Reborn as the Villain's Wife, I Shine in 80s-Chapter 533 - 517 Living towards death (1)

Guan Kunling was tied up inside a burlap sack. It was pitch black inside, suffocatingly oppressive. For someone usually so poised and unyielding, it was humiliating to find herself in such a wretched state. The sack was undone, and she was finally able to see the light. 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

The room she found herself in was old and damp, its walls adorned with creeping moss. The window was small and positioned high up, offering no view of the outside world, nor allowing in any external sounds.

Standing a short distance away was a man clad in black. With his hands clasped behind his back, he exuded both a towering frame and an oppressive aura of authority.

Looking down at her from above, he spoke in a detached tone, "Miss Guan, a pleasure to meet you."

Guan Kunling silently scrutinized him for a moment. "Who are you people?" she demanded. Behind him were two men, clearly skilled fighters with no shortage of combat prowess.

"Even if you don’t recognize me, you must at least know my son, Lu Chi. He’s been infatuated with you for quite some time."

"Commander Lu," Guan Kunling replied with sudden understanding.

"Don’t call me Commander," Lu Lixing interrupted with a feigned helplessness. "Here, I’m just an ordinary man—your adversary, Miss Guan. You’ve disrupted our plans time and again, your origins remain a mystery, and your exceptional martial arts skills have us all puzzled. Who exactly are you, Miss Guan? What’s your purpose in coming to Beijing? Or perhaps, are you the restless ghost of Jiang Jiaqi, here to drag me into hell? If I could kill Jiang Jiaqi once, I can kill her a second time as well. What you’re doing is nothing more than courting death."

Guan Kunling let out a disdainful smirk. "If you’re going to kill me, then get on with it. Stop wasting your breath."

"Straightforward—I admire that," Lu Lixing remarked, his piercing gaze fixed on her. "Tell me your identity and your purpose. For my son’s sake, I might consider sparing your life. Oh, and where is the map?"

"Who do you think I am? I am only Guan Kunling."

"No," Lu Lixing retorted, calm and composed. "There’s something deeply abnormal about you. You are far more than just Guan Kunling. The murderous intent in your eyes when you look at me—I can sense it."

"I’ve told you the truth. You’re just overthinking things."

"Miss Guan, it seems you’d rather drink poison than wine." With a wave of Lu Lixing’s hand, two burly men carrying long staffs stepped forward. Their expressions were stern, their gazes menacing as they regarded Guan Kunling.

A gag was forced into her mouth, and her head was covered again. Darkness enveloped her once more. Agonizing pain erupted across her body, as though tearing through her nerves, wrenching muffled cries of pain from her.

Her entire skin screamed in torment, every inch of her body trying to awaken buried memories. The sensation, cold as a razor slicing through flesh, traversed time and space. The only constant in the suffocating darkness was pain...

Lu Lixing observed coldly, waiting a full half-hour before signaling for them to stop.

Guan Kunling’s hair was thoroughly soaked, plastered against her cheeks.

She was hoisted out of the sack. "Miss Guan, are you going to speak or not?"

Her gaze remained defiant and unyielding.

The next two days unfolded in the same torment. Beaten repeatedly, Guan Kunling refused to utter a single word. By the time she was tortured nearly to the brink of death, her body hung on by a thread. These beatings were never fatal, but they stole half her life each time. Even with her formidable martial arts skills, she was powerless against this unrelenting brutality.

By now, she was no longer confined to a sack but strung up like a criminal. Her wrists were chained high above her head, her ankles shackled in heavy iron clasps. Her once jet-black hair hung in disarray, with strands clinging to her delicate, albeit ghostly pale, face.

"Miss Guan, you still refuse to speak?"

Guan Kunling’s bloodless lips twisted into a mocking smirk. "You’re not from the military."

Lu Lixing chuckled indifferently, neither confirming nor denying her accusation. "I’m your enemy, just as you are mine."

At that moment, someone entered the room. "Dad, why did you have me come here—what’s the new—" they began but stopped in their tracks. Their eyes widened in disbelief as they took in the sight of the bound woman.

Guan Kunling’s clothes, tattered and streaked with blood, clung limply to her body. Her usual stoic face was now hauntingly pale with a sickly weakness. This version of Guan Kunling, pitiful and broken, was a shadow of the woman they once knew.

"Dad!" Lu Chi shouted in shock, "Why is Kunling here? What have you done to her? How could you beat her like this?" His voice cracked with grief, as though every lash she bore was digging deep into his soul.

"She’s a threat to us," Lu Lixing replied without a hint of sympathy. Ignoring his son’s urgency, he turned back to Guan Kunling. "Miss Guan, as you can see, my son is completely besotted with you. You don’t need to speak if you don’t want to; just pledge your allegiance to us."

Guan Kunling’s voice was cold. "How is that any different?"

Lu Lixing glanced at his son nonchalantly. "Lu Chi, I’ve done all I can. If she refuses to talk, there’s nothing more we can do."

"Kunling, please," Lu Chi implored her. "Just do as my father says. Tell him what he wants to know."

Guan Kunling looked directly at him and let out a faint laugh. He was nothing but a weakling, a coward who couldn’t even muster the courage to defy his father. Lu Chi caught the look in her eyes—the silent derision, the disdain for his inability to stand up to authority. His expression darkened.

Even now, Kunling disregarded him completely. This obstinate woman... He had sworn to break her, to see her kneel, but never intended for her to die. And yet, in his father’s hands, there was only one path for her: death.

Speak, and she dies. Don’t speak, and she dies. Submit, and death awaits. Resist, and the same fate awaits. That was the kind of father Lu Chi had, the same father he had feared all his life.

"Flog her," Lu Lixing ordered. "If she doesn’t speak today, keep flogging her tomorrow. And the day after that. Continue until she talks."

The burly enforcer stepped forward, a whip in hand. It was studded with barbs. A glint of icy resolve flashed through Guan Kunling’s eyes. It wasn’t winter, and the thin clothes she wore couldn’t protect her. She could already imagine how each lash would cut through her skin like fire.

Before she could think any further, the whip cracked against her back. Each strike tore through her flesh, leaving a bloody streak in its wake.

The sensation of skin splitting open, of fire digging into her flesh.

The scorching pain.

Once. Twice...

It hurt. So much.

Guan Kunling had always lived on the edge, teetering between life and death. Even so, she was still human, not made of steel. She could feel the sharpness of each lash. Her past was a blank slate—she couldn’t remember who she was, only that a head injury had robbed her of her memories. Later, she was selected and trained to become a Hidden Guard. That period was both bleak and illuminating for her.

Her master was her universe, her faith. But in this new world, she met Sangsang. The young woman’s radiant smile left a lasting impression on her. She had wandered the world, encountering people both good and bad. None of it deterred her from falling deeply in love with this new reality.

Lu Chi stared helplessly as her blood continued to seep away, bit by bit.

"Stop!" he suddenly shouted in desperation. "Dad, make them stop! She’s going to die if this continues!"

"She brought this upon herself," Lu Lixing replied, unmoved. "Lu Chi, how many times have I told you? There are plenty of women in the world. Once she’s dead, you’ll get over her soon enough. A woman like her, full of thorns, will destroy you. You’re better off without her."

The whip lashed relentlessly against Guan Kunling, unstoppable and infinite. The pain forced her to bite down hard on her lip, drawing blood. At last, she couldn’t hold back anymore—she screamed.