"Thief? Are you referring to Chimera 17?" Sun Hang pressed further, "What did it steal?"

However, Anna didn't directly answer Sun Hang's question but let out a peculiar laugh, "Mom, shall we play a game?"

Sun Hang wanted to say he didn't have time for any games, but considering the presence of the Three Monkeys, he had to agree, "Alright, what game?"

Anna couldn't possibly tell him the truth; doing so would invite interference from the Three Monkeys—even if she managed to blurt out the truth with the last vestige of consciousness, the memory related to it would be erased by them.

The existence of the Three Monkeys seemed unsolvable, but after day and night of contemplation, Sun Hang finally came up with a method.

He named this method "Cognitive Deception."

Since the Three Monkeys would erase his memory of the truth, he simply wouldn't need to understand that truth... Abandon thinking and turn to practical action—Sun Hang didn't need to know why or how, he only needed to know what he should do.

This might sound convoluted, but in simple terms, it's like covering his eyes, plugging his ears, and sealing his mouth while feeling his way towards the truth, stone by stone, on the ground.

Once Sun Hang finally stood before the truth, even if the Three Monkeys erased his memory, he would see the truth again the next second.

Unless the Three Monkeys directly erased the truth itself.

In this process, these "stones" that Sun Hang could feel his way with were vitally important.

They could be various clues and traces not directly related to the truth, or hints left for him by certain entities that knew the truth but could not speak it outright.

For instance, this ever-haunting Anna Demosheva.

The Three Monkeys couldn't completely erase Anna Demosheva's existence, which meant they didn't have the ability to erase the truth itself.

This was good news for Sun Hang.

He had all the time to slowly grind those three dead monkeys.

"Do you see the girl in front of you?" Anna asked.

"What's with her?"

"To be precise, she can't be called a girl anymore; she should be referred to as a mother… even though she's not yet twenty by human age." Anna said, "She's pregnant."

According to Qiang customs, fifteen is considered adulthood, so it was normal for girls as young as teens to marry. Sun Hang didn't dwell on the age issue but focused his gaze on the lower abdomen of the female corpse.

Due to sitting, the blood not reaching past the knees had soaked the entire lower half of the female corpse, leaving only the upper abdomen above the surface—the belly looked very flat, showing no signs of pregnancy.

"Has she just recently gotten pregnant?" Sun Hang asked, "Also, what does this have to do with the 'game' you mentioned?"

"No, she's been pregnant for eight months, and it won't be long before she gives birth." Anna completely ignored Sun Hang's inquiry about the "game," as if she had never spoken those words.

"Miscarried?"

"No." Anna whispered in Sun Hang's ear, "She was carrying twins, but regretfully, the twin sister was stolen by a thief."

"What about the elder sister?"

"The elder sister was a deformed fetus, which the thief was not interested in." Anna continued, "Therefore, the elder sister survived and managed to hold on until the moment of birth."

"...And then?" Sun Hang seemed to have realized something, but the thought flashed through his mind like a current, disappearing in an instant.

"The mother met her death, and the sister her rebirth." Anna said, "Right here… the blood from childbirth gathered into a pool of blood, both a cradle and nourishment… The deformed fetus grew strong by sucking blood from the mother..."

"Are you implying something?" Sun Hang's pupils slightly contracted, "Besides you, is there another child of 'mine'? And this child was stolen by Chimera 17? So it possesses a memory-devouring ability similar to ours? And you, are you the left-behind sister?"

No response, Anna gave no response, nor did the Three Monkeys.

"No, no, no... This isn't right!" Sun Hang suddenly shook his head frantically, "You are the one who was stolen! The thief isn't Chimera 17! Chimera 17 is the deformed sister! You were the one stolen by human researchers..."

Sun Hang hadn't finished his sentence when it felt like he was hit hard on the back of the head, and suddenly his mind went blank.

In an instant, he had completely forgotten his previous guesses, and even the story Anna told him about "the sister and the sister" was mostly forgotten.

But Sun Hang suddenly laughed.

He realized there was a missing piece of memory, which meant he was another step closer to the truth.

As long as the direction was right, he would eventually find the correct answer.

The process wasn't important; only the result was.

"So, what game do you want to play with me?" Sun Hang asked once again.

"Although the mother gave birth to the deformed sister at the cost of her own life, the sister doesn't appreciate her mother," Anna continued, speaking to herself, "She hates her mother, hates herself, hates everything in this world… She believes her birth to be a form of torture and punishment for herself, the source of all pain… She seeks revenge, revenge on her mother, revenge on herself, revenge on everything in the world…"

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