"I'm going to kill you!"

Xue Rui fixed her eyes on the Guard's longsword and reached out to draw it, but the Guard quickly blocked her.

Even without a weapon, she was relentless, her eyes full of fury as she charged at the Mixed Blood,

"I'm going to strangle you!"

In a moment of desperation, Luo De grabbed both of Xue Rui's ears.

In an instant, Xue Rui's body lunged forward, but her head remained in place because of her ears, her claws flailing wildly in the air.

Luo De applied a bit of force, and Xue Rui had to step back.

Snow Rabbit People's ears are quite sensitive, and Luo De's grasp brought her back to some sense.

"What's going on?"

Luo De asked in a stern voice.

Xue Rui wasn't an impulsive person, Luo De knew very well.

On the contrary, she was cautious most of the time, especially in front of Luo De, she never lost her composure like this.

There must be a reason for her sudden frenzy.

Xue Rui's face was flushed, her usually fair skin appeared as if burnt by fire, even the fur was reddened with anger.

She stared wide-eyed and said,

"He says I'm not fit to question him!"

"He says that a Snow Rabbit Person like me is only fit to be a bone in a soup pot, a slice of meat on the grill, like prey or livestock."

Xue Rui's fists were clenched tightly, her nails digging deep into her palms,

"He said if we don't release him immediately, their leader will tear us all apart and throw us into a pot!"

Xue Rui was trembling all over, her large eyes even welling up with tears.

...

Luo De frowned slightly, looking at Xue Rui with confusion.

"Such harsh words are indeed infuriating, but are they enough to make you react like this?"

Xue Rui took a deep breath,

"That's how my parents died..."

Xue Rui's voice was choked with emotion.

"I see."

Luo De immediately understood Xue Rui's pain.

Curses may not cause substantive harm, but if they hit the real wounds, the pain will double.

Luo De gently patted Xue Rui's slightly trembling shoulder,

"Don't worry, I'll leave him to you after the interrogation."

"Since you're unwilling to talk..."

Luo De turned his gaze from the arrogant Mixed Blood to the Guard beside him, his eyes suddenly cold and sharp,

"Why don't you help him?"

"Just make sure you don't kill him."

Luo De added calmly.

"Yes, Lord."

The Guards responded in unison, a trace of ferocity appearing on their faces.

They immediately dragged the Mixed Blood outside and took out the prepared tools.

The crisp sound of metal clashing echoed in the stone chamber, heralding impending pain.

Screams soon reverberated through the manor.

Soon, the gibberish from the Mixed Blood's mouth was heard from outside.

The pain made the voice rise and fall, but some of it could still be heard clearly.

Xue Rui wanted to translate for Luo De, but he waved her off.

"Arrogance comes at a price."

Luo De said calmly, quietly listening to the cries from outside, not in a hurry,

"Besides, I'm not cooking him in a soup, just torturing him a bit, let him endure a little longer."

Xue Rui nodded slightly, her sorrow easing a bit.

At this moment, Luo De was cruel, but Xue Rui felt no fear, instead, a bit of gratitude.

Luo De leaned back in his chair, quietly listening, as if enjoying a piece of music.

When the screams from outside began to weaken, Luo De slowly spoke,

"Bring him in."

"Alright."

Xue Rui ran out, and soon the Guard brought the heavily breathing Lizardman back to Luo De, and rudely threw him to the ground.

"Are you willing to talk now?"

Luo De looked down at the Mixed Blood on the ground, his voice calm.

Xue Rui translated the words over.

After the Mixed Blood answered with gasps, Xue Rui turned to Luo De and nodded.

"He's a scout from the Bloodscale Tribe, responsible for mapping Black Pine Ridge."

Xue Rui's voice resumed its calm, "It seems the Bloodscale Tribe is preparing for the future."

"Are they planning to attack?" Luo De asked.

Xue Rui turned to inquire the Mixed Blood again, then answered Luo De: "He said the Bloodscale Tribe has already defeated five tribes and intends to defeat more in the future."

"They plan to conquer this place and become the strongest tribe in the Desert."

"I don't like hearing such meaningless arrogance, cut off one of his fingers as punishment."

Luo De ordered with a frown.

The Desert has far more than five Alien Race Tribes, how long do they plan to conquer this place?

There's no accurate information here.

After torturing him, he still spoke such nonsense, Luo De was displeased.

However, based on the Mixed Blood's words, the leader of the Bloodscale Tribe does seem to know how to prepare in advance.

"Ah—"

A scream rang out as the Guard mercilessly severed the Mixed Blood's little finger.

Blood quickly spread across the floor.

Luo De suddenly felt a twinge of regret.

Not out of mercy.

But because the floor was dirtied, which would be difficult to clean.

"I don't want to hear any more nonsense, or your fingers will be cut off one by one."

Luo De asked coldly, "Are you the only one who came to Black Pine Ridge?"

The mixed-blood immediately replied in a gibberish manner.

Xue Rui translated concisely, "Five, he said there are five people like this in total."

"Then what's your plan? When are you planning to attack?"

