Monochromatic.

An apology, followed by the inevitable truth.

And Bang.

All that was happening in his mind right now.

Loop reset. Back to the start.

He wasn't even raising his head anymore. 2 more days had passed since then. Alex was unable to get out of it.

"Sorry, Kid."

This voice didn't belong to John.

He raised his head.

"Alice?"

The familiar face made an expression similar to his mentor.

"I apologize for bringing you into this mess."

The exact same words.

"What is-"

Every single strand of hair on his body was raised out of shock.

"It's just like you said, son."

In place of Mark, his mother.

"She is just doing what she has to do."

'MOVE!'

He put everything in his power to dodge that bullet. All his concentration, aimed at one point.

"Bang!"

Straight through his head.

Hao Qiao frowned. Before passing out this time, Alex had violently jerked his body while he was in a trance.

"It's getting worse."

He placed his hand on his forehead.

"Should I stop?"

He was seriously considering the possibility. At this rate, Alex would not be able to cope with the pressure.

"I'll ask him. He needs to make this choice."

-------------------------------------------------

"System?"

He asked in a low voice.

"Yes?"

"What was that?"

He was genuinely scared. Was this test hurting his mental state?

"Your brain knows what you fear now."

A simple answer. But a frightening revelation.

"Do you mean..."

"Everything from your previous world was a reminder. With the doubt of loss being a constant threat, your brain is adapting that particular scenario into something more relevant."

Exactly.

"And this will only continue to become worse. As an advice, I would like to ask you to get your shit together."

System was done with his pathetic state. It was going to intervene.

4 mirages. Mark, John, Alice and Sylvia.

"One thing after the other. I get that you have issues, but what the hell is wrong with you?"

Mark attacked him. Alex raised his arms to block.

"You cannot defend."

A punch straight to his face.

"You cannot attack."

Alice Jump-Kicked him on his abdomen.

"You cannot make up your mind."

John grabbed his neck and raised him above the ground. He started to choke him, and Alex struggled.

"If you are going to give up over this, then why the hell should I endorse your downfall? I would rather kill my host than let him waste both of our chances."

He was flailing in the air. Unable to breathe, unable to escape, this was his second proper meeting with death.

"Anything and everything that happened back in your world, doesn't matter. I repeat,"

He slammed him on the ground.

"It does not matter."

Alex was slowly losing consciousness. The mirage of John let him go. He couldn't feel his limbs.

The mirage of Sylvia slowly approached and said,

"Death is inevitable. Whether you die now, or you die 100 years from now."

She placed her feet on his neck.

"Tell me. Do you want to live?"

He stared straight into her eyes.

"I won't ask again. If you don't answer, this is the end of the road."

She pressed downwards. The intensity was increasing.

Everything is monochromatic. Only one color. Only one right answer.

'I want to live.'

He opened his eyes. Hao Qiao was staring at him.

"You were out for a long time. What happened?"

"Nothing. I was sleeping."

He readied his fingers and asked,

"I have a question to ask you before we begin the session."

"What?"

Hao Qiao noticed something different. He wasn't gloomy anymore.

"Do you want to continue with this?"

He was fired up.

"Yes!"

'Newfound confidence.'

Signs were promising.

"Close your eyes."

He positioned his fingers and said.

And he was back inside the loop. Back to the original setting, The scene repeated.

Only this time, the about to be victim was smiling.

The bullet went straight through his head. He was still smiling. He made it a point to remember this feeling.

And he opened his eyes. He was out of the loop.

Hao Qiao was shocked.

"I DID IT!"

He screamed at the top of his lungs.

"Amazing..."

The technique Hao Qiao was using was called,

'A journey through hell.'

It convinced the body to enter a trance that was caused by the apparent increase in cortisols in the body. If something was bothering you, extended use of this technique could make sure that it kills you. It could also be used in this way, to overcome your fear. Other than himself in the past, only the Chris Curran had passed this test. It was forbidden by the collective in all the families.

But Hao Qiao had been trained to pass this test. And he was confident that he would kill himself if he tried it on himself today.

As a kid, Alex had defeated this technique.

"Be proud of yourself, kid. You have earned it."

Alex couldn't feel proud though. This was all because of the system.

Ready to move on to the next test, he asked,

"What's next?"