Chapter 121: Chapter 121: Inside the Prison, Avoiding Confrontation_1
The suppression is so strong that it actually prevents me from mobilizing the spiritual power in my body. After being temporarily detained with a group of people, Wang Linchi also noticed the prison’s extraordinary nature.
This prison was not an ordinary one, but a powerful Soul Device designed to suppress Awakeners and prevent them from using their powers.
Otherwise, if an ordinary prison were used to hold Awakeners, any Black Iron Level Battle-type Awakener could easily break out and escape.
Besides being unable to mobilize spiritual power, even Soul Devices couldn’t be used.
As for powers like the power of fire, the Power of Mind, and so on, they naturally couldn’t be used either. After all, these special powers were essentially derivatives of spiritual power, formed through Soul Resemblance and Soul Kind. If the most fundamental power was unusable, let alone the others.
However, this thing seems to have some loopholes? Although Wang Linchi’s spiritual power was suppressed, he unexpectedly found he could use the spiritual power within his Nine Revolutions Golden Core.
In addition to that, the effects of his two Soul Seed Pages could also be used, which made him fall into deep thought. He really didn’t understand why this was happening.
Could it be because the Soul Kind, Soul Forging Method, and Soul Seed Pages on my body are unregistered?
Wang Linchi considered this possibility. The Soul Kinds and Soul Forging Methods of the Dajing Court were all obtained from Secret Realms, making them akin to certified items. Furthermore, the abilities of a Soul Resemblance required an awakening ritual, which was also a certification process.
However, Wang Linchi was different. His Soul Kind and Soul Forging Method were self-created and didn’t exist in this world’s records. His Soul Seed Pages were a variation he developed by modifying the memory pages of his own Soul Resemblance, and there was no record of them either.
Therefore, the Six Doors’ prison Soul Device couldn’t recognize them, leading to this loophole.
If this is really the case, then the Dajing Court seems like a giant infant.
Wang Linchi couldn’t help but think about it. If a problem arose in the Secret Realms, it would affect the entire Great View. Indeed, that was precisely the situation now.CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
"Time to eat."
An officer struck the door with an iron spoon and then began to distribute the food.
The food was, as expected, bland. Not only was there no oil or fat, but there wasn’t even any salt; it was completely unseasoned.
Furthermore, the portion size was meticulously calculated: just enough to keep one alive but not full.
This wasn’t about saving costs, but mainly to ensure the prisoners lacked the energy to cause trouble.
Wang Linchi didn’t give it much thought, finishing his portion in a few mouthfuls.
He had various foods in his Soul Seed Page·Storage Space, but he couldn’t openly feast on rich meals. He only occasionally supplemented his diet with a candy or a small piece of meat. Usually, like everyone else, he lay still, feigning a weakened appearance.
For the past few days, people had been continuously sent to the prison.
Every one of them was an innocent person, tricked into coming here to be sent to the Sheng Family as cultivation resources.
The more people there were, the safer Wang Linchi felt. All in all, there were now tens of thousands of people.
The original prison cells grew increasingly crowded. Even Wang Linchi’s small cell now housed five people, making it somewhat difficult for him to sneak food.
"When do you think this will end?" Ji Xiang, the middle-aged man in the bed next to Wang Linchi, began to sigh again.
He had a family, so being locked up here naturally made him worry about them. What if he couldn’t return?
"There must be something wrong with the Sheng Family; otherwise, they wouldn’t go to such lengths," another young man about Wang Linchi’s age, Zhang Xu, said gravely.
He had noticed some oddities on the way here, though they hadn’t been very clear at the time.
"And it should be soon," Zhang Xu continued, having been actively gathering information. "No one has been brought in for the past two days. From what I’ve gathered, nearly everyone in the Jing Room Domain has been brought here, except for those in the provinces wiped out by the Rebel Army."
Wang Linchi conveniently benefited from Zhang Xu’s information gathering, but Zhang Xu was too active and easily drew attention.
When those in the prison heard the words "Rebel Army," their expressions subtly changed.
With this, Wang Linchi somewhat understood why the situation had become so rotten. Never mind the Great Families dragging their feet and deliberately sowing chaos; even this new Domain Master was solely focused on making an example of others to consolidate his power and influence.
For every day of delay, another city was massacred by the Rebel Army, its people turned into cultivation resources for The Heritage of the Heavenly Demon.
Yet, this new Domain Master completely disregarded these matters, choosing instead to confront the Sheng Family.
