Death Game: Startingas a Trickster

Chapter 255: The Value of Fear

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"Vale Valetti, damn it, it's him!"

Before Lin Yu could react, Fu Luo became excited and looked toward Pang Kedo.

"I thought something was off when I heard you were also named Valetti, so it turns out you're..."

"Great-Uncle."

Pang Kedo reminded him.

"Great-Uncle?"

Fu Luo was surprised for a moment, then couldn't help but mutter: "Your grandfather and your dad both had kids pretty early, huh..."

Coleman looked at Fu Luo: "You actually know Vale Valetti too?"

Fu Luo waved his hand: "What do you mean I know him... I'm not bragging, buddy, but the last person in this world to see Vale Valetti was probably me, Furbollo."

"Back then in the vast snowy mountains..."

Then, Fu Luo suddenly realized something was wrong.

"Hey, wait a minute, did you just say 'too'?"

"'I also know Vale Valetti'... meaning this sister knows him too?"

Fu Luo looked at Lin Yu with disbelief.

Lin Yu shrugged: "Yeah, and I even have his privilege card and notebook in my possession."

Lin Yu once again displayed the [Ancient Notebook] and Vale Valetti's identity card.

And he certainly knew...

Fu Luo would recognize these two items.

But Lin Yu wasn't afraid of creating any "plot holes" by showing them, because Lin Yu had set up the conditions from the very beginning.

Both Li Nian and Chen Zhuo had heard Lin Yu's explanation... these things were given by a "friend."

Going further back, the connection between "Zhu Ming" and "May" was also reliable.

Sure enough, Fu Luo's eyes widened as he looked at these two items. ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ noᴠelfire.net

"How come you have them?"

Hearing Fu Luo's words, Lin Yu calmly turned his head and stared at Fu Luo.

"What do you mean how come I have them? These are my things to begin with... are you trying to say they're yours instead?"

As Lin Yu spoke, Fu Luo opened his mouth, then said:

"I... but I saw these things in a previous dungeon... I should have been the last person to see them."

Then, Fu Luo caught on.

"You bought them?"

Lin Yu shook his head: "Not bought, just given to me by a friend... or rather, an exchange."

As he said this, Fu Luo looked at Lin Yu in surprise.

"What profession is this friend of yours?"

Lin Yu slightly frowned, appearing as if he had realized something.

"Wait, so that means he must have encountered you in that dungeon... when he went to Zheng City, he also mentioned receiving help from some friends."

"My friend's profession is 'Doctor'."

As Lin Yu spoke, Fu Luo was overjoyed.

"No doubt about it, no doubt about it, sis!"

"'May' right? We have the same friend... wow, he never told me about this!"

"May and I are pure brothers, friendship forged through life and death."

Baron Coleman watched this scene, glanced at Pang Kedo beside him, and couldn't help but sigh emotionally.

"How wonderful."

It seemed that because he had also reunited with an old friend, he didn't interrupt their conversation.

Hearing Fu Luo's words, Lin Yu also put on an expression of pleasant surprise mixed with astonishment.

"So you're the 'extremely intelligent, meticulous detective' that May mentioned."

Hearing Lin Yu's words, Fu Luo seemed somewhat embarrassed.

"Really? Brother May said that about me behind my back? Oh my, look at this... how embarrassing!"

"To be honest, his wisdom is no less than mine."

Lin Yu smiled and shook his head, saying: "Not at all, different specialties... you helped him a lot in that dungeon."

"And after he came out, it was thanks to you that he could investigate matters related to the 'Psychological Society'—to be honest, your investigation of 'Fluoxetine' actually helped me more."

Lin Yu said with a smile.

But Fu Luo was momentarily stunned.

"Fluoxetine? I didn't investigate that... I couldn't possibly dig up information on people from the 'Psychological Society'—they're at the same level as that Miss Citalopram, right?"

As Fu Luo spoke, Lin Yu was also stunned.

He realized that Fu Luo was absolutely not lying.

Then...

What about Furbollo on the forum?

Lin Yu's thoughts raced, feeling a subtle dissonance that sent chills down his spine.

It was as if there were eyes watching him from behind.

But since Lin Yu was still playing the role of "Zhu Ming," he would absolutely not lose his composure during the performance.

So, Lin Yu simply made the reaction most fitting for Zhu Ming's identity.

"Is that so," Lin Yu slightly frowned, "I really don't know what May is up to, I'll go ask him later."

Then, feeling somewhat unsettled, Lin Yu looked toward Baron Coleman and continued questioning.

"Anyway, since we've mentioned Vale Valetti, the so-called 'forbidden' technology must be..."

"Fear, right?"

As she spoke, she pulled out the [Fear Torch] from her chest.

Baron Coleman nodded: "Correct. Ever since Professor Dort passed away from illness and Vale Valetti disappeared, the technology of 'Fear' has been regarded as forbidden."

"Because it was so long ago, I don't know exactly why it was considered forbidden... but Truth Corporation is a company very persistent about technological innovation. Ordinary accidents or technical defects are simply not enough reason to stop the development and research of a new field, new technology, or new energy source."

"So, there must be some extremely huge hidden danger, some irreconcilable contradiction, that made extracting 'Fear' considered the most forbidden of all forbidden things by all researchers and higher-ups."

Hearing this, Fu Luo recalled something and couldn't help but sigh.

"I think I might know what that hidden danger is."

Pang Kedo and Coleman immediately looked at Fu Luo simultaneously, both appearing very concerned.

After all, this was indeed something closely related to both of them.

But before Fu Luo could speak, Lin Yu interrupted him.

"Wait, Furbollo, don't talk about that yet..."

"Let him finish first," Lin Yu pointed at Baron Coleman, "on one hand, to see if what you know is truly valuable compared to what he knows, and on the other hand..."

"If it's really valuable, we can sell it for a good price."

Lin Yu said calmly, and Baron Coleman spoke helplessly.

"Madam, you really are a bit too clever."

"Alright... I'll continue—anyway, after discovering the existence of this ghost laboratory and investigating their research direction, I realized it was truly completely over."

"By then I was already A-2 level, just one step away from the company's top tier... holding onto the idea that I didn't want to ruin my future, I decided to gamble."

"So, I found one of the addresses of that non-existent laboratory, investigated it, and also found one of the responsible persons of this laboratory."

"At that time, the archives showed a certain researcher who had already retired to a leisure position, who had once worked with Professor Dort and was quite prestigious within Truth Corporation."

"And when I personally visited him at his home..."

Baron Coleman let out a breath.

"I discovered he had died in the laboratory in his own home."

Chapter 256: The Correct Way to Unlock the Ancient Notebook

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"So the crime they pinned on you was murder."

Hearing Baron Coleman's words, Fu Luo suddenly understood while feeling a trace of relief.

"When I first heard about it, I thought it might be something like embezzlement!"

Although for Baron Coleman, being framed for murder—with the victim being some respected figure within the company—was definitely more troublesome than something like embezzlement.

But for Fu Luo...

Being wrongly accused of murder was certainly better than embezzlement.

Because the former was easier to investigate and uncover the truth—a dead person would inevitably leave more clues than a pile of chaotic numbers.

Baron Coleman was also clear about this.

"Yes, although I didn't realize it immediately when the body was discovered, soon after... I quickly became the prime suspect in the murder of this researcher, Reed Christopher."

"Back then, this was undoubtedly a bolt from the blue for me, but dragging on until now... I actually have to feel somewhat grateful."

"Thanks to the murder charge they pinned on me back then, otherwise after so many years, proving my innocence would be almost impossible."

Fu Luo nodded.

"Exactly, but precisely because it's a murder case, there's still a possibility of overturning the verdict now."

Lin Yu stroked his chin and spoke: "But after all, eight years have passed, now we can only rely on Your Lordship's 'oral account' to reconstruct..."

"No, it's not just my oral account," Baron Coleman said, his eyes shining intensely, "Although I don't know why such a coincidence occurred... but you appearing here with 'Vale Valetti's notebook is greatly helpful for restoring the truth of that year."

Lin Yu took out the [Ancient Notebook], somewhat surprised.

"This notebook? What does it have to do with this case?"

Lin Yu wasn't surprised that this notebook had mysterious uses he didn't know about. After all, when Vale Valetti gave it to him as a reward back then, it inherently indicated that this notebook was definitely not just a very durable notebook.

Moreover, the item's own description almost explicitly hinted at it.

[Ancient Notebook: An indestructible notebook, information recorded on it can be preserved permanently. Seems to have other uses not yet discovered...]

What Lin Yu didn't know was what other miraculous uses this thing actually had.

Coleman looked at the notebook, then turned to Pang Kedo: "Pang Kedo, although you've lost many memories, about this notebook... you shouldn't have forgotten, right?"

"Of course, this was a major project that both my great-uncle and grandfather participated in—excavating and analyzing artifacts from ancient civilization unearthed from 'Ancient Ruin No. 9'."

Pang Kedo continued: "The things unearthed back then benefited the entire Truth Corporation for at least thirty years... Among them, the research results of this [Ancient Notebook] especially allowed Professor Dort to be promoted to A-level in one go, and even brought my great-uncle up to B-level too."

"This thing... I thought it had completely disappeared."

Pang Kedo sighed with emotion, and Baron Coleman spoke again.

"Exactly, back then, Mr. Vale Valetti and Professor Dort, through their research on this notebook, updated the 'emotion storage' device."

