Free Web NovelChapter 594: Chapter 593: Confession Time
The sound of "click" rang out one after another, unlocking the mouth mechanisms of all the Inner Court Players, while the 10-minute countdown for the preparation phase began ticking.
This meant they could communicate freely now.
The group glanced at each other, but no one spoke for the moment.
Deng Xiao picked up the drawing board in front of him, then his eyes widened instantly and his pupils contracted.
Because the upper part of the drawing board clearly stated his crime.
Deng Xiao glanced at the others somewhat flustered, then adjusted the angle of the drawing board to ensure its content would not be seen by others.
The expressions of other players varied; some displayed the same clear panic as Deng Xiao, while others remained calm and indifferent.
Overall, everyone spent a considerable amount of time reading their crimes.
After a long silence, Lu Bingjun was the first to speak.
"Everyone should understand by now, right? According to the rules, confessing is the best solution to this game."
The voice of each player seemed to be amplified by a speaker, so that even speaking in a low voice, everyone could hear clearly.
Lu Bingjun’s words, both in volume and content, were hard to ignore, and indeed immediately drew opposition.
"Confessing?"
"What are you talking about? Doing so would immediately trigger the sudden death penalty, right? Of course, if you want to confess, I have no objection."
The speaker was a young man in his twenties, with several streaks of hair dyed gold. Despite this, his outfit didn’t resemble a typical rebellious youth; his clothes and accessories hinted at good economic status.
Deng Xiao glanced at the name tag on his chest: [Community 7 - Li Hui].
As a player from the same community, Deng Xiao instinctively wanted to support Lu Bingjun but hesitated.
However, Lu Bingjun seemed not to need his backing.
"The crucial point is: the ’sudden death penalty’ can be offset by an Immunity Coupon.
"We come from three different communities, and having reached the second stage, most communities have surely activated an Immunity Coupon; the only question is whether it has cooled down.
"As long as any one of our communities is willing to confess and present an Immunity Coupon, the game can end immediately, without any risk."
Li Hui disagreed, "But why would a community possessing an Immunity Coupon use such a precious resource to help others clear the game?
"A normal approach would be to continue playing until facing true mortal danger, then use the Immunity Coupon, right?"
Lu Bingjun shook his head, "Things may not be that simple.
"Think about it, why did the Imitator introduce the ’Confession Rule’ only after explaining all other rules of the game?
"It was intended to let us fully understand the game’s risks.
"The rules only state that players receiving a ’Sudden Death Ticket’ will face punishment, but do not specify what the punishment is; simultaneously, the rules clearly state that death cases may occur, and the visa time of deceased players will be divided.
"Thus, I deduce that people will die in this game, and it is likely not through the ’sudden death penalty.’
"The relief on the back of the drawing board is a hint."
The group had already noticed the relief on the back of every drawing board and reached out to touch it.
Lu Bingjun continued, "The heart relief’s beating frequency matches our own hearts, and considering the name ’Sudden Death Ticket,’ the punishment is likely directly applied to our hearts.
"If death occurs in this way, an Immunity Coupon can’t save you.
"According to the item description, an Immunity Coupon can only offset the in-game ’sudden death penalty.’
"In other words, if we miss this ’Confession Phase,’ even having an Immunity Coupon later won’t save our lives."
Li Hui’s expression turned shocked, "Huh? Don’t talk nonsense, if the Imitator could bypass the Immunity Coupon so easily, what would be the point of this item?
"I guess you actually want to trick other communities into giving up their Immunity Coupons, right?
"Of course, if you are willing to use your own Immunity Coupon to confess, then I didn’t say anything."
Lu Bingjun sighed, "Our community’s Immunity Coupon hasn’t cooled down yet."
Li Hui spread his hands, displaying an "I thought so" expression.
"What a coincidence, neither has ours."
The group fell silent once more.
Clearly, Lu Bingjun’s suggestion sounded appealing but wasn’t feasible.
His expression did not reveal disappointment though, and after a moment of waiting, he quickly accepted reality.
"Alright, this situation was anticipated.
"I was just pointing out this possibility; whether to use an Immunity Coupon is ultimately everyone’s own decision.
"Judging from the game rules, this game might be much more dangerous than imagined, and continuing to play will most likely result in heavy casualties.
"But...
"Since this is everyone’s collective decision, so be it."
No one else spoke.
Soon, the countdown ended, and all players’ mouth mechanisms were relocked.
A new message appeared on the large screen.
[No player confessed; the game officially begins, good luck to you all!]
The timer on the central round platform refreshed again.
[First Round Game - 14:59]
[Writing Time - 1:59]
...
During the waiting time for confession, Deng Xiao was already seriously contemplating the game rules.
Even though all players were free to speak at that time, Deng Xiao couldn’t directly discuss game strategies with Lu Bingjun, as that would be akin to plotting aloud.
He could only consider subsequent strategies based on his own understanding.
"The rules this time aren’t particularly complicated. Simply put, everyone writes a sentence on the drawing board, takes turns speaking, then accuses each other based on ’the heaviest crime’ and ’the highest sudden death risk.’
"The more accusations, the closer to death.
"In the most optimistic scenario, only one person needs to die to end the game. If the ’Disguiser’ dies, it ends immediately; if not, the game can still end if the ’Disguiser’ consents.
"But in the worst-case scenario, all but the ’Disguiser’ could die—if the ’Disguiser’ never ends the game.
"So the urgent task now is to figure out exactly what to write on the drawing board."
In the white room, the scratching sound of a marker writing on a board was clear, enhancing the strange quietness of the room.
—A player had already begun writing.
After sorting through his thoughts, Deng Xiao hurriedly looked at his drawing board.
The drawing board could be seen as a special display screen, with the upper part for displaying specific information and the lower part for writing. freёwebnovel.com
At this time, the originally displayed crime content had disappeared, replaced with two sentences in standard print.
[1. I have no guilty conscience towards all gym members.]
[2. I frequently engage in high-intensity strenuous exercise.]
Upon seeing such content, Deng Xiao’s expression changed.
He instantly realized that these two sentences corresponded to his ’crime’ and ’health,’ and writing either could become a reason for other players to attack him.
