True and False Seers

After revealing her identity, Li Shuyi continued, "I am the Seer. I checked member number 8 last night; he is from the Guardian Faction. I hope member number 8 can become the squad leader."

All eyes turned to number 8, Bai Xiaowen.

Bai Xiaowen smiled, but inwardly she was smiling bitterly.

Miss Li, it seems you haven't played this game much; this is clearly the comment of a newbie. She probably only crammed on the rules during the nighttime session.

From Bai Xiaowen's perspective, it's entirely understandable why Li Shuyi, a "good person" from the Guardian Faction, would pretend to be a Prophet. She wanted to elevate Bai Xiaowen's status—regardless of whether Bai Xiaowen was from the Guardian Faction or the Blasphemer Faction, Li Shuyi hoped that Bai Xiaowen could survive.

Even if the price was that Li Shuyi's own status was lowered and she was voted out and executed.

Undoubtedly, Li Shuyi's novice-like remarks will become the target of attack from everyone present—if the other ten members have relevant game experience, they can find many loopholes.

After finishing her sentence, Li Shuyi gently tapped the table to indicate that she had finished speaking.

Each participant's speech is timed by an hourglass; once the timer expires, the speech is forcibly ended. Bai Xiaowen estimated that, based on the speed at which the sand in the hourglass was running, each person's single speech should last for 3 minutes.

Prompt: "Speaker #1 has finished speaking, speaker #4 is now speaking."

The round table spun, and the hourglass came to member number 4, restarting the timer.

The person sitting in seat number 4 was a fair-skinned man with a humble demeanor, who looked like a nobleman. The relief on the coffin behind him was a rabbit.

"Let me introduce myself, my name is Ludwig."

"First of all, I am a good person—you can treat me as an ordinary believer, or I could be a priest."

"I imagine that everyone here has gone through many elimination rounds of the Awakened Game. However, just in case newcomers join, I'll explain some established practices. This is to increase the chances of our Guardian Faction winning, because, in terms of numbers, newcomers are twice as likely to be assigned to the Guardian Faction as those in the Blasphemer Faction. Explaining these things will help newcomers in the Guardian Faction make more accurate judgments. Of course, experienced veterans can skip my remarks."

Upon hearing Ludwig's remarks, many people smiled, and the atmosphere eased slightly.

Ludwig continued:

"Let's start with how we address people. Some people don't want to reveal their names, like the lady in seat number one. Of course, that's fine; we usually address people based on the coffin relief behind them."

"For example, on the coffin behind me is a cute little rabbit. So, newlyweds can call me Mr. Rabbit, and number 1 is Miss Mouse. It is said that these twelve animal reliefs came from a distant land, but there is no need for everyone to waste time delving into it."

"Also, the squad leader election on the first day of the Awakened Game is extremely important for our Guardian Faction. We must ensure that the true prophet obtains the leadership, because this position will be passed down continuously—the prophet always dies within two or three nights because he poses too great a threat to the Blasphemer Faction."

"After the prophet's death, we can only use reasoning to find the remaining Profaner. This is undoubtedly difficult, so the prophet must make the most of his contribution."

"During the leadership election, the prophet must state who he will verify the following night. If the prophet falls the following night, and the member he verified that night is a Guardian Faction, then by 'designating that member as the successor to the leadership,' the message that this member is a good person can be conveyed."

"Conversely, if the member is found to be of the Blasphemer Faction that night, the message that this person is a bad person can be conveyed by either 'designating another known good person as a successor' or 'not designating a successor.'"

"For example, Miss Mouse Number 1's statement just now unfortunately didn't include this point. Therefore, I can't be sure about her prophetic status. If someone later claims to be a true prophet, I'll be more inclined to believe them."

Mr. Rabbit Number 4, also known as Ludwig, tapped the round table lightly at this point, concluding his speech.

The round table was moved to number 5, and on the coffin behind him was a dragon-shaped relief.

Bai Xiaowen had already realized that this was just the Chinese zodiac!

The appearance of the twelve primordial stars of ancient China in the Black Tide Plane does seem somewhat incongruous, just like what Ludwig number 4) just mentioned—animals from a distant, alien land. For example, the dragon behind number 5 is a Chinese-style dragon, quite different from the Western-style dragon with a lizard's head, bat wings, and a large rear end.

