The Illusion of Perception

“So that was the truth of it; this special assessment was indeed far from simple. Yet, it was nothing more than that.”

No sooner had the bald participant been eliminated, transforming into a streaking meteor, than a refined and amiable youth, a folding fan held gracefully in his hand, stepped to the forefront of the group, a confident smile gracing his features.

With a light tap of his foot, the folding fan youth launched himself forward. Just as he was about to land on the treacherous surface of 502, spiritual energy surged beneath his feet, expertly conjuring a gust of wind to clear a stable foothold.

Having secured a foothold, the folding fan youth effortlessly leveraged his position to leap to the next floating rock, repeating the precise maneuver. In short order, he vanished into the distant expanse.

The folding fan youth’s ingenious method immediately sparked inspiration among the onlookers, who swiftly moved to emulate his technique.

Some conjured fire to scorch out a foothold, others manipulated water, or even lightning; without exception, each succeeded in passing the trial.

Before long, only six individuals remained at the starting point, a group that included Zhen Aoyu.

“Hmph, all that flash and no substance!”

Among the six, a man built like an ox and with the agile physique of an ape let out a disdainful snort.

“Imperial Brother, who might he be?”

“That is Yuan Lieshi, the most pure-blooded, prodigious direct descendant of the Yuan clan. Rumor has it that he possesses the immense power of a giant ape, capable of tearing apart even late-stage second-tier demonic beasts with his bare hands, his strength truly boundless.”

Of the five individuals remaining, four hailed from the same cultivation dynasty: the Huangfu Dynasty.

They were the eldest brother, Huangfu Liu; the second brother, Huangfu Ming; the third sister, Huangfu Jiashu; and the youngest brother, Huangfu Hui.

All four were uniformly in the late Foundation Establishment stage, with the eldest, Huangfu Liu, having even achieved the formidable half-step Core Formation realm.

It was the youngest brother, Huangfu Hui, and the second brother, Huangfu Ming, who had just been conversing.

The final individual was Aotianyu, a disguise adopted by Zhen Aoyu.

As everyone watched, Yuan Lieshi launched himself with a powerful leap towards the first floating rock. Rather than attempting to land on its precarious surface, he instead relied on sheer brute force, hammering a hole into its side and effectively hanging himself from the stone.

Thereafter, Yuan Lieshi moved with the agility of an ape swinging through a forest, propelling himself from one floating rock to the next.

“It seems the rumors hold true. Let us proceed as well.”

With the eldest brother, Huangfu Liu, having spoken, the other three siblings promptly followed in his wake.

Before their departure, all four cast a brief glance at the unremarkable Zhen Aoyu, offering no words before they left.

The quartet’s method of traversing the trial mirrored that of the folding fan youth, each using spiritual energy to clear a stable foothold before making their landing.

‘Heheheh, what’s the matter, lad? How is it you’ve found yourself bringing up the rear?’

‘Nothing, merely a faint sensation that there’s something amiss about this particular special assessment.’

For reasons he couldn’t quite pinpoint, this special assessment consistently filled him with an inexplicable sense of unease.

‘Given that it’s a special assessment, a touch of peculiarity is entirely to be expected.’

‘Indeed, a valid point.’

Concluding his internal dialogue with the shadowy presence, Zhen Aoyu circulated his spiritual energy and moved to follow the others.

Meanwhile, the folding fan youth, having maintained his lead and successfully navigated the 502 rotating floating rocks, now found himself at the threshold of the second stage.

This particular stage presented two parallel rows of inclined stone slabs, positioned on either side of a wide chasm.

Significant gaps stretched between the slabs, necessitating that challengers advance by rhythmically leaping back and forth between the two opposing rows.

“Have they truly caught up so swiftly…?”

Driven by the desire to preserve his leading position, the folding fan youth wasted no time in deliberation, immediately springing towards the nearest stone slab on his left.

His intention was sound, yet reality proved to be precisely the opposite.

Despite his mind unequivocally directing him to leap towards the left slab, his body executed a movement to the right.

The folding fan youth’s mind screamed: “???”

‘Did someone just mess with my controls?!’

Then, under the inadvertently respectful gazes of those behind him, he ‘bravely and decisively’—or so it seemed—leaped without hesitation into the ethereal cloud sea on the right, resulting in his spectacular elimination.

“Hahaha, to misjudge such a simple second stage! It appears first place shall undeniably be mine!”

The second wave, comprising a solid seven or eight individuals, followed close behind, each unhesitatingly leaping towards the nearest left-hand slab, precisely as their minds dictated.

And then,

Those who arrived subsequently bore witness to the sight of seven or eight individuals, one after another, queuing up without a moment’s hesitation to leap into the swirling cloud sea, thus being eliminated from the trial.

“Hiss… are they truly that audacious?”

