Chapter 62: The Shield of Miracles, Winning by 10 Points! (Double-Length Chapter)

"So, if you believe there is only one wolf left in the game, how could that wolf possibly be number eleven?"

"Therefore, based solely on the speeches, I think number six is a wolf. I find it hard to accept that number eight is attacking me simply because they believe number seven is the guard."

"This brings us to another layer of logic."

"Number six is not a werewolf; number eight is."

Number eleven glanced around the room.

"If there is only one wolf remaining in the game, it is entirely possible for number six's statements from that position to hold up as a guard card. Number seven picked up on this too, stood up, and claimed to be the guard to protect number six, while attacking number eight and myself, number eleven. Number eight didn't dare accuse number six, nor did they dare accuse number seven, so they had no choice but to target me, number eleven. In truth, number eight's alignment is the most ambiguous of all."

"These are the two layers of logic I can deduce from my perspective: the werewolf is either number six or number eight."

"I won't elaborate further on this specific position. Let the seer compile the votes and announce their investigation. I'm done."

Number eleven had originally planned to completely dismantle number six.

However, he could not be certain who the seer's investigation would ultimately land on.

If number six was inspected and found to be innocent, number eleven would become the absolute center of suspicion. Therefore, number eleven left himself a backup plan: dragging player number eight into the muddy waters.

Yet, everything he had discussed relied on one fundamental premise.

The baseline of it all.

Was built on the assumption that the seer had not inspected him.

If player number one had investigated him the previous night, then everything he had just said would be utterly meaningless.

He might as well just self-destruct and concede the game right then and there.

Number eleven leaned back into his seat.

His gaze followed everyone else's, falling upon player number one.

Like the rest of the good guys, a flicker of hope appeared in his eyes.

Yet, this hope was entirely different from that of the righteous faction.

He was praying that the seer had inspected someone on the outer positions—preferably player number two or twelve, who had already self-destructed, or even player number four would do.

That way, the seer's investigation would be rendered completely useless.

[Player number one, please begin your speech.]

It was now the turn of the first player, the seer.

He began to think frantically within his mind.

Initially, he had suspected that number seven might be a werewolf helped by number two to build an alibi, but to his surprise, the inspection revealed that number seven was an innocent player.

Although this was the only logical deduction one could make, his choice to investigate number seven had been overly influenced by the dying words of player number two, the wolf gunner, causing him to overthink.

Still, since number seven had already been verified as innocent, and everyone else in the preceding positions had either made no claim or claimed to be ordinary villagers, only number seven had stepped forward as the guard.

Aside from him, only number six's speech held the slightest possibility of being either the guard or a werewolf.

Yet, number seven, his confirmed innocent teammate, had protected number six from the earlier positions.

Thus, from his perspective, whether number six was a wolf or the guard hiding their identity with number seven to confuse the wolves, he should trust the judgment of his confirmed innocent.

Therefore...

"Number seven said the last wolf is between number eight and number eleven, so I might as well say I investigated them and see how they react."

At this thought.

The seer, number one, glanced briefly at number eight, then at number eleven, and let out a deep sigh.

With a tone that blended despondency with a hint of schadenfreude, he spoke slowly and leisurely: "I investigated numbers three, eight, and eleven. Number three is innocent, number eight is—"

"Self-destruct!"

Before player number one could finish his sentence.

At the exact moment he announced number three as innocent and was about to reveal the result of number eight's inspection,

Player number eleven, Gregor, chose to self-destruct right on the spot.

[Player number eleven has chosen to self-destruct.]

[Game over.]

[The righteous faction wins.]

Gregor chose to surrender immediately.

Number one, however, remained frozen in place.

He had merely intended to pressure numbers eight and eleven by bluffing about his investigation!

Why on earth had this guy just gone ahead and self-destructed?

He was still preparing to fake that number eight was a werewolf first!

Did he really have to self-destruct this fast???

Meanwhile.

The outside venue erupted into chaos.

Countless spectators couldn't help but curse out loud, the entire arena boiling over like a pot of hot oil.

The commentator, Xiaoming, stared with wide eyes: "With four cards under the sheriff's jurisdiction, number eleven actually walked right into an investigation kill? I don't know whether to say the wolf pack's luck was abysmal this round or the good guys' skill was simply too overwhelming, pinning down their identities with absolute precision. But regardless, the game is over, and the righteous faction claims ultimate victory! Let's offer our premature congratulations to these eight scoring teams!"

Xiaohan gripped the microphone: "I must say, the wolf team's vision was far too narrow this round. I'm sure everyone present is dying to know what actually transpired over the past few days! I'm burning with curiosity myself. The organizing committee decided not to provide us hosts with the replay data during the finals, so we have to discover the final outcome right along with all of you."

"Please look at the big screen!"

[The first round of the WPL 2023 Werewolf National Finals has concluded.]

