Rebirth: Phoenix Riding the Ninth Heaven

Zhao Si had been standing there with a gloomy expression, but when he heard the message from the yamen runner, he suddenly felt a surge of joy. Capturing a suspicious Xiongnu might help solve the mystery behind the recent series of mysterious events.

"Brothers?" Zhao Si shouted loudly, and soon saw two burly men responding.

"Let's go! Let's go meet this Hun together and see if we can get some useful information from him." Zhao Si waved his hand, signaling the two to follow him.

Soon, they arrived at the door of the inn. Inside sat a bearded, serious-looking old man named Lao Cui. As soon as Lao Cui saw Zhao Si and the others, he immediately stood up.

"Brother Zhao, you are finally here!" Lao Cui bowed and saluted.

Zhao Si nodded and pointed at the tightly bound Xiongnu man lying on the ground, saying, "Let's try this man."

"Okay!" Lao Cui responded.

Zhao Si then signaled to his two brothers, who understood his intention and quickly stepped forward. One lifted the Hun's head, the other lifted his feet, and carried him like a chicken into the prison in the yamen. Then, they deftly tied the Hun to a thick pillar.

A gloomy atmosphere permeated the torture chamber, but at this moment, Lao Cui's eyes lit up, as if he had seen a rare treasure. He circled the Hun several times, saying with a sigh, "Great, Lao Zhao, you actually caught a Hun! This is going to be a good show."

Zhao Si looked at Lao Cui's old and rough face helplessly, and urged: "Lao Cui, don't dawdle, interrogate them quickly to find out what their purpose is in sneaking in this time, and how many people have sneaked in. I'll leave everything here to you, I'll go out and eat something to fill my stomach." As he said that, Zhao Si patted his chest to show that he had great trust in Lao Cui.

"No problem, Lord Zhao, you can go without worry! As long as this person falls into my hands, I guarantee that everything you want to know will be pried out by me!" Lao Cui answered confidently.

Zhao Si led his group of brothers slowly toward their resting place. This night had been a tormenting one for them. The cold night wind pummeled their bodies mercilessly, hunger was a constant companion, and the constant surge of worry and fear within them weighed heavily on their bodies and minds. All they wanted was to quickly return to a warm and comfortable place, enjoy a hot meal, and finally, a good night's sleep to restore their energy.

Elsewhere, after seeing Zhao Si lead his men away, Lao Cui's gaze fell on the Hun tied to the pillar. Suddenly, his eyes lit up, and he thought to himself, "This is a truly great job that's been delivered right to my door!" The Hun's arm was still bleeding profusely, and Lao Cui hurriedly urged his men, "Go, stop the bleeding! We can't let him bleed to death, or we'll get nothing!" Upon hearing the order, his men didn't dare to delay. They quickly found a thick rope and tied it tightly around the Hun's arm, trying to stem the bleeding.

However, despite taking measures to stop the bleeding, the Hun remained unconscious. Seeing this, Lao Cui frowned slightly. After a moment's thought, he said to his men, "Go, get a basin of cold water and pour it on his face. It will wake him up immediately!" Soon, one of his men walked up to the Hun with a basin full of icy water and without hesitation, poured it into his face.

The cold water startled the Hun awake, and he shook his head unconsciously, trying to clear his head. As he took in his surroundings, he gasped—he was bound to a pillar in a dark, damp, and chilly cell. He struggled to recall what had happened, finally realizing his current situation.

Seeing the man slowly regain consciousness, Old Cui eagerly stepped forward, his face filled with attentive smiles. He asked in a gentle voice, "Oh, you're finally awake! Tell me quickly, why did you come to our Great Shun territory to burn, kill, and plunder? Are there others with you? What evil deeds are they planning to do? What is their ulterior motive?"

The Hun with a broken arm stared at Lao Cui with hostility and disdain. He suddenly spat fiercely on the ground and shouted in an extremely arrogant and tough manner: "Humph! I can kill anyone I want and do whatever I want here! Don't even think about prying a useful word out of me!"

Old Cui looked at his arrogant and unreasonable appearance, but he didn't get angry. He just smiled slightly, then slowly walked to the table where various torture instruments were placed. He reached out and picked up a sharp knife, playing with it casually in his hand. He held it in front of the Xiongnu and shook it gently, while speaking slowly: "Hey, I wonder if you have heard of this? Here we have an extremely cruel punishment called 'a thousand cuts'. This punishment is very interesting. They will use a knife to slowly cut off your flesh piece by piece. Sometimes they cut more, sometimes less, but no matter what, they will continue until the last cut, and then you will be completely dead..."

