Chapter 145: Is This a Joke?

Once Huangfu Shenqing woke up, those people were bound to be in deep trouble.

Ye Hai and Lin Yan simultaneously exerted pressure on the Federation, demanding the revocation of all punishments against Huangfu Shenqing, full compensation for the incident, and a reasonable explanation for the physical harm inflicted upon him.

The Federation knew very well that what they had done was entirely wrong, but they never expected to be hit with such a fierce counter-attack.

Peideng was the first to refuse to take it lying down. He stood up and cursed angrily, "Damn it, they broke into the Federation headquarters with people, and we are supposed to clean up their mess?"

Ling'ao frowned. "Peideng, watch your tongue. Conducting a private interrogation was our fault to begin with."

Peideng pointed straight at his nose, his tone arrogant and aggressive. "Don't think I don't know you're on their side! What high-sounding nonsense are you spewing? I feel embarrassed for you."

"Hah, and I suppose you're acting out of pure loyalty to the Federation? Then who was it that postponed Delopi's execution last time? And who transferred the criminals from the third underground floor to the first floor?"

"It was me, so what? At least I didn't act like you..."

"Enough! What are you two arguing about?"

Olit, the head of the Federation, interrupted them sternly. "This is not the time for bickering. We need to figure out what to do right now. If... if Huangfu Shenqing doesn't wake up, we are all doomed."

Ling'ao fell silent. If his master failed to wake up, he would take his own life to appease the grievance.

It was all due to his own carelessness; he had forgotten that there were ravenous wolves and tigers lurking right behind them.

The other three Allied Force commanders were also at a loss.

As for the thirty-five permanent directors, they currently had no idea how to handle this tricky and sudden crisis.

One of them spoke up tentatively, "Should we agree to their terms first and figure out a way to maneuver around them later?"

Others immediately chimed in, "Yes, exactly! After all, interrogating someone in the middle of the night was inappropriate to begin with, especially someone of such noble standing."

"Sigh! If he wakes up, it might still be manageable, but if he doesn't..."

"Revoking his charges and compensating those who died seems feasible, but what about the interrogation itself?"

"Indeed, that is the trickiest part!"

Ling'ao asked, "Who conducted the interrogation? Were there proper interrogation orders and confidential directives?"

One of the Allied commanders replied, "There was a confidential directive. It seems to have been issued by General Taro and General Ankafu. Am I right, Generals? As for the interrogator, it was Lali, the warden of the first floor."

Olit ordered, "Have him brought here. I need to know what actually happened."

An Allied officer acknowledged the order and went off to the prison to fetch Lali.

The remaining two Allied commanders trembled slightly. They were none other than General Taro and General Ankafu, the very people General Kane had just mentioned.

Because they were the ones who had issued the confidential directive...

At that time, they had no idea that the man was Huangfu Shenqing, so...

Olit cast a piercing, sharp glance at them. "Well then, would the two Generals care to explain to us?"

Ling'ao's terrifying gaze also bore down upon them.

Peideng acted as if it had nothing to do with him, maintaining a detached attitude.

Kane's expression remained calm; he had merely stated what he knew.

Generals Taro and Ankafu exchanged glances, as if making a difficult decision.

Olit slammed his hand fiercely onto the table. "I don't care who is behind you or how powerful they are! If you don't speak up right now, the two of you will take full responsibility for this mess."

Taro hesitated before saying, "We... we listened to someone else's... someone else's slander. We thought that if we interrogated... interrogated that man, we could get... get half of the weapons and ammunition."

He added anxiously, "But we truly never expected that he was Huangfu Shenqing, the legendary mastermind behind Massacre, the world's largest illegal arms manufacturing headquarters!"

Ankafu also blurted out what was on his mind, "We both thought he... he was just a regular arms dealer, and that man..."

Olit furiously cut him off, "And that man was supposedly unimportant, right? Just a minor arms boss, correct? You thought even if you tortured him, no body would ever find out? Are you all absolute fools? Did none of you bother to verify who he was? You took such a huge gamble just for some weapons?"

Taro and Ankafu could only lower their heads and take the scolding, unable to offer any defense.

At that moment, the Allied officer returned, bringing Lali with him.

Olit instantly shifted his gaze to the warden and demanded sternly, "Who ordered you to interrogate that prisoner?"

Having just woken up, Lali was still unaware of what had transpired afterward, but seeing the grim atmosphere, he could easily guess that something terrible had gone wrong.

He replied respectfully, "I received confidential directives from General Taro and General Ankafu, ordering me to interrogate the prisoner to find out his purpose and the location of his armory."

Taro and Ankafu collapsed into their chairs, their hearts turning to ash.

Olit reined in his temper and continued pressing, "Did you know who he was?"

Lali answered honestly, "The file given to me stated his name was Huangfu Shenqing, and his charges were: unlawfully bombing someone else's castle and illegally researching prohibited weaponry."

Olit clenched his fists so tightly his knuckles turned white. "Did you know *who* Huangfu Shenqing actually is?"

Only then did Lali realize he had seemingly been used as a scapegoat, but he truly had not known who Huangfu Shenqing was.

He was merely a prison warden, largely cut off from the affairs of the outside world. He simply did as he was told and had never imagined...

Seeing the blank look on Lali's face, Olit was beside himself with rage. "You... you absolute idiot! He is a member of the Huangfu family, the CEO of the Huangfu Group, and Massacre, the leader of the world's largest illegal arms stockpile! You must have been completely out of your minds!"

"What? How could that be?"

Lali's eyes widened in shock, instantly replaced by boundless terror. No wonder that man possessed such an overwhelming aura; no wonder he didn't utter a single groan despite enduring countless lashes.

It was over. He was completely finished.

Not only had he whipped him, but he had also turned the electrical voltage up to the maximum.

Trembling with fear, Lali dropped to his knees, his entire body shaking uncontrollably.

Taro and Ankafu exchanged identical looks of utter disbelief. This...

Was this some kind of sick joke?

The person they had collaborated with, the one who ordered them to issue the directive, was actually a member of the prestigious Huangfu family!

Ankafu looked at Olit in shock. "Are you telling the truth? How is this possible? The person who cooperated with us *is* a member of the Huangfu family!"

What?!

Astonishment filled the entire room.

The thirty-five permanent directors could barely keep up with these dramatic plot twists.

Taro stammered, "Yes, he told us he was a member of the Huangfu family. He claimed that our prisoner was merely an unknown arms dealer boss, and instructed us to torture him thoroughly."

Ling'ao narrowed his dangerous eyes.

Peideng sneered. None of these great families had a single decent person among them.

Kane's expression remained inscrutable.

Olit felt like dying right then and there. So, the great families were having a turf war and decided to use the Federation as their loaded gun?

"Then let me ask you two: exactly who is he?"

Taro and Ankafu spoke in unison: "His name is Huangfu Qingan."