"Negative Man Zone." Conan Doyle couldn't help stroking his cane when he heard the word.
The old detective never thought that Roald Dahl would show them such a place. The "Negative Man Zone" could be said to be one of the important reasons why he and the Psychic Association took the initiative to request to come.
In addition to ghosts, gods and psychics, there are some strange places in the world where things and phenomena occur that cannot be explained by science.
One of them is the Negative Man Zone, which looks like a huge hollow mine, but no one knows its exact size.
Mystery and strangeness can be said to be synonymous with this place. No one knows how they were created, and no one knows how they work.
This is the only negative-number zone in the world where intelligence circulates in the inner world. Conan Doyle did not know if there was a second place like this in the world, but there is no doubt that Roald Dahl can be said to be the first person to discover and use this place.
As the name suggests, the negative zone is where creatures with negative ages gather, and there are countless unborn lives floating in it.
If that were the case, it would not have attracted so much attention from people in this world when the information was exposed. However, the reason why almost half of the forces in the inner world attached so much importance to it and were so eager for a golden ticket was more importantly because it was a product developed by Roald Dahl.
The pill that can make people younger instantly is what the powerful and influential people are eager to get.
When this rumor was first exposed, not many people believed it.
Perhaps this level of attention wouldn't have occurred if it weren't for the Oompa-Loompa who defected from the Dal Candy Factory with the little yellow pill.
Conan Doyle remembered well what happened when the Oompa-Loompa swallowed the pill to prove his words.
The wrinkled dwarf had white hair and beard and looked lifeless, with only a gloomy light of greed and ignorance in his eyes.
But when the pill that was still dancing in the dwarf's palm was put into his mouth, something incredible happened.
Under the eyes of MI6 and Moonlight Society agents, the dwarf's skin gradually became smooth, his eyes became brighter, his body gradually became able to stand straight, and his dry strokes were replaced by vibrant red hair.
But the changes did not stop when the old Oompa-Loompa grew into youth. His regrown permanent teeth fell out again, his baby teeth took over those red gums, and he began to shrink, becoming powerful and helpless.
"Negative number of people...don't...overdose..."
A terrified scream came from the mouth of the Oompa-Loompa who was transforming into a young child, as if he himself had not expected at first that this process would not stop, and a strange and confusing language that was unintelligible came out of the dwarf's mouth, as if he was facing the fear of the unknown.
Conan Doyle was one of the onlookers at the time, and his perception was more acute, so he could barely hear some of the Oompa-Loompa's gibberish.
At the same time, unlike his colleagues who whispered that this might be some kind of deception, he clearly realized that the dwarf was indeed being continuously reduced in age by external forces.
Soon the Oompa-Loompa, who had swallowed the pill, could no longer utter a word that even remotely resembled a modern language. He had turned into a red, wrinkled baby that was getting smaller and smaller.
His limbs were constantly degenerating, like a wriggling, breathing mass of flesh, curled up like some kind of embryo.
Soon, the cells that differentiated into various organs were gradually restored, and the outlines of the facial features were completely hidden under the thin flesh membrane, just like pressing the angular plasticine into a flat surface again.
The soft substance that was constantly degenerating and trembling disappeared into the air as if it had never existed.
It's just the shock he left behind
, but it caused everyone present to fall into a brief state of speechlessness. Even though some people still expressed doubts, more people had already revealed a thoughtful expression.
Conan Doyle did not look back, but he could feel the greed and desire in the eyes of the people around him. Most of those who could stand here today, or were qualified to know what happened here, were of his age.
As for what a group of elderly people who have entered this stage can desire, it is naturally self-evident.
However, although all the people present were checked one by one at the time, it seems that a spy still passed on such information, which made it difficult for them to get a golden ticket and also attracted unfriendly competitors.
The old man adjusted the brim of his hat and glanced at the man with long silver hair as usual, having already made some assumptions in his mind.
In a sense, Gin was also observing them.
In the eyes of Mafia, Nakajima Atsushi's group is not particularly competitive. Although Gin has heard of Dazai Osamu's reputation and is very wary of it, he can see that Dazai Osamu himself does not have a very strong desire to win.
Although the white-haired boy who came with the young man is ambitious, he is not good enough to face Nakahara Chuuya.
With a partner like Nakahara Chuuya who has a combat power that can be said to be at the ceiling level, Gin can let go and plan some things.
What's more, the fundamental purpose of the port mafia is to obtain a large amount of cash flow and alleviate financial pressure, which has almost no conflict with the purpose of the black organization.
"Well, gentlemen, we don't have time to play the game of look at me and look at you. Now everyone can use the floodlight to look outside."
The voice of Roald Dahl interrupted everyone's thoughts, and his joyful and elastic tone easily made him the focus.
Following the instruction of the waving golden cane, everyone kept silent tacitly in such an unfriendly atmosphere, but they all picked up the searchlights as instructed.
"Did you find anything?" Daniel Defoe asked in a low voice, hardly moving his lips.
The sailor, who looked rough but was actually very careful, stood behind the old detective and used his broad back to block the gaze coming towards them.
"There are a lot. What do you mean?" The old man answered him in the same way.
