Lying

The woman's scream stopped, and everyone's thoughts came to an abrupt halt.

The men who had been shouting and cursing moments earlier fell silent too.

This was no longer a question of whether it was "illegal." The freak in front of them really would kill.

After more than a full minute of silence, Goat Head gave a slight nod. "Good. You nine seem to have quieted down."

Their faces changed, but none of them dared to speak. Just as he had said, there really were only "nine" of them now.

Qi Xia raised a trembling hand and removed a pinkish-yellow lump from his cheek.

The fragment of shattered brain was still warm, still twitching faintly. But within a few seconds, it lost all signs of life, like a ball deflating.

"Now, allow me to introduce myself..." Goat Head raised a blood-soaked finger and pointed at his mask. "I am 'Human Sheep,' and you are the 'participants.'"

Everyone froze at those words, then looked puzzled. "Human Sheep"? "Participants"?

"You have been gathered here to take part in a game, with the ultimate goal of creating a 'god,'" Goat Head said flatly.

Those two statements in quick succession made everyone frown.

After these few minutes with him, they had more or less established that the man before them was insane. Yet this madman claimed he wanted to create a "god"?

"Create... what kind of god?" the muscular young man asked nervously.

"A god like 'Nuwa'!" Goat Head gesticulated wildly, reeking of a rank, gamey odor, his voice taking on a savage edge. "How wonderful! You will witness history alongside us! Nuwa once created humanity, only to turn into a rainbow while mending the heavens... We cannot lose Nuwa, so we must create another Nuwa! A great task awaits this 'god'!"

His voice grew louder and shriller, as though he had been pumped full of stimulants.

"Nuwa..." The muscular young man's brow furrowed. He still found all this far too difficult to accept. After a pause, he asked, "Are you some kind of religion?"

"Religion?" Goat Head froze briefly, then turned toward the young man. "We are far grander than a 'religion.' We have a 'world'!"

At that, everyone fell silent again.

The muscular man's question had been pointed. The goat-headed man's actions were no different from those of a cult, but most cults tended to invent a new god rather than use a heroic figure like Nuwa.

"In that case..." the muscular man continued, "what do you want us to 'participate' in here?"

"I told you, nothing more than a game," Goat Head answered without hesitation. "If you win, one of you will become a 'god.'"

"Fucking bastard..." The tattooed man seemed to have calmed down. Still cursing, he said, "'Investiture of the Gods,' is it? What if we don't win?"

"If you don't win..." Goat Head looked at the blood on his hands and said with a trace of disappointment, "that would be such a shame..."

Although he had not said it outright, everyone understood what he meant.

If they failed to win, they would die.

"Get out alive" was not one of the options he had offered.

They would either become what he called a "god" or die here like the young man whose head had been blown apart.

"If everyone understands... then this 'game' officially begins. This game is called 'Liar.'" Goat Head slowly took a stack of paper from inside his clothes, then strolled casually around the table, placing one sheet in front of each person.

Then he took out several pens and distributed them.

There was plenty of blood on the table, and each white sheet picked up red stains as it landed. When they turned the paper over and wiped it with their hands, the blood spread like paint, staining the sheets even redder.

"Next, I want each of you to tell us about the last thing that happened before you came here," Goat Head continued. "But take note: among everyone telling their stories, one person will be lying. Once all nine have finished, you will begin voting. If all eight of you correctly identify the 'Liar,' the Liar will be eliminated, and everyone else will survive. If even one of you chooses incorrectly, the Liar will survive, and everyone else will be eliminated."

"The Liar...?"

They were somewhat bewildered. Would anyone really lie when their lives were at stake?

"Wait, can we discuss 'tactics'?" the muscular man suddenly asked.

"As you wish." Goat Head nodded. "Before the game begins, you have one minute to discuss tactics. Would you like to use it now... or later?"

"I want to use it now," the muscular man said without hesitation.

"Go ahead."

Goat Head took a step back, away from the table.

The muscular man pressed his lips together, then looked around at everyone, doing his best to avoid the headless corpse slumped over the table. "I don't know which of you is going to lie later, but this 'rule' sounds far too unforgiving. If just one person casts the wrong vote, we all die. And even if we choose correctly, the Liar still dies. That means someone will die no matter what. But I've thought of a way for all of us to survive..."

Everyone turned toward the muscular man when they heard that.

Could he really get everyone out alive?

"We all tell the truth." Without waiting for them to work it out, the muscular man revealed his answer. "All nine of us tell the truth, then write 'No one lied' on these sheets. That won't break the rules, and we can all survive."

The man in the white coat tapped his fingers lightly against the table. After a moment, he said, "That's a good plan, but it rests on one condition: that you aren't the Liar yourself. How are we supposed to trust you? If you're the Liar, and we all write 'No one lied,' you'll be the only one left alive."

"What's that supposed to mean?" The muscular man looked slightly angry. "If I were the Liar, why would I suggest this? I'd only need to look out for myself."

Goat Head gave a small wave. "Your minute is up. Please stop talking."

Both men snorted and said nothing more.

"Now, please draw your cards." Goat Head pulled a small stack of cards from his trouser pocket. They looked about the size of playing cards, with "Nuwa Game" written on the backs.

The muscular man froze. "What are those?"

"These are 'role cards,'" Goat Head said with a loud laugh. "If you draw 'Liar,' you must lie."

The muscular man clenched his teeth. "Are you screwing with us?! Why didn't you tell us that rule beforehand?!"

"This is to teach you a lesson," Goat Head said with a cold smile. "Before I finished explaining the rules, you asked whether you could discuss tactics. You were the ones who wasted that precious minute. It wasn't a matter of me failing to tell you beforehand."

The muscular man's expression darkened, but remembering how Goat Head had killed, he swallowed his anger.

Within a minute, all nine had drawn a card from Goat Head's hand, but none dared turn it over.

If their card said "Liar," it would become a choice between their own survival and everyone else's.

The four women's hands trembled slightly, and the men looked no better.

What they had drawn was not a "role," but "life or death."

Qi Xia took a deep breath, casually covered his card with his hand, then slid it in front of him.

He gently turned it over and looked.

There, unmistakably, was the word "Liar."