《Ten Days End Revised Edition》


 The Empty Room

    An old tungsten filament light bulb hung from the center of the room, flickering dimly.The quiet atmosphere spread across the room like ink droplets in water.In the center of the room was a large round table, worn and weathered, with a small ornate clock standing in the middle, ticking rhythmically.Around the table sat ten people dressed in various clothes, some worn and dusty.They were either slumped on the table or reclining in their chairs, all deeply asleep.Next to these ten, a man dressed in a black suit and wearing a goat-head mask stood quietly.His gaze peeked through the holes of the mask, looking with interest at the ten individuals.The clock on the table rang, its hands pointing to "twelve."From somewhere far outside the room, a low chime could be heard.At the same moment, the ten men and women seated around the table began to wake up slowly.As they gradually regained their senses, they looked around in confusion, first at the surroundings, then at each other.It seemed no one remembered how they ended up here."Good morning, nine of you." The man with the goat head spoke first. "I am happy to meet you here. You''ve been asleep in front of me for twelve hours."The man''s appearance was eerie, startling everyone under the dim light.His mask seemed to be made from an actual goat''s head, with hair that had turned yellow and black, tangled together.The eyes of the goat mask had hollowed-out spaces, revealing his sly eyes.With every movement, he emitted not only the peculiar smell of a goat but also an underlying scent of decay.A tattooed man with floral sleeves froze for a moment, finally noticing something strange, and hesitantly asked the goat-head man: "Who... are you?""I believe you all have this question, so let me introduce myself," the goat-head man said, raising his hands with enthusiasm, as if he had already prepared the answer.A young man named Qi Xia, seated farthest from the goat-head man, quickly surveyed the room. After a moment, his expression turned serious.Strange, this room is really odd.There are no doors, and the western wall is solid.In other words, the walls, roof, and floor of this room are all enclosed, yet there''s a table in the center.So, how did they end up here?Could it be that they were brought here first, and then the walls were built afterward?Qi Xia looked again at the western wall, noticing that there were intersecting lines on the floor, walls, and ceiling, dividing them into large grids.Another detail that concerned Qi Xia was the "nine people" the goat-head man mentioned.No matter how you counted, there were ten people seated at the round table, and with the goat-head man himself, there were eleven people in total.What does "nine people" mean?He reached into his pocket and, as expected, found his phone was already taken."No need to introduce yourself," a cold woman spoke to the goat-head man. "I suggest you stop your actions soon. I suspect you have already detained us for more than twenty hours, which constitutes ''illegal detention.'' Everything you say now will be recorded and form testimony against you."She said this while irritably rubbing the dust on her arm, as if she hated being dirtied even more than being kidnapped.Her words certainly helped the group regain some clarity. No matter who the goat-head man was, he had dared to kidnap ten people, which was already a violation of the law."Wait a moment..." A middle-aged man in a white lab coat interrupted everyone. He slowly turned to the cold woman and asked, "We just woke up, how do you know we¡¯ve been detained for ''twenty hours''?"His tone was steady and forceful, but it cut to the heart of the matter.The cold woman calmly pointed to the clock on the table and answered, "The clock here shows twelve o''clock, but I have a habit of staying up late. The last time I checked the time at home, it was already twelve. This means we''ve been detained for at least twelve hours."She then pointed to the western wall and continued, "You must have noticed, this room has no doors. This person must have gone to a lot of trouble to get us into this room. He says we''ve been asleep for twelve hours, and now the clock shows twelve again, meaning at least two full cycles have passed. So I suspect ''more than twenty hours,'' is that a problem?"The man in the white coat gave her a cold glance after hearing her explanation, still doubtful.After all, in such an environment, the woman seemed unusually calm.Would a normal person remain so composed and say something like that in the face of kidnapping?At this moment, a young, well-built man in a black t-shirt asked, "Goat-head, why are there ten people here, but you say there are nine?"The goat-head man remained silent and did not immediately respond."F***, I don''t care how many people are here..." The tattooed man cursed and tried to push himself up from the table, but found his legs too weak to move, so he had to continue shouting threats at the goat-head man. "If you know what''s good for you, you''d better back off. You don''t even realize the consequences of provoking me. I will kill you."As soon as he spoke, the expressions of the men at the table grew serious. At this point, they needed a leader. If they could all subdue the goat-head man together, the situation could still be under control.But they soon realized that their legs, as if injected with something, were completely powerless.So the tattooed man could only use words to threaten the goat-head man, shouting angrily.Qi Xia remained silent, gently stroking his chin as he observed the clock on the table, deep in thought.Things didn¡¯t seem as simple as they appeared.He knew that the goat-head man had said "nine participants." If there were ten people here, it only meant that one of them wasn''t a participant.Who could it be?There were six men and four women in the room. Could one of them be the "kidnapper"?The goat-head man said nothing, slowly walking over to Qi Xia and standing behind a young man.Everyone followed his gaze and noticed that the young man in front of them was different from the others. Although his face was dirty, he wore a strange, blissful smile.The goat-head man raised his hand slowly and placed it on the back of the young man¡¯s head.The young man¡¯s smile grew even more eerie, his face filled with excitement as he looked at the others, as if he already knew something.Then there was a dull thud. The goat-head man slammed the young man¡¯s head hard against the table.A pinkish-white substance spilled across the table, spreading out horizontally in an instant, with droplets of blood splattering onto everyone¡¯s faces.The young man¡¯s skull had been shattered against the table.Outside the room, the distant chime of the clock rang again.Qi Xia was close to the deceased and felt something sticky and warm touch his face.He asked himself if his mental resilience was strong enough, but at that moment, he still began to tremble.The girl sitting to the right of the dead man froze for three seconds before her face twisted in horror and she screamed.The scream shattered the mental defenses of everyone in the room.Could the goat-head man really be "human" if he could crush a human skull with his hands like that?How could such a frail body possess such powerful strength?The goat-head man slowly spoke, "The reason I prepared ten people was to use one of you to silence the rest."


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 Chapter 2

    The woman''s scream stopped, and the thoughts of the group also came to an abrupt halt.The men who had been shouting and cursing moments ago were now silent.This was no longer a matter of "breaking the law." The strange man in front of them was actually capable of killing.After more than a minute of silence, the goat-head man nodded slightly. "Good, nine of you, it seems you''ve all quieted down."Everyone''s faces changed, but no one dared to speak. Just as he said, it was now truly "nine."Qi Xia extended his trembling hand and removed a piece of yellowish-pink substance from his face.The fragment of the shattered brain still held warmth and was faintly pulsing, but within seconds, it lost all life, like a deflated balloon."Now, let me introduce myself..." The goat-head man extended his bloody fingers and pointed to his mask, saying, "I am ''Man-Goat,'' and you are ''Participants.''"Everyone froze for a moment, then looked at each other in confusion¡ª"Man-Goat," "Participants"?"I have gathered you together for a game, with the ultimate goal of creating a ''God,''" the goat-head man said flatly.The two sentences immediately made everyone furrow their brows.After spending a few minutes with this man, they had gathered that he was insane, but now this madman was claiming to create a "God"?"Create... what kind of God?" the muscular young man asked nervously."A God like ''Nuwa''!" The goat-head man began gesturing wildly, his voice laced with a sinister tone, "How wonderful! You will witness history with us. Once, Nuwa created humanity, but when she repaired the sky, she turned into a rainbow... We cannot lose Nuwa, so we must create a new Nuwa! A great task awaits the ''God'' to fulfill!"His voice grew louder and more excited, as if he had been injected with adrenaline."Nuwa..." The muscular young man frowned deeply, feeling that this was simply too hard to accept. After a moment, he asked, "Are you some sort of cult?""Cult?" The goat-head man was taken aback, then turned to the young man and said, "We are far grander than ''cults.'' We have a ''World''!"After hearing this, everyone fell silent once again.The muscular man''s question was quite pointed. The goat-head man''s actions were no different from those of a cult, but most cults tended to invent new gods, rather than using a heroic figure like Nuwa."Then..." the muscular man continued, "What exactly do you want us to ''participate'' in?""As I said, it''s just a game," the goat-head man answered without hesitation. "If you win, one of you will become ''God.''""F***..." The tattooed man seemed to calm down and muttered angrily, "The ''List of Gods,'' huh? What if we lose?""Lose..." The goat-head man glanced at the blood on his hands, slightly disappointed. "It''s such a shame if you lose..."Though he didn''t say it directly, everyone understood his implication.If they lost, they would die.There was no "leave alive" option in what he offered.Either they became his so-called "God," or they would end up like the young man whose head had exploded."If everyone understands... then this ''game'' begins. The game is called ''The Liar.''" The goat-head man slowly took a stack of paper from his pocket, then casually walked to each person, placing one sheet in front of them.He then took out several pens and handed them out to the group.There were many bloodstains on the table, and as each person''s white paper landed, it became stained red. If they flipped the paper over and wiped their hands on it, the blood spread like paint, turning the paper an even deeper red."Next, I want each of you to tell a story, the last thing that happened before you arrived here," the goat-head man continued. "But be aware, among all of you telling stories, one person will lie. Once all nine of you have told your stories, you will vote. If eight of you correctly choose the ''Liar,'' the liar will be eliminated, and everyone else will survive. If even one of you votes incorrectly, the liar will survive, and everyone else will be eliminated.""''Liar''...?"The group looked puzzled. Would anyone really lie at a life-and-death moment like this?"Wait a minute, can we discuss ''strategies''?" the muscular man suddenly asked."Feel free," the goat-head man nodded. "Before the game begins, you have one minute to discuss your strategy. Will you use it now... or later?""I''ll use it now," the muscular man said without hesitation."Please, go ahead."The goat-head man stepped back and moved away from the table.The muscular man pursed his lips, then looked around at the group. He deliberately avoided looking at the headless body slumped over the table and said, "I don''t know who among you will lie, but this ''rule'' sounds too arbitrary. If even one person votes wrong, we all die. And even if we choose correctly, the liar will still die. So, no matter what, there will be a death. I''ve come up with a way that everyone can survive..."Everyone turned their gaze toward the muscular man.Could everyone really survive?"That is, we all tell the truth," the muscular man said before anyone could think it through, revealing his idea. "All nine of us tell the truth, and at the end, we write ''No one is lying'' on the paper. That way, we won''t break the rules, and we can all survive."The man in the white coat tapped his fingers lightly on the table, then spoke after a moment, "Your plan is good, but there''s one condition: ''You must not be the liar.'' How can we trust you? If you''re the liar, we''ll all write ''No one is lying,'' and only you will survive.""What kind of talk is that?" The muscular man said angrily, his face flushing slightly. "If I were the liar, how could I suggest this? I would only be trying to save myself."The goat-head man waved his hand slightly and said, "One minute is up. Please stop talking."The two men snorted in unison and fell silent."Now, please draw cards." The goat-head man took a small stack of cards from his pocket. The cards were the size of playing cards, and the back was inscribed with the words "Nuwa Game."The muscular man was momentarily stunned and asked, "What are these?""These are ''Identity Cards,''" the goat-head man laughed. "If you draw the ''Liar,'' you must lie."The muscular man clenched his teeth. "Are you messing with us?! Why didn''t you tell us about this rule beforehand?!""This is to teach you a lesson," the goat-head man sneered. "Before I finished explaining the rules, you asked if you could discuss strategies. You wasted a precious minute, not me."The muscular man¡¯s expression darkened, but remembering the goat-head man''s brutal methods of killing, he swallowed his anger.In a minute, all nine people had drawn a card from the goat-head man''s hand, but no one dared to flip them over.If the card said "Liar," it would turn into a question of whether they lived or the others did.The female participants'' hands trembled slightly, and the men''s faces were also grim.This wasn''t about "identity," but "life and death."Qi Xia took a deep breath, casually holding his card and moving it to his face.He gently flipped it over.Written on the card were the words "Liar."


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 Chapter 3: The One with Skills

    "The Liar..."Qi Xia repeated these three words in his mind, confirming his identity, then silently kept the card hidden in his hand.Just a minute ago, he had fantasized about the thought of "everyone leaving alive."But now, things were different.Although he didn''t know the eight people in front of him, this time, it was only them who would die.


    "If there are no objections, please remember the rules: There is ''only one liar'' in this game..." The goat-head man pointed to the s*xy girl on Qi Xia''s left, "You start, and the rest will follow in a clockwise direction."


    "Huh? Me?" The girl was stunned, then pouted.Qi Xia glanced at her and realized that the order of storytelling starting from the girl on his left didn¡¯t favor him.He would be the last to tell his story.In extreme tension and pressure, people usually only remember the first and last storytellers.But raising doubts now seemed too out of place, so he decided to take it one step at a time.


    The s*xy girl furrowed her brows, her big eyes darting around. She finally sighed and said, "Okay... I''ll go first, but I¡¯m not good at telling stories. If it¡¯s bad, don¡¯t blame me..."Everyone was silent, not sure what to say, and just listened quietly.


    The s*xy girl raised her slender finger, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, then said, "My name is Tian Tian, I''m a... uh... ''technical worker.'' We make a living with our skills, and I don''t think it''s shameful."At this moment, everyone noticed that the girl named Tian Tian was wearing very little¡ªa dirty low-cut short dress that didn¡¯t cover much.But she seemed to not care about that.


    "I have a lot of stories that I can''t share with you... Anyway, you can call me ''Action'' if you want, but calling me ''Description'' really doesn¡¯t work, because, well, who would work in my line of business if they had a little culture?""Anyway, I was working before I came here. But the customer I met was really odd... Our store provided a service area, but he insisted on going to his car, saying it would be more exciting... So, to make money, I had to go with him..."


    "This was my first time working in a car. I didn¡¯t expect the car, although looking high-end, to be so narrow. Within a short while, I was sweating all over. I really don¡¯t know what¡¯s so ''exciting'' about this place. During that time, the customer¡¯s phone kept ringing, and he refused to answer. I was so annoyed..."Tian Tian seemed ready to continue cursing the customer, but her eyes accidentally landed on the corpse on the table, giving her a fright. She took a deep breath and said,"Well, I accept the industry I chose. But I didn¡¯t expect a ''earthquake'' to suddenly happen. At first, I thought we were moving too much, causing the car to shake, but then it really was an earthquake."


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    At the mention of "earthquake," everyone¡¯s expressions changed slightly, as if they remembered something."Our car was parked in a narrow alley... directly below a huge billboard... At that moment, my head was sticking out of the car, and I happened to see it." Tian Tian pointed to her head and gestured, her voice trembling, "That huge billboard, for some reason, after making a ''clanging'' sound, broke off, and the first section fell onto the car. I lost consciousness..."


    She sighed again and said, "When I woke up, I was here. I was really scared..."Tian Tian showed a look of grievance, one that seemed rehearsed, making men feel a little moved.The tattooed man sitting next to her froze for a moment, then said, "Everyone, do we need to continue?"The man in the white coat was startled and looked at the tattooed man, "What do you mean?""This ''lady'' has already lied. We can vote now." The tattooed man said firmly."You...! What do you mean?!" Tian Tian was shocked, "What did I lie about?"The tattooed man gave her a cold glance and said, "Your name. You said you¡¯re ''Tian Tian,'' but all escort girls use fake names. ''Tian Tian,'' ''Xiao Fang,'' ''Li Li''¡ªthose are common fake names, so you¡¯ve already lied by hiding your real name."


    Tian Tian¡¯s face immediately turned red."What... are you talking about? My name is Tian Tian! I haven¡¯t used my real name for many years!" After saying that, she looked around at everyone and added, "At my workplace, they only call me ''Tian Tian.'' No one would recognize me if I used my real name!"Everyone began to ponder, and Qi Xia¡¯s expression grew serious.From Tian Tian¡¯s earlier words, Qi Xia couldn¡¯t detect any signs of lying. She spoke with a calm rhythm, her tone soothing.Such a storytelling style, like chatting with a friend, could only suggest two things: Either the story had been fabricated long ago, and she had told it many times, or she was telling the truth.But now, the tattooed man gave Qi Xia a new angle.That is, "name lying."Lying about one¡¯s name doesn¡¯t require logical reasoning and is difficult to detect.After all, no one here had met before, so their names could only be known through what they said.Qi Xia thought back to what the goat-head man said: "Among all the storytellers, one of them is lying." This rule did not specify that the liar must tell a "false story"; a "false name" would be enough.


    Seeing that she was being suspected, Tian Tian¡¯s eyes widened, looking very nervous. "If you don¡¯t believe me, my real name is Zhang Lijuan... I¡¯m from Shaanxi... You can call me by my real name, but I won¡¯t respond to that. I only respond to ''Tian Tian''... I... I..."Hearing this, Qi Xia silently shook his head.This woman wasn¡¯t as clever as he had imagined.That meant she couldn¡¯t have fabricated this lie in advance, nor could she have suddenly thought of the "name lie" strategy.The goat-head man said, "There is only one liar," so that person could only be Qi Xia himself.If the others hadn¡¯t noticed the seriousness of the "Tian Tian" issue, then he had found a surefire way to win.To make up a name, "Qi" wasn¡¯t a good surname. While it¡¯s not rare, it¡¯s not too common either. He needed to avoid a surname that would make it easy to remember.In other words, everything he told had to be as inconspicuous as possible.So, he decided to call himself "Li Ming."The rest of the story, he could tell normally. No matter how skilled someone was, they couldn¡¯t detect the flaw.The game was nearing its end.

 Chapter 4: Disaster?

    At that moment, the tattooed man raised his hand and looked at the goat-head man. ¡°Hey, referee, how should we count people using aliases? Does that count as lying?¡±


    The goat-head man neither nodded nor shook his head; he simply said coolly, ¡°I will no longer participate in any part of this process. All you need to do is write down your names as you see fit. Remember, ¡®the rules are absolute.¡¯ In the end, I will personally administer ¡®punishment¡¯ to the loser.¡±


    The word ¡°punishment¡± landed like a thunderclap, sending a shiver through everyone.


    ¡°This... this proves I haven¡¯t lied!¡± Tian Tian cried out anxiously. ¡°If I were lying, I¡¯d be dead by now, right? Even if it¡¯s an alias, my alias truly is ¡®Tian Tian¡¯!¡±


    No one answered her. Now, in this life-or-death critical stage, no doubt can be overlooked.


    ¡°Then it¡¯s my turn,¡± the tattooed man said with a sneer and an expression of reluctance. ¡°If this lady¡¯s story doesn¡¯t count as a lie, then mine surely won¡¯t either.¡±


    ¡°My name is Qiao Jiajin. I live in Guangdong and have no particular occupation. Before coming here, I was in debt collection,¡± he began. His Mandarin was rather poor, so everyone listened carefully.


    ¡°People nowadays are really something¡ªwhen they borrow money, they agree to everything, but when it¡¯s time to repay, they start crying pitifully.¡±


    ¡°D*mn it, they call us debt collectors demons¡ªcold-blooded!¡±


    ¡°But you have to look at it another way. When that wimp was at his lowest and needed money the most, I was the one who lent him a hand. When no institution would lend him money, I stepped in. To him, I wasn¡¯t a demon, but a savior.¡±


    ¡°But how did he treat his savior?¡±


    ¡°He wailed everywhere, complaining about how hard life was, that he¡¯d been swindled out of two million. He also berated us debt collectors for being so cold-blooded, accusing us of using neighborhood sympathy to solve his problems. Yet when he borrowed money, we signed a contract and made every interest charge clear. Now that he can¡¯t repay, is that really our fault?¡±


    ¡°Last night, I planned to teach him a lesson. I took him to the rooftop of a tall building¡ªbut then, out of nowhere, an earthquake struck. I originally didn¡¯t want his life, but that wimp actually pulled out a knife amidst the chaos, trying to kill me!¡±


    ¡°In the ensuing chaos, he pushed me off the rooftop and I crashed into a billboard. The rest¡­ I can¡¯t remember.¡±


    After hearing this man¡¯s account, everyone furrowed their brows. Then, as if noticing something, Tian Tian sneered and said, ¡°See? I told you that¡¯s why you keep throwing dirt on me! It turns out you¡¯re the liar!¡±


    ¡°What? On what grounds do you say I¡¯m lying?¡± Qiao Jiajin snapped fiercely.


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    ¡°I¡¯m in Shaanxi, and you¡¯re in Guangdong!¡± Tian Tian pointed at him. ¡°Your story is clearly copied from mine! I experienced an earthquake, and so did you. I was hit by a billboard, and you also claim to have hit a billboard! Isn¡¯t that lying?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t care where you are; I just experienced an earthquake,¡± the tattooed man retorted, glaring. ¡°If I withheld the truth, that would be lying! And as for the billboard¡ªthere can¡¯t be only one billboard in the entire world, right?¡±


    ¡°In any case, you¡¯re the liar!¡± Tian Tian accused, pointing at Qiao Jiajin. ¡°Your profession is one for scoundrels; lying is hardly surprising!¡±


    ¡°Hah, and what about your profession? How much better is it than mine?¡±


    Qi Xia watched the intense argument between the two and found the matter rather suspicious. It wasn¡¯t that one of them was obviously lying¡ªit was that he himself had experienced an earthquake. He wasn¡¯t in Shaanxi or Guangdong; he was in Shandong.


    Could an earthquake really span such a vast area? This earthquake reportedly covered half the country, affecting three provinces. If what they were saying was true, wouldn¡¯t it be an unprecedented disaster?


    ¡°Enough arguing¡ªlet¡¯s end this quickly,¡± commanded a muscular man sitting opposite them. He then looked at the next woman and said, ¡°It¡¯s your turn. If we¡¯re really going to judge who¡¯s lying, why don¡¯t we wait until everyone has spoken?¡±


    Both of the arguing men snorted coldly and fell silent. The woman beside Qiao Jiajin timidly nodded and began, ¡°Um¡­ my name is Xiao Ran, and I¡¯m a kindergarten teacher.¡± Her voice was soft and trembling, and she looked visibly frightened.


    ¡°Before coming here, I was waiting with a child for his parents. That child was originally picked up by his mother, but then I heard that his mother had fallen seriously ill, something had grown in her brain, and she needed surgery¡­ so for a few days, his father took over picking him up, though he seemed to always forget.¡±


    ¡°Yesterday evening, it was already past six¡ªand I had technically finished work¡ªbut for some reason, the child¡¯s father never answered his phone.¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t know the child¡¯s home address, so I couldn¡¯t send him home; we had to stand at the crossroads waiting.¡±


    ¡°Actually, that night I also had plans¡­ I had an appointment with a psychological counselor. I felt that I wasn¡¯t really happy with my current job, and I hoped the counselor could help guide me.¡±


    ¡°But I never expected to wait for several hours¡ªthe evening meeting was ruined.¡±


    ¡°As I was lost in thought, the ground suddenly began to shake. I was terrified¡­ it took several seconds before I realized it was an earthquake.¡±


    ¡°The feeling of an earthquake is different from what you hear about¡­ the ground doesn¡¯t jump; it sways from side to side, like I was standing on a table that someone kept shaking.¡±


    ¡°I immediately grabbed the child next to me, but I didn¡¯t know what to do. I saw in the distance that the three towers of Chongsheng Temple were cracking¡­ luckily, we were standing in an open space.¡±


    ¡°Then, I saw a small car out of control, barreling toward us¡­ I could only stagger, holding the child and trying to run aside, but the shaking ground made me fall with every step.¡±


    ¡°In the end, when I fell, I hit my head¡­ then I blacked out, and when I came to, I was here.¡±


    This account was rather unremarkable. The only detail that struck Qi Xia as odd was the mention of the ¡°three towers of Chongsheng Temple.¡± Those towers are in Dali, Yunnan.


    Qi Xia gently caressed the card on the table. Though his hand concealed those three characters, he knew it read ¡°Liar.¡± So, could there be more than one liar? If ¡°the rules are absolute,¡± then the goat-head man¡¯s statement¡ªthat ¡°there is one and only one liar¡±¡ªmust be absolute.


    Since he had drawn ¡°Liar,¡± it proves that no one else could be the liar; there is only one liar. That means everyone else is telling the truth.


    But the fact that these accounts, spanning three provinces, seem to interlock¡ªwhere not only the earthquake but even the details of their stories match up¡ªdoesn¡¯t that seem too strange?


    At that moment, everyone¡¯s gaze turned toward the next person: the middle-aged man in the white lab coat.

 Chapter 5: The Doctor

    "I..." The man in the white coat appeared calmer than the others; not even the body on the table seemed to affect him. "My name is Zhao Haibo, and I am a doctor. You should be able to tell by my attire."


    He reached out and tugged at his dirty white coat, continuing, "Before coming here, I was performing surgery on a woman. She had an intraventricular tumor, which was growing rapidly. Over the past six months, it had continued to enlarge, causing mild hydrocephalus. If it wasn¡¯t treated quickly, she would be in life-threatening danger."


    "I opted for a frontal lobe approach for the surgery. Under CT guidance, I punctured the brain ventricle. In fact, such surgeries always carry significant risks. But the woman, wanting to stay with her young son for as long as possible, chose to take the risk."


    "Usually, in the operating room, to ensure a stable environment, not even a slight breeze is allowed. But no one expected something stronger than the wind to arrive."


    "When the earthquake struck, I had just removed the woman¡¯s skull and was in the process of cutting through the dura mater. If something went wrong here, it could easily lead to brain bruising, leaving devastating long-term consequences."


    "I made an immediate decision to stop the surgery and temporarily cover her skull back up. Otherwise, in the dusty environment, her life would be in jeopardy."


    "But I didn¡¯t expect that step to be harder than I imagined. I could barely stand, so how could I accurately place such a small piece of skull back into place?"


    "The nurse beside me bumped into me, and everyone was losing their balance. In my panic, I could only cover the woman¡¯s head with a sterile sheet and then turned to organize an evacuation. However, I was suddenly hit by a small medical trolley, and I fell to the ground."


    "Before I could stand up again, the ceiling of the operating room cracked open, and I immediately lost consciousness."


    After hearing the doctor¡¯s story, everyone¡¯s expressions became uneasy.He had used a lot of medical terminology.If one of these terms was fabricated, no one would have been able to recognize it.


    "Doctor Zhao, where are you from?" the muscular man casually asked.


    "I don¡¯t feel obligated to answer your question," Doctor Zhao replied. "My story is already finished."


    The muscular man opened his mouth but said nothing.


    "Is it my turn now?" A young man wearing glasses glanced around, looking a little hesitant before saying, "My name is Han Yimo, and I am a..."


    "Wait a moment," the goat-head man suddenly interrupted Han Yimo¡¯s speech.


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    This action startled Han Yimo, and he turned around, confused.


    "What¡¯s going on?"


    "It¡¯s ¡®half-time.¡¯" The goat-head man grinned, "We¡¯ll take a 20-minute break."


    Everyone was slightly bewildered.There¡¯s a ¡°half-time¡± now?Qi Xia glanced at the clock in the center of the table. Half an hour had passed since they woke up.It was 12:30 now.


    "So, this ¡®break¡¯ is mandatory," Qi Xia silently muttered to himself, "At 12:30, no matter who the storyteller is, there¡¯s a mandatory 20-minute break..."


    But the game had only been going on for 30 minutes, and now, they were going to take a 20-minute break?Qi Xia furrowed his brow. He knew this wasn¡¯t something to ponder over.The organizers of this game were lunatics, and there was no need to apply conventional logic to their behavior.


    So, he repeated in his mind, over and over, to condition himself:"My name is Li Ming, I am from Shandong."


    Only by repeating this countless times would he be able to say it naturally when it was his turn.


    Everyone sat in silence, feeling awkward.Though it was called a ¡°half-time break,¡± the atmosphere was even more stifling.


    "Excuse me... can we talk?" the muscular man asked the goat-head man.


    "Oh, of course, this is your free time now. I have no right to interfere."


    The muscular man nodded and turned to Doctor Zhao. "Doctor Zhao, where exactly are you from?"


    Doctor Zhao¡¯s expression darkened. "It seems you¡¯ve been dissatisfied with me from the beginning. Why should I tell you where I¡¯m from?"


    "Don¡¯t misunderstand, I mean no harm," the muscular man said, his voice calm. "The more you say, the more authentic it seems. Since everyone else has shared their hometowns, there¡¯s no need for you to hide it, right?"


    "The more you say, the more authentic it seems?" Doctor Zhao shook his head dismissively. "I only know that ''the more you say, the more you err.'' If the rules are absolute, my story has no problems. Besides, I don¡¯t trust any of you."


    "That¡¯s a biased way of thinking," the muscular man said. "There are nine of us here, and only one is the enemy. If you cooperate with everyone, we can work together to identify the liar. The more you hide, the more suspicious you seem. This is the second time I¡¯ve asked you¡ªare you still going to hide?"


    The muscular man appeared to be very skilled at interrogation, cornering Doctor Zhao with just a few words.His message was clear.Only the "liar" would refuse to trust others, since they already knew their own identity.If the doctor continued to hide, he would become the prime suspect.


    But how could a brain doctor be just an ordinary person? With a cold grunt, he finally asked, "Then you answer me: Who are you? What do you do?"


    "Me?" The muscular man didn¡¯t expect the doctor to strike back so suddenly, and his expression faltered.


    "Yes, since you¡¯ve been asking me persistently, I¡¯ll ask you before you speak," Doctor Zhao smiled. "Fair enough?"


    The muscular man thought for a moment, then nodded and said, "You¡¯re right. I have nothing to hide. My name is Li Shangwu, and I¡¯m a criminal police officer."


