As soon as Chen Junnan’s question was voiced, even Qi Xia’s sharp mind momentarily froze.
“What did you say?” Qi Xia blinked in confusion.
“I said, when the hell did you become a fraudster?” Chen Junnan repeated, his face still etched with bewilderment. “Is this some new identity you made up for yourself?”
“What are you talking about, pretty boy?” Qiao Jiajin chimed in with a puzzled grin. “Liar bro already mentioned it during the ‘Liar’ game…”
Before he could finish, Qiao Jiajin realized something was off.
They had never actually played the “Liar” game with Chen Junnan before.
Chen Junnan had been killed in the first two rounds, and in the third, the Sheep had committed suicide.
Meaning, Chen Junnan had never heard Qi Xia’s self-introduction—never heard him say, “My name is Qi Xia, and I’m a liar.” So, in his memory, what exactly had Qi Xia claimed to be?
“So… who am I…?” Qi Xia’s lips trembled slightly as he turned to Chen Junnan.
“What kind of question is that?” Chen Junnan frowned. “You don’t even know who you are anymore?”
“No…” Qi Xia stopped walking, his expression deadly serious. “Chen Junnan, in your memory… what story did I tell in the ‘Liar’ game?”
“You said you were a con artist who scammed two million from someone,” Chen Junnan answered without hesitation, then furrowed his brows. “Wait, Old Qi, don’t tell me you’ve conned yourself?”
“What…?” Only then did Qi Xia realize the strangeness of it all. “So the version you heard… is the same as what I told.”
“Did you change it or something? Whatever we said back then… wasn’t it all lies?” Chen Junnan chuckled. “Do you really think anyone told the complete truth in their initial stories? You know what identity cards everyone drew, right?”
Hearing this, Qi Xia suddenly understood the source of the unease he’d been feeling all along.
Perhaps everyone had woven lies into their initial stories—except for him.
In his memory, he had indeed swindled two million from someone, and in his first story, he’d laid it all out plainly. After all, he knew that even if he drew the “Liar” card, there was no need to lie—so he’d told the truth from the start.
Qi Xia took a moment to organize his thoughts before speaking again. “If the version you heard matches what I said, doesn’t that prove I really am a fraudster?”
This statement made Chen Junnan burst out laughing. “Old Qi, what the hell are you doing? Are you seriously trying to convince me you’re a fraudster? What’s the point? Most people would scramble to clear their name if they were falsely accused, but you’re practically begging me to believe it!”
“I…” Qi Xia shook his head firmly. “This isn’t about being a ‘fraudster’… It’s about something far more important. So I need you to tell me everything you know.”
Seeing the gravity in Qi Xia’s eyes, Chen Junnan realized things might be more serious than he thought. After a pause, he answered, “Old Qi, to be honest, no one told the truth in the ‘Liar’ game—not even you. You once admitted to me that before coming here, you’d just graduated with a master’s degree and were job hunting. Out of all nine of us, your lie was the most outrageous.”
“What…?” Qi Xia’s eyes widened slowly. “I have a master’s degree…?”
“You know… I might not believe what you said in the game, but you had no reason to lie to me afterward, right?” Chen Junnan let out a confused, bitter laugh. “Don’t tell me you’ve been deceiving me this whole time?”
Qi Xia mulled over the question carefully. Logically, Chen Junnan was a decent guy—maybe a bit talkative, but reliable in both action and character. He wasn’t someone Qi Xia would dislike, let alone go out of his way to deceive with an elaborate lie.
But how could he possibly have a master’s degree?
After graduating high school, he’d never pursued further education. He’d struggled on his own, witnessing the darkest sides of human nature. At nineteen, he’d met Yu Nian’an, and they’d spent seven years together. Now, at twenty-six, he was trapped in this godforsaken “Endgame,” having lost Yu Nian’an and desperate to escape—to find her again.
Wasn’t that the entirety of his life?
The more he thought about it, the more the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end.
Wait a minute… why had he scammed that two million in the first place…?
“Because that scumbag wronged Yu Nian’an…” Qi Xia muttered to himself. “The only time I ever committed fraud was to get two million back for her…”
In an instant, the world seemed to spin again as a chilling realization struck him.
If Yu Nian’an didn’t exist… would he still be a fraudster?
“This is bad… really bad…” Qi Xia murmured, his face a mask of disbelief. “Why does every piece of evidence lead to this conclusion? Why won’t they stop? Why does every path I take to investigate this question lead to the same answer?”
Seeing the drastic shift in Qi Xia’s expression, both Chen Junnan and Qiao Jiajin grew uneasy. Even in life-or-death situations, Qi Xia had never looked this unsettled before.
“Old Qi… what’s going on with you?” Chen Junnan asked awkwardly, forcing a smile. “Sure, you’re smart, but you don’t have to insist on being a fraudster… I only graduated high school, but don’t feel bad—a master’s degree isn’t something to be ashamed of…”
“My memories have been altered…” Qi Xia muttered, his gaze distant, completely ignoring Chen Junnan’s attempt at humor. “The lie I told in the ‘Liar’ game… has become my real life. What kind of twisted logic is this…?”
“Huh?”
Finally, Chen Junnan grasped the core of Qi Xia’s distress—though the revelation was so bizarre that he couldn’t immediately process it.
After a long pause, he managed to ask, “Old Qi… last time you returned to the ‘real world’…”
“I was already a fraudster,” Qi Xia stated firmly. “I dropped out at eighteen and wasted my life ever since. I even brought back laundered money… Yu Nian’an was waiting for me at home… Are you telling me none of that was real?”
“What…?” Chen Junnan felt Qi Xia was spiraling further into absurdity. “Old Qi, forget the rest—just answer me this one question. If you only graduated high school, how the hell did you use all that theoretical knowledge to lead us through every challenge?”
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