"The notebook in your hand isn't just durable; more importantly... as long as you master the proper method, it can store and convert any form of information."

"Images, text, sound, smells... even souls and emotions."

"Back then, Professor Dort's development of it was just the tip of the iceberg, yet it already greatly benefited the entire company—I've checked the records, this thing can almost be hailed as a 'divine artifact'."

Lin Yu listened to Pang Kedo's account and Baron Coleman's admiration, feeling very surprised. ᴛʜɪs ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪs ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ʙʏ N()velFire.net

He never expected Vale Valetti to be so generous... actually giving him something like this.

"Truly generous."

He couldn't help but exclaim aloud—though of course, to Fu Luo's ears, the object of this praise wasn't Vale Valetti.

This was also intentional on Lin Yu's part.

After casually adding an impromptu little act, Lin Yu turned his attention back to Baron Coleman.

"So, this thing can be used to reconstruct the scene from back then?"

"Yes—using my memory as the main source, supplemented by various photo records and documentation from the scene back then, we can almost completely restore the original scene."

Coleman said seriously, tapping the tank beside him that contained the floating head.

"Coincidentally, this thing... is completely 'connected' to Truth Corporation's internal network."

"And you happen to have an identity card with sufficient privileges to access the records of that murder case."

Lin Yu understandingly took out Vale Valetti's identity card.

"Alright, but where should I swipe it?"

Lin Yu asked, and Baron Coleman laughed.

"Of course, show it to him."

These words made Lin Yu feel somewhat creeped out.

Although the thing nearby inherently looked very eerie and seemed somewhat "alive," when the method of using it truly was "show it to him," treating it as if it were a living creature, Lin Yu still found it too bizarre.

Moreover, after the emotional discomfort faded, rationally Lin Yu also realized a "problem."

Just as he was about to ask, Fu Luo, who had also realized this "problem," spoke up.

"Wait, the 'Despair Furnace' is connected to Truth Corporation's internal network? And this thing itself has functions similar to 'vision'... or at least camera scanning capabilities?"

"It's a head, of course it has these functions."

Baron Coleman introduced with a smile.

"Then everything we do and say in Car No. 1, wouldn't it all be under Truth Corporation's surveillance?"

"This place is totally unsuitable as a location for secret plotting!"

Fu Luo said in panic and alarm.

However, Lin Yu, who had also realized this point, remained somewhat calm.

He looked at Baron Coleman.

"Yes, so why choose this place then?"

"Of course because I want them to see," Baron Coleman rubbed his neck, his expression composed, "You guessed it earlier, because of a certain secret, Truth Corporation actually can't bear to let me die either."

Lin Yu understood.

Baron Coleman's move was indeed clever—it showed both distrust and trust in them.

After all, not everyone completely wished for this baron to stay alive—he couldn't guarantee which faction they ultimately came from.

Placing their group under Truth Corporation's watchful eyes meant that if they truly intended harm towards him... presumably Truth Corporation would intervene to help him.

On the other hand, if he and Fu Luo truly were his hope for clearing his name and overthrowing Paris, this nearly public meeting would also provide them with some protection and leverage, directly bringing them into the view of Truth Corporation's top level.

This would certainly expose them, but more importantly it provided a layer of "insurance."

After all, when Lin Yu's group boarded the train, their identity information had already undoubtedly been exposed.

The reason Baron Coleman himself was spared was also the same reason why Lin Yu's group wouldn't be immediately eliminated after returning to Sleepless City from the Despair Train.

"But regardless, we need to hurry."

Coleman said, taking the notebook from Lin Yu's hand.

"Before they come to interfere, we need to complete these necessary tasks."

After Baron Coleman took the notebook, Lin Yu fixed his gaze on him.

After all, Lin Yu was extremely eager to learn the correct way to use this [Ancient Notebook].

Although, from Baron Coleman's words, he might not know the complete method either, being able to unlock some new uses would still be beneficial!

However, Baron Coleman's next move dashed Lin Yu's hopes.

Because this gentleman placed his finger against his own forehead, and then...

He directly pulled out a pulsating, flickering ball of light from his own brain.

Subsequently, Baron Coleman even provided an explanation.

"Although I haven't undergone as many procedures as the Eight Transformations, my brain has also been implanted with a core. So, I can also 'materialize' my emotions and memories."

Baron Coleman infused this segment of his memory into the notebook, then looked towards Lin Yu.

"Now is the time."

Lin Yu raised the identity card belonging to Vale Valetti, and Baron Coleman spoke simultaneously.

"Requesting authorization to play the entire contents of File L-269."

As he spoke, the conglomerate of heads spoke in unison.

"Verification passed. Permission to access granted."

The light from the orifices of the heads flickered intermittently. Baron Coleman gently opened the notebook.

The light shone onto the notebook, quickly merging with the ball of light that had been floating on the page earlier.

A few seconds later, Baron Coleman, who was holding the notebook with both hands, turned around.

"And then?"

Fu Luo asked curiously. Baron Coleman nodded.

"And then, it's time to enter—look here!"

Baron Coleman raised his voice and opened the notebook towards Fu Luo and Pang Kedo.

Light filled their eyes—soon, both men paused slightly, then their eyes lost focus, slowly closed, and their heads drooped.

Although they appeared to be standing asleep, Lin Yu could sense...

They had lost all vitality.

It was as if their souls had been sucked away—no, this probably wasn't just an "as if," but a fact that had already occurred.

Watching this scene, Lin Yu let out a sigh.

"This technique is definitely not just for 'investigating cases' alone."

Used in direct combat, this is a genuine "hard crowd control" ability.

A method that can instantly seize another's soul—the [Ancient Notebook] was indeed no ordinary item.

Baron Coleman laughed: "You noticed it too... That's why this thing was enough to propel Professor Dort and Researcher Vale to become the rising stars of the Truth Corporation at that time."

"Since Vale Valetti left this to you... I think he would be pleased to see me demonstrate its use for you." ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ novel-fire.net

Lin Yu felt somewhat helpless: "I haven't undergone that so-called transformation; even if you show me the method, I can't use it."

Baron Coleman paused, then said: "No matter. There are ways to use it even without the transformation—I'll arrange everything for you after we come out. For now, let's both enter together."

Lin Yu nodded, but then cautiously asked: "But if we both go in, who will ensure our safety?"

Hearing Lin Yu's words, Baron Coleman adopted a serious expression: "I've been operating on this train for many years and have kept a few contingency plans."

As he spoke, he lightly tapped his temple. Two shield-bearing sentry robots walked over from the direction of Carriage No. 2.

"These two are currently absolutely loyal to me. They are sufficient to guard us—even if they encounter something they cannot defeat, they can at least block a fatal ambush and allow us to be awakened."

"If they can't even buy us that tiny bit of time to wake up... then I can only say the attacker's skill has reached a terrifying level, and being awake wouldn't make much difference anyway."

Baron Coleman explained.

Lin Yu stroked his chin and said: "Interesting. But what if you harbor malicious intentions towards me or my companion?"

Baron Coleman shook his head: "Then this notebook wouldn't let me off... my soul is inside it too."

"Moreover, I summoned these sentries precisely because you already have someone watching over you in the shadows, don't you?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Yu narrowed his eyes slightly.

Had the other party detected Hannah?

Earlier, Lin Yu had indeed instructed Hannah, who had been hiding in his pocket, to keep an eye on things.

But... it shouldn't be possible.

Hannah's disguise was almost impossible to see through. The former A-level director of the Truth Corporation was a notable figure, but still...

Not qualified enough.

So, following Baron Coleman's words, Lin Yu realized something else.

He sighed.

"A Nian, since you've been spotted, no point in hiding anymore."

In the corner of the carriage, part of the wall and floor underwent a slight distortion and warp.

As if they had been "crumpled."

Soon, a piece of transparent cloth was gathered up, revealing Li Nian's figure.

She sighed.

"Damn that auction, actually selling counterfeit and shoddy products."

"They promised a [Invisibility Raincoat] that could perfectly conceal one's form, scent, and traces, yet it was seen through so easily."

"And it cost 2500 points! I spit on it!"

Baron Coleman apologetically pointed to his own eyes: "It did conceal your soul, but... your emotions leaked out."

"My modified eyes cannot miss that."

Li Nian shrugged: "Alright, but it doesn't matter anyway, since I didn't pay for it."

Hearing this, Lin Yu looked at Li Nian: "Speaking of which, weren't you going to the 'cargo hold' to get something? Why didn't you go?"

Li Nian let out a scoff: "Don't look down on me, dear Veterinarian sister. I already took what I wanted and came back. In that amount of time, I could have emptied the entire cargo hold!"

"But as the saying goes, even thieves have their code... I only took three items; it definitely shouldn't take that long."

"This is a rule I set for myself: when stealing from the same person at the same place, take no more than three items at a time."

Li Nian said, a hint of pride in her tone.

"Impressive. But even so... why come back?"

Lin Yu asked softly. Li Nian said with a grin: "Of course because I was worried about you... a mentally unstable amnesiac martial lunatic, an exiled schemer with unknown depths, and a 'Detective' who looks very cunning and is extremely close to 『Order』..."

"I was afraid they might harm you, so I came back to check—seems my choice was right."

"See, now you need me."

Li Nian said, lightly waving the utility knife in her hand.

"Alright, Zhu Ming sister—I'll protect you too."

