Deceitful Game

After Xiaobai finished speaking, her pure eyes looked at Gao Fan.

"That's all I see..."

She spoke softly, posing the question: "What do you think this means?"

"I think..."

Gao Fan remained silent for a moment, then turned his gaze to Ming Po as if seeking help.

Seeing this, Mingpo turned around and smiled and nodded at him encouragingly.

As if he had received some kind of invisible power, he suddenly became confident.

It's like a timid pet dog that hides its tail after being yelled at by a big dog, but when it turns around and finds its owner standing behind it, it starts to puff out its chest, raise its head, and bark loudly.

"I think what Senior Sister Xiaobai saw was the future after a failed exorcism!"

As Gao Fan spoke, his voice became clearer and clearer: "It is obvious that the illusions we are seeing are at different points in time, some of which are in the past and some are in the future."

"The classrooms have been completely corrupted by filth and curses, and even the security guards have turned into monsters. The school may have already been abandoned. At this time, the school invited a master... who can exorcise spirits and dispel curses, but cannot fight monsters, which means that the monster may have a physical form."

"And that little girl should be the same girl who gave us the first hint. She is very likely a friendly spirit towards us... for example, she might be the kind side of Yao Yao, or Yao Yao when she was a child. Just like when she first scared us, it was to guide us and help us escape from the classroom as soon as possible, so that we wouldn't be blocked in the classroom by that 'mutated security guard'."

"What Brother Chen saw was probably a bit earlier than this timeline. The curse might have already partially taken effect, but the school wasn't completely abandoned yet. That's why that teacher was clearly acting strangely... because the teacher had already been affected by Yao Yao's curse!"

Gao Fan was hesitant at first, but became more and more excited as time went on.

He felt that his reasoning perfectly matched the truth.

Based on Gao Fan's experience, if he comes up with the correct reasoning first, he can get the maximum reward when the final reward is calculated!

If he gets the top reward, it means he will get a new title!

A new title, "Pseudo-Gold of the Sun," which starts at the second tier, can theoretically be upgraded to the fourth tier, "Silver of the Moon"!

Isn't this better than him now, a "lucky survivor" who has almost exhausted his potential?

His current status as a "lucky survivor" has already surprised and delighted him.

His ability to choose a route almost blindfolded is useful in most games with chase sequences.

Wouldn't it be even better if I got a higher title?

Gao Fan looked at Ming Po expectantly: "Am I right, Brother Xiao?"

Unfortunately, that's a pity.

Mingpo sighed and shook his head.

"Some of your assumptions are correct, but most of them are not."

As Mingpo spoke, she took the stone sphere from her bosom: "Because you overlooked this."

Gao Fan paused for a moment when he saw the stone ball.

Then, he suddenly opened his eyes wide.

"Of course, you can't blame yourself..."

As Mingpo spoke, she looked at Chen Bingwen.

Chen Bingwen suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.

"Because some people are not telling the truth."

Mingpo said, word by word, "Your reasoning is based on imperfect conditions, so naturally the answer you get will be imperfect."

—What makes you think I'm not telling the truth?

Chen Bingwen originally wanted to refute this, but his lips moved and he couldn't say anything.

Because it wasn't his turn to speak yet.

"It's obvious that the person in the illusion I experienced was 'Yao Yao' herself. Because only in her own room would she have her private belongings."

"But if we treat all stories as the 'correct and complete truth,' then it's easy to arrive at an answer—"

"That is, 'These are four different perspectives.' Therefore, we need to choose a real 'cheater.'"

"But the prerequisite for this problem is that there must be a real cheater."

Mingpo spoke slowly.

With each word he spoke, Chen Bingwen's expression grew more somber.

But after Mingpo finished speaking, he paused for a moment, realizing something.

"Both your reasoning and Xiaofan's reasoning are actually self-consistent. But there is one problem—you have both overlooked some information. Your self-consistency is based on the premise that this part of the information 'does not exist'."

"But don't forget... the reason Yao Yao was looking for that 'black magic' was because she was framed."

"If she was framed, how could there be a legitimate 'cheater'?"

Mingpo countered, "Or rather... when everyone is involved in cheating, how can we determine who the 'culprit' is?"

"When everyone points to Yao Yao as the culprit, does it still matter to Yao Yao who the 'real culprit' is?"

"The answer is simple: in her view, everyone is guilty!"

As Mingpo spoke, she looked at Xiaobai.

"I think, just like the various illusions we see... what you see is actually an illusion."

"If we understand the meaning of 'purification' in reverse, the story becomes very clear—"

"The illusion we are seeing is not actually four different perspectives describing the same event... but rather four events that happened to the same person at different stages."

As he spoke, he looked at Attorney Chen again and asked earnestly, "Is what you've said the complete truth?"

"—Are you sure you weren't accused of cheating by other students?"

"I……"

Just as Attorney Chen was about to argue, the green light had already switched to his side.

He was sweating profusely, knowing he could no longer hide it.

In Chinese, there is no distinction between "he" and "she".

Because of his own gender, Attorney Chen subconsciously misheard the girl's accusation as "it was all his idea." But perhaps... she was actually referring to "her" in her words?

But then again...

Since all four people actually witnessed Yao Yao's experiences, doesn't that mean there was no criminal to identify?

So Attorney Chen forced himself to remain calm and apologized first: "Yes, I concealed some information... When that teacher appeared behind me, I saw the whole class turning around to look at me."

"They grew as tall as telephone poles, blocking out the sky and making it hard for me to breathe. Before I lost consciousness, I heard a girl's shrill scream."

She said—it was all my idea.

"I didn't hide this information with any malicious intent... because I know I didn't cheat, but I was afraid you'd misunderstand..."

"If we choose the wrong answer, we might all die... don't you think?"

He quickly turned the conversation back to Mingpo.

Mingpo simply smiled and continued, "Yes. Just like Xiaofan said... that monster and the security guard are both pursuers and both can 'radiate light.' It's just that the security guard uses a flashlight, while the 'exorcist' sees a red light."

"But if what she saw at the time was the opposite... her mind had been corrupted, so the little girl she saw seemed normal, but was actually abnormal. And the security guard she saw seemed like a monster, but was actually human."

"The saying goes, 'A thousand-mile horse is common, but a Shang Yang is rare...' The characteristics of some people's deaths are so unusual. The security guard's limbs were twisted, his face was blurred, and a stone ball was embedded in his eye. These characteristics are just too complete."

"What if Xiaobai wasn't seeing the 'future'... but the 'past'?"

Mingbo offered a possible answer in a casual manner.

While everyone was pondering, Mingpo suddenly challenged Attorney Chen, asking, "However, since you say you have no malicious intent, then I'll have to use the power of this 'Honest Table' to question you carefully..."

"Chen, in your life, have you ever wanted to kill anyone else?"

"—Have you ever considered using your authority, knowledge, or power to kill someone?"

Mingpo looked at him with a half-smile, as if she were just asking casually.

His smile was gentle and serene.

But for some reason, Chen Bingwen felt as if he were in the jaws of a giant beast.

Cold sweat poured down my back.