    As soon as the words left his mouth, everyone turned to look at him.At that moment, the words "criminal police officer" provided an unexpected sense of security to everyone.


    "You¡¯re a cop?!" Doctor Zhao was taken aback.No wonder this man had felt like he was probing for something from the beginning. He was the first to propose that "everyone should survive." Maybe he really wanted to save everyone.


    Doctor Zhao¡¯s attitude shifted noticeably. "If that¡¯s the case, I apologize for my earlier attitude. I¡¯m from Jiangsu."


    At this moment, the expression on Qiao Jiajin, the tattooed man, darkened. "I say, Doctor Zhao, do you really believe Officer Li?"


    "Mm?" Doctor Zhao looked at him in confusion. "What are you trying to say?"


    Qiao Jiajin tapped the table with his fingers and said faintly, "This isn¡¯t ¡®storytelling time,¡¯ right? In other words... right now, anyone can lie."

 Chapter 6: The Officer

    "Don''t try to stir up trouble," Officer Li glared at Qiao Jiajin and said sternly. "You¡¯re a loan shark, and I¡¯m a police officer. Who do you think the others will believe?"


    Qi Xia glanced at the people arguing, and he knew Officer Li probably wasn¡¯t lying¡ªhe really was a criminal police officer.But his approach was wrong.Maybe it was his professional nature, or maybe it was his sense of justice, but he kept trying to organize everyone into order.The half-time break had already passed, and the noise from everyone gradually quieted down.During this time, Qi Xia had repeated ¡°My name is Li Ming¡± in his mind countless times, and he was getting a bit annoyed.After all, there was a body with its skull shattered lying beside him, which made it impossible to focus.


    Blood was dripping from the table, steadily flowing onto the floor. Everyone had been in the room with the corpse for nearly an hour, and a strange stench began to spread.Qi Xia casually looked at the body next to him. His pants were already filthy.After death, within a short period, various organs lose the muscle control that normally constrains them, causing incontinence.Before the smell of decay arrived, a foul stench had already filled the air.Qi Xia, sitting next to another girl, noticed that she seemed very displeased with the smell, constantly covering her nose with her hand.


    Another ten minutes passed before the goat-head man spoke again, "The 20-minute half-time break is over, and the game will resume."


    The young man called Han Yimo steadied himself, took a deep breath, and said, "My name is Han Yimo. I¡¯m a web novel writer."


    "Before coming here, I was in a rented apartment, writing the final chapters of a novel. Since the book featured over a hundred characters, almost all of them had to appear in the finale. I was so focused on writing that I didn¡¯t hear any commotion outside.""Even... I don¡¯t know when the earthquake happened or when I lost consciousness..."


    Han Yimo¡¯s story was different from everyone else¡¯s. At this point, it seemed like he was completely "independent" and ended his story in just a few brief sentences.


    "Is that it?" the muscular man said, slightly taken aback. "You just say ''I don¡¯t know'' and call it a day?"


    "Because I can''t lie, so there¡¯s no need for me to make up an answer just to please everyone," Han Yimo''s voice, though small, somehow made people believe him.


    "Alright... then next," Officer Li said, his face still skeptical. "It¡¯s the lady¡¯s turn."


    "Hey, officer." Qiao Jiajin was a bit dissatisfied with Officer Li¡¯s attitude. "We¡¯re all ''participants.'' Don¡¯t act like you¡¯re the leader."


    "Someone has to step up and organize us," Officer Li retorted. "I¡¯ve said it before¡ªthere¡¯s only one enemy among us. The other eight must unite."


    "Then it¡¯s not your place to give orders," Qiao Jiajin said, completely disregarding Officer Li''s words. "Maybe I¡¯d be afraid of you outside, but right now, no one knows whether you¡¯re the ''liar.''"


    "Stop fighting," the cold woman interrupted them.From the beginning, this cold woman had been accusing the goat-head man of imprisoning everyone for over twenty hours. She seemed very clear-headed and calm.Seeing the two fall silent, she continued, "This so-called ''game,'' regardless of who wins, means the rest of us could be considered ''indirect murderers,'' since it was our collective vote that led to Man-Goat killing him. That¡¯s what you should be considering."


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    At these words, Qi Xia¡¯s expression shifted slightly.If he did manage to leave this room alive, then he would indeed have "killed" the other eight.But what could he do about it?The card in front of him was a genuine "liar" card. Who would willingly give up their life so others could survive?


    "My name is Zhang Chenze, and I¡¯m a lawyer." The cold woman crossed her arms, her face expressionless. "I regret meeting you all in such a strange place. Otherwise, I¡¯d have handed you my business card."


    No one really understood Zhang Chenze¡¯s humor, but it seemed she didn¡¯t mind."Before coming here, I was organizing court documents. My client was scammed out of two million yuan, a huge amount of money with severe consequences."


    When she mentioned "two million yuan," everyone¡¯s expressions were unchanged, but Qiao Jiajin seemed clearly shocked and asked, "Two million?"


    "Yes, two million. They say lawyers are the most impartial people, but we also have personal feelings. That man, in order to support his family, borrowed from a loan shark, which was really concerning. But the illegal loan is a separate case, and it¡¯s not related to me."


    "When the earthquake struck, I was driving to meet my client. I was on Qingyang Avenue, just past the Du Fu Thatched Cottage, near the Wuhou Shrine. I remember... I wasn¡¯t driving fast, around 10 miles per hour. Then I saw the ground crack ahead."


    "I immediately slammed on the brakes and stopped right in front of the crack, but the car behind me couldn¡¯t stop in time and caused a rear-end collision."


    "I heard several loud crashes, and my car was pushed into the crack. Then, I lost consciousness and ended up here."


    Another story ended, and only three people had not yet spoken.


    "Wuhou Shrine..." Doctor Zhao thought for a moment and asked, "Is that the Wuhou Shrine in Chengdu?"


    "Yes, I work in Chengdu."


    It seemed this earthquake was nationwide.From all these unfamiliar stories, it was really difficult to figure out who was lying.


    "Next, it¡¯s my turn." Officer Li looked at everyone. "I¡¯ve already said my name. My name is Li Shangwu, and I¡¯m a criminal police officer from Inner Mongolia."


    "Before coming here, I was tracking a fraud suspect. According to reliable information, we had the exact whereabouts of the criminal."


    "This suspect had scammed an enormous amount¡ªtwo million yuan. It was the first large-scale fraud case in our city this year."


    "My colleagues and I were monitoring in the car, just waiting for the suspect to show up."


    "But this suspect was even smarter than we expected. It seemed he sensed some danger and didn¡¯t show up for three days in a row."


    "We spent three days in the car, eating, drinking, and doing everything else there. We were mentally exhausted."


    "But do you know what¡¯s worse for an adult man than having nothing to eat or drink?"


    "It¡¯s running out of cigarettes."


    "We didn¡¯t have a single cigarette left. By protocol, we couldn¡¯t leave our post, but the lack of cigarettes was unbearable."


    "So I asked my colleague to run and buy some, while I stayed in the car, closely watching the suspect¡¯s residence."


    "What I didn¡¯t expect was that my colleague had just left when the whole ground started to shake violently. I intended to get out of the car to see what was going on, but suddenly someone from behind strangled me with a thin wire."


    "Although we were both good at hand-to-hand combat, the thin wire coming from the backseat was incredibly hard to deal with. I couldn¡¯t even touch the person behind me, let alone remove the wire from my neck."


    Everyone looked closely at Officer Li and saw that there was indeed a red mark around his neck.


    "So I immediately reclined the seat, regained my breath, but I couldn¡¯t turn around because I¡¯m so tall, and my legs were stuck under the steering wheel."


    "The person behind took advantage of me lying down and hit me on the head with something. Then, I lost consciousness."


    After listening to Officer Li¡¯s words, everyone began to doubt.His story was entirely different from the others. All the previous participants had been injured and lost consciousness due to accidents.But he had been attacked and brought here.If they had to choose one person who seemed the most suspicious, it would be him.

 Chapter 7: Winning Chances

    "You¡¯re lying, officer," Qiao Jiajin said coldly.


    "Hmph, I knew you would say that, but what evidence do you have to prove I¡¯m lying? Just because someone attacked me?"


    "Of course not," Qiao Jiajin smiled faintly. "Although I¡¯m not sure why, all the stories told by everyone so far are, more or less, connected. There are many common characters among them, and if you disregard the geographical locations, the stories are all reasonable."


    "So what?"


    "The problem lies here." Qiao Jiajin pointed at Lawyer Zhang Chenze, "In your and the lawyer''s stories, there is one common character¡ªthe ''fraud who scammed two million yuan.'' But your stories contradict each other, which means one of you is lying."


    Officer Li paused and asked, "Where¡¯s the contradiction?"


    Qiao Jiajin shook his head and looked at Officer Li. "Lawyer Zhang was already preparing for the trial, which means in her story, the ''suspect'' has already been caught. But in your story, you¡¯re still on surveillance duty, which means in your story, the ''suspect'' hasn¡¯t been caught yet. Isn¡¯t that a contradiction?"


    Officer Li thought for a moment, then said, "I have to admit, you make a valid point, but I think you¡¯ve been influenced by this ''game.'' First, you need to understand a major premise: all the storytellers before were not in the same city as the others. In other words, no matter how similar our experiences are, they can¡¯t possibly be the same event. Since they¡¯re different events, naturally, the outcomes will be different."


    Qi Xia silently watched the ongoing debate between the two, not interrupting.Yes, let them argue, the more intensely, the better.As long as one of them votes for the other, the liar will win.After all, the rules are absolute. If anyone besides the liar votes wrong, everyone else will perish.


    Although Officer Li had provided an explanation, Qiao Jiajin¡¯s words were still lingering in everyone¡¯s minds.This was the first time they had noticed a contradiction between two stories.Qi Xia couldn¡¯t help but think more highly of the thug named Qiao Jiajin.Although he seemed carefree and reckless, he was smarter than expected.


    "Well... it¡¯s my turn..." A girl spoke up.


    Everyone shifted their attention to her.


    This girl had let out a loud scream when the first body appeared.Now, she seemed to have calmed down, though her gaze was fixed firmly away from the body beside her.


    "Hello everyone, my name is Lin Qin, and I¡¯m a psychological counselor."


    Qi Xia paused slightly, as the name "Lin Qin" was quite interesting.Before the Tang Dynasty, "Lin Qin" meant "apple."These characters carried a poetic resonance and were memorable.Perhaps Miss Lin¡¯s parents wanted to give her a unique name, but it was clear this name would lead to her demise here.


    Among the people present, there were writers, teachers, lawyers, doctors, and police officers. They might all know what "Lin Qin" means.Once that meaning was recognized, Lin Qin¡¯s story would be unforgettable.


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    Lin Qin noticed everyone¡¯s lack of reaction and then covered her nose and mouth with her hand and continued, "I¡¯m from Ningxia. Before coming here, I was waiting for a client who¡¯s a preschool teacher."


    Everyone exchanged looks, realizing there was a connection to the previous story."They told me that the preschool teacher industry is tough nowadays. You can¡¯t hit or scold the children. Parents treat preschool teachers like nannies, and the children treat them like servants. Every classroom has cameras, and parents can monitor in real-time. If you use a slightly harsher tone, the parents will immediately call the principal."


    "But aren¡¯t parents sending their children to school to help them develop proper values?""If teachers can¡¯t discipline the children, how will the kids learn right from wrong?"


    "She said she had been in a constant state of confusion and suppression."


    "So, I prepared a treatment plan for her for about a month."


    "But for some reason, the client never showed up for our appointments, and I kept waiting in my office."


    "When the earthquake hit, I had no chance to escape. After all, my office is on the 26th floor."


    "The higher the floor, the more intense the shaking. I felt the whole building swaying."


    "I never knew there were earthquakes in Ningxia, but this time, I experienced it."


    "Then, I vaguely remember the ceiling collapsing, and everything went black. I lost consciousness and ended up here."


    After hearing Lin Qin¡¯s story, everyone seemed to recall something.


    Qiao Jiajin spoke up first. "I have two questions."


    "Go ahead," Lin Qin responded, covering her nose and mouth.


    "You mentioned that every classroom has ''cameras.'' What do you mean by that?"


    No one expected Qiao Jiajin to focus on this detail, but Lin Qin, as a counselor, patiently explained, "I think the reason they have ''cameras'' is so that parents can watch what¡¯s happening in the classroom from anywhere."


    "Ah, so it¡¯s ''closed-circuit television''... Is it a private preschool?" Qiao Jiajin muttered to himself, then asked, "So, the preschool teacher you met, is she this Xiao Ran next to us?"


    "I don¡¯t know," Lin Qin shook her head. "I only added her on WeChat. We were supposed to meet and discuss things."


    "WeChat?" Qiao Jiajin was taken aback, as if he didn¡¯t understand.


    Officer Li interrupted them, saying, "Thug, you¡¯re at it again. Xiao Ran is from Yunnan, and this Lin Qin is from Ningxia. Who would travel such a long distance to see a psychological counselor?"


    Qiao Jiajin wasn¡¯t backing down. "I just find it suspicious. This is the first time someone has mentioned another participant¡¯s story."


    Doctor Zhao, this time, thought Qiao Jiajin made sense. He nodded and asked, "Xiao Ran, was your reason for seeing a counselor the same as what Lin Qin described?"


    "Well..." Xiao Ran hesitated, then said, "It¡¯s not quite the same... I was depressed because a parent kept blaming me..."


    "That just proves it¡¯s a coincidence," Doctor Zhao nodded. "After all, it¡¯s about two different regions, so there¡¯s no need to force a connection."


    Everyone fell silent, but Lawyer Zhang Chenze suddenly spoke up. "Ms. Lin, half of your story is the preschool teacher¡¯s story. Doesn¡¯t that break the rules?"


    "Huh?" Lin Qin was momentarily stunned. "I told her story to help you better understand my work..."


    "Don¡¯t misunderstand, I don¡¯t mean anything bad," Zhang Chenze smiled. "What I¡¯m saying is, if that preschool teacher¡¯s experience was made up by you, it will naturally differ from Xiao Ran¡¯s story, and that proves you¡¯re lying."


    "You...!" Lin Qin didn¡¯t expect the woman in front of her to be so aggressive. She could only argue, "Dr. Zhao and Officer Li both said we¡¯re from different provinces; this is just a coincidence!"


    "A coincidence, huh?" Zhang Chenze crossed her arms and continued, "Think about it carefully, why did they choose us nine people to gather here? Don¡¯t forget, we are nine strangers. If we¡¯re supposed to detect flaws in each other¡¯s stories, we need a clue. And that clue is that all our stories are connected. After hearing each person¡¯s story, I feel like we were specifically selected for this purpose. This way, we can find the discrepancies in their stories and identify the liar. Otherwise, this game would be too absurd, because the liar¡¯s chances of winning would be too high."

 Chapter 8: The Showdown

    These words almost woke everyone up, and they also awakened Qi Xia.Indeed, the odds of the "liar" winning were far too high.Qi Xia furrowed his brow, wondering why his chances of winning were so great.Lying to a group of strangers¡ªpeople who didn¡¯t know him or understand him¡ªwould make it hard for anyone to see through his lies.Could a false name really cause the death of eight people?Or was it¡­Could it be that those who draw the "liar" card are chosen ones, and this was always an unfair game?


    ¡°No¡­¡± Qi Xia thought to himself. ¡°If drawing the card means survival, then why not just write ''life'' and ''death'' on the card? That would make it easier to achieve the goal. Otherwise, what¡¯s the point of this game that¡¯s been going on for almost an hour?¡±


    A deep sense of unease spread in his heart.Qi Xia kept replaying every word the goat-head man had said in his mind.Could it be¡­"Hey, it¡¯s your turn," Qiao Jiajin tapped Qi Xia on the shoulder.


    He snapped out of his thoughts, realizing everyone was staring at him with strange looks.By now, it was too late to overthink things, or he¡¯d look even more suspicious.He composed himself and began to reorganize his thoughts.The phrase ¡°My name is Li Ming, I¡¯m from Shandong¡± kept swirling in his head¡­But at this moment, he absolutely couldn¡¯t use this answer. To solve the puzzle of this game, he had to take a gamble.


    Qi Xia opened his eyes and spoke to everyone, ¡°I¡¯m Qi Xia, from Shandong. I¡¯m a professional liar.¡±


    ¡°Liar?¡±


    As soon as the crowd heard the first sentence, they gasped. After all, the character of the "liar" had appeared in many of their stories.This "liar" connected everyone¡¯s stories in a subtle way.The most ironic thing was that now, they had to determine if a "liar" was telling the truth.


    "Before coming here, I was thinking of ways to clean the two million I had in my hands.""In the end, after much effort, I managed to get 1.1 million. This was the most cost-effective way I could think of.""But on my way back with the money, I suddenly encountered an earthquake. As I reached my doorstep, I saw my house shaking.""Normally, at times like this, you shouldn¡¯t enter a building. After all, the house could collapse at any moment. But I was worried about the people inside, so I rushed in.""Sure enough, as soon as I entered the house, the porch collapsed, and I was trapped under it, losing consciousness."


    Qi Xia spoke calmly, summarizing the story in just a few sentences. The others were all watching him warily.He knew he was taking a huge risk, but this was the only way to verify if his hypothesis was correct.As soon as the goat-head man spoke, it would confirm that his guess was nearly right.


    Just as Qi Xia thought, the goat-head man slowly walked up to the group and said, "Good. Everyone has finished their story. Now we¡¯ll have 20 minutes of free discussion. After 20 minutes, each person must write a name on the white paper in front of them."


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    "Just as I thought!" Qi Xia¡¯s brow raised. "So there really is a 20-minute time limit!"


    This explained everything!The others started to panic, as they only had twenty minutes left to determine who would live or die.Qiao Jiajin and Officer Li both wanted to vote for each other, perhaps due to their professional backgrounds. The hostility between them was clear.Doctor Zhao started questioning writer Han Yimo, as his story seemed unrelated to everyone else¡¯s.Lawyer Zhang Chenze and Xiao Ran seemed to be suspicious of Qi Xia, while Lin Qin, Han Yimo, and Tian Tian were still hesitating.By the apparent rules, the "liar" was about to win.Because the votes weren¡¯t unanimous.The rules clearly stated that only if everyone voted for the liar would all eight people survive.Qi Xia didn¡¯t participate in any of the discussions. He silently closed his eyes.Countless clues swirled in his mind.The goat-head man said, "There is exactly one liar among the storytellers."The goat-head man said, "The rules are absolute."The goat-head man said, "You¡¯ve all been asleep for twelve hours."Qi Xia opened his eyes. Now, only one last piece of information was missing, and the "puzzle" would be solved.But where was that information?Suddenly, a flash of insight struck his mind.The intersecting lines on the walls and floor immediately brought clarity. He glanced at the clock on the table, and it was nearly 1:00.


    "So that¡¯s it¡­" Qi Xia¡¯s eyes widened. "That was close¡­ I¡¯m really a liar, but almost got tricked by you guys."


    The others seemed to notice something strange about Qi Xia. This "liar" had barely spoken from the start, and no one knew what he was really thinking."Hey, can I get another piece of paper?" Qi Xia asked the goat-head man.


    The goat-head man froze, then cautiously asked, "You¡­ want another piece of paper?"


    "Yes," Qi Xia nodded. "I need a scrap of paper."


    The goat-head man remained silent for a moment, then took out another piece of paper from his suit pocket and handed it to Qi Xia.Qi Xia didn¡¯t hesitate, taking the paper and starting to calculate.


    He counted the large squares on the walls¡ªthere were nine of them, while the floor and ceiling each had sixteen squares."If I¡¯m not mistaken¡­" Qi Xia quickly wrote something down, "The squares are one per square meter. That means we¡¯re in a room that¡¯s three meters high, with a length and width of ten meters..."


    "10 x 10 x 3... 300 cubic meters."


    Qi Xia¡¯s hand trembled slightly: "Not enough... completely not enough..."


    The others stared at him in confusion. This was supposed to be about deducing who the liar was, but now he was doing math problems.


    He quickly wrote down many vertical calculations, finally arriving at the numbers "54.6" and "49.14."


    When he saw these two numbers, Qi Xia¡¯s face turned ashen, as if he was trying to accept something.If his guess was entirely correct, the situation right now was terrifying.His eyes constantly flickered, his thoughts soaring far beyond the room.The others¡¯ arguing grew quieter.


    This man hadn¡¯t participated in any discussions, just sitting there calculating. Did he really find the "answer" to the puzzle?


    After a long while, he finally looked up, gazing at everyone.His expression held fear, hesitation, doubt, and confusion.


    "Everyone," Qi Xia cleared his throat and spoke softly, "Originally, I didn¡¯t want to save you all. But if you vote wrong, I¡¯ll die too. I absolutely can¡¯t die here. Someone is waiting for me outside, so no matter what, I must find a way out. I can only reveal the answer now, and I hope you listen to me carefully."


    "Handsome, what do you mean by ''answer''?" Qiao Jiajin, sitting closest to Qi Xia, looked startled. "Do you know who¡¯s lying?"


    Qi Xia didn¡¯t answer. He just reached for his "identity card" and slowly revealed it in front of everyone.


    "This is the identity I drew."


    Everyone¡¯s eyes focused on the card, and the words "LIAR" stood out in bold.

 Chapter 9: The Unacceptable Truth

    After seeing those three words, everyone¡¯s expression turned to one of shock.


    "I drew the ''Liar'' card," Qi Xia said slowly. "But whether this card is flipped or not doesn¡¯t matter because it¡¯s irrelevant."


    He picked up the card and casually tossed it in the center of the table.


    "If I¡¯m not wrong, every one of you here holds a ''Liar'' card."


    No one moved after hearing this. After a while, Officer Li spoke up and asked, "So¡­ are you saying that everyone lied in their stories?"


    "That¡¯s right." Qi Xia nodded. "You all are smarter than I thought. In each of your stories, you¡¯ve included a small lie, making the story logically sound without affecting the plot."


    Officer Li thought for a moment, as if something had occurred to him.


    "If you¡¯re right¡­" Officer Li sighed deeply, "Then the problem just got more complicated."


    Everyone turned to look at Officer Li, not fully understanding.


    Officer Li continued, "According to the rules, only if we all choose the liar will we survive. But if that¡¯s the case, the liar loses. So we¡­"


    Doctor Zhao was the first to understand what Officer Li meant: "You¡¯re saying¡­ we can vote freely, because everyone is lying, and this becomes a ''guaranteed win game,'' where only the person voted for dies?"


    "Exactly." Officer Li nodded. "The optimal solution now is to concentrate all the votes on one person. This minimizes the loss, because the rest of us will survive¡­"


    His words once again suppressed the mood of the group, but the goat-head man remained motionless.


    So, are they just voting for one person to die?


    Qi Xia sighed helplessly and looked at Officer Li. "Officer, is interrupting others a hobby of yours? Does it give you a sense of accomplishment?"


    "What do you mean by that?" Officer Li frowned and replied, "Aren¡¯t I helping you come up with a plan?"


    "I don¡¯t need your help," Qi Xia said without thinking. "Your plan will get everyone killed."


    "What?" Officer Li was stunned. "Why would I get everyone killed? Isn¡¯t what I¡¯m saying right? If everyone is lying, then any vote can be valid?"


    "Officer Li, remember what the goat-head man said, ''The rules are absolute,'' and ''There is exactly one liar,'' do you remember?"


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    "This..." Officer Li pondered for a moment, recalling that the goat-head man had indeed said those two things.


    "I¡¯ll help everyone clear up the confusion," Qi Xia said coldly. "In this game, it seems like the liar has a very high chance of winning because everyone feels like they¡¯re going to win. But if we vote freely, in the end, all of us will die."


    Qiao Jiajin, sitting next to Qi Xia, stroked his tattooed arm and muttered to himself, "Because we broke the ''rules''..."


    "Yes," Qi Xia nodded. "But the interesting part of this game is that we can¡¯t deduce whether someone is lying. As Lawyer Zhang said, we can only deduce from whether the stories contradict each other, but we¡¯re not from the same region. Even if things seem contradictory, we have no way to prove someone¡¯s lying with 100% certainty."


    Qi Xia looked around at the deep in thought crowd and continued, "The ''host'' specifically chose us nine to sit here for a reason: to let us pick out what we think are flaws from these seemingly interconnected stories."


    "But is that really right? What¡¯s the guarantee that we¡¯ll know for sure if someone is lying?" Qi Xia sneered. "In this game, the only person we can be 100% sure is the ''liar'' is this one person. What he said is completely different from our current situation."


    Qi Xia grabbed a pen and quickly wrote "Human Goat" on the paper.


    "I¡¯ve always wondered why the goat-head man introduced ''Human Goat'' in the beginning. It seemed like an unnecessary move. Now I realize this is part of the game."


    Everyone slowly turned their gaze to "Human Goat," but he still hadn¡¯t moved.


    Officer Li was stunned for a moment, then shook his head. "Liar, I have a question. The goat-head man said the rule was ''there is exactly one liar among the storytellers,'' but he didn¡¯t tell a story himself."


    "Didn¡¯t he?" Qi Xia shrugged nonchalantly. "I clearly remember the goat-head man saying that he gathered us here to create a ''god.'' Isn¡¯t that an unbelievable story?"


    Officer Li lowered his head silently. He felt that Qi Xia¡¯s words made sense, but something still felt off.


    "But¡­" Doctor Zhao spoke up. "All your assumptions are based on the premise that ''everyone is lying,'' but why are you so sure we are the liars? What if, when we flip over the cards, you¡¯re the only one who is the ''liar''?"


    "You can¡¯t be telling the truth." Qi Xia chuckled bitterly, his expression somewhat desperate. "I¡¯ve spent time verifying this. I not only know that you¡¯re all lying, but I also know exactly where you¡¯re lying."


    He pushed his draft paper forward and looked at Tian Tian. "Tian Tian, when you were ''working'' in the car and stuck your head out, did the falling billboard really hit the car and cause you to lose consciousness?"


    Tian Tian bit her lip, not daring to speak.


    "Qiao Jiajin, when you fell from such a high place and hit the billboard, did you really just ''lose consciousness''?"


    Qiao Jiajin remained silent.


    "Teacher Xiao Ran, when you were with that child, did you really avoid the speeding car?"


    Xiao Ran¡¯s gaze flickered.


    "Doctor Zhao, surgery rooms are built to be much sturdier than regular rooms to maintain stability, but you said the ceiling collapsed. Were you really just knocked out?"


    Doctor Zhao turned his head away.


    "Han Yimo, you said you had no idea what happened, but when you¡¯re focused on writing, the last thing you want is a distraction. Don¡¯t tell me you didn¡¯t notice how you got here?"


    Han Yimo sighed softly.


    "Lawyer Zhang, your car was pushed into a crack. How deep was that crack?"


    Lawyer Zhang crossed his arms, his face expressionless.


    "Officer Li, what kind of car do you drive? Can it instantly recline the seats and free you from the person behind you?"


    Officer Li touched the red mark on his neck, hesitating to speak.


    "Lin Qin, your ceiling also collapsed, but you said your office was on a high floor. When the top floors collapse, the entire building should fall, right?"


    Lin Qin lowered her head deeply.


    Seeing everyone¡¯s expressions, Qi Xia knocked on the table and said,"Everyone, admit it. Including me, we¡¯ve all been dead

 Chapter 10: Is it Over?

