Translator: AkazaTL

Proofreader/Editor: JWyck

***

Chapter 311

Back in my room, I opened my phone and saw messages from Wu Mingbai.

[MingbaiNotMingbai: I’m done here. Wanna grab some late-night snacks together?]

[MingbaiNotMingbai: [Poke]]

[MingbaiNotMingbai: You know suddenly going silent like this makes me overthink, right?]

[MingbaiNotMingbai: Wow, our busy man isn’t really in his room, is he? [Smile]]

[MingbaiNotMingbai: You’ve got until midnight to reply, or don’t blame me for barging into your room.]

The messages stopped there, and I couldn’t help but sigh. I had already guessed before this operation that after Wu Mingbai finished the ritual, he’d want to chat with everyone.

No way around it—the protagonist group was tight like that, with no secrets between them. For something as juicy as this, unless the king strictly forbade him from telling his classmates, Wu Mingbai would definitely share it with the others.

In fact, even if the king had strictly forbidden it, this late-night snack gathering was probably inevitable. Having just seen a magical creature, Wu Mingbai must be buzzing with excitement. Even if just to vent his emotions, he’d definitely seek out the group.

Though I had anticipated this, I didn’t have a good excuse to skip out. Before Wu Mingbai sent the invitation, anything I said would make me seem guilty.

But honestly, even if I got caught, I wasn’t worried. It wasn’t like it was our first day knowing each other—how many times had I disappeared midway? I didn’t believe they’d make a big fuss or think I was up to some conspiracy just because I went missing.

And so far, things were going better than I expected. Wu Mingbai was tactful and hadn’t even come to check my room, eliminating any chance of me being discovered.

Although the contract I signed with the guardian god included a clause that It couldn’t reveal I had been there, who knew if the royal family had installed some detection device in the secret chamber? If something went wrong with the guardian god, the king would surely review everything that happened there today, and they might find out someone had been present.

So I couldn’t afford any slip-ups, lest I become one of the “thousand to be killed rather than spared,” even though, in essence, I was the “one that couldn’t be let go.”

What I liked most about King of Abilities was that there were no deadweight characters in the protagonist group. Even the most naive Mo Xiaotian wouldn’t drag everyone down when not on a Black Flash mission.

Right now, their not coming to my room was the biggest help they could give me. In a good mood, I replied half-heartedly:

[EastSouthWest: Fell asleep earlier, didn’t see the messages.]

I don’t know if Wu Mingbai was glued to his phone, but he replied quickly.

[MingbaiNotMingbai: …]

[MingbaiNotMingbai: Could you be any more perfunctory?]

[MingbaiNotMingbai: Our late-night snack isn’t over yet. Coming? If you are, head left out of the castle to the commercial street. Turn in, and you’ll see us.]

I thought about it—there didn’t seem to be a need to go now. But from Wu Mingbai’s tone, it sounded like they still had more to talk about.

[EastSouthWest: What are you guys up to?]

[MingbaiNotMingbai: Tomorrow morning, Laughter and Zhou Renjie are leaving, so we’re settling that bet tonight. Everyone except you and Feng Lan has to share a secret they discovered in the castle.]

Seeing this message, I raised an eyebrow and immediately decided to go. The secrets the protagonist group uncovered were bound to be useful—missing out would be a waste. Sure, their late-night chat might end up in the manga, but what if it didn’t? Better to go in person for peace of mind.

Arriving at the vibrant commercial street, I spotted Jiang Tianming and the others eating skewers outside, just as expected. I walked over, sat in an empty spot, and casually asked, “Who’s turn is it?”

“Mingbai and Little You just finished. Mingbai’s discovery was that the back door of the banquet hall has a staircase leading to the guardian god. Little You’s was that Weather Butler and the Second Princess seem to have something going on,” Zhao Xiaoyu said, winking teasingly. Clearly, compared to the guardian god, gossip was more her thing.

To be honest, the latter was more interesting to me too. I looked at Ling You in amazement: “How’d you find out?”

“By chance,” Ling You answered curtly, then, perhaps feeling her response was too cold, added, “I saw them holding hands yesterday.”

