Chapter 74: Backstab

Her clothes were in tatters, the torn rags barely covering her body, revealing large patches of bruises and wounds, some of which were still seeping blood.

A mess of hair covered most of her face, only leaving visible a pair of bloodshot eyes, glaring viciously at Ye Lan and Mu Xi, like a wounded beast, full of venom and despair.

“Her name is Wuhen. She used to be an assassin.”

Ye Lan introduced her offhandedly, as if talking about something insignificant.

“She has quite a few lives on her hands and was wanted by several nations. She hid for so many years, but didn’t I still catch her and bring her here? Now, look at her—neither human nor ghost.”

There was a hint of pride and mockery in her tone.

Wuhen stared at Ye Lan with all her might, a hoarse growl rumbling from her throat, as if she was about to pounce and tear her apart.

Ye Lan looked at Mu Xi with interest, handing over a black whip.

The handle was inlaid with tiny silver skulls, glinting coldly under the dim light.

“Little Xi, use this to hit her. Let me see if you have any guts.”

Mu Xi took the whip.

When her fingertips touched the cold leather, her body trembled slightly.

She looked up, her eyes full of timidity as she glanced at Ye Lan, then at the fierce Wuhen in the prison cell, her gaze brimming with resistance and unease.

Ye Lan raised her brows, her tone carrying a hint of displeasure: “What? You dare defy your master’s words?”

Mu Xi bit her lip, knowing she had no choice.

She took a deep breath, trying her best to look fierce, raised the whip, and lashed it hard at Wuhen.

“Pa!” The whip landed on flesh, making a sound that made one’s scalp tingle.

Wuhen let out a shrill scream, her body jolting violently, and in her once fierce eyes, there was now a flash of pain.

She gritted her teeth, trying to hold back any sound, but her body’s instinctive reaction made her tremble uncontrollably.

Seeing Wuhen’s pained appearance, Mu Xi felt a pang of discomfort in her heart, but she knew she couldn’t stop.

She clenched her teeth and swung the whip a few more times.

“Pa! Pa! Pa!” The whip landed again and again on Wuhen, each scream more miserable than the last, her initial defiance gradually turning into agonized wails and pleas for mercy.

“Stop… stop… please… stop…” Wuhen’s voice became weak and hoarse, full of pain and despair, with no trace of an assassin’s ferocity left.

Ye Lan looked at Wuhen’s wretched state, a cold arc appearing at the corner of her mouth as she said with contempt, “This is an assassin? Nothing special after all.”

Then, Ye Lan was called away by another guard, saying there was some trouble in another prison cell that needed attention.

Before leaving, Ye Lan gave Mu Xi a meaningful look, her red lips parting to utter a cold command: ” Little Xi, continue. Beat her until she passes out.”

Mu Xi’s hand holding the whip stiffened slightly.

She watched Ye Lan’s departing figure, then turned to look at Wuhen, who was curled up on the ground in pain.

Wuhen also looked up at her, her gaze full of pleading, with no trace of the previous viciousness—she was now just a wounded little animal, looking pitifully at her tormentor.

After Ye Lan left, only the sound of the whip cutting through the air and Wuhen’s suppressed gasps filled the prison cell.

Mu Xi kept swinging the whip, the tip snapping crisply against the cold stone floor with a “pa pa” sound, but she never let it fall on Wuhen again.

“You… you’re not that kind of bad child…”

Wuhen’s weak voice came intermittently, probing, “I know… you’re being forced… let me go… please… I’ll pretend to pass out… I won’t cause you trouble…”

Mu Xi’s movements stopped.

She looked at Wuhen—her current sorry state was completely different from her earlier fierceness.

She hesitated inside.

Wuhen was right; she really wasn’t someone who enjoyed tormenting others.

Besides, if she could use this opportunity to make Wuhen owe her a favor, it might be useful in the future.

“Really?” Mu Xi’s voice was soft, tinged with uncertainty.

Wuhen immediately nodded, as if grasping at a lifeline, her eyes full of hope: “Really! I promise! I’ll pretend to pass out right away, I definitely won’t get you in trouble!”

Mu Xi bit her lip, quickly weighing the pros and cons.

Ye Lan only told her to beat Wuhen until she passed out, but didn’t specify whether it had to be real or fake.

Pretending seemed like a good choice—it would satisfy Ye Lan and avoid really hurting Wuhen.

“Alright.” Mu Xi finally made up her mind, deliberately putting on a fierce tone, “I’ll hit you a few more times, then you play dead, understand?”

Wuhen nodded repeatedly, tears of gratitude in her eyes: “Thank you! Thank you! You’re truly a good person…”

Mu Xi curled her lips.

‘A good person?’

Ye Lan would definitely never think so.

She raised the whip, giving a couple of symbolic lashes that weren’t very loud—”pa pa”—then signaled to Wuhen that it was time to “pass out.”

Wuhen immediately cooperated, rolling her eyes and collapsing limply to the ground, motionless, doing a pretty convincing job.

After a few minutes, Ye Lan returned, followed by several guards.

She entered the prison cell, her gaze sweeping over the collapsed Wuhen before landing on Mu Xi, the corner of her mouth carrying a playful smile: “Little Xi, well? Has she passed out?”

Mu Xi quickly nodded, feigning fear, her voice trembling as if about to cry: “She passed out… she passed out… I hit her for a long time before she did… I’m so scared…”

Ye Lan walked over to Wuhen, crouched down, reached out to feel her breath, then lifted her eyelid for a look, as if checking whether she had really fainted.

Mu Xi’s heart leapt into her throat.

She secretly observed Ye Lan’s expression, feeling anxious and uneasy.

If Ye Lan discovered Wuhen was faking, she’d be in big trouble.

Just as Mu Xi was about to crack under the pressure, a sudden idea flashed through her mind.

Seizing the moment while Ye Lan was checking on Wuhen, she leaned in close to Ye Lan’s ear and whispered, just loud enough for the two of them to hear:

“Master, she… she’s pretending! When I was hitting her, she begged me to let her go, said she’d fake it… I was too scared, so… so I agreed…”

Ye Lan’s movements paused slightly, the playful look in her eyes instantly turning icy.

She turned to look at Mu Xi, a half-smile, half-chilling expression on her face, her tone full of meaning: “Oh? Is that so? My Mu Xi is truly… kind.”

Mu Xi felt a chill under Ye Lan’s gaze and quickly lowered her head, whispering, “I… I was just too scared… Master, please don’t be angry…”

Ye Lan said nothing, only slowly stood up, took the whip from the guard, and walked over to the “unconscious” Wuhen, a cold arc appearing at the corner of her mouth.

“Faking it, huh? You’ve got guts.” Ye Lan’s voice wasn’t loud, but it carried a chilling sense of oppression.

Before her words had even faded, the whip lashed down hard on Wuhen.