer, accompanied by a drip-drop sound.

"Not sending out the message and letting outsiders criticize the Great Commander to their heart’s content, was it all just to rescue a few cats not worth showing in public?"

With these slow words of complaint, Shi Sanke saw who was speaking.

A mandarin-clad man in luxurious purple garments, like a king with his hands behind his back, ascended to the second floor. The hawk-like gaze in his eyes, with a mere sweep, made the others tremble.

Luyang Prison Warden, the disgrace of the Beast Taming Sect—Cao Lie.

Born into nobility yet with a heavy malicious air, he took pleasure in torturing spiritual beasts from a young age and was particularly curious about witchcraft that manipulated souls, his talent so exceptional it was both loved and hated.

At the age of thirty, when he broke through to the Profound realm, he began researching how to seal human souls into beast bodies through witchcraft.

Fifteen years later, when his deeds were exposed, already over a thousand disciples had died at his hands. After consultation among the elders of the Beast Taming Sect, Cao Lie was banished to a hopeless situation. Since then, there had been no news of him in the human world.

All the sacred places thought Cao Lie had died in the Valley of Ten Thousand Tribulations, but no one knew that after Cao Jinyu became the Great Commander, he had brought Cao Lie back, and also handed over Luyang City to him.

In this Purgatory filled solely with dead convicts and criminals, Cao Lie seemed to have found his true self. Of all the prisoners that passed through his hands, not one lived to tell the tale. Their only wish was to die with dignity.

With such a ferocious god before them, the mere spill of his killing intent was enough to frighten the others into immobility.

What followed was even more despairing.

Following close behind the ferocious god was a man with deep-set eyes and a prominent nose, carrying the unconscious Lu Zhongyan, whose dripping blood left a trail behind.

"This matter has been poorly considered by Xiang Dongyou. It seems now that Unparalleled City will definitely not stand up for those disciples who have been arrested."

The man holding Lu Zhongyan expressed a slight regret, "In that case, these people have no real value anymore, please decide their fate as you see fit, Warden."

"I heard that every day the Unparalleled Academy trains over a hundred freelance cultivators from the Fierce Realm, all of which are such excellent nourishment."

Cao Lie revealed a bloodthirsty and excited smile, turning to Xiang Dongyou, "They are all rootless and supportless freelance cultivators, just find any excuse to arrest and imprison them. Since when does the patrol king need to explain his actions to outsiders?"

"The Warden is absolutely right,"

Xiang Dongyou did not object, but went along with what Cao Lie said, "If Luyang throws out the bait and Unparalleled Academy doesn’t bite, then the patrol king will decisively make his move. But what if the Void Grandmaster holds us accountable later on?"

"What is there to fear from a grandmaster who is doomed to lose his way?"

Cao Lie carelessly waved his hand, "If that young man comes asking questions later, just leave it to this warden."

"With the Warden’s word, Dongyou feels much assured."

The man with deep-set eyes casually threw Lu Zhongyan to the ground, then cupped his hands and said, "Your subordinate will get on it immediately."

The conversation between the two men did not intend to exclude the several members of the student association, as if the several ready freelance cultivators from the Fierce Realm were nothing but useless decorations.

After finishing the conversation, Xiang Dongyou left. Cao Lie stretched out his hand and pointed at a prisoner in the stone cell whose forehead was pierced by a pointed energy blast, and emotionlessly asked the others, "Who killed this one?"

The gazes of several people simultaneously glanced towards Shi Sanke, though it was just for a moment, Cao Lie caught it in his eyes.

Shi Sanke, inwardly cursing, forced himself to remain calm and loudly chanted, "He is only one man, let’s split up and escape, I will cover for you all!"

"President!"

The people hadn’t expected that in such a dire moment, Shi Sanke would actually step forward. Moved, the terrifying figure before them suddenly seemed less fearsome.

Spiritual Power surged within their fists, and spurred on by aroused passion, they shook off their fear and angrily shouted at Cao Lie, "He’s only one man, and the city defense forces of Luyang City are in the distance. Let’s shoulder to shoulder take him down and rescue Brother Lu!"

"Hahaha, do you really think you can kill me?"

Cao Lie held his abdomen and laughed wildly, with one hand beckoning to the others, "This time’s playthings are so very interesting. I hope you can last a bit longer, just don’t disappoint me."

...

Dragon Continent Calendar, the end of November, Year 1792

The Dutian Heavenly King’s patrol made public the details of the war incited by the Yancang Unparalleled student association to various Wind Media Organizations across the Longzhou.

This completely reversed the originally one-sided public opinion, and the testimonies of President Shi Sanke and his fellows once more put Unparalleled Academy in the spotlight.

"Establishing the Yancang Student Association and inciting war against the local tribes were all instigated by the Unparalleled Academy."

"It truly wasn’t our intention, the dean placed restrictions on our souls—if we disobey orders, it can cause unbearable pain," they said.

The Dutian Heavenly King’s patrol made no judgment on the truth of these messages; they merely spread Shi Sanke and others’ testimonies across Longzhou through the Wind Media channels.

The testimonies of Shi Sanke and the others caused many who originally intended to apply to Unparalleled Academy to hesitate, and a large number of graduates from the academy used their networks to voice anger, denouncing the betrayal of Shi Sanke and the others.

Inside the Unparalleled Academy, fierce debates broke out due to these widespread rumors.

Clearly, Du Ting believed that it was the Dutian Heavenly King’s patrol smearing the academy through the mouths of Shi Sanke and the others, with the real mastermind behind it all being the Dutian Heavenly King himself!