This made Bai Xiaowen even more curious about the owner of this Shadow Labyrinth.

At the very least, this person (?) knows about the existence of other dimensions, and it's quite possible they've been there—of course, whether they're even human is still uncertain.

Number 5 spoke with a blank expression:

"Mylo, you can call me Mr. Dragon. I am the Prophet. Last night, I verified that Mr. Sheep, number 8, is a good person. Tomorrow night, I will verify Mr. Rooster, number 10, because he seems too nervous. I suspect he is not a good person."

"Let me share my thoughts on the two members who spoke before me."

"Miss Mouse Number 1 is impersonating me and claiming to Profaner. Good people can certainly impersonate prophets, but they usually falsely claim to be ' Profaner ' to those behind them to test their reaction. However, Miss Mouse falsely claims to be a good person to those behind her, eliminating the possibility of her deceiving them. If she refuses to withdraw from the leadership election, she is undoubtedly Profaner trying to mislead everyone. I suggest a vote to execute her."

"Mr. Rabbit #4 patiently explained some rules to potential newcomers, hoping to increase the Guardian Faction's chances of winning. In my opinion, his identity is quite good. Of course, it's also possible that he's Profaner who noticed that his teammate #1's Profaner's speech as a fake prophet was too clumsy, so he made a statement to make up for it."

"As for who is the true prophet between me and Number 1, I probably don't need to say more. Miss Mouse Number 1 didn't even say who she would check next night, and she even recommended Mr. Sheep Number 8 as the team leader. Have you ever seen a prophet like this?"

"I hope you will trust me and elect me as the team leader. That concludes my speech."

Bai Xiaowen narrowed her eyes slightly.

Bai Xiaowen is a prophet, so in his eyes, number 5, "Mr. Dragon" Mylo, must be an iron wolf... no, an iron Profaner. His logic in attacking Li Shuyi is indeed reasonable and convincing, but his mistake is that he gave the real prophet Bai Xiaowen the identity of a good person.

This is the much-anticipated scenario of "the fake prophet revealing the true prophet's true identity" (the true identity being verified by the prophet). It can be said to be a disastrous start for the bad guys. Next, as long as Bai Xiaowen, the true prophet, "betrays" and becomes a police officer—that is, steps out of the true prophet's identity and participates in the leadership election—the fake prophet number 5 will definitely be eliminated.

Of course, in the eyes of Mylo, who was falsely claiming to be the Seer, Number 1 should be a rookie true prophet, which is why he recklessly sent out golden water to the back, ending up on Bai Xiaowen's head. From this perspective, Li Shuyi's flawed act of falsely claiming to be the Seer actually confused the Profaner and inadvertently did them a good deed.

Miss Horse, number 7, was a beautiful woman with slightly dark skin and a voluptuous figure. She first whistled and then looked at Bai Xiaowen with a somewhat flirtatious expression:

"Congratulations to Mr. Sheep, number 8! You were identified as a good person by two prophets without saying a word. You have the highest status in the entire room. From this angle, you really are a handsome boy. My name is Leona. For now, I believe that Mr. Dragon, number 5, is the real prophet, and number 1 is an imposter. Anyway, the prophets didn't find Profaner on the first day, so let's unanimously execute Miss Mouse, number 1."

"However, I'd like to hear Mr. Yang's remarks more; perhaps he'll give me a surprise."

Miss Horse, number 7, Leona a brief speech, and the hourglass on the round table turned to face Bai Xiaowen.

Bai Xiaowen ignored Leona's slightly provocative remarks, his mind racing with thoughts.

To jump or not to jump? That is the question.

Following that line of thought, if Bai Xiaowen, as the highest-ranking player on the field, were to step out as the Seer, a single breath from him would be enough to eliminate the unfortunate number 5, Mylo.

However, the Blasphemer Faction consists of four people, and finding only one Profaner is far from a victory.

There's another Archdemon who can self-destruct during the day, taking one surviving member with him. While Bai Xiaowen's revelation of his true prophet identity would certainly give the good guys a clearer view, allowing them to identify Mylo (number 5) Profaner, and improve Li Shuyi's situation, what happens after that?

If Bai Xiaowen is killed by the Archdemon's self-destruction, will the other good people in the Guardian Faction be able to find the last two Profaner?

