Chapter 142: A Futile Feint

Chen Ran's words jolted the four One-Star Players to life. The two One-Star Players in Lin Xiuyuan's team tried to step out of the carriage but were frozen in place by a single glare from Lin Xiuyuan.

The remaining two One-Star Players, Sun Long and Xue Ling, were temporary teammates Li Zhitong had recruited after registering with the Deceiver Alliance.

Sun Long frowned in deep thought.

'Chen Ran mentioned the mountain in front and the water below, but he only spoke of the hexagram. He never specified whether the mountain or the water actually comes first at this station.'

'I have to analyze this. What is the point of him suddenly saying something like that?'

'Stirring up trouble for no reason... there is no other possibility besides Lie-Judgment. As for whose lie he is trying to judge, that is not my problem to consider.'

'Since this is a Lie-Judgment, I need to figure out the underlying logic.'

'He said the mountain in front and the water below. If someone steps out of the carriage later and answers: The mountain is in front.'

'There are two possible outcomes:'

'Two: The answer is incorrect.'

'We can ignore it if the answer is correct. The key is if it is incorrect. An incorrect answer means the mountain is not in front. That would mean Chen Ran's statement about the mountain in front and the water below is very likely a lie.'

'Furthermore, he was talking about the hexagram, not the Instance itself. That means when he said the mountain in front and the water below, he wasn't deducing the Instance. If he is lying, it can be judged as a lie.'

'But that is only for people who do not understand the Sixty-Four Hexagrams. In other words, Chen Ran was telling the truth, but an incorrect answer would make those who do not understand the I Ching believe he was lying.'

'Which means Chen Ran knows for a fact that answering with "the mountain is in front" will definitely be wrong.'

'Conclusion: The water is in front!'

While Sun Long was pondering, Xue Ling was also lost in thought.

'Chen Ran's words...'

'I can rule out: the mountain is in front.'

'The reason is simple. I don't believe he would be so kind-hearted. Having survived in Hell for so long, I know perfectly well that everything someone says is either a deduction of the Instance or a setup for a Lie-Judgment.'

'Chen Ran and Qiu Yinong are already in an invincible position. He has no obligation to solve the Instance for the rest of us, which means he is setting up a Lie-Judgment.'

'However, I can only deduce that "the mountain is in front" is the wrong answer.'

'But I cannot rule out "the water is in front."'

At this thought.

Xue Ling immediately looked at Sun Long. The two exchanged a glance. In the very next moment, Xue Ling dashed desperately toward the carriage doors. Seeing this, Sun Long did the same.

Thud!

Xue Ling collided with Lin Xiuyuan at the doorway and was repelled by the Liar-Slayer on Lin Xiuyuan's body, slamming heavily into the carriage wall.

Sun Long, on the other hand, charged out of the doors.

Lin Xiuyuan: "..."

'Damn it, is he trying to frame me?'

Xue Ling stood up slowly, rolling his aching shoulder with a cold sneer on his lips.

'Admittedly, I cannot determine if "the water is in front" is the correct answer or not.'

'But I can let someone else eliminate that option for me. I don't believe Sun Long couldn't deduce Chen Ran's intention behind the Lie-Judgment.'

'Besides, even if he gets the answer right, Li Zhitong will definitely pull some trick when he tries to return.'

'There is no way Sun Long is coming back alive.'

At this thought.

Xue Ling shoved his hand into his pants pocket. Inside lay an empty vial of Sobering Agent. The moment he fell victim to the skill earlier, he had quietly injected himself right through his pocket, entirely unnoticed.

Outside the carriage, on the platform.

Sun Long's expression was grim. He realized he might have been played by Xue Ling.

'Xue Ling's plan must be to watch me get killed by Li Zhitong's skill, and then he can swoop in to reap the rewards.'

'But will he even get the chance?'

'Damn it. If I inject the Sobering Agent now, I can break Li Zhitong's skill, but I will be groggy for the next half hour.'