The tall sailor hesitated for a moment and asked, "Which rumor is true?"
"The one about rejuvenation." He paused again before speaking.
The hesitant man in a dark purple tuxedo was already walking towards this side with brisk steps. Conan Doyle didn't have time to say more, but just hurriedly ticked the back of the sailor's hand.
He had a good relationship with the Duke of Monmouth and believed in the character of Daniel Defoe and the Duke of Monmouth, so he naturally didn't mind revealing such things. As for whether such information would make the royal family restless, it was not within his scope of concern.
"I understand." The sailor's brow wrinkled for a moment and then immediately smoothed out without revealing a trace of abnormality. He has always been very convinced by Conan Doyle's words, and this time is no exception.
Discussing the plan in a closed glass elevator with almost no privacy was obviously not a good option, and there was nothing else to do at the moment, so Daniel Defoe simply picked up the searchlight.
The moment the white light swept past, he came into contact with something unusual. If he had not had a long experience of living at sea and was not an experienced psychic, he would probably have been as frightened as the Japanese boy not far away.
A translucent ghost-like object often described in mythology reflects a milky white glow under the light.
It looked like an Oompa-Loompa, except that it was probably not even human now. It just floated numbly beside the elevator, not even reacting to the overly bright lights.
"Mr. Doyle..." Daniel Defoe was about to share his discovery with the old detective who was absent-mindedly disgusted by the buttons on the old glass elevator when he was interrupted.
"Great! What a wonderful exploration, gentlemen! You have found our target, a minus four hundred year old Oompa-Loompa!"
Excited applause came from behind Daniel Defoe, but the applause of only one person seemed particularly abrupt in the elevator.
Nakajima Atsushi followed suit and beat the drum twice at first, but when he realized that no one was following Roald Dahl's instructions, he hesitantly put his hands down.
No one cheered or dampened the joy of the man in the lavender velvet tuxedo. He continued to applaud for twenty seconds without caring, and then put his hands down with satisfaction.
"Negative four hundred years old!" The man walked quickly on the glass floor like a goat, tap dancing. "The last time I saw him, he had lost all his teeth!"
"And now! It will be four hundred years before he can meet us again."
For a moment, Nakajima Atsushi was unsure whether Mr. Roald Dahl was telling a joke, and the barrage of comments expressed a similar view after a brief pause.
[Uh, today's joke?]
[Ah, if I were born 400 years later, the candy factory would be gone.]
[Is it some kind of anti-aging drug? But is it so strong that it turns a person's age into a negative number?]
[If that's the case, does Mr. Dahl want to demonstrate the power of the anti-aging drug? I'm looking forward to which lucky audience member will be the guinea pig, hahahahahaha]
[Not necessarily. Even if they want to display products, they don’t necessarily have to be anti-aging drugs.]
[I have a bold idea. If there is a drug that can make people age faster, is there a drug that can make people age faster? After all, we are in a negative population area, not a senior citizen activity club (bushi)]
[That makes sense. I’m looking forward to it.]
The glass elevator trembled twice and began to move slowly.
"We are about to begin. Keep quiet," Roald Dahl said in a low voice. "We need to get closer."
The glass elevator slowly approached the minus four hundred year old Oompa-Loompa, but the translucent negative number man showed no intention of running away. He just stared at them dully like a goldfish in a fish tank.
Roald Dahl pulled out an enormous syringe from under his tuxedo like a magic trick, making people wonder if there was some kind of alien dimension under his tuxedo.
A black liquid filled up more than half of the syringe, emitting an aura that made people instinctively feel that something was wrong.
"Mr. Dahl, what is that?" Nakajima Atsushi couldn't help but ask. The color of the liquid reminded him of some potions with very unpleasant tastes. The combination with the syringe was even more frightening. He couldn't help but shudder.
"Well -" the owner of the candy factory twirled his goatee and smiled meaningfully so that his caramel-colored eyes could not be seen, "it is something that can increase your age. Just one drop can make you like this The bouncing little guy turned into an old man.”
"Although it is based on someone else's secret recipe, I still added some fresh improvements, such as adding blood scabs from the witch's head to make it smell like the smell of yesterday's stinky socks that fell off three months ago."
This was probably a real joke, Nakajima Atsushi looked dead in the eye and thought inappropriately.
Gin was still considering how much he could believe the words of this seemingly unreliable man when a huge syringe was stuffed into his hand.
"Perhaps you wouldn't mind helping me," the man tapped the ground with his cane, glanced at Gin and Daniel Defoe, and pointed in the direction of the button, "I have to control the direction of the elevator, I'll leave it to you."
"Once you're close, pour the entire contents of the syringe onto poor old Palastri."
"Don't worry about the waste. We have to make sure he gets completely wet. I have great faith in your skills." He patted the two men's shoulders hard, and with a strength that was inconsistent with their appearance, Gin and Daniel Defoe were pushed to the elevator door.
"Please aim carefully and not leave a single drop behind, gentlemen."
It's as if all the dark thoughts and plans in the elevator are
Without them noticing, Roald Dahl's voice, the same as before, rang out behind them.