    The silence lasted for several minutes as everyone tried to accept this unbelievable truth.After a moment, Officer Li was the first to flip over his identity card, and sure enough, it read "Liar."The others slowly turned over their cards as well¡ªevery single one of them said "Liar.""You¡¯re quite clever¡­" Lawyer Zhang gave Qi Xia an approving look. "But how did you figure out that we were all already dead?"Qi Xia pointed to his draft paper and said, "It¡¯s not hard. I¡¯ve been wondering, why is the room sealed? Why are there lines on the walls and floor? Why is there a clock in the center of the table? And why did the goat-head man force us to have a ''half-time break''?""Normally, the air consumption of an average person is 0.007 cubic meters per minute. That means 0.42 cubic meters per hour, and with ten people in the room, the total air consumption would be 4.2 cubic meters per hour.""According to the goat-head man, we¡¯ve been asleep in this room for 12 hours, and we¡¯ve also played nearly an hour of a game. If you multiply 4.2 cubic meters by 13, you get the number ''54.6''."Qi Xia circled "54.6" on his paper and said, "This is the amount of air we should have consumed."He then looked around the room and asked, "But how many cubic meters does this room actually have?"The others followed his gaze."The organizer left us clues. They drew lines on the walls and floor, dividing them into many squares, each about one meter in length," Qi Xia pointed to the marks on the wall. "The number of squares on the walls is 3 by 4, and the floor and ceiling are 4 by 4. This room has a length, width, and height of 4 by 4 by 3, which gives us a total of 48 cubic meters.""Now, how can a 48-cubic-meter room hold 54.6 cubic meters of air?" Qi Xia frowned and said, his expression grim, "By now, the air should have been thinning out, but we don¡¯t feel any signs of oxygen deprivation..."Doctor Zhao thought for a moment, took Qi Xia¡¯s draft paper, and pointed to "49.14," asking, "What does this number mean?"Qi Xia looked at Doctor Zhao with a serious expression and replied, "This is the amount of air for ''nine people''.""Nine people?"Doctor Zhao was stunned. After all, there were clearly ten people in the room consuming air, so why calculate for "nine"?"I made a bold assumption," Qi Xia said without expression. "What if the goat-head man ''isn¡¯t human''? Would we have enough air? Clearly, we wouldn¡¯t.""What kind of madman are you?" Doctor Zhao murmured, "Making such a bizarre assumption?""Is it hard to understand?" Qi Xia pointed to the headless body beside him, "Doctor Zhao, you should be very familiar with skulls. Generally, can a person crush a skull with one hand?"Doctor Zhao didn¡¯t answer because he knew this was impossible.Not to mention a human skull¡ªeven a rabbit¡¯s skull would be difficult to crush with one hand on a table.Qi Xia withdrew his gaze and looked around the room. "Time is running out. I¡¯ve already written down my pick. Now, it¡¯s up to you, but remember, if even one person¡¯s answer is different from mine, everyone in the room will be ''punished''."The others hesitated.A monster that can kill at will was now going to be "voted out" by them.Would it really go down like that?Qiao Jiajin glanced at the goat-head man out of the corner of his eye, but the goat-head man remained motionless, his deep gaze peering out from behind the goat mask, seemingly deep in thought."D*mn it, let''s go for it!" Qiao Jiajin waved his hand decisively and wrote "Human Goat" on his paper.The others hesitated but eventually wrote their answers as well.Qi Xia looked around, and without exception, everyone had written "Human Goat."The clock struck 1:00, and the game was over.The goat-head man slowly walked up and said, "Congratulations, you¡¯ve all survived the ''Liar'' game. Now, I will personally ''punish'' the loser."Before anyone could react, the goat-head man pulled a gun from his pocket, turned the barrel to his own chest, and pulled the trigger.A deafening explosion echoed through the narrow room.In such a confined space, the sound didn¡¯t dissipate, and everyone felt a ringing in their ears.Immediately, the goat-head man clutched his chest and began to scream.The scream quickly drowned out the gunshot, reverberating through the room, sending chills through everyone.The goat-head man screamed and spat blood, his cries lasting for over a minute before subsiding into painful groans."What¡­ what¡¯s going on¡­" Qiao Jiajin stared at the goat-head man. "Is he for real?"A few minutes later, the groans faded away.The nine people suddenly realized they could move their legs again.Doctor Zhao was the first to stand up, walk over to the goat-head man, and feel for a pulse in his neck, discovering it had stopped."Hey!" Doctor Zhao shouted at the goat-head man. "The game¡¯s over, how do we get out?"But a quiet corpse couldn¡¯t give Doctor Zhao any answers.The others slowly stood up as well.Nothing had changed in the room, except for the addition of one more corpse."This is strange¡­ are we really dead?" Tian Tian seemed to be still struggling with the idea. She stretched out her delicate hand and slapped herself hard."Ouch!" Tian Tian exclaimed, "It still hurts... Why does it still hurt if we¡¯re dead?"Qiao Jiajin shook his head helplessly. "What, have you died before?""I..." Tian Tian paused for a moment. "I guess I¡¯ve never died before...""So, who knows what happens after death? Looking at this situation, maybe this is hell," Qiao Jiajin glanced at the two bodies in the room, feeling uneasy. "I can feel pain and smell the stench.""So, what are we? Souls?" writer Han Yimo asked.Doctor Zhao also checked his body, finding that his heartbeat, temperature, and pulse were all normal, and he was breathing normally, but he wasn¡¯t consuming any oxygen.It seemed that death truly was a mysterious thing, beyond the explanation of any medical knowledge."Whatever we are, I don¡¯t want to be stuck in this small room for the rest of my days," Officer Li said. "Let¡¯s see if we can figure out how to get out."Officer Li walked over to the goat-head man, casually picking up the gun that had fallen beside him.This move startled everyone, and they instinctively backed away from him.Officer Li skillfully opened the chamber, then ejected the magazine, discovering that the gun had only one bullet, and it was now empty.This was both good and bad news.The good news was they didn¡¯t have to worry about anyone using the gun to harm others. The bad news was that if other dangers appeared, they couldn¡¯t protect themselves.Qiao Jiajin, however, was bolder. He slowly removed the goat-head man¡¯s mask and found that beneath it was the face of a man whose features were completely decayed.His eyes were rolled back, and there were no signs of life."What a terrifying face¡­"Lawyer Zhang agreed quietly from the side.


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 Chapter 11: Continuation

    Qi Xia remained seated, neither standing nor looking for clues.He still felt a bit uneasy.The only other person who stayed seated was the psychologist, Lin Qin."What are you thinking about?" Lin Qin casually covered her mouth and nose as she asked."Me?" Qi Xia was startled. "What, are you going to give me a psychological diagnosis?""Not really," Lin Qin smiled slightly. "Although people as smart as you might have some psychological issues, this situation really isn¡¯t suited for therapy. I just wanted to know what you''re thinking."Qi Xia paused for a moment and then replied, "I¡¯m thinking about the cause.""The cause?"Qi Xia didn¡¯t respond to Lin Qin but instead called out to Doctor Zhao. "Doctor, how long can an average person survive after being shot in the heart?"Doctor Zhao turned around, thought for a moment, and said, "If I remember correctly, when the heart is shot, a person will lose consciousness within seconds. But since ''death'' in medical terms refers to ''brain death,'' even if unconscious, the brain will still function for a few minutes."Qi Xia nodded. "So the goat-headed man screamed for several minutes earlier, which means his body must be much stronger than a regular human''s?""Yes," Doctor Zhao confirmed. "He remained conscious for several minutes after being shot in the heart."The others fell silent, listening to Qi Xia and Doctor Zhao.It was thanks to the clarity of this trickster¡¯s thinking that all nine of them had survived."So why do you think that is?" Qi Xia extended his index finger and thumb to form a gun shape and pressed it to his temple. "Normally, people would choose to commit suicide like this."He thought for a moment and then lowered his hand, pointing to his jaw: "Or like this."Qi Xia then pulled his hand back and pointed to his heart."Either way... a person committing suicide would typically choose the least painful method. But why would he aim for his heart?"In his hands, Qiao Jiajin toyed with the goat-head mask and then flipped the man¡¯s head, saying, "Maybe this guy¡¯s head is so tough that one shot wouldn¡¯t kill him.""If he coughed up blood, it shows his physical structure is the same as ours," Officer Li remarked. "Even if he''s stronger, a shot to the head at this distance would definitely kill him."Qi Xia nodded. "In that case, I can only think of one reason."He pointed at the goat mask in Qiao Jiajin¡¯s hands and said, "The goat-headed man probably shot himself in the heart to protect something. The ''game'' isn¡¯t over yet."Qiao Jiajin was stunned. "You mean... he was afraid of damaging his mask?""Exactly."Following Qi Xia¡¯s instructions, Qiao Jiajin flipped the goat skin mask over. The rough inner lining of the leather was exposed to the group.A rotten, foul smell wafted from it.Just as Qi Xia had suspected, the inside of the goat skin mask had writing in black ink.Some parts were stained with blood, but Qiao Jiajin didn¡¯t mind. He wiped it with his T-shirt, and the text became legible."What¡¯s this?" Qiao Jiajin blinked, then began reading in his imperfect Mandarin:"I am a ''human-dog.''""You are cursed.""I hope you survive.""The clock never stops; the west is full of danger.""If you want to survive, turn towards your hometown a hundred times.""By the way, they say bamboo shoots sprout after the rain. Why aren¡¯t they afraid of the rain?""See you after the rain."Qi Xia frowned slightly. This was indeed the next clue for the game...The shadow of death still loomed over them.They had already died, but were they to die again?"Hey, trickster, what does this mean?" Qiao Jiajin asked."How would I know?" Qi Xia scoffed. "There are nine people here. Do you expect me to figure it all out?"Lawyer Zhang Chenze slowly sat down in a chair and said, "Although I don¡¯t want to admit it, your thinking aligns very well with the ''organizer.'' If you have any ideas, you might as well share them.""I..."Before Qi Xia could speak, the wall to the west suddenly began to change.In shock, everyone watched as holes appeared out of nowhere.The cement wall that had once been solid now looked like a constantly shifting, soft surface.After a moment, rows of holes lined up neatly in the wall as though they had always been there.At the same time, a sound of chains pulling could be heard from the west side."What¡¯s going on?" The group panicked for a moment."Look at the ceiling!" someone shouted in alarm.Everyone looked up and saw the ceiling was covered in holes too.Qi Xia finally stood up, took the goat skin mask from Qiao Jiajin, and carefully looked at the last line of text."See you after the rain.""Rain...?"Qiao Jiajin tiptoed to the wall, crouched down, and peered into one of the holes. He jumped back in fright, stumbling several steps."Sh*t!"He yelled and tried to find a place to hide, but there was nowhere to go."What¡¯s inside? What is it?" Xiao Ran asked, her voice trembling in fear.The group knew that Qiao Jiajin was usually quite brave, so if something could scare him this much, it must be something serious."Sh*t!" Qiao Jiajin shouted again. "It¡¯s harpoons! The holes are full of harpoons... and they¡¯re ''retracting''!""''Retracting''?" Doctor Zhao asked, confused."It means they¡¯re ''cocked.''" Qi Xia said. "Since earlier, there has been the sound of chains from the west side. Now these harpoons are loaded and ready to fire at any moment.""Hey! Trickster, think of something!" Qiao Jiajin rushed to Qi Xia¡¯s side, anxious. "If all the harpoons fire at once, where can we hide?"Qi Xia thought carefully for a moment. Surviving himself wouldn¡¯t be difficult; after all, there were already two corpses in the room.The harpoons¡¯ piercing power was limited¡ªif he piled the bodies in the corner of the wall and hid behind them, although he might get injured, his chances of survival were still high."It¡¯ll be very hard to keep everyone alive this time. I need to take care of myself, so I won¡¯t be saving you all again." Qi Xia said quietly."You..." Qiao Jiajin wanted to say something but stopped. He could only turn to Officer Li and Doctor Zhao for help, but they looked even more helpless.Qi Xia glanced at the lines of text on the goat skin mask again.Had he misunderstood?Only the last person remaining would end the ''game.''If everyone kept surviving, this deadly game would continue.After all, this room was strange¡ªthe walls in the west changed at any time.This didn¡¯t fit any scientific logic; it felt more like magic.But if the organizer was someone powerful enough to use magic, why were they tormenting nine dead people?Could this be some twisted game run by an organization managing spirits?While Qi Xia was lost in thought, Lin Qin looked at the mask in his hand and spoke. "It says here... it gives us a way to survive. It says ''Turn towards your hometown a hundred times.''"The group calmed down slightly and began to think about this statement."Does it mean we should turn towards the direction of our hometown and spin a hundred times?" Tiantian asked."No, that can¡¯t be right." Qiao Jiajin shook his head. "In this room, how would you even know where your hometown is? And spinning a hundred times would just make you dizzy, it wouldn¡¯t have any effect.""I don¡¯t care! I¡¯ll try it!" Tiantian said, choosing a random direction and began spinning in place.Qi Xia thought for a moment. He knew it couldn¡¯t be that simple.


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 Chapter 12: Your Hometown

    If the saying "rules are absolute" still applies to this second "game," then the words written on the mask must be the key to cracking it.But how can it be cracked?When will the harpoons be fired?"The clock never stops..."Could it mean "a quarter past"?Qi Xia turned his gaze to the clock on the desk. It was already 1:05, and if "a quarter past" was when the harpoons would be fired, there were less than ten minutes left."Turn towards your hometown and spin a hundred times..."Each of the nine people in the room had a different hometown, and "a hundred times" was no small task.If they were thinking in the wrong direction, they could easily waste these precious ten minutes.But in this room, besides themselves, what could be "turned"?Qi Xia''s gaze landed on the clock at the center of the table.He leaned forward, lightly touching the clock, only to find it was firmly fixed to the table and could not be moved at all."The clock can''t move, could it be the chair?"Qi Xia looked down at the chair beneath him. It was an old, moldy chair, simply placed on the floor with no mechanisms attached.In that case, there was only one thing left...Qi Xia looked at the round table in the center of the room and noticed something strange about it.The table couldn''t be called a "round table" because it appeared to be a polygon, just with many sides, giving the impression of being round at first glance.He reached out and gave the tabletop a spin. Sure enough, a faint sound of chains came from within the table.But the table was heavy, and despite using considerable force, Qi Xia could only move it a few centimeters."A hundred spins..."This number could not possibly be achieved by just two or three people. The nine people in the room would need to work together to spin the table, and only then could they have a chance to survive.Lin Qin, keenly noticing Qi Xia¡¯s actions, stopped everyone.The others moved to the table and saw that, indeed, the table could be turned."You''re quite something, trickster." Qiao Jiajin nodded. "If we spin this table a hundred times, it should open the invisible door."Qi Xia glanced at the clock again. Although time was tight, the problem had become simpler.Turning the round table towards "home" a hundred times was really just two possibilities:Turn left, or turn right.But since everyone¡¯s hometown was located in different directions¡ªnorth, south, east, west¡ªhow could they know whether it should be left or right?"Qi Xia, do you already know when the harpoons will be fired?" Lin Qin asked, covering her mouth and nose."The hint said ''the clock never stops,'' so I guess it will be at 1:15." Qi Xia said softly.Qiao Jiajin¡¯s face changed after hearing this. "That means we have less than ten minutes left! Let¡¯s start spinning!"Doctor Zhao moved the body that was lying on the table to the side and slowly sat down. He tested the weight of the table and said, "But we only have one chance. Spinning this heavy table a hundred times¡ªwhat if we get the direction wrong?""Well, we still have a fifty percent chance of surviving!" Qiao Jiajin said urgently. "If we don¡¯t do anything, we¡¯re dead for sure. If we spin, we still have a fifty percent chance of living. Hurry up!"With that, he used all his strength to start spinning the table to the left.Though Qiao Jiajin appeared thin, he was very strong, and with just one person, he managed to spin the table half a turn."What are you waiting for?! D*mn it, help me!" Qiao Jiajin yelled at the others.The others knew Qiao Jiajin was right and reluctantly began helping him spin.There was no right answer yet; they could only take a gamble.However, Qi Xia remained still.He had no idea which direction to take.Left, or right?Why was the keyword "hometown" so important...?They were all Chinese, so could it be "east"?North is up, south is down, west is left, east is right... could the answer be "right"?But what about those whose hometowns were to the west?Or maybe everyone¡¯s hometowns had something to do with the "Zuo Zhuan" from the Spring and Autumn period, meaning the answer was "left"?Qi Xia closed his eyes slightly. He had initially thought about using the two corpses to shield himself, but what if everyone else died and the next game came?"Now is not the time to abandon them."Qi Xia thought to himself, then reached out, grabbed a piece of white paper from the spinning table, picked up a pen, and walked to the side. He sat down in an empty space and began scribbling something on the paper.The others, though puzzled, didn¡¯t stop what they were doing. The table had already been spun several dozen times."If he hadn''t introduced himself as a ''trickster,'' I¡¯d think he was some kind of mathematician," Qiao Jiajin said to Tiantian.Tiantian had been feeling dizzy from her own spinning earlier and just nodded half-heartedly.This time, Qi Xia didn¡¯t write down vertical formulas. Instead, he roughly sketched a map of the country."Hometown...?"His mind raced, and suddenly something clicked."Wait a minute..." Qi Xia¡¯s eyes widened. "If the ''organizer'' is so powerful that they can find people with similar experiences from so many provinces, then ''provinces'' must be a key point?"He turned back and looked at the people still spinning the table. He asked seriously, "Did anyone lie about their hometowns earlier?"The others shook their heads.After all, hometowns were related to accents and expressions, and lying would easily expose a flaw."Good." Qi Xia nodded slightly. "Now, please go around and tell me your hometowns again."Officer Li was the first to speak. "I¡¯m from Inner Mongolia."Qi Xia marked a black dot on the map where Inner Mongolia was."I¡¯m from Western Sichuan," Lawyer Zhang Chenze said coldly."I¡¯m from Shaanxi..." Tiantian said."From Dali in Yunnan," said kindergarten teacher Xiao Ran."Guangdong," Qiao Jiajin said."Ningxia," psychologist Lin Qin said."I work in Jiangsu," Doctor Zhao said.Qi Xia marked everyone¡¯s hometowns on the map, and then wrote "Shandong" for himself.At this point, everyone¡¯s gaze turned to the writer Han Yimo, as he hadn¡¯t mentioned his hometown from the beginning."Han Yimo, are you from Guangxi or Taiwan?"Han Yimo froze. "How did you know?""Time is running out. Answer me now.""I¡¯m from Guangxi..."Qi Xia nodded. There were only two provinces left for Han Yimo. Guangxi or Taiwan.If his answer wasn¡¯t one of these two, it would mean he was lying.Fortunately, he told the truth.Qi Xia marked the last province on the map. Now, the sketch had nine black dots."As I thought."Qi Xia whispered, "Stop. Turn right.""Right?"Qi Xia quickly ran to the table, tossed the piece of paper onto it, and began spinning the table in the opposite direction.Although the others were confused, they followed his lead and spun with him.Doctor Zhao looked at the map on the table and the nine black dots."Why right?"


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 Chapter 13: A Rainstorm

    While desperately turning the table, Qi Xia said, "The positions of Ningxia and Shandong form a horizontal line."


    "Inner Mongolia, Sichuan, and Yunnan form a ''slash''."


    "And Guangxi, Guangdong, Shaanxi, and Jiangsu form a square, which is the character ''right''."


    "It doesn¡¯t matter where Han Yimo¡¯s hometown is. As long as it''s either Guangxi or Taiwan, it will form the character ''mouth'', which means the answer was determined from the beginning."


    The others quickened their movements as they glanced at Qi Xia in surprise. His thinking was so unconventional, yet he had solved the puzzle twice in a row. This made the others begin to doubt.


    Qi Xia understood their suspicions and said, "Don''t misunderstand. If the next game involves abandoning you all to save myself, I will not hesitate to survive."


    Upon hearing this, the group fell silent, gritting their teeth as they continued to turn the table.


    The nine of them surrounded the table, turning it to the right, circle by circle.


    "How many circles?" Jo Jiajin asked.


    "Twenty-six circles," Lin Qing answered.


    "You can count them?" Jo Jiajin blinked. "The table looks the same to me."


    "I count the bloodstains on the table," Lin Qing said seriously. "Counting is crucial for us psychologists."


    Qi Xia furrowed his brows. "Not even thirty circles yet. We need to hurry up."


    Everyone fell silent and picked up the pace.


    But the table grew heavier as they moved forward, and the internal chains seemed to tighten with each turn.


    "D*mn, what¡¯s going on?" Jo Jiajin gritted his teeth. "This thing is too heavy."


    "Keep going... maybe it really connects to the door!" Sweet Sweet said through gritted teeth, her words giving a glimmer of hope to the others.


    A door. If this room could conjure holes out of thin air, why couldn''t it conjure a door?


    Their arms were sore, but they kept turning the table, circle by circle.


    "Don¡¯t give up! Only five more circles!" Lin Qing shouted.


    At this point, they were all gritting their teeth and using every last bit of strength they had. No one dared slack off.


    Clink!


    With a final loud sound, the table clearly locked into something.


    Everyone let out a collective sigh of relief as the ache in their arms began to settle.


    Only three minutes were left until 1:15.


    "Where¡¯s the door?!" Jo Jiajin shouted anxiously.


    The wall in the west showed no change. In the dark hole, the cold glow of the harpoons could still be seen.


    "D*mn! There¡¯s no door!" Jo Jiajin¡¯s voice carried a hint of despair.


    "Wrong! We guessed wrong!" Xiao Ran screamed, "We should have turned left, right?! We shouldn¡¯t have trusted that liar! We¡¯re all going to die!"


    Qi Xia frowned slightly¡­


    Wrong?


    Before anyone could react, the clock in the center of the table began to act strangely.


    It shook slightly, then shot out eight beams of laser light.


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    The lasers moved across the table, gradually stopping at the edges.


    To everyone¡¯s confusion, the clock then sliced the table into equal-sized fan-shaped pieces, just like slicing a pizza.


    Crash!


    With a loud sound, the table split into five pieces.


    The central clock now sat on a small wooden stand.


    Qi Xia looked carefully and saw that there were nine small fan-shaped pieces and one large fan-shaped piece.


    No, it wasn¡¯t exactly "fan-shaped"; it was more like a "triangle," as the bottom of each piece was flat.


    Time was running out, and everyone was in a frenzy.


    "What is this?" Han Yimo exclaimed. "Why did the table break?"


    At that moment, Officer Li noticed that each fan-shaped table had a handle on the back, and his professional instincts told him what was going on.


    "It¡¯s a shield!"


    He grabbed the largest fan-shaped piece and held it in front of him.


    "We can use this shield to block the harpoons!"


    Hearing this, everyone grabbed their table pieces, but unfortunately, there was only one large piece. The rest could only hold onto smaller triangular pieces, which could barely protect their bodies.


    However, after just a few seconds, everyone realized the problem.


    "How do we block?" Lawyer Zhang Chenze said, looking unusually panicked. "If the harpoons are coming from the west, we can only block one direction."


    "Cooperate." Qi Xia snapped back to reality and spoke, "Let¡¯s form a circle and block each other¡¯s backs."


    Everyone quickly adjusted their positions and silently waited.


    Now, in the room, the only sound was the sound of their breathing.


    Nine strangers had become teammates, each indispensable.


    Qi Xia accidentally glanced over at Han Yimo and noticed his face covered in sweat. His whole body was trembling, and he looked especially nervous.


    At that moment, a distant chime sounded from outside the room.


    "Are you okay?" Qi Xia asked.


    "N-No... it¡¯s nothing..." Han Yimo shook his head.


    "Hey! Doctor Zhao, flip your shield!" Zhang Chenze suddenly called out.


    "Why?" Zhao asked, looking at his shield, with the sharp side down and the wide side up.


    "Like this, you can¡¯t protect my legs!" Zhang Chenze said, tense.


    "I can¡¯t protect my head if I flip it!" Zhao retorted, unwilling to back down. "Which is more important, the head or the legs?"


    Some of the others, hearing their argument, felt Zhao¡¯s point made sense and quickly followed suit, flipping their shields.


    Now, the situation was strangely reversed. The sharp sides of all the shields were up, while the wide sides were down.


    But this only caused another problem.


    The harpoons coming from the west would only be blocked by the upper half of their bodies, leaving their legs exposed.


    "Is this really okay?" Xiao Ran hesitated. "Even if we can shield our front with the sharp side, what about the harpoons coming from behind? What about those coming from above?"


    "I¡¯ll block the top!" Officer Li shouted as he raised his large shield, "Everyone, get closer. I¡¯ll protect you."


    This seemed to be the best solution, as the largest shield was used to cover the top, while the others blocked the west.


    But Qi Xia still felt something was off.


    Lin Qing quickly thought it over and said, "The rest of us should arrange ourselves one above, one below. We can stagger our positions."


    "Yes! That makes sense!" Jo Jiajin agreed.


    "No." Qi Xia interrupted. "If all the shields are vertical to the harpoons, it¡¯ll be too easy to pierce through them..."


    "Hey, handsome, what do you suggest we do?" Jo Jiajin asked.


    Qi Xia¡¯s gaze landed on the sheepskin mask on the ground.


    "Why aren¡¯t bamboo shoots afraid of rain?"


    The last hint made Qi Xia deep in thought.


    "Wait... give me a moment," Qi Xia said, frowning.


    Everyone held their breath as time ticked by. Only a minute remained until the harpoons would launch.


    "Forget it!" Doctor Zhao snapped, "Let¡¯s just follow Lin Qing¡¯s suggestion and stagger our positions!"


    "Shut up, you brat!" Jo Jiajin shouted. "I believe the liar¡¯s words!"


    "You!" Zhao gritted his teeth and swallowed his words.


    The large and small shields... what did they mean?


    "Not right..." Qi Xia suddenly widened his eyes. "It¡¯s the ¡®lie¡¯! The large shield will kill us!"


    "What?" Officer Li looked at Qi Xia with confusion.


    "Officer, toss the big shield aside and take the last small one. Everyone, sharp side up!"


    Though skeptical, most of the group had empty heads and could only follow his instructions.


    Doctor Zhao hesitated for a moment, then turned his shield around.


    After a few seconds, Officer Li picked up the final small shield.


    "Everyone, crouch down!" Qi Xia continued. "Move the sharp side to the back and get close to each other. Officer Li, you don¡¯t need to block the top anymore. Join us!"


    Following Qi Xia¡¯s orders, they all adjusted the shields, forming a conical shape.


    No one had expected that by abandoning the large shield, the small shields would fit together perfectly to form a pyramid, blocking both the western side and the top gaps.


    From a distance, the cone looked like a bamboo shoot, waiting for the rainstorm to come.


    In the pitch-black room, everyone¡¯s heart was pounding, and the only sound was the rhythm of their breathing.


    "It¡¯s coming..." Qi Xia mentally counted the time and whispered.


    In the next second, everyone heard the sound of wind tearing apart, and something invisible slammed into the shield in Qi Xia¡¯s hands.


    Immediately after, the sounds of the harpoons coming from all directions from the west seemed like a violent storm.


    The force of the harpoons was so strong that everyone felt their arms aching, and they almost couldn¡¯t hold the shields anymore.


    Fortunately, the shields had formed a subtle balance, with all of them pressed together.


    "Ah!"


    A harpoon pierced through the shield in front of Xiao Ran, causing her to scream.


    Qi Xia turned around and saw that the harpoon had stopped only two or three centimeters from Xiao Ran¡¯s eyes.


    If the shield hadn¡¯t been so strong, Xiao Ran would have been dead by now.

 Chapter 14: After the Rain

    ¡°Hold on!¡± Officer Li shouted, ¡°There are limited harpoons, just hang on a little longer and we¡¯ll survive!¡±


    Before anyone could respond, another scream echoed through the room.


    Turning to look, it was Sweetie.


    Unlike Xiaoran, who was lucky, the harpoon pierced her palm.


    Sweetie momentarily lost strength, and the table in front of her was knocked askew by the oncoming harpoons.


    ¡°Watch out!¡±


    Jiaojia clenched his teeth and reached to grab the table in front of Sweetie.


    In that split second, a harpoon flew through the gap, striking Han Yimo in the shoulder.


    Han Yimo let out a painful scream, but his hand still tightly gripped the table.


    ¡°Don¡¯t panic!¡±


    Officer Li quickly supported Han Yimo and then, with both hands, held up part of the table to relieve the pressure on him.


    Jiaojia also acted swiftly, grabbing the table to support Sweetie.


    Luckily, these two were quite strong, and the formation began to stabilize once again.


    As the crashing sounds gradually faded, the group finally realized just how effective this formation was.


    Had they followed Officer Li and Dr. Zhao¡¯s idea of arranging the tables staggered in everyone¡¯s hands, the tables would have been positioned vertically, making them extremely vulnerable to the harpoons.


    Now, with the "bamboo shoots after the rain" formation, the harpoons'' contact points with the tables were at slanting angles, greatly reducing the harpoons'' piercing power.


    Especially the harpoons coming from directly above, their trajectory was altered by the conical shape.


    After a while, the noise outside completely disappeared.


    ¡°Is it over?¡± Han Yimo asked through gritted teeth.


    ¡°Wait one more minute,¡± Qi Xia replied.


    The group continued holding the tables, waiting in silence. After a minute, they confirmed that there was no more sound outside.


    Jiaojia carefully opened a small gap and peered outside.


    ¡°Oh no¡­¡± He was immediately stunned by the scene before him.


    The group slowly moved the tables aside and saw that the ground and the table were covered in harpoons.


    The two bodies on the ground were gruesome, looking like porcupines, pierced by the harpoons in a dense array.


    Each harpoon was tied to a rope, with the other end connected to the hole in the wall, and the room was in utter chaos.


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    Dr. Zhao, acting swiftly, rolled up his sleeves and approached Han Yimo.


    His condition was serious; the harpoon had pierced his shoulder, and it needed immediate treatment.


    Han Yimo slowly sat down and smiled bitterly, ¡°I was just thinking how unlucky I might be, and it turned out to be true¡­¡±


    Sweetie looked very guilty and quickly apologized to Han Yimo.


    But everyone knew it wasn¡¯t Sweetie¡¯s fault¡ªshe too had been pierced by a harpoon in her hand.


    ¡°Hey, gorgeous, come here,¡± Jiaojia waved, ¡°Let me bandage you up.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± Sweetie was confused, ¡°You know how to bandage?¡±


    ¡°A little bit,¡± Jiaojia replied.


    He tore off a strip of suit fabric from a dead goat head and then tore it into two pieces. One was tightly wrapped around Sweetie''s arm to stop the bleeding, and the other was carefully wound around the wound.


    ¡°I used to get hurt a lot on the streets, so I learned a bit about bandaging,¡± Jiaojia explained.


    Sweetie nodded slightly, without saying a word.


    After coming here, the group finally had some peace, as if temporarily escaping the shadow of death.


    However, the door still hadn''t appeared, and they remained trapped in this damned room.


    Where exactly were they?


    What was outside the room?


    In less than a minute, a sigh came from Dr. Zhao¡¯s direction.


    Qi Xia turned to look and saw Dr. Zhao, who was treating Han Yimo¡¯s wound, now looking conflicted.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Officer Li asked, ¡°Is it serious?¡±


    ¡°The wound is not too bad,¡± Dr. Zhao shook his head, ¡°But I can¡¯t remove the harpoon.¡±


    The group moved closer and immediately realized the problem was indeed tricky.