"You can go roam freely in that notebook with the Baron with peace of mind!"

She said cheerfully. Lin Yu nodded.

Although Li Nian was dangerous, had a nasty personality, and came from the 『Free Alliance』, Lin Yu had to admit.

He did trust this individual.

At least when he was acting as "Zhu Ming," he was willing to temporarily entrust his back to Li Nian's care.

"Then I'll leave it to you."

Lin Yu said, looking towards the notebook glowing with white light in the Baron's hand.

The next moment...

He felt the world spin, his consciousness wavered, as if his soul and mind were being torn from his body.

When he opened his eyes again, Lin Yu had arrived...

at the Truth Corporation headquarters from eight years ago!

Truth Corporation's headquarters is actually not that towering "Truth Tower" that almost reaches the sky, standing within Sleepless City.

Although that thing is Truth Corporation's most iconic building, "Truth Tower" is indeed just a symbol.

It serves as Truth Corporation's business card within Sleepless City, a "temporary palace" and reception area for the decision-making layer, but it is not the corporation's true headquarters.

How could the core of a new giant that started with "high-end alchemy" possibly be just a single building?

Whether it's the "Fear" collection system within the snowy mountains that created that monster 『Chate』, or the "Furnace" currently placed on the Despair Train, both sufficiently illustrate one thing...

These things are enormous, too big to be stuffed into one building.

Furthermore, these are just the finished products; the original prototype machines and the testing grounds where their prototypes were stored would only be even more massive giants.

And this is only considering volume, without factoring in raw material transportation, noise pollution, and various other elements.

So...

Truth Corporation's headquarters has always been located in the northern part of Sleepless City, near the city boundary—or rather, part of it actually extends beyond the city, right next to the Great Wasteland!

There, lies a massive complex with an area almost equivalent to a quarter of Sleepless City's main urban district, a place that can be called a city within a city.

That is Truth Corporation's headquarters!

And at this moment, Lin Yu and Baron Coleman are standing right at the main entrance of this headquarters.

Looking at the highly technological buildings and the crowds coming and going, standing before this tall, white, streamlined gate, Lin Yu marveled.

"This place is really impressive... but why is it so big?"

"Where exactly did that 'Reed Christopher' you mentioned die?"

Lin Yu had thought he would only enter a room like a secret chamber and then see the deceased and the murder scene!

He looked towards Baron Coleman beside him, only to see the other wearing an expression as if he had seen a ghost.

"Yes... why is it so big?!"

Baron Coleman said, his tone full of confusion confirming Lin Yu's earlier suspicion.

"Logically, we should only enter the crime scene—the memory fragment I have plus that file shouldn't be enough to construct such a vast scene."

"No, even with my complete memory... this place is far too vivid."

Baron Coleman said, scratching his head.

Lin Yu looked at him: "So why is this situation occurring? Any ideas?"

Coleman thought for a moment, then offered a reasonable analysis: "I think it might be because this is the 'prototype'..."

"Actually, within the entire Truth Corporation, the number of people who have come into contact with the [Ancient Notebook] can be counted on one hand, especially since this thing has been 'lost' for a long time."

"But, the reason I know how to use it... is because the 'Universal Recording Paper', developed based on the [Ancient Notebook] as a prototype blueprint, is quite widespread within Truth Corporation."

"The 'Universal Recording Paper' has the functions of storing 'memories' and reproducing 'memories'... however, that thing is 'limited' in both storage and reproduction."

"Storing a few seconds of memory fragments or reproducing a scene within a single room is already its limit." Read complete versıon only at Nov3lFɪre.ɴet

"Even with limited time and space, severe distortion often occurs."

Baron Coleman looked up again at the entire Truth Corporation headquarters before him.

"But it seems the genuine [Ancient Notebook] is much more useful than the 'Universal Recording Paper'!"

Baron Coleman said, having completely recovered from his shock.

After all, he was a man who climbed step by step to the top of Truth Corporation; his psychological resilience and tolerance were exceptionally strong, and his mindset was unusually good.

He wasn't thrown off balance by this unexpectedly grand scene at all.

"Let's go, we'll head to the 'room' that is the crime scene now."

"With such a grand and realistic scene... I feel the possibility of restoring the truth is getting higher and higher!"

Saying this, Coleman led Lin Yu through the gate.

...

While Lin Yu and Coleman's consciousnesses were exploring the Truth Corporation headquarters within the [Ancient Notebook], their physical bodies remained safe under the protection of Li Nian and the sentry.

The Despair Train raced along its tracks, circling the brightly lit Sleepless City.

At the same moment, in the real Truth Corporation headquarters complex located along the northern section of the Despair Train's tracks...

Deep within the complex, in a quiet and peaceful two-story building situated within a garden.

An elegant man wearing a striking orange suit, with his hair slicked back, sat in his office, watching a projection screen opposite his desk.

It displayed blurry footage from inside carriage number one of the "Despair Train".

"Punkdo Von Valetti restored to normal, Jerry Coleman Hunt emerging from his hiding place, the 'Vale Valetti' identity card and the Ancient Notebook missing for so long... all these things have actually reappeared, and Dot's inheritance have fallen into the hands of a mysterious woman outside the company."

The man muttered to himself while leisurely picking up an orange from the fruit bowl on his desk.

"And that mysterious, untraceable 『Detective』 has gotten involved too, and the remaining woman doesn't seem simple either... Ha, truly interesting."

He brought the whole, unpeeled, round orange to his mouth and took a fierce bite, skin and flesh together.

A piece of orange peel mixed with pulp was torn off by his bite, the juice flooding his mouth.

Orange juice dripped from the corner of his mouth and his wrist, but the man seemed completely unaware. After a moment of thought, he pressed a bell on the desk.

"Ding dong!"

A clear sound echoed in the office. Soon, the office door opened.

Two armed personnel, wearing neat tactical gear, helmets on their heads, and bodies laden with various weapons, entered and stood at attention.

The person on the left stepped forward and spoke: "Today's regular duty team from the Security Department is Delta Team. Awaiting your instructions."

The man took another bite of the orange and lifted his chin, gesturing for them to look at the projection behind him.

The two armed personnel turned to look, then turned back.

"Unidentified unauthorized personnel have appeared inside the Despair Train. Do you require us to proceed to handle the situation, subdue the unauthorized personnel, and bring them back for interrogation?"

The armed team member on the left asked again.

"Of course they need to be handled," the man swallowed the orange and wiped his mouth with the sleeve of his obviously extremely expensive suit, "...but no need to bring them back."

A cruel smile appeared on his face.

"Execute them on the spot."

The two armed personnel received the instructions and straightened up.

"Yes, Mr. Paris!"

Then, the two turned and left.

This place is more realistic than I imagined."

Walking through the corridors of the Truth Corporation headquarters campus, Baron Coleman watched the researchers chatting about various matters as they passed by, each with different expressions, and sighed with emotion once again.

"Indeed, Professor Dort's words were not mere modesty... his development and utilization of the [Ancient Notebook] truly amounts to less than five percent."

Lin Yu was also secretly astonished.

This place was indeed real, so real that it didn't feel like they had entered Baron Coleman's memories, but rather as if they had truly traveled back eight years in time!

Some of the researchers passing by him and the Baron were engaged in conversations, and just the fragments Lin Yu overheard covered various aspects like gossip, research topics, and more, all with an incredibly strong sense of authenticity.

However, while these things made Lin Yu marvel, they wouldn't make him change his objective.

Soon...

Under Coleman's guidance, he arrived at the employee residential area in the southeast corner of the campus.

A large number of Truth Corporation employees lived here—generally only management and retired senior scholars could reside in this area.

At the edge of the residential area, there was a place similar to a cargo hold.

The warehouse stored a large quantity of discarded metal components.

Coleman led him through various twists and turns, finally reaching a corner of this warehouse.

"This place is quite remote."

"Of course, after all, it's a 'hidden' laboratory. It can't be placed right out in the open."

Coleman sighed, then began pulling on a tall shelf in the corner.

"Vrrrm—"

Metal scraped against the ground, emitting a teeth-grating sharp sound, revealing a security door behind it.

This security door wasn't completely concealed within the wall, leaving no traces whatsoever.

On the contrary, it simply had a seal pasted on it with the words "This Door Abandoned."

One could even vaguely see there was a door here through the gaps in the shelf just moments before.

But Lin Yu had to admit...

This disguise method was much more effective than completely hiding the door within the wall.

"Truly a genius concept."

If he saw something like this, he would never have guessed this door was the entrance to some secret laboratory.

This kind of disguise precisely exploited human inertial thinking—its principle was similar to how someone wearing a maintenance worker's uniform could freely enter and exit various places.

"When I first investigated the location and came to this warehouse back then, I almost overlooked this door."

Baron Coleman sighed with emotion, then pulled open this door.

Looking at the passageway behind the door that still appeared abandoned, old, and uncleaned, Lin Yu spoke after some thought.

"Don't we need to meet up with Pang Kedo and that detective?"

As they walked all the way here, they hadn't encountered those two.

After all, this place was quite large.

"To be honest... I don't know how to find them either. It's better to come here first and take a look."

Baron Coleman replied.

"And, if that detective is truly smart enough..."

Baron Coleman didn't explicitly say it, but Lin Yu already understood his meaning.

The two walked into the staircase behind the abandoned door, turned two corners, and then encountered a suddenly bright and clean corridor.