Perhaps in his eyes, openly moving against the Sheng Family was already a very aggressive act. After all, a more prudent individual would have engaged in political maneuvering, battling over interests and connections, rather than resorting to a direct blockade of their gates.
In the eyes of the upper echelons, if those at the bottom died, they died. There were plenty more of them anyway; more could always be born. Conversely, Great Families, members of their own echelon, needed to be treated with care.
"What’s the situation with the Rebel Army? Did you find out anything?" Ji Xiang asked.
"No. Besides, the Rebel Army moves so fast, it would take at least a month for news to reach Xuan Spirit Heaven," Zhang Xu said in a low voice.
In most cases, such ’minor incidents’ wouldn’t even reach Xuan Spirit Heaven unless an entire province fell.
Naturally, after such a tragedy, the first instinct of the Governors of each province was not to report it, but to suppress the matter to avoid any blemishes on their official careers, unless it became utterly impossible to conceal.
That was why very little information about city-wide massacres actually reached Xuan Spirit Heaven.
Even if it did, it would be suppressed to prevent it from spreading, making it impossible to find out anything.
Zhang Xu then decisively changed the subject, as it wasn’t suitable for further discussion. Once he switched to a lighter topic, the atmosphere noticeably improved.
After about two hours of conversation, it was seven o’clock in the evening.
Only Wang Linchi knew the exact time, as he had long since modified his Thought Mirror to include a clock function.
At this moment, everyone felt a violent tremor. Thankfully, the prison was sturdy enough, but the shaking also triggered some sort of defensive mechanism.
"What’s happening?" Ji Xiang hastily asked.
Wang Linchi had no idea what was happening, so he remained silent.
"It might be the Six Doors taking action against the Sheng Family, so a fight has broken out," Zhang Xu, who was nearby, offered his speculation.
Hearing this, Ji Xiang couldn’t help but feel a surge of joy and hurriedly asked, "Does this mean we can get out once it’s resolved?!"
"If it’s not resolved, we’ll become the scapegoats," Zhang Xu said, his tone devoid of joy. "Success would mean celebration for all, but what if they fail?"
An explanation would naturally be required, and this group of people—they—were the perfect candidates to take the blame, thereby demonstrating the Sheng Family’s authority.
Zhang Xu also seemed to have vaguely sensed something, but lacking evidence and daring not to speak recklessly, he kept his suspicions to himself.
Wang Linchi wasn’t surprised by this. It was normal to pay a price for failure, and even more normal if someone else paid that price.
Once the first sounds of battle erupted, the commotion grew progressively louder.
It was very likely that a Morning Star Level entity had entered the fray.
The Sheng Family indeed had Morning Star Level Awakeners, but so did the Court—and in greater numbers.
Moreover, a Bright Moon Level Awakener was overseeing the Court’s forces. Unless the Sheng Family could enlist the help of another Bright Moon Level Awakener, they would have little chance of winning.
But such help could only be temporary, not a permanent solution.
Firstly, even if they managed to invite such an expert, that person couldn’t stay with the Sheng Family indefinitely. If they did, the Sheng Family might find themselves usurped.
Besides, even if the invited Bright Moon Level Awakener won, they wouldn’t dare to be too ruthless. Their opponents were from the Court. If you win, they’ll concede; did you really think you could kill them? That would be tantamount to provoking the Court.
Seriously injuring them might be acceptable, but if they died from those injuries, accountability would still be pursued.
Crippling them would be even worse; they’d be directly conscripted.
Therefore, it was an unequal confrontation from the very beginning.
"It’s over? That was fast," Zhang Xu sounded puzzled.
The commotion had subsided in no more than half an hour.
"Perhaps the Domain Master himself took action; otherwise, it couldn’t have ended so quickly," Ji Xiang voiced his guess.
Wang Linchi thought differently. The Domain Master would certainly not intervene personally. If he did, he might be accused of bullying.
It was possible that this new Domain Master possessed some powerful trump card, striking a fatal blow that left the Sheng Family unable to resist.
As for the Sheng Family having won, it seemed highly improbable. Judging by the situation, if the Sheng Family were to win, it wouldn’t have been so quick; they would have needed to control Xuan Spirit Heaven at the very least. Thus, the fight couldn’t have concluded in half an hour; it would have taken at least a day for the commotion to cease.
Otherwise, if it ended with just a skirmish at their gates, it couldn’t be called a victory—at most, it would be a slap in the face to the new Domain Master.