'Wait a minute!'

'Earlier, Chen Ran walked into the carriage with his eyes closed. That means as long as I don't look at the Glass Beads Li Zhitong tosses up, I will be fine.'

With this in mind.

He stopped hesitating and approached the Child.

The Child asked with the same innocent confusion, "Big brother, do you think the mountain is in front, or the water?"

Sun Long forced a smile.

"The water is in front, of course."

As soon as the words left his mouth, he saw the Child's expression twist into a ferocious scowl. The Child roared, "You are not me! You cannot understand my despair, so what gives you the right to say the water is in front?!"

Sun Long's smile froze on his face. Immediately after, a piercing agony shot through his heart as if it were being violently stabbed by a thousand needles, and he spewed a mouthful of blood.

In an instant, Sun Long collapsed stiffly to the ground.

He was dead!

Witnessing this scene, the rest of the players immediately drew their Liar-Slayers and aimed their muzzles at Chen Ran in his seat, yet no one passed Judgment.

Having failed to catch him in a lie, the group found their aggressive posturing rather awkward, and they sheepishly holstered their weapons.

In truth, they all understood that they could determine if Chen Ran was lying simply by observing whether Li Zhitong used his skill again.

If Chen Ran was lying, Li Zhitong would definitely activate his skill. There was no other possibility.

After all, an area-of-effect mental attack that completely shattered everyone's minds was much faster than picking them off one by one through Lie-Judgment.

The pressure was now on Xue Ling.

'The mountain is not in front. Eliminated.'

'The water is not in front. Eliminated.'

'Then, what is in front?'

'Wait a minute!'

'The Child is facing... the subway. Isn't the subway the thing right in front of him?'

'Is it really that simple?!!'

'No, it isn't simple. Precisely because there is no evidence for this answer, it is hard to connect the dots. Even if one thought of it, it would be difficult to commit to, unless the options of the mountain and the water were eliminated first.'

Having determined the correct answer, Xue Ling took a deep breath and stepped out of the carriage doors.

He approached the Child.

Confusion clouded the Child's eyes. "Big brother, do you think the mountain is in front, or the water?"

He looked just like a lost child unable to find his way home, or an adult trapped in a dilemma, unsure of what choice to make.

"The subway is in front of you!"

Hearing this, the Child froze. He looked up at the carriage doors and muttered, "Yes... moving forward or stepping back both lead to a dead end. I only have one choice..."

With those words, the Child vanished. The Iron Bucket slammed heavily onto the ground, its solid thud making it obvious that it wasn't empty.

'I knew it!'

Overjoyed, Xue Ling grabbed the bucket and headed back. However, the moment he turned around, he saw Li Zhitong standing right in the middle of the carriage doorway.

Li Zhitong's right hand was clenched tight. Then, he tossed whatever he was holding high into the air.

Xue Ling saw it...

A round bead swelled in size as it flew into the air. At first, it expanded to the size of a bowl, and then to the size of a washbasin.

Gradually, the round bead grew as massive as a mountain. By the time it reached the apex of its arc, terror seized Xue Ling's eyes...

At this moment, the round bead was already the size of a planet. Standing before it, Xue Ling felt even more insignificant than an ant.

Suddenly.

The planet came crashing down. Panic and absolute horror flooded Xue Ling's face. His body trembled violently as he backed away uncontrollably.

It was the exact sensation of someone suffering from megalophobia encountering an impossibly colossal object.

Furthermore, as the bead plummeted, it continued to expand in his vision.

He squeezed his eyes shut, but the image of the planet-sized bead hurtling toward him automatically surfaced in his mind, drawing closer and closer...

"Ahhh, no!"

"Li Zhitong!"

"Put away your Glass Beads!"

As soon as those words left his mouth, every face inside the carriage instantly drained of color.

Simply because...

The bead Li Zhitong had just tossed was...

A steel ball!!!