King's Judgment

Chapter 38: "King's Judgment"

The hall erupted in an uproar again.

Although they had already experienced one group game, it was clear that most people instinctively panicked at the sudden activation of a game invitation.

More importantly, the nature of this game was completely different from the last one.

The goal of "Blood Poker" was to complete the allocation of the first visa time, so in terms of actual gameplay, there was essentially no life-or-death crisis.

Between players, it was only a matter of earning more or less visa time.

But the goal of this game was to "complete the judgment," which meant the game would have a certain mortality rate.

The thought of Wei Xinjian's fate in the "Redemption Roulette" made many people instinctively terrified.

The three people who were forcibly participating were even more at a loss.

Lin Sizhi looked at the big screen, also slightly surprised.

This was because the Gallery had not adopted the game "Line of Life and Death" that he had designed.

"King's Judgment..."

"From the literal meaning, it's hard to discern the specific content of the game."

"So, what's so unique about this game that it would be chosen by the Gallery?"

While Lin Sizhi was lost in thought, Fu Chen's voice drowned out the noise in the hall.

"Everyone, please be quiet for a moment!

"Although this game has some risks, as you saw from the situation in 'Blood Poker,' the more allies you have in the same game, the safer you generally are, and the greater your chances of winning.

"Our Community has three players who were forcibly selected, so I hope everyone will actively sign up, as this can significantly increase your survival rate in the game.

"I'll sign up first!"

Although Fu Chen had raised his hand to show his stance first, there was little response.

Clearly, most people were still hesitant.

They knew that what Fu Chen said was correct.

Players from the same Community naturally had a better foundation of trust than strangers, and entering a multiplayer game would give them a certain advantage.

Moreover, the game was unavoidable for every player; if they didn't enter this one, they would have to enter the next, especially for those with little visa time remaining.

But even so, the thought that death could actually occur in the Judgment Game made their survival instincts instinctively recoil.

The five-minute countdown was short.

Fu Chen scanned the crowd anxiously, but there was nothing he could do at this point.

Fortunately, before the countdown ended, two more people raised their hands.

Cao Haichuan and Lin Sizhi.

Yang Yuting was still hesitating whether to raise her hand, as her visa time was also running low, and this might be an opportunity to earn more.

But in the next second, the countdown hit zero.

[Voluntary Participants: Cao Haichuan, Lin Sizhi]

Although Fu Chen, Cao Haichuan, and Lin Sizhi had all raised their hands to sign up, Fu Chen's name did not appear on the big screen.

This was because voluntary participants were randomly selected, and Fu Chen had clearly been filtered out.

It was hard to say whether his luck was good or bad.

The five people selected by the game instantly disappeared from the hall.

"Beep--"

A sharp beep sounded, and Lin Sizhi gradually regained consciousness.

He found himself in a completely unfamiliar space, and he was alone.

He looked around.

The surroundings were clean, white walls, and the room contained only very simple tables and chairs.

However, the wall directly opposite was a huge transparent glass, through which he could see the entire game scene.

On the walls on both sides were many screens, large and small, like a monitoring room, allowing them to see many details within the game area from various angles.

Lin Sizhi sat in a chair and looked at the tabletop.

There were many operation buttons, such as "Confirm," "Cancel," "√," "×," a numeric keypad, and avatar buttons representing Ding Wenqiang and the other four people.

A moment later, the small screen in front of the table displayed an introduction to the game rules.

[As a voluntary participant, your role in this game is: Spectator.]

[Spectators do not need to personally participate in the game and will not suffer life-or-death penalties.]

[There are a total of 10 spectators in this game. Spectators only need to do three things:]

[1. Tip]

[Tip a certain amount of Visa Time to an in-game player, along with a text message. Each character requires a tip of 1000 minutes of Visa Time.]

[Please Note: The player who receives the tip may not necessarily comply with your request. Even if they don't comply, the tip is still valid and non-refundable.]

[2. Vote]

[Each time a judgment occurs in the game, all Spectators must vote on the fairness of the "King's" actions.]

[Fairness is primarily determined by whether the Judgment Game arranged by the King for the Prisoner is appropriate in both content and severity relative to the Prisoner's crime.]

[This vote yields no benefits for Spectators.]

[The voting process will be automatically polygraphed. If a vote contradicts one's true inner thoughts, the Spectator will be deducted 10,000 minutes of Visa Time.]

[Special Notice: Spectators are strictly prohibited from revealing their identity or any fairness-related information to the players in the arena. Discovery of such an act will result in forced shielding, and the informant will be subjected to an Instant Death Punishment.]

