Translator: AkazaTL

Proofreader/Editor: TenebrousGaze, JWyck & Ekko

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Chapter 113

In an instant, Su Bei brought Si Zhaohua to his bedroom, which was the fixed point he had set beforehand.

At the same time, a notification from Manga Consciousness sounded in his ear: “《King of Abilities》 has been updated. Please check it.”

An update now? It seemed they planned to split the final exam for the manga into two parts. That made sense—besides their group, there was the plot of the neighboring instance’s group. If they crammed the whole exam into one, the story would be too bloated.

As soon as they appeared, Si Zhaohua’s body went limp and he collapsed. Fortunately Su Bei was quick, catching him and calmly settling him on the bed.

He wasn’t alarmed, knowing Si Zhaohua wasn’t injured. His fainting was merely due to his Ultimate Move massively draining him. In fact, he was already on the verge of collapse after using it, only holding on to consciousness to land smoothly.

Meanwhile, Feng Lan was looking out the room’s window through binoculars.

“What are you looking at?” Su Bei asked, placing the unconscious Si Zhaohua on the bed, before turning to Feng Lan.

Feng Lan took the binoculars from his eyes and turned to face him: “In the direction of the City Stadium. Jiang Tianming and the others have successfully retreated.”

Their house was at the edge of the building, with a relatively open view. Su Bei hadn’t noticed before, but upon hearing this, he walked to the window and realized that from this spot one could indeed overlook part of the plaza in front of the City Stadium.

Suddenly remembering something he quickly called Jiang Tianming. He picked up soon, sounding weak and slightly out of breath: “Su Bei? What’s up?”

“Come to my place,” he replied. “Si Zhaohua’s here too.”

Jiang Tianming paused. He was still at the City Stadium. Just moments ago, they were all exhausted from the Nightmare Beasts’ siege, unable to stop the Nightmare Beasts surging and only able to watch as they rushed into the stadium.

But this also gave them a breather. Jiang Tianming had the others leave first while he went to find Si Zhaohua.

Sneaking into the stadium, he only found confused Nightmare Beasts milling about, with no signs of Si Zhaohua.

The call informed him that Si Zhaohua had been taken by Su Bei, but now wasn’t the time for questions. He immediately said: “I’ll come over now.”

Soon, he arrived with Lan Subing and the others, climbing through the window. It wasn’t that they didn’t want to use the door, but Su Bei’s Mother was still home. Explaining why so many people came to visit under these circumstances would be troublesome, so taking the window was easier.

Seeing Si Zhaohua lying on the bed, everyone’s expressions tightened. Zhou Renjie asked anxiously: “What’s wrong with Zhaohua? Did he just overuse his skill, or...?”

He wanted to add, “or did something unexpected happen,” but hesitated to ask.

“Overuse,” Su Bei replied, but after noticing their visible relief, added with a half-smile, “But he almost had an accident.”

Without delay, he recounted what happened, though only briefly glossed over him saving Si Zhaohua.

Hearing that the Teleportation Nightmare Beast wasn’t dead and had attacked Si Zhaohua at his weakest, everyone gasped. Too close! If Su Bei hadn’t been there, Si Zhaohua would likely be dead.

Though this was just an Illusion, where death only meant exiting the exam, the result was terrifying enough. Even in an Illusion, death was a real, palpable experience!

Jiang Tianming realized something, asking in surprise: “So when you said you’d join but didn’t want to be assigned a task, you’d already foreseen this?”

Su Bei nodded with a grin: “Didn’t my role come in handy? I brought him back and gave you all a chance to escape the Nightmare Beast horde.” As for saving him? That was a separate price.

He only appeared for a few seconds at the end, but his role was undeniably crucial. Lan Subing, sitting by the bed and recovering her Mental Energy, thanked him: “We owe you big time.”

But her expression was dejected. The mission was a failure, and with the previous experience, the Teleportation Nightmare Beast wouldn’t be caught so easily again.

Moreover, they didn’t even know how it had survived.

Si Zhaohua couldn’t use his Ability for days, let alone his Ultimate Move. Killing that Nightmare Beast again was nearly impossible, successfully ending the campaign wasn’t even worth mentioning.

