Chapter 68: A Shocking Discovery

Sun Fei stepped onto the square and looked carefully. He noticed that most of the people gathered there were dressed in rags, looking pale and thin—these were the commoners of Shampoo City. For some unknown reason, they had all gathered here. When they saw Sun Fei and his companions approaching from afar, they cheered and then, in a rush, knelt on the ground.

“Look, His Majesty Alexander really came…”

“Your Majesty, please uphold justice for us!”

“We want to accuse the Iron Prison Water Dungeon officials of arresting innocent people…”

“Your Majesty Alexander, my son offended Gerger, the son of the former Herald Bazel, and was thrown into the Iron Prison Water Dungeon. Please deliver justice, Your Majesty…”

The commoners knelt on the ground, crying out loudly with sorrowful expressions.

Sun Fei turned to look at Brook. Brook quickly shook his head and said, “Your Majesty, I did not inform these poor people to gather here, nor did I say you would come to the water dungeon this afternoon. It’s strange… should I have them leave immediately?”

Sun Fei smiled and shook his head. “It’s fine. Didn’t I come today specifically to fix the Iron Prison Water Dungeon? This works out well—it will help us understand what really happened there. Send soldiers to set up tables and chairs on the square. Have Prison Warden Oleg bring out all the files and records. I will reform the prison in front of all my subjects.”

Brook nodded, accepted the order, and left.

Soon, the crowd on the small square was parted by soldiers, and a small canopy was set up. Stone tables and chairs were brought out, along with piles of animal skins and silk cloths documenting the cases and trials in the Iron Prison Water Dungeon over the past ten years. These were stacked like a small mountain beside the canopy. Some of the animal skins, perhaps stored for too long, had even developed mold with small black spots, giving off a musty smell.

“Great and noble Your Majesty Alexander, these are all the records from the past ten years. I have had them all brought here—not a single one is missing. Since I, the humble Oleg, have been in charge of the Iron Prison Water Dungeon for Shampoo City, I have not dared to slack off even a little…” The flatterer Oleg stood beside Sun Fei with a fawning smile, holding an exquisite white feather fan and diligently fanning cool air toward Sun Fei.

Sun Fei nodded slightly.

Oleg immediately became as cheerful as a gamecock encouraged by its owner. He happily walked outside the canopy and said loudly, “The great King Alexander has come to the Iron Prison Water Dungeon today to expose and correct the crimes committed against Shampoo City by the ambitious Bazel. Rejoice! Justice and light have arrived at the Iron Prison Water Dungeon. If any of you have suffered persecution or unfair treatment from that damned ambitious Bazel, you can confidently and boldly present your grievances to the great King Alexander. Our king is wise and just, fair and selfless, kind and caring for his people… He will surely give a just reply to all the innocent.”

Oleg used at least a dozen extravagant adjectives to praise Sun Fei. After finishing his speech with flying spittle, he had the soldiers maintain order, carefully separated the canopy from the crowd, and set up a small exit. Only then did he allow the commoners to come forward one by one to state their grievances.

Sun Fei nodded inwardly.

Although Oleg was cowardly, greedy for life, and a total flatterer, he also had his strengths. Compared to an officer like Brook, he was more meticulous and skilled at handling such situations. If used properly, someone like him could be a decent assistant.

“Respected Your Majesty Alexander, please clear my injustice…”

An old man in tattered clothes was the first to step forward and kneel on the ground. His son had once worked as a servant in the residence of the former Herald Bazel but accidentally broke a crude wooden dog bowl used by the fat pig Gerger to feed his dog. They were then demanded to pay 10 Gold Coins. Since the old man couldn’t pay, his son was thrown into the Iron Prison Water Dungeon for over three months, and his fate remained unknown.

Soon, a prison guard brought the records related to the old man’s son. Sun Fei glanced through them and found that the records matched what the old man had said. With a swift stroke of his pen, he ordered the immediate release of the old man’s son and gave the old man 10 Gold Coins from the confiscated property of Bazel’s residence as compensation. Although the old man’s son had suffered some abuse in prison, he was still relatively healthy. The two embraced each other, crying, and knelt to thank Sun Fei for his fairness and kindness…

Witnessing this scene, the surrounding commoners grew excited.

