Chapter 217

Zhao Xiaoyu naturally wouldn’t let the atmosphere go cold. As soon as she sat down, she said with a smile, “I’ve been busy with the organizers these past two days, and I finally have time to have a meal with you all. I haven’t had a chance to say it yet, but congratulations! I saw that they’ve already engraved ‘Endless Ability Academy’ on the medals!”

Hearing this, Jiang Tianming and the others smiled. Knowing victory was assured in advance felt great, of course. Although there was still one match left to play, the outcome was already decided, allowing everyone to feel a great weight lift from their hearts much earlier.

“Are you ready for the match against Skydome Ability Academy this afternoon?” Mu Tieren asked with concern. “I watched Huangfu Mingzhe’s performance; he’s really strong.”

Because he himself was a body-strengthened Ability user, even as a spectator, he had an intuitive understanding of Huangfu Mingzhe’s physical prowess. It was simply on a completely different level from everyone else.

Jiang Tianming and a few others exchanged glances, then he spoke up, “We actually already have a plan, but it hasn’t been finalized yet.”

Tactics are very important in team battles. With the opponent’s tactics exposed in advance, they held the absolute initiative. As Meng Huai said, if they still lost under such circumstances, it would be their own problem.

Just like Houde Ability Academy, they had specifically prepared tactics for Huangfu Mingzhe. The reason they ultimately lost was due to an overwhelming power gap, but if it hadn’t been so large, and Huangfu Mingzhe couldn’t 1v3, the outcome would definitely have been reversed.

Only Jiang Tianming, Lan Subing, and Wu Mingbai knew about the plan Jiang Tianming mentioned. Wu Jin and Mo Xiaotian looked confused but didn’t say anything. After all, they were on the same team, and any plans would surely be discussed before the match, so there was no rush.

“Oh!” Ai Baozhu suddenly thought of something, her eyes sparkling as she looked at Feng Lan. “Feng Lan, can we win?”

Feng Lan possessed the Prophecy ability and should be able to directly predict their match results. Logically, Su Bei could also do this, but even if he predicted it, he likely wouldn’t say, so asking Feng Lan was more reliable.

However, this time Feng Lan didn’t intend to answer her. He shook his head. “I don’t use Prophecy for everything.”

“Why?” Ai Baozhu asked, puzzled. She wasn’t angry, just genuinely curious. Putting herself in his shoes, if she had the Prophecy ability, she’d probably use it to check everything before doing it.

Feng Lan answered concisely, “The foreseen future can be changed.”

If he predicted Endless Ability Academy’s victory, and that led to everyone becoming careless, it could ultimately result in Skydome Ability Academy winning.

Su Bei chuckled softly. “Isn’t the purpose of Prophecy to change the future?”

If it weren’t for changing the future, prophecy would have little meaning. But if a bad future can be made good, can’t a good future be made bad? Moreover, Su Bei knew Feng Lan hadn’t mentioned one thing: a future changed through his Prophecy would affect him.

Whether they were meant to lose but turned defeat into victory through his prophecy, or they were meant to win but failed because of his prophecy, it would affect him.

Feng Lan had mentioned before that the greater the deviation of the altered future from the original, the greater the impact on him. And if the protagonist group’s destiny were to change, it would certainly be a major impact.

After hearing their words, Ai Baozhu nodded, seemingly understanding but also not. “Then I won’t ask. Anyway, we’re definitely going to win!”

She had absolute confidence in her teammates, just as she had absolute confidence in herself. How could anyone ordinary become Ai Baozhu’s friend?

“That sounds a bit like something Xiaotian would say.” Lan Subing blinked.

Everyone realized it was true and couldn’t help but laugh. Zhao Xiaoyu looked curiously at Mo Xiaotian. “Speaking of Xiaotian, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you ask Su Bei or Feng Lan any questions about the future.”

Ai Baozhu’s question sounded very much like something Mo Xiaotian would ask, and he had always been very curious. Logically, he should have pestered them frequently with such questions. But Zhao Xiaoyu carefully recalled past events and couldn’t remember him ever asking anything related.

“Maybe because I’m not curious?” Mo Xiaotian scratched his head.

“You’re not curious about the future?” Ai Baozhu asked, surprised. She thought everyone, except those who could see the future, would be curious about it.

