They all call me an Outer God.

Chapter 181 "Prison Break"

"boom!!!"

Lia started banging on the door, but he held back a bit. Midway through, someone probably couldn't stand the noise and came to the door to check on the situation.

"Stop smashing! If you keep smashing, believe me, someone will drag you out and beat you to death to feed the wolves in the suburbs!?"

The banging stopped, and the man noticed a silver coin had been tossed out through the crack in the door. The person inside whispered, "Ah, how did my money fall out?"

Upon hearing this, the person outside immediately realized that someone was trying to bribe him, but he wasn't the kind of person who would be easily bribed, otherwise his boss would have beaten him to death.

At worst, he could just pick up the money and leave the people inside to fend for themselves.

Thinking this, the man happily bent down to pick up the silver coins on the ground—those were silver coins! They represented two months' wages!
Unfortunately, the moment his hand touched the silver coin, a voice came from inside the door again: "You said you wanted to open the door?"

Who said the door should be opened?

The man was puzzled, but his body involuntarily reached out and touched the key at his waist, then trembled as he leaned towards the keyhole.

The brain tells him it's wrong, but paradoxically, it also tells him it's right.

This caused his hands to tremble like a leaf, and the key was stuck around the keyhole for a long time, making intermittent metallic clanging sounds. Half a minute later, when he finally managed to insert the key into the keyhole and turn it, someone reached out from inside, grabbed his head, and slammed it hard against the door frame.

"boom--"

"Snapped!"

The silver coin in his hand fell to the ground, and Ria also threw the man on the ground, picked up the silver coin and put it back in his pocket.

"Wait here, Mr. Detective. I'll go out and retrieve your wheelchair now. Until then, please stay in the room. Oh, and don't rummage through anything; there might be something dangerous inside that could explode."

After giving Ivand some instructions, Ria closed the door, but it wasn't locked properly. He left little Swarth inside to continue absorbing the exhaust fumes.

No matter how much the mythical creatures are revealed, they can never be fully shown. James made this very clear when they first met.

The mythical creature's true form has always been parasitizing Ria's body; it can have many clones, so leaving Little Swarth behind for the time being doesn't matter much.

It needs to absorb more exhaust gas, which will likely become useful weapons in the future.

What happened to the patients' family members who were taken away by the factory owner?

Lia bent down, picked up the person on the ground, and asked, but the person was still not awake. With eyes half-closed, the subconscious mind automatically answered in place of the brain: "Working as a helper in the workshop to the north."

"Would they be willing to work for their enemy?"

"People are afraid of death, and when you threaten them with death, there is nothing they will not do."

Have you ever seen a wheelchair?

"Over there, the boss has already smashed it..."

"I see."

Ria put him back inside to sleep, and the man's mouth kept opening and closing while he was unconscious.

"Praise be to our Lord of Trade! It is my honor to provide you with this information."

“Praising the sun…this belief is really too bizarre.”

Although Ria is the one being worshipped, he still occasionally marvels at the terrifying power of supernatural forces.

Following the route given by the worker, it didn't take long for Ria to find the place where the workers' families were being held. He noticed that each of them wore a metal ring around their neck, with a line connecting them to a single point.

If anyone disobeyed or showed any signs of resistance, everyone on that work line would be electrocuted. In no time, Lia saw them convulsing to the point of almost foaming at the mouth.

Appropriate electric current won't kill people; instead, it will make them obedient and give up behaviors that others deem inappropriate. Beside those people, a worker who looked quite old was monitoring them. Despite being covered in burns from the exhaust fumes, he worked tirelessly for the factory owner.

"It looks really tough. How can you work like this every day?"

Lia clapped her hands and walked in right in front of them.

"Everyone, although I know you may not listen to me, I still have to say that you should resist the oppression you are suffering."

Those greedy wolves are taming lambs to guard another flock; it's only a matter of time before they slaughter you all too.

"Are you willing to become like this, just watching him enslave you? One person may not be able to fight back, but what about a group of people? Why don't you resist—"

Because your unity has been undermined, the victims are becoming perpetrators, becoming the people you hate the most!

Why don't you argue about whose fault it is and fight for your rightful rights?

"What the hell are you talking about!?"

When the foreman saw Ria running in and spouting nonsense, many other workers in the workshop, their faces contorted, tried to look at Ria, but they dared not look up, for doing so would result in the foreman's scolding, or even an electric shock for everyone on the line.

Those innocent victims of electric shocks are naturally unwilling to accept it, and then harbor resentment towards the "bad apples," ruthlessly exercising their bullying power in secluded places.

That is, ganging up on someone.

They've become so terrified that they know exactly how to minimize the harm to themselves.

Lia had no intention of changing these people's minds. He knew that some things could not be changed by personal effort, and he did not feel sorry for these people.

He walked up to the overseer and, amidst the man's puzzled expression, punched him hard.

"You can also interpret what I just said as... if they don't obey, the first person I'll hit is you."

"Turn off the power now, or I'll shove this knife down your throat and into your duodenum!"

"Waaah—waaah!" The foreman nodded frantically in fright, forgetting for a moment what he was supposed to do. If he hadn't just been to the washroom not long ago, he probably would have wet himself in fear.

Lia stood there expressionlessly, watching his panicked state. This man had completely lost his arrogance from just moments before.

Bullying the weak and fearing the strong is the nature of most people.

Because this is an inescapable biological reaction.

"Do you know that a monster lives in the chimney of your factory?"

Ria asked him, but the man didn't answer. Ria immediately raised her voice: "Speak!"

"I know, I know!"

The supervisor's pupils contracted and then dilated.

"What it is?"

"I don't know, I really don't know. All I know is that the factory owner told us to respect the black smoke from the chimney. He said that our real boss lives inside, and if anyone dares to disobey, they will be locked in the exhaust chamber and become its food."

"Judging from your injuries, you must have been inside there before."

"Yes."

"So what are your thoughts on the factory owner now? Do you hate him?"

(End of this chapter)