Having the genes of a demon king, I never intended to be a kept man.

Bai Jian waited for a long time inside the city, standing at the window and gazing at the city's scenery.

The city of Bai was brightly lit.

Bai Jian turned around and looked at the clock on the wall, where time was ticking away.

This was the third time he had checked the time in the past hour.

Xiao Qing is always efficient and decisive, so it's really strange that we haven't heard from her for so long.

Could it be...

Bai Jian raised his cybernetic watch and dialed Bai Qing's number.

Soon, the call was connected.

"Hello?" Ye Ge's leisurely voice came from the other end of the communication.

Bai Jian's heart tightened, and his eyes immediately darkened.

A chill quickly spread through my heart...

Although he had initially suspected that Bai Qing might have failed in her mission, been captured by the Ye family, or even been killed...

But when it was actually confirmed, he still found it hard to accept.

"General Bai Jian," Ye Ge said with a smile, "Why aren't you saying anything? Is there something you want to talk about that's so late?"

Bai Jian's voice was filled with coldness: "What did you do to Xiao Qing?"

“She’s alright, but she’s now my prisoner.” Ye Ge paused. “Of course, whether she will be in any danger afterward depends on what you do, General Bai Jian.”

Bai Jian: "What do you want?"

Night Song was simple and direct: "Surrender, you and your sister surrender together. Of course, I know your character, General. You are very loyal to that old Biden, Wang En. Even if someone like you surrenders to me, I wouldn't dare to trust you. So what I need in surrender is for you and your sister to leave White City together and stay with me for a few days. Don't interfere in this war in the Southern Territory. Once the war is over, I will release you, and you can go wherever you want."

"That's impossible." Bai Jian's tone was icy and flat: "You want me to be a deserter?"

“Then there’s nothing I can do,” Ye Ge said. “Then I’ll just have to treat your sister well. She’s having a great time right now. She’s already been through a round of everything: chili water, tiger bench, whip, candles, lamps, and cat toys.”

"...You!!!" Bai Jian's eyes were practically spitting fire.

"Our demonic human family is notoriously ruthless; we're capable of anything," Ye Ge said, her words dripping with intimidation. "Especially my older brothers and sisters, each one of them is a bit of a pervert. I can't even stand it anymore, tsk tsk tsk..."

Bai Jian: "......"

"That's settled then. You have twelve hours to think it over," Ye Ge said. "If you've made up your mind within twelve hours, call me. Otherwise, you can start preparing to collect your sister's corpse."

"Beep!"

The communication was disconnected.

After hanging up the phone, Bai Jian stood there in silence for a long time.

In the quiet room, you could hear his breathing becoming heavier and heavier.

......

Night Family Camp.

Night Owl crouched down in front of Bai Qing, his eyes gleaming, and said, "Is this the little girl you captured? General Bai Jian's sister?"

Bai Qing was bound to a chair by more than a dozen magic-suppressing iron chains, but he still had an expression as hard as a rock, glaring fiercely at the legendary heinous demon lord, Night Owl.

Ye Ge, who was standing next to him, nodded: "Yes."

Night Owl: "Have you called his brother yet?"

"We fought them." Ye Ge shrugged. "But these two siblings are both very stubborn. Even after being captured, they refused to submit."

Bai Qing coldly snorted, "My brother is the number one general in Baicheng. The loyalty and honor of soldiers are the most important things in his heart. Nothing can shake that. He will never submit to you!"

Night Owl grinned: "That's quite a coincidence. My favorite thing is to destroy other people's glory. I'm so happy to see their hearts broken."

Bai Qing: "......"

“I really like your personality, little girl. I hope you can maintain your current state after going through all that torment.” Night Owl’s eyes narrowed into slits. “My men will show you the real reason why demonized mutants are feared by those prestigious sects. I hope you’ll still be this tough when that happens.”

Bai Qing's body trembled slightly, and her face turned deathly pale.

When Night Owl spoke these words, his eyes were calm, his tone was calm, and he spoke casually. He did not use any soul power to suppress her, but Bai Qing could still feel a terrifying sense of oppression, as if she were facing death. It was like a mortal seeing the scythe of death hanging over his head, and all his courage completely collapsed in front of the cold eyes of death.