Mo Xiaotian shook his head, smiling like an idiot. “A future that can be known in advance is too boring! I don’t want to know it!”

Hearing this, a rare surprised smile appeared in Feng Lan’s eyes, and he nodded in approval. “It really is boring.”

Su Bei also felt the same way about this. A visible future was like an unchanging life, truly boring. Although most foreseen futures could be altered, then surprises weren’t surprises, and accidents weren’t accidents. Even if he changed a bad event into a good one, he wouldn’t feel any sense of accomplishment.

“Hmph, truly an idiot.” Wu Mingbai had originally been very curious about the future. Now, hearing what the two of them said, he couldn’t describe how he felt, so he just snorted coldly. “We’re done eating. Let’s go back and discuss tactics.”

The participants left, while those not competing continued to eat slowly. Mu Tieren looked at Su Bei. “I heard many people in the audience say they wanted to vote for you, Su Bei, and also for Zhaohua and Lan Subing. Your three spots in the Exhibition Match should be secure.”

Si Zhaohua was quite happy. Although he didn’t necessarily have high expectations for the Exhibition Match, he felt that earning this spot was an acknowledgment from the audience. Moreover, his personality was such that if he participated, he had to be the best. Being liked by the audience was also one of the criteria for “the best.”

Su Bei merely twitched the corner of his mouth. “Well, I really must thank them then.”

Knowing Su Bei’s temperament, Zhao Xiaoyu suppressed a laugh and comforted him, “Be optimistic. You can even slack off in the official team matches, so won’t it be even easier to slack off in the Exhibition Match?”

Su Bei wouldn’t have that. He immediately put down his chopsticks and retorted righteously, “How was I slacking off? I was biding my time, cultivating my strength! How can an Ability user’s actions be called slacking off?”

Zhao Xiaoyu gave an exasperated “whatever makes you happy” expression, then turned to Si Zhaohua and Ai Baozhu. “By the way, why is Wu Jin playing? Don’t you two want to participate?”

She knew her classmates well. Si Zhaohua and Ai Baozhu were the types who relatively enjoyed going on stage and showing off, while Wu Jin definitely didn’t want to participate.

When Zhao Xiaoyu had chatted with him before, she learned that he registered for the support division entirely because the principal specifically requested it. If he were to choose himself, he would absolutely register for the offense division, ensuring he’d 100% not be chosen to fight.

This question made Si Zhaohua feel a bit helpless. “Both of our Mental Energy was too depleted in the last match, so Teacher Meng wouldn’t let us continue. As for Wu Jin—”

He glanced at Su Bei. “You’ll have to ask Su Bei about that.”

“You tricked him, didn’t you?” Zhao Xiaoyu instantly understood and looked at the calm blonde youth beside them. “That’s really mean!”

“Speaking of which, I also wanted to ask, what did you mean by what you said to Wu Jin back then?” Si Zhaohua asked, referring to Su Bei’s answer when Wu Jin had questioned him. “What was the ‘right time’?”

Regarding this question, the answer Su Bei truly had in mind naturally couldn’t be spoken. He gave another answer: “Why do you think Principal Wu Di insisted on him getting a participant spot?”

Zhao Xiaoyu knew about this, and he naturally did too. Principal Wu Di intentionally made him sign up for the support division to secure a spot.

And if it were merely to give Wu Jin some prestige, there would be no need. Whether it was his status as the principal’s son or his rare Succubus ability, both allowed him to easily gain massive fame. On the contrary, being a “Tri-School Competition participant who never plays” would have the least effect on him.

Therefore, the principal’s ultimate goal in having him participate must have been for him to actually play, not just be a mascot.

As for why he wanted him to play, that was also simple: he naturally hoped Wu Jin could overcome his psychological barrier of being afraid to show his face in public. Just as Meng Huai did with Lan Subing, only by facing the crowd could he truly conquer his fear.

Si Zhaohua was already a clever person, grasping things instantly. At this moment, he suddenly understood and said, “You want to fulfill the principal’s wish and help Wu Jin overcome his psychological shadow!”

“Not really.” Su Bei said honestly. “I just didn’t want to go on stage.”

Everyone: “…”

“Sometimes, I genuinely think it’s a miracle you’ve survived this long,” Si Zhaohua said sincerely.

Ai Baozhu also nodded. “So punchable. Good thing Wu Jin isn’t here, otherwise, if you angered him into fighting you and he got disqualified, what would happen? Teacher Meng would kill you.”

