"Brother Zhiyuan, are you kidding me? Anyone can see that's Cifera sitting there, not Nie Bing!
"Tell me, what about her height, build, appearance, or voice even remotely resembles Nie Bing?
"Besides, Nie Bing is one of our team members. Why would she help Cifera deceive us?"
Zhang Hong was utterly baffled by Lin Zhiyuan's outlandish conclusion.
"Little Zhang, calm down. Let's hear Little Lin's explanation first," Liu Shanhe interjected, though equally stunned. He knew Lin Zhiyuan wasn't one to speak carelessly; if he'd drawn such a conclusion, there must be a solid basis for it.
"Thank you for your trust, Old Liu," Lin Zhiyuan nodded to Liu Shanhe, then addressed the group.
"I know this is hard to believe—I even struggled to accept it myself at first. But the facts are staring us in the face. As the saying goes, once you've eliminated all other possibilities, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth!
"Now, let me walk you through Cifera's meticulously planned escape. Please gather around the conference table."
With that, Lin Zhiyuan strode to the whiteboard at the end of the conference table, picked up a marker, and wrote "Graduation Ceremony" in bold characters.
"Everyone needs to understand one crucial point: Cifera's entire escape plan was meticulously framed around the ritualistic significance of the graduation ceremony.
"First, consider what Cifera gained through the breakfast preparation process.
"She obtained each Pursuit Team member's personal signature, their corresponding photo, and a congratulatory message.
"These three items correspond to—each Pursuer's handwriting, appearance, and attitude toward Cifera, respectively."
As Lin Zhiyuan spoke, he wrote these items on the whiteboard.
"I won't elaborate on 'attitude,' as I've already explained how she used it to create discord within our team.
"But what benefit could Cifera gain from obtaining our signatures and appearances for her escape?
"I quickly realized one crucial connection: the artificial intelligence check-in system at the main gate."
At this point, Wang Lei couldn't help but exclaim:
"I get it now! Normally, when we enter or exit the main gate, we need both facial recognition and an electronic signature for sign-in.
"So Cifera could disguise herself as one of us using the photos, then mimic their handwriting to successfully deceive the check-in system!"
"Exactly! Teacher Wang Lei is spot on. That's precisely what I thought too."
Lin Zhiyuan nodded in agreement and continued:
"While handwriting can be forged, physical appearance is much harder to imitate. Yet I knew the art of disguise existed; true masters could alter not only their height and build, but even their voices.
"Given Cifera's remarkable vocal mimicry earlier, I couldn't rule out the possibility that she also possessed the skill of disguise.
"Of course, at the time, as I was preparing to take a group photo, this was merely a hunch.
"But when Cifera told me she wanted to save a spot for Nie Bing in the photo and planned to visit Nie Bing's room afterward to take pictures, my suspicion grew stronger.
"As I mentioned earlier, this clearly indicated Cifera had no intention of leaving early. Yet she wouldn't simply surrender. So how could she slip away undetected, with all of us watching her?
"The answer was obvious: she planned to complete her identity swap in Nie Bing's room—a place we couldn't enter due to special circumstances."
At this point, Lin Zhiyuan turned to Zhang Hong.
"Brother Zhang, you asked earlier why Nie Bing, one of our team members, would help Cifera deceive us.
"I can now answer that: because of Nie Bing's current vulnerable state."
"Within the show's rules, Nie Bing remains unconscious, meaning that after entering her room, Cifera could freely exert any form of control over her.
"Whether through hallucinogenic drugs or hypnosis, as long as Cifera can prove to the Production Team that she has the ability to influence Nie Bing and possesses a special antidote to counteract the sleeping pills, Nie Bing could potentially be awakened and then turned into her puppet.
"Once Nie Bing accepts her role as a puppet, Cifera only needs to help her disguise herself, swap clothes, and then send Nie Bing out of the room to take her place at the Technical Booth for photo editing.
"At this point, Nie Bing, disguised as Cifera, would capture all of our attention. As 9 PM approaches, our focus would increasingly shift to the fake Cifera, making us obsess over why she isn't fleeing and what her true motives are.
"Under such immense pressure, it would be nearly impossible for us to realize that the person had already been replaced by Nie Bing.
"Meanwhile, the real Cifera, who has been hiding in Nie Bing's room all along, would disguise herself as one of the Pursuers. When 9 PM arrives and we capture the fake Cifera, she'll seize the moment when our guard is at its lowest and brazenly walk out through the main gate."
"This is Cifera's escape plan."
