No strange things are allowed to evolve!

So is it because I'm from out of town that the magic-blocking stone is targeting me?

But if Moore's statement is absolutely true, after all, I have used the [Scales of Truth] to verify the truth or falsehood of the anti-magic stone mechanism, then Windsor's father is lying, and the innkeeper is lying.

But the former was influenced by the idea of ​​"dedication," while the latter had no reason to deceive himself.

If both sides are objective facts, then where exactly does the problem lie?

"What are you thinking?"

Noticing that Jiang Shu's eating of grapes was gradually slowing down and his eyes were becoming unfocused, Strawberry Milkshake asked curiously.

Jiang Shu snapped out of her daze: "Hmm..."

"You don't want to tell me?"

"No, not exactly." Jiang Shu shook his head. "It's just that there are some things I can't figure out."

Tell me about it.

"You?" Jiang Shu looked the strawberry milkshake up and down, then made a disdainful sound.

"What's wrong with me?" Strawberry Milkshake said somewhat discontentedly. "So you think I'm stupid? I'm just too lazy to use my brain most of the time. Actually, I'm very smart. I can tell the truth of some things at a glance."

As she spoke, she gave Jiang Shu a mischievous look.

"Hey, are you really having an affair with Windsor? Tsk tsk tsk, I didn't know you had this kind of fetish. She's an NPC, and you still went after her. So you're not one of those disgusting 'private houses' that people talk about online, are you?"

"?"

Jiang Shu was indeed taken aback.

He thought he had hidden it perfectly, so how did the strawberry milkshake figure it out?

Seeing Jiang Shu's rare expression of surprise, Strawberry Milkshake felt a surge of secret satisfaction: "Not bad expression."

"Why? Is it a woman's sixth sense?" Jiang Shu forced herself to remain calm.

Just as he was worried that Snow King would find out about his online flirting, he was also a little afraid that Strawberry Milkshake would find out about his NPC activities in the Hatchery.

He always felt that it was okay to do whatever he wanted online, but if it got out in real-life relationships... that would be a bit scary.

Fortunately, it seems the other party only noticed that he and Windsor had a somewhat ambiguous relationship, and hadn't discovered anything else.

Looks like I'll have to be more careful from now on.

Noticing Jiang Shu's instinctive, unconscious nervousness, the strawberry milkshake was even more satisfied.

Fortunately, she didn't have much of a perverse sense of humor in this regard, so after admiring Jiang Shu's expression, she didn't keep him in suspense: "Because the power of lies has increased."

"The power of lies?"

“Windsor’s father asked me before if you had any special relationship, and I subconsciously answered no. I also said that I had been traveling with you all along, and there was no way I wouldn’t have noticed something was going on. But this morning I suddenly became more capable of lying.”

Strawberry Milkshake shrug:

“Actually, I didn’t know at first that the problem was with that sentence, but I heard Windsor’s father talking to himself. It seemed that he knew about this through Windsor’s sleep talking. He was in great pain and distress at the time.”

Where did you hear that?

“The garden,” Strawberry Milkshake replied. “I didn’t hear the cat meowing yesterday, so I slept very well and had a good sleep quality. I woke up naturally early this morning and then went to the garden to watch the sunrise. Maybe he thought there was no one there.”

"..."

What a terrible thing to do... Why did I prevent her from sleeping well for the past few days, causing her to develop the bad habit of going to bed early to induce sleepiness?!

Jiang Shu was heartbroken.

But suddenly, he realized something.

"Are you sure the power of lying has increased because of this?"

“Of course.” Strawberry Milkshake nodded. “I didn’t say much yesterday, did I? Come to think of it, this is the only thing I clearly answered, so you can’t deny it now, right? Tsk tsk, you’re quite the trickster.”

Jiang Shu didn't hear the second half of the strawberry milkshake's sentence at all.

He no longer has time to defend his character and lifestyle.

He just wanted to determine if this was the reason for the increase in the power of lies.

After confirming this, he realized that he seemed to have overlooked a very important issue all along.

What are the criteria for judging a lie?

After some recollection, Jiang Shu realized that it seemed that his rank had been raised to the second level because he had deceived other evolved beings, which led to the deaths of some evolved beings due to this lie, causing terrible consequences.

But at the time, I wasn't necessarily lying.

It's just a guess that you need to convince others beforehand that you can pass through the village entrance, and then influence reality so that the centipede ignores you.

Jiang Shu didn't say that with the intention of lying. He just wanted to be reassured, to make everyone believe it. It would be best if it wasn't true, but it didn't matter, as it would all pass anyway.

As it turns out, this is indeed the case.

Therefore, his words were lies, and thus he gained the power of lies.

I didn't think about it in detail at the time, but now that I think about it... the criteria for judging whether a poet of lies is lying seems to be based on objective facts, and has nothing to do with whether or not one subjectively wants to lie.

The things mentioned by the strawberry milkshake were enough to prove this point, and she even believed that it was true without any doubt.

Therefore, the process by which the Poet of Lies obtains the power of lies is actually the same as the criteria for judging the Anti-Magic Stone.

Just as Jiang Shu was thinking about this.

boom!

A giant bear fell in the distance.

The adventurers cheered.

"This should be the last one. It's time to go back," Strawberry Milkshake said casually.

Jiang Shu looked up: "Yes, it's time to go back."

Chapter 110 There is a Master!

"Moore".

Suddenly hearing a shout, Moore, who was organizing documents, looked up.

Before him stood several poets in black robes, the same ones who had previously humiliated Moore in front of Jiang Shu.

Moore paused, then asked with a grim expression, "What are you trying to do now?"

"nothing."

