A humid environment.
Towering trees that block out the sky.
Intertwining roots and vines snake down the steep cliff face like colossal emerald pythons, coiled and lurking.
The place resembles a jungle swamp, with dilapidated houses appearing in unexpected locations. For instance, in a giant bird's nest woven from roots and vines, a wooden cabin sits nestled, luring people to investigate.
Lu Zhi and his team had chosen a team competition. Although the teleportation points were random, teammates would not be scattered.
They had just landed and hadn't had time to observe their surroundings carefully. The wooden cabin, positioned so conspicuously, was an obvious trap, yet one they had to approach.
Though the school had warned that this monthly exam carried life-threatening dangers, they wouldn't toy with students' lives. The anomalies deployed had fixed areas; otherwise, students blundering in would have no idea how they died.
Lu Zhi and his group were teleported to an area with Level 3-4 anomaly activity. The house before them was marked on the map as housing a Level 4 anomaly, which they couldn't afford to miss.
Lu Zhi said, "Yu Shan, be careful."
The five of them stood on the trunk of a tree about twelve hundred meters from the cabin. This tree's trunk had a diameter of two meters, and the five of them gathered around it to discuss who would scout ahead.
Lan Yu Shan stepped forward decisively; his abilities were most suited for reconnaissance.
"A Level 4 anomaly already possesses a domain. You all know this, right?" Jiang Yue said cautiously. "The first time you enter a domain, there's a high chance you'll be pulled into a 'regression' state. We just don't know the range yet."
An anomaly's domain referred to a 'regression' state it exhibited after entering the real world. Intruders would experience 'empathy' with the anomaly's memories before its 'death,' reliving the anomaly's most terrifying memories.
Failure to break free from the regression state would also result in death.
Luo Shi Yu: "Conservatively estimating, the domain range is about six hundred meters in diameter."
"Then I'll go," Lan Yu Shan nodded at Lu Zhi and the others and cautiously approached the cabin.
Allowing Lan Yu Shan to go alone was to give him an opportunity to hone his skills. Only through tempering in hardship could one grow.
Lu Zhi stared intently in the direction of the cabin, silently calculating Lan Yu Shan's distance from it. Eight hundred meters... seven hundred meters... six hundred meters... He stopped!
If someone caught in regression couldn't wake up within three minutes, their life would be in danger.
Suddenly, Lan Yu Shan, whose back was to them, began to tremble abnormally. He clutched his face and let out a terrified scream. The next moment, he started scratching his own face with his fingernails, as if trying to tear off the skin.
"Lu Zhi." Jiang Yue's voice had barely finished.
Lu Zhi, who had prepared in advance, summoned Man Luo and whipped it out, coiling it around Lan Yu Shan's waist and pulling hard.
But an accident occurred. A clump of black hair shot up from the ground like a spike, attempting to ensnare Lan Yu Shan.
"Not good." Lu Zhi yanked with sudden force. Lan Yu Shan's body lurched to the side, dodging the attack of the black hair, but this also drew the black hair's attention to Lu Zhi. Clumps of black hair suddenly appeared from all directions, stabbing towards them.
Luo Shi Yu flicked his hand: "Ice Mist."
The black hair surrounding them was instantly frozen in mid-air by the ice mist, but soon the cracking sound of ice breaking was heard. With a bang—the black hair violently shattered the ice mist. With a dull thud, it smashed through the tree trunk they were on, kicking up a splash of mud.
"Lu Zhi, Wei Yu, you two go save Yu Shan. The rest of us will hold off the attack. Quickly!" Jiang Yue urged anxiously.
Lu Zhi made a decisive move and dashed towards Lan Yu Shan. He simultaneously instructed Man Luo to transform into a thorny wall to block the black hair, while also dividing his attention to bind Lan Yu Shan with Man Luo, preventing him from digging at his own eyes. But the bloody gashes his fingernails had made on his face were enough to shock Lu Zhi.
"Careful!" Gu Wei Yu suddenly exerted force with his feet, instantly leaping to Lu Zhi's left. His fist glowed with an orange light, and with a heavy blow, he blasted apart the attacking black hair.