On the corridor stood an access control gate.

And in front of that access control...

Fu Luo was squatting there with Pang Kedo.

"You two are quite slow," Fu Luo said boredly. "What, did you have a disagreement outside?"

Just as Baron Coleman had hoped...

Fu Luo had already arrived here first.

Without Coleman telling Fu Luo the specific location, Fu Luo had accurately found the exact crime scene from eight years ago within this vast campus.

Even though he had expected it, seeing Fu Luo actually accomplish this, Baron Coleman couldn't help but ask.

"How did you find this place?"

"Although this campus is large, there aren't many possible locations that can accommodate a hidden ghost laboratory."

"Just by investigating the floor plan slightly, you can discover where a piece is 'missing,' or where the mapping deliberately violates standards."

"And... you mentioned that the researcher was found in his own 'home.'"

Fu Luo said calmly, knocking on the access control of this metal door. "So, how do we open this door?"

Although they were currently "consciousness" and "soul," the [Ancient Notebook] faithfully restored everyone's state before entering—Lin Yu checked and found that his various items were still usable.

This naturally included Vale Valetti's identity card.

"Try swiping the card."

He said, taking out the privilege card from his chest.

Baron Coleman nodded: "Back then, I got in smoothly with A-level privileges—that was also one of the main pieces of evidence for my conviction."

"I don't know if B-level privileges will work or not."

Answering Baron Coleman was a crisp "beep—" sound.

The metal door automatically opened, and Lin Yu shrugged.

"Seems like it works."

The four entered this mysterious "ghost laboratory" area, and soon, under Baron Coleman's guidance, arrived at a door.

He pushed open this door, revealing another long passageway.

Pang Kedo looked somewhat confused: "Where does this lead to?"

"To Reed Christopher's home."

Baron Coleman said in a low voice.

By now, besides Pang Kedo, both Lin Yu and Fu Luo had vaguely realized the full picture of the entire case.

After Coleman opened the door at the end of the passageway...

What they saw was a laboratory about the size of a classroom.

They had emerged from a hidden back door disguised as a freezer in the laboratory.

The entire laboratory was filled with various instruments, and on the experimental table in the center, Reed Christopher lay in a pool of blood with a sharp blade stabbed into his back.

This was...

the murder scene from eight years ago!

Fu Luo quickly scanned the surroundings, noticing that aside from this hidden door, the entire laboratory had only one tightly closed and locked main door.

There were no windows, the ventilation duct grilles were welded shut and equipped with alarms.

And this hidden door behind them...

"If I'm not mistaken, the access control at the entrance showed only your passage record afterwards, right?"

Fu Luo asked coldly. Coleman nodded helplessly. Read complete versıon only at novel·fıre·net

"Yes, this was also one of the important reasons I was suspected of being the murderer..."

"Whether it's that passageway or Reed's home, only my traces appeared during the time of Reed's death—in fact, according to the forensic reconstruction, Reed's time of death was precisely after I entered this passageway."

"Because I didn't go to Reed's home immediately... I lingered in that passageway for about fifteen minutes."

"Plus that knife was one I had lost a few days earlier—so although the company didn't convict me immediately, I completely offended Reed's faction. They firmly believed... no, even my friends thought that I had killed Reed!"

Fu Luo nodded.

"I see. If we firmly believe you're not the murderer, then the current situation..."

"Is a standard locked-room murder case."

position

"Is it really a locked room... that might not necessarily be the case."

After Fu Luo made his judgment and conclusion, Lin Yu actually refuted him.

"Don't forget, Furbollo, this isn't some orthodox mystery. Using our value system as reference... this is 'setting-based' deduction."

The so-called "setting-based" refers to mystery works set in story backgrounds with special settings, supernatural or surreal powers.

The dungeon worlds of the 'Death Game' undoubtedly contain various supernatural elements.

Even though Sleepless City appears similar to a near-future society and 'Truth Corporation' looks like some technology company...

At its core, it's still built upon the foundation of 'Emotion Conversion' - a completely counter-intuitive, supernatural power.

They even—worship gods!

But facing Lin Yu's reminder, Fu Luo remained calm.

"I'm well aware of this, Zhu Ming, so I haven't overlooked this possibility. Rather, I've reached this conclusion after re-evaluating based on existing 'logic' and known conditions."

"The reason I determined this is a 'locked room murder' type... is precisely because even with the most advanced technology available, after I became a murder suspect as a high-ranking official, they still couldn't find a second suspect, or even provide evidence that a second suspect might exist."

"This is enough to show... that with their current 'knowledge,' they believe no second person could bypass their 'detection' through more advanced technology or some loophole."

Fu Luo had now put his Straw Hat back on, speaking while adjusting the brim.

"All locked rooms are never truly locked rooms—they're deceptions constructed using some trick," he said calmly. "Since their own investigation department made this judgment, I believe this isn't the work of some more advanced technology, but rather some 'trick.'"

Seeing the confident Fu Luo, Lin Yu felt he might be able to slack off: "Since you're so certain, I'll leave it to you then, great detective."

"I'm not good at puzzles... especially this kind of case solving, it's completely outside my capabilities."

As Lin Yu spoke, he walked over to Pang Kedo who was waiting nearby, crossing his arms and leaning against the wall.

Pang Kedo frowned.

"This laboratory looks very familiar."

"Of course it's familiar, you were the one responsible for sealing the scene and collecting evidence back then," Baron Coleman sighed. "And precisely because you were the one who sealed the scene, I believed no one deliberately destroyed evidence favorable to me or evidence of others' presence during the scene investigation phase."

By now, Fu Luo had walked over to the deceased Reed Christopher.

This was an elderly man with completely white hair, lying face down on the experimental table with his arms spread out.

Blood had flowed down his body, pooling at his feet.

"Looks like he was caught off guard by the knife—only one stab wound, fatal injury, but not immediately lethal."

"The victim was standing at the time, probably very focused on doing something... from this angle, he was observing reagent reactions."

As Fu Luo spoke, he stood by the table, simulating Reed Christopher's position and posture from back then.

"Then at that moment, he heard two footsteps sounds from behind—there was only one person in the laboratory, so Reed's first reaction was surprise and wanting to turn around." Thɪs chapter is updated by novｅlfire.net

"But the turning motion was too slow, his body only tilted slightly—this caused the knife entry wound to also be somewhat slanted, and such a sharp knife wound had some discordant 'tearing' at the end."

"But the killer was indeed professional—this slight deviation didn't affect the knife accurately piercing his right back—this single stab pierced through the bottom of his lung and a major vein."

"So, Reed no longer had the strength to turn around. His body lost strength, his hands braced on the table trying to keep himself from falling, lifting his head with effort—the sealed metal main door was ahead of the experimental table..."

"Reed probably knew he couldn't escape. As a high-ranking Truth Corporation official, he was intelligent and understood human anatomy well... so when he looked at the door, it wasn't to escape, but to try to use the door's reflection to see the killer's face."

"But unfortunately, he might have seen it or might not have. In any case... Reed Christopher was no longer in a condition to leave any useful information—rapid blood loss and lung injury had left him without enough strength to write something in blood or similar. He just lay face down on the experimental table and died."

After speaking, Fu Luo exhaled.

"The murder reconstruction is complete, no special techniques... just a single backstab ambush. The only remarkable thing is how clean the knife strike was—doesn't look like a first-time killer, and this dagger also seems like something specialized combat personnel would use."

Fu Luo looked at Baron Coleman, who sighed.

"Yes, I received similar training... although I never worked in the field operations department, before entering Truth Corporation through family arrangements, I went through a rebellious phase and joined gangs in Sleepless City's lower districts."

"There, I learned how to kill... I became quite skilled in using knives and fists."

Lin Yu suddenly understood: "Oh, no wonder you're suspected. This murder method matches your style too."

"Not just that," Fu Luo's eyes became unprecedentedly sharp after entering case-solving mode as he looked at Baron Coleman, "There's more, isn't there? Baron?"

"You're hiding something very important, aren't you."

Baron Coleman remained quite calm when Fu Luo said this.

"What makes you say that? I don't think I'm hiding anything very important related to this case."

He questioned Fu Luo in return.

Hearing Fu Luo's words, Lin Yu instantly trusted this detective.

Hearing Baron Coleman's counter-question, Lin Yu immediately supported Fu Luo.

"You've already openly shared your memories, why not be more candid?"

"We're here to help investigate the truth too. Hiding things will also create difficulties for our investigation."

As Lin Yu spoke, Baron Coleman remained silent.

"I'm truly not hiding anything."

He said again.

"I'm not an idiot, Your Lordship Baron," Fu Luo didn't back down at all, lifting the brim of his Straw Hat slightly, "Even though all evidence pointed to you as the only suspect back then, you just mentioned... that without the company convicting you, all of this 'Reed Christopher's' friends and relatives almost universally regarded you as the murderer. There must be something crucial you're hiding about this."

"Compared to objective evidence, what could make 'insiders' make such nearly certain judgments must be something more subjective, something that might not even be recorded in the files..."

Hearing Fu Luo say this, Lin Yu also reacted.

"It's 'motive'!"

"They must believe you're the murderer because you had 'some kind of motive'!"

After hearing Lin Yu's words, Fu Luo couldn't help but look at this pretty "girl."

"Claiming not to be good at puzzles... but actually quite clever! As expected of someone in May's social circle!"

