Chapter 129: Nether-Sight Death Eyes

Ning Zhuo's plain and repressed life began to grow colorful.

Having stolen many times, Sun Lingtong was very satisfied with Ning Zhuo's progress: "Xiao Zhuo, you learn everything so fast. You truly are gifted."

"Why don't you just join the Emptiness Sect along with me?"

Ning Zhuo showed a troubled expression: "Although the Emptiness Sect is Brother Xiao Sun's sect, its reputation is quite poor."

"I merely wish to rob the rich to aid the poor and punish evil to promote good, not genuinely become a thief."

"Ah, well, Brother Xiao Sun, I am not referring to you. You are different from the others, truly."

"Alright, alright!"

Sun Lingtong waved his hands repeatedly. "I was merely making a suggestion. If you won't agree, then forget it."

"Since you just mentioned robbing the rich to aid the poor, let us play something far more thrilling. Hehe!"

Ning Zhuo asked out of curiosity: "What kind of thrilling thing?"

"A holdup!"

Sun Lingtong's eyes shone brightly.

In a narrow alley, Ning Zhuo and Sun Lingtong walked one after the other, then suddenly leaped out to surround a ruffian.

"This is a holdup!"

Sun Lingtong shouted.

"Mm-mm!"

Ning Zhuo nodded, feeling somewhat nervous during his first robbery.

The ruffian was startled at first, then burst into hearty laughter: "You two brats actually want to rob me?"

Sun Lingtong became irritated: "How dare you look down on me? Xiao Zhuo, beat him!"

"Understood."

Ning Zhuo charged forward.

He was a Qi Refining cultivator, and his cultivation was merely at the first layer.

The ruffian, however, was a martial artist who had mastered internal Qi.

The two sides fought to a standstill. At the moment of a deadlock, Sun Lingtong smashed a brick against the back of the ruffian's head, knocking him unconscious.

Ning Zhuo was alarmed. "He—he isn't dead, is he?"

Sun Lingtong triumphantly dusted off his hands: "Rest assured, I know my own limits."

Having successfully carried out the robbery, Ning Zhuo's mood did not rise. Instead, he frequently lost focus and felt uneasy with a sense of gain and loss.

Sensing this, Sun Lingtong chuckled and grabbed his hand: "Come, follow me back."

"Back for what?"

Sun Lingtong led him back along the same path, guiding Ning Zhuo to witness the ruffian regaining consciousness with his own eyes!

Discovering that all his valuables were gone, the ruffian flew into a towering rage and let loose a string of curses!

He returned to the territory of his own gang, extorting and blackmailing small vendors all along the way to make up for his losses.

Ning Zhuo trailed behind him the entire distance, his fists clenched tight with anger: "Let us rob him once more!"

A sharp glint flashed in Sun Lingtong's eyes as he suddenly said: "Xiao Zhuo, have you ever considered that if we rob him, he will redouble his efforts to prey upon other ordinary people?"

"There is a far better method. Why don't we simply finish him off and make him vanish from this world entirely?"

Ning Zhuo was startled, his expression filled with shock as he stammered: "K-Kill someone? Surely that is not right!"

He had never once thought of taking a life.

Sun Lingtong smiled faintly and patted Ning Zhuo's shoulder: "If you are unwilling, then let it go. I was merely speaking off the cuff."

Ning Zhuo's complexion had turned pale. "We shall just teach him a lesson, leave a deep impression on him, and ensure he receives severe punishment."

After many instances of thievery and robbery, Ning Zhuo grew rapidly through practical combat, shedding his previous greenness.

"Your state of mind is still unstable and requires training! Come with me!"

Sun Lingtong pulled Ning Zhuo along, pasting talismans onto both of them to transform their appearances into those of two middle-aged men.

He led Ning Zhuo into a mortal gambling den, plunging into the heavy gambling where they both won and lost.