Luo De leaned forward slightly to continue questioning.

"He said he doesn't know."

Xue Rui answered.

"This should be true. People like them are regarded as the lowest in the tribe, unworthy of knowing the real plans."

Xue Rui explained, "They can only do some trivial tasks; even if they die, the Lizardmen wouldn't care."

Luo De nodded slightly, contemplating as he looked at the mixed-blood.

"Since he's a reconnaissance scout, where is his map?"

The guards searched the mixed-blood but found nothing.

Xue Rui translated the question to the mixed-blood, and after hearing the response, Xue Rui frowned tightly.

"Well…"

Xue Rui stammered out, "The piece of beast hide with the map… is tucked between his buttocks."

This answer made others in the room frown as well.

Luo De waved his hand, signaling the guards to handle it.

The guards abruptly pulled down the mixed-blood's pants and indeed found a small scroll from his buttocks.

"What an ingenious spot... looks like next time we'll have to strip them completely during searches."

Luo De hadn't expected this, pointed at the scroll of beast hide, and instructed.

"Get a stick."

No one would retrieve something that had been stuffed into a mixed-blood's buttocks with their hands directly.

"Yes, Lord."

The guard quickly ran out and returned with a stick shortly after.

Luo De used the stick to unfold the scroll, revealing a drawing of forests, rivers, and valleys.

"These guys aren't easy to deal with."

Luo De looked at the detailed map and couldn't help but sigh.

Every terrain noted on the map was extraordinarily precise.

There were no words, only various symbols, even some hidden caves were recorded.

He looked up and ordered loudly, "Inform Durant, Rein, to hurry up and find the remaining four people for me."

He paused for a moment and continued, "Also inform Baron Blom, this kind of spy scout should also exist in his territory."

...

...

Luo De mobilized almost all his forces to search for scouts.

Even some Snow Rabbit People from the Earth Ear Race, who could no longer do heavy work, crawled out of the caves to start searching across the Black Pine Ridge.

White Wolf Ola was also searching for scouts near the Frost Wolf Forest.

At this moment, the advantage of the Wolfhoof Tribe became evident.

They traversed the forest with Desert Wolves, searching through many hidden corners.

The Desert Wolf's sense of smell even surpassed that of a hound, able to find prey hidden in the snow.

The day after the orders were given, Wolfhoof brought back another mixed-blood.

The interrogation of the second mixed-blood also confirmed that what the previous one said was true.

At the same time, Vivian finally returned.

Luo De had sent Avril and Milly to the Sea Abyss Wizard Tower at the salt mine.

Avril stayed in the Wizard Tower to transcribe and organize those tomes, with Milly accompanying her, learning together by the way.

Vivian, on the other hand, stayed by Luo De's side, responsible for his protection.

Vivian's role had shifted to being Luo De's personal guard, capable of informing him in real-time about the happenings on Avril's side.

Especially when it came to wizard-related matters, Luo De could ask, and Avril would be able to look up the information to answer directly from the other side.

...

...

"Is Lord Baron planning to call Gang Le back?"

In the manor hall, after interrogating the third mixed-blood, Durant inquired.

This mixed-blood disclosed even more intelligence.

His reports were more numerous than the other two mixed-bloods, noting that the Bloodscale Tribe had over eight hundred people.

Many members of the Alien Race are physically strong, and besides the old and weak, all are warriors.

In a state of full militarization, half of them could be soldiers.

Even some old Lizardmen would take to the battlefield, and in extreme situations, the entire populace would fight.

They are not to be underestimated.

"No rush, the Bloodscale Tribe is still attacking other tribes."

Baron Blom's territory apprehended three mixed-bloods.

Baron Blom, having had previous encounters with the Alien Race, understood their habits better, and after receiving news from Luo De, quickly unearthed three scouts from his territory.

At the same time, Baron Blom also dispatched spies to Razor Plain, which remained quiet for the moment.

It's worth mentioning that Luo De had exchanged carrier pigeons with Baron Blom, allowing for more timely communication between the two sides.

"Recall them when we have news, there'll be enough time."

Luo De pondered as he lowered his head to look at the map on the table, then instructed,

"Deploy two additional squads to Chris."

Chris's current position was at the junction of Ice Blade Valley and Razor Plain—a major road leading into Black Pine Ridge.

Chris found a cave there to settle, with a towering cliff behind it offering a broad view, essentially overlooking Razor Plain.

It could also be considered an established outpost.

On the other hand, Blom was already contacting other lords on the northwest side.

The lords of the Northern Wasteland needed to form a joint defensive line, and if possible, not just resist, but also crush these Lizardmen in the cradle.

"What's the situation like on Gang Le's side now?"

Luo De asked.

"Eagle Ridge is still in chaos."

Durant reported, "Baron Halon really found the former subordinates of Count Hawk, confirming that his father was murdered."

"The usurper of Count Hawk's title has begun to be vilified throughout the territory, with Zane encountering obstacles."

"Let Gang Le speed up, loot the outer villages and withdraw back to the border first."

After giving this command, Luo De reminded, "But don't forget the most important thing."

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