14 Illusionary World

As soon as they reached the fifth floor, they felt the pressure double.

The pain was almost unbearable, and she clenched her teeth to keep from crying out.

The once-packed crowd thinned out, leaving only a few stragglers.

The people on the fifth floor were grimacing in pain, their faces contorted with discomfort.

Lin Siyu's surroundings became hazy, and the figures of others around her blurred but remained visible.

She also hears voices in her head, but pushes through it.

The sixth floor is nearly deserted, with only ten people left.

Elder Wu nodded, satisfied seeing that the sixth floor had lit up with ten people.

The group was holding on tight, even though the pressure was almost unbearable.

It was impressive.

But Elder Wu knew that the real challenge had yet to come.

As Siyu climbed to the seventh floor, the voices in her head grew louder and more distinct.

She could distinguish every voice, each one a blend of familiar tones from her friends and family of long ago.

There were also voices from in-game characters screaming at her.

She was on the brink of quitting, the situation too much to bear.

She took a deep breath and pushed herself forward, determined to keep going.

Her breath came in short, ragged gasps, and she felt sweat soaking through her clothes.

As the voices grew louder, she felt the pressure building.

With each step, she gritted her teeth and pushed forward.

Ignoring her surroundings, Lin Siyu pressed on towards the peak.

The building seemed to stretch on forever, and she couldn't even guess how long she had been inside.

By the time she reached the ninth floor, there were only four people left.

Liang Jun was still going, but her siblings have dropped out.

Alongside her and Liang Jun, there was the guy who placed second on the exams and a girl with blonde hair.

She noticed the girl tried to get as close to Liang Jun as possible, but he seemed to ignore him.

Lin Siyu didn't have the time to think about their relationship and was too busy trying to keep the voices out of her head.

The cacophony of voices grew louder and more insistent.

They were telling her to give up, their words ringing in her ears like a bell.

The pressure was so intense that she struggled to take a deep breath, and her body was throbbing with pain.

Lin Siyu's head was spinning, and her vision was blurred, making it hard to focus.

She didn't know how much longer she didn't know how much longer she could hold on.

The voices were like a constant buzzing in her ears, impossible to ignore.

Suddenly, an idea popped into her head.

'What if I use Quantum Visualisation here? That requires a clear mind to do so and I can just use the Auto Hack.' Lin Siyu mumbled, trying to get her thoughts together.

With that said, she sat on the ground Criss Cross and started.

She felt her muscles loosen as the system took control, and she could fully relax for the first time in the challenge.

Liang Jun was taken aback by her serene expression as he passed her from behind.

He was amazed at how calm she seemed, and he pushed forward with all his strength, hoping to match her composure.

As time passed, Lin Siyu opened her eyes, and the feeling of numbness faded as she regained control of her body.

As she stood up, she stretched her limbs and felt the tension release from her muscles.

The voices were quiet, and the pressure was reduced.

She took a deep breath and continued climbing the stairs to get to the tenth floor.

The blonde girl looked at Siyu, and she scoffed.

'Humph, let's see how long you can keep up the act.' She groaned in her heart.

She didn't believe that she could go from almost collapsing to walking smoothly in a short period.

Meanwhile, Elder Wu was observing the candidates' progress.

He was impressed by their tenacity and resilience.

They could withstand the intense pressure, which was a testament to their willpower and determination.

Even the voices in their head didn't get to them and break their will and mind.

However, the hardest part of the exam was yet to come.

As Lin Siyu, Liang Jun, and the blonde girl reached the tenth floor, everything seemed to change.

All the pressure was gone. There were no more voices in their heads. It was like they were in heaven.

Lin Siyu frantically scanned the area, but Liang Jun and the blonde girl were nowhere to be seen.

She looked around, but all she could see was an empty void.

The silence was deafening in the completely empty place.

Lin Siyu couldn't believe her eyes when a door materialised in front of her, as if she was in a dream.

