God's imitator

Chapter 55 Cao Haichuan's Suspicion

night.

After the discussion ended, most people returned to their rooms.

This was the first death in the 17th community, casting a shadow over everyone's hearts.

Lin Sizhi came to the outdoor area of ​​the community. In the darkness, a spark could be seen faintly; it was Cao Haichuan smoking.

"Attorney Lin, would you like one?" Cao Haichuan offered him a cigarette.

Lin Sizhi sat down on the outdoor single sofa next to her and waved her hand: "Thanks, I won't smoke."

Cao Haichuan sighed: "Well, fewer and fewer young people are smoking these days."

"Originally, only Uncle Ding would occasionally smoke a couple of cigarettes with me, but now I'm all alone."

"It's good not to smoke; smoking is harmful to your health."

As Cao Haichuan spoke, he took another deep breath, tilted his head slightly in the opposite direction from Lin Sizhi, and exhaled a puff of smoke.

"call……"

He looked at the high wall at the edge of the community: "I've been thinking, what would happen if we climbed over the wall and went to another community?"

Once you enter the community, the entire complex is locked down and you can't leave.

So far, all the players in Community 17 can only move around in this small building and the surrounding outdoor area.

Lin Sizhi thought for a moment and said, "I think it's best not to do anything reckless."

"The new world seems to apply different standards to players and copycats."

"For players, it is forbidden unless permitted by law."

"For copycat offenders, anything not prohibited by law is permissible."

"So I guess that circumventing the Great Firewall can result in visa time being deducted at best, and deportation at worst."

Cao Haichuan nodded slightly: "Heh, that's true."

"Actually, I was a little scared just now. If Aunt Su had questioned me about why I couldn't save Uncle Ding, I wouldn't have known how to answer."

“I can probably understand why Aunt Su was so agitated: not only because this was the first time someone had died in the community, but also because Uncle Ding was the only person of Aunt Su’s age in the community.”

"Aunt Su initially harbored an unrealistic fantasy, believing that the so-called new world was a paradise where everyone was equal, but that was clearly just wishful thinking on her part."

"When the death of someone close to her actually occurs, she will instinctively resist it, and this resistance will turn into a kind of aggression towards the outside world."

"Moreover, although Aunt Su and Uncle Ding have only known each other for a short time, Uncle Ding is the only person of her age in this community, and also the only person whose lifestyle, way of thinking, and background are relatively similar to hers."

"In Aunt Su's sense of closeness, Uncle Ding was closer to her than to all of us. Uncle Ding's death means that she will definitely become a 'lonely old woman' in this community, and no matter how hard she tries, she will never be able to integrate into the group of you young people."

"Therefore, her 'sorrow for fellow human beings' towards Uncle Ding must be much stronger than ours."

Lin Sizhi was silent for a moment, then asked, "And Officer Cao, what about you? Can you fit in?"

Cao Haichuan smiled and said, "I'm alright. I still have a bit of a young person's mentality. Besides, I'm not like Aunt Su."

"Aunt Su is retired and has no spiritual sustenance. When people have free time, they tend to overthink and become extreme."

"But I haven't retired, I still have to find things to do."

"Attorney Lin, do you think it's possible for us to catch these copycats since they keep designing games to kill players?"

Lin Sizhi thought for a moment: "That's probably difficult."

"Unlike real-life criminals, copycats don't need to personally set up crime scenes. They only need to complete the game design, and everything else seems to be done by the arcade."

"I have absolutely no idea how to solve this kind of imagined crime."

Cao Haichuan remained noncommittal: "Attorney Lin, do you know what kind of cases are the most difficult to solve in reality?"

Lin Sizhi lowered his head in thought: "Instigating murder? A perfect crime by a high-IQ individual?"
"But with technology so advanced now, chat logs can be checked at will, and surveillance footage can be viewed at will, so these two types of cases should be much easier to solve."

Cao Haichuan shook his head slightly: "These two are indeed difficult to break, but they are not the most difficult."

"The most difficult thing is actually indiscriminate killing without any reason."

