I Gain a God-Tier Talent Every Level

Chapter 358

But if he ended the simulation here...

Then he’d be wasting his final simulation attempt for the day. Luluwei’s matter would be delayed by several more hours.

A few hours... probably wouldn’t make much difference.

But...

What Kanzaki Rei cared about more was just how deep the opponent’s methods truly ran.

The moonlit sea churned, its surface reflecting a bright, silvery moon. In the distance, a massive eye hung suspended, trailing downward along pitch-black, nerve-like tendrils.

Rei felt his spiritual perception return once again with the shift in scenery.

He turned his awareness inward, observing his mindscape.

"So you’ve finally woken up. I was starting to think you wouldn’t."

Rei asked, "Ansu, what’s the situation right now?"

Ansu chuckled softly. "Heh... not long after an hour ago, all of you fell into a deep sleep."

"Looks like it’s the work of that thing in the distance."

"A domain has already formed here. Any living being that enters it will probably fall into an inescapable illusion."

"But I didn’t expect you to wake up through sheer willpower."

Rei paused.

Then asked, "Ansu... do you think I’ve really woken up?"

Caught off guard, Ansu shook his head slightly.

"Are you trying to discuss the ultimate philosophical question of this world?"

"Are we living inside a dream, or do we truly exist?"

"I can only tell you this—if you were truly trapped in a perfect illusion, then no matter what method you used, you would never be able to distinguish reality from falsehood."

"But a perfect illusion indistinguishable from reality is the ultimate pursuit of illusionists. Most illusions can’t reach that level."

"And any imperfect illusion... will definitely have flaws."

Rei looked around, then at Leng Qingying and Luluwei, both lying unconscious.

"Can I wake them up?"

Ansu replied, "You can try."

Rei placed his hand on Luluwei’s head and activated the spell [Guidance of the Dying].

Whoosh—

Within Luluwei’s mindscape, faint glimmers of light flickered to life.

Her consciousness... hadn’t been contaminated yet.

Right. If it’s me right now—

Rei sensed the activation state of his talents.

Ascension Beyond Limits had been active since just moments ago.

And God-Tier · Future Simulation still had four remaining uses.

Future Simulation... could still be used?

If that’s the case—

Rei slowly closed his eyes.

[God-Tier · Future Simulation]

When he opened them again, he felt himself already within a projected future state.

Under normal circumstances, a simulation couldn’t be simulated again.

But now... Rei felt as if he was running two layers of Future Simulation simultaneously.

Then—

"My wish is: I am in the real world."

Rei made his second wish.

Ding—

He felt the wish settle into place.

...but it did not come true.

That meant—

He was inside an illusion.

Strangely enough, he wasn’t sure whether to feel relieved that the wish hadn’t been granted.

Because even if it had been granted, that result might itself have been part of the illusion.

On the contrary, the failure of the wish proved—no matter what—that he was not in reality.

So it really is...

I haven’t gotten out.

Which means this layer of Future Simulation is fake.

"Ansu, if you were trapped in an illusion where you couldn’t distinguish real from fake, what would you do?"

Ansu laughed lightly. "Me? Heh... I’d simply enjoy it."

"Life is nothing more than an experience. If an illusion feels this real, what does it matter whether it’s true or not?"

That... was genuinely how Ansu thought.

So then—

Do I still need to destroy it first?

[Time of Death: 4095 Years]

That was what his eyes currently showed—the opponent’s death time.

The effect of Unsolvable Paradox was still active.

But strangely, it didn’t seem to have much influence over these illusions.

Rei shook his head.

He didn’t act rashly. Instead, he sat cross-legged on the deck.

"Ansu."

"How much do you know about illusion techniques? And how much do you know about the Deep Layer?"

"If someone wanted to drag others into an illusion, what preparations would they need? What conditions must be met?"

He couldn’t afford to rush anymore.

Raw destructive power alone wasn’t enough to break this situation.

He needed to think.

If he relied solely on brute force, even when the simulation fully ended, he might still fail to escape...

"Illusions, huh."

"There are countless approaches. Some create afterimages and clones, others trap people in dreamscapes they can’t escape..."

Rei remained seated in meditation.

Meanwhile, Ansu began explaining everything he knew about illusion techniques.

Most illusions that trap people inside them require a certain level of guidance...

Generally, a skilled illusionist would guide the illusion step by step—collecting key information about their target beforehand, then gradually leading them into the illusion without them realizing it.

But with the existence of the talent Unsolvable Paradox, illusions should be somewhat countered.

After all, others couldn’t probe his information.

According to Ansu’s theory, most illusions cast on him should exhibit significant flaws.

And yet...

Rei felt that what he was experiencing now was fundamentally different from ordinary illusions.

Then again, illusions always blurred the line between truth and falsehood.

Even the possibilities Ansu provided could be false information.

Even if Rei could read Ansu’s thoughts and confirm he was telling the truth—

There was no guarantee the illusion itself wasn’t entirely fabricated.

Ansu fell into deep thought.

"If illusion techniques are connected to the Deep Layer..."

"Heh."

"If that’s the case... perhaps during my cycle of reincarnation, research into the Deep Layer has made new breakthroughs."

"Kid, you said you’ve already encountered two different illusions."

"How do those illusions compare to the real world?"

Rei replied, "In terms of... realism, they felt very real."

"If we’re just talking about the world itself, the experience was convincing."

"But in terms of internal logic... it fell short."

Ansu spoke again.

"But what if I told you—"

"Everything that’s happened... is just your own wishful thinking?"

"Perhaps... no one has ever attacked you."

"And you’ve never encountered any enemies."

"Maybe... you’ve simply never walked out."

The moment Ansu finished speaking, Rei’s mind exploded with realization—like a new door had just been thrown open.

I... was never attacked?

Everything is my own imagination?

Every illusion... created by myself?

Whoosh—

In that instant, memories surged like a tidal wave!

Memories from his first simulation entering the Deep Layer—memories he shouldn’t have known—now surfaced clearly in his mind.

Memories of his spirituality being contaminated after that first simulation—memories that had supposedly been erased—returned.

Beyond that, memories of his second exploration of the Deep Layer, and the contamination that followed, along with the erased aftermath—

All of them resurfaced, one by one.

Everything... is fake?

Waa—waa—waa—

A deafening ringing filled his ears. His vision blurred, the world around him dissolving into distortion.

Was he falling into an even deeper layer?

Or—

The ringing gradually subsided. The blurred scenery sharpened once more.

"The Deep Layer... is a place that never truly existed."

"A place that doesn’t exist, yet appears real—doesn’t that feel contradictory?"

"It seems... you’ve finally awakened."

A voice echoed through his mind like a dreamlike murmur.

[You see a door standing open—now it finally has form. Go forth, and behold the knowledge long forbidden.]

"Congratulations. You’ve seen the true face of the Deep Layer."

"I am Shinkigen—your guide to the Deep Layer."

"Meeting me means... you are no longer trapped within your own imagination."