Ye Chenyang froze for a moment, then turned to look at Jiang Ran.
The last time he had entered, in order to pass the trial, he had accidentally done a few things that didn't fit the "Yang Ze" persona, yet nothing unusual had ever happened.
Everyone in this world had been simulated from Yang Ze's memories,
like NPCs rigidly confined by dialogue options, with no ability to think for themselves.
Could it be...
Even though she had seen through him, Ye Chenyang didn't answer her question. He only watched her in silence.
He understood the trial's mechanics quite well and knew what he could and couldn't say.
If he admitted it aloud, he would be kicked out immediately, and the trial would fail.
"...All right, I understand."
After a long silence, Jiang Ran seemed to grasp his meaning. She nodded and said:
"We'll create a chance for you to fight it one-on-one. If you can't win, retreat at once. We'll figure something out together, understand?"
"Thank you."
Ye Chenyang's gaze shifted slightly. He stood still, watching her leave.
In the early days of the Mist's descent, the situation had been turbulent and unstable. The first seven Base Cities had even been built directly within the Mist.
It wasn't until [Eternal Light]—that was, [Eternal Day]—reached Fourth-tier that the Core Circle began to slowly expand.
Only after 'Everbright' was complete did things finally settle down.
Looking back, the first-generation [Withering] had been an Aberrant itself, while the first-generation [Oblivion River] had also been born among the masses. Both had been relatively easy to find.
As for [Doom], whenever it appeared, it was always accompanied by raging Cataclysms.
With [Eternal Day]'s protective trait, he could resist environmental interference to a certain extent, buying them time to find its true form.
In fact, according