Ye Ge then said, "Why don't you hand this person over to me?"

"Oh?" Night Owl turned to look at him. "What do you plan to do?"

"I have a way to get her to cooperate with us."

"Really? You don't even have your own interrogation department, do you?"

“I didn’t,” Ye Ge shrugged. “I plan to come in person.”

Night Owl: "..."

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Ye Ge asked, puzzled.

Night Owl: "You little rascal...you were such a monster..."

Night Song: "???"

Night Owl glanced at Night Song, then at Gao Shenxue and Bai Xueling beside him, and frowned: "You may not care, but don't lead Xue'er and Lingling astray too."

Gao Shenxue: "..."

Night Song: "...What are you talking about?"

"Fine, you caught him anyway, so you can make your own decision." Night Owl stood up casually and patted Night Song on the shoulder.

Then he went out.

Only Ye Ge, Bai Xue Ling, Gao Shen Xue, and Bai Qing remained in the room.

"That's ridiculous," Ye Ge muttered.

Then he turned around and looked at Bai Qing.

Bai Qing looked at them nervously: "What do you want to do?"

Ye Ge deliberately flashed a mischievous smile: "Don't be nervous, I didn't actually intend to do anything..."

"Clang, clang, clang..."

The sound of the wheel of the cart scraping against the ground could be heard.

Gao Shenxue silently pushed over a surgical trolley stained with blood, seemingly borrowed from a colleague in the interrogation department, which was covered with various fancy tools.

Gao Shenxue picked up a few steel needles (branded with the name of Rong Momo) and a few whips from the cart, played with them in her hands with a little curiosity, tested their elasticity, and then looked at Ye Ge with her clear eyes: "Which one should we start with?"

Bai Qing: "!!"

Ye Ge was exasperated: "Stop messing around..."

Gao Shenxue tilted her head: "Didn't you say you were going to use torture?"

"...We're going to use torture, but...cough cough...we'll talk about it later..."

Ye Ge said as she approached Bai Qing: "Before that, I want to ask you a question. I will consider whether or not to administer the punishment based on your answer."

Bai Qing scoffed, "What do you want to ask?"

"You must know about the despicable things Wang En has done, right?" Ye Ge asked. "In that case, you still want to risk your lives for him. Is this the kind of honor you envision for a soldier?"

Bai Qing was stunned for a moment, then fell silent.

"Because your brother is a blindly loyal person. For him, loyalty and righteousness are paramount, and betrayal is a disgrace. If Wang En could just say a few words to appeal to his emotions, he would probably be moved to tears and become even more devoted to him. So even if you know it's not worth risking your life for Wang En, you still can't persuade him to change his mind, right?"

Ye Ge said, "Your brother is fighting for the king's grace, while you are fighting for your brother."

Bai Qing stared at him in astonishment: "How did you know?"

And to think that he knew all this so clearly!

Ye Ge curled her lip, thinking to herself, "Not only do I know all this, I even know which village you were in when you were attacked by monsters and then adopted by Wang En! Your brother is such a difficult boss in the game, and every time you fight him, there's a cutscene at the beginning that you can't skip! Any player who's reached a high level wouldn't be unaware of your ridiculous history, because they've seen it countless times..."

“Although your brother is blindly loyal, you should know very well that Wang En is not worth your risking your lives for.”

Ye Ge continued slowly and deliberately, "Do you think Wang En is sincere towards you? Your brother is risking his life for him, what good will it ultimately do?"

"..." Bai Qing remained silent for several seconds without saying a word.

After a long while, she suddenly sneered: "You're trying to sow discord between us? Do you think I can't see through you?"

"Yes, and I was openly provoking them, a direct and aboveboard scheme." Ye Ge shrugged: "It's no use you seeing through it anyway, you should know in your heart that I'm telling the truth."

"..." Bai Qing's mouth moved, but she couldn't refute it and fell silent again.

“Actually, we can cooperate.” Ye Ge’s eyes were playful. “I can give you a chance, maybe it will let your brother see Wang En’s true colors. It all depends on whether you’re willing.”