Their original plan was to kill both High-Level Nightmare Beasts, boosting morale to make dealing with the rest easier.

But with one still alive, they couldn’t spread the news. They also had to constantly guard against the Teleportation Nightmare Beast’s ambushes, ideally staying together.

In this situation, ending the campaign was nearly impossible.

The only good news was that Su Bei confirmed the Bubble Nightmare Beast was truly dead, giving them points for one High-Level Nightmare Beast—a small consolation.

Zhou Renjie realised this and immediately shifted blame: “Jiang Tianming, it’s all your fault! This was your plan! If it wasn’t so poorly thought out, we wouldn’t have suffered such losses!”

His shameless words stunned everyone. Wu Mingbai laughed sarcastically, mockingly replying: “Wow, so you didn’t agree back then? It’s our fault for dragging you into it?”

Back then, Zhou Renjie hadn’t hesitated and even volunteered to join after Si Zhaohua agreed. His Ability wasn’t exactly suited for this mission; they wouldn’t have invited him if he hadn’t stepped up.

Qi Huang sneered: “Blaming others now? You didn’t use your brain at all, so don’t blame the plan. Besides, this isn’t Jiang Tianming’s fault!”

Jiang Tianming calmly said: “The plan failed because the Teleportation Nightmare Beast has survived, not because my plan was flawed. But you—if you could’ve eliminated it in your stomach, none of this would’ve happened. It’s your weakness that endangered Si Zhaohua and ruined our plan.”

Watching this, Su Bei nearly laughed out loud. Jiang Tianming was sly, pinning all the blame on Zhou Renjie in a few words. His blame-shifting mirrored Zhou Renjie’s—pure nonsense.

The irony was palpable.

Zhou Renjie’s face reddened as they ganged up on him, but he didn’t dare retort. He’d thought someone would back him up after his accusation.

At his home, whenever something went wrong, someone had to take the fall. If he didn’t shift blame first, it might land on him.

But the group had no such intention, making him look like a clown.

The room fell into an awkward silence, save for Feng Lan and me who were relatively relaxed. We didn’t join the action and our points were sufficient, so we could be carefree.

Of course, Feng Lan was still frowning. Unlike me, he hoped the campaign would succeed—not because of points, but for justice.

Still his sentiment was mild; he’d only help within his means.

Finally, Jiang Tianming resolutely spoke up: “I’m not giving up.”

Everyone looked at him.

He stood, facing the group: “Though the plan failed, it wasn’t a total failure. We accomplished what we set out to do; there was just an unexpected hitch.

“We face two issues now: one, we can’t deal with the Teleportation High-Level Nightmare Beast; two, there are too many Nightmare Beasts to handle.”

These were the biggest obstacles to winning the campaign.

“For the first, with its lesson learned and after seeing Si Zhaohua’s Ability, the Teleportation Beast will likely avoid us for now. We can set it aside temporarily. If we manage to defeat the beast tide, its reappearance won’t stop us from winning.”

This... seemed plausible? Everyone felt a sense of clarity. They’d aimed to kill both High-Level Nightmare Beasts for points and because the campaign couldn’t be won otherwise.

But now with one dead, the remaining one might have fled to another city. Even if it stayed, it likely wouldn’t fight for Low-Level Nightmare Beasts, so they could ignore it for now.

Noting their expressions, Jiang Tianming continued calmly: “The second issue is tough. Our current solo or small-group combat model can’t handle it.”

The gap between Ability Users and Nightmare Beasts was vast, especially with many unequally skilled freshmen, some contributing little despite their numbers.

“We need to unite everyone and devise a strategy to eliminate the Nightmare Beasts together. I think we’ll still need Si Zhaohua. We’ll discuss the details after he wakes up. For now, we can check the group chat to count the surviving examinees and see who’ll cooperate.”

His analysis gave them clarity. Qi Huang gave him a thumbs-up, praising generously: “Jiang Tianming, you’ve got some brains, already planning the next step! Alright, let’s keep going! I’ll check the group for the numbers and recruit.”

“I’ll help!” Lan Subing followed. Online communication was easier for her than in person.