The intense atmosphere within the casino opened Ning Zhuo's eyes.

After hours of gambling concluded, Sun Lingtong brought Ning Zhuo home and asked him for his impressions.

Ning Zhuo stated that it had been an eye-opener: "So this is how these people think."

"Brother Xiao Sun, you are truly amazing, as if you possess mind-reading abilities!"

"You transmitted your voice to me, continuously analyzing the mental states of those gamblers. From the shifts in their expressions, you could deduce the value of the cards in their hands. It is as miraculous as magic."

Sun Lingtong asked the crucial question: "How do you feel about gambling?"

Ning Zhuo shook his head: "I do not like to gamble. I prefer taking things step by step, accumulating gradually to achieve success."

"The moment one enters a gambling game, there is always the possibility of losing. However, if one becomes the person running the casino, then one is the chess player. I prefer to be the chess player!"

"Nonetheless, I also know that sometimes not gambling is simply impossible."

Sun Lingtong smacked his lips: "You dislike the feeling of gambling? How are you just like my master?"

Every time they gambled, Sun Lingtong invariably won more than he lost. On occasional trips, he would lead Ning Zhuo to high-class taverns, ordering a lavish table of delicacies to nourish Ning Zhuo's body.

"Come, little brother, your big brother is treating you to a drink!"

Sun Lingtong pushed a wine cup toward Ning Zhuo. With their illusion talismans still active, both appeared as adult men.

Ning Zhuo took a sip and coughed repeatedly: "It is too spicy, how awful this tastes!"

Sun Lingtong shook his head: "You do not understand this. Wine is a marvelous thing!" His master had originally disliked drinking as well, but over the years, having repeatedly entered grottoes only to wait in vain for his own master, he gradually began to drown his sorrows in alcohol and came to appreciate the benefits of wine.

"I have a way!"

Sun Lingtong called for sweet wine.

This time, Ning Zhuo was able to swallow it.

The wine was sweet and did not burn his throat in the least; before long, however, he was drunk.

His eyes grew hazy, and his face flushed a deep red.

Sun Lingtong supported him as they left the tavern.

Halfway home on their return, Ning Zhuo noticed someone calling out to him: "Sirs, come play for a while!"

He curiously pointed at the signboard of the vermilion brothel. "Brother Xiao Sun, this place must be a lot of fun."

"Every time we pass by, I see people walking in and out, and one can hear singing and playing from within."

"When night falls, it is at its liveliest!"

"Shall we go inside for a bit of fun? It ought to be quite entertaining!"

Yet this time, Sun Lingtong's expression sank: "No, we are not going!"

Ning Zhuo, just how old are you? This is still far too early for you!

"Let's go home, I am taking you home!"

...

The soul-searching continued.

Within Sun Lingtong's dwelling, he had been reduced to a prisoner. His soul and physical body were severed, held firmly in the grasp of the Inspecting Judge.

"The Inspecting Judge is one of the four ghostly divine judges."

"Even if I summon only an avatar through the precious talisman, it is not something a Sun Lingtong at the peak of Foundation Establishment can resist."

"Though the 'Nothingness Seal' is formidable, it should still fail to withstand my such fierce and continuous soul-searching."

The blind judge Qi Bai wore a cold expression.

However, although Sun Lingtong's soul was enduring the excruciating pain of soul-searching for the better part of a day, Qi Bai had still reaped zero results.

"How can this be?"

Qi Bai was astonished.

With a cold snort, he ultimately invoked his superior innate talent.

Nether-Crossing Dead Eyes!

In an instant, his vision returned.

What manifested in his field of view was a gloomy and gray world.

Only entities of a ghostly nature would emit green, blue, and other spectral lights.

Qi Bai saw the Inspecting Judge as well as Sun Lingtong's soul!

The avatar of the Inspecting Judge radiated a magnificent blue light, extremely steady and glittering like a gemstone.

