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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter 14: The Slave for Freedom
An elderly man, pale and emaciated, clutched the iron bars, his face filled with shock as he stared at the Vermilion Bird Pearl around Lin Chuyu's neck. With a voice hoarse from exhaustion, he exclaimed, "The Vermilion Bird Pearl! You are the demoness who brought disaster to our Black Marsh!"
His words rippled through the dungeon like waves on a lake, igniting a shared fury among the slaves. They surged toward the bars like crazed lunatics, reaching out their hands in an attempt to seize Lin Chuyu and strangle her.
"I will kill you, demoness! It's all your fault; we will kill you!"
The atmosphere in the cell suddenly became chaotic.
This dungeon had thirty cells, and apart from the few that were empty when they arrived, all the remaining ones were filled with slaves. The corridor of the dungeon stretched straight ahead, lined with slaves extending their mud-stained black hands. Their hands seemed to reach out from hell itself, trying to drag Lin Chuyu into an abyss of despair.
Ji Zichen and Lin Chuyu stood in the center of the corridor. Although the slaves' hands reached out from the iron bars, they were still a full arm's length away from grabbing her. Lin Chuyu stared blankly at the pained expressions of these slaves, her eyes filled with fear. "I... I... I am not a demoness..."
The old man cried out in despair, "You are! It is because of you that we are locked up here as slaves. Because of the Vermilion Bird Pearl, our Black Marsh has been caught in a greedy war. My grandson and family were killed by soldiers of the Western King. Bring my grandson and family back to life; otherwise, I will haunt you as a vengeful spirit!"
Tears involuntarily streamed down Lin Chuyu's face as she saw a girl about five or six years old standing inside one of the cells, crying out loud in anguish. With swollen red eyes filled with sorrow, the girl looked at Lin Chuyu and pleaded, "Demoness, give me back my father! Bring my father back!"
Though the girl was only five or six years old and may not fully understand what "demoness" meant, those words had escaped her lips. To her, "demoness" was a cold judgment passed by a child upon Lin Chuyu. She began to tremble and took two steps back, questioning herself, "Am I... really a demoness?"
Ji Zichen's eyes also reflected deep sorrow, but he felt utterly helpless in this situation. Unable to bear listening to the accusations any longer, he turned away sadly and grasped Lin Chuyu's hand. She felt the warmth of Ji Zichen's palm as he said softly, "Let's go."
Though those two words were short and simple, they seemed to carry Ji Zichen's resentment toward fate.
Ji Zichen turned to face Lin Chuyu. In that moment of distraction, the Warden suddenly kicked Ji Zichen in the back. Caught off guard, Ji Zichen slammed against the iron bars of the cell, leaving a gash on his face that bled profusely.
Behind the Warden stood more than ten guards. The Warden raised his hand to signal them to light several lanterns hanging outside the cells. The dungeon was instantly illuminated. Upon seeing the Warden appear, the slaves fell silent and retracted their hands in fear, retreating into their cells without daring to make a sound.
Ji Zichen pressed his right hand against his cheek as blood oozed between his fingers.
The Warden had finally recognized Ji Zichen's appearance. Despite having identified her, he sneered, "So it's you again, the one selling magical artifacts. I let you leave last night, but here you are again. Oh, and Second Sister is here too. I didn't expect you to be the one kidnapping people. This time, you've committed a capital offense; no one can save you now."
The Warden turned to Lin Chuyu and laughed heartily, "When luck comes, nothing can stand in its way. As a Warden, I’m receiving a great gift right at my doorstep. Second Sister, come over; the City Lord is looking for you."
Lin Chuyu brandished her Vajra in front of Ji Zichen, trembling as she said, "Don't... don't come any closer! I will kill you! I won't go with you, and I won't be controlled by anyone!"
The Warden wore a smug expression and leered, "Second Sister, this is the dungeon. In the Vast Intertwined Underground City’s dungeon, I am king. If you don’t obey me, I might just keep you here as my wife."
Lin Chuyu broke out in a cold sweat but refused to yield. Gritting her teeth fiercely, she retorted, "You scum! How dare you treat me like this! Aren't you afraid of what my father will do...!"
The Warden interrupted with a sinister grin, "The City Lord wouldn’t come down to the dungeon. Once I strip you of your clothes, let’s see if you can still say such things!"
He removed the whip that he always kept at his waist for punishing prisoners or slaves and aimed it at Lin Chuyu's wrist to try and disarm her. But Ji Zichen swiftly turned her body, grabbing the whip's end with her left hand. Covering her face with her right hand, she grinned wickedly and said, "Let me reward you first for falsely accusing me last night!"