“I’ll find a new place to stay. We shouldn’t use the old one, lest the High-Level Nightmare Beast comes for us,” Wu Mingbai said, realizing his task. With that Nightmare Beast’s Ability, it was a premier assassin. Having seen their faces, even if it feared Si Zhaohua’s one-time ultimate move and didn’t dare attack directly, it wouldn’t give up on sneak attacks.

They’d better find a new, safe place to settle.

Seeing everyone find their tasks, Zhou Renjie mumbled: “I’ll take care of Zhaohua...”

“No way,” Su Bei rejected him outright. “He’s safest at my place and my house can’t fit a fourth person.”

In the Teleportation Nightmare Beast’s eyes, besides Si Zhaohua, Su Bei, who blocked its fatal strike, was likely the biggest threat, making his home relatively safe. Hosting the unconscious Si Zhaohua was perfect.

Zhou Renjie couldn’t argue and changed tack: “Fine, I’ll contact the Ability Government to see if they can help.”

Once everyone left through the window, leaving the unconscious Si Zhaohua behind, Feng Lan, who’d been silent till then, finally spoke up: “Should I do something too?”

“What do you want to do?” Su Bei sat down casually. “Kill Nightmare Beasts? Find allies? Negotiate with the Ability Government? Or solo a High-Level Nightmare Beast?”

By the end, his tone carried a hint of amusement.

But Feng Lan wasn’t in the mood for jokes, looking unusually lost: “I don’t know. I just feel like my role is too small.”

He hadn’t thought this way before. A Prophet’s role was to prophesy, a belief instilled in him since awakening his Ability.

But watching everyone find their tasks earlier, he felt adrift. It seemed he could only predict outcomes, serving as an informant.

He hadn’t paid much attention to this before, especially with Su Bei, someone similarly gifted, by his side. It’s not about comparing flaws, but humans are social creatures; having a companion makes it hard to notice one’s isolation.

Feng Lan hadn’t felt this way until he witnessed Su Bei saving someone, and appearing at the critical moment like a savior. While he didn’t necessarily want to be like Su Bei, in comparison, his role felt too minor.

This was a realization Feng Lan was bound to have, only hastened by Su Bei’s presence.

Su Bei didn’t deny or console him, just watched quietly. After a moment, he said: “I’ve faced this issue too.”

Unlike Feng Lan, his issue stemmed from not wanting to overlap with him. His Ability wasn’t pure [Prophecy]. If he only prophesied, he’d surely be outshone.

So he developed offensive capabilities through the forum, later evolving his prophecies into altering destinies.

Now that Feng Lan faced the same issue, Su Bei was curious how he’d handle it.

Hearing him, Feng Lan looked up and was about to ask how he dealt with it, but then recalled Su Bei’s many Abilities. Clearly, he changed significantly.

But such changes were deeply personal; asking wouldn’t help much, because the methods of others’ rarely applied to oneself.

So he closed his mouth, sitting aside to think alone.

Su Bei didn’t disturb him. Glancing at the still-unconscious Si Zhaohua, he went to find his mother: “I brought another friend back. Can he stay for a couple of days?”

Su Bei’s Mother, cooking, paled at the news: “Friend? What friend could come to our house now?”

“An Ability User, badly injured and on the run,” he answered, flashing a placating smile. “After all, he is fighting for us, so I thought...”

Before he finished, his mother interrupted him: “I agree. How could I not for an Ability User? Get out and sleep in the guest room with that white-haired kid. Let the Ability User have your room.”

“What?” Su Bei was dumbfounded.

But his mother ignored him: “What’s ‘what’? He was injured protecting us. You’re upset about giving up your room?”

He absolutely didn’t want to sleep in the guest room. The bed was tiny, with barely any bedding. One person could manage, but two... he didn’t want to endure that, especially without knowing when Si Zhaohua would leave.

Quickly, he found the perfect excuse: “My friend’s unconscious and needs someone to care for him.”

As for actually caring for Si Zhaohua? That was his call. Making me suffer a loss? No way!