As she approached the door, she noticed the intricate carvings on its tall, imposing frame.

The door creaked as Lin Siyu slowly pushed it open, revealing the room inside.

As she entered, the vastness of the room overwhelmed her, filled to the brim with objects.

There were weapons, armour, scrolls, and many other things.

The items were arranged neatly, and in order, and there were signs showing their prices.

'ESP works on humans but ESP in games also works on objects, so would it work on these?'

Lin Siyu had little hope, but she tried it.

She opened the system and enabled ESP, and a huge giant box appeared.

[Illusion chamber: Grade 3]

'So I'm stuck in an illusion world?' Lin Siyu's lips twitched.

She knew nothing about this, so she picked up a book and placed her palm on it.

'Sure enough, the system didn't respond.' She sighed, her hopes dashed.

She looked at the price and her heartache.

"100,000 high grade spirit stones, only if they'd work in the illusion chamber."

Lin Siyu had no choice but to choose a weapon and try it.

She picked up a sword, but the system didn't react.

Lin Siyu felt discouraged, but she persevered.

She walked around and examined all the items, but the system didn't respond to any of them.

Her hope was slowly fading, and she gave up trying to get free goods from the Illusion world.

Lin Siyu knew it was an illusion, but she couldn't help but admire the exquisite craftsmanship of the items.

Even though they weren't real, she couldn't help but want them.

As she was looking around, she spotted a scroll that was marked with the words "Teleportation".

Lin Siyu felt her heart quicken, and she immediately ran towards it.

However, when she picked up the scroll and tried to put it in her inventory, but the system did not respond.

'Damn it, even the scrolls don't work here!' Lin Siyu cursed in her heart.

Lin Siyu looked at the other scrolls, and they were all the same.

They were all marked with the word "teleportation", but the system didn't respond.

Lin Siyu had to give up her dreams of getting free goods.

Just as Lin Siyu was about to leave, something caught her eye.

In the room's corner, there was a small box that was half-hidden behind a large pot.

The box was nondescript, but the ESP outlined it.

'What is this?' Lin Siyu asked herself.

She reached out and grabbed the box, feeling its weight and texture in her hands before examining it.

The lid clicked open, and she was immediately struck by the sight of a white crystal with blue growths.

She looked at the top and read the text of the ESP: Top Grade Spirit Stone.

Lin Siyu was shocked, and a sense of anticipation welled up within her.

"Whoa, what's something like this doing in here? Is this like juicing up the illusion or what?" she questioned, intrigued by the mysterious object.

"But like, isn't this too easy?" She pondered.

But there was no point thinking about it. She would need to keep it, anyway.

Lin Siyu closed the box and stored it in her inventory.

It was her first time using it, even though she had it since the system awakened.

She spun around and left the room.

Looking outside the room, she saw Liang Jun leaning against the wall.

Liang Jun noticed her and gave a small, acknowledging nod.

"Lin Siyu, did you also pass the second round?"

Lin Siyu raised an eyebrow and nodded in agreement, trying to hide her confusion.

"I don't know."

Liang Jun shook his head, his eyes downcast.

"Don't worry, I'm sure you did."

Lin Siyu said nothing and walked towards him.

"So I guess we should leave then." Liang Jun said.

Lin Siyu still didn't respond and appeared behind him and put her arm around his neck and strangled him.

Liang Jun struggled, trying to pry her hands away from his neck.

He didn't expect Lin Siyu to suddenly attack him, and was taken by surprise.

After a few minutes, the Liang Jun in front of Lin Siyu disappeared into a black fog.

Seeing this, Lin Siyu sat on the ground and placed her hand on her chest and felt her rapid heartbeat.

'Damn, even though it was just an illusion, it felt so real,' Lin Sigh comforted herself.

She knew this because the ESP didn't work on him, therefore she concluded that he was only an illusion.

After taking a moment to compose herself, Lin Siyu stood up and saw a door labelled exit appear in front of her.