With a swift motion of her left hand pulling back, the Warden’s whip seemed to be drawn by an unseen force as he was lifted off the ground and flew toward Ji Zichen. She delivered a powerful kick to his groin, rendering him incapacitated. The Warden screamed in agony as Ji Zichen raised her left hand and wrapped the whip around his neck twice before kicking him toward the iron bars above while pulling the whip down to its limit.
Suspended in mid-air with his feet off the ground, the Warden flailed helplessly as his face began to lose color. The remaining guards saw that he was about to be hanged by the iron bars and hurriedly drew their swords to charge at Ji Zichen. She pulled Lin Chuyu back just in time when suddenly a Gu Diao Monster howled and revealed itself from behind the guards, swallowing one whole.
The guard’s faces turned pale at the sight of Gu Diao.
With its bloody mouth wide open, Gu Diao looked at Ji Zichen amicably and said, "Good friend, Gu Diao will help you."
Ji Zichen smiled slightly and replied, "Great! Let’s work together to take down these guards!"
---
Above Ji Zichen in the dungeon was the inner city gate nearby. At this moment, not only was the inner city gate tightly shut but so was the outer city gate. Outside the city, travelers and merchants wanting to enter were met with closed gates and couldn't help but complain.
"Hey... what's going on? Why are the gates closed?"
The City Gate Guard responded from the city wall, "There are rioters in the city. The lord has ordered a lockdown. You all need to retreat quickly. If you linger, you will face military law!"
---
In the dungeon, the guards were all dead. Half of them had been swallowed by Gu Diao, while others had been killed by Ji Zichen. Seeing Gu Diao bound in shackles, which were made of iron and could not be cut with a knife, Ji Zichen approached the hanging iron bars where the Warden was and took the key to unlock the shackles.
Once freed, Gu Diao stood tall, towering over everyone. "Thank you, my friend," Gu Diao said gratefully.
Noticing the scars on Ji Zichen's face, Gu Diao licked a wound with its tongue, and the bleeding stopped. Ji Zichen was surprised. "Your slime can stop bleeding?"
Gu Diao nodded and looked at Lin Chuyu, who was staring intently at her without any fear in her eyes. Suddenly, Gu Diao opened its enormous mouth and roared at Lin Chuyu, but she just smiled back.
Seeing that Lin Chuyu was not afraid of it made Gu Diao feel happy. "You are not afraid of Gu Diao."
Lin Chuyu replied gently with a smile, "You helped me; we are good friends."
Gu Diao extended its tongue and licked her face as well. Lin Chuyu giggled, "That tickles!"
"Let's go," Ji Zichen said.
Lin Chuyu walked toward the iron bars and addressed the slaves huddled inside. "Do you want to wait here to be sold, or do you want me to let you out?"
The slaves fell silent for a moment. The elderly man stepped forward, looking at Lin Chuyu in disbelief. "Are you really going to set us free?"
Ji Zichen interjected, "What are you doing? Have you forgotten they wanted to strangle you?"
The old man exchanged glances with the other slaves before sighing and looking at Lin Chuyu. "Miss, please come here."
Lin Chuyu recalled their earlier attempts to kill her, and unease still lingered in her heart. She exchanged a glance with Ji Zichen, who shook her head in response.
However, Lin Chuyu approached the iron bars, while Ji Zichen remained on guard, wary of any ill intentions from the other side.
The old man extended his withered hands towards Lin Chuyu, and after a moment of hesitation, she placed her hands on his. The old man sighed deeply, saying, "My dear girl, I was wrong before. I should not have called you a demoness. I know that the suffering in Black Marsh has nothing to do with you; it’s just..."
"It’s just... you wanted to vent your frustrations! You spoke ill of her and cursed her!" Ji Zichen interrupted sharply.
The old man lowered his head, unable to respond.
Lin Chuyu could feel the trembling in the old man's palms and sensed the pain of losing his home and family. His sorrow was beyond what words could express.
Looking at the frail old man, Lin Chuyu's lingering fears dissipated. She wiped away her frown and smiled gently. "Old man, I do not hold it against you. I understand this is all due to the Vermilion Bird Pearl. But I promise you, I will find the ruins as soon as possible. Once they are revealed to the world, no one will fight over the Vermilion Bird Pearl again."
Ji Zichen met Lin Chuyu's gaze and spoke up, "I must remind you that if you want to break out of Corner Lodge and gain your freedom, many among you will lose their lives!"
Suddenly, the slaves surged towards the iron bars. One male slave shouted, "Better to die in battle than be sold into slavery!"
The slaves collectively cried out, "For freedom, break out of Corner Lodge! For freedom, break out of Corner Lodge!"
Ji Zichen declared loudly, "Good! Let’s break out of Corner Lodge together!"
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