Villain? No, I'll catch up with the protagonist after passing the civil service exam.

The Absolute Code slowly unfolded in Lu Jingyan's palm.

The golden pages moved without wind, exuding a breathtaking solemnity and majesty. This force did not belong to any known scientific realm; it transcended physics and space, representing the most ultimate rule of this world.

Li Hai's eight clones were still laughing wildly in the hall.

"Lu Jingyan, open your eyes wide and look carefully! I'm going to perform a magic trick right now!"

The leading clone arrogantly raised its chin and abruptly closed its eyes. It frantically activated the "Time Management Tycoon System" in its mind, attempting to forcibly sever the mental connection between the main body and the clone.

Based on his past experience of showing off in other worlds, as soon as the connection was broken, these seven clones would instantly turn into specks of light and disappear. The police wouldn't be able to catch a hair on their heads.

A second passed.

Three seconds passed.

The lobby was deathly silent, with only the faint sound of air conditioning vents.

The first clone opened its eyes in confusion.

He was horrified to discover that clones number 2, 3, and even 8 were still perfectly intact and handcuffed to the railing. Not only did they not dissipate into specks of light, but clone number 8 even gasped in shock because the handcuffs were so tight.

"This...how is this possible?!"

Li Hai panicked completely. He desperately tried to call out to the system in his mind, but found that the system panel seemed to be completely locked by some terrifying force, turning into a dead gray mess of characters.

Lu Jingyan closed the law book, a cold, mocking smile playing on his lips.

"Illusion? Mr. Li, you may have some misunderstandings about your own body structure."

He walked up to clone number 1 and slammed his long fingers into the other's chest, producing a dull, fleshy sound.

"It has a heartbeat, body temperature, sweats, and even feels the tightness of handcuffs. Under the causal law of the Absolute Code, as long as you leave traces of a crime in this world, you must be judged in a physical form."

"Trying to run? Even if you cut yourself into eighty pieces, I can still piece you back together and take you to court."

An hour later, in the city bureau's first joint interrogation room.

This was an unprecedented and bizarre interrogation. Eight men who looked exactly alike, even sharing identical DNA, sat neatly in eight interrogation chairs like a row of Russian nesting dolls awaiting slaughter.

Old Liu, the city bureau's top legal expert, sat next to Lu Jingyan, his brows furrowed, constantly flipping through the thick criminal code.

"Captain Lu, this case is tricky."

Old Liu lowered his voice, his tone full of struggle, "These eight people have the same DNA and the same fingerprints. Under the current legal system, we can only identify them as the same person."

"If we consider it as one person, even if he defrauded eight wealthy heiresses at the same time, with the amount involved reaching hundreds of millions, it would still be considered a single crime. The maximum sentence would be life imprisonment or a suspended death sentence."

Upon hearing the legal expert's words, Li Hai, who had been somewhat desperate, suddenly became arrogant again, as if he had grasped a lifeline.

"Hahahaha! Did you hear that, Lu Jingyan! Even your experts said I'm just one person!"

The first clone leaned back in his chair, shaking his leg with an air of nonchalance.

"I admit I cheated them out of money, and I admit I slept with them. But so what? I'm bursting with energy, I might even be schizophrenic, okay? At most, you can convict me of fraud alone! You think I was part of a gang? No way!"

The other seven clones followed suit, taking advantage of the lag in the law to act like scoundrels.

In their view, although life imprisonment is a terrible sentence, as long as their lives are saved, they will always have a chance to make a comeback in the future, thanks to the system's resources.

"one person?"

Lu Jingyan sneered and slammed the "Absolute Code," which was invisible to others, onto the interrogation table.

"Li Hai, do you think you're invincible just because you've exploited loopholes in the law?"

He stood up, and the large screen instantly displayed surveillance footage of eight clones being arrested at the same time.

"At exactly 8 PM. Clone #1 is chatting with a real estate heiress about Nietzsche's philosophy at a French restaurant. Clone #2 is demonstrating sailing skills to a female CEO on a yacht. Clone #3 is lying in a hospital bed, tearfully swindling money from a female celebrity for a bone marrow transplant."

Lu Jingyan approached the interrogation chair, and an intense sense of oppression instantly enveloped the eight identical men.

"At the same time, in different places, with different levels of professional knowledge, and with completely different emotional fluctuations and micro-expressions."

"You eight brains operate with eight completely different independent logics of thinking."

"In the face of the causal logic of the Absolute Code, we only look at the objectively existing facts. Since you have the ability to think independently, can commit crimes independently, and cooperate with each other to cover for each other."

Lu Jingyan made the final decision, his voice like thunder in the dead of winter.

"Then you are eight 'natural persons' with full criminal responsibility."

"This is not a solo scam."

"This is a massive fraud ring comprised of eight adult males with a well-defined division of labor!"

Old Liu, who was listening nearby, gasped in shock, his eyes instantly lighting up.

Brilliant! As long as we break the mystical concept of "clone" and define it as an "independent natural person," the nature of this case will change completely!

"It's not just about organized fraud."

Lu Jingyan opened the record on the table, his tone calm but sharp, "According to the investigation, these eight clones had de facto cohabitation relationships with eight victims, and two of them even signed foreign marriage certificates."

"Therefore, Mr. Li Hai and others, you are also suspected of the extremely heinous crime of bigamy."

The arrogant smiles on the faces of the eight Li Hais froze instantly, like a flock of ducks with their necks being choked.

"No...you're just making excuses! You're making a ridiculous judgment!" Clone Number 1 screamed hysterically.

"Whether it's a wrongful judgment or not, the judge will tell you."

Lu Jingyan straightened the cuffs of his police uniform and coldly read out the final judgment estimate.

"One person who defrauded ten million was sentenced to ten years. If eight people are involved, that's a total of eighty years in prison."

"Add to that the charges of bigamy and disturbing public order. Li Hai, you'll be spending the rest of your lives in the detention center, where you'll put on a spectacular octet of prison chorus."

The eight Li Hais slumped completely in the interrogation chairs, their faces ashen.

They finally realized that in this steel-like world of law and order, locked by the law of causality, any attempt to exploit loopholes would ultimately become a gallows that hangs them.

"Captain Lu, all the statements have been taken. How should we detain these eight... suspects?" Zhao Tiezhu walked over with a thick stack of confirmation slips.

Lu Jingyan glanced at the eight soulless clones, a cold, mocking smile playing on his lips.

"Don't they like to create clones? Don't they emphasize that they are a unified whole?"

"Make the arrangements. Put these eight 'natural persons' into the same tiny cell for serious offenders."

Zhao Tiezhu was taken aback: "Put them all in one room? What if they collude to give a false testimony?"

"Collusion of testimony?"

Lu Jingyan turned around and walked out, leaving behind a single sentence without looking back.

"Eight selfish, independent individuals, now forced to take the blame for each other, are locked in an iron cage. Do you think they'll collude to fabricate stories, or will they kill themselves?"