“Is this some novel form of performance art? A queue for a mass leap into the abyss?”

The mere thirty survivors finally grasped that something was amiss, halting their eager, competitive advance to scrutinize the two seemingly unremarkable rows of stone slabs.

“Imperial Brother, observe; they have ceased their movement,” Huangfu Jiashu remarked, gesturing towards the halted crowd.

“Indeed,” Huangfu Liu responded with a slight nod.

The four Huangfu siblings unhurriedly made their way into the midst of the crowd, observing with calm deliberation. Likewise, Zhen Aoyu, like a phantom, seamlessly blended into the throng.

None of the five uttered another sound, choosing instead to observe in profound silence.

Minutes ticked by, yet despite prolonged observation, none among the thirty-odd individuals could discern the anomaly.

A few more, defying superstition, attempted to brave the challenge.

The outcome, predictably, was without exception: they all effectively chose ‘suicide.’

“So that’s the truth of it…”

“Youngest Brother, have you discerned anything?”

“Third Sister, keep your voice down. This second stage is concealed by an illusion array designed to disrupt one’s perception. In a moment, we simply need to force ourselves to leap in the direction opposite to what our minds dictate.”

Huangfu Hui, the youngest of the four siblings and a master of array formations, had, through observing the ‘courageous suicides’ of those who went before, successfully pinpointed the hidden illusion array of this stage.

Subsequently, with Huangfu Hui leading the way, the four successfully reoriented their perceptions and leaped onto the first stone slab.

“Look! Those four have succeeded!”

“How did they manage that?”

Disregarding the murmurs and conjectures of the crowd behind them, the four Huangfu siblings proceeded, slowly but steadily, leaping from one stone slab to the next.

Among the remaining participants, naturally, there were astute individuals who, by keenly observing the subtle unnaturalness in the Huangfu siblings’ leaps, deduced the hidden trap of this stage.

Indeed, one or two other geniuses, themselves adept in array formations, also managed to uncover the concealed illusion array and, mirroring the Huangfu’s method, successfully navigated this stage.

However, the majority opted for ‘self-elimination,’ leaving only twelve individuals capable of passing the second stage.

Before the entrance to the second stage, only Zhen Aoyu remained.

For reasons he could not fathom, the further Zhen Aoyu progressed, the more intensely the unease in his heart flared.

Yet, the allure of becoming a direct disciple was simply too immense for him to resist.

If he could secure the position of a direct disciple, he would swiftly gain access to that particular item, allowing him to break through to the Core Formation stage in a single stroke and ascend to the ranks of true powerhouses.

“Hmph…”

Taking a deep, resolute breath, Zhen Aoyu ultimately chose to press onward.

A mere illusion array, designed to distort perception, would certainly not be enough to deter him.

The twelve remaining participants soon arrived at a fork in the path, where a signpost stood by the roadside.

It read: [For Scholars, please turn left. For Warriors, please turn right.]

Having undergone the trials of the preceding two stages, many instinctively opted to turn right.

However, two individuals still lingered at the crossroads.

“Imperial Brother, are you not heading to the right?”

“And are you not also refraining?”

The ones who remained were none other than Huangfu Liu, possessing the highest cultivation, and Huangfu Hui, the master of array formations.

“It appears Imperial Brother’s thoughts align with mine,” Huangfu Hui mused.

“The feeling is mutual,” Huangfu Liu replied.

With those words, the two embarked upon the left-hand path.

Not long after Huangfu Liu and Huangfu Hui departed, Zhen Aoyu, too, arrived at the same crossroads.

After a momentary hesitation, he opted for the right-hand path.

As the protagonist, after all, his inherent formidable combat prowess naturally instilled a deep confidence.

The nine individuals who had chosen the path of the warrior soon arrived at an expansive clearing.

Within the clearing before them stood only two baboon-like demonic beasts, their bodies covered in resplendent golden fur, their tails conspicuously absent, and ‘Rakshasa Vajra Horns’ (TL Note: ‘Luòchà Jīngāng Jiǎo’ is a term implying demonic, diamond-hard horns, often associated with powerful, wrathful deities in Buddhist mythology, here used to describe the beast’s twisted, formidable growths) twisted grotesquely behind their ears.

From the eyes of these two ‘baboon-like demonic beasts’ blazed a furious, blood-red glare. Their forearms, hardened by spiritual energy, glowed with a molten, orange-red hue, while crackling lightning coiled around their forms, collectively exuding an aura of devastating oppression.

These two ‘baboons’ were, in fact, demonic beasts conjured by Xia Yi, directly inspired by the Fanged Beast King from a certain ‘MHW’ (TL Note: Likely a reference to the video game Monster Hunter World) game.

Just as in the game, they were capable of instantly unleashing ‘King Eight Fists’ and other such ‘classic’ techniques.