That was solid proof. I gave her a look of wonder. Ai Baozhu wrinkled her nose in disdain: “Sure, Weather Butler’s got some looks, but not enough to be with a butler.”

To her, rabbits don’t eat the grass near their burrows—being with a butler was absolutely out of the question.

Qi Huang had a different take: “A Yafei princess can become queen, and being with a butler could give her the best insight into the king’s thoughts. If it were me, and Weather Butler made a move, I might do the same. Whether to actually marry him is another matter.”

Though she was always bold and open, that didn’t mean Qi Huang couldn’t play strategic games. Mutually beneficial arrangements were fine as long as both sides were willing and it was profitable.

“That makes sense,” Ai Baozhu nodded in agreement, no longer finding it problematic. While she had no desire to be the head of a family, Qi Huang’s explanation made the Second Princess' thinking perfectly understandable.

“Wait, aren’t you all missing something?” I couldn’t help but interject. “How old is the Second Princess?”

“Like... thirteen?” At this, Wu Mingbai’s face darkened too. He hadn’t even considered this earlier—the Second Princess was still a minor! Was Weather Butler a pedophile?

Rationally, they all knew the relationship likely had more to do with benefits, but the Second Princess being young and naive was one thing—Weather Butler doing this for profit was infuriating enough.

“What are you going to do?” Qi Huang’s eyes blazed with anger. She didn’t know why she hadn’t been mad earlier, treating it as just interesting gossip.

If I knew her confusion, I could probably give an answer: it was because they were in a manga world.

Such a plot in reality or a novel would get torn apart, but it was common in manga. I often saw similar storylines, so while I was surprised, I wasn’t shocked.

As manga characters, Jiang Tianming and the others were naturally influenced by the manga, subconsciously overlooking the plot’s absurdity. But since this was a world with fully developed rules, as soon as someone pointed out the issue, they could break through the haze.

“I’ll tell Father when we’re about to leave,” Wu Mingbai decided after a moment’s thought. Since they’d been together for a while, there was no rush to stop it now.

If he told the king now, the Second Princess might make things difficult for them once she learned they snitched. But saying it just before leaving would be fine—what could she do, chase them across countries?

As long as he’d speak up, that was enough. Qi Huang nodded and naturally continued: “Then it’s my turn. I noticed the king has no intention of letting the Eldest Prince succeed.”

This statement stunned everyone. Wu Mingbai’s eyes widened slightly: “Why? How do you know?”

“When we arrived on the first day, everyone came to greet you. The king, queen, Second Princess, and the twin brothers were dressed plainly,” Ai Baozhu said, twirling her pink hair. “The Eldest Prince and the two youngest were dressed extravagantly. The king and queen had no issue with it.”

The king and queen were likely taking a populist approach. Among the three candidates vying for the throne, the two smarter ones followed the king’s lead, appearing populist regardless of their true thoughts. But the Eldest Prince showed no such awareness, and the king and queen didn’t correct him, indicating they had no expectations for him.

Everyone present was sharp and immediately grasped her point. Only Mu Tieren didn’t understand one thing: “How could you tell who was dressed more extravagantly? Their clothes looked the same to me.”

Recalling, he added confidently: “The number of gems on their clothes seemed about the same.”

In her element, Ai Baozhu answered confidently: “The gem count is similar because prince and princess formal attire requires that standard. Extravagance comes down to gem quality. Are sapphires and tanzanites the same?”

Though unclear on what tanzanites were, Mu Tieren got her meaning and gave a thumbs-up in admiration.

Others shared their discoveries, but none were particularly useful. Only when Jiang Tianming was about to speak did I finally snap out of my wandering thoughts.

Jiang Tianming shared his finding: “I discovered the guardian god doesn’t save people unconditionally. After every major disaster, Yafei Kingdom holds a celebration for It.”

Si Zhaohua asked, puzzled: “Isn’t that normal?”

“Not normal,” Jiang Tianming pointed out calmly. “After a disaster, the priority should be rescue operations and rebuilding, not celebrations. An occasional morale boost is understandable, but doing it every time is clearly abnormal.”