Hearing this, Zhang Hong realized he had been a bit rash earlier, and his old face flushed red. However, he still had a lingering doubt:
"While your logic seems sound, ultimately we still need to prove that the Cifera before us is actually Nie Bing, right? Otherwise, we might end up making a huge blunder—arresting the real Nie Bing while letting the fake slip away. That would be utterly humiliating."
"That's an excellent question, Brother Zhang. In fact, I began testing her the moment the Cifera before us emerged from Nie Bing's room."
Lin Zhiyuan had clearly anticipated this issue and was well-prepared to address it.
"I noticed that the Cifera who exited the room was no longer as composed as before. While it's understandable to become more nervous as the deadline approaches, the Cifera I know is someone who wouldn't flinch even if the world collapsed before her eyes.
"Moreover, when I spoke to her, she initially ignored my first question, then repeated the exact phrase, 'I'm in a hurry, don't bother me,' when I asked again.
"This aligns perfectly with the behavior of someone under the influence of hallucinogenic drugs or hypnosis, programmed with a specific verbal response.
"Of course, this isn't the only piece of evidence."
With that, Lin Zhiyuan pointed to Cifera, who was diligently photoshopping.
"Everyone must have noticed that Cifera was wearing a jacket when she emerged from Nie Bing's room.
"Have you ever wondered why? In my opinion, it was to conceal the status indicator showing Nie Bing's condition.
"The reason we couldn't see Nie Bing after she was first controlled was undoubtedly because a status indicator confirming her unconscious state had been affixed to her.
"By the same logic, if the Cifera before us is truly Nie Bing in disguise, then she must also have a corresponding status indicator on her body.
"However, according to the show's rules, status indicators are only required to be visibly displayed for conditions that are immediately obvious, such as unconsciousness or being bound.
"People under the influence of hallucinogens or hypnosis inherently possess a deceptive quality. To maintain this illusion, it would be counterintuitive to place the status indicator in plain sight.
"Therefore, I have reason to believe that Cifera gave Nie Bing the jacket precisely to conceal the status indicator on her back!"
With that, Lin Zhiyuan turned to Cifera, who had remained silent, absorbed in her photoshopping, and shouted:
"Cifera, if everything I've said is wrong, if you're still you, then take off the jacket and prove it to us!"
Just as before, Cifera remained silent.
"So, you're Nie Bing, right?"
"I'm busy. Leave me alone."
Hearing Cifera repeat the exact same line for the second time in their conversation, the group largely concluded that this was likely Nie Bing in disguise.
If Lin Zhiyuan's earlier analysis was entirely wrong, then the person photoshopping the images was Cifera herself. Her goal would be to deliberately mislead Lin Zhiyuan into misinterpreting everything, ultimately leading the Pursuit Team to capture the real Nie Bing.
But what purpose would this serve beyond playing a trick on the Expert Team?
Once 9:00 PM struck, even if they went to the third floor to capture the so-called "real" Cifera, they would still station enough personnel to monitor the "fake" Cifera on the second floor.
Regardless of which one was the genuine Cifera, neither would be able to leave after 9:00 PM until the situation was clarified.
Given these circumstances,
if the Cifera on the third floor was the real one, unaware that her plan had been exposed, she was doomed to elimination.
If the Cifera on the second floor was the real one, then unless she had already given up, her only chance of escape lay in leaving before 9:00 PM.
Every member of the Expert Team was convinced that Cifera would never give up.
Therefore, the most likely scenario was that Lin Zhiyuan was right: the real Cifera was on the third floor.
Seeing the Cifera before him refuse to cooperate, Lin Zhiyuan made a phone call.
Soon, two female Pursuers arrived.
They approached Cifera from behind. One of them said, "To prove your innocence, we'll need to remove your jacket. Please forgive this intrusion."
"..."
Cifera remained silent.
The Pursuers wasted no time. Working in tandem, one restrained Cifera's hands while the other stripped off her jacket.
Beneath the fabric, a note was revealed, stuck to Cifera's porcelain-smooth back:
Pursuit Team Expert: Nie Bing
Current Status: Hypnotized, in a dazed state, acting solely on Contestant Cifera's instructions. Limited and mechanical reactions to external stimuli are possible.
Hypnosis Duration: Until noon today
Confirmed!
At that moment, everyone understood that Cifera had truly lost to Lin Zhiyuan this time.
Meanwhile, in the live stream, Cifera's downfall ignited a volcanic eruption of Bullet Comments, exploding across the screen like fireworks.