The captain was stunned upon hearing this. Such a situation was rare for him. After thinking for a moment, he still didn't dare to block the way, and simply said, "Captain Gu, you want to interrogate a prisoner—I certainly can't stop you. But since you're not on duty right now, if you want to take someone out, please first present your identity token."
An identity token was something Gu Xintang naturally possessed.
He took out his identity token and handed it to the captain. The captain examined it for a moment and smiled, "I humbly ask Captain Gu to verify it."
After presenting the identity token, it had to be confirmed by the person's own natal divine sense. If it truly was the person's own identity token, it would resonate with their spiritual sense.
If it wasn't the person themselves—if someone was impersonating them—it would definitely be exposed. After all, if you obtained someone else's identity token, you certainly couldn't use your own spiritual sense to resonate with it.
Gu Xintang frowned. "Captain Qin, we're old brothers. Do you really need to go this far?"
Captain Qin smiled bitterly. "Captain Gu, if you were on duty and I wanted to take someone out, I'd certainly cooperate without hesitation. But I'm on duty now—I can't afford to be negligent."
Gu Xintang's expression darkened. "Captain Qin, I've always treated you well enough, haven't I? At a time like this, you can't even give me this much trust?"
"If it were truly you, Captain Gu, I'd trust you without question. But... I'm also worried about impersonation."
The Black Prison Area was a critical location—not just anyone could come and go.
Gu Xintang said angrily, "Your imagination is truly vivid."
With that, he activated his natal divine sense, directly resonating with the identity token.
When Captain Qin saw that the token resonated properly, a trace of apology flickered across his face. "Captain Gu, my apologies. I'm just doing my duty."
As he spoke, his gaze shifted toward Jiang Chen and the Peerless Emperor.
Obviously, he wanted them to present their identity tokens as well.
Gu Xintang's expression grew even uglier. "Captain Qin, are you deliberately making things difficult for me? I've verified mine—do you need to verify my subordinates too?"
Captain Qin saw that Gu Xintang's tone was extremely hostile, and his heart began to pound. He looked at Gu Xintang, and in the end let out a long sigh. "Captain Gu, since you put it that way—forget it. Go on in."
According to the rules, everyone who entered had to have their identity verified. But Gu Xintang was ultimately one of their own, and his identity had already passed verification.
As long as there was nothing wrong with him personally, the subordinates he brought along certainly wouldn't be a problem.
Captain Qin didn't want to completely offend Gu Xintang. So he decided to do him this favor.
Both Jiang Chen and the Peerless Emperor remained perfectly expressionless. In the moment Captain Qin had wanted to verify them, they had been completely in sync—both prepared to subdue him on the spot.
Fortunately, Captain Qin ultimately gave Gu Xintang some face and didn't press the matter to the bitter end. Still, it had been a close call.
Upon entering the Black Prison Area, Jiang Chen immediately felt as though he had stepped into an entirely different world.
It was a dark, filthy, suffocating world.
The moment he walked in, a pungent stench assaulted his nostrils.
It wasn't just the smell of filth—there were rotting odors, the stench of blood, the reek of sweat, all mingled together so thoroughly that it nearly made one vomit.
Gu Xintang said with some embarrassment, "The Black Prison Area is always like this. Please bear with it, you two."
Jiang Chen shook his head. "Let's find the person."
The Black Prison Area was vast. None of the cells were sealed—it was possible to walk freely throughout the entire area. This was by the Moon God Sect's deliberate design, intended to make the prisoners here kill each other off and fend for themselves.
The entire Black Prison Area was like a slum, where every single minute, all of humanity's filth and darkness played out.
The moment Jiang Chen entered, he opened his spiritual sense to its fullest. The Heavenly Eye Divine Pupil combined with his Evil Golden Eye gave him extraordinary penetrating vision. He didn't miss a single corner as he began his careful search.
What he saw were bones everywhere—severed limbs scattered about, dried blood that had nearly turned the entire ground brown.
If Jiang Chen hadn't come here with something weighing on his mind, this kind of sight wouldn't have surprised him at all. Almost every sect had a Black Prison Area like this.
Every sect would lock certain serious offenders in the Black Prison Area and let them fend for themselves. Those who truly survived to the end were all remarkable individuals. Many sects would even recruit some of the survivors.
Of course, this recruitment was, frankly speaking, merely exploitation. They were given a chance to serve the sect and earn redemption through merit.
For the death-row prisoners locked in the Black Prison Area, this opportunity was obviously very tempting. Because in this place without sunlight, even if they could survive indefinitely, life was incredibly monotonous and tedious—they had lost their freedom.
Without freedom, even eternal life was meaningless.
So, those who wanted to earn redemption and regain their freedom would generally accept this temptation.
Of course, the prerequisite was that they had to survive the brutal conditions of the Black Prison Area. Survive to the very end, be the last ones standing, and only then might they have a chance at that opportunity.
Gu Xintang was also filled with unease, his heart in turmoil. After all, he had been the one who ordered that person sent to the Black Prison Area. He worried—if that person had truly died, would these two really let him off the hook?
In that moment, Gu Xintang was burning with anxiety.
Deep in his heart, he prayed for a miracle—that the person hadn't died.