Chapter 9: Sympathy

On the next day, Lin Haoqing came back to the dungeon before dawn. He said nothing about the jiaoren's treated wounds, and just ordered the demon to be hung up again to resume his questioning. Each question that went unanswered resulted in a lightning strike.

This was a common method for demon taming. The idea was to apply physical stress until the demon's psychological defenses break down and it begins cooperating with the demon master. Every desired behavior would then be rewarded, so in the long run, the demon would become habitually obedient.

Of course there had been stubborn demons, some refusing to submit even until death. But no one had ever seen anything like this jiaoren before, with his… complete indifference. He gave no responses to any of the lightning strikes, as if he were able to control his physiological reactions.

He just hung there silently with his head low and his eyes closed. If they did not know which part of his body was more sensitive to the lightning strikes, they would have no way to give him more targeted damage. Lin Haoqing spent most of the day with him with no progress.

Ji Yunhe came late again, same as yesterday, arriving at noon. There were very few people observing today, likely due to yesterday's scare. Ji Yunhe yawned as she walked in.

Lin Haoqing's assistants noticed her and greeted, "Master Warden." Ji Yunhe nodded and sat down on the same stone as before, seemingly in no hurry to compete with Lin Haoqing. But the moment she sat down, the jiaoren opened his eyes and looked at her with ice blue pupils still free of emotion. Then they closed up again.

"Yunhe."

Ji Yunhe was a bit surprised. It had been many years since he last called her by her first name like this. She stood up.

"Young valley master?"

"I'm going to the Discipline Hall this afternoon, so I'm handing this demon over to you."Ji Yunhe was even more surprised.

"Discipline Hall?" She felt her heart beat a little faster.

"Which demon master committed a crime? That calls for the young master of the valley to get involved?" Lin Haoqing nodded with a straight face, "Earlier today, the Valley Master received a secret letter of denunciation, stating that one of our demon masters, Snow March, is having an affair with her demon slave, Li Shu.

The Valley Master has ordered me to interrogate her." Lin Haoqing talked with a flat, calm voice, but each word resonated inside Ji Yunhe's body, sending chills up and down her spine. She tilted her head and looked at Lin Haoqing quietly, her face nonchalant as if what he said about Snow March had absolutely nothing to do with her.

But how could it have nothing to do with her? Everyone in the valley knew that Snow March was Ji Yunhe's left and right hand man. Her existence had made it possible for Ji Yunhe to establish herself as the strongest demon master here. Behind Lin Haoqing's polite, personable face was a sneering, mocking smile full of heartfelt pleasure.

Hypocrisy. But Ji Yunhe could not scold him. She had to be hypocritical too. She acted confused and surprised.

"Oh? How could Snow March do something this stupid... The young master of the valley must investigate fully."

"Naturally. This jiaoren is a tough one, so I will have to trouble Master Warden with him this afternoon." Lin Haoqing turned around and walked away. Ji Yunhe watched him leave with his long trail of assistants.

Unlike yesterday, he did not leave anyone behind as if he no longer cared if Ji Yunhe could get the jiaoren to speak. While leaving, Lin Haoqing turned a bit and sneaked a peek at Ji Yunhe. He saw her head hanging low and her hands clenched into fists. He knew Ji Yunhe, just as Ji Yunhe knew him.

They both could see through each other's faces and into the heart. They did grow up close after all, as brother and sister... The corners of his mouth lifted slightly. An assistant next to Lin Haoqing seemed perplexed.

"Young valley master, you just leave the Master Warden alone inside? We saw everything yesterday… It appears her method… If she makes the demon talk today..."

"Doesn't matter, both of our methods attack the heart and cannot be rushed. I doubt she's even in the right mind to do much today. Besides..." he paused, looking in the direction of the Discipline Hall, "even if she wins this first round, it won't make a difference anymore."

Lin Haoqing was not wrong. Losing Snow March would be a serious blow to Ji Yunhe. Exactly how powerful was Snow March? No one really knew anymore. They only knew that she had not lost a single battle against demons since she turned sixteen. Not to mention all the challengers from the four demon master quarters. For the past ten years, Snow March had steadily held on to her victories without much effort.

As a result, no one ever crossed her no matter how bad her temperament got. Even the Valley Master himself seemed extra lenient with her. She was like the soul of a demon master who had lived fifty years ago. Free, passionate, capricious and incomparably powerful.

These characteristics were reflected in her to the fullest. And that fearlessness dared her to risk the world and fall in love with a demon. How many people supported Ji Yunhe's reign here in the valley because of Snow March, no one knew. But if something were to happen to Snow March, Ji Yunhe's status would definitely fall.

And right now, Ji Yunhe hung her head low and clenched her fists with tense brows. Not because of the uncertainty in her future, but because she was worried about her friend. Who knew what kind of interrogation Snow March was enduring in that dark Hall of Discipline...

The Demon Valley had many methods of torture and punishment. They did not only use these means to deal with demons, but also demon masters who dared to disobey. She lost herself in thoughts. When she finally looked up, Ji Yunhe was surprised to see a pair of ice blue eyes fixated on her.

Two pairs of eyes quietly stared at each other. Ji Yunhe finally broke the silence with a helpless smile. "I just fixed your wounds yesterday, now they are torn and bleeding again. If this continues, I am afraid you are going to die in this dungeon..."

The jiaoren looked at her. He definitely did not seem afraid of dying. She paused for a bit then said, "If I could, I'd really love to let you go." This was not a lie. Ji Yunhe admired his unyielding willpower from the bottom of her heart. She also felt for him and his situation, as if he were another one of her in this world.