Multiple Personalities

Shen Jingqi stood in place, taking a deep breath, trying to find a hint of order from the chaos.

The atmosphere in the sand cave fluctuated violently, with warmth and cold intertwining to create an indescribably eerie ambiance. Shen Jingqi could feel these two forces tearing at and yet merging with each other, making the sand cave even more unpredictable and dangerous.

At that moment, a strange insight surged in his heart—the three concepts: perception, inference, and misconception. These concepts flashed through his mind like lightning, as if revealing a glimmer of light to him.

"Perception..." he murmured softly, his gaze sweeping around. Perception is the evident, the present scope, something that can be directly sensed without thinking. In this sand cave, every grain of sand, every whiff of air, every ray of light and shadow, represents perception. They are so real, so direct, as if directly touching his eighth consciousness—alaya-vijnana. Shen Jingqi felt as if he had established an inexplicable connection with the sand cave and the world, a connection beyond words and thoughts.

However, this connection didn't last long. A cold breath suddenly attacked, interrupting his contemplation. He turned his head and saw Li Baiyu and Renault's eyes suddenly become hollow and bewildered, their bodies beginning to tremble uncontrollably.

"Li Baiyu! Renault!" Shen Jingqi shouted loudly, trying to awaken them. But his voice seemed swallowed by the sand cave, unable to reach their ears.

An unprecedented fear surged in Shen Jingqi's heart. He stared at them, trying to find a trace of clarity in their eyes. But their eyes were as calm as dead water, without the slightest ripple.

Li Baiyu and Renault, two warriors usually brave and fearless, now resembled puppets controlled by an unknown force. Their eyes turned hollow, movements stiff, as if they lost their souls.

"Li Baiyu! Renault! What's happened to you?" Shen Jingqi's voice was like a stone sinking into the sea, receiving no response. He realized this force was far stronger and more bizarre than they had imagined.

Shen Jingqi took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down.

Panic and despair solved nothing now; only by finding the source of this force could he save Li Baiyu and Renault. He began to carefully observe everything around him, trying to find any clue.

"Inference..." A realization struck him, and he immediately understood the source of this force. Inference is the sixth sense, what the mind thinks, based on past experiences and knowledge used for judgment and reasoning. In this sand cave, every decision and every step forward they made depended on inference. But now, inference had become their enemy, manipulated by that unknown force that controlled their thoughts and actions.

Shen Jingqi took a deep breath, attempting to resist the invasion of this force with his willpower. He stared intently at Li Baiyu and Renault, trying to transmit a bit of clarity to them through his gaze. However, his efforts seemed in vain. Their bodies still trembled, their eyes still hollow.

Yet, when he tried to reason out the nature of that force using inference, he felt chaos. His thoughts seemed disturbed by an invisible power, making it impossible to think clearly. Shen Jingqi realized the unknown force had already interfered with inference's reasoning, plunging him into confusion.

"Misconception..." His heart trembled as he finally comprehended the nature of this force. Misconception is false judgment, nonexistent illusions. In this sand cave, misconception was like a hidden demon, always waiting for them to fall into traps. Once they were fooled by misconception, they'd be lost in this darkness forever.

Shen Jingqi felt as if his mind was shrouded by an invisible mist, unable to think clearly. He tried to use perception to sense everything around him, but the power of misconception was like an invisible hand, constantly disrupting his thoughts. He felt his body starting to tremble uncontrollably, as if about to be consumed by this force.

"I can't be deceived by misconception!" he yelled, his voice carrying a tinge of determination. He knew he must stay clear-headed and find a way to break this force. He stared ahead, trying to find a trace of real light in the darkness.

At that moment, a thought suddenly flashed in his mind—if misconception was false judgment, nonexistent illusions, then it must have a weakness. As long as he found this weakness, he could break its power.

Misconception is false judgment, nonexistent illusions. Shen Jingqi suddenly realized the force controlling Li Baiyu and Renault was likely misconception. It used false judgment to confuse them, nonexistent illusions to trap them. And he himself nearly got deceived by misconception, falling into despair and panic.

"I cannot be deceived by misconception!" Shen Jingqi shouted as if swearing to himself. He took a deep breath, striving to make his thoughts clearer. He began to closely observe Li Baiyu and Renault's expressions and movements, trying to find a flaw in misconception.

He found that although their eyes were hollow, their breathing still maintained a rhythmic rise and fall. This trace of vitality was like a glimmer of light in the darkness, giving Shen Jingqi hope. He knew if he found the source of this vitality, he could break misconception's control.

"Li Baiyu! Renault! Hang in there!" Shen Jingqi shouted, trying to convey strength to them with his voice. His voice echoed in the sand cave with determination and steadfastness. He believed as long as they held onto faith in their hearts, they could overcome misconception's control.

Shen Jingqi took a deep breath, striving to make his thoughts clearer. He began to closely observe Li Baiyu and Renault's expressions and movements, trying to find a flaw in misconception. He noticed that although their eyes were hollow, occasional traces of struggle flickered. This struggle was like a glimmer of light in the darkness, giving him hope.

"They are still resisting!" He felt a spark of joy, immediately understanding the source of this struggle. It was their inner belief and will, their pursuit of reality and resistance to illusions. By igniting this power, they could break free from misconception's control.

Shen Jingqi began calling their names loudly, trying to awaken their consciousness with his voice. His voice echoed in the sand cave with determined and resolute power. He kept calling until his voice turned hoarse without stopping.

Finally, his efforts seemed to pay off. A trace of clarity began to flicker in Li Baiyu and Renault's eyes, their bodies gradually stopped trembling. They seemed to awaken from a nightmare, looking at Shen Jingqi, eyes filled with confusion and astonishment.

"Shen Jingqi... what happened to us?" Li Baiyu asked breathlessly, his voice still tinged with a tremor.

"You were controlled by misconception," Shen Jingqi explained briefly.