Chapter 119

Translator: AkazaTL Proofreader/Editor: JWyck & Ekko *** Chapter 119 The red-haired boy’s face darkened: “Don’t think being an Ability User makes you...” Knowing he’d say nothing good, Jiang Tianming cut him off: “I heard you failed the finals again. Does the dean know?” Dean? Wasn’t their dean dead? Su Bei recalled that the first season’s plot was about them investigating the orphanage’s dean’s death. The boy cursed under his breath: “That new old man’s all about grades. Aren’t you sick of it? Everyone is. If you snitch, you’re betraying us all!” His crew, all bad students, nodded fervently. Jiang Tianming wasn’t intimidated and calmly replied: “Betrayal implies we’re allies, but we’ve never been, have we?” Seeing the boy’s resentment, he added flatly: “Still here?” They knew Jiang Tianming well—he’d really snitch on them. Glaring, they left. Just then, Lan Subing rushed up: “What happened? Why are you here?” “Just some troublemakers,” Wu Mingbai grinned. “It’s late. Let’s hit the Different Space.” They took Lan Subing’s family car to the Different Space’s vicinity, where rickshaw pullers swarmed them. These were weak Ability Users, unable to enter Different Spaces or earn a living through their Abilities, relying on their status and strength for service jobs. Ordinary jobs were an option, but those working here couldn’t find better ones. The entrance was a hive of activity. Few Ability Users could enter High-Level Nightmare Beast spaces, the Maze Different Space for example had few visitors. But this space was different—its High-Level Nightmare Beast wasn’t as lethal. Weather-altered rooms were risky, but safer than other such spaces. Most crucially, profits were high! High-Level Nightmare Beast spaces often held precious resources, like the Apogod space with Mental Crystals. This space had rooms brimming with gold, rare herbs, designer bags, watches, shoes... Stumbling into one such treasure room and getting hold of something meant instant wealth. Zhao Xiaoyu, hearing about this space’s perks in the group chat, was envious. But her chosen space had treasures too, so she didn’t come. Where people gather, business follows—vendors hawked items and snacks, walls were plastered with flyers and government wanted posters. Strong Abilities fueled human ambition. Early on, Ability User criminals far outnumbered ordinary ones. But with 99% registered now, catching them was easy, reducing crime rates. Still, some persisted, hiding in Different Spaces—vast, complex, camera-free, hard to search. Thus, entrances often had wanted posters. Catching one earned hefty bounties. Buying tickets, we queued. Jiang Tianming reiterated our group chat plan: “Once inside, find a safe room to stay a day, kill time. Don’t rush for treasure rooms. Even just killing Nightmare Beasts, we profit. Note special events for the reflection...” “Alright, we get it! You’re getting naggy!” Wu Mingbai groaned, cutting off his endless spiel. Lan Subing’s eyes curved like crescents, her water-blue eyes sparkling: “Like a nanny.” Teased by both, Jiang Tianming smirked coldly: “Who begged to copy my spring outing essay last time? And who wanted to hit a gold room for a big score?” Both hit by boomerangs, they coughed awkwardly, silent. Their camaraderie was tight, so warm it felt impenetrable to outsiders. I had no interest in joining their bond. After their chat, I mocked, feigning surprise: “You haven’t finished your reflections?” Come on, who writes spring outing essays after the trip? The trio: “...” As students, they instantly knew my trick. Start with a pen, make it all up, huh? Why didn’t they think of that?! Writing reflections was annoying enough, and I dared mock them? Wu Mingbai sneered: “I bet Teacher’s curious how you wrote yours before going!” I was unfazed: “I bet Teacher’s curious whose template everyone used!” Lan Subing, planning to use the template, yanked Wu Mingbai into surrender. Jiang Tianming gave a dead-fish stare: “No mutual destruction, please?” After bantering, we reached the front. A brief dizziness, and