Illusion
The system gazed at the girl's tear-streaked face. The girl was struggling to suppress her sobs, and she was only five years old, an age when she should still be being pampered by her parents.
Even if He had seen it with His own eyes before and had a warning, He could still feel a throbbing pain in His heart and shed tears for it.
"Phantom" placed her hand lightly on Lin Yun's head, repeating comforting words even though she couldn't feel it: "Don't be afraid, I'm here. I promised I would protect you, I... I'm sorry. Hang in there, you'll get better soon."
Lin Yunwang's figure disappeared as she ran away, while the system's feet seemed to be rooted to the ground, unable to move, unable to catch up with the girl, and unable to repeat the useless words of comfort.
I can only trace her silhouette in the void.
Zhou Hengyan's fingertips brushed across the void, his voice as cold as ice: "I'll say it again, do not read my memories, do not recreate the form of the people I know."
Qianjita seemed to hesitate for a moment, then the sword at his waist suddenly disappeared. There was nothing he could do about this "old friend," so he could only silently put away his sword, fearing that this madman would slash wildly in the illusion as he had done before. The phantom still stood three zhang away, unmoved, performing a "one-man show."
Zhou Hengyan exhaled a breath of stale air, closed his eyes again, and a unique longsword materialized in his hand.
Just by looking at it, one can feel that this sword contains all kinds of power. The spiritual energy, as thin as needles, is wrapped around the blade, making it look quite sharp.
"Now, let's see how you will sheath this sword."
This sword is a sword of the heart, his pride, and proof that he ranks among the top of the younger generation.
"bring it on."
His calm tone contrasted sharply with his ruthless moves.
Zhou Hengyan's spiritual power seemed to flow freely, continuously attaching itself to the sword, accumulating strength, and then swinging it again and again... He knew clearly that this tower possessed its own will, and although he didn't know where the "person" controlling the tower was, he was certain that it was right here.
As long as the disturbance is large enough to destabilize the illusion, the person behind it will eventually be forced to reveal themselves.
Just as he thought.
Space had become distorted under his constant cutting, and the illusion he was in kept flashing blue light, subtle but quickly recovering, returning to the white world. This time it was different, it was snowing.
Snowflakes fell gently on Zhou Hengyan.
It is cold, yet so real.
This was the first time Zhou Hengyan had experienced a scene outside of human form within the illusion he was in. It was clear that the Thousand-Pagoda had made its choice, focusing most of its energy on Zhou Hengyan. However, it hadn't expected that this time, there would be two such troublesome individuals.
Lin Yun looked at the extinguished fire beside her, squatted down to poke at it, but her hands didn't feel any warmth. She was surprised that she had been bewitched by this clumsy scene. When she stood up, she found that the sword beside her had disappeared.
She smiled, seemingly having taken precautions against the situation.
"System," she called out.
"Host, I'm here."
A mechanical voice, devoid of any emotion, responded to her.
"Why was our connection severed just now? Does the Tower of a Thousand have this function?"
After a long silence, the system finally responded.
"The laws of illusion apply to me as well."
I see. That explains why the system lost connection.
Lin Yun paused, her hand poking at the fire, lost in thought. She had always been curious about who created the system and what their motivations were. After all, in her view, the system's speech was too close to that of a real person, even possessing its own unique set of values. These values did not come from external forces, but from the choices it made.
Thinking back on the role of the "system" in literary works, they all differ greatly from the one in my mind; so far, only two tasks have been assigned to me. I tried to recall my first encounter with the system, but unfortunately, I failed.
I only remember regaining my clear consciousness while I was sealed away, and the system was already by my side then.
"So even a mechanical heart can dream of electronic butterflies," Lin Yun murmured to himself.
"What?"
"A line from a song lyric."
The system remained silent, then spoke up to remind her as she moved toward the next door:
"Host, be careful. The Tower of a Thousand Canvas can erase memories at will, which is one of the reasons you just fell into their trap."
"Alright," Lin Yun agreed, "You be careful too, then let's head together for the next test!"
The system had never seen her act so recklessly before; she was probably furious at being tricked.
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