Sun Lingtong's soul, on the other hand, was emitting a green light that rippled like water and churned violently.

This indicated that his soul was suffering severe damage while his mindset and emotions fluctuated wildly.

Whenever ripples attempted to burst forth, a seal would manifest deep within Sun Lingtong's soul.

The seal was faint yet tenacious. As the ripples threatened to dissipate, they were immediately reduced to nothingness under its influence.

Witnessing this scene, Qi Bai immediately understood: "The Inspecting Judge possesses heaven-shaking divine power, and Sun Lingtong is powerless to block his soul interrogation."

"Yet the intelligence obtained from the soul-searching is shielded by the Nothingness Seal, turning into a complete blank."

"An ordinary outer sect disciple could never achieve this!"

"To think that although Sun Lingtong clearly never cultivated the orthodox techniques of the Emptiness Sect, his comprehension of the sect's Great Dao has reached such a level."

"What a pity that he exclusively practiced virgin gong! Had he cultivated the orthodox techniques of the Emptiness Sect, his accomplishments would have been astonishing."

Qi Bai merely glanced for a couple of moments before immediately deactivating his innate talent.

The Nether-Crossing Dead Eyes talent was immensely powerful. Judging by its might, it undoubtedly belonged to the tier of celestial talents.

Nevertheless, it possessed a monumental and unavoidable drawback.

That was, every single time it was used, it consumed the user's eyes.

Over time, not only would vision decline, but the eyes would also completely rot away.

Qi Bai had used his innate talent too many times, resulting in blindness that was exceptionally difficult to cure.

Though many powerful therapeutic methods could restore his normal vision, they would impair his innate talent.

Once both of his eyes were completely blind, every subsequent use of the Nether-Crossing Dead Eyes would shave away a portion of his remaining yang lifespan.

Thus, every use cost him a slice of his life.

The price was steep.

"Once is enough!"

Qi Bai reclaimed Sun Lingtong's soul and shoved it back into his physical body.

A cold smile surfaced on Qi Bai's face: "Next, Sun Lingtong, scream to your heart's content!"

"My soul torture is unique and stands alone throughout the entire sect!"

Executing his cultivation technique, Qi Bai summoned various minor ghosts that crawled over Sun Lingtong's body and pinned him down.

Internal energy surged throughout his frame, surrounded by chilly winds.

He drew out coffin nails and drove them viciously into the backs of Sun Lingtong's hands.

Screech! Screech!

With two soft sounds, Sun Lingtong's hands were nailed to the wooden pillars, hoisting his small body up into the air with his feet dangling off the ground.

Sun Lingtong's eyes bulged wide, a hoarse rattling sound issuing from his throat. He fixed a gaze blazing with fury straight upon Qi Bai.

Yet Qi Bai was baffled: "Why aren't you screaming?"

"That makes no sense!"

"I deliberately returned your soul to your flesh, employing physical torture to aggravate your soul and multiply your agony tenfold!"

"Under my soul torture, you don't utter a single sound?"

"Did you employ some special magic to seal off this pain?"

"No, that's not it. If you truly had, it would have been impossible for me not to notice when I used my innate talent just now."

Suspicious, Qi Bai summoned the triangular-eyed man and the hooked-nose man into the room.

He cast spells on both of them—using coffin nails on one and soul torture on the other!

The triangular-eyed man shrieked in piercing agony while the hooked-nose man rolled his eyes back, foaming at the mouth and passing out after merely a few breaths.

"Now that's more like it!"

Qi Bai's doubts cleared as he turned back to look at Sun Lingtong, his expression cold and ferocious. "To think that beneath such a small frame, you are a thoroughly stubborn fellow!"

"Hehehe, let me see just how long you can hold out!"

Sun Lingtong had provoked Qi Bai's competitive spirit.

He began to torment Sun Lingtong, employing every kind of harsh punishment; he was determined to see Sun Lingtong weep and hear him shriek in misery.