The immense power stunned Lu Zhi, but this was not a time to be dazed. The closer they got to Lan Yu Shan, the denser the hair became, as if Lan Yu Shan had stepped into the domain range, a trap set by the anomaly!
Thinking of this, Lu Zhi's eyes darkened. He repeatedly tried to use Man Luo to pull Lan Yu Shan out of the domain, but the black hair always managed to sever their escape route. If this continued, Lan Yu Shan would likely...
A clear male voice abruptly sounded: "True is false, false is true. Unable to see through deception, convinced of its reality, the false becomes true."
The small bird Shen Qi had given him, which Lu Zhi had tucked into his pocket, suddenly came back to life and flew to Lu Zhi's shoulder. Its yellow beak spouted human words. The bird's short claws picked at its beak, feigning an air of mystery.
Lu Zhi and Gu Wei Yu stopped simultaneously. Gu Wei Yu exclaimed in surprise, "How did you bring a duckling into the exam venue?"
The little white bird became furious: "What duckling? I am a great swan, a great swan!!!"
Gu Wei Yu dodged a strand of black hair and responded expressionlessly with an "oh." Then, realizing something, he exclaimed, "This duck can actually talk!"
Lu Zhi: ...
"Also, my name is Hao Yun Yi. I am your... In any case, you must show me respect!" After roaring at Gu Wei Yu, Hao Yun Yi turned to Lu Zhi and said in a calm, gentle voice, "Watch your step."
Gu Wei Yu: ???
This little duck played favorites?
Lu Zhi was startled and flipped backward, dodging the black hair that erupted from the ground. He asked, "Lucky Duck, what did you just say?"
"It's Hao Yun Yi!" Hao Yun Yi's bird claws scratched at his yellow beak, explaining, "Regression is illusion. Illusion is false. Believing illusion to be true, mentally affirming the illusion as a real occurrence, will then transform into physical damage, which is 'empathy'."
"Then Lan Yu Shan, he..." Lu Zhi's telekinesis condensed, and Man Luo suddenly transformed into clockwork, intertwining with the black hair. However, neither side could inflict damage on the other, merely restraining each other.
"Regression can only be used on one person. Otherwise, why would there be distinctions in mental strength levels?" Hao Yun Yi flapped his wings and flew up leisurely. "Your mental strength is the highest among them. As long as you go in and replace Lan Yu Shan, the higher your mental strength, the clearer you can face the illusion, provided that..."
Hao Yun Yi looked meaningfully at Lu Zhi's teammates, saying, "You will be completely defenseless and could be killed by the anomaly at any moment."
Lu Zhi understood the implication of his words; he needed to trust his teammates. "Wei Yu, I'm going in to bring Yu Shan out. Please help me clear the path!"
"Alright!" Gu Wei Yu's eyes were serious. He took a deep breath, his fist gathering orange light. A phantom image of a fist appeared behind him. He shouted, "Mountain Fist!"
A explosive, heavy punch blasted a temporary opening in the wall of black hair blocking Lu Zhi. Lu Zhi seized this opportunity, stepping into the domain range. Simultaneously, he used Man Luo to throw Lan Yu Shan towards Gu Wei Yu and, in a flash, transformed Man Luo into a solid cage to envelop himself.
Hao Yun Yi watched Lu Zhi's actions with surprise: "Clever."
The tenacity of Man Luo was such that the attacks of a Level 4 anomaly could not shake it.
Plop—
Lu Zhi stumbled. The moment he stepped into the domain, his heart and soul leaped violently. His vision and consciousness suddenly blurred. The next second, he uncontrollably fell forward, pulled into regression.
A woman's gentle humming startled Lu Zhi, causing him to suddenly open his eyes. He saw a woman with her back to him, sitting before a dressing table, combing her floor-length black hair.
Lu Zhi instinctively tried to retreat but found his body immobile.
Suddenly, the woman put down her comb, slowly turned around, and said to Lu Zhi with crimson lips, "You've arrived."