Lin Yu waved his hand dismissively. "I really am not good at puzzles, but if you've given me this many hints, even I can figure it out."

Hearing Lin Yu's modest words, Fu Luo gave him a thumbs up.

"Regardless, you've still got some skills!"

"At the very least, our interrogation coordination just now was perfect... Baron, you shouldn't have anything left to say now, should you!"

Fu Luo looked triumphantly at Baron Coleman.

Even Pang Kedo couldn't help but speak up in support of the two players.

"Coleman, although I don't know how much you've changed over these years, if you want 'innocence'... you should be honest first yourself."

"At the very least, you shouldn't hide things from those trying to clear your name."

Pang Kedo's words made Coleman sigh silently.

"Alright, alright, I'll talk."

"Their suspicion of my motive was simple... it wasn't because I had some long-standing grudge against Reed Christopher or anything like that."

"But rather at that time..."

Coleman sighed as he spoke: "After discovering the dead body here, I quietly ran away in the end."

"You ran away?!"

Before Lin Yu and Fu Luo could voice their astonishment, Pang Kedo's voice suddenly rose sharply: "You're a real genius, Coleman... how could you run away from something like this? Did you think the company wouldn't investigate thoroughly when a former B-grade Independent Researcher died - someone who had served as deputy director of an independent laboratory, a specially appointed researcher just one step away from A-grade promotion?"

Coleman pinched the bridge of his nose, looking pained. "No, Pang Kedo, you don't understand because you've lost your memory... As an A-grade supervisor with the deceased being as high-ranking as you described, my first reaction was realizing this was a setup specifically targeting and framing me. Running away and trying to erase my access record was actually the most appropriate response."

"In fact... you, who had also been promoted to team leader by then, later agreed with my approach."

"My only miscalculation was failing to completely erase the access record."

As Baron Coleman spoke, Pang Kedo sighed helplessly.

"But looking at the results... your escape played right into their hands, didn't it?"

At this moment, Lin Yu spoke up again.

"There's more, isn't there? It's not just that!"

"There's nothing worth hiding about this matter."

Leaving things half-said really...

This kind of "lying" technique was all too familiar to Lin Yu.

As a professional Fraudster, how could he be fooled by this baron?

Hearing Lin Yu's words, Fu Luo nodded. "Exactly - you omitted some content, correct?"

Coleman looked at the two of them, his expression growing even more helpless.

"It seems inviting you two was the right decision. I was only trying it out at first... but now it appears you might actually have the ability to prove my innocence."

"I did conceal one more part just now... that's the part I truly wanted to hide."

"Because my 'greed' and that overly urgent 'situation' led me to make a foolish judgment."

Baron Coleman pointed to an instrument in the corner.

"Before leaving, I casually 'copied' all of Reed's experimental data."

"I was very careful, originally thinking I hadn't left any traces."

"But who would have thought - while I was copying, this instrument automatically read the identity card I carried with me and recorded my identity!"

Baron Coleman said with a bitter smile.

Hearing this, Lin Yu sighed.

"No wonder you wanted to hide it... For you, this is indeed a foolish act that could be considered utterly humiliating."

He said without holding back.

Fu Luo was even more speechless with laughter: "Then you being treated as the murderer by Truth Corporation is somewhat deserved..."

Lin Yu nodded again and added: "No wonder Researcher Reed's friends and colleagues all resent you. Even if you weren't the murderer, your crimes of knowing yet not reporting, seeing death yet not helping, and stealing confidential achievements are firmly established."

Baron Coleman endured the verbal assault from the two men since he couldn't refute it, sighing helplessly.

"This was indeed my extreme foolishness eight years ago... however, I absolutely did not commit murder."

Pang Kedo spoke regretfully: "It seems in the years I lost my memory, you simply became worse, not more cunning and sly."

Hearing Pang Kedo's words, Coleman, who had been relatively calm until now, finally couldn't take it anymore. Holding his head with one hand, he spoke.

"Enough already, this is exactly why I wanted to hide this matter... This kind of thing has nothing to do with the truth, right? After all, this is just the reason why I was wrongly accused!"

Baron Coleman's tone remained calm, but both Lin Yu and Fu Luo could tell he was on the verge of breaking down.

Fu Luo quickly said: "No, on the contrary, this action of yours - this action that served as the 'motive' for you becoming the prime suspect - is precisely the key to investigating the truth."

"I'm not deliberately comforting you... Right after you revealed this motive, I've already grasped the complete 'truth' - only one final puzzle piece remains to find the murderer from that year and crack his killing method!"

Fu Luo said with certainty, looking toward where the corpse lay.

"Now, that final mystery is..."

"Where exactly is the murderer?"

Just as Fu Luo finished speaking, the entire laboratory shook violently.

It wasn't a physical tremor like an earthquake, but rather the entire laboratory seemed to briefly "distort" for a moment, with the scene showing noise and flickering!

"What's happening?!"

Pang Kedo asked alertly.

Baron Coleman's expression turned grave: "This is the manifestation of the [Ancient Notebook] being interfered with by something... I'm afraid we're under attack outside!"

...

Meanwhile, inside the Despair Train.

Three fully armed combat personnel appeared in carriage number one of the Despair Train. Read full story at novel-fire.ɴet

They entered the carriage through the maintenance hatch opened in the ceiling and quickly discovered the [Ancient Notebook] and the four unconscious individuals.

Although two sentry robots were present around the four people, the three combat personnel clearly weren't very concerned.

"Deploy interference, eliminate the sentries first."

Following the leader's command, the three simultaneously pulled out some kind of metal spheres and threw them toward that area.

The metal spheres emitted flashing yellow light after landing, illuminating the interior of the carriage and causing the Ancient Notebook's glow to dim somewhat.

Not only the Ancient Notebook, but even the glow of the "Despair Furnace" weakened considerably.

The two sentries that had been alert and keen became noticeably more sluggish.

"Interference complete, power reduced to minimum, commencing clearance."

The three advanced in a triangular formation while raising their primary weapon firearms that had been hanging on their chests.

But the moment they raised their weapons, all three noticed something wrong.

"Our firearms... disappeared?!"

After the three armed personnel from Truth Corporation Security Department's Delta Team discovered their most reliable weapons had vanished, they didn't appear overly panicked. Check latest chapters at noveⅼfire.net

Although this was quite unexpected, Delta Team had always been one of the most elite squads in the Security Department, and they frequently encountered monsters with "perplexing" abilities among their adversaries.

While they temporarily didn't understand how the firearms had disappeared without their notice, the leader still spoke in a low voice.

"Be careful, the enemy might be non-corporeal entities like spirits, or possess abilities that distort reality or interfere with perception."

He wasn't just warning his two teammates beside him—he also activated his communicator to alert squad members who had boarded the Despair Train from other carriages.

"Activate 'full-frequency scanning' to ensure no invisible enemies approach, turn on the helmet's emotion inhibitors and soul self-check, and enable the 'time announcement' function with ten-second intervals. If you notice missing any time announcement, immediately verify and request backup."

Clearly, as a company exceptionally skilled at "manipulating souls," Truth Corporation's field personnel had extensive experience in ensuring their minds and perceptions weren't being invaded.

But unfortunately...

After this squad leader-like figure reported everything and ended the communication, he didn't hear any "received" responses from other team members via the communicator.

Looking down at his shoulder where the communicator should have been, the device that had just been connected moments earlier had now disappeared!

He felt utterly horrified.

Disappeared again... when?

He was absolutely certain there were no signs of interference with his attention or perception!

Had he unknowingly fallen into a complete illusion?

"Is this a dream? Or perhaps... a simulated illusion?"

He looked around uncertainly, questioning his teammates on both sides.

The answer came from directly above his head.

"This is completely real, of course... What, don't believe someone could achieve this in reality?"

On the carriage ceiling, a sunglasses-wearing girl who looked like a top student but had a mischievous aura was hanging upside down with her legs hooked around the overhead light strip, her hair and jacket dangling and swaying.

Also swinging from her forearm were three high-tech rifles and a communicator flashing with red lights.

Currently leading Carriage One was Delta Team's Deputy Leader, the second-in-command of the entire twelve-person squad!

When President Paris had summoned people, he had also been standing in the office.

So...

This Deputy Leader recognized the appearance of the upside-down girl—she was one of the girls who had appeared on the screen earlier.

And President Paris's assessment of her had been "she doesn't look like an ordinary character."

"Indeed not ordinary."

Upon seeing the other party, the Deputy Leader felt somewhat relieved, but didn't completely let his guard down.

This not being a "dream" or "illusion" meant he hadn't completely lost his ability to resist without realizing it, becoming completely vulnerable.

But...

Being able to take his and his two team members' weapons while they were fully conscious was absolutely not something an ordinary person could achieve.

Especially now that he had lost his primary weapons, his combat effectiveness was significantly reduced.

The only fortunate thing was that the other party didn't seem to have undergone any modifications or had any controllers implanted—which meant she also couldn't use those three company-issued weapons.

In other words...

Now, both sides could only engage in "hand-to-hand combat"!

The moment he realized this, the Deputy Leader drew the Security Department's standard-issue weapon—a short rod crackling with electric arcs.

"Although I don't know who you are, but..."

The Deputy Leader took advantage of the girl being suspended from the ceiling with limited mobility to charge toward the upside-down girl.

"Die!"

His electrified rod swung toward the girl at maximum power.