I was in a room—a large living room, no abnormal weather, clearly a protected spawn point. In controlled Different Spaces, unless spawn points were random, they were secured to prevent Nightmare Beast ambushes. A uniformed worker sat on the sofa, reading and snacking on seeds, glancing up: “Need a map? Twenty each.” “Bought outside,” Jiang Tianming waved his printed map. We weren’t broke, but weren’t suckers either. Maps were vital here. The exit was at the entrance; retracing steps let you leave. But with numerous complex rooms, that wasn’t easy. Seeing no wallets, the worker lost interest, shooing them away: “Hurry up, don’t hog space.” Four doors led from the spawn point, each to a room. Rooms had two to four doors. We picked a direction and moved. Rooms didn’t change, and spawn-adjacent ones were explored, mapped. But weather shifted, and Nightmare Beasts roamed, so maps didn’t show safety. Marked rooms likely held no valuables. Opening a door, hail pelted Jiang Tianming’s head. He slammed it shut, calmly pulled an umbrella from his bag, and opened another. This room was rainy, cool droplets blocked by his umbrella. Jiang Tianming smirked at us: “Get your umbrellas.” His was small, covering one. Knowing this space’s precautions via Jiang Tianming, we all had umbrellas, entering the rainy room. It was moderate rain, soaking everything. The room, bathroom-styled, suited being wet. Per data, this room was always rainy, with moss in corners and a damp, rotten smell. We hurried through to the next rooms, all lightly rainy. By the fifth, rain stopped—a weatherless room. Not all rooms had special weather; many were normal, safe for short stays, though not guaranteed. Opening the door, a packed crowd startled us. They glared, ready to oust intruders. We had no intention of staying, carefully stepping over sprawled legs to the opposite door. Opening it, we saw why they lingered—not just no weather, but the next room was sunny. The instant we opened it, blinding sunlight hit our faces. Even with umbrellas, it stung our eyes. Worse was the searing heat, like it’d cook us. Jiang Tianming slammed it shut. “Hahahaha!” Laughter erupted behind us. The crowd knew the next room’s deal, anticipating our shock since we entered. This space’s rule: return to the spawn point, and you either left or paid again. Entry to High-Level Different Spaces wasn’t cheap, especially safer ones like this. Our path had no profitable rooms. Reluctant to repay, they couldn’t cross, so they waited here for the next room’s weather to change. Seeing their glee, Wu Mingbai feigned distress: “Such a big sun—what do we do?” Then he grinned: “Good thing I’ve got a plan!” A clump of wet mud appeared in his hand, rapidly expanding to encase him. He reopened the door, mud shielding him from heat and light. He turned to us, his muddy mouth splitting in a grin: “Your turn.” His grins were never innocent. I tensed, stepping back. Next second, mud crawled over Jiang Tianming, covering him swiftly. Unlike Wu Mingbai’s, this mud not only encased Jiang Tianming but styled him—cat ears on his head, a curled mud tail behind. Without the mud, his face might’ve made it cute. But as a mudman... “Pfft!” Lan Subing, mostly silent due to strangers, burst out laughing. Jiang Tianming sensed trouble, knowing his friend’s antics. Turning, he saw the tail, then felt the ears. Without hesitation, he used his Ability to shed the extras, glaring at Wu Mingbai: “You’re done.” He pounced, smearing the removed mud on Wu Mingbai’s face. Wu Mingbai fought back, and they wrestled. I twitched my mouth, glancing at Lan Subing, who’d retreated too: “I thought Jiang Tianming was calm...” Lan Subing wanted to defend them, but seeing Jiang Tianming brawl publicly, she couldn’t. Closing her eyes, she snapped: “Both of you, [Stop]!” With [Word Spirit], none could resist. They froze, then separated, standing obediently, as if the fight was an illusion. Satisfied with their belated compliance, Lan Subing turned to me, calm: “Yes, they’re both very calm.” I: “...” Shivering, I