Hearing this, Li Shu showed an interested expression and cut to the chase: “If it’s not the country’s need, then it’s the guardian god’s need. It needs a celebration... to promote Its achievements?”

“Probably,” Wu Mingbai nodded affirmatively, recalling the bargaining during the secret chamber ritual.

Guessing the truth from his demeanor, Li Shu feigned dramatic disappointment: “I thought It was really a god. Does God really not exist?”

Jiang Tianming glanced at him: “If God really existed, you’d be the one scared, right?”

“…”

After a long silence, Li Shu covered his face, pretending to be shy: “Ugh, Little Tianming really gets me!”

Jiang Tianming’s calm expression cracked, nearly retching.

I didn’t care about their antics and yawned, looking at Lan Subing: “Your turn, the last one.”

Please, give me something useful—I didn’t want to waste my time coming out this late.

“I’m not sure if my discovery is correct,” Lan Subing prefaced cautiously. “When chatting with the butler, I used [Word Spirit] to make him share a recent suspicious event. He said he suspected an outsider had entered the castle. That counts as a secret, right?”

It did, and it was useful not just to them but to me as well. Lan Subing’s luck was unmatched, always getting the hardest-to-obtain info.

I had thought about hiding in the castle—after all, even if the guardian god lost Its sanity, the royal castle’s defenses should hold up.

But now, a castle that could be infiltrated by outsiders clearly wasn’t reliable. I’d need to find a safer place.

Knowing the guardian god’s abilities were tied to the earth, nowhere on the ground would be safe, so I’d have to think upward. Without flight abilities, I’d need to rely on items. The Destiny organization had plenty of flight-type items; I could easily redeem one. But with Jiang Tianming’s group spotting a Nightmare Beast at the school, Yafei Kingdom was likely crawling with them. Flying in the sky would make me a target.

I looked up for a while and finally locked onto a target. The castle might not be safe, but the most dangerous place was also the safest, wasn’t it?

Unexpectedly, as soon as I returned to my room, Manga Consciousness suddenly spoke: “King of Abilities has updated. Please check.”

A manga update? Thinking about the past few days’ events, it seemed reasonable. The timing was perfect, not affecting anything. I opened my phone and checked the manga.

The manga started at the airport, with Wu Mingbai’s bet naturally serving as a lighthearted opener, making readers chuckle.

The author of King of Abilities always followed a pattern: lighthearted early parts, then a fast-paced climax. So I knew when to relax and when to stay vigilant after an event started.

The first half of this event—this whole chapter—wouldn’t have any crises, but the author likely planted many foreshadowing clues, which I was looking for.

Skimming through, aside from the plot I already knew, Mo Xiaotian’s storyline was a highlight.

The manga showed Mu Tieren seeing Mo Xiaotian’s back, where the taller, sturdier Mo Xiaotian briefly overlapped with the old Mo Xiaotian in his eyes. He froze, wanted to chase but couldn’t find him.

As a manga character, Mu Tieren doubted himself, but readers wouldn’t. Mo Xiaotian’s long-awaited return sent the comments flying.

“Wow! It’s Mo Xiaotian! Been ages!”

“Meeting again as strangers (choking up)”

“Mu Tieren’s expression is kinda heartbreaking, the only honest guy…”

“What’s Mo Xiaotian doing in Yafei Kingdom?”

“Why does he keep running into Black Flash missions in a foreign land? Is this the bond between protagonist and villain?”

“Fast-forward to Black Flash making waves!”

Then came my chat with Mo Xiaotian, which was actually drawn in. Seeing us talk so calmly shocked readers.

Reviewing this experience, I felt Mo Xiaotian had indeed improved a lot. From his behavior, you couldn’t tell Black Flash members were tailing him. If I hadn’t suspected, as the Saint, Black Flash wouldn’t let him act alone, I might not have noticed either.

Honestly, if no one was tailing him, I could’ve doubled the intensity of my probing—asking about Black Flash’s next plans, the leader’s movements, or their new research targets. Mo Xiaotian might know these, and I could likely get answers.

But with someone tailing, I could only ask mission-related questions to avoid exposing my “ulterior motives.” Even then, I couldn’t dig too deep, lest they interrupt, which would be awkward.