One of them had a malicious smile on his face:

"I heard that not only did you not chase that country bumpkin away yesterday, but you actually wanted him to register as a temple poet? What? Are you planning to stick together with that reckless guy for warmth?"

Before Moore could speak, another person said, "Don't say that. It's also possible that our dear little Moore's saintly heart is overflowing again, so he can't help but want to help others."

Moore frowned. "Where did you hear that from?"

"There's no need to inquire deliberately."

Someone answered:

"Everyone's talking about it this morning, saying that the guy who triggered the anti-magic stone test twice yesterday was taken to the registration hall by you and then received the blue robe test."

I said, "You're so kind, you must have told him what the Blue Robe assessment means, right?"

I mean, you wouldn't deliberately hide it and watch him suffer outside, would you?

“I…” Moore looked at the anti-magic stone and said helplessly, “Of course I told him.”

Because of the existence of the anti-magic stone, he cannot lie.

That's the problem. He can't lie to these annoying guys who are looking for trouble. First- or second-degree lies are usually not enough to answer their questions.

Refusing to communicate?

He had tried, but these guys were so annoying. Once they couldn't get the emotional value they wanted from him, they would keep bothering him. So it was better to just be a bit of a turtle and let them get away with it, and then he would have some peace and quiet.

As for why they made things difficult for Moore, it was actually because of those few words they were muttering in a sarcastic tone.

Kindness and a willingness to help others.

Moore is an anomaly among the poets of lies. Born into poverty, he does not object to other poets of lies using some rather malicious lies to gain the power of lies, but he himself rarely does so, or rather, he refuses to do so unless necessary.

He understands, but he doesn't accept it.

In most cases, he only uses first- or second-level lies to gain the power of lies. Only when facing certain people he judges to be evil will he use third-level lies.

This approach has drawn discontent from many people who have no scruples and only regard restraint as the bottom line.

What? We all have no bottom line, and you're the only one who's so high and mighty? We're all poets of lies, so what are you pretending for?

Kindness in the temple of lies is actually a weakness, an evil act that disgraces the poet of lies.

So every now and then, they would come and bully Moore with lies.

Just like now, under the threat of the anti-magic stone, they are forcing Moore to tell the truth.

This gives them a near-morbid sense of pleasure.

Then someone immediately asked, "Oh? You told him? And what was his reaction?"

"There was no particular reaction; he's going to give it a try."

"What?" The group exchanged glances, then burst into laughter. "He might not even pass the white-robed test, and he wants to try the blue-robed one? I think he's completely clueless!"

Moore did not speak.

He really wanted to say that he believed Jiang Shu could do it.

But even he himself wasn't sure about it.

Before parting, he told Jiang Shu that if needed, he would do his best to help him without violating the rules, but a day has passed and there has been no response from Jiang Shu.

"I guess after careful study they found there was no way to solve it..." Moore sighed inwardly.

So it seems that even micro-management has its limits...

He was even somewhat worried.

He hoped that the expectations he expressed to him would not add unnecessary pressure or burden to him, prompting him to take risks and do something dangerous.

Just as he was feeling distressed about this, one of them said, "What's with that expression? You don't actually believe him, do you?"

Another person, as if struck by a thought, suddenly laughed and said, "Then that reckless fellow has truly turned misfortune into blessing. Although he failed the test, he successfully deceived a black-robed poet. Not only will he become famous in the temple, but he might also gain a large amount of power of lies."

“I said… let’s stop here.” Moore’s dissatisfaction was written all over his face.

But those guys had no intention of stopping.

They kept talking to themselves.

"Now that you mention it, I actually hope he can do it. The registration assessment is the Blue Robe Assessment. If he can really do it, it won't just be about making a name for himself. I think he can leave his mark on the history of the temple."

"You know what, it's not like there's absolutely no chance. The situation is special right now, and there are quite a few high-level adventurers going out of the city to hunt. Maybe there are small teams that are short of people and urgently need to recruit, and he might be able to pick up a bargain."

"What's so special about this situation? And what's new?"

"It seems that the market has run out of materials for fourth-tier magical beasts, causing prices to skyrocket. Many people are selling their possessions to hoard these materials, and many adventurers are leaving Lies Town to go hunting in order to obtain them."

"How did they suddenly sell out?"

"I don't know, it's probably the Chamber of Commerce's doing. Anyway, I don't believe something like this can happen overnight. You guys didn't see it, the speed at which the price skyrocketed was terrifying. It even tempted me. I happened to have a few materials, so I tried consigning them, and they sold out instantly."

"Such a thing exists? Too bad I haven't."

"If you have them, I suggest you sell them now. But it doesn't matter if you don't. Prices can't keep soaring forever. My gut feeling tells me that the hype will die down soon, and then supply will far exceed demand. Those materials will probably be dirt cheap."

"What if I buy some now and then sell them before the hype dies down?"

"Forget about it, do you know when this craze will die down?"

"Too."

"If you're going to say your scamming skills aren't up to par, it's because you're easily fooled like this."

"Hmm... after your analysis, it does seem like a trick."

"It's definitely a routine, but such a complicated and elaborate routine... I don't know how the Chamber of Commerce came up with it. Maybe they received guidance from some expert. To be honest, I even suspect that those purple-robed or even red-robed people went out to make extra money. Anyway, I doubt that ordinary lying poets have this ability."

"Hey, who cares? It's the big shots' business, it has nothing to do with us."

"I was just mentioning it casually. It really has nothing to do with us. What I'm worried about is that even a pig can fly if it's riding the wave of opportunity. Maybe that reckless guy will actually take advantage of this opportunity and successfully pass the assessment?"