The Honest Man Who Speaks the Truth

"So I drove there with Lin Qing, the customer service manager. We arrived at his place at 10:30."

"I found the door ajar. When I pushed it open, I saw Brother Li hanging from the ceiling. I tried to lift him down to save him, but he'd been dead for a while. The room was freezing cold, eerie..."

"Did you take anything from the crime scene?" The Young Security Guard interrupted Gao Linzhi impatiently.

"Anything?" Gao Linzhi shook his head instinctively.

"I didn't take anything. But Manager Lin did pick up a black-and-white game poster from nearby. She was about to leave right away, but I stopped her and asked her to help with the rescue and call the police."

Everything he said was true. He hadn't taken a thing.

Right now, the best strategy for him was to speak only the "truth," but not the whole truth.

This was a classic Prisoner's Dilemma.

"Lin Qing took the game poster!"

"Are you sure?" The Young Security Guard's eyes lit up with a hint of glee as he confirmed.

Gao Linzhi thought back carefully and nodded. "I'm sure."

The Old Security Guard was very satisfied. "Excellent, Engineer Gao. Think back—did Manager Li show any unusual behavior before he died?"

Gao Linzhi thought for a moment. "If we're talking unusual, Brother Li used to be the most diligent, easygoing guy in the company. But in the last three months, he was always late and slacking off."

"The General Manager chewed him out three or four times in front of everyone. Said things like, 'If you want to work, work. If not, get the hell out. This company doesn't support dead weight.'"

The two security guards exchanged glances, visibly excited.

The Young Security Guard couldn't even wait—he immediately dialed a number and started to report right in front of Gao Linzhi.

It wasn't until the Old Security Guard shoved him that he stepped out of the Interrogation Room, reported something to someone, and then hurried back in.

When he returned, the Young Security Guard's tone had softened. "Mr. Gao, based on our initial understanding, you and Manager Li Ziming had a good relationship. He's been mentoring you ever since you joined the company. Did he leave you anything?"

First arrogant, then polite—the shift was almost laughable.

"As for what Brother Li left me, there's quite a bit." Gao Linzhi thought back and confirmed.

"What is it? Tell us quickly—it'll be very useful for investigating the real cause of his death." The Young Security Guard pressed eagerly.

"21 Days to C++ Mastery, 42 Days to Python Proficiency, 89 Days to Deep Algorithms... A Guide to Treating Cervical Spondylosis, Complete Prevention of Heart Attacks and Strokes." Gao Linzhi immediately pulled out his phone. "I can transfer them to you right now. All in high-definition PDF."

"Are you trying to pick a fight?" The Young Security Guard's face darkened as he listened. He stood up abruptly, glaring at Gao Linzhi. "Do you want to get out of here or not?"

"You told me to speak the truth." Gao Linzhi took a deep breath, suppressing his anger.

From the other's tone, it sounded like they didn't plan to let him go?

Sure enough, in a world this tightly controlled, someone without connections couldn't hold onto a lucky break even if they got one.

Unless that lucky break was powerful from the start. Fortunately, his cheat was exactly that kind.

"Alright, alright, Xiao Qi, calm down." The Old Security Guard pushed the Young Security Guard back into his chair and shot him a look.

The Young Security Guard sat back down, his face cold as he stared at Gao Linzhi.

"Engineer Gao, sorry for the trouble. We'll stop here for today. You can go home. If anything comes up, we'll reach out to you again." The Old Security Guard gave Gao Linzhi a smile.

Gao Linzhi nodded and got up to leave.

He walked out of the gloomy Interrogation Room and left the Security Office Building.

Basking in the afternoon sun, only one thought crossed his mind:

In just a few days, I'm done eating beef!

Go home. Level up. Get stronger.

Xinyuan Residential Area, Building 7, Room 702.

Gao Linzhi returned home, threw himself onto the bed, and pretended to sleep.

In reality, he lay there, checking the game panel in his mind.

Suddenly, a minimap popped up in his thoughts.

And a "whoosh" sound rang out—the classic BGM for encountering enemies in a game.

Centered on himself, it displayed the area within a ten-kilometer radius.

On the minimap, two Red Dots appeared in the northeast direction.

He instinctively thought, "Zoom in."

The minimap expanded rapidly. He looked closely—it was unmistakably the two security guards who had just interrogated him.

So they were fishing after all.

Gao Linzhi thought to himself, then focused his mind on the game panel.

[Physique: 5 (Normal human max: 10, same below)]

[Spirit: 7]

[HP:50 (Constitution x10)]

[MP:70 (Spirit x10)]

[Talent: The Only Ordinary Player.]

[Game Backpack: 10 Slots.]

[You are the only ordinary player in this game, enjoying full game functionality. You have two ways to play Skyfall, the real otherworldly game.]

[True Body Teleportation / Create Game Character, Mind Possession Mode]

[Death of either your true body or game character results in normal resurrection.]

[However, true body death carries severe penalties: heavy loss of game experience, dropping all equipped items, resurrection cooldown... etc. You can spend Skyfall Stones to waive death penalties.]

[Game character death only deducts 10% experience, and can be waived with a small amount of Skyfall Stones.]

[Skyfall Stones: 0 (Click to recharge. Recharge now and receive an Exclusive Newbie Gift Pack. Countdown: 6 days, 23 hours)]

[All enhancements gained through either play method are instantly reflected on the player themselves.]

That familiar feeling was back. Sure enough, an ordinary player—how could you get stronger without spending?

He continued reading.

[Experience: 0/100.]

[Note: Leveling up in this game always requires exactly 100 experience. However, the experience gained from defeating monsters depends on the character's level.]

[Rarity: White, Green, Blue, Purple, Gold, Red]

[Dark Gold Quality is a hidden rarity, not displayed in the game.]

[Enter game? Yes / No]

He thought it over carefully, forming a rough plan in his mind.

With a flick of his will, he opened the [Game Backpack].

The next moment, a game inventory appeared in his mind.

Sure enough, ten slots.

[You can spend Skyfall Stones to unlock more storage space. Each slot costs 10 Skyfall Stones; the more you unlock, the higher the cost.]

In the first slot sat that blue orb.

The treasure Brother Li had left behind was actually here.

[Resurrection Pearl (3/3): After death, the user can resurrect without penalty. Once the resurrection charges are depleted, it can be recharged with experience.]

[Recharging one charge requires as much experience as the user's total accumulated experience.]

[Effective for both game characters and the true body.]

Seeing this, Gao Linzhi's eyes went wide.

After all, everyone else had teleported with their true bodies—they only had one life!

The value of such a treasure was obvious.

Even for him, it was incredibly precious.