"If you're unwilling to cooperate, that's simple too. After so many days of this war in the Southern Territory, you should be well aware of the strength of our Ye family's army. Even in a head-on attack, we are absolutely confident that we can flatten your White City."

"When the time comes, we'll just do whatever we want. We'll use you as a hostage to distract your brother on the battlefield, then defeat the White City army, breach the city walls, and behead Wang En."

"However, Wang En will probably use your brother as a first life, and then take the opportunity to escape. We can only get rid of your stubborn, obstinate brother first, and then continue the pursuit until we kill Wang En."

"In the end, Wang En will be killed or captured by us. After the Southern War ends, he will be judged by the entire human race as a traitor. At the same time, your brother, as an accomplice of the traitor, will also be condemned for eternity, leaving a strong mark in textbooks and being despised by future generations. See, isn't my script very reasonable?"

Bai Qing: "......"

"The choice is yours," Ye Ge said, crossing his arms.

Bai Qing's mood grew increasingly heavy and bitter.

If it's called a choice, then if Ye Ge really says it that way, where would she even have a choice?

This young man is too amazing...

They've completely figured out her psychology...

After a long while, Bai Qing raised her head, looked into Ye Ge's eyes with a complicated expression, and asked, "What do you want to do?"

......

The sky began to lighten with the first light of dawn, and the sun gradually rose.

The light of dawn illuminated the whole world.

Bai Jian hadn't slept all night. Dressed in silver armor, he sat atop the city wall, his hands resting on the hilt of an ancient longsword, his mind filled with the events of the previous night.

The words Ye Ge said to him in the communication last night are still echoing in his mind.

He was very worried about his sister's situation. He didn't know how Xiao Qing was doing now. She was in the hands of those demonized mutants, and he didn't know what kind of torture she would suffer. He secretly vowed that if Ye Ge and the others dared to do something unforgivable to Xiao Qing, he would never let those bastards get away with it!

Today is undoubtedly the day when war will break out. According to the intelligence they have received, the troops led by Night Owl have already arrived at Bailinpo, opposite Baicheng. The Night family army will definitely launch an attack today.

Night Owl's troops are all truly elite soldiers and generals; that is the true strength of this demonized human family. Compared to them, the armies led by Night Song and Night Jade Dragon were merely children's siege games.

Pre-battle mobilization had begun in the city, preparing for a decisive battle against the Ye family. Rows of fully armed soldiers were led to their assembly, and several city defense officers reprimanded and lectured them. Flags fluttered throughout the city, and tension and a sense of impending doom filled the air.

Bai Jian saw a group of soldiers below the city gate who looked timid and hesitant. Although they were all dressed in soldiers' clothes, they were obviously hastily assembled, just a group of ordinary people who had been brought in as cannon fodder. They did not have any aura of extraordinary power. Each of them looked confused and walked unsteadily, which seemed very abnormal.

Bai Jian frowned slightly. He really didn't know what use these people would be even if they were sent to the battlefield. Did the Duke really want these people to be human shields?

“General Bai Jian.” At this moment, a city defense army captain walked over.

Bai Jian stood up when he saw the man: "Captain Ma."

Captain Ma said with a smile, "General Bai Jian is indeed very responsible, coming to the city wall to inspect so early."

“…Hmm.” Bai Jian thought to himself that he was just having trouble sleeping because he was worried about his sister.

Captain Ma, seeing his expression, said, "By the way, I heard that your sister failed in her night mission and fell into the hands of those demonized people from the Ye family?"

"Yes, that's right." Bai Jian's expression was grim as he gripped his sword hilt tightly. "I'm worried that the Ye family will take my sister hostage on the battlefield!"

“Given the ruthless and despicable nature of those demonized people from the Ye family, they will definitely do it.” Captain Ma patted his shoulder and sighed, “However, when it comes to the bigger picture, personal feelings must naturally give way. This is something we extraordinary warriors have to sacrifice. This is a matter of life and death, and we cannot betray the Duke’s trust in us, don’t you think?”