[3. Bet]

[Spectators can choose to bet on either the "King" or the "Prisoner." Only one side can be chosen, with a default bet of 50,000 minutes of Visa Time.]

[Each side can receive a maximum of 5 Spectator bets.]

[King's side victory condition: At the end of the game, fewer than 3 Prisoners survive.]

[King's side victory reward: For each Prisoner executed by the King, every betting Spectator will receive an additional 30,000 minutes of Visa Time.]

[Prisoner's side victory condition: At the end of the game, 3 or more Prisoners survive.]

[Prisoner's side victory reward: Every betting Spectator will receive an additional 50,000 minutes of Visa Time.]

[At the end of the game, based on the victory status of the King's side and the Prisoner's side, the winner will also divide all of the loser's staked and earned chips.]

[Finally, please remember: This is someone else's judgment, and you are merely a Spectator.]

[Good luck!]

Lin Sizhi carefully read through the rules, but it was clear that without understanding the specific game format, it would be difficult to analyze how to best utilize these rules.

Lin Sizhi had no immediate insights and could only look towards the arena through the large transparent glass in front of him.

His current area resembled a second-floor viewing stand. There were a total of 10 such stands, each marked with a large number.

"So, there are 10 Spectators for this game. Many of them are from other Communities.

"Officer Cao should be among them, but I don't know which number he is."

Lin Sizhi wanted to observe the other Spectators, but the glass was one-way, allowing him to see out but not for others to see in.

Just then, the broadcast voice came through the speaker again.

[Spectator No. 1 bets on the "King".]

Clearly, a Spectator had made a decision surprisingly quickly.

Up to this point, the game's rules had not been fully explained. The Spectators only knew the rules pertaining to them, but they were still completely unaware of how the players actually participating in the game would proceed.

For instance, the specific criteria for distinguishing between the "King" and the "Prisoners," and the extent of the "King's" privileges, remained unknown.

The officials had not imposed a time limit on betting, suggesting it could likely be done at any point during the game, so there was no need to rush.

Since one could only bet on either the King or the Prisoner, it would be better to observe a bit before making a decision.

Of course, Lin Sizhi could roughly guess why Spectator No. 1 was in such a hurry.

According to the rules, each side could receive a maximum of 5 Spectator bets.

This meant that if someone wanted to bet on the King but was too slow, becoming the sixth person to bet, they would automatically be placed on the Prisoner's side.

Spectator No. 1 had firmly chosen the King's side from the very beginning.

Perhaps they believed the King inherently had a greater advantage, or perhaps they naturally favored game modes where killing led to profit.

After a moment of consideration, Lin Sizhi decided not to bet yet and turned his attention back to the game area.

He was Spectator No. 5, positioned in a prime viewing location.

Looking down slightly, he could clearly see the main game area.

The area resembled a "Jia" character shape (甲), with a spacious main section below the Spectator stands, divided into several compartments, each containing different mechanisms.

The vertical stroke of the "Jia" character was a long passageway extending into the distance.

Five figures could be seen at the end of the passageway.

Through various surveillance cameras, corresponding footage could be found:

Wang Yongxin, Cai Zhiyuan, Ding Wenqiang, Zhang Peng, and Gao Zhankui were all staring at the screens in front of them, listening to the game rules explanation.

The sounds from the game area were clearly transmitted into Lin Sizhi's room via the speaker.

[Greetings, players.]

[You will now undergo judgment and participate in a game called "King's Judgment."]

[In this game, your identities will all be "sinners."]

[However, soon, one of you will become the "King," while the others will become "Prisoners."]

[This game session will last for 2 hours. Once the game officially begins, the visa bracelets on your wrists will inject a slow-acting poison into your bodies. You will die from the poison after 2 hours.]

[You must achieve the game's objective within 2 hours to have a chance of survival.]

[Before entering the official game area, you will play a simple preliminary mini-game to determine your roles in the main game: "King" or "Prisoner".]

[As you can see, there is a 45-meter long corridor ahead, divided into three sections: 20 meters, 15 meters, and 10 meters.]

[You must carry a mechanism in front of you that weighs twice your body weight and pass through the corridor within the time limit.]

[Each section has a different time limit and rest period. Please pay close attention to the timer on your path.]

[If you exceed the time limit, the spikes on the mechanism will pierce your bodies. Exceeding the time limit by double will result in an Instant Death Punishment.]

[The first sinner to pass through the corridor will become the "King," while the other sinners will become "Prisoners."]

[The role of "King" is crucial, so please give it your all.]

[More rules will be revealed once you enter the official area.]

[This is a test of will and wisdom. Pay attention to every clue in the game, and don't forget to listen to your inner voice.]

[Now, the game begins. Good luck!]