stayed silent. Under the great demon’s threat, Wu Mingbai stopped messing around, dutifully coating us in mud. Seeing us cross the sunny room unscathed, a woman spoke: “Can you use that Ability on me? I’ll pay!” Her words woke the crowd, who echoed, hoping Wu Mingbai’s help would get them out. A small fee was cheaper than re-entry. “Someone mocked me earlier. I’m upset, Mental Energy’s down, can’t use my Ability,” Wu Mingbai, ever vengeful, spouted nonsense. The woman blinked, then looked around: “Who mocked you? They’re blind!” Others joined, feigning a search, forgetting they’d all laughed, cursing to clear themselves. Seeing their act, Wu Mingbai relented. It wasn’t a big deal. He set a fair price, stipulating a half-hour wait to avoid disputes. With only three paths, crowds could clash over loot or beasts. Separating early was best. The mud wouldn’t dry in half an hour, and the next rainy room could re-wet it. Done, we entered the sunny room. As data showed, a head-sized sun hung there, a fireball turning the room into a glowing oven. Data noted suns burned most room contents. Once blank, new decor appeared, making a new room. Sunny days signaled room refreshes, not entirely bad. Many rooms were looted dry, needing a sun to reset. This room was empty, save for corner ashes and white walls. Our mud dried fast; we hurried through to the next. It was a hail room. Opening it, a bean-sized hailstone hit my head. Now I understood why data called hail rooms safest. Hail should be deadly—large stones could crack skulls, dense ones trapping you. But rooms were only three meters high. Unless head-sized hail fell, damage was minimal. Crossing several hail rooms, we opened the next, and a rat-like Nightmare Beast lunged. Lan Subing reacted fast: “[Freeze]!” Simultaneously, Jiang Tianming slammed the door. “Rat Nightmare Beast? Makes sense,” I remarked, stepping forward to reopen it. The beast lunged again, its throat sliced by a Gear. Crisis averted, we entered. The room was spacious, a storeroom with many cans. The cans’ seals were poor; I smelled faint meat sauce. Seeing undamaged cans, I mused: “Nightmare Beasts really only eat humans...” Otherwise, they wouldn’t ignore so many cans. They seemed made to target humans. “Should we make this our base?” Jiang Tianming suggested, circling it on the map. No objections—we noted the spot and explored further. Soon, we hit another weatherless room, but unlike the last, it had Ability Users. Two adult men in wilderness gear looked professional and fierce. They were wary at first, but relaxed seeing kids. The wolf-tailed man scoffed: “Wrong place, kids? This isn’t for children’s training.” His metal-necklaced partner was smarter, probing: “Which school’s S-Class are you?” Students in High-Level Different Spaces were either reckless or elite S-Class. S-Class kids were school treasures; harming them could bring trouble. We exchanged glances. Wu Mingbai feigned shy excitement, rubbing his head with a silly grin: “S-Class? You think that highly of us? If only!” His dim-witted act relaxed the necklaced man. His eyes flickered, adopting a friendly tone: “This is a High-Level Different Space. It’s dangerous for students. Know that?” He seemed a caring elder, but we weren’t fooled by baseless kindness, especially verbal. Wu Mingbai answered, smug: “We researched! The High-Level Nightmare Beast here lacks attack power and won’t appear. Mid-Level ones? So many rooms, we can run. Worst case, four of us can kill one.” From this, the men gauged our strength—naive, ordinary students. The necklaced man frowned disapprovingly, acting concerned: “You’re underestimating this space. It’s not that simple. If you lack Ability Items, for your safety, I’ll escort you out. Protecting minors is everyone’s duty.” His intent was clear—robbery. His righteous words were a facade; only fools would buy it. The wolf-tailed man chimed in: “Exactly. As responsible adults, we can’t let you recklessly court death. No items? Go back.” Note : Write a Review on Novel Updates for a Bonus Chapter.