Supreme Harem God System-Chapter 2001 [Trial Two: The Labyrinth of Infinite Echoes]

"Haaahh… Haaahh… Haaahh…"

Nux collapsed to his knees, gasping for breath, his chest rising and falling rapidly while his body felt weak—ridiculously weak. Sweat dripped down his forehead, his limbs trembled, and for the first time in a long while, his mind felt hazy.

For a moment, he fell on the floor, without caring where he was, and closed his eyes, his mind recalling what he had just seen.

It was for a short instance—so short it almost felt unreal—but Nux was sure it was very real.

An unknown place.

Dark, silent, and… infinite.

All around him, thick glowing roots twisted and turned through the air, stretching endlessly in every direction. They didn't feel like any normal roots—they… felt alive.

They felt Massive, Divine, and Ancient.

They pulsed with light. They were carrying energy so profound that even someone like Nux couldn't comprehend what it was. Some of these roots glowed bright gold, others shimmered in deep violet, silver, or crimson hues. These roots branched, split, and spiraled, creating a web or a structure that extended into the black void without an end.

There was no ground beneath his feet. No sky above his head. It was just him, standing at the heart of this living maze of light and color. Even the concept of time didn't seem to exist there.

The only thing Nux felt was a strange weight. A weight pressing on his very being. Like he was being watched. Not by any being—but by something… vast.

He tried looking around, trying to understand where he was, but then, it was over.

As if he was forcibly pulled back or… thrown back, he returned to the cold floor, heart beating much faster than before.

"What… was that…?"

He muttered, still breathless.

He didn't know what he saw.

But something told him… he wasn't supposed to see it.

After taking a few more breaths, he opened his eyes, even though his mind was still hazy. But then,

He saw something.

[Trial One: Complete]

[Trial Two: The Labyrinth of Infinite Echoes]

[Find the only Path that leads ahead]

System messages.

'Not even a congratulations, huh…'

Nux couldn't help but shake his head with a sigh.

The System was much crueller than his own. There was no reward, nor a congratulatory message. It just told him the first trial was over and the second began—almost as if the designer put in no effort in its making.

'Haaahh…'

Nux sighed. With his mind finally returning to him, he stood up and looked around. He was no longer in the beautiful, scenic place with an ocean in front of him. Now, he was inside what seemed to be a massive maze.

The walls here were made of polished mirrors, reflecting his image over and over again. Of course, his body was still like the mannequin before, and he didn't have any powers—not even the power over the Flow of Time he had comprehended in the last trial.

Something that seemed different from normal.

From the records he read, it was said that even if a Trial Taker's powers were taken away, every time someone cleared Trial One and entered Trial Two, they still had powers they had comprehended in Trial One.

From the looks of it, Nux looked like he was the only exception to this rule.

Not a good sign, but for now, Nux decided not to think about it and analyze the situation around him.

He was surrounded by his own reflections, every reflection staring at him. The fact that they didn't have any expressions but just a white head made it even eerier.

It was quiet—too quiet.

But then,

Something happened.

"What is with this place!?"

"Which fucker created it!?"

"What kind of sick mind does one need to have to come up with Trials like these!?"

"Aaaahhh!! When will it end!?"

Voices.

Nux heard his own voices from different directions.

It didn't feel like it was an illusion either.

They seemed real.

Then it happened—his reflections started moving independently.

Nux's frown deepened. He looked around and realized all of his reflections were moving—some faster than others, as if they were in a hurry to complete the trial, some slower, more careful.

Honestly, it almost looked like it was all a trick to fool him and the mannequins in front of him weren't actually him, but Nux knew that wasn't the case.

Not here.

The footsteps, the habits, and the way they reacted to changes around him—

It was him.

They were all him.

[Find the only Path that leads ahead]

Suddenly, the message appeared in front of him again, almost as if the Temple wanted him to move.

So that was what he did.

He moved.

He had only been in this place for a few minutes, yet he already felt like he was losing his mind. He was already inside a maze without any powers. What made it even worse was that he was surrounded by thousands of his own reflections, all moving independently.

Even his mind couldn't comprehend what was happening.

His senses were in a big mess—hearing his own voice, his complaints, his footsteps—it almost took away his belief in his senses.

What's worse?

These maze walls seemed to have some sort of shifting mechanism, so he couldn't mark the path he took either.

It was… almost impossible to clear this.

Of course, Nux still didn't give up. He continued walking, trying to explore this place. Every turn he took led to more confusion. Hallways looped, split, and merged again. He walked toward one of these mirrors and touched its surface. On the other end, however, he didn't see his reflection.

His reflection had already walked away, exploring on his own.

The difference between reality and reflection was thinning at an absurd rate. Nux felt like he would lose his mind if he stayed here for long, so he increased his speed.

He was using the most basic rule to clear such mazes—his right hand remained on the wall, and he was planning on following it without lifting, all the way till he found the exit.

The method seemed to be working, as Nux felt like he was making progress. Nux walked for hours, yet he didn't feel like he was walking in circles. Every place he entered felt different from before. But then…

He noticed something.

One of his reflections…

It was doing the same thing he was doing—walking with his right arm on the wall. However, unlike him, who had been walking for hours,

This one seemed to have just started.

And Nux finally realized it…

The reflection…

It was him in the past.