"What a goddamn atrocity!" Elijah exclaimed before reaching into the iron cage and slapping Finn across the face.
"Smack!" The sharp sound echoed in the basement, interrupting Finn's mechanical repetition.
Finn was stunned for a moment, then his body started to struggle as he exclaimed excitedly, "No, don't save me, kill me, kill me! They are all demons, devils! Kill me, give me relief..."
"..."
"Brother, don't waste your effort. This young man is scared out of his wits!"
"Scared?" Elijah heard the voice without panicking.
He first punched Finn, knocking him out, and then strolled over to the iron cage from which the voice had come.
Inside was a man in the same condition as Finn, only he looked more disheveled, with a beard and messy hair.
His clothes were filthy and torn, his legs scraped clean down to the bone, with the remaining flesh grotesquely growing back.
"That's right, everyone here has been suppressed by a Mind Stun ability, and on top of that... you've seen our situation. Few can withstand it. Most either go mad or become idiots!"
"Then why are you okay?"
"Me? How should I say, maybe I have a stronger will, or perhaps it has something to do with my ability!" The man grinned, revealing uneven teeth, clearly beaten out.
"So... are all the people here ability users?" Elijah pointed to the cages.
"Yes, not just us, but even the zombies across from us are mutated! You seem to have guessed it?"
"I have some suspicions, but I still want to hear you say it."
"Alright, I can tell you, but first, let me ask you a question. Have you drunk the water or eaten any food here?"
"I only ate a vacuum-packed piece of bread. I'm very sure it was fine. As for other things, I didn't touch any of it!" Elijah recalled and answered.
"You're quite cautious. I advise you not to dig into this. While you still can, get out of here quickly!"
"Thanks for the advice, but I still want to hear your story." Elijah remained indifferent.
"Back then, I had no choice but to eat the meat myself. But Matthew wanted everyone to eat it, especially those clueless newcomers... I couldn't do something so heartless, so I wanted to leave!"
"I see!" Elijah nodded. It was obvious Matthew wouldn't let him go.
If Elijah were Matthew, he wouldn't let anyone who knew about this leave either!
It wasn't a matter of morals; once this secret got out, it would cause trouble.
Not to mention, someone could imitate his methods and create a second YLK Group, which would be a great loss.
"Since you understand the danger here, you should leave while you still can, otherwise..." The man tried to persuade Elijah again.
"Don't you want to escape from here?"
Although Elijah didn't have a good impression of the man for eating zombie meat, he respected him for refusing to join Matthew's depravity and for twice advising him to escape.
Elijah was willing to lend him a hand.
The man stared at Elijah blankly for a moment before replying gloomily, "Matthew... his power is too terrifying. We're no match for him. If you don't leave now, you won't be able to leave later!"
"Really? How terrifying? I'd like to see for myself!" Elijah said calmly.
The man shook his head and looked at the nearby cages. "There are some here who thought like you, but the result... heh! Heh! You can see for yourself!" Stay connected through m-v l|e'-novelhall.net
"I... am a bit different from you all," Elijah said without further explanation. "Let's wait and see."
Elijah had unraveled the secrets here.
The next step was to find an opportunity to contact the higher-ups of the YLK Group and Matthew!
They were all scum who deserved to die!
He needed to distinguish clearly; if he acted rashly and let a few henchmen escape, it wouldn't matter much.
But if the higher-ups or Matthew escaped, a new YLK Group could emerge at any time.
Not only would that be a wasted effort, but it could also create a hidden enemy for himself.