    The harpoon had barbed tips, and removing it would cause even more damage to the victim.


    The harpoon was also attached to a rope.


    At this moment, Han Yimo was like a fish caught on a hook, no matter where he went, the rope would drag him back.


    ¡°We can only cut the rope and then pull the harpoon out from the front,¡± Dr. Zhao said, looking up. ¡°But I don¡¯t have anything sharp.¡±


    Han Yimo¡¯s lips were turning pale. The harpoon piercing his shoulder blade was causing excruciating pain.


    ¡°Use the other harpoon,¡± Officer Li said decisively. ¡°Although the harpoon is sharp, it can still serve as a cutting tool.¡±


    ¡°Looks like that''s the only choice,¡± Dr. Zhao nodded. ¡°Writer, I need you to lie down in the most relaxed position. We¡¯ll need to cut the rope from your back, so don''t rush, just take it slow. Be careful of the harpoon on your front, don¡¯t get injured again.¡±


    Han Yimo nodded and began to move painfully.


    Qi Xia watched this and felt something was off.


    Take it slow?


    Was there really time for that in this situation?


    He looked at the ropes scattered all over the ground, and a bad premonition formed in his mind.


    If he was right, they were still racing against time.


    ¡°We can¡¯t take it slow!¡± Qi Xia suddenly shouted, ¡°Take the harpoon out right now!¡±


    He quickly walked over to Dr. Zhao and, with a serious look, told Han Yimo, ¡°Hang in there, I¡¯ll pull the harpoon out for you!¡±


    Han Yimo looked confused, but didn¡¯t refuse.


    ¡°What are you doing?!¡± Dr. Zhao angrily shoved Qi Xia, ¡°You¡¯ll make his injury worse!¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s no time!¡± Qi Xia pushed Dr. Zhao aside, grabbing the harpoon in Han Yimo¡¯s back.


    A scream escaped.


    The harpoon, with its barbed tip, was easy to pierce, but nearly impossible to remove.


    ¡°Hey!¡± Officer Li ran over and pulled Qi Xia away, shouting angrily, ¡°Are you trying to kill him?!¡±


    Qi Xia¡¯s face grew darker after being stopped twice.


    ¡°I understand you want to save him, but if we don¡¯t hurry up, the harpoon will¡­¡±


    Before Qi Xia could finish, a chain-like sound echoed from the West Wall, as if some giant mechanism had been triggered again.


    Along with it came Han Yimo¡¯s heart-wrenching scream.


    The group realized all the harpoons were slowly retracting on their ropes.


    Han Yimo, lying on the ground, was being dragged by the immense force.


    Qi Xia had already noticed this earlier¡ªthe ropes tied to the harpoons were not for decoration. They would eventually retract the harpoons.


    In a panic, the group rushed after Han Yimo, while Officer Li tried to grab the ropes to fight against the enormous force from the black hole in the wall. But it was all futile.


    The tables, which had been pierced with harpoons, were now being torn apart by the harpoons, and slowly began retreating.


    This force, capable of tearing apart wood, was clearly beyond what bare hands could resist.


    Although Han Yimo was in unbearable pain, he quickly realized another problem.


    If he was dragged to the wall and still couldn¡¯t escape the harpoons, he would be nailed to the wall to die.


    Realizing this, he stood up in agony and grabbed Qi Xia. With a strained voice, he said, ¡°Help me pull the harpoon out! Do it now!¡±

 Chapter 15: Still Unsettled

    Qi Xia¡¯s expression was troubled. He had already tried earlier, but the harpoon¡¯s barbs were so finely crafted that it was almost impossible to remove from the body.


    Looking at the blood steadily flowing out, Qi Xia felt a momentary daze.


    Had they really died?


    Do the dead still get injured?


    He shook his head to clear the thoughts. Now was not the time to ponder that; what mattered was cutting the rope immediately.


    Right now, all the harpoons were slowly retracting. How could they use another harpoon to cut the rope?


    The only thing he was sure of was that once all the ropes were pulled back into the wall, the harpoons would disappear, and Han Yimo would die.


    "We need to figure out how to get one harpoon..." Qi Xia furrowed his brow, quickly scanning the surroundings. "But how exactly should we do this?"


    It was time to take another gamble.


    He grabbed two harpoons from the ground, which were slowly retreating, and quickly tied their ropes together with a tight knot.


    "Hey! Stop crowding around Han Yimo," Qi Xia said loudly. "Everyone do what I¡¯m doing! We need at least one harpoon left."


    Lin Qin immediately understood what he meant and found two harpoons, tying them into a knot with clean efficiency. However, the knot she tied was odd, something Qi Xia had never seen before.


    He didn¡¯t have time to think about it now, so he focused on the two harpoons in front of him.


    As the ropes continued to retract, the two ropes began to pull tightly together.


    At this rate, it wouldn¡¯t take long before one of the ropes would snap, leaving just one harpoon.


    Qi Xia slowly began to back up. The two ropes let out a horrifying sound as they strained. If he guessed correctly, the snapping rope could potentially injure someone due to the immense tension.


    Sure enough, in the next second, one of the ropes snapped with a loud crack.


    The other rope, with its harpoon attached, flailed wildly in the air for a moment before crashing to the ground, leaving a deep mark in the earth.


    Qi Xia rushed forward, hoping to untie the snapped rope before the harpoon was pulled back into the wall.


    But when he reached the knot, he realized that the tension from the pull had distorted the ropes so much that they were nearly unrecognizable. Not only was it impossible to untie the rope, but even telling which rope was which was a challenge.


    "I''m done!" Lin Qin shouted from not far away. "Someone strong, hurry up and cut the writer''s rope!"


    "Done?"


    Qi Xia turned around and saw that Lin Qin had tied the knot in such a clever way that it automatically separated when the rope snapped.


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    Officer Li, who hadn¡¯t even finished tying his knot earlier, immediately dropped the harpoon he was holding and said, "I¡¯ll cut it, give it to me!"


    Taking the harpoon from Li, Officer Li moved swiftly, reaching Han Yimo just as he was about to be dragged into the wall.


    Luckily, the harpoon, though sharp, had small edges on the tip, making it sharp enough to be used as a knife.


    Seeing this, Jiaojia also moved to help. Although Qi Xia had already thought of a plan, Han Yimo was now less than half a meter from the wall.


    The excruciating pain from the harpoon made Han Yimo unable to resist. He had no choice but to slowly retreat, as any attempt to move forward would only worsen the pain from the barbs in his chest.


    Officer Li grabbed the rope behind him, briefly pausing to think, then aimed for the rope closest to Han Yimo¡¯s body and started cutting with the sharp harpoon.


    His hand was steady, and each cut landed precisely on the previous incision.


    But the rope was tougher than he had expected. After several cuts, only small notches had formed.


    He quickly assessed the situation and realized things were more difficult than he thought.


    Though the rope would eventually be cut, time was the most pressing issue.


    In less than a minute, Han Yimo¡¯s body would make contact with the wall, and at that point, cutting the rope from behind would be impossible.


    "Come on, is it done yet?" Jiaojia asked anxiously. "You¡¯re moving so slowly, you¡¯re going to get this guy killed!"


    "Shut up!" Officer Li snapped, then focused even harder.


    As Han Yimo''s body was dragged closer to the wall, beads of sweat covered Officer Li''s face.


    His mental fortitude was remarkable. Despite the tense and suffocating atmosphere, he used the tiny harpoon without a single misstep, each cut landing on the previous notch.


    But as Han Yimo got less than thirty centimeters from the wall, Officer Li¡¯s arm was beginning to strain.


    Quick-witted, Jiaojia moved quickly and placed himself behind Han Yimo, using his own body to cushion him. This way, though Han Yimo would suffer harm, at least his distance from the wall would no longer decrease.


    "Officer! Hurry!"


    Officer Li held his breath and continued cutting. By now, the rope had been severed halfway, but it was still connected.


    Han Yimo groaned in pain as the harpoon pierced through his body and the barbs stabbed back into his chest. His blood had soaked his clothes, looking gruesome.


    "Am I going to die?" Han Yimo gritted his teeth and said, "I¡¯m really going to die, right¡­ Who the hell wants our lives¡­?"


    "Act like a man!" Officer Li said sternly. "There are so many of us trying to save you. Stop whining!"


    Hearing this, Han Yimo immediately fell silent. He knew Officer Li was right. Everyone was running around trying to save him, and he couldn¡¯t be the one to hold them back.


    The barbs dug deep into Han Yimo¡¯s flesh, causing him to groan in agony, gritting his teeth.


    Seeing this, Dr. Zhao immediately took a strip of cloth and stuffed it into Han Yimo¡¯s mouth.


    After all, someone in such extreme pain could easily crush their teeth.


    The group gathered around Han Yimo.


    What seemed like a short twenty seconds felt like several hours. Officer Li continued cutting the rope with unshakable focus.


    Finally, with one last precise cut, the tough rope was severed.


    At the same time, both Han Yimo and Jiaojia collapsed to the ground from the strain.


    The others immediately rushed to support them.


    It seemed that Han Yimo had been saved.


    Dr. Zhao quickly pulled Han Yimo aside and began examining his wound. The situation was as expected¡ªthe wound still needed to be treated, and the harpoon had to be pulled out from the front.


    The most difficult part now was stopping the bleeding.


    After thinking for a moment, Dr. Zhao used several strips of cloth to seal the wound near the harpoon.


    "Hey, doctor, aren¡¯t you going to take the harpoon out?" Jiaojia asked.


    "I can¡¯t take it out. If I do, he¡¯ll die," Dr. Zhao replied, his expression grim.


    "Die?" Jiaojia was puzzled and stepped forward to shove Dr. Zhao. "What¡¯s going on? We worked so hard, and now you¡¯re not saving him?"


    "I am saving him!" Dr. Zhao snapped, pushing Jiaojia¡¯s hand away. "To put it bluntly, if the harpoon is removed, he¡¯ll be left with a wound that will keep bleeding, and death is only a matter of time."


    "Why?" Xiao Ran asked, unable to hold back.


    "If the harpoon is removed, he will just have an open wound that will bleed out. Keeping the harpoon in, though painful, will stop him from dying from blood loss. Those smaller wounds will eventually stop bleeding due to coagulation." Dr. Zhao explained calmly.

 Chapter 16: More Trouble

    Although the group didn¡¯t understand much about medical knowledge, they generally grasped what Dr. Zhao meant.


    For them, removing the harpoon was easy; stitching up a wound would be far more difficult.


    "Now that the writer''s life has been saved, all we need to do is leave this place quickly and find somewhere suitable to treat his wounds properly," Dr. Zhao¡¯s words pulled everyone back to reality.


    If they couldn''t escape this eerie room, they would all eventually meet the same fate as Han Yimo.


    "But how do we leave? Has the ''game'' ended?" Lin Qin asked, covering her mouth and nose.


    Qi Xia thought for a moment and shook his head. The mask had clearly written that the one called "Human Dog" wanted them to survive, and mentioned "See you after the rain."


    Logically speaking, after this barrage of harpoons like a violent storm, the so-called "Human Dog" should show up. He might bring the next game.


    But why hadn¡¯t he appeared?


    "Hey, liar," Jiaojia slowly walked over to Qi Xia with a serious expression and asked, "You know how to survive, don¡¯t you?"


    "What¡¯s it to you?" Qi Xia coldly replied. "Whether I survive or not has nothing to do with you."


    "I¡¯m not as clever as you, so I have to find someone to cooperate with." Jiaojia seemed to be recommending himself. "You have brains, I have strength. Let¡¯s team up."


    Hearing this, Qi Xia frowned slightly.


    "Sorry, I¡¯m a liar. I don¡¯t plan to trust anyone except myself."


    Before Jiaojia could say anything else, a voice of doubt suddenly came from Officer Li.


    "What¡¯s this?"


    Everyone turned to look and saw that Officer Li was carefully examining the harpoon in his hand.


    "What¡¯s going on?"


    Dr. Zhao approached Officer Li cautiously and asked.


    "It has writing on it." Officer Li handed the harpoon to Dr. Zhao.


    Dr. Zhao took it and looked closely. His expression changed when he saw that the harpoon¡¯s tail, the width of a finger, had small writing on it:


    "I am ''Human Sheep,'' seeing these words means you¡¯ve survived."


    "But how many of you actually survived?"


    "Is anyone injured?"


    "I¡¯m really worried about you all."


    "I can¡¯t just sit here and watch you die."


    "Fifteen minutes from now, death will descend again."


    "Avoid it, find a way to survive."


    Dr. Zhao clenched his teeth and then threw the harpoon on the ground in frustration.


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    "Am I being mocked? This is never-ending!" He yelled, as though he wanted to release all the pent-up frustration he had been holding back.


    "Calm down!" Officer Li said sternly, "If you can¡¯t control your emotions, how are you going to survive?"


    "Survive...? But we¡¯re already dead!!" Dr. Zhao finally snapped, "We¡¯re already dead, yet we¡¯re still being tortured by the fear of death. What does the ''Organizer'' want from us?! Why can¡¯t they just kill us or let us go?"


    The faces of the others were grim. Indeed, what was the purpose behind this endless cycle of death threats?


    Was it really like the sheep-headed man said? Were they being selected for some "god" role?


    Does that mean only one person can become "god," and the rest will go to hell?


    "Everyone, we¡¯ve survived two ''games.'' Do you think it¡¯s because we¡¯re clever? No!" Dr. Zhao clenched his fists, "We¡¯ve just been extremely lucky! But what about next time? And the time after that? In this ever-changing room, how long can we possibly survive?!"


    Officer Li pursed his lips, stepped forward, and grabbed Dr. Zhao by the collar. "Hey, buddy! At a time like this, the last thing we need is ''morale'' to collapse! If you don¡¯t want to live, you can go die by yourself! But don¡¯t shake the resolve of everyone here!"


    "I...!" Dr. Zhao¡¯s lips trembled. "But how do we get out? Do you have a way to get us out?"


    Officer Li paused for a moment, then said, "I don¡¯t have a ''way.'' All I know is we have to survive! As long as we survive, everything else will have hope."


    He released his grip on Dr. Zhao, walked over, picked up the harpoon, and then moved over to Han Yimo. He checked the harpoon on his shoulder and found that both harpoons had the same writing on them.


    It seemed their luck really was extraordinary.


    In the previous round, they not only had to avoid deadly attacks but also had to leave at least one harpoon behind in order to know the next clue.


    "At least this time, it gives us a clear clue," Officer Li read the words on the harpoon carefully and said, "Unlike before, this time the attack will only come from above."


    He pointed to the words "Death will descend again" on the harpoon.


    No sooner had he spoken than the entire room began to change again.


    All the holes in the walls were slowly disappearing, and the holes in the ceiling were changing as well. Numerous rectangular holes, about one meter long and twenty to thirty centimeters wide, appeared. Upon closer inspection, there were nine such holes.


    Could this be "death descending again"?


    "It looks like the game is getting simpler," Officer Li sighed as he looked at the nine holes in the ceiling. "This is, I guess, a small blessing amidst misfortune."


    "But why has it turned into ''Human Sheep'' again?" Lawyer Zhang pointed to the body on the floor, which had been torn apart by the harpoons, and asked, "Wasn¡¯t ''Human Sheep'' already killed by us?"


    Qi Xia thought for a moment, also feeling puzzled.


    The sheep-headed person who had died earlier did indeed call himself "Human Sheep," but his mask had written "I am Human Dog."


    One moment it¡¯s a sheep, the next it¡¯s a dog.


    Could this be another clue?


    "We don¡¯t have time," Officer Li said to the group, "It¡¯s already 1:23. It won¡¯t be long before the nine holes in the ceiling release some kind of dangerous objects. Let¡¯s grab the table boards and stand against the wall."


    At this point, everyone noticed something strange about the table boards on the floor. These boards seemed to have a special design. After being torn apart by the harpoons, they had left behind small square pieces with handles. The wood in the center of the square was noticeably tougher than the edges.


    Although the boards they had were small now, it seemed the nine holes in the ceiling were all concentrated near the center. It looked like standing near the wall should be safe.


    Everyone silently picked up the broken table boards and moved to the wall, positioning themselves away from the central holes.


    At this moment, Qi Xia didn¡¯t move. Instead, he slowly closed his eyes.


    From any angle, the third game felt too strange.


    Because the "Organizer" had clearly given a solution.


    In Qi Xia¡¯s view, this hint was superfluous.


    Did they want them to die or to survive?


    Why single out "Human Sheep" and "Human Dog"?


    If "Human Sheep" and "Human Dog" aren¡¯t names, what could they represent?


    "Hey, liar, come here!" Jiaojia shouted, "You¡¯ll die standing under those holes!"


    "Die¡­?" Qi Xia glanced coldly at the holes in the ceiling. "I won¡¯t die here. I have a reason I can¡¯t leave."


    "What¡¯s going on... the smartest person has turned into an idiot too?" Jiaojia seemed confused.


    Qi Xia raised his finger and gently tapped his temple.


    "Wait¡­ wait¡­ give me a little more time."


    Everyone slowed their breathing, silently watching Qi Xia in the center of the room. None of them understood why he was still overthinking such an obvious game.

 Chapter 17: Sheep and Dog

    "Sheep and Dog..." Qi Xia squinted and carefully considered everything that had happened so far.


    At the start, the person who called himself the "Human Sheep" had wanted them to kill each other, but now this "Human Sheep" claimed to be very worried about them, saying he couldn''t bear to watch them die.


    "This doesn''t make sense..."


    Suddenly, a flash of realization struck Qi Xia.


    That''s it!


    Lying!


    Everything was pointing in the direction Qi Xia had expected ¡ª the "sheep" and "dog" weren''t names, but types of games!


    Could "sheep" refer to the story of "The Boy Who Cried Wolf"? In that tale, the shepherd boy cried wolf too many times, and when a real wolf appeared, no one believed him. So, the "sheep" game must involve lies, it''s a game about "lying".


    On the other hand, "dog" might represent loyalty. In the previous harpoon game, if they hadn''t cooperated, none of them would have survived. So, could it be that the "dog" game is about "cooperation"?


    Qi Xia picked up a harpoon and examined it again. He knew that when "sheep" explained the rules, there was always the possibility of lying.


    But which part of the short message was a lie?


    "I can''t watch you die," if this sentence was a lie...


    "Wait..." Qi Xia slowly widened his eyes. "This statement isn''t the ''answer,'' it''s the trap that will lead to everyone''s demise."


    "What are you talking about?" Jo Jiajin asked in confusion.


    "Everything in that statement is a lie!" Qi Xia said decisively. "Standing by the wall will lead to ''death,'' standing under the hole is ''life''!"


    Zhao Yisheng and Officer Li exchanged glances, unsure of what Qi Xia was trying to express.


    "Remember, ''sheep'' lies!" Qi Xia stood in the center of the room, trying to get everyone to listen. "If we follow what he said, we will end up killing ourselves. That''s the difference between the ''sheep'' and the ''dog''!"


    "But is that really reasonable?" Xiao Ran asked timidly. "The only holes in the room are directly above your head, that must be the most dangerous place..."


    Qi Xia hadn''t fully figured that out either.


    What would fall from above that could kill the people standing by the wall?


    "Hmm..." Qi Xia thought for a moment before changing his statement. "It doesn''t matter. After this round, there''s a good chance we''ll be able to escape. So you can choose as you like."


    "How do you know we''ll escape?" Officer Li asked suspiciously.


    "Because this time, the hint doesn''t include any ''preview'' of the next game," Qi Xia answered. "So, there are two possibilities: either this is the final game, or the organizer is confident that they can kill us all in this game."


    Hearing this, the group became quiet and grim, but no one could argue.


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    "Anyway, I''ll stand here," Qi Xia pointed to the spot under his feet. "As for how you choose, it''s up to you."


    Qi Xia knew that everything he said was just speculation, so to be safe, he picked up a square piece of the table from the ground.


    After hearing Qi Xia''s words, Jo Jiajin slowly walked over to him and said, "I told you, I trust you."


    "But I''m a liar," Qi Xia replied coldly.


    "I don''t care."


    Lin Qing thought for a moment and then covered her mouth and nose as she walked toward the center of the room.


    "Hey! What are you doing?" Xiao Ran shouted from the wall. "You really believe him?"


    Lin Qing nodded slightly. "Yes, think about it, who got us through this far?"


    Xiao Ran was taken aback, suddenly realizing Lin Qing had a point. After a brief internal struggle, she also followed.


    Han Yimo, holding his injured shoulder, also walked over.


    "Your name is... Qi Xia, right? I trust you too."


    Tian Tian and Zhang Chenze followed suit.


    At this moment, only Zhao Yisheng and Officer Li remained near the wall.


    "Hey, aren''t you coming over?" Tian Tian shouted.


    "I..." Zhao Yisheng hesitated, seemingly unsure of what to do.


    "No need to force anyone," Qi Xia waved his hand. "This round doesn''t require cooperation, just focus on surviving."


    The clock on the floor slowly reached 1:28.


    Officer Li squinted and stared at Qi Xia.


    He didn''t think the liar would choose to die now, but why was he trying to get everyone to stand under the holes?


    At this moment, Lin Qing noticed their thoughts and said to them, "Qi Xia doesn''t seem to be lying, are you coming?"


    "You can tell?" Officer Li asked quietly.


    "Yes," Lin Qing nodded. "Because of my job, I''m often able to tell whether someone is lying."


    "In that case..." Officer Li and Zhao Yisheng exchanged glances and silently walked over to Lin Qing. "Since a professional says so, we''ll believe you."


    Everyone quickly picked up the nearest tableboard and held it over their heads. No matter what fell from the hole, they could at least protect themselves.


    "You guys are quite clever," Jo Jiajin shook his head helplessly, also picking up a tableboard. He examined it carefully; now the tableboard looked more like a shield, not just a square with 50-centimeter sides, but with a very sturdy handle.


    Qi Xia glanced at the time and grabbed Jo Jiajin. "Get ready, it''s coming."


    Just as he finished speaking, the clock struck 1:30, and a loud chain sound echoed from the ceiling, as though something invisible was being drawn up.


    But there was no reaction from the holes. Neither the "death" nor "life" they''d expected appeared.


    After waiting a few seconds, the floor beneath their feet suddenly began to rise.


    "Bad news..." Qi Xia''s face changed. "This is worse than I imagined."


    Shouts and confusion filled the room as no one expected the "organizer" to try and squeeze everyone into a pancake in this cramped room.


    "What is happening?"


    Before anyone could ask, Qi Xia immediately shouted, "Get down!"


    The three people who reacted quickly crouched down. But their eyes were filled with despair. Everyone knew that if the floor and ceiling came together in this low room, no one would escape.


    Qi Xia crouched down, his mind racing. He knew his guesses had to be right¡ªthe hole above was the "way out." But how could they survive?


    The floor continued to rise with a deafening sound, and the room''s height was cut in half in a short amount of time. Everyone had to crouch completely to move.


    Qi Xia looked up and saw that the rectangular hole above was now close enough to touch.


    In the chaos, Qi Xia made a quick decision and reached up to explore the hole. It was a regular hole, and the ceiling seemed to be made of some kind of hard metal.


    "Could it be...?"


    Qi Xia quickly lowered his head and picked up the square tableboard. Since the hole was the "way out," and the tableboard was his only tool, was there a connection between the two?


    Qi Xia placed the board vertically and shoved it into the ceiling hole. Then he horizontally positioned the board and pulled it down. The tableboard got stuck firmly in the hole, with the handle sticking out downward.


    "This is... the way out?" Qi Xia''s eyes widened as he instantly realized what was about to happen.


    Seeing Qi Xia''s action, everyone quickly followed suit, putting their own square tableboards into the hole above.


    "Be careful, something''s about to happen..."


    Just as Qi Xia was about to say something else, the floor beneath them suddenly shattered into pieces.


    "Ah!"


    "I can''t!"


    Shouts erupted simultaneously as everyone fell. In that moment, their bodies instinctively grasped the handles above their heads, preventing them from falling straight down.


    Han Yimo gritted his teeth, gripping the handle with his left hand. But he had lost too much blood, and his strength was fading. Qi Xia watched helplessly as his hand slowly loosened...

 Chapter 18: True or False Questions

    The nine of them were hanging in mid-air like chandeliers, holding onto the handles.


    Lin Qing looked down, feeling a chill spread through her body. Below them was a pit about ten meters deep. If they lost their grip, they would certainly fall to their deaths.


    "Hey, writer, hold on!" Qiao Jiaqing noticed that Han Yimo was slowly slipping, feeling anxious. "How can you be so weak at a critical moment?"


    "I..." Han Yimo¡¯s facial muscles were straining, but his body was still inching downward.


    Qiao Jiaqing, who was close to Han Yimo, immediately let go of one of his hands, grabbed his pants, and pulled him up. With Qiao Jiaqing¡¯s strength, it felt like Han Yimo was being lifted. He quickly grabbed the handle again. Seeing this, Officer Li also reached out to help, each of them supporting one of Han Yimo¡¯s arms.


    Just as the group was about to breathe a sigh of relief, they heard a muffled grunt.


    Turning their heads, they saw that Tian Tian had let out a sound. It was only then that they remembered she had been injured.


    But the girl seemed incredibly resilient¡ªshe didn¡¯t utter a sound until her blood was smeared all over the handle.


    Her right hand let go, and she only managed to hold the handle with her left hand. However, it was extremely difficult for her to support her entire body with just one hand, and she began to slip down rapidly.


    Qixi¡¯s expression changed, and he immediately grabbed her injured wrist.


    In just a brief moment of contact, he noticed Tian Tian¡¯s thin body trembling slightly, and her wrist felt ice-cold.


    "Hey, you¡¯re not such a bad guy after all," Qiao Jiaqing said, a little surprised.


    Qixi sighed helplessly and replied, "I just don¡¯t want to see any more bodies, don¡¯t overthink it."


    Minutes passed, and everyone¡¯s arms began to ache. Hanging for so long was exhausting, and even Officer Li¡¯s forehead started to sweat.


    "When are we going to be hanging like this?" Lin Qing asked Qixi beside her.


    "I don¡¯t know," Qixi answered quietly. He knew that there were no more prompts for the next game, but they still saw no hope. If the organizers were more ruthless, they might leave everyone hanging until they perished. But...


    Did that mean there really was no hidden prompt for the next game?


    Qixi felt uneasy.


    What if there was some hidden clue in an unexpected place?


    He looked down at the floor below, and sure enough, where the floor had collapsed, a new wall appeared. In the farthest corner, there seemed to be a door.


    But the door was still out of reach for everyone.


    They were still about ten meters above the ground, and jumping from this height would certainly be fatal.


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    Lin Qing followed Qixi''s gaze and after a while, noticed the problem.


    "Is that a door?"


    The others looked down and saw the worn wooden door at the bottom of the room.


    Just as they were staring in shock and despair, the door began to open slowly.


    A figure clad in black walked in from the shadows. Qixi looked closely and saw that this person, like the previous ones, wore a black suit, but instead of a sheep head, he was wearing a huge dark green snake head mask.


    "Long time no see, everyone. I am ¡®The Serpent¡¯," the figure said slowly.


    "Serpent, my foot!" Qiao Jiaqing shouted angrily, "After the Sheep and Dog, now it''s a Snake? You believe I won¡¯t kill you right now?"


    "Please, calm down," the Serpent said calmly, glancing at the hanging group. "You are currently in the final round of the game. I have a lever here, and if I pull it, the ceiling will slowly descend, and no one will be harmed."


    The group looked over, and indeed, next to the wooden door, there was a small, inconspicuous lever that no one had noticed in the dim light earlier.


    "So¡­ can you pull it now?" Xiao Ran asked timidly.


    "I..." The Serpent smiled faintly and said, "I will play a game with you. Whether or not you live depends on how well you perform."


    "Another game..." Dr. Zhao¡¯s hair was disheveled, his teeth clenched, seemingly frustrated.


    "Listen up, everyone. This game is called ''Yes or No''," The Serpent walked closer to the group hanging above and said, "You may ask me three questions in total, and my answers will only be ''yes'' or ''no''. Be aware, I will not lie. After all three questions, if I agree to save you, I will pull the lever. If I do not agree, I will lock the door, leaving you to perish."


    Qixi frowned.


    Three questions? Only ''yes'' or ''no'' answers? This game was difficult, to say the least.


    No matter what, the goal was for the Serpent to release them, so their questions had to revolve around that topic. But would he agree?


    Xiao Ran, taking advantage of the group¡¯s silence, asked quickly, "Hey, can you let us down?"


    "Don¡¯t!" Qixi¡¯s eyes widened as he hurriedly reached out to cover Xiao Ran¡¯s mouth, but the girl was too quick, and her question had already been clearly heard by the Serpent.


    The Serpent smirked and answered, "No."


    "Hey! Pretty girl?!" Qiao Jiaqing shouted, "We only have three questions, don¡¯t waste them!"


    "I..." Xiao Ran lowered her head, feeling extremely embarrassed.


    "You have two questions left," the Serpent said calmly, stepping back and getting closer to the wooden door.


    It was only at that moment that the group realized Xiao Ran''s question had made this game exponentially harder.


    The Serpent certainly wouldn¡¯t make it easy for them. If he really wanted to save them, why set up this game in the first place?


    But then again, if he didn¡¯t want to save them, how could they possibly get him to pull the lever?


    Even if they changed the question to, "Will you not let us down?" his answer would simply be "yes."


    "Scammer, do you have a way?" Qiao Jiaqing turned back to ask Qixi.


