"Beep——"

A sharp buzzing sound erupted, jolting He Xiaojun awake.

He felt his heart pounding, and his breathing became a bit rapid.

"Is this the judgment game..."

Since entering the New World, He Xiaojun has mostly been a fringe figure in Community 14, having participated only in two allocation games and one screening game so far.

Apart from encountering some risk of death in the screening game, he had so far passed through smoothly.

However, three other players in the community were not so lucky; they each died in two different judgment games.

The judgment game is a game that all players in the New World are terrified of.

When designing judgment games, the Imitator seems to gain a larger license to kill. Furthermore, judgment games tailor specific traps for each Sinner's original sin.

Driven by both the pressure of life and death and human instincts, Sinners often appear to go down a dead end voluntarily, though in reality, they have no other choice.

He Xiaojun originally believed he wouldn't be chosen for a judgment game.

Because he considered himself faultless, both legally and morally.

So, when the invitation to the judgment game appeared, he panicked instantly, with his heartbeat skyrocketing and breathing becoming rapid within five minutes, leaving his mind blank.

Even worse, in this judgment game, he was the only one in the entire Community 14 forced to participate.

No one else had the qualification to volunteer.

This meant that he would be utterly isolated in this game, with no companion from any community to help him.

This realization drove He Xiaojun to further despair.

In the oppressive atmosphere, he took deep breaths of the musty air in the space, while looking at his surroundings.

It appeared to be a cramped and narrow basement, with nothing but some dirty clutter piled in the corners and an old cathode-ray tube television.

Suddenly, a game introduction screen appeared on the previously snow-filled TV, and an emotionless voice came from the poor quality speaker.

[Hello, He Xiaojun.]

[You are now about to undergo judgment, participating in a game called 'Coward's Judgment.']

[From childhood to adulthood, you've been disciplined by family and society, adhering to the life maxim of 'the less trouble, the better' and 'endurance will bring a vast sky.']

[In every conflict and confrontation, you have always tolerated, always yielded.]

[But often, tolerance does not bring peace; instead, it thrusts you into greater turmoil. Stepping back doesn't bring a vast sky, only endless suffering.]

[Because of a female colleague's false accusation, you repeatedly made concessions and ultimately lost your job, suffered cyberbullying, became mentally unstable, and almost lost everything.]

[Now your situation is exactly like that moment when you just faced the false accusation:]

[You will be injected with a slow-acting poison and will die within 30 minutes. When you feel no significant abnormalities, a life-or-death crisis has already quietly approached.]

[Continuing forward, you will arrive at four different judgment venues, participating in four different judgments, all against those who once plunged you into endless suffering.]

[In each judgment, you must choose the 'more appropriate' punishment for the judged from two different punishment options.]

[If chosen correctly, you will receive an antidote;]

[If chosen incorrectly, the antidote will be destroyed.]

[Passing through the iron gate and leaving the initial venue signifies that you have officially started this judgment.]

At the same time, the iron gate that had been tightly closed suddenly banged open.

But the rules introduction on the TV continued.

[Of course, since the game is called 'Coward's Judgment,' you will also be given a 'coward's option': you can choose to avoid, do nothing, and wait here until the game ends.]

[If you do not leave this initial venue within 10 minutes, the iron gate will close again.]

[The Sinners meant to be judged by you will complete the judgment on their own, selecting a punishment to judge themselves.]

[After the judgment is completed, the Sinners will regain their freedom and may obtain the antidote, which they can deliver to you.]

[Will you die from cowardice or bravely escape the vortex? Now, make your choice.]

The picture on the TV disappeared, leaving only streaming static.

He Xiaojun's mind was in chaos, but at that moment, a stinging pain on his wrist brought him back to clarity.

He hurriedly looked at his wrist, only to see that a needle seemed to have emerged from the inside of the visa bracelet, rapidly injecting a toxin into his body.

A tingling sensation spread from his wrist.

Though his body temporarily remained unharmed, just as the game rules stated, the chronic toxin had already spread throughout his body. Without the antidote, he would surely die within 30 minutes.

Shock, fear, madness...

Various emotions instantly overwhelmed He Xiaojun's mind, making him want to scream or cry, but they were all firmly suppressed by a sudden overwhelming desire to survive, allowing him to temporarily regain his composure.

"Calm down, I must stay calm...

"According to the game rules, there are four judgments ahead.

"Each judgment is a choice between two options.

"Just one correct choice will get me the antidote.

"This judgment game isn't difficult; even random guessing gives a one-in-sixteen chance of death. As long as I choose correctly just once, I can survive...

"Yes, that's right; I must pull myself together..."

He Xiaojun slapped himself hard twice, the surge of adrenaline bolstering his courage once more.

But as he prepared to step through the newly opened iron gate, He Xiaojun hesitated again.

He backed away.

"The game rules mentioned a 'coward's option,' staying here means that after 10 minutes, the Sinners can judge themselves, and they might obtain the antidote and come to save me...

"Since it's stated in the game rules, it must be a guaranteed mechanism, but the probabilities of 'possibly obtaining the antidote' and 'possibly delivering it to me' are unclear...

"The Imitator who designed this game probably can't predict every player's behavior either.

"As long as any one of these four judgments obtains the antidote and is willing to bring it to me, I can be saved, right?

"Conversely, if I rashly go to judge others, no matter what choice I make, it might make enemies with those being judged.

"Making consecutive wrong decisions might completely ruin the chance of survival..."

He Xiaojun found himself trapped in indecision; once he left this initial venue, the 'coward's option' would automatically become null, forcing him to choose between two options.

The habitual thought patterns developed over long years made He Xiaojun instinctively want to escape.

Previously in that screening game, he had also faced the risk of death but did nothing and ultimately survived by sheer luck.

In contrast, many of those who lost their minds to the fear of death and acted rashly died because of their own stupidity.

"But will I be so lucky this time?

"The theme of the judgment revolves around my cowardice, and I must remember that..."

After a few minutes of hesitation, He Xiaojun finally resolved to step through the iron gate.

"No, I can no longer place my hopes on others; my fate must be in my own hands..."

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