An unacceptable truth.

Everyone looked stunned upon seeing those three words.

"I drew the 'Liar' card," Qi Xia said slowly. "But whether I reveal it or not doesn't matter—because it's completely irrelevant."

He picked up the card and casually tossed it onto the center of the table.

"If my guess is correct, every single one of you is holding a 'Liar' card."

No one moved.

After a long pause, Officer Li finally spoke. "So… you're saying that we all lied just now?"

"That's right." Qi Xia nodded. "You're all smarter than I expected. Each of you included a small lie in your story—just enough to keep the narrative intact without breaking the logic."

Officer Li thought for a moment, as if something had just clicked in his mind.

"If you're right…" He let out a deep sigh. "Then this just got even more complicated."

The others turned to him, confused.

Officer Li continued, "According to the rules, we can only survive if we all identify the Liar. But if we do that… the Liar loses. Which means we…"

Dr. Zhao was the first to grasp Officer Li's point. "You mean… we can vote however we want? Since everyone is lying, this has become a 'sure-win game', where only the person who gets voted out dies?"

"Exactly." Officer Li nodded. "The best strategy now is to focus all the votes on a single person. That way, we minimize the losses—at least the rest of us get to survive…"

His words cast a heavy silence over the group, while the goat-headed figure remained completely still.

So… they were really just choosing someone to die?

Qi Xia let out a helpless sigh and looked at Officer Li. "Officer, is interrupting people your favorite hobby? Does it give you a sense of accomplishment?"

"What kind of question is that?" Officer Li frowned. "I was just trying to help you come up with a plan."

"I don't need your help." Qi Xia replied without hesitation. "Your plan will get everyone killed."

"What?" Officer Li froze. "How would I get everyone killed? Am I wrong? If everyone is lying, doesn't that mean any vote would work?"

"Officer Li, the goat-headed figure said: 'The rules are absolute.' 'There is one and only one Liar.' Do you remember that?"

"This…" Officer Li hesitated for a moment, recalling that the goat-headed figure had indeed said those two sentences.

"Let me lay out the logic for everyone," Qi Xia said coldly. "In this game, it seems like the 'Liar' has a huge advantage because everyone thinks they are about to win. But if we vote carelessly, we will all end up dead."

Qiao Jiajin, who was sitting beside Qi Xia, absentmindedly ran a hand over his tattooed arm and muttered, "Because we broke the rules…"

"Exactly." Qi Xia nodded. "But what makes this game truly interesting is that we have no way to determine if someone is lying. As Lawyer Zhang pointed out, the only method we have is checking whether someone's story contradicts itself. But since we all come from different places, no matter how contradictory the events might seem, there's never a 100% guarantee that someone is lying."

Qi Xia glanced at the group, who had all fallen into deep thought, then continued, "The 'host' deliberately chose the nine of us to sit here. There must be a reason for that—to make us search for flaws in these seemingly interconnected stories, believing we can find the liar."

"But is that really the right approach? How can we be absolutely sure that someone is lying?" Qi Xia let out a cold laugh. "In this game, there is only one liar we can identify with 100% certainty based on the clues we have. Only one person whose words completely contradict our current situation."

He picked up a pen and quickly wrote two characters on the paper: "Human Goat" .

"I've been wondering—why did the goat-headed figure introduce itself as 'Human Goat' at the very beginning? It seemed unnecessary, like a pointless detail. But now, I realize… that was part of the game all along."

Everyone slowly turned their heads toward the "Human Goat." It remained completely motionless.

Officer Li looked stunned for a moment before shaking his head. "Liar, I have a question. The goat-headed figure stated that 'Among all the storytellers, there is one and only one liar.' But… it didn't tell a story itself."

"Didn't it?" Qi Xia shrugged with a knowing smile. "I clearly remember it saying that it gathered us here to 'create a god.' If that isn't an absurd story, then what is?"

Officer Li lowered his head in silence. Qi Xia's reasoning made a lot of sense, yet something about it still felt off.

"But…" Dr. Zhao spoke up. "Your entire theory is based on the assumption that we are all liars. But how can you be sure of that? What if we turn over our cards right now and discover that you are the only 'Liar'? Then what?"

"There's no way you all told the truth." Qi Xia let out a bitter laugh, his expression filled with a hint of despair. "I spent quite some time verifying this, and not only do I know that you all lied—I also know exactly where you lied."

He slid his scratch paper forward, then turned to Tian Tian, who was sitting beside him.

"Tian Tian. You were 'working' inside the car, your head sticking out, and the falling billboard supposedly crashed onto the car, knocking you unconscious. Did that really happen?"

Tian Tian pressed her lips together, saying nothing.

"Qiao Jiajin. You fell from such a high place onto the billboard—are you sure you only 'lost consciousness'?"

Qiao Jiajin remained silent.

"Teacher Xiao Ran. You were holding that child—did you really manage to dodge that speeding car?"

Xiao Ran's eyes flickered, avoiding Qi Xia's gaze.

"Dr. Zhao, an operating room is built far more securely than a regular room to ensure stability. Yet you said the ceiling collapsed—are you sure you were merely knocked unconscious?"

Dr. Zhao turned his head away, avoiding eye contact.

"Han Yimo, you claimed you had no idea what happened. But when you're deeply focused on writing, the thing you hate most is interruptions. Are you saying you truly have no memory of how you got here?"

Han Yimo let out a soft sigh.

"Lawyer Zhang, your car fell into a crack in the ground. How deep was that crack?"

Lawyer Zhang crossed his arms and remained expressionless.

"Officer Li, what brand of car were you driving? Could it really allow you to instantly recline the seat and break free from someone restraining you from behind?"

Officer Li unconsciously touched the red mark on his neck but said nothing.

"Lin Qin, your ceiling collapsed too. But you said your studio was on a high floor—if a high-rise building starts collapsing from the top, wouldn't the entire structure be gone?"

Lin Qin lowered her head deeply, refusing to speak.

Qi Xia observed everyone's expressions, then reached out and tapped the table.

"Everyone, just admit it. Including myself—we are all already dead."