An old tungsten filament bulb hung by a black wire in the center of the room, flickering with dim light.

But the atmosphere inside the room was no longer tranquil.

As the clock in the center of the table ticked away, the nine people around the round table slowly opened their eyes.

Except for Lawyer Zhang and Tiantian, everyone’s eyes were different from last time.

Qiao Jiajin looked around with some worry. Only after seeing familiar face after familiar face did he finally relax.

Qi Xia also raised his head and looked at his “comrades.”

Except for Xiao Ran, not one was missing.

It seemed Qiao Jiajin hadn’t broken any rules. He hadn’t actively provoked “Xuanwu.” That was for the best.

Qi Xia looked at each person in turn. First, he and Qiao Jiajin nodded to each other in acknowledgment, then he exchanged glances with Officer Li and Lin Qin.

Finally, he looked at Doctor Zhao and Han Yimo.

Everyone was here. Somehow, that brought a sense of relief.

But now there were three problem individuals in the room. First were Lawyer Zhang and Tiantian—they had no “Echo” and were still in their newly arrived state.

Then there was the former tenth person, now the ninth person.

That young man whose skull had been shattered twice.

All the “Echo” users slowly looked toward that person. Except for Qi Xia and Doctor Zhao, no one knew where Xiao Ran had gone. They only knew that the room now truly had “nine people,” so would this young man still die?

That young man, just like the previous two times, still displayed that eerily desperate smile, staring blankly at Qi Xia.

The Man-Goat standing to the side also had different eyes from last time.

Those yellowed eyes, amidst decay and despair, actually contained a trace of joy.

According to the contract, he needed to make all the people in the room disappear and persist for three cycles.

Now someone had already begun to disappear. This was a good sign.

“Clang!!”

Another bell sound rang out.

Qi Xia frowned. Was “Scapegoat” being activated?

But… in the current situation, was it necessary to activate it?

“Good morning, nine people. I think it’s still necessary for me to explain the situation to you.” The Man-Goat slowly began to speak. “I am Man-Goat…”

Before he could finish his first sentence, the Man-Goat froze.

He began to tremble, unable to control his fear.

A white-clothed figure had appeared in the room at some unknown time. She wasn’t sitting at the round table, nor was her movement restricted. She was currently standing in a dark corner, curiously looking around.

“Huh?” She made a puzzled sound. “This… where is this?”

Hearing this voice, everyone turned their heads in confusion to look.

That figure also emerged from the dark corner. “Why are there so many people?”

The moment they saw her, Qi Xia felt the strings in his mind snap at that instant.

The final straw had ultimately come in such an unreasonable way.

But the straw that breaks the camel’s back is never just the last one.

It’s every single one.

“Xia, you’re here too?” Yu Nian’an asked with a smile. “Wasn’t I just walking on the street? How did I end up here when I turned around…”

“An…”

Lin Qin’s eyes slowly widened at this moment.

This girl was… the Yu Nian’an that Qi Xia constantly mentioned?

How was this possible?!

Even if she truly was in the Land of the End, how could she possibly appear in the interview room where no one could move?!

Everyone’s expressions became complicated. The current situation was far too bizarre.

“Xia, who are these people?” Yu Nian’an came to Qi Xia’s side and asked, supporting his shoulder. “What are you all sitting here doing?”

Lin Qin turned to look at Qi Xia, thinking this was bad.

Qi Xia’s eyes weren’t right.

He was doubting himself. He was about to break down.

“An… you… you’re really here?”

Qi Xia felt his mind was extremely chaotic.

He clearly hadn’t used “Echo,” yet Yu Nian’an had appeared.

Then…

Didn’t that mean the Yu Nian’an before his eyes was real?

Qi Xia felt something was wrong, but a massive amount of information and clues in his mind were all colliding together at this moment, making his thoughts utterly chaotic.

“Ah!” Qi Xia cried out with a somewhat distorted expression.

He knew what was wrong!

There were now ten people in this room!

According to the Man-Goat’s previous practice, he would kill the extra person in the room…

That absolutely couldn’t happen!

He hurriedly looked toward the Man-Goat, only to find that the Man-Goat had no intention of attacking Yu Nian’an. He had retreated several steps in succession and was slowly pulling out his handgun.

“Contract clause 3.3: When the interview begins, all members cannot move. If Party B sees someone walking around, please immediately distance yourself from the moving person. After ensuring your own safety, please commit suicide immediately…” The Man-Goat tremblingly picked up the handgun and shrank to the side, aiming it at his own heart.

“Not good!” Lin Qin shouted. “Things are going to spiral out of control!”

Everyone naturally understood what Lin Qin meant.

The game hadn’t started yet. If the Man-Goat committed suicide, how would things proceed afterward?

How would everyone get out of the room?

“Qiao Jiajin!” Lin Qin called out.

Qiao Jiajin immediately understood. At this moment, the Man-Goat had retreated right in front of him. If he could seize the handgun, there would still be a chance to turn things around.

Unfortunately, Qiao Jiajin’s legs couldn’t move. Now he could only lean forward and strike quickly, inserting his thumb under the trigger of the handgun. Then he gripped the gun and twisted it in the opposite direction, and the Man-Goat lost his hold.

Qiao Jiajin knew he was fortunate the Man-Goat hadn’t had time to react. Otherwise, with his strength, there was no way he could directly contend with him.

Seeing the handgun snatched away, the Man-Goat panicked instantly. “Give it back to me!!”

“No, no, no, no…” Qiao Jiajin waved his hands frantically. “Goat Head, don’t die yet, okay? Read the questions first!”

“Give it back to me!!!!” The Man-Goat roared. His spirit seemed about to collapse as well. He had been in the interview room for a long time and had never thought this contract clause could take effect.

But Qiao Jiajin held the handgun and dodged left and right, not giving him any chance to get the gun.

The Man-Goat wished he could kill this flower-armed man right now.

Contract clause 2.4: Party B promises to establish a correct worldview for the participants and guarantees to correctly guide the participants to actively, willingly, and calmly walk toward death. During this period, Party B must not kill the innocent indiscriminately or seek personal revenge.

The Man-Goat knew he couldn’t kill anyone, so he reached out again to snatch the handgun.

“Hey! Cop!”

Qiao Jiajin, with quick eyes and hands, directly threw the handgun to Officer Li on the opposite side of the table.

Officer Li had read the contract and naturally knew the Man-Goat couldn’t easily kill people. So the moment he caught the handgun, he removed the magazine. Then with his left hand, he threw the magazine to Doctor Zhao, and with his right hand, he threw the gun body to Han Yimo.

“Man-Goat! Give us the questions!” Officer Li also said anxiously. “Since you’re going to die no matter what, you might as well let us escape from here first!”

Seeing everyone working together in perfect coordination to toy with him, the Man-Goat completely broke down.

He gave up on the handgun. Instead, he slowly retreated backward, retreating to a corner far from everyone.

Under everyone’s confused gazes, the Man-Goat extended two fingers and then viciously stabbed toward his own eyes.

A scream rang out. His eyes became a bloody mess.

He didn’t stop. Instead, he extended the index fingers of his left and right hands and inserted them toward his own eardrums.

This action made everyone’s hearts jump with shock.

After doing all this, the Man-Goat, wearing his blood-stained mask, hugged his legs and quietly recited: “Contract clause 3.5: If suicide fails, please destroy your eyes and hearing as much as possible, and wait quietly in the interview room for rescue. Party A will dispatch personnel to kill Party B.”