Chapter 68: Emotional Lie

The time rewound to one hour ago.

Chen Ran and Geng Hao appeared in the First Study. While keeping their guard up against one another, they carefully surveyed this Secret Room.

'This is the First Dungeon Chamber.'

'This is also an Escape Room Game.'

'Geng Hao and I sat on the chairs, and then we arrived here.'

'The chairs were in the second Secret Room and had the function of transferring memories, but right now, our bodies and memories perfectly match.'

'This means our memories haven't been transferred. So, what exactly is the purpose of those chairs?'

'Could this be a virtual world?'

As Chen Ran reached this point in his deductions, he realized all his clues had completely snapped. He noticed Geng Hao lightly tapping the floorboards in front of the bookshelf.

"Should we take a look?" Geng Hao asked.

"No rush," Chen Ran replied. "There is no Hourglass here, no Glass Beads, and no Basement. Yet, we appeared in this room. That means something else is likely going to happen. Let's wait."

About the time it took to smoke two cigarettes passed.

Out of thin air, two figures materialized within the Secret Room. These two were none other than...

Another Chen Ran and Geng Hao.

The four men stared at each other, their eight eyes meeting in an exchange practically sparking with gunpowder. Chen Ran subconsciously checked his watch.

'Has it been five minutes?'

For the sake of clarity, the original would be known as Chen Ran, while the duplicates would be designated as Chen Ran A, B, and C.

Chen Ran looked at Chen Ran A.

Geng Hao looked at Geng Hao A.

Ultimately, all four of them realized that a second batch might appear soon...

Chen Ran and Chen Ran A walked over to the desk.

Both paused in surprise.

"You do it?" Chen Ran suggested.

"Sure," Chen Ran A replied.

Chen Ran A took a Marker Pen out of his bag and tested it, finding that it could still write.

So, he casually pulled a book from the shelf and wrote on it:

"Kill whoever appears in the Secret Room next, no matter who you see!"

"Let's go!"

Before the two Geng Haos could even comprehend what was going on, they followed the two Chen Rans, opened the study door, and entered the Second Study.

Upon entering the Second Study, they were horrified to discover that it was practically identical to the First Study.

Chen Ran A looked at Chen Ran and made an inviting gesture. Not one to stand on ceremony, Chen Ran pulled a book from the shelf, took out the Marker Pen, and wrote the following passage:

"This is a virtual world, an infinite series of connected Secret Rooms. A new Chen Ran and Geng Hao will be born every five minutes. Upon seeing this text, tear the page out immediately and return the book to its original place."

Looking at the contents, Chen Ran A gave Chen Ran a thumbs-up.

Immediately after, the four men rushed off to the Third Study without stopping.

Not long after they left, a group of four—Chen Ran B and C, along with Geng Hao B and C—arrived.

All four of them frowned deeply.

Chen Ran B spoke up, "The message on the desk was highly likely... left by Chen Ran. In other words, we might be copies. But no one has told a lie yet, so how do we kill anyone?"

Chen Ran C shot him a glance, sharply catching onto the keyword: highly likely.

'If it was left by the real Chen Ran, it's impossible for him not to know that for Players to slaughter each other, they must first induce someone to lie.'

'This Chen Ran in front of me arrived at the first Secret Room before us. The message on the desk was probably left by him!'

'Is he the real Chen Ran masquerading as a fake to trick a lie out of me?'

At this thought.

Chen Ran C looked toward the desk, only to see another book sitting there. The four of them stepped forward.

Upon reading the contents of the book.

Chen Ran B's frown deepened. "How strange. We already deduced the information written here back in the First Study. What is the point of him writing this?"

Chen Ran C and Geng Hao C exchanged a glance and took two steps back.

Seeing this, Chen Ran B and Geng Hao B instantly understood what the two were thinking.

"I know you two suspect that I left the messages in both Secret Rooms. However, I can clearly tell you that these messages were left by Chen Ran, but not..."

At this point, Chen Ran paused, furrowing his brow.

'If I say, "But they weren't left by me, this fake Chen Ran."'

'Would that count as telling a lie?'

'Saying "fake Chen Ran" is a negation of Chen Ran's name or identity.'

'I am denying my own identity.'

'There's no issue with that!'

Thus.

He organized his words. "These were all left by Chen Ran, but they weren't left by me, this fake Chen Ran."

Chen Ran C felt slightly relieved.

However, the written contents matched their own deductions.

'In other words, the real Chen Ran came here, and then the instance replicated multiple identical consciousnesses.'

'This is troublesome!'

'We are all duplicates. If we want to leave here alive, we must kill the original Chen Ran. But if we can think of this, the real Chen Ran can definitely think of it too.'

