Chapter 140
Chapter 140
“The organization monitors things strictly; we aren’t allowed to use the ‘Time-Space Converter’ for personal reasons. This time, I had no choice but to do it to bring my wife back.”
Boss Shi wore a sorrowful expression as he tenderly caressed his sleeping wife.
After a moment of silence, Boss Shi turned to look at Jiang Li.
“If anyone from the organization asks you, please help me. Don’t tell them you’ve seen my wife.”
Boss Shi pulled out an agreement and gestured for Jiang Li to agree and sign the contract.
Jiang Li took it and scanned the contents.
The time and space within this Instance were somewhat chaotic.
Just like before, when Jiang Li was on Basement Floor 1, she had heard the sounds of the school playground through the Staff Lounge window.
These errors in time and space were all consequences of Boss Shi’s unauthorized use of the “Time-Space Converter.”
“Cracks have formed in the time and space of this Instance. The people from above will be down to investigate soon. Please, you must help me.”
Boss Shi showed a rare display of helplessness in front of Jiang Li.
Jiang Li glanced at the agreement.
It stated that if she helped Boss Shi conceal this matter, she would be allowed to use the “Time-Space Converter” for free.
“Why would I need to use your converter?” Jiang Li felt puzzled.
She was about to clear this Instance; why would she need some “Time-Space Converter”?
This deal offered no apparent benefit to her.
Boss Shi’s expression turned solemn.
“If you don’t use it, you will never be able to clear the Instance.” His tone was incredibly firm.
“To tell you the truth, the organization only agreed to bring out the ‘Time-Space Converter’ specifically for the clearance of the Clear Spring Hotel Instance.”
Looking at Boss Shi’s expression, he didn’t seem to be lying.
Had Jiang Li missed something?
Exactly where was the oversight that necessitated the use of the “Time-Space Converter”?
After thinking it over several times, Jiang Li eventually agreed to Boss Shi’s request and signed her name on the contract.
The contract took effect.
“Thanks, Young Lady. If you need to find me, you can go to the small Cabin opposite the Bus Shelter. Once you enter, find a wooden chair and sit down. I’ll know you’re there.”
After saying this, Boss Shi hurriedly carried his wife on his back and ran off down a small path.
Jiang Li actually wanted to ask a few more questions.
Because she had seen the Cabin Boss Shi mentioned.
It was essentially just an empty frame that looked like it had been abandoned for at least twenty years.
How could anyone possibly live in a place like that?
Before Jiang Li could call out to stop Boss Shi, the bushes were pushed aside from the outside.
“Routine investigation.”
Two people wearing small black waistcoats stepped into the thicket and stood before Jiang Li.
They were a man and a woman, both wearing pointed masks printed with skull patterns.
“Have you seen this person?”
The man pulled out a photograph and held it before Jiang Li’s eyes.
The woman in the photo was exactly the Woman with a Teardrop Mole she had just seen.
“This woman vanished without reason from Parallel Space-Time. We suspect someone has used the ‘Time-Space Converter’ without authorization for their own selfish desires.
“This is an urgent matter. Please cooperate with our investigation.”
Jiang Li thought for a second and was about to answer.
At that moment, the woman in the black waistcoat pulled out a device that looked like a handgun and pressed it against Jiang Li’s forehead.
“The Lie Detector is ready. You’d better not lie,” the woman’s cold voice warned.
Jiang Li swallowed hard.
She had thought she could just brush them off by saying she hadn’t seen her.
She hadn’t expected the Ghost Face Organization to have lie-detecting equipment.
“Miss, don’t be nervous. This is just a simple inquiry.” The man held a pen and paper, staring at Jiang Li as he waited for her response.
Jiang Li looked at the pair, remained silent for two seconds, and then nodded.
“I’ve seen her,” Jiang Li said.
As soon as she spoke, the man and woman exchanged a look, their expressions tightening.
Meanwhile, the handgun-like Lie Detector emitted three beeps and showed a green light.
“Where did you see her?” the woman pressed, her expression serious.
Jiang Li looked the woman in the eye and answered earnestly:
“In the Nighttime Snack Shop downstairs at the Madhouse. I saw a photo of this woman together with the shop owner.”
A true lie isn’t built on pure fabrication.
Rather… it’s about swapping the time and space of events, using a montage technique to construct a “false truth.”
It was true that she had seen the woman, and it was true that she had seen the photo in the Madhouse.
But by combining them, it became an entirely different story.
As Jiang Li finished speaking, the Lie Detector beeped three times again.
The indicator light remained green. The system’s detection confirmed that Jiang Li had not lied.
