The Real and Fake Monkey King

"Where the hell did this extra rat come from?" Zhang Yuanqing stared in astonishment at the figure identical to himself, only to hear the guy sneer right back: "You're the rat!" Guan Ya, Sun Miaomiao, and the others were likewise sizing up their own "clones," taking a few paces back and dropping into hostile, defensive stances. The two Zhai Cais studied each other, stroking their chins and speaking in unison: "Interesting, truly interesting. Exactly identical to me—handsome face, composed demeanor, gentle gaze, a one-to-one reproduction. Hmm, looks like even our behavioral habits are the same." The two Brother Red Chickens: "Imposter! You dare pretend to be your daddy?" "You're the fucking imposter! Fuck you, I'm gonna beat you to death!" "Suits me just fine! I'm gonna skin you alive!" The two Brother Red Chickens instantly brawled, punches landing heavily on flesh with dull, heavy thuds. Beside them, the two Guan Yas furrowed their brows as they watched, saying: "Even the personalities are identical, and so is the combat strength... I think I understand why our skills, items, and inventories were sealed." The two Guan Yas looked around at the crowd and said: "This room's replication ability has limitations. Certain special things exceed its upper threshold, which is why it sealed the trespassers' inventories. "From the looks of it, the clones possess the same personalities and power as the originals. The clones aren't overtly aggressive and didn't attack us right away. I haven't figured out where this room's crisis mechanism lies yet." Except for the two short-tempered Brother Red Chickens, all the other clones were putting on a show, each acting as if they were the true original. Thus, a five-versus-five team deathmatch between the originals and clones could be ruled out. Seeing that their respective clones weren't attacking, everyone slowly lowered their guard and began pondering Guan Ya's words. Zhang Yuanqing looked toward the two Zhai Cais and asked: "Did Winnie reveal any intelligence about the labyrinth to you? As Old Brent's granddaughter, she ought to possess detailed information on it. What is this level's core mechanism?" The two Single-Inheritance Knights shook their heads simultaneously: "Winnie wants the Holy Disc shards as well. Bound by morality, agreements, and the power of an oath, she simply couldn't back out. Don't count on her helping us." Just as everyone was at their wits' end, a countdown timer materialized on the hexagonal mirrors inlaid across the ceiling, floor, and walls: 14:58:82. A fifteen-minute countdown! Beneath the countdown was a line of text: [The doors will swing open in fifteen minutes. Please find your true companions!] "It just flat out gave us the stage's core mechanism..." Zhang Yuanqing glanced at the girlfriend who was impossible to distinguish from her double and frowned. "That means the difficulty lies in telling the companions apart." He turned toward the two Brother Red Chickens, who were still brawling with loud thuds, and barked, "Stop fighting! Get over here!" The guild master's words still carried weight. The two Brother Red Chickens actually stopped, glared at each other, and walked over resentfully. Once the two drew near, Zhang Yuanqing was about to speak, but the clone beside him usurped his spotlight and spoke first: "Everyone has seen the countdown and the prompt. Leaving this room is simple: just wait fifteen minutes. But before the countdown ends, we must find our real companions, otherwise..." Guan Ya chimed in, "We might be trapped here forever." Zhang Yuanqing's clone scoffed: "Can any of you tell which of us is the real one and which is the fake? Because I certainly can't spot a single flaw in this imposter." The crowd scrutinized the two Zhang Yuanqings, but nobody could give an answer—not even Guan Ya, who possessed Insight. The clone continued: "From observing just now, I noticed that the clones share the same personalities, strength, and looks as the originals. It's tough to tell them apart from appearance alone. We could try testing our memories—for instance, past events that only our group would know." He said in a deep voice, "I'll go first. Guan Ya and I met very early on. We once carried out a supernatural mission together in a hospital. And in a certain place fraught with danger, I heard Sun Miaomiao confess that she used multiple alternate accounts to cyberbully Zhao Chenghuang." The corner of Zhao Chenghuang's mouth twitched. *Why bring up old history now...* Sun Miaomiao felt a bit embarrassed, but also relieved. Only the real Yuanshi would know such things. The two Brother Red Chickens rejoiced, clapping their hands together. "You're the real Jumang!" *Oh shit, I became the body double...