The Deputy Leader didn't dare hold back at all, even shouting fiercely while mentally preparing himself for certain death!

After all, no one knew the true depth of this expert before them.

Fortunately, although the enemy might be powerful, his companions were equally reliable.

The moment the Deputy Leader attacked, the two Delta Team members behind him made the same judgment, grabbing their weapons and flanking her from both sides with perfect coordination in perfect sync!

The three men's assault was swift and rapid, their short rods almost instantly about to strike the girl.

But the next second...

The other party's figure vanished into thin air once again.

"Hey, hey... don't be so hasty. Isn't there any possibility for negotiation?"

This time the voice came from behind them.

"Let me introduce myself—you can call me 'A Nian' or 'Master Thief.' I'm different from those lunatics lost in their notebook reveries. I don't have any deep-seated hatred for your company..."

All three turned around simultaneously to look behind them.

Beside the container, the 'Master Thief' Li Nian spoke with a smile.

"How about if you give me some benefits, I'll pretend I never saw anything?"

The response to Li Nian was another fierce attack.

"Swish!"

Three attacks simultaneously targeted Li Nian.

This time, Li Nian didn't "vanish into thin air" again. Instead, her figure nimbly and lightly dodged the assault, flying out a considerable distance like a slippery meatball flicked away from a soup bowl with chopsticks.

"So I'm saying... is there really any irreconcilable conflict between us?"

Li Nian asked aloud.

This time, the Deputy Leader finally couldn't help but respond to her.

"Of course! The important person who gave us our orders didn't specifically emphasize keeping you alive!"

As the Deputy Leader spoke, Li Nian quickly deduced some aspects of the situation from his words.

"Wow, so that means he probably issued something like a 'no survivors on the entire train' order? That's really brutal!"

"Hey, hey, that important person, are you watching? Can you hear me? Could you show some mercy?"

Li Nian said this but received no response whatsoever.

She could only sigh and turn her attention back to the Deputy Leader charging toward her.

"Alright, it seems it really has to be a fight to the death."

As she spoke, Li Nian pulled out that utility knife from her bosom.

Although this weapon seemed somewhat small and ridiculous compared to firearms or even electrified rods—almost like a child's plaything—this Deputy Leader didn't dare underestimate it in the slightest.

"Be careful of her knife... I'm still running maximum-level 'full-frequency scanning,' and there's extremely bizarre energy reactions coming from that knife!"

"Since she could steal our things without a sound, her knife attacks should also be extremely difficult to guard against and very unusual!"

Although the Deputy Leader said this and warned his two members to be cautious, he himself became even more aggressive!

He stepped forward, using offense as defense as he swung his short rod.

But at that moment, he suddenly felt a chilling pain in his wrist.

He instinctively withdrew his hand in pain, looking in shock at the blood line on his wrist.

Looking back at his opponent, the Deputy Leader discovered that a small, bright red drop of blood was dripping from the tip of that utility knife.

"When did she injure me? That's way too fast!"

But aside from the opponent's speed, the Deputy Leader realized one more thing.

"I take back what I said earlier—aside from being fast, her attack methods are quite ordinary... Just protect your vital areas properly, and we can kill her!"

Across from them, Li Nian, who was twirling the utility knife, suddenly changed expression.

"Shit, I didn't bluff them... I'm screwed!"

The elites from Truth Corporation's security department were indeed quite "professional" individuals. After just a few rounds of exchanges, they had already identified Li Nian's biggest weakness.

She lacked powerful offensive methods!

When facing "living creatures" of similar size, the offensive methods Li Nian could rely on were extremely limited.

But even so...

These three from Truth Corporation couldn't do much to Li Nian either!

After all, her strengths were almost as obvious as her weaknesses.

She was as agile as a slippery loach. Although her attacks could hardly cause any damage against these fully armed, modified combat personnel...

It would be difficult for these combat personnel to harm Li Nian in a short time either!

And simply ignoring this young girl to go after the several people lost in thought was also impossible.

Because... although Li Nian's attack methods weren't strong, she could steal things.

The Deputy Leader had an intuition: as long as their attention shifted slightly away from this young girl, or if they didn't pressure her as intensely...

They would likely lose a few more items from their persons!

Thus, both sides reached a delicate balance within the carriage. Follow current ɴᴏᴠᴇʟs on novelFirｅ.net

Although neither could do much to the other, neither dared to relax!

The Deputy Leader was even deliberately stalling for time.

"Although communications were cut off... as long as the team leader notices my communication has been silent for a while, he'll definitely bring reinforcements!"

"Although three people can't handle her temporarily, restraining the three of us might also be her ability limit... if the team leader brings additional reinforcements, we'll have numerical advantage on one hand, and on the other hand, she won't have free hands to steal the reinforcements' weapons. She'll definitely be doomed!"

After making this judgment, the Deputy Leader felt reassured and continued stalling with the opponent.

Thinking this, the Deputy Leader looked at Li Nian, who was currently jumping around like an extremely annoying fly, and sneered inwardly.

Although she was troublesome, she was just like a grasshopper in late autumn - she wouldn't be jumping around for much longer!

But Li Nian on the other side was thinking the same!

"Although I didn't bluff them successfully, at least I managed to disarm them when they weren't paying attention at the beginning... now I just need to keep stalling."

"As long as I wait until those two NPCs who look quite abnormal and Zhu Ming wake up... or when Brother Wang brings his wife back after getting what they want and takes a look here, they'll definitely be able to deal with these guys."

As her thoughts flowed, Li Nian looked at the Deputy Leader, who was still relentlessly pursuing her like a tenacious hound, and secretly sneered.

Although these guys were troublesome, once Zhu Ming wakes up with the two powerful Truth Corporation members she tricked, or when Brother Wang arrives here, these guys would be nothing but clay chickens and pottery dogs!

The two sides exchanged glances, both with cold eyes facing each other, wearing stern smiles as if looking at dead people.

"Just wait, you'll get what's coming to you!"

...

"It actually stabilized?"

Within the "past" constructed by the [Ancient Notebook], Pang Kedo looked somewhat surprised at the surrounding environment that had restabilized.

Baron Coleman nodded and said, "It seems that probably your 'friends' have been of great help."

Hearing Baron Coleman say this, Lin Yu quickly modestly responded on Li Nian's behalf: "Not at all, your sentinels must be the ones who deserve the most credit."

Baron Coleman shook his head: "No, I understand very clearly... if we inside this notebook have been affected, it definitely means the 'sentinels' have already been dealt with."

"Once they are breached, it's difficult for them to serve any further purpose."

Baron Coleman said seriously.

Hearing this, Lin Yu nodded.

"Is that so... then it seems A Nian does have some skills."

"But let's set that aside for now. Our top priority is to quickly investigate the truth of what happened back then."

As Lin Yu spoke, he looked at Fu Luo.

Fu Luo scratched his head: "I'm basically ready, but as I said earlier... I'm only missing the final step."

"But this final step is particularly difficult to resolve."

"The murderer attacked Reed Christopher from behind, the murder weapon was the knife left here," Fu Luo said while stroking his chin, "This all happened precisely after Baron Coleman swiped his card to enter this place. The main door was locked from inside, and you were at the back door the whole time and didn't see anyone coming or going. According to the locked room explanation... there are only two major possibilities: one is that the murderer is still within this laboratory, the other possibility is that he had already left before Reed Christopher died."

"But if it's the former, where could he hide, and when did he leave? If it's the latter... how did he accomplish this without being discovered by Baron Coleman and subsequent investigators?"

"Even if Coleman left too hastily to notice at the time, we're standing here now... and we still haven't found any suspicious traces."

"Even if this old man committed suicide, at least the knife should have something unusual about it - everything was done too cleanly."

"Exactly, and there's the most important point," Baron Coleman said solemnly while listening to Fu Luo's analysis, "My coming here that day wasn't a carefully prepared decision... I came here not long after discovering the list."

"Even if the other party started setting me up after discovering I was heading here, his actions would have been too swift... and that's under the most ideal consideration."

"Realistically, the time he had to decide to kill Reed Christopher, frame me, and execute this plan might have been only the ten-plus minutes I delayed while cautiously investigating in the passageway!"

Yes, time.

Currently, the biggest doubt is time - since this was a frame-up, and Coleman was in the passageway the whole time, then the time left for the murderer was too short.

Unless...

"Unless the murderer had more time than we imagined!"

Fu Luo's eyes flashed as he looked back at the body lying on the table: "Baron, didn't you say earlier... the medical examiner could only determine that the approximate time of death matched when you entered - logically speaking, in such cases, it should be precise to the minute, right? What interfered with the medical examiners' judgment?"

"The laboratory temperature. To ensure experimental results, the temperature here is usually very low... which leads to certain errors in determining the time of death."

Baron Coleman said, then realized: "You mean there's a problem with the time of death."

"Of course... since this world's 'time of death' detection technology is still affected by temperature, there are too many ways to manipulate it - changing the temperature control facilities then changing them back would make it difficult to determine the body's exact time of death."

"So his time of death might be much earlier than you expected, with an error margin potentially extending by an hour."

Fu Luo calmly announced.

"That leaves only one problem..."

Baron Coleman understood Fu Luo's meaning: "Even an hour isn't that long... how did the murderer ensure I would come here within that hour?"

"I'm not clear about that temporarily either, but even without knowing these details, it's enough to narrow down the 'scope' of the real culprit."

