Chapter 580: The Copied Sentence

At the same time, in the Audience Room. The three players continued drinking their tea and watched the reactions of the six players in the Offender Room through the large screen.

Bai Zhilan let out a quiet breath, "I think we did well enough. All three of the preparation-phase sentences were fully analysed.

"From this point, the inner room players can no longer hear our discussion.

"All they can do now is rely on themselves."

Lin Sizhi took a sip of tea, "The overall framework of the game is actually quite clear at this point.

"The three sentences we analysed should all point to the same person, the victim in this Judgment Game's death case.

"He had a habit of running, and his 10-kilometre time of 47 minutes is a respectable result for an amateur runner.

"He had been sleep-deprived for an extended period, but because his sympathetic nervous system was chronically overactivated, he appeared energetic and had an increased appetite in the short term.

"He smoked, and was trying to quit using gum.

"Combined with the content of the main game,

"He almost certainly died of sudden cardiac arrest.

"And the six guilty players who were selected all had some connection to his death.

"In this game, certain players will follow him in death as punishment. That's the Imitator's rule."

Tang Qing and Bai Zhilan watched the large screen in silence, keeping an eye on their own community members' performance.

After a moment, Bai Zhilan murmured to herself, "Surely no player is going to be foolish enough to turn in a blank board in the first round."

A beep sounded as the countdown on the platform updated.

[Round 1 - 12:59]

[Speaking Time - 11:59]

Writing time had ended. Like the other players, Deng Xiao flipped his board around and displayed it to the others.

The side with the heart carving naturally now faced him.

The two original sentences on the board had vanished, leaving only what the players had chosen to copy.

A click sounded as one player's mouth restraint unlocked, indicating they had two minutes to speak freely.

The first round had no moderator, so the speaking order was entirely random.

Deng Xiao looked up. The first player to speak was on his right, with a name badge reading [Community 11 - Wei Hongbing].

She appeared to be a middle-aged woman in her forties, with permed wavy hair.

Her board read: [I often get into arguments with other people.]

Her handwriting was not particularly neat, crooked and uneven, but the text was displayed in black, meaning the sentence had passed the lie detection mechanism.

"Yes, I do get into arguments with people frequently. So what? I always win!

"I've never once been upset over it.

"I haven't worked for over ten years. I cook my own meals, my life is very routine.

"Regular check-ups, no issues at all.

"That's why I dared to write this! I have nothing to be ashamed of!"

Wei Hongbing was somewhat more emotionally charged as she spoke, as though this was her default state, though it also made her come across as someone who spoke from a position of confidence.

The boards of all players except the Impostor were subject to lie detection. Black meant the statement was true.

The words spoken during speaking time, however, were not subject to lie detection and therefore were not necessarily true.

Which specific parts were true and which were false was something each player had to judge for themselves.

The two minutes passed quickly.

Wei Hongbing's mouth restraint clicked shut, and the player to her right was given the floor.

[Community 7 - Li Hui.]

He was the energetic young man who had challenged Lu Bingjun during the confession period. Unlike the other players, his board was completely blank, with nothing written on it.

"I genuinely can't believe it. I've gone so long without handwriting that I was a little out of practice. I missed three characters while copying and then time ran out and the whole thing disappeared.

"I'm just a totally idle person at home, no job, no need to get up early. I wake up naturally every day. Excellent sleep, very healthy."

Immediately after him, the player directly across from Wei Hongbing, also from Community 11, received the floor.

Xu Guangxin looked like a typical office worker, wearing narrow-frame glasses and slightly overweight, though not noticeably so.

Although he appeared to be roughly the same age as Li Hui, around his mid-twenties, he looked noticeably more worn.

[I often stay up late. (Black)]

Xu Guangxin let out a quiet sigh, "As everyone can see, I'm a typical overworked office worker.

"I know staying up late is bad, but work often requires it. There's not much I can do.

"That said, I'm very careful in other areas. I deliberately eat a little less. You can see from my build that I've kept myself in check.

"I also make a point of resting during lunch breaks, on weekends, and any other opportunity I get.

"I should remind everyone: writing time is two minutes, and slightly messy handwriting is fine. That's more than enough time.

"Under those conditions, any player who turns in a completely blank board without writing a single thing, my only conclusion is that both sentences were far too incriminating to put in writing.

"Being unemployed means no work pressure, but it also means no need for a regular schedule, and people tend to go to one of two extremes: either excellent self-control, or almost none.

"If it's the latter, staying up all hours, excessive drinking, smoking, binge eating, all of that becomes possible."

Several players showed slightly surprised expressions.

Under the game rules, players attacking each other was inevitable. But most had not expected it to come this soon. Taking a conservative approach in the first round might have been the wiser choice.

Even less expected was that the first person to launch an attack was the unassuming office worker Xu Guangxin.

Li Hui's eyes instantly widened, glaring at Xu Guangxin with barely concealed fury.

If not for the restraints, Deng Xiao had no doubt Li Hui would have launched himself at Xu Guangxin on the spot.

But just at that moment, Deng Xiao heard a distinct click as his own mouth restraint unlocked.

It was his turn to speak.

Deng Xiao quickly raised his board a little higher to make sure everyone could see it clearly.

[I have a clear conscience toward all of my gym members. (Red)]

"Yes, I'm a personal trainer.

"Because of the nature of my work, my diet and sleep schedule are both very regular. You can see from my build that it's a healthy one.

"My muscle mass isn't excessive and my body fat is at a normal level, which proves I haven't used anything artificial.

"Maintaining a physique like this requires healthy eating habits, a regular schedule, adequate rest, and measured exercise.

"But I also have to be honest: as a personal trainer, I can't claim to have a clear conscience.

"I have persuaded some clients to sign up for memberships and personal training packages. And when training them, I sometimes deliberately shorten their rest periods between sets.

"That reduces the actual training effect and leaves them more sore the next day, but it also makes them feel like my sessions are more effective, which increases their willingness to buy more sessions.

"I'm not proud of it. But that's the extent of how I've wronged my clients."