Chapter 51: Judging the King

In truth, judging solely by the game content, it would be considered reasonable for Cai Zhiyuan and Wang Yongxin to undergo another trial game.

After all, the games in their respective cells were relatively less dangerous, and undergoing two trials would still remain within the bounds of safety.

But the opposing votes were increasing, and they were all heartfelt. Why?

Because Lin Sizhi had exposed a critical issue: Ding Wenqiang himself could also enter the cells.

But he didn't.

As long as one considered this point, no matter whom Ding Wenqiang judged, it would be unjust.

In Ding Wenqiang's view, he was the King, and it was perfectly reasonable for him not to accept a trial.

But in the eyes of the audience, you are also a sinner—the perpetrator who directly ran over a delivery driver. By what right do you refuse to be judged?

At the very least, you should enter Cell No. 3. Even if you don't have your fingers smashed, you should at least endure the punishment of having your visa time deducted, shouldn't you?

Furthermore, knowing the voting results of others naturally triggers a certain herd mentality.

"Everyone thinks it's unfair, so maybe it really is a bit unfair?"

It was precisely because of this thought that, aside from Spectator No. 7—who had always maintained a harsh attitude toward prisoners and voted "yes" almost brainlessly—most spectators changed their minds.

Although the five spectators who had bet on the King were dying to see Ding Wenqiang kill off the other four as quickly as possible, under the game's lie-detection mechanism, they could only vote according to their true feelings to avoid wasting ten thousand minutes of visa time for no reason.

Except for Spectator No. 1, who had realized certain things.

Lin Sizhi stood up and looked at the arena once more.

During the seventh vote, he had deliberately voted "yes." This was a vote against his conscience, which resulted in a deduction of 10,000 minutes of visa time.

The reason he had voted that way was that, at the very beginning, he had intentionally voted incorrectly to test the lie-detection mechanism, which caused his fairness rating to be docked by 20 points.

Now, voting "yes" intentionally was meant to make up for those 20 points.

As for the eighth vote, Lin Sizhi had actually realized that if he continued to vote "yes" incorrectly, he might be able to prevent certain things from happening.

But after thinking until the very last second, he followed his heart and cast a "no" vote.

As the rules stated, this was the trial of others, and he was merely a spectator.

As a spectator, he believed he had fulfilled his entire responsibility.

Of course, looking back after the results were announced, his vote—whether "yes" or "no"—did not seem to affect the final outcome of the game.

...

Ten minutes were up, and the trial game in Cell No. 1 ended.

Cai Zhiyuan lay on the ground panting heavily, seemingly lacking the strength to even move a finger.

Fortunately, the difficulty of the trial game in Cell No. 1 was considered the lowest; multiple rounds only increased the intensity of the electric shocks. As long as Cai Zhiyuan did not stop, there would be no great danger.

Of course, as the number of games increased, the intensity of the shocks also rose.

If another round were to start, if Cai Zhiyuan stopped for even a single second, he might be killed instantly by the high-voltage current.

Wang Yongxin felt his vision growing darker and his brain growing heavier.

He had originally been thinking of a way to survive, supported by his will to live, but soon, his mind went blank, and he even began to experience life flashing before his eyes.

He instinctively tensed his body, gripping the noose with both hands and pulling down hard, trying to give himself more room to breathe, but the rapid loss of physical strength forced him to give up quickly.

It felt as though a long time had passed, yet also as if only a brief moment had gone by; Wang Yongxin suddenly felt the pressure on his neck loosen, and his entire body went limp involuntarily.

This nearly killed him, because the noose had only been lowered, not brought to the ground.

Under the influence of gravity, the noose around Wang Yongxin's neck almost tightened further. Driven by a surge of adrenaline, he could only burst forth with his last bit of strength to break free from the noose.

Afterward, he lay on the ground, coughing violently.

Ding Wenqiang looked at Cai Zhiyuan and Wang Yongxin with a complex expression.

They had both survived. A pity.

If one person had died accidentally, Ding Wenqiang would have had an excuse; the final two games could have taken out the remaining two.

But now, he might be forced to make a choice of two out of three.

"Uncle Ding... let me live... don't kill me, please...

"In the next game, I'll find a way to give all the remaining... visa time... to you...

"However much you want... it's fine... I'll... slowly earn it... I'll work for you..."

Wang Yongxin's voice was already so hoarse that his original tone was unrecognizable; he struggled in a final attempt at self-preservation.

"Lawyer Lin... and... Officer Cao... are both... spectators in this game. I can... have them act as guarantors... as witnesses...

"No matter how much... those spectators... pay... I am... willing to pay... double..."

Ding Wenqiang looked at Cai Zhiyuan again.

At this moment, the calculating programmer had lost all his schemes; he merely sat despondently against the mechanism, seemingly having completely accepted his fate.

Between these two, whom to choose?

Or... choose neither? To gamble on that 500,000 minutes of visa time?

There was still plenty of time left in the game, but clearly, time alone would not help him think this through.

Just then, a new broadcast rang out.

Ding Wenqiang looked up in a daze. Had more spectators added more money?

Or was a spectator paying him not to kill?

However, the content of the broadcast was extremely foreign to Ding Wenqiang; he couldn't even understand what it meant.

【By vote of the spectators, the King's fairness rating has been reduced to zero, triggering the "King's Trial" hidden rule.】

【Now, it is the turn of the prisoners to judge the King.】

【Special voting buttons have been unlocked on the mechanisms inside each prisoner's cell.】

【You may cast an anonymous vote to decide whether the King continues to live or is executed.】

【Deceased prisoners will automatically cast an execution vote.】

【If the execution votes exceed one-half of the total prisoner votes, the King will be executed immediately.】

【Please note! This is the prisoners' only opportunity to judge the King within this game.】

【The 10-second countdown begins. Please make your choice.】

【10】

【9】

【8】

...

The countdown proceeded rapidly. Ding Wenqiang watched blankly as the three prisoners, battered to the brink of death and exhausted, each reached for the mechanism beside them, struggling to press the hidden buttons.

He could not see which buttons they were pressing, nor had he even processed what their actions meant.

He futilely raised his scepter to stop them, but pressing the scepter yielded no response.

In the midst of sudden despair, Ding Wenqiang's mind went blank.

But he quickly grasped a lifeline: one-half! To execute the King, the votes had to *exceed* one-half of the total prisoner votes!

Not just reach it, but exceed it!

The deceased Zhang Peng would default to an execution vote, and Gao Zhankui would surely vote for execution as well.

But as long as Cai Zhiyuan and Wang Yongxin did not vote for execution, and the total votes did not exceed one-half, nothing would happen.

Cai Zhiyuan likely wouldn't vote for it, but what about Wang Yongxin?

Many possibilities flashed through Ding Wenqiang's mind, but before he could rank them by probability, the cold voice of the broadcast rang out again.

【Voting has ended.】

【The result of the anonymous vote is: The King is executed.】

Ding Wenqiang felt a sharp sting in his left wrist. Looking down, he saw that a needle from the visa bracelet had pierced his radial artery, and a clear black line was rapidly flowing along the vein toward his heart.

He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but only a large amount of black blood surged from his throat.

Subconsciously, Ding Wenqiang covered his mouth, staring at the black blood in his palm with a face full of shock.

Then, he fell backward, stiff and lifeless.

【The King has been executed; the "King's Trial" cannot continue.】

【Antidotes have been injected into the bodies of all sinners.】

【Spectators who bet on the prisoner side have won and will split all the chips bet and earned by the spectators who bet on the King side during the game.】

【Game over.】