    Qixi closed his eyes for a moment, his mind racing.


    A way, a way.


    As a person, how could he have so many ways? Every step they had taken since entering this room had required his solutions. Why should he be the one to bear the lives of so many?


    But then, he felt a sense of desperation.


    If he gave up, did anyone else have a chance to survive?


    "I can''t die here..." Qixi¡¯s eyes suddenly lit up with faint hope. "She¡¯s still waiting for me..."


    A gentle voice echoed in Qixi¡¯s mind: "Xia, do you know? There are many paths in life, and everyone has their own."


    He slowly opened his eyes, and a sense of clarity washed over him.


    That¡¯s it. His mistake had been following the path set by others.


    "Serpent," Qixi spoke softly.


    Officer Li turned around, surprised, "Hey, what are you going to ask? Let¡¯s coordinate beforehand so we don¡¯t repeat what just happened."


    "It¡¯s fine. I¡¯ve figured out how to survive," Qixi answered with certainty, looking down at the Serpent. "Don¡¯t speak. This will end soon."


    "You really have a plan?" Zhang Chenze asked.


    "Probably," Qixi took a deep breath, carefully considering his next question.


    No, to be precise, just one question.


    One question was all that was needed to end this game.


    From the start, this game wasn¡¯t about figuring out how to make him pull the lever. It was about thinking through the logic of ''yes'' and ''no.''


    The Serpent seemed particularly interested in Qixi, his eyes peering out from the hollow spaces of his snake mask.


    Qixi paused for a moment before asking, "Serpent, if my next question is ''Will you pull the lever,'' will your answer be the same as this one?"

 Chapter 19 - All-Powerful

    "I..." The Serpent Head paused slightly, clearly unsure of how to respond. He wanted to choose an answer, but he realized that no matter what he said, it would be futile.


    "Hahahahaha!"


    Suddenly, the Serpent Head burst into laughter, laughing so hard that his body swayed back and forth. After a moment, he stopped, collecting himself, and said, "You are truly interesting."


    "Interesting?" Qi Xia coldly glanced at the Serpent Head. "What''s interesting about this? Haven''t I already won?"


    The Serpent Head slowly walked to the wall and pulled the lever.


    The group felt their bodies drop, and the ceiling began to slowly lower.


    Jiao Jiaqing was confused. He turned to Qi Xia and asked, "Con man, what does this mean? Why is this considered winning?"


    Qi Xia realized that they were indeed descending and secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He replied, "Think about it. As long as that question was asked, no matter what happens, we¡¯re saved."


    "¡®If my next question is ''Will you pull the lever,¡¯ will your answer be the same as this question...?" Jiao Jiaqing muttered, trying to make sense of it.


    "I see now..." Doctor Zhao nodded thoughtfully. "If he answers ¡®Yes,¡¯ the next question can only be answered ¡®Yes,¡¯ so we''ll be saved. After all, the next question is ''Will you pull the lever?¡¯¡±


    "But what if he says ''No''?" Jiao Jiaqing seemed to have found a loophole. "If he says ¡®No,¡¯ wouldn''t that work?"


    "If he says ¡®No,¡¯ the next question must still be answered ¡®Yes,¡¯¡± Han Yimo weakly explained. "The brilliance of this question lies in the fact that if he answers ¡®No,¡¯ it acknowledges that he would give two different answers to the two questions. Remember? The Serpent Head said he wouldn''t lie."


    Jiao Jiaqing froze, then turned back to look at Qi Xia, asking, "Did you just think of this... What kind of monster are you?"


    "I''m no monster," Qi Xia shook his head. "I''m just a conman wandering the world."


    While speaking, the group had slowly descended to the ground. Due to the long suspension, their palms burned with pain, and the condition of the two injured individuals was even more concerning.


    "Congratulations, everyone, you¡¯ve survived the ''interview,''" the Serpent Head said, standing with his hands behind his back beside the wooden door. "Push open this door, and a new world awaits you."


    "Piece of trash..."


    Jiao Jiaqing stormed up, seemingly wanting to vent all his frustrations with the ''human sheep'' and ''human dog'' onto the ''Serpent Head.''


    The Serpent Head turned his cold eyes toward Jiao Jiaqing, yet remained motionless.


    "Are you all freaks?!" Jiao Jiaqing shouted, stepping forward and grabbing the Serpent Head''s collar. "Wearing these strange masks, trying to kill us time and time again. Now I¡¯ve finally caught you!"


    The Serpent Head sneered, then whispered, "While you''re still alive, I advise you to let go."


    "What did you say?!"


    The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    Jiao Jiaqing raised his fist, about to punch the Serpent Head, but was stopped by Officer Li, who grabbed his arm.


    "Hey, have you forgotten about the guy with his skull crushed?" Officer Li whispered. "If they¡¯re all the same kind of people, how do you plan on defeating them?"


    "I..." A trace of unwillingness crossed Jiao Jiaqing''s face. He clenched his teeth, slowly saying, "But these d*mn..."


    "Don¡¯t worry, we can get out, right?" Officer Li interrupted him, speaking softly. "Once we¡¯re out, I¡¯ll make them pay."


    After hearing this, the group fell silent and slowly walked up to the Serpent Head.


    Now, up close, they saw how eerie he truly was.


    The Serpent Head exuded an unusually cold aura. His worn-out suit and the mask he wore emitted a strange, foul odor. His eyes peered out from the mask¡¯s holes, clearly human, yet his scent resembled that of a long-dead snake.


    "Everyone, welcome to the new world," the Serpent Head¡¯s muffled voice came from the mask. He then turned and opened the door.


    With a soft creak, light from outside streamed in.


    Qi Xia frowned. He realized that what lay outside wasn¡¯t the outdoors, but rather a corridor.


    "Where is this?" Qi Xia asked.


    "I told you, it''s a new world," the Serpent Head slowly raised his hands. "A future ''god'' will emerge from among you! A god who can make all things happen! How exciting!"


    "Another god..." Jiao Jiaqing growled. "What exactly are you plotting?"


    When someone asked a question, the Serpent Head showed visible interest. "A god who can do anything... He can make all ideas come true!"


    "Anything?" Jiao Jiaqing frowned, his mind racing.


    Doctor Zhao, remaining calm, gestured for Jiao Jiaqing to stay quiet, then turned to the Serpent Head and said, "Alright, we understand. Now let us out."


    The Serpent Head paused, then nodded and stepped aside.


    Qi Xia walked ahead, and the others, eager to leave, followed behind him.


    As they stepped into the corridor, a heavy, peculiar smell filled their nostrils.


    How to describe this scent?


    It was heavy, a very heavy scent.


    It was as if the entire world¡¯s billions of people had died, their bodies exposed to the air, rotting away. This decaying smell attracted countless insects to feast. They bred in large numbers, died, and rotted too.


    After the overwhelming stench had settled for a while, it turned into this dense, oppressive scent.


    Qi Xia took a long time to regain his composure, then looked up and saw a scene that filled him with despair.


    They were in a seemingly endless corridor, with low, oppressive ceilings stretching ahead.


    On both sides of the corridor, countless wooden doors were slowly opening.


    Just like the wooden door they had come through.


    Soon, figures began to appear in the doorways. Most of them were masked figures, drenched in blood. Only a few normal-looking people stepped out.


    Those "normal" people, however, looked tired and trembling, just like Qi Xia. They, too, had survived.


    "What¡¯s going on?" Han Yimo weakly asked. "Were there more than just the nine of us captured?"


    Qi Xia''s expression grew heavy. What was happening here was beyond his imagination.


    Had this organization captured countless people and forced them into deadly games?


    "But... there are too few survivors..." Zhang Chenze sighed.


    Looking around at the thousands of doors, only a handful of people emerged.


    The situation in Qi Xia''s room, where "everyone survived," seemed even more impossible.


    "Everyone, please."


    The Serpent Head gestured to a side, indicating the direction they should go, and stood by the door, seemingly unwilling to leave.


    "Let¡¯s go."


    The group knew it was best not to linger here. They fell into a single-file line and slowly began to leave.


    As they passed one worn-out wooden door after another, they saw the masked figures up close.


    Among them were people wearing cow, horse, and dog masks.


    There were also sheep and snake masks, ones they''d seen earlier.


    Each of them gave off a strange, ominous vibe, carrying the scent of decay. The scenes inside the rooms were mostly full of corpses. It was unclear what kind of "game" these people had been part of.


    After walking a few more steps, the group was startled by two figures with animal masks.


    One wore a giant rat mask and leaned against the wall; the other wore a huge rooster mask, arms crossed in front of his chest.


    These masks weren¡¯t man-made but real animal skulls.


    But where in the world could you find such large rats and roosters?


    Like the others, these two figures just glanced at Qi Xia¡¯s group, doing nothing else.


    "What are these animals?" Lin Qing asked, frightened, instinctively distancing herself from the two.


    Qi Xia frowned slightly, as if something clicked in his mind.


    Sheep, dog, snake, rat, rooster...


    "It''s the zodiac," he muttered.


    The others froze and turned to him.


    Indeed, the animal masks worn by the people in old suits were all part of the Chinese zodiac.

 Chapter 20: Seeking the Way

    What do the Twelve Zodiac signs represent?What lies at the end of this corridor?The underworld?


    In this dimly lit, endless corridor, the group moved forward, trembling. After several rounds of intense ¡°games,¡± everyone felt mentally and physically drained. As they suddenly relaxed, the deathly aura that had been clinging to them seemed to fade.


    Zhi Xia accidentally turned around and saw Lin Qing standing beside him, still covering her nose and mouth with her hand.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you feeling uncomfortable doing that?¡± Zhi Xia asked, mimicking Lin Qing and covering his own nose and mouth. ¡°Although the smell here is awful, doing that might make it hard for you to breathe.¡±


    ¡°Breathe?¡± Lin Qing was slightly taken aback, then smiled. ¡°I don¡¯t find it hard to breathe, it just feels odd not covering my mouth and nose, like¡­¡±


    ¡°Like what?¡±


    ¡°Like not wearing clothes.¡± Lin Qing laughed a little awkwardly, then removed her hand from her face.


    Her nose was sharp, her lips full, and there seemed to be no need for covering it. Zhi Xia didn¡¯t quite understand what she meant by ¡°like not wearing clothes.¡±


    Lin Qing smiled faintly, still feeling a bit uncomfortable, and covered her mouth and nose again.


    ¡°I feel a little shy¡­ Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s awkward?¡± Lin Qing asked Zhi Xia. ¡°Like leaving your mouth and nose exposed like this.¡±


    ¡°Why would it be awkward?¡± Zhi Xia felt a bit confused.


    ¡°It¡¯s the ¡®mask¡¯,¡± Lin Qing said, looking at him as though he were an alien. ¡°Aren¡¯t you uncomfortable without one?¡±


    ¡°Mask¡­¡±


    Before Zhi Xia could process her words, a strange light appeared in the distance.


    The group was drawn to this light and hurried forward.


    It was the exit.


    A ray of light, like the glow of a sunset, streamed in from the exit.


    ¡°We¡¯re getting out!!¡± Jo Jiajin shouted excitedly. ¡°I can see the light of the sunset!¡±


    His shout was like a shot of adrenaline for everyone. Dr. Zhao helped support Han Yimo and followed the others, quickening their pace.


    ¡°Sunset?¡± Zhi Xia thought for a moment, then said to the group, ¡°We woke up around midnight. After more than an hour of ¡®games,¡¯ it should be around 2 AM now. Whether it''s 2 AM or 2 PM, we shouldn¡¯t be seeing a ¡®sunset.¡¯¡±


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    ¡°You¡¯re overthinking it.¡± Officer Li shook his head. ¡°The time in the room might not be accurate. It could very well be evening right now.¡±


    Zhi Xia nodded slightly, realizing Li was right. His perception of time was based on the clock in the room, but no one could guarantee that it showed the correct time.


    A few steps later, they saw a shadow next to the exit.


    As they approached, the shadow gradually took on a human form. He, too, wore an animal mask, but this one made everyone feel nauseous.


    Unlike the others, whose masks were made from a single animal head, this person¡¯s mask was crafted from various animal parts sewn together with thread.


    His mouth resembled that of a crocodile, his nose like a bull¡¯s, with fish scales on his cheeks and snake skin on his neck. He had the mane of a lion and antlers of a stag sewn onto it.


    This creature looked like¡­


    ¡°Hello, I am ¡®Human Dragon,¡¯¡± the patchwork monster said slowly. ¡°All survivors? How interesting.¡±


    ¡°Dragon¡­?¡±


    The group instinctively stopped, their nerves on high alert.


    It wasn¡¯t because of the word ¡°dragon,¡± but because they were all too familiar with this introduction. Every time someone introduced themselves like this, it was followed by a terrifying game.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry,¡± Human Dragon waved his hand. ¡°Your ¡®test¡¯ is over for now.¡±


    The group noticed that his hands wore eagle-claw gloves.


    His entire body exuded the stench of decaying animal parts, but he seemed completely unaware, continuing to speak as if nothing was wrong:


    ¡°I won¡¯t bring you any new ¡®tests,¡¯ just some advice.¡±


    The group remained silent, huddled together, eyes fixed on the Human Dragon with vigilance.


    ¡°You have ten days,¡± Human Dragon said slowly. ¡°You have ten days to change everything. If you don¡¯t collect 3,600 ¡®Dao¡¯ within that time, the world you¡¯re in will be destroyed. Everything you see will perish along with it.¡±


    His words were so brief, but they left the group bewildered.


    ¡°3,600 ¡®Dao¡¯?¡± Zhi Xia furrowed his brows. ¡°What is ¡®Dao¡¯? And what do you mean by the world will be destroyed?¡±


    ¡°Questions? Heh heh, good,¡± Human Dragon nodded. ¡°Having questions means you¡¯re still clear-headed. The so-called ¡®Dao¡¯ is¡­¡±


    Human Dragon reached into his black suit pocket, fumbled for a while, then pulled out a small golden ball.


    The ball¡¯s outer layer was white, with a golden center, radiating a soft glow, looking rather strange.


    ¡°This is ¡®Dao,¡¯¡± Human Dragon continued. ¡°If you collect 3,600 ¡®Dao,¡¯ you¡¯ll be saved.¡±


    Zhi Xia pondered for a moment, then reached out and took one of the small balls. It didn¡¯t feel hard, and had a bit of elasticity to it.


    ¡°Take it,¡± Human Dragon said with a smile. ¡°This is yours anyway.¡±


    Zhi Xia thought for a while before accepting the ¡®Dao.¡¯


    ¡°You¡¯ve passed the six tests: ¡®Liar,¡¯ ¡®Spring After the Rain,¡¯ ¡®Sudden Death from the Sky,¡¯ and ¡®Yes or No,¡¯¡± Human Dragon said. ¡°These are your rewards and your ¡®chips.¡¯¡±


    No one had expected that the things they had risked their lives for were these inconspicuous little balls. The group didn¡¯t know what to say.


    ¡°¡®Dao¡¯¡­¡± Zhi Xia furrowed his brows, helplessly saying, ¡°You¡¯re saying that if we don¡¯t find 3,600 of these little balls, the world will be destroyed?¡±


    ¡°Heh heh heh, exactly. If this world is destroyed, well¡­ you won¡¯t be able to leave,¡± Human Dragon nodded. His face, with fish scales and lion¡¯s mane, wobbled with his head, looking very odd.


    ¡°It seems you have a lot of these balls. Can¡¯t you just collect 3,600 yourself?¡± Officer Li cut in sharply. ¡°You¡¯re stronger than we are. You could go collect them yourself. Why choose us?¡±


    ¡°Me?¡± Human Dragon sneered. ¡°We are all guilty beings. Guilty ones cannot obtain ¡®Dao.¡¯ Only those chosen like you can. In the end, you will become ¡®Gods.¡¯¡±


    ¡°This is absurd!¡± Zhang Chenze interrupted, crossing her arms with a bit of anger. ¡°Do you even know what you¡¯re saying?¡±

 Chapter 21: The Heart of the Matter

    "Of course... Heh heh, I certainly know what I''m saying." The Human Dragon took a slow step forward, addressing the group. "Countless people have walked out of this door, and I''ve said these words to every single one of them."


    "Countless..."


    The group froze for a moment, and Officer Li growled, "What are you? How many people have you brought here?"


    "¡®Brought¡¯ here?" The Human Dragon tilted his head slightly, his murky eyes visible through the gaps in his mask. He stared coldly at Officer Li and smiled. "Did you make a mistake? Was it really us who ''brought'' you here?"


    "Isn''t it?" Officer Li gritted his teeth. "Did we come here on our own?!"


    Lin Qing sighed and spoke to Zhi Xia and Officer Li, "You both know they''re insane, so stop trying to argue with them. Let¡¯s just leave."


    Her words made the group more alert. These people wearing animal masks were already abnormal, and the one in front of them, whose mask was a patchwork of various animal parts, was even crazier.


    If they followed the logic of madmen, they might end up insane too.


    The group bypassed the Human Dragon and walked towards the exit behind him.


    "Remember, without 3,600 ''Dao,'' no one will be able to leave," the Human Dragon reminded them quietly.


    Zhi Xia, almost without thinking, turned back and asked, "How do we obtain the ''Dao''?"


    "Why ask him?" Jo Jiajin pushed Zhi Xia away irritably. "Do you really want to go looking for those golden balls?"


    "No matter what, I have to get out of here." Zhi Xia¡¯s eyes were filled with determination. "Someone''s waiting for me."


    The Human Dragon nodded slightly and said, "It¡¯s just like the ''games'' you¡¯ve gone through. Different games reward you with different ''Dao.''"


    Zhi Xia¡¯s face darkened. He looked down at the golden ball in his hand. "You mean¡­ we have to participate in the games to get the ''Dao''?"


    "Heh heh, that''s right. Take them, take them all." The Human Dragon waved his filthy hands continuously. "You have to leave here."


    Zhi Xia stared at the ball in his hand, lost in thought.


    The group didn¡¯t know how to persuade him, so they just walked out the door.


    A slight breeze hit their faces, carrying that strange, heavy scent.


    As they slowly opened their eyes, they did not feel the joy of being reborn.


    Instead, they found themselves standing in the middle of a desolate city, a ruin.


    Above them, the sky was a dark red, with a brownish sun hanging in the sky. The surface of the sun had thin black lines spreading inward.


    Beneath this bizarre sky was a crumbling city.


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    It looked like a once-bustling area of a small town, but now it appeared as though it had been bombed and then set on fire.


    The fire had burned for days and nights without being put out, leaving the place in this wretched state.


    Most of the buildings were damaged, their walls cracked. Countless dark red plants had climbed up the walls.


    Officer Li swallowed nervously and asked, "Hey, Human Dragon, what kind of place have you brought us to..."


    He turned around, and his words were cut short. His mouth slowly dropped open in shock.


    The group followed his gaze and turned around.


    Behind them, there were no buildings¡ªjust an empty plaza.


    The nine of them stood alone in the center of the plaza, as if they had fallen from the sky.


    "How did we end up here?"


    "Where¡¯s the door we came out of? Where¡¯s the Human Dragon?!"


    Unfortunately, no one could answer their questions.


    At the center of the plaza, there was a conspicuous large electronic display screen, looking old and rusty, with the edges showing signs of wear.


    The screen displayed a cryptic message:


    "I hear the echo of ''inviting disaster.''"


    "Inviting disaster? What the hell is that?" Jo Jiajin read the phrase twice but still didn¡¯t understand.


    Zhi Xia noticed that above the screen, there was a massive, weathered bronze bell.


    This ancient object seemed completely out of place with the modern electronic screen, creating a stark contrast.


    After a long pause, Han Yimo, the writer, slowly raised his head and whispered, "So we really are dead... This must be the underworld, right?"


    Before seeing this scene, he had held onto a sliver of hope. Maybe they hadn¡¯t died yet, but were captured here right before death.


    But how could they explain this clearly unnatural world?


    "I don¡¯t know whether we¡¯re dead or not," Dr. Zhao said, forcing a calm tone as he helped Han Yimo with his arm. "But if you don¡¯t get your wounds treated soon, you really will die."


    Her words slowly brought the group back to reality.


    No matter what, they seemed to be "alive" for now, so if they were still alive, they couldn¡¯t give up.


    "Over there, it looks like there¡¯s a convenience store," Lin Qing pointed in the distance. "Though it looks heavily damaged, I wonder if they have needles and gauze inside?"


    Without saying anything more, Jo Jiajin helped Han Yimo with his other arm, giving a bitter smile. "Let¡¯s check it out. Maybe there will be some food, too."


    The group slowly moved forward.


    The strange atmosphere of this place never stopped creeping into their minds, making them uneasy.


    The convenience store was located in the middle of a road, with its glass door completely shattered, and the sign half-collapsed.


    Just as they were about to reach the door, they slowed their pace.


    Across from the store, there was a restaurant, and a figure stood at the entrance.


    He wore a bull¡¯s head mask, a black suit, and stood with his hands behind his back, like a statue.


    The group tensed up.


    These people with animal masks were all madmen.


    Now he was standing there¡ªwas he about to announce some new "test"?


    The group waited cautiously, and after a while, they realized that the bull-headed figure didn¡¯t move. He didn¡¯t speak or even glance at them.


    Only then did they muster the courage to step forward and reach the door of the convenience store.


    "Is he a dummy?" Tiantian asked cautiously.


    Zhi Xia carefully observed the bull-headed figure. His eyes beneath the mask were still moving slightly, so he wasn¡¯t a mannequin. It seemed like he was guarding the restaurant behind him.


    "Let¡¯s not worry about who he is. Let¡¯s just pretend he doesn¡¯t exist." Officer Li turned and opened the decayed door of the convenience store.


    As soon as the door opened, a nauseating smell wafted out.


    The city already had a heavy, oppressive scent, but the smell from the convenience store was even worse.


    A mix of fishy, rotten, and burnt odors, tinged with a faint heat, lingered in the air.


    These smells were fresh, like they had just emerged.


    "Ugh..."


    Lawyer Zhang Chenze couldn¡¯t bear it and bent over, gagging.


    Tiantian looked at her with concern and asked, "Are you okay, Lawyer Zhang?"


    "I¡¯m fine..." Zhang Chenze wiped her mouth and looked at Tiantian. "You seem completely unaffected..."


    Tiantian¡¯s expression was a little awkward, and she forced a smile. "It might be because of my profession... I¡¯ve smelled worse things."


    "Don¡¯t... don¡¯t say that..." Zhang Chenze almost threw up again.


    Zhi Xia covered his nose and mouth and stepped inside. Most of the shelves were overturned, and the floor was dark and sticky, with unknown substances scattered around.

 Chapter 22: The Shop Assistant

    "Disgusting..." Jo Jiajin frowned as he looked at the filthy things on the floor. "With this overpowering stench, could it be... feces?"


    Feces?


    Zhi Xia suddenly turned and looked at Jo Jiajin.


    It was an interesting perspective.


    In other words, there were others here besides the nine of them and the people wearing animal masks.


    Or rather... other "things."


    These "things" must have been living here for a long time, or else they wouldn''t have left such a mess of excrement behind.


    The group began searching around, but found no needles or gauze. Outside the convenience store, there was no pharmacy or clinic. If they blindly searched, Han Yimo probably wouldn¡¯t last long.


    "What now...?" Officer Li stood with his hands on his hips, helplessly looking toward Dr. Zhao, as if seeking his opinion.


    Before Dr. Zhao could respond, there was a noise from behind the cashier''s counter, and the door to the staff break room slowly creaked open.


    The nine of them jumped in shock and quickly stepped back, staring at the slowly opening door.


    A frail figure slipped out from behind it.


    Upon closer inspection, it was a girl, so thin she seemed almost skeletal, her age impossible to discern.


    Her cheeks were deeply hollowed, her eyes bulging out, as if the flesh had been completely drained from her face.


    She pressed her cracked lips together and looked at them with curiosity.


    After a brief moment of stunned silence, she seemed to snap back to reality, quickly straightening her tattered and soiled clothes. In a raspy voice, she said, "Welcome..."


    "Welcome...?"


    Officer Li carefully processed the meaning of her words and seemed to understand.


    "You''re... the shop assistant?"


    The girl nodded.


    The group fell silent, as this situation felt entirely unnatural.


    Let¡¯s not even discuss why there were other humans here; even if she was a "shop assistant," why would she be working in a completely ruined convenience store?


    Seeing that the group wasn''t responding, the shop assistant tentatively added, "Please, feel free to pick whatever you''d like."


    Although she said that, there was no space for "picking" anything.


    The shelves were mostly empty, and the few remaining items were all rotting and covered in filth.


    The shop assistant¡¯s eyes were vacant as she stared at them.


    The gaze unnerved a few of the women.


    Stolen story; please report.


    "Do you have needles and thread?" Zhi Xia asked, her expression unchanged as she addressed the shop assistant.


    "Needles... thread?" The shop assistant¡¯s lifeless eyes barely moved. Then she extended her hand, mimicking the action of threading a needle. "You mean... something like this?"


    Only then did the group notice that her hands were stained with dried, pitch-black blood, which was quite horrifying.


    Zhi Xia took a step forward and said, "Yes, that kind of needle and thread. Do you have any for sale?"


    "You''re a liar... you..." Jo Jiajin, who had once thought of himself as the boldest person on earth before meeting Zhi Xia, now hesitated to speak to this woman. "Can''t you see? This woman is insane."


    "So what if I see that?" Zhi Xia said calmly. "Our situation couldn¡¯t be worse than it is right now."


    The shop assistant stood motionless for a moment, then suddenly swung open the counter¡¯s partition and rushed out.


    Only then did the group see her fully.


    She was wearing a dirty, oversized white shirt, which looked completely out of place, like it was hanging on a clothes rack.


    The shirt was smeared with something¡ªsomething that resembled oil, or perhaps blood.


    The shirt nearly reached her knees, and it appeared as though she wasn¡¯t wearing any pants, with dried blood all over her thighs.


    Zhi Xia frowned slightly and took a step back, but the shop assistant grabbed his wrist with surprising strength.


    His wrist felt like it was being wrapped by an old vine¡ªdry and painfully tight.


    "I have it here!" the shop assistant shouted, showing her yellowing teeth. "I have the ''needle and thread!'' Come with me!"


    She pointed insistently toward the staff room, as though trying to get Zhi Xia to follow her inside.


    The group was clearly frightened by her, and given her behavior, following her inside was obviously not a good idea.


    "Forget it... We won¡¯t buy it!" Jo Jiajin stepped forward, attempting to pull the woman''s hand off. "Let go of him."


    But the shop assistant didn¡¯t seem to hear him. She pulled Zhi Xia along with great force, a wide grin on her face.


    "There¡¯s ''needle and thread'' in there! Come on!"


    Her strength was so great that it felt as though it surpassed the combined strength of both Jo Jiajin and Zhi Xia.


    "Hey!! Someone, help!!" Jo Jiajin shouted.


    Officer Li and Dr. Zhao snapped out of their daze and hurried over.


    The shop assistant increased her pace, dragging Zhi Xia along effortlessly.


    The distance to the staff room wasn¡¯t far, and within just a few steps, they had entered the room.


    Dr. Zhao and Officer Li tried to pull Zhi Xia back, but unexpectedly, the shop assistant suddenly released his wrist.


    "Ah!"


    A cry of alarm erupted, and a few of them almost lost their balance.


    Once they regained their footing, they saw that the shop assistant wasn¡¯t paying them any attention. Instead, she had turned around and was rummaging through a box in the room.


    The men quickly scanned the room, still shaken.


    The room was slightly cleaner than the outside, with a folding bed in one corner, the bedding already yellowed.


    There was a large pool of blood on it, looking quite fresh.


    In another corner, a rusty iron pot was simmering on a makeshift stove, with something bubbling inside.


    The shop assistant seemed indifferent to everything, continuing her search in an old box.


    "Where is it... the needle and thread..." She kept tossing things out of the box¡ªcans, old magazines, pots, and pans.


    Jo Jiajin rubbed his nose and glanced at the pot.


    "Now that you mention it, I am a little hungry," he said quietly to Zhi Xia. "If she weren¡¯t such a crazy woman, I¡¯d ask her if she could let me have a bite."


    Zhi Xia glanced at the iron pot. Inside, something white was boiling.


    He too felt a pang of hunger.


    "Are you really going to eat something here?" Officer Li asked. "Who knows how filthy that food might be..."


    "But it smells pretty good," Jo Jiajin replied.


    He wasn¡¯t wrong. Thanks to the pot, the room was filled with a fragrant aroma that masked the earlier stench.


    "What¡¯s cooking?" Jo Jiajin asked boldly, clearly hoping to get a taste.


    "Piglets," the shop assistant answered.


    "Piglets?"


    Jo Jiajin became interested and was about to move closer to the pot, but the shop assistant suddenly let out a shout.


    "Ah! Found it!"


    She turned around, holding something in her hands, and excitedly presented it to the group.


    "Look! Needle and thread!"


    Officer Li stepped forward and looked, his face showing discomfort.


    This wasn¡¯t "needle and thread," but a rusty fishhook and a small bundle of tangled fishing line.


    He turned and gave Dr. Zhao a look, signaling him.


    Dr. Zhao thought for a moment before staring at the fishhook and fishing line and asking, "Miss, do you have any other needles and threads?"


    "No," the shop assistant shook her head. "This is all I have. Do you want to buy it?"

 Chapter23

    Dr. Zhao looked at Qi Xia awkwardly, and Qi Xia wasn¡¯t sure how to respond.