Upon hearing this, the Xiongnu people were already filled with fear, but they still pretended to be calm, stiffened their necks, and shouted stubbornly: "Would I be afraid of you? If I were, I'd not be a real man! If you have the guts, come at me!" Lao Cui looked at his arrogant and reckless appearance and couldn't help but find it a little funny. He thought that this kid was still stubborn even when he was about to die. He really didn't cry until he saw the coffin. So he responded with a sneer: "Okay, since you are so courageous, let's give it a try." After that, Lao Cui turned his head to look at Lao Sun beside him and signaled to him with his eyes. Lao Sun understood what he meant and immediately waved his hand and ordered his men: "Go and get me a big iron pot! Today we will let this arrogant guy have a good taste of what it feels like to have his own flesh cut off and eaten!

"These Xiongnu people are always arrogant and domineering. They rely on their strong military forces to bully the Han people and even call them "two-legged sheep". Now the situation has changed, and it is finally their turn to experience the feeling of being food in other people's mouths. I saw the men quickly and skillfully lit a blazing fire next to the simple stove and placed a large black iron pot on it steadily. Then, Lao Cui, holding a sharp dagger, stepped towards the Xiongnu man. The Xiongnu man was pale at this time, with cold sweat on his forehead, but his mouth was still He refused to yield. At that moment, with a single swish, Lao Cui's knife swiftly slashed cleanly, severing a large, bloody chunk of flesh from the Xiongnu's thigh. Then, with a flick of his wrist, he tossed it precisely into the steaming iron pot. Instantly, accompanied by a series of sizzling sounds, a strong, pungent aroma of meat filled the air. The Xiongnu watched helplessly as his flesh swelled and bubbled in the pot. His previously resilient defenses instantly crumbled, his stomach churning, and he finally vomited with a cry of "wow!"

Lao Cui watched the Huns' reactions with great interest. Seeing their pale, terrified faces, he couldn't help but burst into laughter. "Hahahaha!" The laughter seemed to pierce the sky, echoing throughout the entire tent. "What's that? A little trick is too much for you? There are more powerful ones waiting for you later! Just take your time!" Lao Cui smiled a mocking smile, his eyes filled with disdain and amusement.

With that, Lao Cui raised his sharp knife again and, without hesitation, slashed at the Hun. With a flash of his blade, a dozen more slices of tender flesh slid from the Hun's body, landing precisely in the steaming iron pot nearby. Instantly, the pot sizzled, and the air was filled with the strong smell of blood.

By this time, the Huns were already excruciatingly tortured by the pain. Some cried out loudly, while others closed their eyes and endured silently, but nothing they did could alleviate the agony. However, Lao Cui turned a blind eye, continuing to enjoy the pleasure of cutting up the Huns' flesh. To him, these once-mighty Huns were now nothing more than lambs to be slaughtered.

"Hmph! You Xiongnu people burn, kill, plunder, and commit all sorts of atrocities on a daily basis, bringing disaster to countless innocent people. Now it's your turn to get a taste of what's to come. How's that? Doesn't it hurt?" Lao Cui said as he quickened his movements, each strike laced with deep hatred. Even as the Xiongnu man cried himself hoarse and nearly fainted, Lao Cui showed no sign of stopping. He was determined to make these despicable invaders pay the price they deserved.

Lao Cui ordered a dog to be brought in, and the roasted meat was thrown to it like discarded trash. The dog, bloodshot eyes like a hungry wolf pouncing on its prey, approached, cautiously snatching at the flesh cut from the human body. After over an hour of repeated visual and physical abuse, the Xiongnu man felt like he was in hell. He begged Lao Cui to give him a quick death, to tell him everything, clearly and clearly. He begged Lao Cui to stop torturing him, to give him a knife and let him die. They were not afraid of death; they knew that coming out would mean death, but they also did not want to die in such humiliation.

Old Cui gazed at the paper containing the record of the Xiongnu's reception, snatched it up as if it were a treasure, and flicked it gently in his hand, thinking to himself: If I had known this would happen, why would I have endured so much suffering? Come, quickly gag him and keep him under strict guard. Don't let him lose his life. With that, Old Cui rushed off to report to the master.