More people came forward to the canopy to weep and tell their stories. Most of the grievances were minor, but because they involved Bazel and some nobles in the city, the commoners had been bullied by the powerful and thrown into the Iron Prison Water Dungeon, where they endured torment…

In just half an hour, Sun Fei had released over forty people from the Iron Prison Water Dungeon. All the wronged poor not only regained their freedom but also received a certain amount of Gold Coins as compensation. One Gold Coin was roughly equivalent to a poor family’s annual income. Immediately, everyone felt grateful and knelt on the ground, shouting, “Long Live the King!”

Sun Fei thoroughly enjoyed playing the role of a judge.

As the trials continued, many in the crowd had initially come to the square just to watch the spectacle. However, upon seeing the proceedings, they couldn’t help but step forward to voice their own grievances. Some had been extorted by nobles until they became beggars, some had their family heirlooms taken by powerful merchants, and some had their young daughters taken into noble mansions, never to be seen again…

For a time, the square grew increasingly agitated, and the situation nearly spiraled out of control.

Seeing that things were getting out of hand and the crowd was swelling, Sun Fei broke into a sweat and temporarily halted the flashy public trials. He ordered specialists to record all the complaints and organize them before passing them to the new Herald Best for handling. He trusted that his father-in-law would manage the matter well.

Sun Fei himself quickly skimmed through all the records on the ground. Most of the cases were not particularly difficult, and he adjudicated them with ease. Over two hours later, about 60-70% of the prisoners in the Iron Prison Water Dungeon had been released. In a remote small city like Shampoo City, the folk customs were simple, and there were rarely any earth-shattering crimes. Most cases involved nobles and powerful merchants oppressing the poor or disputes between neighbors. For Sun Fei, who had traveled through time, as long as he grasped the principle of “fairness in people’s hearts,” there was basically no difficulty.

After handling these matters, all the poor people knelt on the ground excitedly, kowtowing and repeatedly shouting, “Long Live the King!” and “Long Live Your Majesty Alexander!” Amid the waves of cheers, Sun Fei, along with Brook, Oleg, and others, entered the black stone fortress of the Iron Prison Water Dungeon.

Upon entering the stone fortress, Sun Fei realized that the prison’s name, Iron Prison Water Dungeon, was well-deserved. The stone fortress on the square was merely the living quarters for the guards, while the actual prison cells were underground. A deep passage had been carved directly into the stone mountain, leading to the depths below.

The passage was about three meters high and two meters wide, descending step by step down the stone stairs.

The light soon grew dim. After descending about three to four hundred meters underground, the passage finally leveled off, no longer leading downward but extending horizontally. On the stone walls of the passage, many niches of various sizes had been carved out, holding charcoal braziers. The flickering flames cast eerie, shifting shadows, making the entire passage feel dark and foreboding, filled with an unsettling atmosphere.

The farther Sun Fei walked, the more astonished he became.

He was shocked to find that the interior of the stone mountain seemed to have been completely hollowed out. The entire prison was carved directly from the inside of the stone mountain, like an underground maze. After walking over a thousand meters and passing more than twenty iron doors, he heard the sound of flowing water. The passage gradually widened, and many carved stone rooms appeared on both sides, sealed with iron bars. These stone rooms contained damp straw, simple stone beds, and stone chairs—this was where the prisoners were held.

However, since Sun Fei had earlier pardoned many prisoners and released numerous innocent commoners, most of the stone rooms were now empty. Only a few still held prisoners who were genuinely guilty of theft, brawling, and other crimes. As Sun Fei and his group passed, some prisoners looked indifferent, some rushed to the iron bars and shouted their innocence, while others laughed scornfully and taunted them…

As they went deeper, the passage grew even wider, eventually resembling a large hall.

The sound of flowing water became increasingly distinct.

