Deceitful Game

Chapter 117 Talent Market

After signing the Overwatch Mutual Aid Agreement, Virgil left.

After being visited by two Moon Silvers in succession, Mingbo and his two companions lost interest in continuing their shopping and sightseeing.

As their subscription time was about to end, they didn't renew it and instead went home after paying.

On their way back, they witnessed yet another battle between deceivers.

Or you could say... that wasn't a battle.

Rather, it was hunting or seeking revenge.

Just as Mingpo and his two companions stepped down the stairs at the subway entrance and were about to enter the station, a group of five or six Deceivers rushed out from behind them, running and rushing into the subway station with chaotic footsteps.

Subway stations don't have "gates".

Security checks and turnstiles are meaningless to con artists. They pass through these physical barriers, which do not form "doors" or "walls," like ghosts.

Just like how a charlatan can "squeeze in" even if a door is cracked open, even with a security chain. He used this technique the first time he met Gao Fan.

Mingbo saw that a man was whispering to another conman next to a pillar in the subway station. He looked very anxious, while the other man looked hesitant.

But when he saw those people rushing in, he turned and ran without hesitation!

Surprisingly, the man didn't try to use the time-based chips. He didn't even make a move to take them out.

Those who were chasing him were not armed with ranged weapons.

They rushed off and went a long way.

He was finally subdued by those people in front of the stairs leading to the underground level.

The group of people surrounded him and kicked him to the ground.

The ruthlessness with which they attacked was such that they were aiming to kill.

No matter how much the person begged for mercy, it was no use.

The charlatans around them ignored it all, continuing to whisper among themselves. They might glance at it briefly, but their steps didn't falter.

Ai Shiping frowned, wanting to say something, but Gao Fan tugged at his sleeve and stopped him.

Mingpo, however, kept his eyes straight ahead, hands in his pockets. He walked past them without faltering.

After all three of them got into the car and found seats, Mingpo looked at Ai Shiping with a half-smile.

"What, you want to be a hero?"

"I just couldn't bear to do it."

Ai Shiping shook his head, stood in front of him, and reached out to pull the handle: "But then I realized... since you didn't react, there must be a reason for that."

"I'm not as kind-hearted as you."

Mingpo retorted, "So what if I don't react?"

He snorted again before slowly replying, "You really should work on your hearing—your hearing is the best among us, yet you failed to capture any important information."

"That guy initially tried to borrow money. He wanted to pledge himself as collateral to get start-up capital. Those people wanted to kill him because he betrayed and killed their teammates in the game. How do you want me to intervene? Go and kick that guy too?" "I see… so he's 'bankrupt'?"

Sitting next to Mingpo, Gao Fan suddenly realized.

He rarely showed a sarcastic expression: "That makes sense. After all, people who win the game by backstabbing others are basically incapable of succeeding in this game of deception. They might get through it temporarily, but if they continue to participate, they'll eventually lose everything."

Gao Fan looked at Ai Shiping, who didn't quite understand, and explained, "The Deception Game requires an entrance fee. Even the easiest Deception Game requires one Time Red Copper as a ticket. If the Deceptionist runs out of chips, they can't enter any game."

Without chips, you can't enter the game, can't change the past, and can't show yourself to the world.

Like a true ghost, he can only wander between heaven and earth forever.

"At first, I thought that not having any chips would become a 'paradox,' and I would never be able to break free from my own mental anchor."

Mingbo smiled and said, "But then I discovered that the Deceivers in the material world actually communicate quite closely... I knew it couldn't be that simple."

Gao Fan nodded with a somewhat sorrowful expression.

Seeing that Ai Shiping's eyes were still somewhat confused, Gao Fan answered directly: "Talent market."

"Job market?"

"Some con artists can predict the type of game they'll be playing next to a certain extent. It could be due to the power of a treasure, access privileges, or even the host leaking the questions..."

Gao Fan slowly explained, "Some types of games are very dangerous. They don't want to bring their teammates... or their teammates are unwilling to accompany them. It's also possible that their team is missing an important player who can't complete the next game's mission. In such cases, they'll rent a cheater from the local talent market... and the so-called 'talent market' is basically for cheaters who have lost all their chips. They have nowhere else to go and no chance to turn things around, so they can only rely on others to carry them through the game. This kind of rental is very cheap—because there's no contract to protect this rental relationship. If the rent is too high, they might be murdered in the game, so they don't have to pay the final payment. Usually, the rented cheaters can only earn the minimum income from completing the game." Gao Fan said quietly, "It's like a disciplinary battalion on the battlefield, always carrying out the most dangerous missions. Even if they die, it doesn't matter. So if there's a dangerous job, it's these rented 'consumables' who do it."

"Since you're joining the game from someone else's base, you can't just kill them. When you leave the game but the others haven't... no amount of arguing will help. Their teammates who stayed in the base will treat the rented person as a traitor and execute them on the spot."

"The charlatans who are willing to rent themselves out are all afraid of death. It is precisely because of this intimidation that they obey orders and participate in those extremely dangerous missions, but at least there is a way to survive. Because if they disobey, they will be killed, and if they fight back, they will also die. Perhaps some people dare to fight them... but these kinds of people usually don't end up with zero resources and still be alive."

"The body reappears at the base when the game ends. But the awakening time is later than that. At this time, the Deceiver is completely defenseless, unable to use titles, unable to wake up, and unable to use chips—this is when they are most vulnerable."

As Gao Fan spoke, he sighed slightly: "It can be said that these charlatans who have lost the advantage of time are nothing more than slaves."

"Besides these charlatans who enter the game to earn chips and help others pass the level... the others are the same."

"Those who are servants, bodyguards, developers, or tools... are even worse off if they are beautiful con artists. Without chips, they cannot enter the game of deception, and therefore cannot change their fate. And chips of time cannot be stolen. Even if you manage to kill a con artist who has chips through a sneak attack or poisoning, without that most basic 'one chip' to summon the host, you cannot extract the chips from the corpse."

"Once you lose all your time-related assets, you will face a despair deeper than death. If no one is willing to lend you money, you can only sink into hell. But time-related assets are basically equivalent to time, the future, life, strength... they are also related to your own safety."

"In this situation, who can easily lend their chips to others?"

Gao Fan smiled wryly.

It felt like I had personally experienced that kind of hell.