Lin Yu looked at the two items in the crow-man statue's hands and took a step forward.
"Can I check their effects?"
As Lin Yu spoke, the crow statue opened its mouth again, its voice deep, solemn, and resonant.
With the deity's permission, Lin Yu took another step forward, approaching the enormous hand.
Both items were roughly the same size as Lin Yu. He reached out and touched them.
The [Teeth of Prophecy] felt slightly hard and cold to the touch, while the [Tongue of Deceit] was warm and soft.
They resembled real teeth and a tongue, yet Lin Yu couldn't shake the feeling that they truly represented "truth and lies."
Like other items, these two displayed their descriptions upon being touched.
[Tongue of Deceit: When activated, your next "potentially achievable" lie will inevitably come true. Can be used once per game. Disappears after three uses.]
Lin Yu froze momentarily as he read the descriptions.
These were practically tailor-made for a [Fraudster] like him!
The [Tongue of Deceit] was self-explanatory—it allowed him to bypass the usual conditions required for a [Fraudster] to make lies come true, forcibly realizing one false statement!
Best of all, it didn't even require a "target to deceive"!
At first glance, the [Teeth of Prophecy] seemed less impressive than the [Tongue of Deceit]. After all, "truths" were already "true," so the chance of disbelief was minimal.
But Lin Yu had learned during this game just how effective using "truth" to deceive could be.
Moreover, one "unquestionably believed truth," if wielded skillfully, could serve as the foundation for countless lies.
Faced with these two items, Lin Yu felt torn.
"What should I do? I want both..." he muttered.
Then, he looked up at the gray crow-man and suddenly realized something.
"Hey, if I take one of these, can I test it out?"
The gray crow-man statue looked down at Lin Yu, narrowing its eyes as if understanding his intentions.
"You want both, don't you?"
"If you choose the [Teeth of Prophecy], I'll let you test it once... but not if you choose the [Tongue of Deceit]."
Lin Yu grinned at the statue.
"No problem, the [Teeth of Prophecy] will do. If you'd given me the [Tongue of Deceit], taking both would've been too easy."
His calm declaration only piqued the crow-man's curiosity further.
"Very well, let's see what you'll do!"
"The [Teeth of Prophecy]'s effect will work on me too," the gray crow-man murmured, lightly waving its hand.
The row of chilling teeth shrank to normal size and flew into Lin Yu's mouth.
He felt a brief coolness against his teeth before everything returned to normal.
Simultaneously, an instinctive understanding surfaced in his mind—just like when he'd first acquired his profession.
"Just think [Teeth of Prophecy] and wish to activate it, and the next statement will take effect..."
Lin Yu looked up at the crow-man statue, bared his now razor-sharp white teeth, and uttered his prepared "truth":
"Whenever I receive item rewards in any instance, I always obtain double the rewards—this is an ability granted to me as the [Game Master]."
Words passed through teeth, emerging as prophecy!
This was an "established fact"—Lin Yu had indeed received "double" rewards every time he'd earned them in past instances!
But it was also a deception... Lin Yu omitted that he'd only experienced one instance so far, and the double rewards came from deceiving Chen Zhuo.
This was the art of "deceiving with truth"—enhanced by the [Teeth of Prophecy]'s "unquestionable belief" effect.
Lin Yu felt a torrent of "belief" surge toward him.
The power of a deity completely solidified his "double rewards" claim as absolute truth!
The [Tongue of Deceit] on the massive hand also shrank and merged with Lin Yu's own tongue.
He flicked his tongue, producing a crisp sound.
Just like with the [Teeth of Prophecy], Lin Yu felt no discomfort.
He had acquired the [Tongue of Deceit].
The gray crow-man seemed dazed for a moment before exclaiming in admiration:
"So that was your plan all along... Even if I'd let you test the [Tongue of Deceit], you'd have chosen the [Teeth of Prophecy]!"
"Of course, the difference is significant," Lin Yu replied with a smile.
His successful deception didn't just earn him the [Tongue of Deceit].
Lin Yu had said "any instance"!
While he didn't know the upper limits of the [Tongue of Deceit]'s "potentially achievable" scope, guaranteeing double rewards in all future [Death Games] likely exceeded its capacity.
But a deity's "belief" was powerful enough to make Lin Yu's audacious lie come true.
Though the [Teeth of Prophecy] might not normally work on a deity, Lin Yu had deliberately piqued the crow-man's curiosity, prompting the God of Change to declare that "the [Teeth of Prophecy] will affect me."
Of course, Lin Yu was still gambling—after all, the crow-man might have witnessed his entire previous game.
This was both a test and a wager: could the [Teeth of Prophecy] override established facts?
The answer was yes—with the right phrasing, even deities could overlook reality.
"Daring to exploit a deity ... you're the first."
"I'm starting to wonder why the [Death Game] chose you—you don't seem particularly afraid of death."
Lin Yu shook his head. "On the contrary... I'm terrified of death. That's exactly why I couldn't pass up this high-reward, rare opportunity to 'exploit a deity.'"
"Besides, you won't kill me, right?"
The crow-man snorted. "Don't be so sure."
The statue suddenly raised its hand and swung at Lin Yu!
The mountain-sized palm generated chaotic winds as it descended.
Lin Yu calmly watched the approaching hand.
"Until next time, revered God of Change."
He didn't flinch or even blink.
Just before impact...
Everything went black.
[Congratulations on clearing the game "Deadly Quiz"!]
[Calculating your rewards...]
[Base reward: 7 days of survival time.]
[Additional rewards obtained this game:]
[Item·Teeth of Prophecy - Bound.]
[Item·Tongue of Deceit - Bound.]
"Told you he wouldn't kill me."
But he'd worry about "deities" later—he had more pressing matters now.
Looking around the [Settlement Space], he wasn't surprised to see [Heavenly Artisan], [Unforgotten], and [April].