Darkstone Code

"The core of this competition is timely adjustment of balance..."

Lynch watched the images of the competition being broadcast on TV, continuing to educate Catherine.

"Its true approach is not to immediately eliminate your opponent, because that is actually very dangerous, as you can’t rely on your own strength to eliminate someone first."

"Or if three people unite, they can indeed eliminate one person first, but this will make things chaotic for the remaining three."

"The truly correct approach is to keep everything under your control!"

Catherine was still somewhat perplexed. Ever since Lynch started explaining the ’real gameplay’ of these games, she suddenly found her mind couldn’t keep up with Lynch’s anymore.

Damn, back in high school, their scores were almost neck and neck. Now, after just a few years, the gap has not only appeared but become so wide?

Of course, she wasn’t completely clueless. She could sense something special from Lynch’s explanation—beneath the calm surface, there was an electric snake dancing wildly, and thunderous tremors!

She could feel that if she could figure these out, she might become a person like Lynch.

The entire world, at this moment in his eyes, might just be a game!

Lynch didn’t notice Catherine’s brief distraction; he continued to elaborate on the core of the competition.

"If we’ve guessed the answer, we don’t need to provide it ourselves but rather keep someone in a state where they can be eliminated by us at any time."

"Turning around, we can attack another person, constantly extracting information from them until we need to refresh our questioning costs or take a defensive stance."

"Target the strong, but ensure our relative safety and sufficient control over the entire competition."

"Only then can you make whoever you want leave; you’re more likely to stand last!"

Catherine was still a bit puzzled, "But doing so would offend everyone..."

Lynch understood her meaning; targeting the strong would give everyone a very negative feeling, potentially making them targets.

But in essence, the chances of this happening are not high, because a ’swing person’ can swing over anytime they are at a disadvantage, which for many people is actually a form of protection.

Just like at this moment, Harry is cooperating with the player in position four. Originally enemies, they are now partners. Until they solidify their status, neither will abandon cooperation.

If a third person loses a point, they’ll join them!

So from the beginning, there are no real alliances; it’s all about maintaining balance. Hence, it’s necessary to exert your control-balance effect among these people.

You can lead the charge, but leave the actual work to others to execute.

This is a battle of intellect and human nature, unrelated to educational attainment, which is its most appealing aspect.

With the progress of the competition, the second contestant was first eliminated.

As the live audience waved their betting confirmations, as viewers in front of televisions tore up their betting slips, as the bookmakers cheered in celebration, they sent off the second contestant.

A half-believing second contestant couldn’t fathom their loss, but that was indeed the reality—starting at a disadvantage, Harry and player number four were now the ones with the most points.

No matter his mental transitions now, he forever lost the chance to win a million dollars.

He didn’t leave immediately, as there was a pending interview and new program filming schedule.

The three losers will showcase their lives alongside the victor for the next month, covering all facets.

The battle among the three became increasingly heated. Suddenly, Harry allied with player number one, forcefully targeting the next elimination at player number four.

Player number four tried to struggle, but unfortunately, with only three players left, he had no choice but to fight.

Fighting till the end, he rather unluckily lost the match.

And now, only Harry and player number one remain.

Both have one card left, but player number one, having just eliminated player number four, still has three free questioning opportunities, whereas Harry doesn’t.

For each inquiry, he needs to pay the opponent a hefty amount. If he doesn’t have enough money to support further inquiries, he would lose.

This is incredibly alarming; don’t underestimate three free questioning opportunities which potentially lead to complete loss if even one is missing.

Harry looked up, glancing at the glass box above—one million in cash lay quietly inside.

This much money he’d never seen in his life, now he and this money, and his dreams, were separated by just a single ’player number one.’

Betting companies ceased all bets related to ’Millionaire’ because at this juncture, continuing was pointless.

The duel between the two involved stakes and interests, far exceeding their prize money—tenfold, even hundredfold!

Following a brief break and advertisements, the television returned to the competition scene.