    "Can this be used?" Qi Xia asked quietly.


    "It shouldn¡¯t be a big issue." Dr. Zhao nodded. "Medical suturing often uses curved needles, as long as it''s sharp enough."


    Qi Xia thought for a moment, then turned to the female clerk and said, "Miss, we don¡¯t have money. Can we trade something instead?"


    "Money?" The female clerk stared blankly at Qi Xia, as if trying to comprehend what "money" meant. After a long while, she finally spoke, "I don¡¯t want money. You can sleep with me."


    "Sleep...?" Qi Xia¡¯s lips moved slightly. "What do you mean?"


    "We can eat the piglets after we sleep!" The female clerk gave a crazed look and even started drooling.


    With that, she walked over to the dirty bed, bent down, and sat on it, patting the space beside her.


    The spot was covered with a large pool of dried blood.


    "Come on, hurry up."


    The female clerk quickly took off her shirt, revealing she was completely naked underneath. Her emaciated body was covered in dirt and blood, looking like a skeleton.


    Jiao Jiajin remained silent for a while, then elbowed Qi Xia and said, "Just sacrifice yourself."


    "Why don¡¯t you go?" Qi Xia retorted.


    "The boss picked you," Jiao Jiajin said gleefully. "Didn¡¯t you hear? If you sleep with her, we can eat the piglets from her pot, and the writer is also waiting for that fishhook to save his life. No matter how you look at it, this will be a great deed¡­"


    Before Qi Xia could reply, the female clerk seemed to have heard Jiao Jiajin and turned to him, saying, "You can come too! All four of you can come!"


    "What the¡­?" Officer Li couldn¡¯t hold back anymore. After years of police work, the situation in front of him was completely beyond his comprehension. "Miss, what are you after? We came to buy something, why are you offering yourself?"


    "I¡­" The female clerk widened her eyes, then suddenly shouted, "I want to eat piglets!!"


    After saying that, she seemed to remember something and quickly placed the fishhook and fishing line on the bed, then ran over to the iron pot to check inside.


    "Don¡¯t let the piglets get overcooked¡­"


    She seemed worried as she picked up a stick and stirred the contents of the pot.


    Taking advantage of this, Qi Xia quietly walked over to the bed, grabbed the fishhook and fishing line, then turned around and handed them to Dr. Zhao, saying, "Go save the person first, we¡¯ll handle things here."


    "Okay!"


    Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    Dr. Zhao took the fishhook and fishing line outside, found a relatively clean stone on the ground, and started working on the fishhook. He briefly explained the situation inside to the few women with him.


    Sweet, being a professional, still couldn¡¯t understand the female clerk¡¯s behavior.


    "Forget about that, Qi Xia¡¯s right. Let¡¯s save the person first," Lin Qing said, taking the fishing line and turning back to check on Han Yimo¡¯s condition.


    Dr. Zhao used the stone to scrape off the rust from the fishhook, then sharpened it as much as possible. Lin Qing also tidied up the tangled fishing line beside him.


    "Almost done¡­" After confirming everything was ready, Dr. Zhao turned to Han Yimo and said, "I¡¯m going to remove the fish spear and stitch up the wound."


    "Okay¡­" Han Yimo nodded slightly.


    "But we don¡¯t have anesthesia," Dr. Zhao said awkwardly, "The pain might be more than you can imagine."


    "It¡¯s fine¡­ as long as I can survive, right?" Han Yimo smiled bitterly and asked.


    "As long as the wound doesn¡¯t get infected¡­ you¡¯ll be fine."


    "Good¡­ go ahead¡­"


    Inside the house, the three men stood behind the female clerk, watching her stir the pot.


    She was completely naked, but the three men felt no stirrings in their hearts; they even wanted to run away.


    "Hey, liar," Jiao Jiajin whispered, "You stole her ''goods''. What are we going to do if she gets mad?"


    "I don¡¯t know," Qi Xia shook his head.


    Officer Li stayed silent for a moment, then whispered, "Don¡¯t we still have the ''Dao''? I wonder if she wants it."


    "How can we do that?!" Jiao Jiajin said, a little upset. "That ''Dao'' was obtained by giving up all our lives, and you¡¯re just going to give it to this crazy woman?"


    "But we¡¯re also saving a life here!"


    As the two argued, the female clerk slowly turned around and walked back to the bed. The fishhook and fishing line, which had been there earlier, were now missing.


    She hesitated and looked at the bed, seemingly feeling something was wrong. "Huh?"


    But soon, she shook her head and said, "Right¡­ sleep. Which one of you four is coming first?"


    The female clerk raised her head and looked at the three men in front of her, her expression momentarily dazed. "Not four? Have you always been three? Never mind, three will do."


    Jiao Jiajin shook his head and whispered, "See? She¡¯s crazier than I imagined."


    "Yeah¡­" Qi Xia was stunned for a long time before speaking. "We don¡¯t want to sleep with you. We¡¯re just here to buy something."


    With that, he took out a shining "Dao" from his pocket, placed it beside the female clerk, and continued, "I don¡¯t know if this is valuable, but it¡¯s all we have left."


    Given that the people here must recognize the animal masks and have likely heard of the "Dao", something obtained at the cost of a life, Qi Xia assumed it would be valuable.


    The female clerk curiously looked at the bead, then picked it up and squeezed it. The bead seemed somewhat elastic, though he wasn¡¯t sure what material it was made from.


    Then, to the shock of the three men, she popped the bead into her mouth.


    With a crunch, the bead was crushed, chewed, and swallowed.


    "It doesn¡¯t taste good¡­" The female clerk shook her head. "It¡¯s way worse than piglets."


    "Uh¡­"


    The three men never expected that the life-risking item they had obtained would be treated like a snack, leaving them speechless.


    "If you won¡¯t sleep with me¡­ then you can leave¡­" The female clerk sighed helplessly, her expression full of disappointment. "Someone will come and sleep with me eventually."


    Although the situation was baffling to the three men, at least they could leave now.


    The three men reluctantly stepped outside, already planning how to explain to the others that they had lost a "Dao", only to find Dr. Zhao had already removed the fish spear from Han Yimo¡¯s body, and blood was spurting from his wound, his face drenched in sweat.


    "Quick, come help!" Lin Qing called out.


    Jiao Jiajin and Officer Li rushed over to help hold Han Yimo¡¯s limbs in place.


    In this excruciating pain, a person would instinctively struggle.


    "Han Yimo, look at me!" Dr. Zhao said sternly, "Do you still know who I am?!"


    "You¡¯re Dr. Zhao¡­" Han Yimo frowned and gritted his teeth.


    "That¡¯s right, you need to stay awake!" Dr. Zhao threaded the fishing line through the fishhook and quickly pierced through his flesh.


    Han Yimo groaned in pain.


    "Talk to me!" Dr. Zhao said calmly, "Talk about something you¡¯re interested in to distract yourself!"


    "Something I¡¯m interested in¡­?" Han Yimo smiled bitterly.


    "Aren¡¯t you a novelist?" Dr. Zhao asked. "Why don¡¯t you tell me about your works?"

 Chapter 24: The Outlier

    "Heh..." Han Yimo let out a bitter laugh. "Dr. Zhao, you''re overthinking it. As a novelist, the last thing I want to talk about is my own work... If I have some free time, I just want to forget everything about my work and relax."


    "Then let''s talk about something else!" Dr. Zhao had been slowly stitching up the wound, but since this one was circular, it was more complicated to sew than regular wounds. He steadied himself and asked, "Tell me, what do you do to relax besides writing?"


    "I... play games."


    Dr. Zhao nodded. "That''s great. I play games after work too. What games do you play?"


    Due to significant blood loss, Han Yimo''s thoughts were sluggish. After a long pause, he finally said, "League of Legends... there''s a female ninja named ''Akali'' in it. I really like that character."


    "Oh?" Dr. Zhao smiled. "What a coincidence, I also play League of Legends and like Akali."


    Although his tone remained calm, everyone could see his hands tremble slightly. After all, in his many years of practice, this was the first time he had stitched up a wound while the patient was conscious and without anesthesia. It was unclear whether he genuinely liked the character or was simply trying to follow Han Yimo''s lead in the conversation.


    "Dr. Zhao, you like Akali too?" Han Yimo weakly nodded. "I¡¯m fascinated by everything about her... This female ninja called ''The Fist of Shadow,'' I feel her backstory is..."


    Dr. Zhao''s hands paused briefly, then he gently touched Han Yimo''s face and asked, "Han Yimo, can you see me?"


    "Huh?" Han Yimo was confused about why Dr. Zhao suddenly asked this but responded, "I can see you..."


    "Who am I?"


    "You¡¯re Dr. Zhao..."


    Dr. Zhao nodded again and said, "Han Yimo, you''re experiencing hallucinations now. You need to stay alert."


    "Hallucinations?" Han Yimo felt that his state was still normal, and he didn''t understand what Dr. Zhao meant. "Aren''t we having a normal conversation? How could I be hallucinating..."


    "It¡¯s likely a symptom of excessive blood loss. Your brain isn''t getting enough blood. As you said, Akali¡¯s title is ''The Rogue Assassin,'' not ''The Fist of Shadow.''"


    "The Rogue Assassin?" Han Yimo squinted, feeling uncertain. He had never heard that name before. Could this be the result of hallucinations?


    Qiao Jiajin nudged Qi Xia and asked, "Swindler, what are they talking about?"


    "I don''t know." Qi Xia shook his head. "I don''t play games, so I can''t follow."


    "I''ve played video games," Qiao Jiajin shrugged, "but I''ve never heard of the game they''re talking about. Is this hero-based battle game more interesting than ''Fatal Fury''...?"


    Qi Xia didn¡¯t want to engage in this topic and walked aside, finding a clean stone to sit on.


    The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    He was thinking about something else.


    The conversation between Han Yimo and Dr. Zhao had fallen silent, likely due to Han Yimo¡¯s hallucinations preventing the conversation from continuing.


    The atmosphere grew gradually quieter.


    Lin Qiong, feeling she couldn¡¯t help, sat next to Qi Xia.


    "What are you thinking about?" Lin Qiong asked.


    Qi Xia turned to glance at Lin Qiong, his expression cold.


    "This is the second time you¡¯ve asked me ''What are you thinking about,''" Qi Xia said. "Do you always ask your patients such direct questions during psychological consultations?"


    "But you''re not my patient." Lin Qiong shook her head. "We don¡¯t refer to clients as ''patients''; it''s impolite. I¡¯m just genuinely curious. What could someone as smart as you possibly be thinking?"


    "My wife." Qi Xia said wistfully.


    "Your wife?" Lin Qiong nodded silently. "Earlier, you mentioned someone was waiting outside for you. Was that your wife?"


    "Yes," Qi Xia nodded.


    Lin Qiong smiled slightly. "I didn¡¯t expect that answer. So, you''re married?"


    "Why wouldn¡¯t I be married?" Qi Xia felt Lin Qiong¡¯s words carried an underlying tone.


    "I didn¡¯t mean to offend you. But you¡¯re a swindler, so what kind of person would your wife be?"


    "You..." Qi Xia rarely showed anger. He stood up slowly, his gaze icy. "What do you mean? Because I¡¯m a swindler, only someone from a dubious background would marry me?"


    "Ah? I..." Lin Qiong was startled by Qi Xia¡¯s attitude. "I didn¡¯t mean to offend you. I was just curious..."


    "I suggest you stop being curious about me." Qi Xia¡¯s tone remained cold. "I¡¯m a swindler. What I say isn¡¯t the truth."


    Their conversation ended unpleasantly, but Lin Qiong didn¡¯t seem to mind.


    Dr. Zhao had finished stitching the wound.


    "It¡¯s about done..." Dr. Zhao said, wiping the blood from his hands. "We¡¯ve done all we can. Now, we just hope the wound doesn¡¯t get infected."


    "Thank you..." Han Yimo¡¯s lips were pale as he slowly said to Dr. Zhao.


    Once everything had been wrapped up, Qi Xia slowly stood up and addressed the group. "Everyone, it''s time to say goodbye."


    The other eight people looked confused upon hearing this.


    "Goodbye?"


    "Where are you going?" Qiao Jiajin asked.


    "That¡¯s none of your concern," Qi Xia said, looking thoughtfully at the restaurant across the street.


    "You¡¯re not really going to find the ''Dao,'' are you?!" Officer Li froze for a moment.


    "What? Do you have any advice?" Qi Xia seemed to acknowledge this.


    "With all due respect, you¡¯re walking straight into death." Officer Li shook his head helplessly. "Three thousand six hundred ''Dao''! Do you understand what that means? If you¡¯re going to get one ''Dao'' each time, you¡¯d need to clear three thousand six hundred near-death games!"


    "Yes," Qi Xia nodded. "It sounds incredibly unlikely, but there¡¯s still hope, right?"


    "Hope?" Officer Li sighed. "Ten days, three thousand six hundred games. That averages three hundred sixty games per day. Even if you did nothing but clear games all day, there¡¯s not enough time. And even if you don¡¯t do anything, you¡¯ll die after ten days."


    After pausing, he added, "And this ''death'' is based on assuming what the ''Dragon Man'' said is completely true. In other words, even after ten days, we might not die, and this place might not be destroyed. Even if you collect all three thousand six hundred ''Dao,'' he might not let you out."


    "I understand all that." Qi Xia interrupted Officer Li, saying, "But I don¡¯t plan to wait here. Even if I just go out for a walk, it¡¯s better than staying here."


    "But you..." Officer Li still wanted to argue, but the staff lounge door creaked open again.


    The group turned to see the female clerk step out.


    She was completely naked, her mouth covered in grease, holding something in her hand, and her frail body seemed to be little more than skin and bones.


    Zhang Chenze frowned slightly, took off her women¡¯s suit jacket, and walked over to drape it over her.


    She turned to the men, her face showing some anger. "What did you men do in the room? Where are her clothes?"


    Qiao Jiajin shook his head helplessly and said, "It¡¯s too complicated to explain right now. I advise you not to bother with her."


    "You¡¯re such a good person." The female clerk eyed the jacket draped over her, then glanced at Zhang Chenze. "Pity you''re not a man. If you were, I¡¯d definitely sleep with you."


    "Sleep with me?" Zhang Chenze was taken aback. "What are you talking about?"


    "Since I can''t sleep with you, then I¡¯ll give you this..." She opened her filthy hand, revealing a cooked, withered baby¡¯s arm.

 Chapter 25: Divergence

    Zhang Chenzhe''s eyes widened in shock, and she couldn''t say a word. She instinctively took several steps back.


    "What''s wrong?" Qiao Jiajin was blocked from seeing anything by Zhang Chenzhe and didn''t know what had happened.


    The proud lawyer, Zhang Chenzhe, took a few steps backward, then fell on the dirty ground.


    "You... you..." Zhang Chenzhe pointed at the female shop assistant.


    Everyone turned to look, and they saw that the shop assistant was holding a small severed arm in her palm. The arm was very small, not like an adult''s, and the fingers were distinct, definitely not from an animal.


    It seemed that the shop assistant had indeed cooked a baby.


    The baby¡¯s arm emitted a tempting aroma.


    Qi Xia saw this and immediately connected it with the strange environment of the room. He quickly realized something.


    "Is this... the piglet?" Qi Xia tentatively asked.


    "That''s right." The shop assistant nodded. "Don¡¯t you want some?"


    Qi Xia kept his face serious and asked, "So, when you say you want us to sleep with you, does that mean you eat piglets like this one?!"


    "Yeah." The shop assistant looked at Qi Xia blankly. "Piglets taste really good."


    The air was heavy with the smell of blood, and there were stains on the shop assistant''s thighs and bed. If Qi Xia guessed correctly, she had just given birth and then cooked the child.


    She asked the men to sleep with her just to eat her child.


    "I can only eat a piglet once a year..." The shop assistant smiled, revealing her dry yellow teeth. "I was just wondering if any of you would like to sleep with me? I can trade you for pig''s feet..."


    "We... we don¡¯t want any." Li Jingguan shook his head.


    "Well, if you don''t want it... then forget it." She fumbled around, stuffing the cooked baby¡¯s arm into her clothing pocket and wiping the oil off her hands.


    Zhang Chenzhe, seeing her own clothes covered in oil, couldn¡¯t say a word. Before this, she had never imagined that cooking human flesh would result in so much grease.


    Tian Tian slowly walked over to the shop assistant, her expression complicated as she said, "Girl, what you ate was not a piglet; it was a child..."


    "A child?" The shop assistant''s lifeless eyes turned around. "Well, that''s a piglet! It suddenly jumped out and even hurt me."


    Everyone looked at each other, unable to respond.


    "Hey... I''m hungry again." The shop assistant raised her eyebrow. "I''m going to drink some pork soup. It''s so nice to eat my fill."


    With that, she turned and walked back into the staff room. Just before closing the door, she seemed to remember something and, with a silly smile, said to the group, "Feel free to pick whatever you want!"


    Then she slammed the door shut.


    Everyone remained silent for a long time, the atmosphere incredibly oppressive.


    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.


    Finally, it was Qi Xia who broke the silence and spoke.


    "Everyone, even if this place doesn''t destroy itself in ten days, we won''t be able to return to the real world." Qi Xia rubbed his forehead. "If we stay here forever, we will end up just as mad as her."


    This time, Li Jingguan didn¡¯t argue with Qi Xia.


    He too hesitated. In this obviously abnormal city, under the dark red sky and yellowish sun, how long could humans maintain their sanity?


    Sounds of clattering kitchenware came from the room, and it seemed the shop assistant had served herself another bowl of delicacies, loudly enjoying her meal.


    Just a door away, a woman was eating her own newborn child.


    Everything about this place was abnormal.


    "I want to go outside and see." Qi Xia spoke up. "Aren''t you curious? What is this place? Who are these people? Does the city have an edge? What''s outside? How did we get here, and how do we leave?"


    Instead of curiosity, the expressions on everyone''s faces seemed more like fear.


    "I just feel like there¡¯s danger everywhere here..." Xiao Ran shook her head, saying to Qi Xia, "Rather than going out to play those ''games,'' I¡¯d prefer to find a safe place and stay there."


    "Beauty, there¡¯s no food or drink here." Qiao Jiajin rubbed his stomach. "If we want to survive, we can''t seriously consider eating that piglet, right?"


    His stance was clear. Rather than stay here and wait to die, he¡¯d prefer to go outside and see.


    At this point, the group seemed to have split into two factions: some wanted to leave, while others wanted to stay.


    Dr. Zhao looked at Han Yimo beside him and said, "It''s fine to go outside and look, but the injured can''t leave. He¡¯ll have to stay here. As a doctor, I should stay and take care of him."


    "I¡¯ll stay with you guys." Xiao Ran whispered.


    "Are you all out of your minds?" Qiao Jiajin shook his head. "A patient, a weak girl, and a doctor... Are you three planning to live here?"


    "I''ll stay too." Li Jingguan suddenly spoke up.


    Dr. Zhao and the others turned to him. They knew that having the strong Li Jingguan stay would make it safer.


    Li Jingguan nodded at Dr. Zhao and said, "This thug is right. You three staying here alone is too dangerous. Not to mention those animal masks, even if the woman goes crazy, you can¡¯t deal with her."


    Now, those choosing to stay had already reached six. The group turned their attention to Tian Tian, Zhang Chenzhe, and Lin Qing.


    These three women hadn¡¯t yet made their decision.


    "I¡¯ll definitely stay." Zhang Chenzhe smiled faintly. "I''m a lawyer. Until I have all the information, I won¡¯t make a move. It could lead to an incorrect judgment."


    With that, she stood up and joined Li Jingguan and Dr. Zhao.


    At this point, Qi Xia and Qiao Jiajin seemed like outliers, wanting to venture into this world full of dangers, as though they were children who hadn¡¯t grown up.


    Tian Tian looked at Lin Qing beside her, then walked over to Qi Xia, but didn¡¯t say anything.


    It seemed she didn¡¯t need any reason to join Qi Xia¡¯s team.


    "Mm?" Qiao Jiajin raised an eyebrow. "I thought you would stay?"


    "Stay?" Tian Tian smiled wryly and shook her head, then pointed to the ground and said, "Can¡¯t you see? There¡¯s a wall here, and it forces me to leave."


    "A wall?" Qi Xia and Qiao Jiajin looked down, but they didn¡¯t see any "wall."


    "On the other side of the wall are the police, the lawyer, the doctor, and the writer. On this side are the liar, the thug, and the prostitute." Tian Tian¡¯s tone was calm as she tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "Our ''camps'' were decided from the start, right?"


    Qi Xia and Qiao Jiajin were taken aback and understood what Tian Tian meant.


    Yes, even though all nine of them were forced into this place, they still had their own "camps."


    Qi Xia, Qiao Jiajin, and Tian Tian were all people who lived in the gray area of society, which made them naturally incompatible with the others.


    Now, the only one left without a camp was Lin Qing.


    With her "psychologist" identity, she should have gone to the other side of the "wall."


    But what surprised everyone was that she slowly walked over to Qi Xia and the others.


    Qi Xia had a faint feeling that something was off with this girl, but he couldn¡¯t pinpoint what was wrong.


    "You too?" Tian Tian looked at her in confusion. "You''re not one of us. Following them might..."


    "But I''m useful." Lin Qing covered her mouth and nose and smiled at Tian Tian, interrupting her. "I understand human nature. Maybe I can help."


    Qiao Jiajin stretched and slowly said, "Alright, with two pretty girls around, I won¡¯t be bored with this liar."


    "Don¡¯t call me a liar." Qi Xia frowned. "I don¡¯t need you two following me."


    "Fine, fine..." Qiao Jiajin nodded. "When do we leave? Now?"


    "I..."


    Before Qi Xia could finish, Lin Qing spoke up, "It¡¯s really getting late. Personally, I suggest we wait until tomorrow to leave."


    "Tomorrow?" Everyone turned to look outside, and indeed, the sky was getting dark.


    The sky was an even darker shade of red, exuding a sense of danger.

 Chapter 26: The Dead

    "Since it''s supposed to be ten days later, should we consider today as ''Day Zero''?" Lin Qing said, covering her mouth and nose with one hand. "If you go out now, you won''t be able to see the road soon, since there are no streetlights here."


    Qi Xia realized that Lin Qing had a point and quietly walked to one side, sitting on a clean shelf. He had been a bit too anxious, forgetting to even check the time.


    But he was in a rush to leave this haunted place and see his wife¡ªYu Nian''an. To see the girl who liked to wear white clothes.


    "Xiao''an, I''ll get out of here soon," he muttered to himself. "Wait for me, we''ll have money soon."


    Qi Xia''s expression was different from the others. He wasn''t panicking or feeling sad, just a bit anxious. As the sky darkened, everyone found a clean spot to sit. Fortunately, the night wasn''t cold, though everyone was hungry. They hadn''t had anything to eat or drink for almost a whole day, and each person was feeling weak.


    No one spoke anymore. They just quietly watched as the yellowish sun in the sky set, plunging the world into darkness.


    The day felt like a horrible nightmare to all of them. They all wished that when they opened their eyes again, everything strange would vanish.


    The entire city seemed to have quieted down, but in the distance, they could hear faint sounds, though nothing was clear.


    It was so dark here that they couldn¡¯t even tell if their eyes were open.


    Everyone had grown up in cities, so none of them had ever seen such pitch-black nights where they couldn¡¯t even see their hands in front of them.


    "Conman, are you asleep?" suddenly asked Qiao Jiajing, sitting not far from Qi Xia.


    "What''s up?"


    "Do you think... there are other ''participants'' here?"


    Qi Xia remained silent for a moment, then answered, "I''ve thought about this too. ''Longren'' said that over ten million people have come out from that door. So, logically, there must be more than just the nine of us here..."


    Qiao Jiajing was silent for a moment, then asked, "Do you think the woman in the store was one of those who came out of the door before?"


    "Huh?" Qi Xia was slightly stunned. He hadn''t thought about it that way, since the woman seemed like she''d been living here for many years.


    But when he thought about it carefully, it didn''t conflict with the idea. Whether they were brought here ten years or just ten days ago didn¡¯t matter. What was important was that, according to "Longren," this place would disappear in ten days.


    Perhaps their starting points were different, but their ending was the same.


    Fortunately, they probably wouldn¡¯t go crazy like the storewoman. After all, they only needed to stay here for ten days.


    No matter what, after ten days, they would see the "result."


    "Conman? Are you asleep?" Qiao Jiajing asked again.


    Qi Xia didn¡¯t answer him. Instead, he turned his head to one side, thinking seriously about everything that had happened today.


    What was behind all these strange occurrences?


    Unable to get a response from Qi Xia, Qiao Jiajing stopped asking and fell silent.


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    After a while, two people spoke in the darkness. It sounded like Dr. Zhao and Officer Li.


    "Dr. Zhao¡­"


    "Yes?"


    "I want to ask... if a woman is malnourished for a long time, can she still bear children?"


    Dr. Zhao paused for a moment, understanding what Officer Li meant. The storewoman looked like she hadn¡¯t eaten for a long time, but why was she still able to give birth to a child?


    The others seemed interested in the question and waited quietly for his answer.


    Dr. Zhao organized his thoughts and said, "This is a complicated question. If a woman is malnourished for a long time, it can cause irregular periods, or even menopause, meaning she wouldn''t ovulate and therefore wouldn''t be able to conceive naturally."


    "So... is this another thing science can¡¯t explain?" Officer Li asked in a low voice. "The woman in the store looks very unhealthy."


    "The specifics can¡¯t be concluded," Dr. Zhao sighed. "In some areas in Africa, people have very low nutritional intake, yet the birth rate is still high..."


    "But this is not my area of expertise. It depends on each person¡¯s constitution and the intake of key nutrients. I don''t know much more."


    After hearing this, Officer Li didn¡¯t say anything else. The room fell into silence again.


    Qi Xia hadn¡¯t planned to sleep, but in the pitch-black environment, his senses began to blur, and eventually, he stopped thinking altogether.


    With the soft "shh" sound of the street outside, his eyelids drooped, and he fell asleep.


    He didn¡¯t know when he fell asleep, but in his dream, he saw Yu Nian''an¡¯s figure.


    "Xia, do you know? There are many roads in this world, and everyone has their own path."


    "Yes, Xiao''an, I know," Qi Xia nodded in the dream. "I¡¯ll be out soon, wait for me."


    He didn¡¯t know how much time had passed, but suddenly, a loud, almost ear-splitting chime sounded, like thunder ringing in his ears.


    Qi Xia opened his eyes, jumped up in a panic, and found that it was already dawn.


    Turning around, everyone was still in shock, just like him, staring at the sound. It had been so loud that it had woken them all up.


    "What¡¯s going on?!" Xiao Ran instinctively hid behind Officer Li.


    Before anyone could react, a strange coughing sound came from the corner of the room.


    The cough sounded like it had something stuck in the throat.


    Dr. Zhao noticed the sound came from behind and slowly turned around, only to be met with a terrifying sight.


    Han Yimo was lying on the ground, with a massive black sword piercing through his abdomen. The sword seemed to have been driven down with great force, with more than half of it buried in the ground.


    Blood was gushing from his mouth as he kept coughing.


    "Hey! Writer!" Qiao Jiajing rushed up to check on him.


    "Cough... Qi... Qi Xia..." Han Yimo extended his hand. His voice didn¡¯t sound like pain or fear, but more like confusion.


    Qi Xia frowned slightly, then walked over, squatted down, and took Han Yimo¡¯s hand.


    "I¡¯m here," he replied, then raised his head and looked at the ceiling of the building.


    The entire ceiling was intact, so the massive black sword didn¡¯t seem to have fallen from above.


    Han Yimo¡¯s lips moved weakly. His eyes began to glow as he made a choking sound and then started crying.


    "This... this place isn¡¯t right... Qi Xia... cough... this can¡¯t happen... this ''Seven Black Sword''... absolutely... cough... impossible... Qi Xia... the ''Seven Black Sword'' is... "


    His coughing intensified, and he couldn¡¯t complete his sentence. Blood poured from his mouth, flowing into his nose.


    Han Yimo coughed loudly a few more times, then stiffened and lost his life.


    Under the suffocating conditions, just a few words drained all of his strength.


    Yes... truly dying people wouldn¡¯t have time for long last words.


    Then, there was silence.


    A long silence.


    Everyone knew Han Yimo probably still had many things to say, but time had run out for him. A living soul had just died in front of them all.


    Qi Xia saw Han Yimo''s lifeless eyes, frowned, and suddenly felt a sharp pain in his head.


    He pressed his forehead, crouched down, feeling as if something was trying to escape from his mind. Then, he let out a heart-wrenching scream.


    "Ahhh!!"


    Before anyone could process Han Yimo¡¯s death, they were all startled by Qi Xia¡¯s scream.


    "Conman, are you okay?" Qiao Jiajing asked cautiously.


    After half a minute of silence, Qi Xia slowly calmed his breathing and said, "I¡¯m fine... Let¡¯s check on Han Yimo first."


    Seeing that Qi Xia seemed fine, everyone turned their attention back to Han Yimo¡¯s lifeless body, their hearts filled with mixed emotions.


    One thought kept swirling in their minds.


    Had they really died?


    And if a person dies, can they die again?


    "Han Yimo... was killed by someone..." Xiao Ran whispered.


    Her words, "killed by someone," shocked everyone.


    Yes, now the question wasn¡¯t whether "death after death" was possible, but "who the murderer was."


