Read Martial Research Master Chapter 150

Chapter 150

150 TORTURE

“He has ingested a special kind of poison into your body. It is a paralyzing agent that prevents you from moving around.” The Keeper confirmed Long Tao’s suspicion. The artifact was busy absorbing the Qi stone mine and mending itself.

“Can the artifact get me out of here?”. Long Tao didn’t want to showcase the artifact he possessed, but the situation demanded he used it.

“They seemed to have used some space locking treasure. I won’t be able to get you out as of now. It is quite strong. The artifact is not powerful enough yet.” Long Tao’s hopes were crushed after hearing it. He had no way of preventing the current situation. He needed to form an alternate plan to get out of this situation.

“Can the artifact grow strong enough after absorbing all the mines in that area?”.

“If we take all factors into consideration, we should be able to do that. But the absorption of the three mines is going to take some time.” The Keeper was worried about Long Tao’s situation.

“I will hold out until then. Concentrate on the mending of the artifact. They won’t kill me as of now. They would be torturing me to get information regarding the army and my inventions. I would be able to stay alive.”

“I need 5 days at the very least to absorb all the mines. What do you need me to do after absorbing it?”

“Use as many avatars as you like to attack the Chu capital directly and rescue me. These bastards will pay for what they did.”

Revenge required adequate planning to be successful. He needed to stay calm in this situation. Long Tao decided to not show any resistance to the capture.

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The mountain stronghold was properly fortified by Su Menqi. They managed to enter deep enough into the Chu territory. The soldiers required another day to recover their injuries. She could use that time to plan the next attack.

“Is there any news from Long Tao’s side? Is he ok?” Su Menqi asked Di Tao.

“The spies reported that he was able to defeat the Blood general, but he seems to have been captured by the enemy.”

Su Menqi got extremely nervous and agitated. “Did the Chu country send another cultivator along with the Blood general?”

“There was a messenger sent by the second prince of Chu country to ask for Long Tao’s help. He decided to accept the request and left for the Chu capital city. I sent a spy along with him to keep a tab on the general situation.”

“The second had set a trap for him. The enemy managed to capture him with the help of some kind of poison.”

Su Menqi’s nervousness grew even more. She couldn’t let anything happen to Long Tao. “Should we negotiate a deal with the Unrivalled general. I could withdraw back to the Jiao country if that is what it takes.”

Di Tao was surprised to see Su Menqi’s devotion to him. “You need to calm your nerves down. We can’t rash decisions in these situations. Long Tao left the command of the army to you because he recognized your ability to perform well.”

“As of now, we have the upper hand in the battle. The Chu troops current stand at half of their original capacity, while our troop remains strong as before. We don’t need to show our cards. Let them make the first move.”

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“We can’t just leave him at their mercy. He will be tortured by them to reveal your secrets.”

“They are going to perform that anyway. The amount of damage Long Tao’s plans and inventions has dealt with the Chu military is massive. Playing the bargaining chip now would give them the upper hand in the situation.”

“Even if you decide to bargain, they would most likely delay the negotiations to extract as much information as possible. We need to believe in Long Tao’s ability and hold onto our cards.”

Su Menqi claimed herself down. She was the lord commander of the military forces which had managed to wipe out a quarter of Chu military forces. She couldn’t be careless about her decision. A single man, even if it is Long Tao couldn’t outweigh a whole country in terms of preference.

She called a meeting of the commanders and instructed them to hasten the healing of the soldiers. “We will be moving out by tomorrow noon. The next base might be having Unrivalled as its commander. Send a messenger to Tamar requesting the support of senior cultivators in advance Qi general realm. We will be attacking the next enemy base after their arrival.”

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The artifact completed absorbing the Qi stone mine underneath the first stronghold. The mending process seemed to have healed many of its damages.

“The next two mines should be able to heal a lot of damage. There might be a qualitative leap in the artifact too. We can definitely get you out after the complete absorption.” The Keeper assured Long Tao’s avatar.

“How could I improve the elemental nature of the artifact?” The absorption of QI stone mines helped in recovering damages, but the elemental Qi, which was necessary for the cultivation of Crimson World scripture didn’t enhance in quality.

“We need to get a hold on some elemental oddities. The beast flames that you absorb helps in enhancing the fire nature of the artifact. The same goes for other elements too. Elemental stones can also be used, but they are extremely rare to get hold of. We can also use metal essence, which is even rarer. There are other resources, but you are not strong enough to get hold of those. Some may not be available in this world.”

Long Tao was amazed every time he tried to ascertain the level of the artifact. Just how powerful was it at its peak.

“Although the Qi stones couldn’t directly improve the elemental Qi, they do mend the damages of the artifact. It in return is able to absorb pure elemental QI at a faster rate. So you won’t need to worry about the Qi quality for the time being.”

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One of the avatars was practicing on the altar prepared by the puppet. The effect was astonishing. Although he still couldn’t maintain his consciousness while using the demonization art, the burden on his body got smaller with every use. It was getting adapted to the power buff provided by the art.

The avatar would take short breaks to practice the other arts he learned. The dominator’s fist was currently his strongest move. But the toll it took on his body was too high. He not only needed to develop it; he needs to practice it consistently to get accommodated with the technique.

“Divide your time into two parts. Although either of the arts takes a great toll on the body, the new ability you gained from the Blood Tempering art should be helpful to regain your prime condition. The process would also help you get acquainted with the art.”

“The altar functions according to your strength. The higher your strength is, the more heinous will be the power used against you.”

Long Tao continued his practice without any delay.

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Chu royal palace-

Long Tao was held in one of the underground dungeons of the Chu royal palace. He was left there along with numerous guards. A person clads in black arrived today. He sat opposite Long Tao and began the conversation:

“How does it feel to get trapped in her general Long Tao?”

“I have to say, it’s not a pleasant experience.” Long Tao said with a small smirk.

“You manage to maintain such calmness even after being aware of the situation. It is commendable. I wouldn’t beat around the bush. The damage dealt by you to the Chu country is quite large. We can spare your life if you tell us your secret.”

“Which secret do you want to know?”

“How about the device you used to create the explosion. The secrets of the military and the placement of your troops. The secret of the royal castle. Tell us everything you know, and we might show you mercy.”

“I am just a small agent of the military. How could I know so much? You got the wrong guy here.” Long Tao said with an innocent expression.

“It seems our hospitality sent different indications to you.” The silhouette raised his hands and signaled the soldier. Multiple figures appeared in the room.

“Make sure not to kill him.” The figure exited the room and made his way to the door. A loud roar of pain could be heard from Long Tao’s room.