Hao Yun was eventually confined in an isolated cell deep within the prison. The cell was originally very spacious, but after the thorn cage that imprisoned him finished growing, it became so cramped that there was hardly any room to move. Fortunately, the cell had metal bars instead of solid walls, preventing a feeling of suffocation despite being tightly confined. However, since Hao Yun was trapped in the center of the cell by the thorn cage, he couldn’t see much of the outside environment through the barred door.
After several unsuccessful attempts to break free, Hao Yun decided to conserve his energy and think of other ways to escape. He wondered how Dao Lao and the others were progressing and checked his communication records, but there were no new messages.
Hao Yun finally experienced the slow passage of time in a prison cell. Thankfully, there were no guards constantly reprimanding him for various reasons, nor were there any perverted cellmates causing trouble, so he could practice meditation undisturbed despite his anxiety over the rapidly passing time.
Hao Yun meditated for two reasons: first, to concentrate his mental power and connection with his battle armor, ensuring it could more efficiently resist the thorn cage’s suppression and minimize energy consumption. Second, he wanted to use this uninterrupted time to delve into the two new functions he discovered in his armor, wondering what “Cowardly Escaper” and “Snitches Get Stitches” actually did and how to activate them.
"Damn it! What are these functions? From their names, they don’t seem very reliable. Could they be the Countess’s twisted jokes? Will activating them trigger some kind of punishment?” Hao Yun worried, knowing the Countess’s unpredictable nature.
"Hmph! Don’t bother trying, you can’t escape!" Just as Hao Yun was focused on studying his escape options, a weak voice suddenly reached his ears.
"Who’s there?!" Hao Yun shouted, immediately opening his eyes and going on alert.
"Hmph! It’s all futile. With your power, you’ll never defeat the Black Gate. So, my advice is, instead of struggling to the end, surrender early. Perhaps if he’s pleased, he might preserve your consciousness and let you share in the joy of his success, dear priest,” the voice continued.
"Who are you? Show yourself!" Hao Yun demanded again.
"Heh! Who am I? I’m your fellow inmate, of course! What, did you think you were the only distinguished guest in this prison?" The weak but penetrating voice came through the metal bars again.
"Inmate? Who are you, and why are you imprisoned here?" Hao Yun asked urgently.
Hao Yun’s excitement wasn’t because he found a new cellmate but because when he first entered the prison, he had noticed that all the other cells were empty. It made sense, considering the Destroyer’s ruthless nature; he wouldn’t keep prisoners alive but rather kill them or turn them into puppet soldiers. Thus, Hao Yun believed this fellow inmate must be significant. Otherwise, why hadn’t the Destroyer killed or converted him into a puppet soldier immediately? Hao Yun thought there might be valuable information to gain from this cellmate.
"Who am I? Hmph! That’s a good question! Who am I? Am I their teammate, or should I consider them enemies?" the voice muttered to itself. Though Hao Yun couldn’t understand what he meant, the person’s tone was weak yet frustrated.
After muttering in a language Hao Yun didn’t understand, the voice seemed to remember something and raised its volume, addressing Hao Yun again: "Oh, you’re still waiting for my answer, aren’t you? Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Amu Zinen, and I am a commander."
"Amu Zinen? So, it’s him!" Hao Yun thought, surprised to encounter this person here.
Although Hao Yun didn’t know Amu Zinen personally, he wasn’t unfamiliar with the name. Erl and the Destroyer had mentioned him during their disputes, with Erl stating that Amu Zinen belonged to the Destroyer. This suggested that Amu Zinen was also imprisoned by the Destroyer. However, neither Captain Tie Zhu nor King Erl had mentioned Amu Zinen before, so Hao Yun couldn’t confirm whether he was a friend or foe.
Thus, despite his surprise, Hao Yun cautiously replied, "So, you’re the Amu Zinen they talked about! How did you end up here?"
"They? Oh, I suppose by ‘they’ you mean those two ungrateful bastards!" Amu Zinen replied angrily.
Stolen story; please report.
"Sounds like you have quite a grudge against them," Hao Yun said, trying to probe more about Amu Zinen’s true identity.
"Hmph! Those two despicable guys. No, it should be said, that despicable Black Gate guy! Hmph! Whatever. Both of them are no good!" Amu Zinen's tone noticeably lightened upon hearing Hao Yun refer to the Destroyer and Erl as "bastards."
Then, Amu Zinen took the initiative to introduce himself: "I am a commander, responsible for carrying out covert special operations during the Divine War. For example, infiltrating enemy lines to gather intelligence on your Divine Army, or seizing opportunities to sabotage. Additionally, I would seek out chances to eliminate key officials in your Divine Spirit Realm."