By now, it was already past ten o’clock at night. Normally, viewership ratings should start declining, with an abrupt drop by eleven o’clock.

People needing work tomorrow can’t stay up late. The dramas to watch have already concluded, with the headlining programs reaching their two-hour mark nearing their end.

Indeed, people felt tired; it was time to rest.

Yet, strangely, right at this moment, the TV station’s viewership ratings showed no change.

Not only did it remain unchanged, but the ratings of the TV station under Darkstone Broadcasting even saw another boost.

Some people might not be that interested in the process of the competition, but they are definitely intrigued by who will win the million dollars!

Harry and Contestant Number One stood facing each other, with expressions that could no longer be described as mere indifference—there was an untouchable depth of hatred!

Yes, hatred!

They were the final hurdle to each other’s path to the happy finishing line; crossing it would make all dreams come true.

But if they couldn’t cross it, dreams would remain just that—dreams!

"Contestants, please choose your answers..."

The host sounded the horn for the final battle.

Harry looked at the cards in his hand, deliberated for a while, then chose the card labeled "Dinner Knife."

After the opponent also chose their answer, the competition officially began.

Contestant Number One graciously let Harry ask first; Harry glanced at his points—he had to get the correct answer within five questions, or he would lose.

He pondered and then asked, "Is it alive?"

Contestant Number One nodded, "Yes, it is alive."

After such a long elimination process, everyone had learned a set of strategies on how to quickly find what they wanted.

Contestant Number One’s questions were similar, and his pressure was even less, as he still had three free chances.

After brief consideration, he asked, "Do I come into contact with this thing daily?"

Harry was taken aback; the question was quite tricky. Originally, he thought the opponent would ask questions like "Can this be eaten?" or "What shape is it?" to gradually narrow down the scope.

Unexpectedly, the opponent started with a somewhat tricky question—everyone uses a dinner knife daily, but fortunately, Harry’s choice wasn’t "lonely."

Even in such a limited environment, there were still many choices.

Harry nodded.

He glanced again at the points, which had decreased somewhat.

The second round of Q&A began.

"Will we... eat it?"

Harry originally wanted to ask "Can it be eaten?" In his view, there are only two types of animals: those you can eat and those you can’t.

But the previous question reminded him, and he also had some insights—how to give effective and efficient questions in a one-on-one situation is key to winning the competition.

He changed "Can it be eaten?" to "Will we eat it?" This change makes it hard for misleading answers to be effective.

Contestant Number One remained silent for a moment, then shook his head, "Not necessarily..."

Harry looked at the host, who then required Contestant Number One to give a less ambiguous answer.

Contestant Number One rephrased, "At least I won’t eat it, and nobody around me eats it, but I can’t guarantee that no one eats it anywhere."

Harry breathed a sigh of relief; the answer had already narrowed down the truth to a very small scope, and he had some guesses.

Contestant Number One also knew that his odds of hitting the mark had greatly increased, so he took a moment to think before asking the next question.

He now needed time to think, to stay calm—one million was right in front of him, making him too nervous.

This sometimes slowed his thinking, forcing him to seriously contemplate, ensuring he remained calm and rational before asking questions.

In a one-on-one environment, questioning is too critical!

After pondering for about half a minute, he asked, "Will I see it every morning?"

His logic was simple; what is something I come into contact with daily?

If so, then this thing would be among things accessible in the morning.

If not, then eliminate things accessible in the morning, thus reducing the target.

Instantly, the scope narrowed considerably, though still leaving many possibilities—he posed another key question, using time segments for identification.

In the morning, the things one can contact are limited. If Harry says yes, then he needs only to find some commonalities and differences among those few things, allowing him to guess the correct answer in two to three rounds at most.

Harry shook his head, "Sometimes yes, sometimes no."

Contestant Number One looked at the host, lodging a complaint as he felt the answer was vague.

The host slightly shook his head, indicating the answer wasn’t vague.

Harry breathed a sigh of relief.