Fu Luo made his judgment.

But Lin Yu shook his head, refuting Fu Luo.

"No, although I agree with the earlier part, I think the latter part is wrong."

"I don't believe someone was intentionally framing Baron Coleman, at least not when the crime was committed."

Hearing Lin Yu's words, Baron Coleman couldn't help but frown. "What do you mean when you say no one intentionally framed me?"

Lin Yu's expression remained calm as he spoke.

"Exactly what it sounds like. Because even if we remove you, this 'unexpected variable' who shouldn't have been here in the first place, this is still a nearly perfect locked room, isn't it?"

"I'm not that knowledgeable about crime, but I believe the principle of 'Occam's Razor' still applies in this situation—do not multiply entities beyond necessity."

"You were a newly promoted A-level supervisor at the time. If someone wanted to frame you, they absolutely wouldn't design a plan with so many 'uncertainties'."

"The person died an hour before you arrived. What if you hadn't come?"

"But if we look at it from another angle, you were just an 'accident' in this plan... What if the killer's original intention was simply to use the time difference to clean up their traces of entering this place, and then make sure no one knew who killed this person?"

Lin Yu spoke calmly throughout, finally making his conclusion.

"In other words, Baron Coleman, although this might be difficult for you to accept... this injustice that marked the beginning of your downfall..."

"Was simply because you were a bit unlucky."

Fu Luo slapped his thigh.

"Oh damn, that actually makes sense!"

He looked at Zhu Ming, his gaze filled with admiration. "As expected of my good buddy's friend! You said you weren't good at deduction, but you're not bad at all!"

"I just understand the operational patterns and characteristics of power struggles within large organizations quite well. This incident happens to involve 'shifting blame,' a commonly used tactic in such struggles," Lin Yu said calmly. "I'm really not very skilled at logical reasoning and such."

He was working hard to maintain Zhu Ming's persona.

As for "power struggles" and "shifting blame"... Lin Yu actually only had a basic understanding.

He had just casually watched a couple of political drama series with many veteran actors from both Chinese and foreign productions while honing and studying acting skills, picking up some related knowledge along the way.

And as someone who had once climbed to the top, Baron Coleman... even though the assassination attempt on CEO Paris made him seem like a relatively radical militant type, he was definitely a veteran and expert when it came to political maneuvering.

Hearing Lin Yu's explanation, he had instantly grasped the situation.

In fact, even before Lin Yu finished explaining, Coleman had already roughly realized this possibility.

But understanding something and being able to accept it were two different matters.

Even the smooth, mature Baron Coleman found it somewhat difficult to accept this nearly cruel truth.

"So... I got dragged into this because of pure 'bad luck'?"

He murmured this, a bitter smile appearing on his face.

From a promising A-level supervisor to a prisoner on the Despair Train today—although this single incident wasn't the sole cause, with many twists and turns in between that Lin Yu didn't yet know about...

There was no doubt that this incident was indeed the beginning.

If not for this incident, Baron Coleman would certainly not have taken the desperate path of attempting to assassinate CEO Paris.

Therefore, upon discovering that the beginning of it all was a senseless "joke of fate," Lin Yu completely understood Baron Coleman's somewhat shattered state of mind.

Fu Luo also sighed and lamented. "Sometimes that's just how it is... We're all unlucky bastards toyed with by fate. I never expected the consequences of investigating a damn cheating case to be so severe—it sent me straight to this godforsaken place."

Lin Yu understood that Fu Luo was talking about the 『Death Game』.

He never imagined this guy got "killed" because he was investigating a cheating case.

Knowing this, Lin Yu patted Fu Luo's shoulder to comfort him.

"You've had it rough too."

Although in terms of degree of misfortune, he himself was the unluckiest—getting shot by an escaped murderer from a mental hospital while rehearsing late at night.

At this moment, Pang Kedo also stepped forward to comfort his old friend.

"This does sound hard to accept, but..."

Before Pang Kedo could finish his clumsy words, the dejected Coleman suddenly perked up.

"It's fine, I'm already over it."

He suddenly regained his spirits and stood up directly.

This even shocked Lin Yu.

"How did you suddenly... bounce back like that?"

Fu Luo looked at Pang Kedo. "Probably because of this old guy's comfort—seems like you two became quite close later on?"

Pang Kedo looked somewhat surprised. "Really?"

Baron Coleman waved his hand. "You're overthinking it. Although we have a good relationship... I don't see you as my emotional pillar or anything like that."

"While your comfort did work just now—the main reason I bounced back was because seeing you, someone who's hundreds of times more miserable and unlucky than me, still standing strong gave me some encouragement!"

Baron Coleman said.

Fu Luo spoke somewhat helplessly.

"So that's how it worked!"

Pang Kedo was also somewhat confused.

"Ah? Just how unlucky do I become later?"

"It's not ordinary unlucky. Look at your current situation—half-crazy, half-amnesiac, went from team leader to exiled criminal," Baron Coleman chuckled. "Don't you think that's miserable enough?"

"Now that you mention it, it is pretty miserable. But I guess I'm lucky I lost my memory, since I don't really feel it."

Pang Kedo lamented.

"Alright, enough of that. Even if it was 'bad luck,' I still need to find the real culprit now," Baron Coleman said coldly. "Even if the other party didn't initially intend to frame me subjectively, later on... it seems they somewhat went along with the situation."

As he spoke, Fu Luo rubbed his chin. Thɪs chapter is updated by nοvelfire.net

"Hmm... So how should we investigate then?"

"The other party's privileges are clearly higher than yours. At the very least, you couldn't clear your access records, but they could."

"Surveillance and such... probably won't leave much evidence either—even though this is the Truth Corporation headquarters from eight years ago."

As Fu Luo spoke, Baron Coleman also sighed. "It is indeed somewhat tricky."

Pang Kedo also felt regretful. "If only the timeline could go back a bit further. It seems all the scenes here are from after 'Coleman' left back then."

Lin Yu couldn't help but mock Pang Kedo's statement. "After all, it's constructed from his memories. Any further back... we might as well see the crime scene directly."

"Can the 『Ancient Notebook』 really rewind another hour or two? What's the difference between this thing and a 『Divine Artifact』 then?"

But just as Lin Yu's voice fell...

Everyone suddenly felt that the various instrument noises in the laboratory became somewhat distorted and eerie.

As if...

It was "rewinding"!

They also felt as if they were forcibly pulled out of this world, transforming from participants into spectators.

And soon...

They saw a panicked younger version of Baron Coleman walking backwards from the corridor back into the laboratory!

"It really can rewind?!"

Along with the scene replay, they quickly saw Baron Coleman frantically copying experimental data, seeing the corpse in shock, and backing out of the laboratory.

At an earlier time point than Baron Coleman...

They soon saw another man—another man swaggering away from the passage.

In this "rewound" world, he also backed out from the passage, holding a screen in his hand as if editing some message.

Then, his figure froze here.

The man was wearing a field operations uniform, had blood stains on his forearm, and an empty knife sheath at his waist—clearly the real murderer who killed Reed Christopher.

As if realizing everyone had seen "what they wanted to see," the Ancient Notebook stopped rewinding.

Not only that, the entire world froze.

Looking at this person's tall figure and uniform style, Pang Kedo spat in disgust.

"Field operations personnel, no sleeve insignia or shoulder epaulets, seems he knew he was doing something disgraceful."

"Originally modified specifically to deal with Great Wasteland people, now dragged into this internal strife, becoming a criminal who killed his own colleague... truly despicable."

Fu Luo stroked his chin: "So this guy should just be a tool, right? Who's the mastermind behind him?"

"This Ancient Notebook is quite considerate," Lin Yu stepped forward. "This guy is sending messages to the mastermind behind this... wow, not even encrypted, probably thought his phone was secure enough."

"Really a bit unbelievable, Ancient Notebook... even things clearly not in 'Baron Coleman's' memories can be restored, what's the principle behind this?"

Lin Yu asked with great interest.

But the principles could be explored later.

Investigating the real culprit was most important now.

Lin Yu leaned over to look at the communicator's screen, and the remaining three also gathered around.

A fully edited but unsent message leaped onto the screen.

"Mission complete."

And the contact who would receive this message, the name was...

"Minister Paris."

"Whoa—what a coincidence!"

Baron Coleman was somewhat surprised, but then calmly accepted this fact: "No wonder, no wonder he was so eager to hit someone when they're down, even pushing me to his opposite side."

"This matter was actually orchestrated by him when he was the Security Department Minister!"

As Baron Coleman spoke, he clenched his fists.

"Not bad though, after this trip, I didn't gain any additional enemies."

Pang Kedo shook his head: "Not exactly, there's still this actual executor... although the guy before us is just a 'tool,' I still can't forgive him—as a modified field operations personnel, actually taking on such despicable, dirty missions."

Saying this, Pang Kedo stepped forward staring at the other's hood, reaching out trying to remove it.

Strangely enough...

Right now they should clearly be in observer perspective, but the moment Pang Kedo acted, he successfully interfered with the field personnel's face mask.

"Hey, Pang Kedo, forget it!"

Baron Coleman spoke up to stop him, but it was too late.

The mask was lifted by Pang Kedo, revealing a young, thin face.

Pang Kedo was instantly shocked speechless, subconsciously stepping back.

Because the face before him was the same as his.

"Wh... what?"

