Chapter 602: Chapter 601: Seeking the Disguiser
Deng Xiao’s hand trembled as he reached for Lu Bingjun’s button, but he couldn’t press it.
"Everyone else will definitely choose me, there’s no other possibility.
"What about Old Lu?
"What should I do?"
If he had to say who besides himself should be responsible for this death case, given the current situation, Deng Xiao could only think of Lu Bingjun.
Because Lu Bingjun was the deceased’s former boss who had assigned him overly heavy tasks.
Though the button was supposed to pass a lie detector, it’s evidently impossible to be objective in judgments about oneself.
The rules indicate that the voting inherently has certain ambiguities; one cannot vote against their conscience, but when two options are somewhat blurred, one can choose freely.
So, if Deng Xiao decides to press Lu Bingjun’s button, it’s possible that he could succeed.
"If I vote for Old Lu, it does reduce my own votes, but... how do I explain this when we return to the Community for review?
"Just say my own button didn’t respond?
"That should work too, since no one willingly votes for themselves.
"But this might also bring extra risks to Old Lu. I’ll certainly get many votes in this round, but later, we could seek help and have a chance to overturn the situation. If my vote causes Old Lu to precede me, what then..."
The voting time was short, and Deng Xiao eventually pressed Lu Bingjun’s button.
"This button is likely ineffective; if it doesn’t work, I’ll choose myself.
"Old Lu is the Community leader; he’s still safe now, sharing votes with me is warranted..."
The button lit up normally and locked, meaning Deng Xiao successfully cast the Sudden Death Ticket for Lu Bingjun.
Deng Xiao was momentarily stunned, feeling slightly regretful after the vote was completed.
But immediately after, he felt a sharp pain in his heart, as if someone had grabbed it tightly, then squeezed and twisted it violently.
This pain instantly halted his breathing, his whole body stiffened, and his face turned pale.
Meanwhile, the sword on the central platform swiftly fell, stabbing hard into Deng Xiao’s corresponding sector.
...
Deng Xiao’s body was completely rigid, only feeling as if there was a giant vortex at his heart, instantly draining all his strength, leaving him immobile.
Luckily, the heartache didn’t last long.
But unfortunately, when Deng Xiao touched the heart relief behind the board, he clearly felt his heartbeat accelerating rapidly, with a noticeable lump in the thick blood vessels.
This lump blocked the blood flow, so the heart was forced to pump blood with greater force and frequency.
"The Sudden Death Ticket not only triggers angina but also accumulates blockages..."
Now, Deng Xiao fully understood why Wei Hongbing died.
Although Li Hui and Wei Hongbing both experienced angina twice, the number of Sudden Death Tickets they received was different.
Wei Hongbing likely received one or two more Sudden Death Tickets than Li Hui, making the heart obstruction more severe.
Plus, he was older and in worse health, causing a sudden death during the second angina.
While Li Hui could still endure for a while.
Considering this, Deng Xiao is temporarily not in fatal danger.
If he’s lucky, he should be able to withstand another round of angina.
But that remains uncertain, as Tang Qing stated: The health of one’s heart and exercise capacity aren’t directly related.
In the worst scenario, Deng Xiao could also die during the next angina attack.
...
A new round of game begins, with hints continuing to appear on the platform.
Li Hui is still the host.
He was a bit surprised himself but soon understood the reason: No Inner Court Players spoke during the last round, so there was naturally no first player to attack others.
Thus, Li Hui’s host status was deferred to this round.
Li Hui showed a joyful expression, initially thinking his host status was wasted, but now it seems the game can still proceed.
He quickly operated on the board to adjust the speaking order for this round.
Deng Xiao looked at Lu Bingjun, frequently signaling him.
His message was clear: Use the sole chance now to seek help from Lin Sizhi.
Because Deng Xiao’s situation was very precarious at the moment.
Tang Qing’s words were extremely destructive and had a deep impact, not something that could be ended by being voted out in one round.
If in this round of speeches, Deng Xiao couldn’t present new arguments or shift his guilt to other players, other players are very likely to cast all the Sudden Death Tickets to him.
That would be disastrous.
Therefore, Deng Xiao dared not take this risk, he only wanted to immediately seek help from Lin Sizhi, at least to shift the focus of the discussion to other players.
But Lu Bingjun shook his head slightly, clearly rejecting the notion.
"No help? Why?"
Deng Xiao couldn’t ask directly, having to ponder the rationale behind this decision.
"Does Old Lu believe the timing isn’t right?
"The help opportunity is only once, perhaps Lin Sizhi has seen more from an outsider’s perspective, but the truth must be revealed at the most opportune moment to have the greatest effect.
"Or does Old Lu have his own methods, hence feels no need for help for now?"
Deng Xiao didn’t know exactly what Lu Bingjun was thinking, and he stared at the help button on the board, feeling conflicted.
He could directly press the button to seek assistance without Lu Bingjun’s consent, according to the game rules.
However, Lu Bingjun is the Community leader and the game’s core; if Deng Xiao bypasses him using the precious chance, it might disrupt the entire plan.
That would be difficult to justify upon returning to the Community.
"But what if an accident happens..."
Deng Xiao hesitated, still reaching out for the help button.
At that moment, the system broadcast sounded again.
[Xu Guangxin has used the ’Help’ feature, and Bai Zilan from the same Community will speak in his place.]
[All original phases of this game round will be canceled, and all speaking time will be occupied by the Audience.]
[During the voting phase, the Audience can force players to vote based solely on ’Crimes’ or ’Health’.]
...
In the Audience room, Bai Zilan also seemed slightly surprised.
Because Xu Guangxin’s situation wasn’t particularly urgent at the moment, Bai Zilan didn’t expect him to seek help now.
Yet Bai Zilan wasted no time; she had been pondering the game content and had prepared her thoughts in advance.
After careful consideration, she immediately began to speak.
"Everyone needs to understand one thing: The Judgment Game isn’t about actually judging the Sinners, but rather figuring out how to survive.
"Discussing who is more guilty in the Judgment Game is simply meaningless, and Tang Qing surely knows this; his words are merely rhetoric.
"The only thing that matters now is: finding the Disguiser.
"Our Community already has a deceased member, but evidently, this doesn’t satisfy the Disguiser. So, regardless of how many more players die, as long as the Disguiser lives, the game continues!
"Conversely, as long as the Disguiser is found, the game can immediately end.
"We don’t even need to actually vote to kill him; simply posing a threat to his life would immediately end the game.
"Even if some Sinners successfully leave the game, escaping punishment, what’s the difference? In the Walkway, who is truly clean?
"I’ve identified the Disguiser; it’s Shi Guoliang, who belongs to Community 7 along with Li Hui and Tang Qing!"