Jiang Li’s words left the members of the Ghost Face Organization disappointed for a few seconds.
“And after that? Have you seen her since? I mean, inside this Instance,” the woman continued to press.
The cold Lie Detector was still pressed against Jiang Li’s forehead.
Jiang Li’s fingers tightened instinctively.
Clearly, Jiang Li’s answer had not satisfied them.
Jiang Li had her clever schemes, but they had their counter-measures. The people from the Ghost Face Organization were not so easily fooled.
“Why aren’t you speaking? We’re asking if you’ve seen the person alive. Not a photo.”
Seeing that Jiang Li remained silent, the man chimed in to back up his colleague, doubling down on the questioning.
Four eyes stared intently at Jiang Li, all of them anticipating an answer.
Jiang Li thought for a moment, clenched her fist, and shook her head.
“I haven’t seen her.”
Surprisingly, the light on the Lie Detector turned green.
Seeing that Jiang Li wasn’t lying, the pair could only sigh. They recorded the result truthfully and left the area.
Once the members of the Ghost Face Organization were far enough away, Red Infant, perched on her shoulder, finally spoke up.
“Mommy, what happened? Is their Lie Detector broken?”
Jiang Li stepped out from the bushes and glanced in the direction of the convenience store.
“No, Baby, their Lie Detector isn’t broken.”
Rule 2 of the [Unmanned Convenience Store Entry Rules] stated:
[Perhaps you will encounter some dead people in the store. Do not panic; they are just customers, just like you.]
The location where Jiang Li had encountered the Woman with a Teardrop Mole was very specific: it was inside the Unmanned Convenience Store.
The convenience store rules stipulated that those encountered inside could be living or dead.
“All sorts of people are in that convenience store, Baby. Can you prove that the lady from earlier was alive?” Jiang Li asked Red Infant with a smile.
Red Infant shook his head. “Who knows if she was dead or alive?”
Jiang Li’s lips curled into a smile.
This was the loophole in the rules.
Forget the Lie Detector-even Jiang Li herself couldn’t determine if that person was alive or dead.
After all, no one could provide “conclusive evidence.”
So, when Jiang Li faced the Ghost Face Organization’s question of whether she had seen the “living Woman with a Teardrop Mole,” her answer of “I haven’t seen her” wouldn’t register as a lie on the device.
No one could prove the person Jiang Li saw was alive.
Of course, no one could prove she was dead, either.
This was a gray area that the Lie Detector could not judge.
By utilizing this rule from the Unmanned Convenience Store, she was able to turn the situation to her advantage and escape danger.
“Oh, right, Mommy. Didn’t you see that lady in the bushes just now too? She was lying right behind Uncle Shi.”
Red Infant scratched his head, unable to help but ask.
Jiang Li laughed. “You’re right. She was lying there, but who knows if she was just sleeping or if she had kicked the bucket?”
Red Infant was startled. “…That makes sense!”
Jiang Li carried the Mist-Treading Lantern and began walking toward the Clear Spring Hotel.
After walking about a hundred meters, she passed the Bus Shelter. She saw the man and woman questioning several guests who were waiting for the bus.
Jiang Li retracted her gaze and quickened her pace, heading back to the Clear Spring Hotel.
Before she even reached the large iron gate of the hotel, Jiang Li noticed that the building inside the gate seemed to have changed. It had turned into a school building.
The sign for the Clear Spring Hotel was gone.
Inside the large iron gate, there were many students wearing school uniforms.
Next to the school building, a green turf playground for student activities had also appeared.
The sounds of chasing and playing on the playground were exactly what Jiang Li had heard coming from Basement Floor 1.
It looked like a… Closed Boarding School located halfway up the mountain.
Beside the large iron gate, a chubby little girl with straight bangs and a blue school uniform was crouching in the corner, sobbing.
Jiang Li stepped through the gate and locked eyes with the girl.
Such a familiar gaze…
She felt like she had seen this little girl somewhere before.
Jiang Li remembered Boss Shi saying that the Time-Space Converter was necessary to clear this Instance.
Could the key to clearing it be related to this familiar-looking girl?
Jiang Li was full of questions and intended to go over to ask her a few things.
Unexpectedly, just as she stepped forward, the girl suddenly stopped crying and immediately ran toward the school building.
Jiang Li gave chase.
In the blink of an eye, the tall school building before Jiang Li’s eyes instantly transformed back into the Clear Spring Hotel.
And Jiang Li accidentally bumped into someone who had suddenly appeared out of thin air due to the time-space shift.
It was the Elevator Attendant… the one with the straight bangs.