Not waiting for her reply, he rushed out, saying: “Keep cooking. I’ll check up on him! Oh, without me, even in a coma, he’d feel lonely and cold. I can’t abandon him!”

“This kid,” Su Bei’s Mother shook her head, half-amused, half-exasperated, seeing through his ploy. But since he was unwilling, she let it go and resumed cooking.

Returning, Su Bei saw that Feng Lan had returned to the guest room and Si Zhaohua was still out. He messaged Zhou Renjie, asking when Si Zhaohua might wake.

His family must have tested this skill, and from Zhou Renjie’s earlier behavior, he’d likely seen Si Zhaohua use it.

Sure enough, Zhou Renjie soon replied: “I’ve only seen him like that once. He took three days to wake up.”

Three days? Su Bei frowned. If it really took three days, Si Zhaohua frankly made a bad deal letting Su Bei save him.

He gave him a third of his points. If he could make up for it with big moves later, fine. But if he slept for three days and recovered for two more, the opportunity would be long gone.

But Su Bei didn’t say much. Business is about profit and loss. Besides, he might not lose out.

Zhou Renjie’s observation was likely from before they enrolled, as there was no three-day break before the first monthly exam. Back then, Si Zhaohua had only just awakened his Ability, having far less control, Mental Energy, and physical strength than now. Three days then didn’t mean three days now.

With everything settled, Su Bei turned to the Manga Update.

After Manga Consciousness’ prompt, he felt something in his pocket. But since his actions were being watched and he’d been busy, he hadn’t checked yet.

Now that things were done, he went to the bathroom. Even if the teachers were watching him via screens, they surely wouldn’t follow him there.

Closing the door, he pulled out a black bubble-like object from his pocket. Oddly, this item resembled the Bubble Nightmare Beast killed today.

Wait... he suddenly recalled something.

High-Level Nightmare Beasts left Ability Items upon death. No item dropped there, because it was an Illusion and the real Bubble Nightmare Beast was long dead.

Perhaps the item in his hand was the one it left behind?

But now wasn’t the time to ponder the item’s origins. He asked Manga Consciousness: “Did you give me this item?”

“Yes, but technically, you earned it,” Manga Consciousness replied instantly. “Your hint during the last manga update misled readers into believing you had other ways to study Abilities. This is the ‘method’ I found for you.”

As expected. Su Bei wasn’t surprised, smiling: “Then introduce it.”

“This is an Ability Item called ‘Dream Bubble.’ It can create completely realistic objects, tangible and perceptible by Mental Energy, but unable to harm others. They last one hour or vanish upon being attacked or ‘dying.’”

Manga Consciousness detailed the item’s functions. After it finished, he asked: “Is this from the High-Level Nightmare Beast Si Zhaohua killed today?”

“Yes,” Manga Consciousness admitted. “I had the organization buy it at some point during an auction.”

This could expose my identity, so I can’t use it publicly, noted Su Bei and carefully studied the item’s usage.

‘Dream Bubble’ had two functions. The first was to carry it while sleeping and enter a dream world, where everything felt real and could be shaped. Waking naturally or being woken ends the dream, leaving you mentally drained the next day. This function was available once a month.

The second way was to use it directly by gripping it and channeling Mental Energy into it to create illusions in reality. This had no usage limit, relying solely on Mental Energy.

For someone like Li Shu with Illusion Abilities, it would double his effectiveness. For Su Bei, he planned to use it to test his Ability.

But he didn’t need to rush—there were other things to do. He wouldn’t need to join the plot soon and couldn’t leave the Campaign Reenactment, so he got a lot of time.

It was late. In a great mood, he washed up and went to bed. The next morning, he opened his phone to read the Manga.

Manga Consciousness’ buff—making others think he was studying when reading manga—was a lifesaver, sparing him much hassle.

The Manga started from the day of the final exam. Unsurprisingly, it first focused on Jiang Tianming’s instance.

Skimming past Jiang Tianming’s actions after discovering he was a prisoner, Su Bei soon saw himself.

The Manga clearly intended to showcase everyone’s identities first. His was unremarkable, briefly glossed over.

But the plot soon returned to him. Not surprising—he was the only one among them who knew about that campaign.

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