* Zhang Yuanqing's expression darkened abruptly. Of the two events the clone mentioned, the first was resolving the supernatural incident caused by Little Doubi at Pingtai Hospital, where his maternal aunt worked. The second event was the confession circle during Mohist Mechanism City. These were experiences only the individuals involved knew about. The clone being able to state them without a single error proved that the mirrors replicated not just appearances, powers, and personalities, but also memories. The reason his face turned grim wasn't because his teammates took the clone's side, but because once clones duplicated memories as well, it became almost impossible to distinguish who was real and who was an imposter. And the mirror room gave them very little time—only fifteen minutes. As his thoughts flickered, both Brother Red Chickens glared at Zhang Yuanqing with fierce hostility: "You imposter! Everyone, let's jump him and take him out!" Just as Zhai Cai and the others cast wary, hostile glances in his direction, Zhang Yuanqing said calmly: "I also share such secrets. I once entered a dangerous place. Because it was too perilous, I invited several companions along. The clay figurines there possessed regenerative abilities, and a certain idiot pedaled a sewing machine to rack up eight million. Fortunately, the haul that time was quite bountiful." Because Zhai Cai was an outsider, Zhang Yuanqing kept things veiled just as the clone had. After all, the one who had done those things was Yuanshi Tianzun, not Jumang; revealing too much would blow his cover. Hearing this, Guan Ya and Brother Red Chicken showed little reaction, but both Sun Miaomiaos, both Zhao Chenghuangs, and both Tianxia Guihuos shifted their expressions slightly, their moods sinking. They realized Zhang Yuanqing was referring to the underground palace beneath the lake at Qinfeng Academy, and that the idiot who pedaled out eight million was Xiahou Aotian. Both Yuanshi Tianzuns shared the exact same memories. "Looking at your expressions... this Jumang also knows things known only to your inner circle, doesn't he?" Zhai Cai clicked his tongue. "Clones can copy memories too. Now this is getting even more interesting." He glanced at the countdown displayed on the mirrors. "Thirteen minutes left. There are six of you in total—that's two minutes per person. Time is very limited. Have you figured out how to find your real companions?" Agitated and irritated, Brother Red Chicken snapped furiously: "Interesting, interesting! All day long, all you know is 'interesting'! You sound like a damn idiot! Don't you have a clone too? You think you're getting out of here alive?" "I don't know, but I'm betting that the third floor corresponds to Level 8, not Level 7." Smiling, Zhai Cai suddenly lunged before anyone could react, seizing the other Zhai Cai by the throat and slamming him violently to the ground. A bronze radiance erupted over the attacking Zhai Cai's body, pure and majestic. His muscles swelled across his frame, and his height surged by a dozen centimeters, jumping from 1.8 meters to nearly two meters tall. The choked Zhai Cai struggled frantically, striking back with fists and kicks, but his Dominator-level blows failed to inflict the slightest scratch on his opponent. Having abruptly unleashed his latent power, Zhai Cai pinned the clone's neck with one hand while drawing back his other fist and slamming it violently into the face of the Zhai Cai pinned to the ground. *Crack! Boom!* Amidst a muffled detonation, Zhai Cai Number Two's head exploded. A mix of red and white brain matter and bloodied bone fragments splattered everywhere. His limbs twitched briefly, and then all struggling ceased. A few seconds later, the splattered tissues and the corpse itself slowly dissipated without leaving a trace. Zhai Cai beamed at the group. "Among the secret arts passed down to Holy Knights, there is a physical technique that overdraws stamina to boost strength beyond one's own level. It is an ancient ancestral technique, not a skill. If the mirror only replicates up to Level 7, the imposter couldn't possibly master power beyond that limit. I gambled and won." He had demonstrated a sound method to break the stalemate: kill the clone. Brother Red Chicken mumbled, "Sorry, I admit I was talking too loud just now. Go ahead and take out this imposter for me." He pointed at the Brother Red Chicken beside him. The other Brother Red Chicken bristled with indignation: "Fuck your mother, you're the imposter!" Zhai Cai shrugged. "How can I be sure which of you is the original? After all, both of you seem