When the blindfold came off, the first thing Zhou You saw was an iron cage hanging in midair.
It was small, like a repurposed dog crate. But the thing inside was no pet.
It was a person.
Naked and curled up inside the cage, the person was covered in bruises. One eyeball had even been gouged out, leaving only a dark, empty socket.
Zhou You frowned slightly.
A scam compound like this was bound to give newcomers a scare. Even if he had never seen it himself, he had heard about it. But this person...
The person was clearly dead.
After enduring such abuse, they had probably spent a long time in agony before finally dying.
"..."
Zhou You said nothing. Instead, the manager behind him shouted in displeasure.
"Didn't I tell you to keep an eye on him? What were you doing? It's only been one night. How is he dead already?"
The security guard behind him scratched his head sheepishly. "Manager, it's not that we didn't try. He was just hurt too badly. We didn't even have time to call a doctor before he stopped breathing..."
The manager spoke with deep regret.
"How many times have I told you to go easy when teaching someone a lesson? You don't have to take everything so far. You... Ah, forget it. Get him down. In this heat, he'll start stinking in a few hours!"
The guards obediently lowered the cage.
Then the manager shoved Zhou You into the building. The door slammed shut behind him, followed by the sound of a lock turning.
Zhou You looked around.
How to put it... Perhaps you had seen one of those cheap roadside lodgings: a single room with a dozen or so beds, everyone sleeping together, the sort of place traveling vendors stayed