[The werewolves for this match were players 2, 4, 11, and 12.]

[Among them, the wolf gunner was player number 2.]

[On the first night, seer number 1 inspected number 3 as innocent. The werewolves chose to target witch number 10, but the attack was blocked by guard number 7. To prevent any accidents involving the soul merchant, the witch chose not to use her poison.]

[Events proved the witch's decision to be extremely wise. Soul merchant number 9 chose to trade souls with werewolf number 12, only to suffer the backlash and be eliminated.]

[During the day, werewolf number 12 chose to self-destruct.]

[Entering the night, guard number 7 chose to hold his shield, and the wolf pack targeted the witch once more. Upon being attacked, number 10 poisoned werewolf number 4. Seer number 1's inspection revealed number 4 as a flipped investigation kill.]

[During the day, werewolf number 2, overwhelmed by pressure, chose to self-destruct with his gun, swallowing the sheriff badge and causing a triple death of players 2, 4, and 10.]

[Entering the night, seer number 1 inspected number 7 as innocent. Guard number 7 chose to shield seer number 1, and the werewolves targeted number 1, resulting in a peaceful night.]

[During the day, number 7 claimed to be the guard. Upon receiving this information, the seer chose to bluff an inspection on the lower positions, prompting number eleven to self-destruct on the spot.]

[Game over, the righteous faction wins.]

The replay data on the screen was exceptionally detailed.

Xiaohan was heard shouting suddenly: "On the third day, the seer didn't even inspect number eleven?! Good grief, he went and checked number seven! Does that mean number eleven panicked and self-destructed just because he was bluffed by a divine role, exactly like number two?!"

Commentator Xiaoming looked somewhat stunned as well: "This match was simply too brilliant! The werewolves kept self-destructing one after another—it was like watching a string of fireworks! Absolutely incredible! The good guys played out of their minds this round; from the moment the guard blocked the witch on day one, the wolf pack was already sliding toward defeat!"

In the audience seating.

Countless spectators were equally stunned by the actions of numbers one and eleven.

"Holy shit! Number one didn't even inspect the cards under the sheriff?"

"Too funny! Number two got bluffed into self-destructing by the witch, and number eleven got bluffed into self-destructing by the seer. The wolves played themselves into a masterpiece this round!"

"The good guys are way too strong. Aside from that soul merchant, I'd like to call the other three gods the 'Master Bluffers Alliance'!"

"Still, I'm baffled as to how number one decided to inspect player number seven on day three? How could he possibly check that position? Even if he was just blindly hunting for innocents, he wouldn't check him—wasn't number seven an obvious good guy?"

"Good thing number seven was the guard. He boldly stepped forward and made his claim, riding that role to completely squeeze the wolves' living space. Otherwise, if the guard had been an uninspected player in an outer position, number eleven might actually have survived a counter-claim against him."

"Exactly. Because number seven was the guard, and number one trusted his guard identity, he threw out a fake investigation just to test the waters. Who would have thought number eleven would actually self-destruct right then and there and get himself eliminated?"

"Why has Gregor gotten so washed up after just one year? He spends a year abroad and this is all he has to show for it?"

"Sure, he went overseas, but it wasn't like he went to some sacred gathering ground of top-tier players from every nation. He's probably got some use, but not much."

All the spectators were animatedly discussing their own opinions.

By this time, the organizing committee had already scored every single player.

The screen began to announce the performance ratings for all twelve competitors.

Seer Number 1: Three consecutive days of ineffective investigations, failed to report a single valid check, yet managed to bluff out werewolf number eleven's identity at the very end.
Hard to evaluate. Score: +3.

Wolf Gunner Number 2: Tricked by the witch into revealing his werewolf identity, causing a massive defeat for the wolf pack.
Utterly useless. Score: -4.

Villager Number 3: Correctly sided with the single-faction seer without any pressure.
Utterly mediocre. Score: +3.

Werewolf Number 4: Failed to anticipate the guard shielding the witch; his risky play on the upper positions painted a target on his back and got him poisoned by the witch.
Utterly useless. Score: -4.

Villager Number 5: Correctly sided with the single-faction seer without any pressure.

Villager Number 6: Attempted to make plays, but with minimal effect.
Utterly mediocre. Score: +3.

Guard Number 7: Shielded miraculous peaceful nights two days in a row, saving the lives of both the witch and the seer. Pinpointed werewolf number four's identity from the upper positions and recognized most of his innocent comrades from the lower ones, narrowing down the remaining wolf suspects and making a monumental contribution to the righteous faction. Without number seven, there would have been no sequence of wolf self-destructions or the witch's successful poisoning of the wolf.
Miraculous Shield. Score: +10!

Villager Number 8: Recognized number seven's guard identity and successfully locked the wolf suspicion onto number eleven.
Commendable. Score: +3.

Soul Merchant Number 9: Point. Point. Point. Point. Point. Point.
Half a pile of trash. Score: +3.

