Police officer

"You brat, stop trying to sow discord." Officer Li glared at Qiao Jiajin with a stern expression. "You're a loan shark, and I'm a police officer. Who do you think people will believe?"

Qi Xia glanced at the arguing crowd. He knew Officer Li wasn't lying—he really was a detective.

But he was headed in the wrong direction.

Maybe it was professional instinct, or maybe it was his sense of justice, but Qi Xia kept trying to bring order to the chaotic situation.

Halftime was already more than halfway over, and the commotion in the room gradually subsided.

During this time, Qi Xia had repeated the phrase "My name is Li Ming" in his mind countless times, to the point where he was starting to annoy himself.

After all, it was hard to stay calm with a shattered corpse lying right beside him.

Blood dripped from the table onto the floor, one drop at a time. The group had been trapped in the room with the corpse for almost an hour, and a strange, foul odor was beginning to spread.

Qi Xia glanced nonchalantly at the body beside him. His pants were already filthy.

After death, the muscles that control various organs lose tension, often leading to incontinence.

Before the scent of decomposition fully set in, an overwhelming stench had already filled the air.

Qi Xia and a young woman sat on opposite sides of the corpse. The woman seemed particularly disturbed by the smell, covering her mouth and nose with her hand the entire time.

Another ten minutes passed before the goat-headed figure finally spoke: "The twenty-minute intermission is over. The game resumes."

The young man who had introduced himself earlier as Han Yimo steadied himself, took a deep breath, and said, "My name is Han Yimo. I'm an online novel writer."

"Before coming here, I was working on the final chapter of my novel in my rented apartment. The story has over a hundred characters, and nearly all of them needed to appear in the finale. I was so focused on writing that I didn't hear anything happening outside."

"In fact… I don't even know when the earthquake happened or when I lost consciousness…"

His account differed from everyone else's. So far, he appeared to be entirely "independent," and his brief explanation ended abruptly after just a few sentences.

"That's it?" The burly man was slightly taken aback. "You think just saying 'I don't know' is enough?"

"Since I cannot lie, I have no reason to fabricate a story just to please everyone," Han Yimo replied in a calm yet inexplicably convincing tone.

"…Alright, next." Officer Li's expression remained skeptical as he turned to the young woman. "It's your turn."

"Hey, cop." Qiao Jiajin's tone carried a hint of dissatisfaction as he addressed Officer Li. "We're all 'participants' here. Stop acting like you're the team leader."

"Someone has to step up and organize everyone," Officer Li argued. "I've already said, there's only one enemy among us. The remaining eight need to stick together."

"That doesn't mean you get to call the shots." Qiao Jiajin scoffed, completely disregarding Officer Li's words. "Out there, I might have feared you. But in here? No one knows if you're the 'liar.'"

"Enough, both of you," a cold, composed woman interjected, cutting off their argument.

From the very beginning, this woman had accused the goat-headed figure of holding them captive for twenty-four hours. She seemed logical and level-headed, her demeanor unwavering.

Seeing that the two men had fallen silent, she continued, "In this so-called 'game,' no matter who wins in the end, the rest of us may still be considered 'indirect murderers.' After all, it's our collective vote that decides who gets executed by the Man-Goat. That's what you should really be thinking about."

Qi Xia's expression flickered slightly upon hearing this.

If he truly made it out of this room alive, then, in a way, he would have 'killed' the other eight people.

But what choice did he have?

The card in front of him was an undeniable "Liar."

Who would willingly sacrifice themselves so that others could live?

"My name is Zhang Chenze. I'm a lawyer," the cold, composed woman said, arms crossed and expressionless. "It's unfortunate to meet you all in such a bizarre place. Otherwise, I would have handed you my business card."

No one seemed to understand her humor, but she didn't appear to care.

"Before coming here, I was preparing court materials. My client was scammed out of two million yuan—a case of significant financial loss and serious misconduct."

When she mentioned 'two million,' most people remained indifferent, but Qiao Jiajin visibly flinched.

"Two million?" he asked, stunned.

"Yes, two million." Zhang Chenze nodded. "People say lawyers are impartial and just, but we have personal emotions too. That man took out a high-interest loan just to support his family—it was truly worrying. But illegal lending is a separate case and has nothing to do with me."

"When the earthquake struck, I was driving to meet my client. I was on Qingyang Avenue, had just passed Du Fu Thatched Cottage, and was near Wuhou Shrine. I remember… I wasn't driving fast, maybe around 40 km/h. Then, suddenly, I saw the ground ahead begin to crack open."

"I hit the brakes immediately, stopping steadily in front of the crack. But I didn't expect the cars behind me to fail to react in time, causing a chain collision."

"I only heard a few loud crashes before my car was pushed into the fissure. Then I blacked out—and when I woke up, I was here."

Another story came to an end. Now, only three people had yet to share theirs.

"Wuhou Shrine…" Dr. Zhao mused. "You mean Wuhou Shrine in Chengdu?"

"Yes, I work in Chengdu."

It seemed that this earthquake had affected the entire country.

Piecing together these unfamiliar stories to figure out who was lying was proving to be incredibly difficult.

"Guess it's my turn." Officer Li glanced around the room. "I've already introduced myself—I'm Li Shangwu, a criminal investigator from Inner Mongolia."

"Before coming here, I was staking out a fraud suspect. According to reliable intel, we had pinpointed the exact whereabouts of the suspect."

"The suspect had committed a massive fraud, amounting to two million yuan—the first major fraud case reported in our city this year."

"My partner and I had been staking out the suspect from our car, waiting for him to appear."

"But this guy was even more cautious than we had anticipated. It was as if he sensed danger—he didn't show up for three whole days."

"For those three days, we ate, drank, and took care of everything inside the car. Our nerves were stretched to the breaking point."

"But do you know what's worse for a grown man than having no food or water?"

"Having no cigarettes."

"We were completely out. By protocol, we weren't supposed to leave our post, but the craving was unbearable."

"So, I sent my partner to run and buy some cigarettes while I kept a close watch on the suspect's residence."

"But just as my partner left, the ground suddenly started shaking violently. I wanted to step out and see what was going on—"

"—when, out of nowhere, a thin wire wrapped around my neck from behind."

"Even though we're well-trained in close combat, it's extremely difficult to deal with an attack from the backseat using a garrote. I couldn't reach the attacker, nor could I remove the wire from around my throat."

At that moment, everyone turned their eyes to Officer Li, noticing a distinct red mark around his neck.

"So, I immediately reclined my seat to restore my breathing, but I still couldn't turn around. My build is too large, and my legs were trapped under the steering wheel."

"The person behind me took advantage of this and struck me hard on the head with something—I don't even know what it was. That was the last thing I remember before losing consciousness."

After hearing Officer Li's story, doubt began to creep into everyone's minds.

His account was completely different from the others. Up until now, every participant had fallen unconscious due to an accident.

He was the only one who had been deliberately attacked.

If they had to pick the most suspicious person among them…

Wouldn't it be him?