Finally, after advancing another five hundred meters, an underground river appeared on one side of the passage. The icy cold water rushed along noisily. Some stone rooms were carved directly into the stone walls along the river, and the floor was submerged in water. Only by sitting on the stone beds could one avoid getting soaked. This was the so-called “water dungeon.”

By now, Sun Fei was completely stunned.

The scale of the Iron Prison Water Dungeon far exceeded his expectations. Even with the advanced construction techniques of the 21st century, carving out such a massive maze inside a stone mountain would likely take over a decade and consume vast resources of money, manpower, and materials… It was truly astonishing. Who could have carved out such an enormous underground cavern?

As if sensing Sun Fei’s confusion, Prison Warden Oleg hurried up behind him and explained with a flattering smile, “Your Majesty, this prison was not built by Shampoo City itself… According to royal records, over a hundred years ago, a commoner hunting in the mountains accidentally discovered this underground labyrinth. The royal family, upon learning of it, immediately ordered the area sealed off. Over the generations, the kings of Shampoo City explored and gradually improved it, turning it into an impenetrable prison. For over sixty years, no prisoner has ever escaped from here. It is said that your father, the old King Alexander, once imprisoned a very fearsome master here, but even until his death, that master never managed to break out…”

So that was it.

Listening to Oleg’s explanation, Sun Fei suddenly understood and nodded to himself.

That explanation made sense. Such a vast underground cavern could not have been carved out with the current resources of Shampoo City. Even when Shampoo City was a slightly higher-ranking Fourth-Class Vassal State, spending a century’s effort would still be insufficient to create such a terrifyingly immense underground structure.

“Then, do you know who carved out this cavern?” Sun Fei asked.

“No one can say for sure. There are no clues left inside the cavern. Aside from these simple stone rooms and passages, not even murals or statues remain. When it was first entered, no writing or other materials were found. It seems as if someone carved it out and then abandoned it for some mysterious reason. Some suspect it is the work of gods!” Oleg quickly replied.

“The work of gods?”

“Yes. Aside from the almighty and all-powerful gods, it would be difficult for humans to carve such a massive underground maze out of the hard stone inside the mountain… Of course, some say this cavern might be the handiwork of the stone-dwelling Dwarves, but the Dwarf Tribe has been gone for four to five hundred years…”

As Oleg was speaking, Sun Fei’s eyes suddenly brightened, and his field of view expanded. Before him appeared a massive hall with an interior height of several hundred meters. Dense clusters of braziers dotted the stone walls and ceiling, looking like countless Stars twinkling in a dark night sky—beautiful and magnificent.

The stone walls of the hall were carved into tiered steps that spiraled upward. The hundred-meter-high stone walls were divided into ten layers, each densely packed with carved stone rooms. To Sun Fei, it felt as if he had suddenly been transported into the interior of a hundred-meter skyscraper from his previous life. The sight was overwhelmingly stunning.

No words could describe the shock in Sun Fei’s heart at that moment.

“Your Majesty, this is where serious criminals are held. The black-robed Sorceress you brought back earlier and the body of the silver-masked man are kept here. The former Captain of the Royal Guard, Peter Cech, whom you came to interrogate, is also imprisoned here because he was charged with Treason.”

Oleg carefully explained.

Sun Fei nodded and said, “Good. Oleg, send someone with Lord Brook to bring Cech here. I want to see him.”

Oleg quickly called over two prison guards, gave them instructions, and sent them off with Brook up the stone staircases on the walls. They soon disappeared into the passages on the stone walls. Cech was a major criminal, held on the seventh level, so it would take some time.

Sun Fei took the opportunity to carefully examine the layout of the entire super hall. The more he looked, the more astonished he became. Even he was tempted to attribute such a structure to a Divine Miracle. It was unbelievable, like something crafted by gods. Even ten Mogao Caves from his previous life combined could not compare to the scale of this labyrinth.

Suddenly, Sun Fei’s gaze fell on a black iron gate over twenty meters high carved into the distant stone wall. The gate was covered in mysterious patterns that looked somewhat familiar.

“What is that gate for?” Sun Fei asked.