Gao Zhisheng, a human rights lawyer, details three instances of torture since 2007 while defending groups persecuted by the Chinese government. He describes enduring secret detention and imprisonment, now confined within a larger cell in a northern Chinese village. His account includes a brutal 2009 interrogation where authorities threatened him with an electric cattle prod, revealing their willingness to compromise on technicalities but not principles.

The Communist party framed their actions as purely about interests and money, even mocking human rights concerns in the face of geopolitical leverage. Gao's faith in God, gained during his legal defense of persecuted Christians, became a source of strength during torture. He recounts being forced to urinate under guards' supervision in a prison bathroom, highlighting the dehumanizing conditions.

The prison system explicitly bans all religious practices, including Islamic prayers and Christian worship, under the guise of prohibiting "illegal religions." Gao contrasts this with historical examples of state control, like the "deer/hoax" incident under Zhao Gao, and modern indoctrination tactics used on guards. He concludes by stating his unwavering stance against the state's developers of hell, rejecting any remorse demanded by prison authorities.