Witch Number 10: After being attacked on the first night and considering the soul merchant might suffer a backlash, she wisely chose to hold back her poison. During the day, she detected player number nine's soul merchant identity and claimed to be an ordinary villager, though her identity was sniffed out by the wolf pack. While being eliminated, she combined the limited logical baseline from the upper positions to poison werewolf number four, and during the day successfully bluffed wolf gunner number two into self-destructing.
Outstanding. Score: +5.

Werewolf Number 11: Accurately deduced witch number ten's identity, but recklessly attempted two successive night kills, causing the wolf pack's strategy to completely collapse. Furthermore, he was bluffed out of his identity by the seer, losing the game entirely.
A pile of trash. Score: -5.

Werewolf Number 12: Accurately deduced that number nine was a soul merchant masquerading as a jumping seer, and resolutely self-destructed before the real seer could announce his investigation, buying a chance at victory for the wolf pack.
Commendable. Score: -3.

"Too funny! I love these ratings!"

"As a seer who couldn't even report a single day's investigation, never mind the committee—even we find it hard to evaluate!"

"Haha! And look at that—'a pile of trash'? Do you have to be this hilarious, hahahahaha!"

"Forget a pile, there's even 'half a pile' right here! I'm dying!"

"This number nine soul merchant just got a string of 'points' across the board. Among the four gods, it seems his performance was the absolute worst!"

"And if he hadn't stubbornly insisted on claiming to be the seer and giving number twelve an investigation kill, number twelve wouldn't have self-destructed and swallowed number three's inspection either."

"You can't really say that though. If number twelve hadn't self-destructed, the wolves definitely wouldn't have done a double self-destruction to swallow the sheriff badge. It was precisely because the wolves were forced to consider a double self-destruction that the witch managed to trick number two."

"True, number nine didn't actually do anything terribly wrong. His biggest mistake was..."

"Point, point, point, point, point?"

"Pfft!"

Inside the team lounge.

Wang Changsheng's incredible, overpowered score of 10 made everyone on the team as excited as if they had been injected with adrenaline.

Curly Hair was literally jumping up and down on the spot.

"Why is my brother Wang so badass?! Another ten points, Sister Huang! Ten points!!!"

Huang Manmiao stood in front of the screen, her cheeks flushed red and her breathing slightly hurried.

Her jade-like fingers pressed tightly against the table as she stared unblinkingly at Wang Changsheng's score on the screen.

After two seconds of silence.

She suddenly burst out laughing.

"Hahahaha! Hehehehe! I knew it! The money and resources poured into little Wang wouldn't go to waste! Those old fogies were even trying to make me give little Wang a rookie seed contract first instead! In their dreams!"

"Good thing I didn't let those old bastards get their way, or if someone poached such a treasure like little Wang, I'd tear them limb from limb!"

Huang Manmiao muttered curses under her breath as she laughed.

Yet, not a single team member behind her dared to respond to her remarks.

Because the people Huang Manmiao was disparaging were none other than the major board-room financial backers who supported them...

Aside from her, not a soul in the entire team dared to utter a single disrespectful word about the financial patrons.

In truth, Huang Manmiao hadn't signed Wang Changsheng to the highest-tier ace contract merely because she recognized his skill and future potential.

There was another reason as well.

Their team had already been hollowed out and riddled with holes by poachers.

They simply could not withstand any further upheaval.

With fresh blood like Wang Changsheng injected into the lineup.

She would keep him here at any cost.

Under such a high-caliber contract,

The moment Wang Changsheng signed it,

The buyout penalty for breaking the contract would reach an astronomical, unimaginable figure.

Any other team attempting to poach Wang Changsheng would have to seriously weigh whether they could afford such a price.

Or rather, whether it was worth sacrificing the resources of all their other players just to steal Wang Changsheng away.

After all, a team's total resources were finite.

Unless they discovered a new revenue stream, the financial backers supporting them behind the scenes would never fork over that much cash for a single individual.

One had to realize that the penalty fee for Wang Changsheng to breach his contract and switch to another team right now was enough to let those other teams sign dozens of ace players all at once!

Wang Changsheng's career had simply started too recently; despite his soaring fame, the economic value he had generated so far did not yet warrant such a colossal price tag.

After laughing until she grew tired, Huang Manmiao slowly lowered her head, her eyes flashing.

Years ago, the team's absolute top ace had been poached away.

She had never expected her own team member to stab her in the back.

Back then, even though the buyout penalty was high, it had still fallen within a reasonable range.

After that incident,

She had almost sunk into deep despair.

Fortunately, she didn't have only those few people left in her team;

There were many other players depending on her to make a living.

If only for their sakes, Huang Manmiao had forced herself to claw her way out of the shadow and blow of that betrayal.

Now,

Wang Changsheng had arrived.

Everything she had persisted for had finally welcomed a brand-new outcome!