Not only Pang Kedo, Baron Coleman also spoke with a trembling, disbelieving voice.

Their gazes met, but before they could react...

The entire world suddenly began to "distort"!

Unable to process the chaotic information in his brain, Baron Coleman subconsciously spoke.

"'Memory' seems to be ending... our consciousness is about to return!"

After the warning, accompanied by a "whoosh" heavy sound echoing in everyone's minds...

"Bang!"

Lin Yu regained consciousness, reopening his eyes.

The Ancient Notebook turned a page.

But before they could process the shock of the last scene they saw, their emotions were interrupted again.

"Awake?! If you're awake come help! I'm going to get beaten to death!"

A girl's sharp scream sounded as Li Nian was being chased and blocked by eleven burly men wielding batons—while Li Nian herself was holding eleven firearms, panting heavily but still dodging and weaving.

No time to hesitate, Pang Kedo immediately took action.

"Hey!"

He seemed to recognize the identifiers on those people, roaring as he charged forward, also drawing an identical baton.

But it must be said, the former Delta Team Leader exiled on the Despair Train was considerably stronger than these current Delta Team members!

Although Pang Kedo couldn't remember many things, his muscle memory and physical fitness hadn't been lost.

After entering combat mode, almost instantly, Pang Kedo took down two people.

Baron Coleman wasn't idle either—he tapped his temples, red light flashing in his eyes, causing the field personnel's movements to slow to varying degrees.

Lin Yu and Fu Luo also charged forward to join the fight—but Fu Luo ran back after just two steps.

"What am I doing charging up there, damn it!"

His earlier charge was completely instinctive.

After reason reclaimed the high ground, Fu Luo quickly found a corner to crouch down covering his head.

However, Lin Yu genuinely participated in the combat.

He took out the Fear Torch and lit it—this thing seemed to be these guys' natural nemesis, as just Lin Yu taking it out made these field personnel retreat as if they'd seen a ghost. The source of thɪs content is novel_fіre.net

Not just these eleven armed personnel, even Pang Kedo and Baron Coleman seemed somewhat uncomfortable when getting close.

With the pressure suddenly reduced, Li Nian could take advantage of the chaos to start slashing people with her knife and stealing equipment from them.

The situation gradually descended into chaotic parity.

Just as the situation was developing into a melee...

Baron Coleman suddenly spoke loudly: "Paris, you know full well I've been operating on this train for a long time, wanting to kill me... are you only sending this few people?!"

As if venting some hatred, Baron Coleman slammed his hands together hard, his forearms trembling slightly.

"Come out, kill them all!"

Accompanied by Paris's low roar...

From the direction of carriage two came noisy, almost clamorous sounds.

Swarm-like micro robots poured in densely from the door, madly flying through the air, drawing chaotic trajectories as they rapidly pounced on the armed personnel.

"Die—!"

Accompanied by Paris's voice, these robots that had densely covered those people's bodies began glowing red at their tails.

Earlier they were like bees.

Now... they were like fireflies.

Fu Luo's face in the corner drastically changed.

"'Cataclysm Series'! Holy shit! The prototype of this thing is on this train?! You guys get farther away!"

Then, small explosion sounds abruptly rang out.

Without Fu Luo needing to remind them, Lin Yu and Li Nian had already sensed something wrong the moment Baron Coleman suddenly started shouting and yelling.

The two of them were ready to run as soon as that robot appeared.

Before Fu Luo could even finish his sentence, both of them had already crouched down beside him.

Then, those robotic swarms began a chain reaction of explosions.

Tiny, extremely small-scale explosions occurred densely and rapidly, looking as if everyone had a string of thousand-cracker firecrackers wrapped around them.

"How do you recognize every single thing? What's your position at Truth Corporation?" Li Nian marveled. "This thing doesn't even seem to have much explosive power!"

Lin Yu directly looked at Fu Luo: "So what's so terrifying about this thing?"

Seeing that the two seemed somewhat dismissive due to the small explosion scale, Fu Luo quickly explained.

"It doesn't rely on explosive impact to harm targets... it's not even physical attack!"

"This thing attacks the mind—many of Truth Corporation's weapon series are like this, they don't look powerful but actually target the brain and soul!"

As Fu Luo finished speaking, the explosions stopped.

Those Truth Corporation field team members fell down one after another like they'd lost their minds, their movements appearing extremely sluggish.

This scared Lin Yu and Li Nian quite badly.

"This thing is really vicious."

Li Nian muttered.

Lin Yu also quickly looked at Fu Luo: "Does this thing have lingering effects, or is it safe after the explosion ends?"

"It's safe after the explosion stops."

Getting Fu Luo's answer, Lin Yu immediately stepped forward.

Li Nian was somewhat puzzled: "What are you going to do?"

"Prepare to mediate—just now when we went in to investigate the 'truth', we saw some content that might make these two brothers turn against each other..."

Lin Yu sighed, looking toward Coleman and Pang Kedo who had been fighting side by side earlier, but were now confronting each other the moment the external threat was dealt with.

Judging from Baron Coleman's earlier action of directly calling these robots to literally "blast those armed personnel into idiots," the Baron was definitely holding back anger in his heart.

Although interrupted repeatedly—first the time in the Ancient Notebook ended, then returning to encounter enemies ahead...

But now that everything was dealt with, even though Baron Coleman had calmed down somewhat and was less impulsive, his anger and resentment hadn't diminished in the slightest.

He looked at Pang Kedo, his gaze icy cold.

"So... it was you back then?"

"No wonder you were so active in sealing the scene when the incident happened!"

"Pang Kedo, Pang Kedo Von Valetti—I considered you my closest friend!"

This was indeed a scene of old friends turning against each other because of past events resurfacing, though the situation was somewhat special.

Facing Baron Coleman's accusations, Pang Kedo could only lower his head helplessly.

"I'm sorry... I..."

"I can't remember."

Pang Kedo's reaction made Baron Coleman feel utterly frustrated.

He felt like he'd punched cotton.

People are shaped by memories—as the former head of an independent research department at Truth Corporation, Baron Coleman understood this better than ordinary people.

The current Pang Kedo who had lost his memories wasn't that Delta Team Leader who killed colleagues and betrayed friends.

He was just a young man who had just entered Truth Corporation, full of ideals and wanting to investigate the disappearance of his great-uncle that had troubled his grandfather and father their entire lives.

Baron Coleman clenched his fist, then slowly relaxed it.

He sighed.

"Forget it... at least in the end, you stood by my side again and went with me to assassinate Paris."

Baron Coleman reluctantly let it go.

But Pang Kedo's own pain and resentment weren't any less than his. After Baron Coleman let it go like this, Pang Kedo instead gritted his teeth.

"No, it shouldn't be dismissed with such a light remark... this matter has bothered you for a long time, hasn't it?"

"Moreover, a company colleague died—Reed Christopher, he died by my hand."

Pang Kedo grabbed his own hair fiercely.

"Damn it, damn it... what exactly happened to me over these years?"

"Why did I become like this?! What exactly did I experience, and what did I forget!"

Pang Kedo was nearly breaking down.

He held his head in his hands and shouted.

Coleman looked at his painful state and sighed again.

He didn't offer comfort or anything to his old friend before him, but instead looked back at Li Nian, Lin Yu, and Fu Luo, then spoke.

"There's another injustice on him, though by now I don't know if it was truly an injustice back then," Coleman sighed, pointing at Pang Kedo. "He was once accused during a field mission of blowing up a mansion in Sleepless City and killing three residents—of course, those three residents were actually a mistress of one of our Truth Corporation directors and his two illegitimate daughters."

"This incident got him dismissed and placed under house arrest for a time—because he told me he was innocent, I personally worked to get him back."

"I used to believe what he told me, but..."

Baron Coleman paused: "Although I'm still willing to believe him, rationally I can no longer judge whether the 'Pang Kedo' from ten years ago would lie to me."

The broken Pang Kedo looked up upon hearing this, opened his mouth, and finally spoke: "I... I don't know either."

"If I really reached that disgusting level a few years later, fallen to this state, it would seem like retribution."

He said with a sigh. Thɪs chapter is updated by novèlfire.net

"So, should we use that notebook to investigate again?"

Li Nian said while stroking her chin.

Lin Yu looked at Fu Luo, but Fu Luo shook his head.

"Explosion case, four years ago, three women of prominent but secret status died, including two minors, right?"

"I know this case. If the file I saw was correct, was the crime scene the top floor of 'Herr Apartments'?"

Baron Coleman showed a surprised expression.

"You... you actually saw that file? You have such high privileges?!"

"No, Director Kid collapsed in your fifth year here—it was President Paris who did it."

"So the information about his mistress's death was declassified. I glanced at that file," Fu Luo tapped his head, "and stored it in my head."

Li Nian was shocked: "You have photographic memory? You remembered it after just one glance... do you really have a memory palace? Or do you have hyperthymesia?"

"Not that either, actually I... specifically memorized it."

"When I say 'glanced,' I mean I just looked at it casually, not that I literally only glanced at it once."

Fu Luo said somewhat embarrassed.

"Why did you memorize that thing?"

Lin Yu asked while looking at Fu Luo.

Fu Luo said sheepishly: "That case was presented at the time as evidence of that director's crimes—saying he used it as pretext to attack others. I noticed the case seemed a bit suspicious so I memorized it, planning to use it someday before bed to practice deduction, just as a logical reasoning exercise."