    When Han Yimo was found, he still had some consciousness, meaning the black sword had only recently been driven into his abdomen.


    In other words, the person who killed him hadn¡¯t gone far and was most likely hiding among the remaining eight people.

 Chapter 27: Foolishness

    "Qi Xia." Zhang Chenze stood with his arms crossed, his expression emotionless. "When Han Yimo was injured, the first person he called out to was you. Did you know each other before?"


    Without even lifting his eyelids, Qi Xia rested his right hand on his forehead and replied, "No."


    "Then do you have any clues about his death?" Zhang Chenze continued.


    Qi Xia didn''t answer but instead examined the massive sword lodged in Han Yimo¡¯s body.


    The sword had an ancient design, resembling a finely crafted piece of art.It was covered in battle scars, as if it had seen countless fights.But in this day and age, who would wield such a massive sword in combat?


    "Qi Xia, I''m asking you a question," Zhang Chenze said impatiently. "Aren''t you going to explain anything?"


    "What is there to explain?" Qi Xia asked. "Are you suggesting that I killed Han Yimo?"


    "Regardless of whether you¡¯re the murderer or not, shouldn''t you at least say something to clear your name?"


    Qi Xia still didn¡¯t respond. Instead, he reached out and grabbed the sword.


    "Hey!" Officer Li quickly stepped forward. "Qi Xia, whether you¡¯re the killer or not, we need to preserve the crime scene! Otherwise¡ª"


    "Otherwise what?" Qi Xia interrupted. "Otherwise, when you police start investigating, you might lose evidence?"


    Officer Li opened his mouth but found himself at a loss for words.There was no need to talk about preserving the crime scene¡ªright now, he wasn¡¯t even sure if he could make it out of here alive.


    Seeing Officer Li fall silent, Qi Xia tightened his grip and continued pulling at the sword.


    He exerted almost all his strength before he finally managed to pull the blade completely out of the ground.


    Qiao Jiajin stepped forward to help, only to realize that the sword was even heavier than he had imagined.This pitch-black ancient sword, made from an unknown metal, weighed about 150 pounds¡ªroughly the weight of a strong adult man.


    Qi Xia gasped for breath and threw the iron sword onto the ground with a loud clang.


    After a moment, once he had steadied his breathing, he finally turned to Zhang Chenze and said,"Lawyer Zhang, let me confirm this with you: this iron sword is as long as a person and weighs over 150 pounds. Are you seriously suggesting that I lifted this sword, silently killed the immobilized Han Yimo at dawn, and then plunged it deep into the ground?"


    Zhang Chenze pursed his lips, his face darkening.


    "And before that, to keep it hidden from you all, I must have stuffed this giant sword into my pocket, right?" Qi Xia added.


    Sensing the tense atmosphere, Officer Li stepped in to mediate. "Qi Xia, if you didn¡¯t kill Han Yimo, why did you insist on pulling out the sword?"


    Qi Xia ignored Zhang Chenze and instead lowered his head, studying the bloodstained sword.


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    After carefully examining it, he shook his head and flipped the sword over.


    Sure enough, on the other side of the hilt, three small characters were engraved: "Seven Black Sword."


    Of all the things Han Yimo had said before his death, very little was useful.It seemed like he had been trying to come to terms with something¡ªbut unfortunately, he hadn¡¯t figured it out even in his final moments.


    The only thing that stuck with Qi Xia was the phrase "Seven Black Sword."


    "This sword is called ¡®Seven Black Sword¡¯?" Qiao Jiajin asked from the side.


    Qi Xia stroked his chin and muttered,"These three words are engraved on the opposite side of the sword hilt. That means Han Yimo, when he was stabbed, shouldn¡¯t have been able to see the name of the sword.So why did he mention ¡®Seven Black Sword¡¯?"


    "I think your thought process is really strange," Officer Li shook his head. "Why do you care about the name of the murder weapon? Shouldn''t we be focusing on Han Yimo¡¯s cause of death?"


    Qi Xia glanced at Officer Li and said,"Han Yimo was attacked after dawn. Even if he had been asleep, such a serious injury would have woken him up.Logically, he should have seen the murderer.But instead of naming the culprit, he mentioned ¡®Seven Black Sword¡¯ twice.Isn''t that strange?"


    "But he called your name¡­" Xiao Ran whispered. "No matter what that sword is, the first thing Han Yimo did was call out for you¡­"


    "And?" Qi Xia asked.


    "So you¡¯re the murderer¡­" Xiao Ran said hesitantly. She hid behind Officer Li, not daring to meet Qi Xia¡¯s gaze.


    Qi Xia didn¡¯t argue, he simply stared at Xiao Ran, as if trying to determine whether she was the real killer or just an idiot.


    "Besides, our companion is dead, and you¡¯re not even sad. Instead, you¡¯re just calmly analyzing things. But you¡¯re a liar! What¡¯s the use of your analysis?!" Xiao Ran''s voice trembled with emotion."Who among us would trust you?"


    "Sadness?" Qi Xia frowned, as if struggling to understand. "You¡¯re saying¡­ I should feel sad for someone I¡¯ve known for less than a day?"


    "You¡¯re so cold-blooded! That¡¯s why I said you¡¯re the killer!" Xiao Ran¡¯s voice grew louder. "You were going to leave last night, weren¡¯t you?Why did you insist on staying here overnight?If you think about it, you must have stayed behind just so you could kill him!"


    At this moment, Qi Xia had mostly figured it out¡ªthis woman might not be the murderer,but she was definitely stupid.


    Back in the first room, she had also loudly questioned, "Why should we trust this liar?"


    For her, logic was meaningless.She only believed what she wanted to believe.


    Qiao Jiajin, growing irritated, turned to Xiao Ran and said,"Hey, stupid girl, if you don¡¯t like using your brain, at least don¡¯t interrupt.I think this liar¡¯s analysis makes sense."


    "But you three aren¡¯t good people!" Xiao Ran retorted, aggrieved."Someone was murdered here, and you three are the most suspicious!So what if I¡¯m stupid? At least I wouldn¡¯t do anything evil!"


    Her words weren¡¯t just aimed at Qi Xia¡ªthey also included Qiao Jiajin and Tiantian.


    Yes, the three of them weren¡¯t exactly good people.


    Qi Xia nodded. "You¡¯re right."


    He gave up examining the corpse and the sword, instead slowly rising to his feet."There¡¯s no point in investigating further.I killed him."


    The others stood frozen, their expressions unreadable.


    Only Xiao Ran appeared triumphant. "See?! He admitted it! He was just going on and on about that sword to distract us!"


    Officer Li furrowed his brows, deep in thought.


    "Hey, liar!" Qiao Jiajin frowned. "Even if you confess, who would actually believe it?Even if you and I lifted that sword together, there¡¯s no way we could have done it quietly."


    Qi Xia waved dismissively and walked out of the convenience store.


    "It doesn¡¯t matter. There are only ten days left¡ªwhat difference does it make if I¡¯m labeled the killer?Besides, I have no interest in arguing with idiots."


    Hearing this, Qiao Jiajin sighed and followed.


    Then Tiantian¡ªshe had already decided to stick with Qi Xia and Qiao Jiajin, so there was no reason to stay behind.


    Lin Qin turned back to glance at Officer Li, as if wanting to say something.But in the end, he shook his head and walked away.


    The remaining four looked conflicted¡ªexcept for Xiao Ran, who seemed relieved."Finally¡­ those bad people are gone¡­"


    "Xiao Ran, I think we forgot something¡­" Dr. Zhao whispered.


    ¡­


    Xiao Ran ran outside and shouted after them.


    "Stop!"


    Qi Xia turned back coldly, unsure of what she wanted now.


    "Aren¡¯t you forgetting something?" Xiao Ran demanded. "What about the ¡®Dao¡¯?"


    "Dao?"


    "That¡¯s right! The four ¡®Dao¡¯ we risked our lives to win¡ªYou¡¯re not just going to take them all, are you?"

 Chapter 28: Parting Ways

    At this moment, Dr. Zhao also stepped out, his expression evasive.


    Judging by his demeanor, he didn¡¯t seem to be here to stop the confrontation but rather to support it.


    ¡°There¡¯s no fourth ¡®Dao,¡¯ only three left,¡± Qi Xia said.


    ¡°Three?!¡± Xiao Ran frowned. ¡°Did you lose one?¡±


    Qi Xia glanced at Dr. Zhao behind Xiao Ran, his gaze carrying a hint of cold sharpness.


    Dr. Zhao seemed to notice Qi Xia¡¯s look and had no choice but to explain,¡°Xiao Ran, it wasn¡¯t Qi Xia who lost it. He used one of the ¡®Dao¡¯ to trade with that female shop assistant for a fishing hook and line.¡±


    ¡°What¡­¡± Xiao Ran¡¯s eyes flickered slightly before she sighed and turned back to Qi Xia.¡°Fine, it¡¯s your choice to trade a ¡®Dao,¡¯ but now I want you to return the two that belong to our team.¡±


    ¡°The two that belong to you?¡± Qi Xia¡¯s expression turned cold.


    ¡°Xiao Ran¡­¡± Sweetie, who had been silent for a while, suddenly spoke up.¡°You can¡¯t say it like that. If we really want to be precise, the one that was lost was used to save Han Yimo from your team. It has nothing to do with us.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve said it before¡ªthat was Qi Xia¡¯s own decision, and it has nothing to do with our team.¡±


    ¡°You old hag¡­¡± Qiao Jiajin took a step forward, his face fierce. His previously imperfect Mandarin completely switched to Cantonese.¡°I never hit women, but you¡¯re truly shameless!¡±


    ¡°Hey¡­ calm down!¡± Lin Qin stepped up to hold Qiao Jiajin back.¡°Qi Xia won those ¡®Dao,¡¯ so he should decide how to distribute them.¡±


    Qiao Jiajin pursed his lips in frustration, forcing himself to suppress his anger.


    Qi Xia slowly reached up and rubbed his nose before speaking,¡°The ¡®Dragon of Man¡¯ said that these ¡®Dao¡¯ are both our rewards and our chips for participating in the game. You plan to stay here and wait for death, so I¡¯m not giving you a single one.¡±


    ¡°What, no more tricks¡ªyou¡¯re just going to rob us instead?¡± Xiao Ran sneered.¡°There¡¯s no such thing as a lawless place. I suggest you think carefully¡ªis this really the right thing to do? We have a policeman here, you know!¡±


    At that moment, Officer Li also stepped outside, having heard the commotion.


    The two teams had no real conflict before, yet now, because of this woman named Xiao Ran, tensions had reached a breaking point.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Officer Li asked Dr. Zhao. ¡°I could hear the argument from inside.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing¡­ Xiao Ran just has something to say to Qi Xia.¡± Dr. Zhao forced a smile awkwardly.


    ¡°She has something to say to me?¡± Qi Xia¡¯s expression turned icy.¡°Dr. Zhao, you¡¯re quite something¡­ Are you sure it¡¯s Xiao Ran who wants to talk to me?¡±


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    Qi Xia knew that Xiao Ran was merely a gun¡ªthe real mastermind behind this was Dr. Zhao.After all, with Xiao Ran¡¯s level of intelligence and courage, there was no way she would confront him like this unless someone had pushed her into it.


    Disarming the gun might stop the immediate attack, but eliminating the shooter was the only way to end it for good.


    ¡°I¡­¡± Dr. Zhao hesitated for a moment, then awkwardly said to Qi Xia,¡°Qi Xia, you might not like it¡­ but those ¡®Dao¡¯ were won for all of us. We contributed too¡­ so it¡¯s only fair that you give us half.¡±


    ¡°Is that so?¡± Qi Xia nodded thoughtfully before replying,¡°But Dr. Zhao, last night, when you and I killed Han Yimo together, you weren¡¯t saying that, were you?¡±


    ¡°What?!¡± Dr. Zhao¡¯s eyes widened in shock.¡°You¡ªwhat the hell are you talking about?! When did I ever kill Han Yimo with you?!¡±


    Officer Li and Xiao Ran¡¯s faces instantly changed.


    ¡°Wasn¡¯t it you who said,¡± Qi Xia continued casually, rubbing his hands together,¡®That guy¡¯s wounds aren¡¯t even stitched up¡ªhe won¡¯t survive. Losing one person means one less burden, and the rest of us will have a better chance of getting out alive¡¯?¡±


    ¡°B*llsh*t!!¡± Dr. Zhao was completely enraged, veins bulging on his forehead.¡°You¡¯re trying to frame me?! Sure, Han Yimo¡¯s wounds were bad, but I stopped the bleeding¡­! You¡­ you¡­¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s got you so worked up?¡± Qi Xia took a step forward and patted Dr. Zhao¡¯s shoulder before turning to Xiao Ran and Officer Li.¡°Don¡¯t mind him¡ªI¡¯m a liar. I just made all of that up.¡±


    ¡°You¡­!¡± Dr. Zhao was so furious that his mouth twisted.


    ¡°You hate being falsely accused, don¡¯t you?¡± Qi Xia lowered his voice.¡°Well, I hate it too. If you and that woman keep bothering me for something that doesn¡¯t belong to you, I will teach you a lesson.¡±


    Dr. Zhao was terrified by this and finally realized that the man in front of him was no pushover.


    In past games, Qi Xia had helped others time and time again, but that didn¡¯t mean he could be taken advantage of.


    Xiao Ran also seemed to come to a realization, mumbling to herself,¡°So that¡¯s it¡­ Because you¡¯re a doctor¡­ if there¡¯s an injured person, you¡¯re forced to care for them¡­ so you killed him to get rid of the burden¡­¡±


    ¡°I¡ª¡±


    ¡°How could that be possible?¡± Qi Xia interrupted before Dr. Zhao could say anything.¡°Xiao Ran, I was just making things up¡ªyou really shouldn¡¯t believe me.¡±


    But once a seed of doubt was planted, it wouldn¡¯t be so easily removed.


    ¡°Qi Xia¡­ What kind of game are you playing? What really happened?¡± Officer Li frowned.


    Qi Xia looked at the strong-built officer. He had a decent impression of him and only hoped he wasn¡¯t siding with the others to take his ¡®Dao.¡¯


    ¡°Xiao Ran says I should hand over my ¡®Dao¡¯ to you two. What do you think?¡± Qi Xia asked.


    Officer Li was momentarily stunned before shaking his head.¡°We¡¯ve already tested it¡ª¡®Dao¡¯ can¡¯t be used as currency here, and keeping them is pointless. Besides, you won them yourself, so you should keep them.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s ridiculous!¡± Xiao Ran protested, her voice rising.¡°Those ¡®Dao¡¯ were bought with our lives!¡±


    Officer Li sighed bitterly.¡°If you know those ¡®Dao¡¯ were won with your lives, then you should be even more grateful that Qi Xia once saved yours.¡±


    ¡°I¡­¡±


    Xiao Ran was speechless.


    After all, what Officer Li said wasn¡¯t wrong¡ªif not for Qi Xia, she would have died in that terrifying room long ago.


    Qi Xia silently nodded, then took a small sphere from his pocket and tossed it to Officer Li.


    Officer Li caught it and flipped it over in his hand, realizing it was a ¡®Dao.¡¯


    ¡°Huh?¡± He looked at Qi Xia in confusion.¡°What¡¯s this for? I¡¯m not going to participate in the game¡ªthis is useless to me.¡±


    ¡°Just think of it as a deposit with you.¡± Qi Xia waved dismissively.¡°Consider it money laundering. With that one in your hands, the two I¡¯m holding are ¡®clean,¡¯ and the rest of you can stop bothering me.¡±


    ¡°This¡­¡± Officer Li still seemed unsure, but he didn¡¯t know what else to say.


    Dr. Zhao and Xiao Ran¡¯s expressions grew even more complicated, their emotions a tangled mess.


    The group waited for a moment, noticing that Officer Li was still standing there, unmoving.


    ¡°Hey, cop¡ªgot something else to say?¡± Qiao Jiajin asked.

 Chapter 29: Mystery

    Officer Li ignored Qiao Jiajin and instead turned to Qi Xia, asking, "I do have something to ask. About Han Yimo¡­ you didn¡¯t finish your sentence earlier, did you? What does Han Yimo¡¯s death signify? And what¡¯s the meaning of that sword?"


    Qi Xia narrowed his eyes and studied Officer Li carefully. "Officer, your expertise is criminal investigation, while mine is fraud. Isn¡¯t it strange that you¡¯re asking me about a case?"


    Officer Li sighed helplessly and said, "Now that we¡¯ve ended up in this godforsaken place, how could ''criminal investigation'' still be of any use?"


    Qi Xia remained silent for a moment before finally revealing the clue he had pieced together. "Officer, all I can say is¡­ Han Yimo might have recognized that sword."


    "Recognized it?" Officer Li frowned, then nodded slightly in thought. "You mean he had seen that sword before?"


    "That¡¯s not something you need to worry about right now," Qi Xia replied. "You should be more concerned about your own situation."


    "What do you mean?"


    Qi Xia sighed and turned to leave, but Officer Li quickly grabbed his arm.


    "Don¡¯t walk away! What exactly is my ''situation''?"


    Lin Qin covered her mouth and nose, leaned close to Officer Li¡¯s ear, and whispered, "Officer, since Qi Xia doesn¡¯t want to say it, I¡¯ll say it for him. There are two things you need to be careful about."


    "Two things?"


    "Yes. First, the only person we¡¯ve seen so far who could easily lift that massive sword is that crazy female shop assistant. She has incredible strength. In other words, if Han Yimo was really murdered, then she is the prime suspect. You need to get out of here as soon as possible."


    Officer Li¡¯s expression darkened as he nodded solemnly. "And the second thing?"


    "The second is your so-called ''teammates.'' They don¡¯t seem very trustworthy."


    Officer Li¡¯s lips twitched slightly as if something had just dawned on him.


    Looking at his current team¡ªa highly emotional and not particularly bright kindergarten teacher, Xiao Ran; a lawyer, Zhang Chenze, who seemed indifferent to everything and only weighed the pros and cons; and a self-centered doctor, Zhao¡ªhe couldn¡¯t help but wonder: If they faced a life-threatening situation, could they really trust each other?


    After much internal struggle, Officer Li finally spoke, "Qi Xia, regardless of everything else, I will use the convenience store as a base and explore the nearby areas. If you have any useful intel¡­ we can trade."


    Qi Xia neither agreed nor refused, merely casting him a fleeting glance before turning to leave.


    The others, unsure of what to say, simply followed.


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    Officer Li watched their retreating figures for a while before returning to the convenience store with Zhao and Xiao Ran.


    He knew all too well that, when it truly mattered, those people outside were more reliable. But they were out there gathering ''Dao,'' which meant they were practically seeking death.


    Following them wasn¡¯t safe either.


    If he wanted to survive, the best strategy was to find a secure base and plan carefully.


    Qi Xia led the group forward until they arrived at the plaza where they had first woken up the previous day.


    He was here to confirm something¡ªthe loud chime they had heard that morning.


    The plaza looked exactly the same as before, with a giant electronic screen at its center and a massive bronze bell hanging above it.


    Han Yimo had been murdered when the bell tolled.


    Lin Qin blinked and said, "I think I¡¯ve heard that bell multiple times¡­"


    "Multiple times?" Qiao Jiajin paused and asked, "When?"


    Lin Qin¡¯s pupils shifted slightly as she recalled, "Do you remember¡­ when we first woke up in those rooms? That man whose head was smashed in by the ''Sheep Man''¡ªI think the bell rang when he died too."


    Tian Tian suddenly understood. "Could it be¡­ that the bell rings every time someone dies?"


    Everyone nodded in agreement. This theory made sense¡ªthe bell seemed to function as a death knell, announcing the number of people who had perished.


    "No, that¡¯s not right." Qi Xia shook his head. "The hallway we went through had at least a thousand rooms. While we were struggling through our ''game,'' people were dying in other rooms as well. If this bell rings every time someone dies, we wouldn¡¯t have heard it only twice."


    "Then¡­" Tian Tian hesitated, realizing that Qi Xia had a point. If not for deaths, then what was the bell signaling?


    "Wait a second," Lin Qin looked up at the screen and noticed it was blank. "I remember there were words on it yesterday."


    Everyone looked up. Indeed, the text from before was gone.


    "It was something about an ''echo''¡­" Qiao Jiajin rubbed his chin. "I remember something about summoning disaster?"


    "I heard: ''I heard the echo of disaster,''" Qi Xia said.


    "Right! That¡¯s what it was," Qiao Jiajin nodded. "What does it mean?"


    Qi Xia shook his head.


    This wasn¡¯t something they could figure out just by guessing. They knew too little about this city.


    What was ''disaster''? What was ''echo''? And who was the ''I'' in the message?


    "Forget it, let¡¯s go check out other places."


    Qi Xia turned to leave¡ªbut then he suddenly froze.


    Right in front of him was a withered, smiling face.


    That face had appeared behind him without a sound, and now it was staring at him with an eerie grin.


    Qi Xia¡¯s pupils shrank, and he quickly stepped back.


    The rest of the group was startled as well.


    In front of them stood a frail old man, his body hunched like a dead tree, tiptoeing as he gazed at them with a disturbingly wide smile.


    "I remembered¡­!" The old man grinned, revealing his lone remaining tooth. "You asked me a question, and I finally remembered the answer!"


    Qi Xia felt a chill run down his spine as the old man locked eyes with him. "Are you talking to me?"


    The old man licked his cracked lips. "Young man, I know the answer! It¡¯s ''betting your life''! Just bet your life, and everything will be fine!"


    He stretched out his dirty, claw-like hand as if to grab Qi Xia.


    "We are so close to escaping! All you have to do is bet your life¡ª"


    Qi Xia frowned and took several steps back. He had no idea what the old man was rambling about, but the way he kept insisting on taking his life was deeply unsettling.


    "Hey! Old man, who are you?" Qiao Jiajin asked warily. "Do you know Qi Xia?"


    The old man¡¯s expression changed slightly as he turned to look at Qiao Jiajin.


    His cloudy eyes flickered as he muttered, "You don¡¯t recognize me?"


    "Why should I?"


    Silence fell over the group.


    The old man¡¯s murky eyes darted around as if trying to piece something together. After a long pause, he finally mumbled, "I see¡­ So you¡¯ve¡­ already met the ''Heavenly Dragon''¡­"


    "''Heavenly Dragon''?" The group exchanged bewildered glances.


    "There¡¯s no hope¡­" The old man shook his head and turned away. "We can¡¯t defeat him¡­ We¡¯ll be lost here forever¡­ No wonder the ''Zodiac'' has returned¡­"


    Muttering to himself, he slowly walked away, his figure looking incredibly desolate.

 Chapter 30: The Human Rat

    ¡°D*mn it, another lunatic.¡± Qiao Jiajin spat on the ground. ¡°I feel like if we stay here too long, we¡¯ll go crazy too.¡±


    Qi Xia was unsettled by the old man¡¯s words.


    ¡°Qi Xia, are you okay?¡± Lin Qin asked.


    ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± Qi Xia steadied himself. ¡°These people won¡¯t stop me. I¡¯m going to participate in the ¡®game.¡¯ You don¡¯t have to follow me.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll go with you,¡± Lin Qin said. ¡°No matter what kind of ¡®game¡¯ you enter, I¡¯ll go with you.¡±


    Qi Xia stopped in his tracks and turned back to Lin Qin, his gaze cold and piercing.


    This look sent a chill down Lin Qin¡¯s spine.


    ¡°W-What¡¯s wrong?¡±


    ¡°Lin Qin, what¡¯s your motive?¡±


    ¡°Motive?¡± Lin Qin repeated, puzzled. ¡°Do I need a motive?¡±


    Qi Xia stared into Lin Qin¡¯s eyes again and said, ¡°Why are you sticking with me? Logically, you should be with the other group. The three of us have nothing in common with you. We shouldn¡¯t even be teammates.¡±


    Lin Qin simply smiled and said, ¡°I told you, I¡¯m very interested in you. I want to know what¡¯s on your mind.¡±


    ¡°I want to get out,¡± Qi Xia replied without hesitation. ¡°I¡¯ve said it many times¡ªI need to get out, to see my wife. She can¡¯t be without me. Do you understand?¡±


    Lin Qin blinked and answered, ¡°I understand.¡±


    ¡°My wife¡¯s name is Yu Nian¡¯an. She¡¯s suffered for me, endured hardship for me. She is my entire reason for living. That¡¯s why I must go back to her. Is that clear enough?¡±


    ¡°Crystal clear.¡±


    ¡°Now that you know what I¡¯m thinking, are you still not leaving?¡± Qi Xia said coldly.


    Lin Qin lowered her head slightly and, after a long moment of thought, replied, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but for certain reasons, I still can¡¯t leave.¡±


    Qi Xia frowned as he studied Lin Qin. He didn¡¯t sense danger or deceit from her, but he still couldn¡¯t figure out her purpose.


    ¡°Do what you want¡­¡± Seeing that reasoning wouldn¡¯t work, Qi Xia turned and continued walking.


    Qiao Jiajin followed and said, ¡°Liar, we had a deal¡ªyou¡¯ve got the brains, I¡¯ve got the strength. We work together.¡±


    ¡°You have a reason you must get out too?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡± Qiao Jiajin nodded. ¡°I don¡¯t want to die, but I also don¡¯t want to sit here and wait for death.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t mind working together, but let me be clear.¡± Qi Xia glanced at Qiao Jiajin. ¡°We have no personal ties. If only one person can make it out in the end, I won¡¯t hesitate to abandon you.¡±


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    ¡°D*mn¡­ Do you have no loyalty at all?¡± Qiao Jiajin sighed. ¡°You¡¯re really not a likable guy.¡±


    Listening to the conversation, Tian Tian quietly lowered her head.


    Everyone seemed to have a clear goal.


    But compared to them, what was she doing?


    Even if she somehow managed to escape this nightmare¡­


    Even if she returned to the real world and her old life¡­ She¡¯d still be stuck in the same miserable routine, embracing those disgusting old men for money.


    Thinking about it this way¡­ Maybe dying here wasn¡¯t such a bad ending.


    ¡°Tian Tian, what¡¯s wrong?¡± Lin Qin asked.


    ¡°Nothing.¡±


    Leaving the square, they arrived at another street.


    Unlike the one with the convenience store, this area was lined with small residential buildings, tightly packed and low-rise. It was unclear whether anyone lived here.


    After walking a bit further, the group spotted another animal mask.


    This figure stood at the entrance of an old house, hands behind their back.


    Qi Xia walked straight toward them.


    As they got closer, they realized the person was wearing a massive rat mask and gave off a foul odor. Unlike the previous masked figures they had encountered, this one was frail and thin.


    Qiao Jiajin asked, ¡°You¡¯re the ¡®Rat Man,¡¯ huh?¡±


    The rat-headed figure finally took notice of them and chuckled. ¡°I¡¯m not a ¡®Rat Man.¡¯ I¡¯m a ¡®Human Rat.¡¯¡±


    The voice was soft and pleasant¡ªit was a woman.


    This was the first time they¡¯d encountered a female wearing an animal mask.


    ¡°D*mn, do you really care that much about the name?¡± Qiao Jiajin scoffed. ¡°Like it makes a difference?¡±


    ¡°Human Rat is Human Rat¡ªget it wrong, and that¡¯ll be a problem.¡± The girl giggled. ¡°You¡¯re lucky to have come here. Do you want to take on a trial?¡±


    Qi Xia looked at the house behind her and asked, ¡°What are the rules?¡±


    ¡°The ¡®Rat Trial¡¯ requires a ticket¡ªone ¡®Dao¡¯ per entry.¡± Human Rat¡¯s tone was warm, like a patient shop assistant. ¡°You won¡¯t find a trial this easy anywhere else in the city.¡±


    ¡°So what¡¯s the game?¡± Qi Xia asked again.


    The Human Rat turned, pushed open the door, and stepped inside. It was a small warehouse.


    ¡°My game is called ¡®Warehouse Dao Hunt.¡¯ Inside this room, there is one ¡®Dao.¡¯ Only one person can enter. Find the ¡®Dao¡¯ within five minutes, and you win. The ¡®Dao¡¯ is yours.¡±


    Qi Xia felt something was off. ¡°And if we don¡¯t find it?¡±


    ¡°If you don¡¯t?¡± The Human Rat let out a giggle. ¡°Then you lose your entry fee¡ªone ¡®Dao¡¯¡ªjust a small loss.¡±


    ¡°A lost ¡®Dao¡¯?¡± Qi Xia frowned. ¡°That¡¯s all?¡±


    ¡°What else would happen?¡± The Human Rat tilted her head.


    Something felt wrong.


    Qi Xia thought carefully. One ¡®Dao¡¯ to enter, one ¡®Dao¡¯ if you win. Lose, and you only forfeit the fee.


    This setup was odd¡ªthere was no chance to gain extra ¡®Dao¡¯ or risk their lives.


    Then why participate?


    ¡°Isn¡¯t this a good chance?¡± Tian Tian spoke up. ¡°We can join and learn more about our situation.¡±


    ¡°But¡­¡± Qi Xia still felt uneasy. Even if they won, what would it mean?


    ¡°I¡¯ll try first.¡± Tian Tian turned to Qi Xia. ¡°Even if I die, it doesn¡¯t matter.¡±


    ¡°What the hell kind of talk is that?¡± Lin Qin frowned.


    ¡°It¡¯s the truth,¡± Tian Tian said calmly. ¡°I just realized¡ªwhether I escape or not, it makes no difference.¡±


    With that, she took a ¡®Dao¡¯ from Qi Xia and handed it to the Human Rat.


