Chapter 3: The Uprising Part 2

The prisoners, who had long suffered under Bo Xi's cruel reign, watched in stunned silence as their tormentor lay defeated before them. Some looked on with disbelief, hardly daring to believe that the seemingly impervious Bo Xi had been brought to the ground.

Li Wuji, his cold and vindictive nature fully unleashed, stood tall and composed, a stark contrast to the broken man on the ground. He gazed at the prisoners with a look of pride and resolve; his eyes seemingly held answers to all their troubles.

"This is the man that has been enslaving you," Li Wuji declared, his voice cutting through the air with power. "Either he has grown weaker or you all are simply earthworms with no means of defending yourselves."

The prisoners exchanged uncertain glances, their spirits emboldened by Li Wuji's display of power and defiance. The realization that they too possessed the strength to stand against their oppressor began to seep into their weary souls.

"D-damn it…" Bo Xi, his face twisted in agony, attempted to rise from the ground, but the pain that radiated from his fractured spleen rendered him helpless. He let out a guttural scream, a sound that echoed through the cold stone corridors of the Black Temple.

"It seems that you haven't had enough." Li Wuji added insult to injury by stepping Bo Xi's side as he pressed his fractured spleen. "Your comrades have left you. I believe they have gone to look for the true master of this place."

Li Wuji's lips curled into a cold smirk as he watched Bo Xi writhe in pain. The prisoners, fueled by a mixture of resentment and newfound hope, approached their fallen tormentor, their footsteps firm and resolute.

"You thought you could break us just because of your cultivation," one of the prisoners said, his voice trembling with a mix of anger and satisfaction. "But now, the tables have turned. Your journey to the Jade palace is near.

Another prisoner, emboldened by Li Wuji's presence, stepped forward. "We will no longer kneel before your kind. We will rise, united, against the oppression you represent." 

The prisoners formed a collective front, their eyes filled with resoluteness and a glimmer of hope. Bo Xi, his face pale and twisted with pain, had long realized that his hold on them had been shattered, replaced by a newfound spirit of resistance.

'These worms only have the guts to say such rubbish in my presence.' Li Wuji sneered as he knew the thoughts of the spineless fools that had stepped forward.

Li Wuji's gaze swept across the prisoners, his voice resonating with power. "Today marks the beginning of liberation. Together, we shall defy the darkness that engulfs this place and emerge from the depths of this hell.

With those words, the prisoners erupted into a chorus of defiant cheers, their voices echoing through the halls of the Black Temple. The air crackled with a newfound energy as the prisoners shed the shackles of fear and embraced the flickering flames of rebellion.

One by one, the prisoners rose to their feet, their eyes filled with unbridled courage. They stood together, a collective force that could no longer be ignored. Their voices swelled in a unified chant, echoing through the corridor.

"Freedom! Freedom!!"

The chant grew louder, filling the air with such a powerful resonance that even the Black Temple itself seemed to tremble in response. The prisoners, emboldened by Li Wuji's act of defiance, were ready to face whatever challenges lay ahead, knowing that their spirits could not be broken as long as they stood united.

'It truly is easier to gather a crowd of fools than a herd of goats.' Li Wuji gazed at the faces of the overexcited group of prisoners, who thought that he would really lead them to freedom. 

"Ahh… mmm…" Bo Xi's screams gradually subsided into agonized moans as he was completely drowned out by the cheers of the prisoners. 

Li Wuji had ignited a spark, a rebellion that would burn brighter with each passing moment. In that dim and desolate place, the seeds of hope and freedom had taken root, nourished by the unyielding spirit of those who had long suffered in silence.

'As long as they believe that there is hope of escaping this place, they will do anything that is told to them.' Li Wuji gave a nod of approval as he accepted the leadership role that was bestowed to him.

As the chanting echoed through the corridors, Li Wuji's piercing gaze surveyed the faces of the prisoners before him. He knew that their enthusiasm and optimism could be manipulated to serve the right agenda. After all, they were mere pawns in his grand scheme for escape.

"You," Li Wuji pointed to a burly prisoner with a cold look in his eyes. "You will rally the others and lead them to the door that leads out of this wretched inmates' area. Make sure they understand that their only chance at survival lies in following my command."

The chosen prisoner nodded eagerly, a mix of excitement and apprehension evident on his face. "I understand; let me inform them immediately." He felt a surge of responsibility, understanding that his actions would determine the fate of those who had suffered alongside him.

Li Wuji cared little for the lives of others. To him, they were like gears that were needed to put his plans in motion but could be replaced if they became faulty during his journey to freedom. He clearly understood that in order to break free from the clutches of the Black Temple, he needed leverage, and the collective strength of the prisoners would provide just that.

"The four of you scout the path on the left, while you four investigate the path on right." Li Wuji ordered the men with little concern for their wellbeing. The prisoners, caught up in the fervor of the moment, followed the commands of their chosen leader eagerly, drawn to the promise of freedom that hung in the air. 

"Let's go, brothers; the path to freedom awaits!" one of the prisoners rallied their group and charged into the left path, while another prisoner did the same and charged into the right path.

They moved with urgency, their eyes filled with a glimmer of hope, ignorant of the true motives that propelled Li Wuji forward. As the prisoners moved obliviously in the dark, a scream was heard in the corridor to the left.

'DONG! DONG!'