equally rash, short-tempered, and lacking in brains." He checked the time. "Only twelve minutes left." His words instantly ratcheted up the tension. Even someone as intelligent as Tianxia Guihuo knitted his brows tightly. The dilemma they faced now wasn't combat strength, but convincing their teammates that they were the original. Only then could they team up to eliminate the clone. Yet the clones possessed the exact same personalities, strength, appearance, and memories as the originals. Even self-verification was extraordinarily difficult, making it even less likely for teammates to distinguish truth from falsehood. *Power and traits exceeding Level 7 cannot be copied. That means I actually have a way to prove my identity—as long as I slice open my chest and show them my heart... A clone couldn't possibly possess a demigod-tier item. But doing that would expose the issue with my heart. The seal on the Illusion God item has already loosened; the aura of the evil classes cannot be hidden...* *Zhai Cai is a Dominator of the Knight class; I won't be able to hide it from him...* Zhang Yuanqing's thoughts churned rapidly. He felt the situation was extremely thorny, even a bit nerve-wracking. He had unique traits, but his teammates didn't. What he needed to do was not merely prove his own identity, but find a method to help his teammates prove theirs to ensure everyone survived. That was the guild master's duty and responsibility. What made him most anxious was that if this were a dungeon, there would definitely be a way out; dungeons existed to test Spirit Realm walkers, and unwinnable dead ends were rare. However, this was Pan's Labyrinth—an item space. An item space didn't exist to test anyone; it existed to slaughter intruders. Therefore, a solution might very well not exist at all. *Right... judging from Guan Ya's state earlier, she clearly used Insight. Insight is a passive skill, and passive skills can be used...* Zhang Yuanqing felt a surge of joy. Passive skills were certainly copied as well. He didn't intend to use passive skills to confirm his teammates' identities directly, but rather to utilize an Illusionist's "Emotional Perception" to distinguish real teammates from fake ones. With that in mind, he gathered his thoughts and focused entirely on perceiving his teammates' emotions. To his dismay, however, both the real and fake teammates showed entirely genuine emotional reactions. The clones seemed to truly believe they were the originals, submerged in intense bewilderment, urgency, and anxiety. Not a single one harbored even the faintest trace of guilt. *If memories are replicated one hundred percent, the clones really would believe they are the originals. This is terrible. What do I do, what do I do...* Zhang Yuanqing glanced at the countdown. Only eleven minutes left. There was no longer enough time to identify everyone one by one. They had to find an effective method to rapidly weed out the clones within the group. Zhai Cai said: "I have an idea. Want to try it?" "No shit! Hurry up and try it!" Brother Red Chicken blurted out instinctively. Zhai Cai nodded. "You then, Mr. Fire Master. Step forward, please." Both Brother Red Chickens scampered over eagerly. Without a word, Zhai Cai seized one Brother Red Chicken's hand. With a dull *pop*, the hand was crushed by brute force, its mangled flesh and shattered bones ripped away by Zhai Cai. "Fuck!" The other Brother Red Chicken acted on impulse. Driven by sheer reflex, he swung a fist at Zhai Cai. Zhai Cai caught the fist and crushed it in the exact same manner before explaining: "The imposter from earlier vanished upon dying, which means the clones are not made of flesh and blood. Let's see the result, and we'll know." Everyone's eyes lit up, immediately looking toward the blood and mangled flesh on the floor. Over a dozen seconds passed, yet the flesh and blood remained, showing no signs of disappearing. Their hopes were dashed. Zhai Cai stroked his chin. "It seems a clone's flesh and blood will only disappear once it is killed. Well, I'm out of ideas. Bear with it, Mr. Fire Master. Once we leave this room, I'll give you a vial of Life Source Fluid. If we don't make it out, you won't need it anyway." "Fucking hell! If I'd known, I would've downed a bowl of chicken soup before coming! That way I could die without regrets!" Brother Red Chicken clutched his wound and walked off, cursing under his breath. Refusing to give up, the others proceeded to try every method they could think of—including "Truth or Dare," testing passive skills, and inflicting wounds to compare self-healing rates. None could prove they were the original. And only seven minutes remained on the clock.