'Killing him and taking his place will be incredibly difficult.'

'What's even more deadly is that countless more Chen Rans and Geng Haos will be born after us.'

'There are two plans. Plan one: take advantage of the fact that there aren't many copied Chen Rans right now and kill the real Chen Ran in the Secret Room first. But...'

'There's a problem here. If we kill the real Chen Ran, and the Escape Room Game ends immediately, who between me and this Chen Ran in front of me will replace the original and return to his body in reality?'

'Plan two: find a way to kill all the subsequent Chen Rans, then kill this Chen Ran right here, and finally face off against the true Chen Ran!'

'Obviously, the first plan is too random, uncontrollable, and fundamentally unadvisable.'

'Obviously, the first plan is too random, uncontrollable, and fundamentally unadvisable.'

'The second plan, although troublesome, means that as long as it succeeds, I can replace the real Chen Ran.'

'I'll choose the second plan!'

'However, before doing that, I need to figure out the replication mechanism first.'

The two Chen Rans exchanged a glance and immediately looked away. Chen Ran B said, "Since we understand the mechanics of this Escape Room Game, the next thing we need to figure out is whether we are the real Chen Ran and Geng Hao."

Chen Ran C took over the conversation, "I know what you mean. The person who left the message might also be a fake Chen Ran, but what would be his goal in doing so?"

The two Chen Rans fell into deep thought.

"I think we shouldn't waste time here. We should head to the Secret Rooms ahead and focus on killing the real Chen Ran and the real Geng Hao first," Geng Hao B suggested, changing the subject as their constant back-and-forth was making him dizzy.

"Heh, what makes you think there is only one Chen Ran and one Geng Hao in the Secret Rooms ahead?" Chen Ran B sneered.

"It was clearly written on the message. Upon seeing the contents, tear it out immediately and return the book to its original place."

Chen Ran C retorted, "Then tell me, how did the real Chen Ran determine that a new Chen Ran and Geng Hao would be born in this game room every five minutes?"

Both Geng Hao B and C paused. Various clues intertwined in their minds, creating an intricate mess that was tangled beyond untangling. Nosebleeds trailed down their faces before they finally managed to extract the relevant deductions.

'That's right!'

'There is only one possibility. The real Chen Ran must have witnessed the birth of the fake Chen Rans to be certain that a new batch spawns in this Secret Room every five minutes.'

"Then, what should we do next?" Geng Hao C asked, unsure of the significance of these words and forced to change the subject once more.

Hearing this, almost imperceptible smiles surfaced on the lips of both Chen Ran B and Chen Ran C.

"Do you think there's a possibility that, since this virtual world can replicate Chen Ran and Geng Hao, it might also be able to replicate their Liar Hunter Skills?"

Chen Ran B suddenly shifted the dynamic, abruptly drawing his Liar-Slayer without any warning and aiming the gun directly at the already dizzy Geng Hao B. Chen Ran C mirrored the action exactly, leveling his gun at the equally dizzy Geng Hao C.

"Remember this, you two. My skill is called: Eternal Kingdom!"

"Remember this, you two. My skill is called: Eternal Kingdom!"

This sudden change terrified Geng Hao B and C, who were already reeling in confusion. Flailing in a panic, they also drew their guns, aimed at the two Chen Rans, and simultaneously pulled their triggers.

Click, click.

Two distinct clicking sounds of jamming weapons echoed, exceptionally harsh in the quiet Secret Room.

"You bastards tricked me!"

"You bastards tricked me!"

As the two Geng Haos finally realized what had happened, they blurted this out, their eyes practically spewing fire despite their lingering shock.

However, immediately after, the color drained entirely from both their faces.

The two Chen Rans bore extremely peculiar expressions.

'It actually worked?'

'I only planned to give it a try. Who knew it would succeed so easily?'

'I knew it. Even someone with immense self-control like me finds it agonizing to hold back from cursing.'

'In Hell, everyone is a person guilty of a Heinous Crime. How could they possibly not want to swear?'

'So it turns out...'

'They are exactly like me, just holding it in. With the slightest lapse in attention, their true colors are exposed!'

'An Emotional Lie, a Common Sense Lie, a Sentimental Lie. In the past, I always used common sense to trick others into lying. Who knew that inducing a lie through emotion would be this simple, this fast?'

Looking at the two men with wet nosebleeds, Chen Ran B and Chen Ran C secretly made up their minds...

'In the future, if I ever encounter anyone who isn't as smart as me, I will just make them dizzy with words! Then I'll use an Emotional Lie to trick a falsehood out of them!'