"It sounds like they're in danger." One of the prisoners in the main group blurted out. "Brother Li, we must go help them!" The prisoner's outcry fell on deaf ears as everyone stood rooted to the spot. Li Wuji glanced at the left corridor for a moment before turning his attention to the corridor on the right.

'It seems that the right corridor is the correct path.' Li Wuji had predicted that the way out of the prisoner's area would be well concealed using ruses such as these ones. 'The fools who went to the left must be suffering unspeakable horrors.'

"We shall go right." Li Wuji said valiantly. "Our brothers on the left have sacrificed their lives for our sake; let us make sure their sacrifice is not in vain!" The prisoner's fire was reignited by Li Wuji's rousing speech, and it was at this time that the man whose pleas were ignored realized a horrific truth.

 'This man does not see us people.' The prisoner broke out in a cold sweat as he watched his fellow captives rejoice in ignorant bliss. 'We are merely guinea pigs, whose only use is laying down our lives in order to pave a way for him.'

The prisoner realized that Li Wuji did not defeat Bo Xi in order to liberate them; it was to win their favor so that they may aid him in his escape.

"Lin Feng, what are you waiting for? The path to freedom awaits." One of Lin Feng's comrades called out, urging him to follow the rest of the group. "We mustn't waste the opportunity our fallen brethren have given us."

'I must stop this man before he leads the rest of us to our demise.' Lin Feng wordlessly followed his friend as they caught up to the rest of the group; he would stop at nothing to put a stop to the wicked plans of Li Wuji. 

'I shall not allow you to throw away others who live like this; mark my words, Li Wuji.' Lin Feng vowed to himself as he stared at the man walking just a few meters ahead of him.

'It seems that some of them are beginning to have suspicions about my motives' Li Wuji was well aware that his methods were attracting a bit of resentment among some members of the group. 'I need to cull some of their numbers in order to keep these worms in line.'

 

Their journey through the winding corridors of the Black Temple was treacherous; their path filled with numerous obstacles and hidden traps. Li Wuji navigated the labyrinthine structure with a cunning eye, exploiting weaknesses and exploiting every advantage to ensure their progress remained unhindered.

Numerous prisoners met their end as they were sacrificed time and time again by Li Wuji in order for the rest to progress. The crowd began to dwindle, as not even half of them remained. 

Lin Feng stubbornly persisted as he constantly tried warning his fellow detainees about Li Wuji's wicked intentions. However, every time he seemed to attract followers of his own, they were deliberately sacrificed. 

'Does this man feel no remorse for others?' Lin Feng believed that Li Wuji's cruelty would lessen as they moved closer to their goal. Instead, he began to use them like betting chips as he recklessly gambled with their lives for the ultimate prize, that was freedom.

At each turn, he evaluated the risks and weighed the potential losses. If sacrificing a few prisoners would advance his cause, he would not hesitate. To Li Wuji, they were expendable, mere stepping stones on his path to freedom.

"Press on, brothers!" Li Wuji continuously fed them false promises. "We must escape this place and live on for our fallen comrades." The prisoners, oblivious to Li Wuji's true intentions, pressed forward with unwavering determination. They believed in him; their hopes and dreams intertwined with his supposed leadership. They were blind to the cold calculations that governed his every action.

Finally, they reached the door that separated the prisoners' section from the rest of the prison. The air crackled with eagerness as Li Wuji stepped forward, his hand poised to open the gateway to their potential salvation.

"Rejoice, my comrades, for we have arrived!" Li Wuji's voice echoed across the passageway. "Past this door; we face one more obstacle in our path to freedom so be prepared." Lin Feng was still some distance from the main group as he arrived, completely exhausted and utterly miserable. Not long ago, his closest friend was told to scout the route ahead and met an unfortunate end.

He decided to accompany his friend in order to keep him safe, but fate was not kind to Lin Feng as he watched his closest colleague being crushed into meat paste by a terrible mechanism. Not long after his death, the main group was able to easily avoid triggering the mechanism due to Li Wuji's guidance, which caused him to realize the sad truth. 

Li Wuji knew of his plans and he knew that Lin Feng was trying to form an uprising to stop him, but he let him carry on with his actions as he was never going to be a true threat to his plans.

As he watched Li Wuji about to open the gate, he felt a myriad of emotions. He regretted that he wasn't strong enough to fight him head-on; he was angry because no one was willing to stand up to him. But above all, he was sad that his actions led to his friend's death.

'The next step is crucial.' As Li Wuji placed his hand on the door, his heart remained as cold and unyielding as ever. He felt no sorrow for the people he had sacrificed or the hopes he had kindled. His only allegiance was to himself, and he would use these prisoners as long as they served his purpose.

And as the prisoners stood united, their collective resolve strengthened by Li Wuji's unwavering presence, they knew that their journey so far to even reach this point had been treacherous.

However, it was a journey they were willing to go through all over again in their quest to reclaim their freedom. It didn't matter that some of them had died; if they just wanted to live, then the best option would have been to stay in their cells.

The important thing was that they were still alive; in truth, they hardly cared about the deaths of their so-called 'brothers', as those were just empty words. It would be foolish to worry about the life of a stranger before your own; after all, would they have shown the same compassion?

The winds of change swept through the Black Temple that day, carrying with them the whispers of a revolution that had begun in the depths of darkness. And as the prisoners moved forward, their hearts filled with purpose. However, they were unaware that the man they had chosen to lead them had other ambitions.