Chapter 40: A Path of False Life

These screams and shrieks were not cheers of joy. Instead, they were laced with terror and despair.

Just half a minute ago, the invigilator had collected the test papers. Every student had worn a look of relief, waiting for the exam to end so they could go home.

"The exam is finally over. We can finally go home."
"Yeah, thanks to our top student for this."
"Our class genius is truly something else. No matter the exam, they’re always so capable!"
"I never managed to copy off them in previous tests. I didn't expect to catch a free ride and piggyback on their answers this time."
"Haha, I bet we’re the first class to finish."
"Doesn't the class next door have Chen Mu? Why haven't they finished yet? We’ve already handed in our papers."
"In my opinion, Chen Mu is just overhyped. If you want to see someone truly impressive, look at our top student."
"Exactly, exactly. What is Chen Mu, anyway? He’s not even half as good as our genius."

Amidst the cheers of his classmates, the top student curled his lips into a smile, basking in the flattery.

However, at that very moment, the invigilator’s expression suddenly turned icy.

"I declare your exam answers... incorrect."

As soon as these words were spoken, the entire classroom fell into an instant, deathly silence. Every student looked toward the podium in disbelief. They thought they had misheard. Answers incorrect? How could that be? How could the answers possibly be wrong?

"All candidates, half will be killed at random. The exam is over. To the survivors, congratulations—you may go home."

The invigilator delivered this chilling pronouncement like a death sentence. In an instant, fine red lines appeared on the bodies of half the students in the room. The lines grew wider and deeper, and from within them, blood erupted in a massive spray. Their bodies were being torn apart!

Accompanied by gasps and cries of despair, those who had been lucky enough to survive were so terrified by the horrific scene that they scrambled to flee through the doors. They were fortunate to have survived, but the price was the death of half their peers. For the survivors, the scene they had just witnessed would undoubtedly haunt them for the rest of their lives. Some collapsed on the spot, paralyzed by fear. Two students, having watched their former classmates torn to shreds and drenched in blood, had their minds snap; they sat on the floor, babbling incoherently.

Those who rushed out of the classroom screamed in terror and desperation in the hallways: "It’s not the answer! The invigilator is not the answer!"

These desperate cries echoed throughout the entire school building. Beyond this classroom, at least two other classes had failed the exam for the same reason. These screams and shrieks reached Chen Mu’s classroom as well. When they heard the cry—"The invigilator is not the answer"—the students in Chen Mu’s class looked at him with shock. The student who had been acting so arrogant moments ago now turned deathly pale, unable to utter a word.

Had it not been for Chen Mu’s firm refusal, many in the class would have truly voted to hand in their papers. If they had, the consequences would have been unimaginable. It was no exaggeration to say that Chen Mu had saved their lives. As it turned out, the older ginger is indeed the spicier one; Chen Mu was truly unfathomable.

"Chen Mu, how did you know the invigilator wasn't the answer?" a student couldn't help but ask. This was the question on everyone’s mind.

"It’s simple: a conflict of rules," Chen Mu replied. "The rules stated that the invigilator must not be harmed under any circumstances. But the subsequent rules stated that to identify whether someone is an entity, you must use a dagger to cut them. These two rules contradicted each other. If I suspected the invigilator was an entity and wanted to test him, I would have to cut him with a knife, but the invigilator cannot be harmed. Therefore, there was no way to prove whether he was an entity."

"The only method offered was to vote to hand in the papers. Once you vote, you are gambling with your life. As far as I know, that doesn't align with the rules of an entity’s trial. While these trials can be difficult and contain false or misleading rules, you must remember one thing: there is always a hidden path to survival! A true 'path to life' is a surefire way to survive. By finding that path, I could be one hundred percent certain of my survival, rather than relying on a gamble. If a supposed path to life cannot be verified, it is a 'pseudo-path.' The real path to life must lie elsewhere."

What Chen Mu spoke of was the experience he had accumulated over five years of living in the supernatural apocalypse. The answer of the invigilator was a classic case of an unprovable, obvious pseudo-path. It was called a pseudo-path because it wasn't a real way out; it was a death trap disguised as salvation.

Generally, these pseudo-paths are extremely sinister. They are usually paths to certain death. Only someone as experienced as Chen Mu could see through them at a glance. People like that top student were easily led into traps, leading to their total destruction.

After hearing Chen Mu’s explanation, the students in the class were stunned. This was the first time they had ever heard the concept of a "pseudo-path."

"Chen Mu is amazing; I can't believe he knows so much."
"If it weren't for Chen Mu, we would have been dead for sure this time."
"Chen Mu is the pillar of our class. We need to stick close to him."
"I declare myself Chen Mu’s most loyal supporter! Everything he says is right!"

On the podium, the invigilator cast a look of surprise toward Chen Mu after hearing his explanation. She hadn't expected Chen Mu to see through the situation so thoroughly or to identify the pseudo-path. This was a truly clever person.

Time ticked by, second by second. After the incident with the pseudo-path, the situation fell into a stalemate once more. In the other classrooms, the slaughter had reached a fever pitch. Just as Chen Mu had anticipated, the repeated killings had twisted the psyches of many students. To survive and end the exam as quickly as possible, some finally turned their daggers on their own classmates.

"Do you want to be randomly selected? If not, I have a way to make sure we survive," a sturdy student said to a dozen classmates in another room.

"What method?"
"Did you find the path to life?"
"No, I didn't find the path in the rules, but I found another way to live."

He pointed his dagger at another group of students. "As long as we kill them and the remaining number of people drops below half, then those of us left will survive."

Hearing such cruel words, the surrounding students hesitated, looking conflicted. "No, that’s too cruel. I can't do it." One student dropped his dagger, squatted down, and covered his face, sobbing. "Do you have any humanity left? We are all classmates!"

"Humanity? What is that? Can it help us survive?"

Finally, the situation spiraled completely out of control. Order had collapsed.