Bai Xiaowen was definitely unwilling to entrust her and Li Shuyi's fate to six other people.

The problem is, if Bai Xiaowen doesn't use the Seer's trick, given Li Shuyi's flawed and sponge-like statements, she definitely won't be able to beat the fifth Profaner, Mylo.

Thinking of Li Shuyi's remarks, a thought flashed through Bai Xiaowen's mind.

[Wait a minute... what if we approach it from a reverse perspective...]

"Member number 8, please speak." After Bai Xiaowen remained silent for a few seconds, a notification sound rang out from the mysterious light in the center of the round table.

Under the watchful eyes of everyone, Bai Xiaowen slowly spoke:

"Actually... I believe more that Miss Mouse Number One is the true prophet."

Facing the slightly surprised gazes of the crowd, Bai Xiaowen confidently spoke:

"Let's assume for a moment that if Miss Mouse Number 1 were a Profaner, impersonating a prophet, would she make such a flawed statement that doesn't even mention follow-up verification?"

"Yes, you can say that Number 1 is a newcomer. But would a newcomer dare to impersonate a prophet in this life-or-death game?"

"Or rather, Number 1 was chosen by her fellow Profaner to impersonate the Prophet. Then think about it, wouldn't her companions have taught her how to play the Prophet? Don't forget, the Blasphemer Faction can discuss things at night."

"The flawed speech from rookie number 1 actually proves one thing: she has no teammates. Nobody taught her how to speak."

Bai Xiaowen emphasized, "Therefore, I believe that Miss Mouse Number 1 is the true prophet. And Mr. Dragon Number 5, who is claiming to be the prophet against her, must be a Profaner."

Throughout her speech, Bai Xiaowen kept her eyes fixed on Li Shuyi.

This was truly a risky move. By having Li Shuyi act as the prophet in the open, while Bai Xiaowen, the real prophet, remained hidden, they could verify his identity multiple times if all went smoothly. Moreover, with Bai Xiaowen present, whether giving a concluding speech or tallying the votes, he could play a leading role.

Bai Xiaowen was afraid that Li Shuyi would withdraw from the election—that would prove that Li Shuyi was not a true prophet, because a true prophet would not withdraw from an election.

If Li Shuyi withdraws from the election, Bai Xiaowen will have no choice but to retract her previous statements and relinquish her status as a prophet.

Even if he were killed by the self-destruction of the Archdemon, it would still be better than letting everyone mistakenly believe that Mylo #5 was the true prophet and being led by the nose by the Profaner.

Li Shuyi's bright eyes were also fixed on Bai Xiaowen. She always felt that there was an encouraging look in Bai Xiaowen's eyes.

"As for the other three Profaner, I believe... among those who spoke in the leadership election, there must be other Profaner trying to garner votes for the false prophet, number 5, and to incite unrest. Judging from their previous speeches, Miss Horse, number 7, is the most suspicious."

"As for Mr. Rabbit #4, he seemed to be explaining the rules to the newcomers, but he was actually subtly attacking #1. His final speech served as a setup, making everyone more convinced that #5 was the false prophet. Therefore, it's also possible that both #4 and #5 Profaner."

"Therefore, I suggest that Miss Mouse Number 1 test Number 4 first, then Number 7. The guards will protect Miss Mouse Number 1 tonight so that she can report the test results for the past two days. Of course, we also need to think of a way to prevent the Profaner from continuously self-destructing."

(In Werewolf Kill, Werewolf's self-destruction can end the daytime phase and directly enter the next night. This prevents the seer from speaking and is an effective way to silence information about other werewolves, at the cost of sacrificing one Werewolf.)

"Let's make a deal: if the verification results show that one of the two people, 4 and 7, is Profaner and the other is a good person, then when Miss Mouse dies, she will designate the good person as her successor as leader."

"If both 4 and 7 are Profaner, then Miss Mouse may not designate a successor."

"If both 4 and 7 are good people, then Miss Mouse can designate me as her successor."

"Please don't be nervous, Miss Mouse. I believe you are a true prophet, and you will definitely help us Guardian Faction and achieve victory." Bai Xiaowen's words were rather subtle, but he couldn't be any clearer.

He believed that Li Shuyi would definitely notice something from his unusually emphasized tone—at least, she could understand Bai Xiaowen's desire for her to stay on the campaign stage and stand up to number 5.