strictlysupreme Chapter 21: The Corruption Cult
Chapter 21: The Corruption Cult
Inside the interrogation room, Steward Mike had already subjected the captured serfs, free men, and town officials who had made rebellious remarks to a severe beating.
The palace had specialized torturers who were skilled in various interrogation techniques, plunging those who relied on their eloquence into extreme suffering.
The entire interrogation process was highly efficient, and it was quickly determined who were accomplices, who were just spouting nonsense, and who were involved in an organized and premeditated scheme.
The tall, burly court guard asked in a low voice, "Sir, what should we do with accomplices?"
Supervisor Mike replied coldly, "If the accomplice has been crippled and can no longer work, then execute him immediately!"
"If he's not crippled yet and can still work, then regardless of his previous status—whether he was a free man or a town official—he'll be reduced to the lowest class of mining slave and sent to the satellite town of Blackrock to mine!"
One of the court guards, slightly reluctant, said, "Steward, some people are just blindly following the crowd and have said a few foolish things..."
Manager Mike's eyes were icy cold: "Following the trend?"
Taking this opportunity, Steward Mike can finally reinstate discipline!
"You all need to remember this: His Majesty the King has a profound saying, which I will now tell you: Loyalty that is not absolute is absolute disloyalty!"
"The kingdom is vast enough to accommodate any sacrifice of loyalty, yet it is also small enough to tolerate even the slightest rebellion!"
Steward Mike’s loud voice carried out Leon’s words to every court guard.
These insightful quotes, thousands of years later, were meticulously recorded by historians in "The Chronicle of Human Empires"!
The court warriors are the best in the entire kingdom's fighting army!
Most of them were well-educated, some even from noble families, and they were trained in both literature and martial arts from a young age. They were by no means ordinary fighters who were simple-minded and physically strong.
They quickly understood what Steward Mike meant!
"Yes, sir! We understand!"
After he finished speaking, dozens of serfs, freemen, and town officials who had already been tortured and maimed were all killed by the court warriors who raised their long swords and snapped them in two!
"Click!"
Like chopping melons and vegetables, he chopped off the head!
There were still seventy or eighty people left, a little bit of labor left, who were also ruthlessly exiled to Blackrock Town.
They will spend the rest of their lives working tirelessly in the dark and sunless mines until they are drained dry and give their last drop of blood to the kingdom!
Of course, the two, a man and a woman, with disheveled hair and looking like madmen, were escorted separately to Mike by court guards.
According to the results of the interrogation, the man and woman were the culprits who spread the rumors.
Manager Mike's face was as cold as ice: "Tell me who's behind you, your accomplices, the forces behind them, and everything you know!"
The two madmen, a man and a woman, both had a chilling "scorpion and maggot" pattern painted on their faces.
"You king's henchmen! You won't get any useful information out of us!"
"Ujigura! The great Chaos God will protect us!"
The two of them suddenly burst into maniacal laughter.
Steward Mike's eyes suddenly turned fierce, and he waved his hand: "Bring me the complete set of court torture instruments! I will interrogate these two men myself!"
...............
An hour later, Steward Mike walked out of the torture chamber with satisfaction.
Those two wicked thugs who were just shouting have been tortured beyond recognition.
Steward Mike removed all their bones and then smashed them piece by piece.
The female cultist was still trying to chant the so-called "Ujigura" spell to gain protection when Mike simply picked up a skinning knife and cut off most of her face.
After repeated extreme torture, the two wicked men finally broke their silence.
"Give us a quick death, sir!!"
The two evil men said weakly.
Steward Mike beckoned, signaling a clerk to take notes: "Write down every single word they say!"
Soon, Li Ang, inside the palace, met Mike, who had rushed over with the report.
Steward Mike submitted his interrogation report.
Li Ang quickly skimmed through it: "The heretics' organization is called: The Corruption Cult? And they have intricate connections with the rebels in the Western Frontier?"
Since Li Ang ascended the throne, there has been a rebel force in the western border!
Sometimes the rebels would swell to hundreds of thousands, operating throughout the western region.
Sometimes the number of rebels would drop to 60,000 or 70,000, and they would retreat to one or two provinces in the west.
Of course, the number of rebels largely depends on the strength of Prime Minister Tobias's crackdown efforts, who is stationed in the western border!
This iron-fisted prime minister of the kingdom has always been able to precisely control the "size of the rebels" in recent years!
As a result, the rebels in the western border became too powerful to be completely eradicated!
"Yes, Your Majesty! According to the confessions of those two wicked men, the Pope of the Corruption Cult holds a high position within the rebel army and also serves as their strategist. The sudden outbreak of the aphid crisis in Amber Town is the work of the Corruption Cult."
"They placed a source of putrefactive contamination in a satellite town of the capital! This contamination directly caused the aphids to break out and mutate!"
Manager Mike explained the cause and course of events.
"What exactly is this 'source of corruption and contamination'? Where exactly did they place it?"
Li Ang continued to ask.
"I'm sorry, Your Majesty! Those two wicked individuals are too low-level; their information is limited. The exact location of the [Source of Corruption] is unknown, but their superior is a 'Listener' within the Corruption Cult!"
"The Listener's general area of activity is within the Eighth District of the Royal Capital!"
A murderous glint appeared in Steward Mike's eyes.
"A listener? That's an odd title!"
"According to the confessions of the two cult members, the listener was a mid-level manager within the sect, typically responsible for sect affairs covering an area the size of a town!"
Mike explained.
"You'll be in charge of the search in the Eighth Block!"
Li Ang closed his eyes slightly, looking somewhat tired.
Just as the aphid incident was coming to an end, another so-called heretical organization emerged—the "Corruption Cult"!
Fortunately, Steward Mike and his subordinates are all outstanding "model workers," tireless, highly efficient, and skilled, able to share a lot of the workload with me.
As night fell, Steward Mike summoned over a thousand court warriors and dozens of magicians to seal off the Eighth District.
The entire search operation was carried out very quickly. During the day, the household registration files of all residents in the Eighth District had already undergone a round of screening.
Suspicious individuals have now been flagged.
Steward Mack assisted Leon in ascending the throne. This capable steward was never one to be soft-hearted.
"Twenty-two suspicious individuals, all must be captured alive! The capital is the heart of the kingdom, and the Corrupt Cult would never send just one 'Listener' to oversee the entire operation. There must be someone of a higher rank lurking above him."
"Imperial Steward Mike gave the order in a cold voice."