    ¡°Is that all?¡± Tian Tian asked.


    ¡°Yes, I¡¯ve received the ticket. The moment you enter, the game begins.¡± The Human Rat nodded. ¡°Let me repeat the rules. There¡¯s one ¡®Dao¡¯ hidden in the room. Find it within five minutes, and it¡¯s yours.¡±


    ¡°Got it.¡±


    ¡°Are you ready?¡± the Human Rat asked.


    ¡°I¡¯m ready.¡± Tian Tian nodded.


    ¡°Good.¡± The Human Rat smiled. ¡°The game begins. Good luck.¡±


    With that, she shut the door.

 Chapter 31: The Game of Rats

    The group outside the room tensed nervously¡ªthis was their first time voluntarily participating in the game.


    "Qi Xia," Lin Qin called out.


    "What is it?"


    "You once said different animals represent different types of games, right?"


    "Likely."


    Lin Qin glanced at the Rat-Human in front of them and whispered, "What do you think a ''Rat Game'' entails?"


    Qi Xia had been pondering the same question. Without knowing the game type in advance, Tian Tian would be at a severe disadvantage. But what did "Rat" symbolize?


    "Judging by the current setup, it fits a rat''s nature¡ªsearching for a target amidst clutter," Qi Xia muttered. "Could ''Rat'' mean a scavenger hunt?"


    <hr>


    Inside the room, Tian Tian scanned the space. Rows of shelves stacked with hundreds of cardboard boxes filled the cramped warehouse. She opened one at random¡ªjunk spilled out. Even if she tore through every box in five minutes, finding the elusive Dao seemed impossible.


    Her eyes drifted to the lone fluorescent light overhead. Its switch sat on the wall beside her.


    An idea struck her.


    With a grunt, she shoved a shelf over. It crashed to the floor with a thunderous boom.


    "Hey! You alright in there, lass?" Qiao Jiajin shouted from outside.


    "I¡¯m fine!" Tian Tian yelled back. "Just testing a theory!"


    Qi Xia nodded. "Smart move."


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    "Eh?" Qiao Jiajin blinked. "You two sharing telepathic martial arts secrets or what?"


    Inside, Tian Tian toppled every shelf. Boxes burst open, spewing plastic dishes, old clothes, and crumpled paper across the floor. She stomped remaining containers flat until the room resembled a typhoon¡¯s aftermath. Panting, she flicked off the light.


    Darkness swallowed the room. Tian Tian frowned¡ªthe Dao supposedly glowed faintly. Why couldn¡¯t she see even a flicker? She kicked through debris, widening her search. Nothing.


    Thump-thump-thump.


    The Rat-Human rapped on the door. "Ten seconds left."


    Defeated, Tian Tian turned the light back on. Canned goods¡ªpreviously hidden in boxes¡ªnow littered the floor. She picked one up: Beans glared from the label. A shake produced sandy rattles.


    "Damn it!" She hurled the can. "It¡¯s in these tins?!"


    The door creaked open. "Time¡¯s up. Challenge failed."


    The Rat-Human¡¯s grotesque face loomed as the trio rushed forward.


    "Any luck?" Qiao Jiajin asked.


    Tian Tian shook her head. "The Dao must be sealed inside a can. No way to open dozens barehanded in five minutes..."


    Qi Xia studied the bean tins. Plausible¡ªyet something felt off.


    As Tian Tian retreated, the Rat-Human simply closed the door and resumed guard.


    "She really just takes a Dao?" Tian Tian whispered. "No life-or-death stakes?"


    The Rat-Human smirked. "When did I mention lives?"


    Qiao Jiajin brightened. "Oi, Scammer! Let¡¯s try again! Now that we know the trick¡ª"


    "Wait." Qi Xia blocked him, eyeing their lone remaining Dao. These glowing orbs were both rewards and bargaining chips. Squandering them here might doom future games.


    "Confirming rules," Qi Xia said coldly to the Rat-Human.


    "Of course!" She reopened the door.


    The room had reset¡ªshelves pristine, boxes stacked neatly.


    "Bloody hell!" Qiao Jiajin gaped.


    "My game¡¯s called Dao Hunt," the Rat-Human crooned. "Pay one Dao to enter. Find the hidden Dao in five minutes, and it¡¯s yours. Play as often as you like."


    Qi Xia stepped forward.


    "I¡¯ll play again." His voice hardened. "This time¡ªI bet my life."

 Chapter 32: Betting with Life

    The moment these words were spoken, everyone was stunned.


    Even Human Rat froze momentarily.


    "You want to... bet your life?" Human Rat confirmed again.


    "Correct." Qi Xia nodded. "I''m betting my life."


    Human Rat swallowed hard, her throat bobbing visibly beneath the mask. "Th-there''s no need for that..."


    Her reaction surprised Qi Xia. Weren''t these animal-masked game masters supposed to welcome life-or-death wagers? Why was she panicking?


    "This... this is just a simple ''searching'' game. Betting your life is too extreme... The entry fee is only one ''Dao''. You really don''t need to gamble with your life..."


    Lin Qin and Qiao Jiajin exchanged confused glances nearby.


    "Can we really bet lives in these games?" Qiao Jiajin frowned. "But why would you do that, trickster? Are we short on ''Dao''?"


    "I remembered what that withered old man said. I want to test it here." Qi Xia whispered. "Look at her reaction - she''s terrified of me ''betting my life''."


    Lin Qin interjected, "I know you''re determined to win, but if you risk your life opening those cans and there''s no ''Dao'' inside..."


    "I will win." Qi Xia cut her off and looked up at Human Rat. "I''ve placed my bet. Shall we begin?"


    Human Rat trembled visibly before finally stammering, "If you insist on this... don''t regret it... The game begins now."


    As Qi Xia entered the room, Human Rat moved to close the door behind him. Suddenly, Qi Xia grabbed her arm.


    The contact made Human Rat flinch violently.


    With deliberate slowness, Qi Xia reached into Human Rat''s breast pocket and retrieved a glowing ''Dao'' token.


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    "I found it."


    The three observers at the door gaped in disbelief.


    Was this allowed? Finding the ''Dao'' on the game master''s person the instant the game started? Did this violate the rules?


    Human Rat''s entire body began shaking uncontrollably.


    "If I''m not mistaken," Qi Xia pressed, "the moment you close this door, there will be no ''Dao'' left in this room. Correct?"


    "How did you...?"


    "Simple." Qi Xia''s voice turned icy. "Every time you explain the rules, you specifically emphasize there''s ''currently'' a ''Dao'' in the room. That statement is technically true, but a massive deception."


    When Human Rat remained silent, he continued, "There is indeed a ''Dao'' here ''now'', but it would disappear immediately after the door closes."


    The eyes behind the rat mask darted frantically. "You risked your life... based on this assumption?"


    "Assumption? Hardly." Qi Xia stepped closer. "What confirmed it was how you declared Tian Tian''s failure."


    "What?!"


    "She was behind closed doors. None of us could know her situation. Yet the instant you opened the door, you declared her failure." Qi Xia tilted his head. "How could you know she hadn''t found it?"


    "I..."


    "The answer''s obvious - you knew there was no ''Dao'' inside."


    Human Rat shuddered violently.


    "Then there''s the ''rodent'' aspect of the game. We assumed it referenced nocturnal behavior in darkness - that''s why Tian Tian failed. But certain rodents store valuables in their cheek pouches. Isn''t that right?"


    Human Rat stared at Qi Xia for a long moment before conceding defeat. Suddenly, she shoved Qi Xia with surprising strength and bolted.


    "Bloody hell!" Qiao Jiajin lunged to grab her, but she twisted away like a real rodent, sprinting down the street.


    None had anticipated an animal-masked game master fleeing.


    "What''s happening, trickster?" Qiao Jiajin helped Qi Xia up. "Why''d she run?"


    Before Qi Xia could answer, his gaze froze on the distant street. The others followed his stare and gasped.


    A levitating figure blocked Human Rat''s escape.


    "Holy... Terminator?!" Qiao Jiajin breathed as reality warped before them.


    The floating man gestured casually. Human Rat collapsed, paralyzed. Then both figures blinked out of existence, reappearing instantly before the group.


    The newcomer floated mid-air - an unnaturally tall man wearing only a blood-red feathered cape. Wild hair adorned with feathers framed his face as he undulated like a bird in flight.


    Human Rat whimpered piteously beneath his touch. "Human Rat," the being crooned, stroking her mask, "were you trying to abandon your debt?"


    "L-Lord Zhuque..." she sobbed. "Mercy...!"


    "Now, now." The being called Zhuque''s fingers trailed down to her throat. "A wager is a wager. When mortals bet lives, even I must honor it."


    Qi Xia found his voice. "I don''t want her life! The bet was just to win more ''Dao''!"


    Zhuque paused, taloned hand lingering on Human Rat''s neck. Her entire body went rigid.


    "Is that so?" Crimson eyes locked on Qi Xia. "The challenger shows mercy... How curious." He released his grip and patted Human Rat''s back. "Rise, little mouse. Your debt is paid."

 Chapter 33: The Dance of Vermilion

    The human rat was still trembling in fear, glancing nervously at Zhuque as if seeking his approval.


    ¡°What''s the matter? Do you need me to help you up?¡± Zhuque asked with a smile.


    ¡°N-No, it¡¯s fine¡­¡± The human rat shakily stood up.


    After a long pause, she finally turned to Qi Xia and said, ¡°Thank you! Thank you!¡±


    Qi Xia shook his head. ¡°You don¡¯t need to thank me, I was just¡­¡±


    ¡°Pfft.¡±


    Before he could finish, Qi Xia saw a hand emerge from the human rat''s abdomen.


    Her body froze, and her words came to an abrupt halt.


    Warm, sticky blood splattered all over Qi Xia.


    Zhuque slowly wrapped his arms around the human rat from behind, as if embracing a lover.


    ¡°This child is very polite,¡± Zhuque said, eyes closed, his face pressed against the human rat¡¯s, as if sniffing her scent. ¡°Saying ¡®thank you¡¯ is a good habit, but you broke the rules. You tried to escape. He might have let you go, but I won¡¯t.¡±


    With that, Zhuque reached out with his other hand and tore off the human rat¡¯s mask, tossing it to the ground.


    Qi Xia faced the human rat directly, seeing her clearly for the first time.


    This ¡°human rat¡± was clearly just a girl in her teens.


    Her face still bore traces of youth, and her tear-filled eyes were filled with fear and despair. Blood also spilled from her mouth.


    ¡°It hurts¡­ it hurts so much¡­¡± The human rat spat out a mouthful of blood.


    ¡°Shh¡­ it¡¯ll stop hurting soon¡­¡± Zhuque whispered softly, his nose nuzzling her hair. ¡°You¡¯ll be dead soon, don¡¯t worry¡­ don¡¯t worry¡­ it¡¯ll all be over.¡±


    ¡°What kind of freak are you?!¡± Jia Jin, unable to watch any longer, shouted, ¡°She¡¯s just a child! Damn your mother¡­ let her go!¡±


    Zhuque sneered, pulling his bloody hand from the human rat¡¯s body and pushing her forward.


    Qi Xia instinctively caught the girl, his expression full of disbelief.


    That was ¡°gambling with life.¡±


    If he won, the other would die.


    Even if he didn¡¯t want her life, she would still die.


    This girl, called ¡°human rat,¡± was driven to her death by Qi Xia.


    He thought he was gambling only with his own life, but he hadn¡¯t realized the other side would demand the same price.


    But weren¡¯t they supposed to be the organizers of the game?


    Could these animal masks also be ¡°participants¡±?


    ¡°Qi Xia, what are you doing here?¡± Zhuque asked coldly, flicking the blood from his hand.


    ¡°What¡­¡± Qi Xia blinked in surprise and looked up at him. ¡°You know my name?¡±


    Zhuque smirked slightly and pointed at the others one by one, saying, ¡°Qi Xia, Jia Jin, Lin Qin, Zhang Lijuan. Why are you here?¡±


    Tian Tian froze as well. ¡°Zhang Lijuan¡± was her real name, but she hadn¡¯t used it since she was ten.


    ¡°What do you mean ¡®why are we here¡¯?¡± Lin Qin asked. ¡°Where else should we be?¡±


    Zhuque¡¯s face twisted into an enigmatic smile, and he slowly shook his head. ¡°Looks like you really don¡¯t know why you¡¯re here. How truly tragic.¡±


    ¡°If you¡¯ve got something to say, then just say it. What¡¯s with all this mystery?¡± Qi Xia said coldly, holding the nearly lifeless human rat in his arms, his gaze icy.


    At these words, Zhuque¡¯s eyes slowly grew colder, and the smile on his face disappeared.


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    ¡°Qi Xia, I just don¡¯t get along with you,¡± Zhuque sneered. ¡°You¡¯ll never escape. You¡¯ll rot here.¡±


    ¡°Oh?¡± At this point, Qi Xia wasn¡¯t afraid anymore. He pressed on, ¡°You¡¯re going to kill me here?¡±


    With a flash, Zhuque appeared beside Qi Xia, his feathered cloak billowing behind him.


    He grabbed Qi Xia¡¯s collar and hissed, ¡°If it weren¡¯t for the rules, I¡¯d tear you apart right here!¡±


    ¡°So, according to the ¡®rules,¡¯ you can¡¯t kill me?¡± Qi Xia replied.


    ¡°Heh¡­¡± Zhuque¡¯s smile returned. ¡°I won¡¯t kill you. You¡¯ll die here anyway.¡±


    In the tense silence, Zhuque slowly floated into the air like a deity.


    ¡°Why do you think I¡¯ll die here?¡± Qi Xia looked up and asked.


    ¡°Because you are Qi Xia. And that means you¡¯re destined to die here,¡± Zhuque sneered, then vanished into thin air.


    He didn¡¯t fly away like a character in a TV show, nor did he glow with magic; he simply disappeared in an instant.


    This sudden change left everyone confused.


    ¡°Because I¡¯m Qi Xia¡­ I¡¯m destined to die here?¡±


    ¡°Cough¡­¡± The human rat coughed weakly in Qi Xia¡¯s arms.


    Qi Xia lowered his head to look at her. Her face was clean, unlike anyone from this world.


    His emotions were complex. If he hadn¡¯t chosen to gamble with life, this girl likely wouldn¡¯t have met such an end.


    Looking back, she hadn¡¯t posed any threat to him from the start.


    One ¡°path¡± for another ¡°path.¡±


    Perhaps, just as she said, Qi Xia would never find such a simple, safe game again.


    The human rat reached into her pocket with difficulty and took out three ¡°paths.¡± She weakly said, ¡°Such a pity¡­ I¡¯ve been waiting here for so long. You¡¯re the first batch of participants. I thought I could earn some ¡®paths¡¯¡­¡±


    She handed the ¡°paths¡± to Qi Xia and continued in a halting voice, ¡°One of these is your ticket out of here. The other three are mine¡­ now they belong to you¡­¡±


    The others looked at the girl before them, unsure of what to say.


    By all rights, they should have been enemies. Yet, the helplessness and despair on her face resonated deeply with everyone, sparking a complex, unexplainable feeling.


    ¡°You¡¯re also some kind of participant, aren¡¯t you?¡± Qi Xia asked, his tone cold.


    The human rat actually smiled at this question. More blood trickled from her mouth. ¡°Who here isn¡¯t a ¡®participant¡¯¡­ honestly¡­ I¡¯d rather be like you, never having worn the ¡®rat¡¯ mask¡­ though none of us can get out¡­¡±


    Her head slowly fell to one side, and her arm dangled lifelessly.


    The two girls sighed in unison, and even Jia Jin wore a look of sorrow.


    But Qi Xia¡¯s expression remained unchanged, as cold as ever.


    He gently laid the girl down and slowly stood up. No one knew what he was thinking.


    ¡°Qi Xia¡­ are you alright?¡± Lin Qin asked.


    ¡°Me?¡± Qi Xia blinked in surprise. ¡°Do I look like something¡¯s wrong?¡±


    ¡°Because your face shows no expression¡­ it¡¯s not normal.¡±


    ¡°I¡­¡±


    Before he could finish, a sudden sharp pain tore through his head. He screamed in agony and crouched down, clutching his head.


    ¡°Hey! Liar!¡± Jia Jin noticed something was wrong with Qi Xia¡¯s condition. The last time, when Han Yimo died, Qi Xia had also experienced a headache.


    Qi Xia felt like his head was splitting apart, something was moving deep in his brain.

 Chapter 34: My Tactics

    Qi Xia gripped his hair tightly, patiently waiting for the headache to subside.


    After about half a minute, he steadied his breathing, slowly let go of his hair, and stood up.


    His expression was as if nothing had happened.


    The pain had come like a fierce wind, intense at first but eventually fading away.


    Lin Qin glanced at Qi Xia and asked, ¡°Are you alright? Do you often get headaches?¡±


    ¡°No, this is only the second time since I¡¯ve remembered anything,¡± Qi Xia sighed, saying, ¡°It¡¯s probably related to this damn place.¡±


    Lin Qin wanted to ask more, but it seemed Qi Xia wasn¡¯t willing to linger on the topic.


    ¡°We¡¯re running out of time. Even if there¡¯s something crawling around in my head, I¡¯m not planning to diagnose myself here,¡± Qi Xia said, looking up at the dark red sky. He continued, ¡°Thanks to this little girl, we¡¯ve learned a lot of useful information.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± Tian Tian glanced at the dead human rat¡¯s body, her face still sad. ¡°I feel like the only useful information is about the ¡®gambling with life¡¯ rule. And this child lost her life because of it.¡±


    ¡°Not just that,¡± Qi Xia replied. ¡°I originally thought this place was filled with chaos and madness, but now it seems like it has its own ¡®rules.¡¯¡±


    ¡°¡®Rules¡¯¡­?¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Qi Xia nodded. ¡°That guy, Zhuque, was probably one of the administrators of this place.¡±


    ¡°Administrator? You mean that ¡®birdman¡¯?¡± Jia Jin asked.


    ¡°Yeah, he showed up to ensure the ¡®rules¡¯ aren¡¯t broken.¡±


    ¡°But why is the administrator not wearing any clothes?¡± Tian Tian was a bit confused. ¡°He¡¯s naked with just a cloak. Looks strange.¡±


    ¡°Compared to his other bizarre actions, ¡®not wearing clothes¡¯ is actually the most normal part,¡± Qi Xia paused and then continued, ¡°These are just the clues we can see; maybe there are others above the ¡®administrator.¡¯¡±


    Lin Qin seemed to have thought of something. ¡°Right¡­ that guy, Zhuque, said something like ¡®If it weren¡¯t for the rules, I¡¯d have killed you.¡¯¡±


    Jia Jin nodded. ¡°Anyone who can restrain that kind of superpowered lunatic, the people above him must be even scarier.¡±


    ¡°¡®Superpowers¡¯?¡± Qi Xia frowned. ¡°I haven¡¯t heard that term in a long time.¡±


    ¡°Isn¡¯t it a superpower? Like a Terminator,¡± Jia Jin gestured, ¡°That guy was flying in the sky!¡±


    The three of them paused.


    ¡°What¡¯s a ¡®Terminator¡¯?¡± Lin Qin asked, looking curiously at Jia Jin.


    ¡°You look pretty fashionable, but you¡¯re still such a country bumpkin?¡± Jia Jin chuckled, ¡°You¡¯ve never seen The Terminator?¡±


    ¡°F-Fashionable?¡± Lin Qin awkwardly opened her mouth. Those words were something only older generations would use. Just saying them already felt outdated. And now this guy was calling her uncool.


    Jia Jin nudged Qi Xia with his elbow and asked, ¡°Liar, you¡¯ve definitely seen it, right? Arnold Schwarzenegger, you know, don¡¯t act like you don¡¯t know how cool he is!¡±


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    ¡°Arnold Schwarzenegger¡­?¡± Lin Qin seemed to have heard that name, but wasn¡¯t sure.


    ¡°I don¡¯t care about the ¡®Terminator¡¯ or Schwarzenegger, and I don¡¯t care about how amazing that birdman is,¡± Qi Xia relaxed a little and said, ¡°What I want to know now is the extent of these ¡®rules¡¯ and how much they can actually regulate.¡±


    The three of them didn¡¯t quite understand what Qi Xia was getting at and exchanged puzzled looks.


    ¡°Liar, what are you planning to do?¡±


    Qi Xia slowly raised his hand, touching his neck, and made a motion. He said to them, ¡°I want to know, is ¡®killing and taking someone¡¯s path¡¯ a feasible option?¡±


    As soon as he said this, Lin Qin and Tian Tian took a step back.


    Only Jia Jin stayed where he was.


    ¡°¡®Killing and taking a path¡¯?¡± Jia Jin frowned, his expression deadly serious. ¡°You mean¡­ if you don¡¯t collect 3,600 ¡®paths¡¯ within ten days, you¡¯re going to kill someone for theirs?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s the most effective method I can think of,¡± Qi Xia replied. ¡°Now that we¡¯re a team, if we¡¯re going to pull this off, I need your help. So, I¡¯m telling you the plan now to hear your thoughts.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not helping you,¡± Jia Jin shook his head firmly. ¡°Even if the sky falls, I won¡¯t do anything immoral. Those who have ¡®paths¡¯ probably went through just as much hardship to survive as we did. Why would we kill them?¡±


    ¡°Is that so¡­¡± Qi Xia nodded, his expression complex. ¡°But if we¡¯re going to escape this cursed place, this is the only way. 3,600 ¡®paths¡¯... Do you really not want to try?¡±


    ¡°I refuse as well,¡± Lin Qin spoke up. ¡°I don¡¯t think this plan is good. Even if we do manage to escape, if we kill someone, we¡¯ll never be able to live the same way again.¡±


    Tian Tian thought for a long while and then said, ¡°Yeah, if it comes to killing others, I¡¯d rather die first.¡±


    Qi Xia looked at the three of them, contemplating for a long while, before his lips slightly curved up:


    ¡°Good. Now I can safely tell you my real plan.¡±


    ¡°What¡­¡± Jia Jin was stunned. ¡°Wait, you were testing us?¡±


    Qi Xia nodded and said, ¡°If you three were willing to accept the ¡®killing and taking a path¡¯ plan, it would prove we¡¯re not the same kind of people, and I would have abandoned you at any time.¡±


    ¡°You¡­¡± Jia Jin nearly exploded with rage. ¡°I thought you really wanted to kill people!¡±


    ¡°Logically, the ¡®rules¡¯ wouldn¡¯t allow something like ¡®killing and taking a path,¡¯¡± Qi Xia explained. ¡°Although I don¡¯t understand what the rules are here, it seems like they¡¯re maintaining a kind of ¡®strange fairness.¡¯ The administrators are more like ¡®judges,¡¯ and if they are really ¡®judges,¡¯ they would ensure the safety of the participants.¡±


    He paused for a moment and then added, ¡°In other words¡­ they want us to die in the game, not to kill each other.¡±


    The others fell silent after hearing this.


    After a while, Lin Qin came to her senses and asked, ¡°So, what is your real plan?¡±


    ¡°My plan isn¡¯t complicated,¡± Qi Xia replied. ¡°Since these games don¡¯t involve death, we¡¯ll test them one by one. You all go figure out the rules of the game, gather clues along the way, and when we¡¯re sure of something¡­ I¡¯ll gamble my life. In the end, we¡¯ll split all the ¡®paths¡¯ we get, and before we gather 3,600, we can all use this tactic together.¡±

 Chapter 35: What is a Flyer?

    "Eh?" The three of them stared at Qi Xia in shock. While his plan wasn¡¯t complex, it seemed full of dangers at every turn.


    "You want to gamble your life against someone else¡¯s?!" Lin Qin asked. "That sounds too..."


    "This is the only way to break through the situation right now," Qi Xia said. "If you agree, we can start right away."


    Jia Jin thought for a moment before speaking. "Liar, are you really not afraid of death?"


    "I am afraid," Qi Xia replied. "But I have to get out of here."


    Tian Tian sighed and suddenly said seriously, "Qi Xia¡­ You know I didn¡¯t join this team because I trust you or want to rely on you. I came here because I couldn¡¯t fit in over there."


    "I understand," Qi Xia nodded.


    "So it¡¯s hard for me to believe that you would divide the ''paths'' equally with me. I also don¡¯t think I could defeat you at the final moment to be the last one standing," Tian Tian continued.


    "So what now?" Qi Xia asked.


    "So, my cooperation with you is temporary. If I think the current situation is disadvantageous to me, I¡¯ll betray you at any time," Tian Tian said with a bitter smile. "Though for me, surviving here or dying doesn¡¯t matter much. But if there¡¯s hope, I¡¯ll try for it. In short, I¡¯m only with you three to get what¡¯s mine."


    Qi Xia listened without showing any surprise. In fact, he felt somewhat relieved. "That¡¯s fine."


    "Fine?" Tian Tian blinked. "Didn¡¯t I make myself clear? I¡¯m only in this for the ''path.'' You don¡¯t have to trust me too much."


    "The most solid relationship in this world is a business relationship," Qi Xia said. "I have no objections."


    At this point, Jia Jin and Lin Qin exchanged a glance. Tian Tian had made her intentions clear¡­ Could they really trust her?


    "Since we¡¯ve all agreed, let¡¯s go."


    Tian Tian seemed a little uneasy at how easily Qi Xia agreed, but after thinking it through, she realized there wasn¡¯t much room for her to be tricked now.


    With everyone feeling differently inside, they once again advanced deeper into the city.


    The still city was always emitting a dangerous aura. Qi Xia realized they seemed to be heading into a more bustling area.


    This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    There were glimpses of "natives" here, wandering the desolate streets like zombies.


    "Seems like there are more people¡­" Qi Xia muttered.


    Here, not only were there various natives, but occasionally, they saw figures wearing animal masks standing in front of buildings. The further they walked into the city, the more people they seemed to encounter.


    Just as Qi Xia was speaking, he saw a "native" approaching them with a stack of paper. The person was as thin as the shop assistant, almost skeletal.


    Jia Jin frowned and stepped forward.


    He expected some kind of danger, but instead, the person handed a piece of paper to Jia Jin and said, "Check out swimming and fitness."


    Before Jia Jin could reach out to take it, the person, like a zombie, let go of the paper, and it fell to the ground.


    Then, as if nothing had happened, the person slowly walked away.


    "Brave Sword God?" Jia Jin blinked. "What on earth is a Brave Sword God..."


    He picked up the paper and saw that the writing had mostly been worn away and it looked very old.


    "Is there actually someone handing out flyers here?" Tian Tian felt it was unbelievable.


    "Well, there are shop assistants in convenience stores, so it¡¯s not so strange to see flyers being handed out on the street," Qi Xia said.


    "¡®Flyers¡¯?" Lin Qin asked.


    That one short sentence caused the three of them to pause for a moment.


    "What did you say?" Qi Xia thought he had misheard.


    "I asked, what is a ''flyer''?" Lin Qin repeated clearly.


    What is a "flyer"?


    The three of them all stared at Lin Qin in disbelief.


    Is this something a normal person would ask?


    "You don¡¯t know what a flyer is?" Qi Xia asked.


    "I don¡¯t know," Lin Qin replied naturally, shaking her head. "Do you all know?"


    None of them answered, but they were still puzzled.


    Lin Qin¡¯s behavior had been strange from the start. She liked covering her mouth and nose, insisted on following Qi Xia, and now she didn¡¯t even know something so basic¡­ Could she possibly¡­ not be human?


    Or perhaps¡­ was she one of the "organizers"?


    The terrifying thought began to swirl in Qi Xia¡¯s mind.


    If she wasn¡¯t human, what was her purpose?


    "I say, Lin Qin..." Qi Xia finally spoke up. If he didn¡¯t figure out who Lin Qin really was, he wouldn¡¯t feel at ease. "Flyers are common knowledge. How could you not know about them?"


    "Common knowledge?" Lin Qin looked clearly confused. "Just because you three know about them, that makes it ¡®common knowledge¡¯?"


    At this moment, Jia Jin intervened. "It¡¯s not about whether we three know or not. Flyers are not a rare thing. Everyone should know about them. Why don¡¯t you?"


    "I haven¡¯t seen one," Lin Qin said seriously.


    Qi Xia didn¡¯t know what else to ask and furrowed his brow in thought.


    "Hey! Bro!"


    Suddenly, a shout from across the street startled everyone.


    They saw a ragged-looking man with glasses waving at them. "Hey, over here! Bro!"


    This was the first time they¡¯d seen a normal person here, and they couldn¡¯t help but feel tense.


    Was this person an enemy or an ally?


    "Are you calling me?" Qi Xia tried talking to the person.


    "That¡¯s right! You guys are ¡®normal people¡¯ too, right?" The man with glasses smiled.


    "Normal people?"


    "Yeah, like, normal people," the man said. "Don¡¯t you call yourselves that?"


    Qi Xia paused for a moment before answering. "We don¡¯t look like lunatics, do we?"


    "Haha! I knew it!" The man laughed. "We found a good game. Interested in joining us to earn some ¡®paths¡¯?"


    The man kept his distance, as if wary of them.


    Qi Xia and Jia Jin exchanged glances, unsure whether they could trust this person. But after thinking it over, they realized that the rules of this place wouldn¡¯t allow them to steal paths. If the guy was up to something, he could only "trick" them.


    But when it came to "trickery," Qi Xia had never been afraid of anyone.