"Because whether it's instigating murder or a so-called high-IQ perfect crime, there's always a motive. As long as there's a motive, you can follow the trail and identify the suspect. "Once the suspect is identified, no matter how smart he is, the case is not far off."

"But indiscriminate killing is different because there is no motive, and identifying a suspect is like looking for a needle in a haystack, with no clues whatsoever."

"Of course, if it's indiscriminate killing, coupled with instigation of murder, or a perfect crime committed by a highly intelligent person, then it becomes troublesome. In many cases, such cases will not even be discovered; we generally call them 'disappearances'."

Lin Sizhi nodded in agreement.

Cao Haichuan continued, "Originally, I also thought that copycat murders were indiscriminate killings, and considering that they didn't need to set up the scene themselves, the possibility of solving the case was extremely slim."

"But just now, after thinking it over and over, I suddenly overturned this idea."

"I suddenly realized that copycats also have motives for killing through death games."

Lin Sizhi thought for a moment: "You mean, when they design games, they unconsciously reveal their inner thoughts?"

Cao Haichuan exhaled a puff of smoke: "It's not just that."

"The copycat is also a player and lives in the community."

"That means they are very likely to participate in the game, whether it's their own or someone else's."

"If they're involved in someone else's game, that's fair, there's nothing to say about it."

"But if they participate in their own game, whether actively or passively, they will definitely leave some kind of backdoor in the game in order to protect themselves."

"Of course, they may also choose not to participate in their own game."

"But in that case, they will most likely try to find ways to exploit the player's weaknesses, kill the player, and then seize as much visa time as possible."

"After all, visa time is equally important to both players and copycats. It's like money and life in this world; no one would complain about having too much."

Lin Sizhi considered for a moment: "You mean, if a player discovers a backdoor in the game in a way that defies common sense, it is very likely that the game's designer is behind it?"

"This method can be used to identify him as a copycat."

"Or, if a game shows a strong targeting of a particular player, it means that the game's designers are very familiar with that player. Perhaps by tracing the player's social network, the range of suspects can be narrowed down."

Cao Haichuan nodded approvingly: "That's right, that's exactly what I meant. Attorney Lin, you're very smart. If you weren't a lawyer, you would definitely be a great criminal investigator."

Lin Sizhi thought carefully for a moment: "But this is difficult."

Cao Haichuan chuckled self-deprecatingly: "Yes, it's difficult, just like solving a case is difficult, but someone has to do it, right?"
"I'm actually a rather slow learner, not as smart as you young people. But I have one advantage: my intuition is pretty sharp, and if I can't figure something out, I'll keep thinking about it. As long as I persist, I'll eventually figure something out."

"Take this trial game for example. I've been thinking about it, and I feel like there's something wrong with it."

Cao Haichuan turned to look at Lin Sizhi: "Don't you think this game is a little too targeted at Uncle Ding?"

"As we analyzed before, if we only discuss the rules of the game, the king actually has a great advantage and many opportunities to survive."

"But Uncle Ding just happened to step into every single pitfall."

"Just like Wei Xinjian back then."

Do you think this is really just a coincidence?

Lin Sizhi considered for a moment: "However, Uncle Ding's death actually had many complicated prerequisites. If any one of these prerequisites had not been met, this event would not have happened."

"If you think this game is specifically designed to target Uncle Ding, it means that the designers have to control almost every detail, which I don't think is something a human can do."

"For example, how do the game designers determine how the audience will vote? And how do they determine which cell Uncle Ding will put these prisoners in?"

Cao Haichuan nodded: "Yes, that was indeed my initial thought as well."

"No one can control everything. If someone could, they wouldn't be a copycat of God, but a real god."

"But between being completely out of control and having complete control, there is the option of partial control."

"Just like the game of Blood Poker, no one can be 100% sure of winning, but as long as you do the parts you can control well, you can still increase your chances of winning."

"We've gone off on a tangent, let's get back to the question."

Why do you think this game included a "farmer's walk" pre-game at the beginning?

"No matter how you look at it, this seems like a selection game tailor-made for Uncle Ding to ensure he can become king."

(End of this chapter)