My line to Qi Huang about “seeing a cute puppy” was also drawn in. Heaven’s my witness—I said it just to brush it off, but readers completely misinterpreted!

“Hahaha, Su Bei, does Little Tian know you said that?”

“Aaaaah, Little Tian puppy!”

“Exactly, our Mo Xiaotian is a cute puppy (nodding)”

“The sadist vibes are spilling off the screen, Brother Bei!”

“Shipping it!!!”

“They think Su Bei’s brushing it off, but he’s telling the truth.”

I was speechless: “…”

When would I learn to turn off comments in time?

The final Mo Xiaotian-related plot was at the chapter’s end. After their bet-fueled late-night snack, the story shifted to Mo Xiaotian, who was reporting to the leader via phone, saying their preparations were complete and they were waiting for Yafei Kingdom to hold the guardian god’s celebration.

Planning something at the celebration? I looked thoughtful. What could they be up to? Disrupting the celebration wouldn’t threaten Gao Di An Zhuo—that was impossible.

From Gao Di An Zhuo’s conversation with the Yafei king, the celebration was indeed important to It but not urgent. Like a big meal when slightly hungry—nice to have, but not having it wouldn’t starve It.

Lan Subing’s info about someone infiltrating the castle was definitely Black Flash. Their target was Gao Di An Zhuo, and infiltrating the castle meant one of their methods was to target It directly.

The celebration represented the reputation the guardian god needed to maintain Its power and sanity. They were targeting It during this time, aiming to make Gao Di An Zhuo turn against humans.

Drawing on my experience from countless manga, I had a hunch about what Black Flash was planning.

Unexpectedly, the plot where the twins messed with me was also in the manga. The earlier part had readers screaming “so cool,” but when I mentioned the deal, they started speculating wildly.

“So cool, Su Bei!!! That door kick was epic!”

“Like a school bully—Su Bei, were you a bully at your old school?”

“Wait, what deal?”

“Making them cover up any anomalies tomorrow? What’s that hinting at?”

“?????”

“Where’d that contract come from?”

“Su Bei, you’re not working with Black Flash again, are you?”

“So coincidental? I feel like the twins picking a fight was part of Su Bei’s plan!”

When I saw this scene in the manga, I knew readers would misunderstand. But the flood of conspiracy theories in the comments still gave me a headache.

Sure, a tiny part of their guesses was true, but just a tiny part! “Working with Black Flash” or “involving the twins” were complete nonsense!

In the later family recognition banquet plot, the author planted some Black Flash foreshadowing. I knew these oddities were Black Flash’s doing, but readers didn’t. They firmly believed these were the “anomalies” in my contract, convinced I was behind it.

In reality, the only slip-up I made was the faint sound when entering the secret chamber—nothing else was related to me.

But I couldn’t explain. For something this trivial, I couldn’t use my Prophet account to clear my name. What else could I do but smile? :)

After reviewing all the content related to me in this chapter, I opened the forum as usual and skimmed it. One hot post was about my conspiracy theories, and seeing it made my heart sink. Not wanting to stress myself out, I clicked into another post about me.

“Su Bei, you really make me cry—no conflict with Mo Xiaotian at all”

[NoOneNo.0: Before Mo Xiaotian’s betrayal, I imagined what it’d be like when he reappeared. I thought it’d be tense with anyone he met, or at least emotionally complex.

But of all people, he meets Su Bei, and there’s zero conflict—it’s as peaceful as if Mo Xiaotian never betrayed.

I’m really curious: is Su Bei so calm because he’s also in an organization and can empathize with Mo Xiaotian?]

[No.1: Hahaha, so harmonious!]

[No.2: Su Bei’s vibe is always unique.]

[No.3: I thought Su Bei would be sarcastic, but not at all. Their interaction was even a bit warm—what the heck?]

[No.4 replying to No.3: Their vibe is purely old friends reuniting, no betrayal or schemes.]

[No.5 replying to No.4: But Mo Xiaotian being here means Black Flash is up to something. Betrayal or schemes are real.]

[ … ]