"You—, you’re also a Miasma Energy fusion?" Hao Yun was startled and immediately worried about his situation again. He suddenly thought that Amu Zinen might also be here to probe his situation and find a way to break through his armor’s shield, giving the Destroyer a chance to invade his body.
"That's right, Hao Yun, Lord Hao. I am also Miasma Energy. I used to be comrades with the Destroyer, Black Gate. Of course, and Erl too," Amu Zinen replied calmly, showing no fear in revealing his identity before a divine official.
"You know who I am?" Hao Yun was very surprised to hear the other person call his name directly.
"Hahaha! Don’t think that just because I’m locked up here, I can’t know what’s happening outside! Hmph! That damned guy! How dare he treat me like this!" Amu Zinen first responded to Hao Yun's surprise with arrogance, then shifted to a tone of cursing.
"Amu Zinen, are you really a Miasma Energy fusion? Truly those two bastards’ ally? But if that’s the case, why are you imprisoned here?" Hao Yun interrupted Amu Zinen's cursing, expressing his doubts.
Hao Yun's doubts were reasonable. After all, he could only hear the other person's voice and couldn’t see what he looked like. The guy could say whatever he wanted. Moreover, the Countess had repeatedly mentioned that there was a strict rule within the Miasma Energy tribe to help fellow tribesmen in distress and not to harm them without permission. Based on this, Hao Yun found it hard to trust this self-proclaimed Amu Zinen. It might just be another trap set by the Destroyer.
"Heh! Hahaha! That’s a good question! This might be the funniest question I’ve heard lately! Hahaha!" Amu Zinen burst into laughter upon hearing Hao Yun’s doubts.
After a burst of laughter, Amu Zinen said: "You might not know, but within our Miasma Energy tribe, private fights are strictly forbidden. If there is a conflict between our people and they want to fight, they must submit a duel application to our patriarch and fight a public, fair duel under the patriarch’s supervision. Anyone who dares to act against a fellow tribesman in private is committing a serious crime of betrayal against the Miasma Energy, as they would face severe punishment from the patriarch."
"When you say patriarch, are you referring to the Miasma Mother?" Hao Yun asked.
"Yes, our Miasma Energy’s patriarch is the Miasma Mother," Amu Zinen replied.
However, Amu Zinen clearly didn’t want to talk much about the Miasma Mother. Before Hao Yun could ask more, he quickly added: "Hmph! Who would have thought, those bastards always put on a loyal facade to our tribe, but once they were here, they showed their true colors when the battle turned against us! Especially after that big explosion, I didn’t expect those guys to become so lawless! Each of them, for their own selfish desires, was willing to abandon the honor of the Miasma Energy!"
Hao Yun understood that among the guys Amu Zinen was criticizing, the Destroyer Black Gate and Demonized Erl were certainly included. However, it was clear that Amu Zinen was referring to more than just those two. So who else could these guys be? Was Countess Gogolnikyeva and the Miasma Energy fused with Elina among them? Hao Yun wondered.
Of course, Hao Yun wouldn’t bring up the names of the Countess or Elina himself. Although he thought that mentioning them to Amu Zinen might yield some valuable information, he also felt that revealing his connection with those two could put him at a greater disadvantage. After weighing his options, Hao Yun decided not to disclose too much information to avoid giving the enemy more leverage.
Thinking of this, Hao Yun interrupted the rambling Amu Zinen, saying, "Hey, brother, calm down! So, what exactly did those two guys do to offend you? And how did you end up in this situation?"
Amu Zinen was silent for a moment before answering: "Hmph! Alright, I’ll tell you. After all, we’re all trapped in this black hole. What can you divine officials do even if you know the truth?"
Amu Zinen collected his thoughts and said: "I ended up here because of a mission long ago. After the Divine War ended, I was ordered to infiltrate your Earthly Yin Spirit Realm to destroy a prison that held Miasma Energy and rescue those imprisoned. However, we were discovered by patrolling guards and forced into a battle. Hmph! We were really unlucky! We encountered a guard unit led by the daughter of the realm’s leader herself, resulting in the deaths of all my comrades except me."
Attacking the Earthly Yin Spirit Realm’s prison? Encountering the resistance of Judge Yan's daughter? The more Hao Yun listened, the more off it sounded. Right, this guy who claimed to be Amu Zinen said he was a commander? Could it be that he was the very commander Yan Chaoyue had been hunting down? Could things really be this coincidental? Hao Yun thought to himself in amazement while listening to Amu Zinen’s account.
Amu Zinen continued: "Although I managed to escape using a pre-arranged teleportation array, what I didn’t expect was that that woman would follow me into the array without hesitation. She was dead set on taking my life! There was no way out, as her strength was far above mine. I could only keep running and dodging her attacks until I finally shook her off and ended up here."
"Hey? Right. What was that woman’s name again? I think it was Yan something Yue, right?" Amu Zinen said, talking to himself as he tried to remember.