Chapter 415: Who Is Your Master?
Chapter 415: Chapter 415: Who Is Your Master?
’It’s not about that!’
He Awei’s heart trembled. ’Then it’s for something else?’
’But what could it possibly be?’
’Just why did this monster set her sights on me?’
"What, still not talking?" Seeing He Awei’s eyes darting around, Su Qing sneered. "If you’re not going to talk, then I’ll have to use some other methods. Don’t blame me when you start to suffer."
As she spoke, Su Qing snapped her fingers. The vines binding He Awei suddenly sprouted dense, sharp thorns that pierced his skin, though they didn’t go too deep.
But having his entire body punctured by countless thorns at once was more than enough to make He Awei suffer.
"AHHHH!" He Awei screamed in pain. "Milady, I’ll talk, I’ll talk! Stop the pricking! It’s killing me!"
"Hah. This is nothing," Su Qing sneered. With another snap of her fingers, the vines’ thorns retracted. He Awei cried out "Ouch!" a few more times from the pain. Looking down at the dense pinpricks of blood covering his body, he wanted to cry but had no tears left.
"Milady, I’ll talk, I’ll tell you everything." He Awei was scared out of his wits. ’What kind of demon is this, to have such abilities? It’s simply unbelievable.’
’How can a person possibly control plants?’
But the proof was right before his eyes. He no longer dared to hold onto any shred of hope.
"Talk," Su Qing said, her finger twitching slightly. The Freesia leaves that had fallen to the ground suddenly shot up, their tips pointing straight at He Awei.
He Awei was on the verge of tears. He hurriedly explained, "I have some talismans that can bring people bad luck. For example, you write someone’s name on a talisman, then crumple it up next to them, and they’ll have a stroke of misfortune. The severity depends on the situation. In a better case, they might fall and crack their head. If they’re really unlucky, they could be seriously injured. I’ve given these talismans to a few people, and they’ve... they’ve all been used."
As He Awei spoke, he watched Su Qing’s reaction. Seeing that she remained unmoved, her eyes downcast as if lost in thought, his heart trembled. He knew he probably hadn’t said what she wanted to hear yet, so he quickly added, "Also, I’ve helped people place curses, and I’ve ruined the Feng Shui of their enemies, and... and, I..."
Here, He Awei paused and quickly begged for mercy, "Milady, I know I shouldn’t have provoked you. How about this? I’ll never help people with these things again. Starting today, I’ll leave Xiangcheng. I’ll go far, far away, and I promise no one will ever find me. You... just let me go, like I’m nothing but a fart."
"You just said ’and’..." Su Qing questioned. "And what?"
"I..." He Awei didn’t dare say it, afraid that if he did, the woman before him would be even less likely to spare him.
"You’ve also taken an innocent person’s life, haven’t you?" Su Qing asked, narrowing her eyes.
"I didn’t..."
Before He Awei could finish, Su Qing let out a cold snort. He Awei didn’t dare lie. ’This monster must be here because of that death,’ he thought, a wave of regret washing over him. With a tear-streaked face, he said, "Milady, I was out of my mind, that’s why I made a mistake. I know I was wrong. Seeing as I’ve already admitted my fault, can you please spare me? I’ve told you everything I’ve done. Besides... besides, I haven’t even been doing these things for long, less than a year. I’ll change, I’ll never do it again, okay?"
He Awei looked at Su Qing pleadingly, hoping she would show mercy and spare his life.
Su Qing murmured, "Less than a year, and you’ve already done quite a lot. You must have made a good bit of money."
He Awei’s eyes lit up. "Yes, the money! I can give it all to you. All of it! As long as you spare me, milady, I’ll give you all my money. Please? I beg you, I really know I was wrong."
As he spoke, He Awei started to weep. "Have pity on me, I have elders to support and children to raise..."
Before He Awei could finish his spiel, Su Qing cut him off. "Who is your master?"
"My master is..." He Awei hadn’t expected Su Qing to ask about his master at all and started to answer reflexively. Halfway through, he caught himself and quickly said, "No one. I don’t have a master."
Su Qing sneered. "It seems I’ve been too lenient with you."
With that, Su Qing closed her fingers slightly. The Freesia leaves instantly turned into small whips and lashed fiercely at He Awei’s body.
"OW, IT’S KILLING ME!" He Awei rolled on the ground in agony. "I’ll talk! I’ll talk! My master is Master Wen!"
"What!" Su Qing was stunned. She had thought He Awei would say his master was Master Ning.
After all, just as Xiang had said, Master Ning had no bottom line and would do anything for money. Only someone like that could have taught an apprentice like He Awei.
But Su Qing never would have imagined that He Awei would name Master Wen—the same Master Wen who was famous in Xiangcheng’s wealthy circles for his benevolence and righteousness.
Su Qing’s first reaction was that He Awei was lying.
"It seems you’re still not telling the truth," Su Qing snorted. Countless thorns once again erupted from the vines and dug into He Awei’s skin.
"Oww, ouch..." He Awei trembled with pain. "Milady, I’m telling the truth! I swear, I’m really not lying to you."
"Master Wen would train an apprentice like you?" Su Qing asked coldly. "Tell the truth."
"I am telling the truth!" He Awei didn’t dare tell the slightest lie now, terrified this monster would see through it and punish him later. "My master really is Master Wen. It’s just that my master doesn’t allow me to say I’m his apprentice. That’s why I hesitated and said I didn’t have a master when you asked earlier."
He Awei’s words made Su Qing fall silent. She was still doubtful. ’How could the benevolent and righteous Master Wen, praised by all, have trained such an apprentice?’
’Or maybe it’s because this He Awei went down the wrong path, so Master Wen is unwilling to acknowledge him as his apprentice?’
Since she wasn’t familiar with this Master Wen, Su Qing could only speculate.
"Where is your master now?" Su Qing asked again.
"It seems he went to A Tai to see my senior apprentice brother," He Awei said after a moment’s thought.
"Can you find out your master’s specific address?" Su Qing asked.
"No, I don’t have my master’s detailed address. I don’t even know where my senior apprentice brother is," He Awei said, shaking his head.
"Don’t you people in the metaphysical arts have ways of tracking people?"
He Awei hurriedly said, "How could we? We might have some skills that ordinary people don’t, but we’re not gods. How could we possibly divine someone’s location out of thin air?"
"Is that so." Su Qing raised an eyebrow. "That’s good."
Hearing this, He Awei froze for a moment.