Chapter 167: Turn Chen Ran and Qiu Yinong into Idiots!

No one responded.

This was simply because Zhang Meili had been making empty promises from the very beginning.

"Then I will lower my demands. I need you all to establish a Future Lie. After I use my skill, you will not use Judgment on me."

Naturally, these words were meant for the six people other than Chen Ran and Qiu Yinong.

"Fine, but only this once," Diwu Zeyi nodded without hesitation.

Seeing this, the other five agreed as well. After all, if her skill could not trigger Avoidance of Lying, Chen Ran or Qiu Yinong would naturally be the ones to execute Judgment on her.

It was a guaranteed win with no risk involved!

"Sigh. In my past life, I was a Teacher, educating students for eighteen years. Perhaps that is the reason why my skill is..."

Pausing here, she raised her Gun high. Raising an eyebrow, she looked over and asked, "If you execute Judgment on me right now, you might still have a sliver of a chance to turn the tables. Otherwise..."

The two remained completely unfazed. Only Zhang Meili herself knew whether she was lying or not. Whoever tried to use Judgment now would be a complete idiot.

"Liar-Slayer: Death Gaze!"

The Secret Room plunged into darkness. Perhaps it was due to the groundwork laid by Cao Xiu's skill, or maybe it was the psychological buildup from Zhang Meili's previous words...

Even if they were certain she had lied, not a single Player present dared to use Judgment on her.

Since she dared to use her skill, it meant there was a high probability it could achieve Avoidance of Lying.

In the pitch-black darkness, Chen Ran's mind raced, weighing whether or not to use his skill. Ultimately, he chose to retrieve an item from his backpack instead.

Meanwhile.

After a long while of not hearing the sound of Chen Ran using his skill, Zhang Meili knew her carefully constructed setup had worked.

When the light returned.

The group immediately surveyed their surroundings, their eyes drawn to a pair of something materializing in midair...

Giant eyes!

They were the size of washbasins. The two massive pupils darted left and right, scanning everyone in the room.

Looking back at Zhang Meili, her eyes were shut tight. However, judging from how deeply her eyelids were sunken, it was clear her eyeballs were missing.

Up in the air, one of the giant eyes stared intensely at Chen Ran, while the other fixed its gaze upon Qiu Yinong.

A tingling numbness instantly washed over their scalps. Both of them felt an acute sense of danger, knowing that if they made any careless movements, they would be in peril.

Unsure of what was happening, the rest of the group watched the bizarre scene unfold, no one daring to speak a word.

"Do not worry, my skill only affects the Players I am staring at," Zhang Meili explained with her eyes closed.

However, she was already a liar. The credibility of her words was practically zero.

Even so, they could deduce the truth.

'In my past life, I was a Teacher, educating students for eighteen years. Perhaps that is the reason why my skill is...'

'What is certain is that her lie must be hidden within that statement.'

'Let us dissect that statement.'

'There are two parts that could be lies.'

'One: I was a Teacher in my past life.'

'Two: Educating students for eighteen years.'

'If "Teacher" is the lie, then both parts are lies, making the second statement completely redundant and meaningless.'

'If "eighteen years" is the lie, then her identity as a Teacher is solidified.'

'Teacher. Death Gaze.'

'I cannot help but recall the dread of being dominated by the beady eyes of a Teacher peering through the window during school, therefore...'

'Her skill most likely stems from the gaze of a Teacher looking through the window or the back door of a Classroom.'

'But I cannot be entirely certain.'

'Still, I can follow this line of reasoning. If it is true, then what would the effect of her skill be?'

'It is common knowledge that once stared down by a Teacher, students dare not even breathe loudly. Those who should be studying, study; those who should be doing homework, do their homework.'

'But this is not a Classroom.'

'It is a Secret Room!'

'Students in a Classroom should do what students are supposed to do. By the same logic, Players in a Secret Room should do what Players are supposed to do.'

'What one should do in a Secret Room is solve its puzzles. Any words or actions unrelated to escaping the room are considered slacking off.'

'In other words, if Chen Ran and Qiu Yinong, who are currently under her gaze, dare to use a skill, they will be punished by the Death Gaze.'

'The problem is, if Chen Ran uses his skill, her Death Gaze would be neutralized.'

'It is the act of raising the Gun!'

'The moment they draw their Liar-Slayer and are spotted by Zhang Meili's Death Gaze, they will be punished. But what is the punishment?'

Thinking up to this point, Li Zhitong looked at the abyss beneath the floorboards, a look of realization dawning in his eyes.

'Could it be... being sent to stand outside the Classroom? Uh, no, it should be standing outside the floorboards, which means falling to their deaths?'

'If that is really the case, then this skill is incredibly fascinating.'

'Conclusion: The effect of the Death Gaze most likely judges the behavior and actions of those being stared at. If they make a move or utter a word unrelated to solving the puzzle, they will be deemed as disrupting the order of the room, thereby triggering Zhang Meili's punishment.'

'But that is only one effect. There should be a second effect, which is highly likely what she mentioned earlier about converting an area-of-effect attack into a single-target strike.'

'Chen Ran was fooled by her earlier words. If he had used Eternal Kingdom the exact moment Zhang Meili activated her skill, her ability would have been instantly shattered. At the same time, Cao Xiu's karma-type skill would also have been dispelled, making it impossible for Cao Xiu to achieve Avoidance of Lying for his previous falsehood.'

'I can only say that one wrong move leads to a complete loss. Right now, if Chen Ran and Qiu Yinong so much as touch their Guns and are seen by the Death Gaze, they will be punished.'

Zhang Meili seemed to know what the group had deduced, as she continued, "My Death Gaze will only stare at those two. Moreover, your skills will only affect the two people I am looking at."

"What you need to do next is figure out how to make Li Zhitong use his skill multiple times."

Her meaning was crystal clear: one of the six remaining people would be dedicated solely to providing lies so that Li Zhitong could continuously activate his skill.

Through a relentless barrage of mental blows, they would turn Chen Ran and Qiu Yinong into blithering idiots.

Furthermore, the Future Lie established earlier only prevented them from using Judgment on her lie about "eighteen years." If what she was saying right now was a lie, the others could still judge her. Therefore, there was a ninety percent chance that her current statement was the truth.

The three Three-Star Players watched coldly from the sidelines. Naturally, the task of providing lies fell upon Zhang Meili, Li Zhitong, Cao Xiu, and Zhou Chen.

Cao Xiu thought for a moment before saying, "Zhang Meili, since it is your skill, it is only fitting that you provide the lies."

"If I tell a lie after activating my skill, the skill will instantly vanish. After all, I am the overseer of order. If I disrupt the order myself, I will lose this status."

Although Cao Xiu could not see Zhang Meili's eyes, he had a strong feeling she desperately wanted to roll them when she said this.

Seemingly immobilized, Chen Ran stared fixedly at Qiu Yinong, the two locking eyes.

Chen Ran grasped the Computer Mouse, his index finger clicking it in a rhythmic pattern, while Qiu Yinong's gaze remained fixed on his finger.

Long Hui was somewhat surprised to see this scene.

He had not expected these two Newbies to actually know Morse Code. By clicking the Computer Mouse, they were creating the illusion of solving the Secret Room, thereby evading the punishment of the Death Gaze while covertly transmitting information.

Since Long Hui had not caught the entire message, he could only decipher a single phrase from the frequency of Chen Ran's clicks...

'Kill the liar!'