If anyone else had said that, it would have been fine, but coming from these two, Su Bei couldn’t tolerate it. He refused to be criticized by these young masters and misses. “You two are the least qualified to make fun of me, alright!”

Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, it was the final team battle: Endless Ability Academy versus Skydome Ability Academy.

The opposing team still fielded the same five individuals, and their tactics were clearly identical. It’s worth noting that through the teachers’ investigations and observations of Skydome Ability Academy’s previous match, the abilities of all their Ability users, except Huangfu Mingzhe, had been largely understood.

One defender, one crowd control remover, one skill enhancer, and one healer. It could be said that this was indeed a very complete support team, specially prepared for Huangfu Mingzhe.

After learning about these individuals’ abilities, Si Zhaohua frowned deeply and finally managed to blurt out after a long pause, “Why don’t I get this kind of treatment?”

The next second, he received a sharp rap on the head from Meng Huai.

Meng Huai scoffed with a cold smile. “Are his teammates useless, and your teammates useless too?”

Then Si Zhaohua was met with the menacing glares of his numerous teammates.

If he had nodded, he’d be courting death; even Ai Baozhu would cause a fuss with him. Left with no choice, Si Zhaohua could only shake his head indignantly and fall silent.

Putting aside the recollection of the small interlude, Su Bei’s gaze passed through the lounge glass and fell upon the arena.

In fact, everyone in the arena had already taken their positions. With the referee’s command, the match officially began.

Just like the previous match, everyone from Skydome Ability Academy, except Huangfu Mingzhe, huddled in a corner of the arena, protected by their defensive Ability user’s comprehensive defense.

Huangfu Mingzhe, meanwhile, faced the five opponents alone.

His target was clear: he immediately made a beeline for Lan Subing. With Si Zhaohua absent, Huangfu Mingzhe believed the biggest threat to him was Lan Subing, who possessed the Word Spirit ability.

What he could think of, Jiang Tianming and the others could naturally also think of. Therefore, Lan Subing was positioned in the middle of the team from the start, making it not so easy for Huangfu Mingzhe to approach.

And even if he did get close to Lan Subing, it wouldn’t be of much use. Lan Subing wasn’t truly a support; the Word Spirit ability could do more than just support and control—she was also very skilled at dealing damage.

Jiang Tianming and Mo Xiaotian confronted Huangfu Mingzhe head-on, while Wu Mingbai was doing something mysterious at the back. Wu Jin, meanwhile, was slacking off just like Su Bei in the previous match. However, Su Bei’s slacking was leisurely, while Wu Jin’s was anxious, all while praying in his heart that Huangfu Mingzhe wouldn’t target him.

Watching him in the corner, trying his best not to draw attention, Su Bei couldn’t help but chuckle. “Doesn’t Wu Jin know that acting like that makes him more likely to attract others’ attention?”

If it had been before, perhaps no one would have noticed him. But after his half-hearted slacking off and then his astonishing debut in the last match, probably no one would ignore an inconspicuous opponent lurking at the back again.

Just as Su Bei expected, Huangfu Mingzhe eventually noticed Wu Jin.

He initially wanted to target Lan Subing first, but Lan Subing and Jiang Tianming’s coordination was simply too seamless, and with Mo Xiaotian’s annoying ability harassing him, Huangfu Mingzhe couldn’t do anything about Lan Subing for the time being.

But he couldn’t keep fighting these three forever; in terms of Mental Energy alone, he definitely couldn’t withstand a three-person assault. Continuously maintaining his current mode was also very draining on his Mental Energy.

Left with no choice, Huangfu Mingzhe could only change targets, and Wu Jin was his second target.

Skydome Ability Academy had naturally researched this purple-haired young man, yet they hadn’t uncovered anything. Forget anything else, they hadn’t even figured out his true ability. All they knew was that he inexplicably got into S-class and was the son of Endless Ability Academy’s principal.

Initially, they thought such a person was a ‘connected individual,’ entering S-class and being selected for the competition team based on his relationship with the principal, aiming to give him a golden veneer. But now that this ‘connected individual’ could actually be scheduled to play, it certainly wasn’t as simple as their initial investigations suggested.

Before the match, the teacher had told him to pay close attention to this person, in case he was actually a hidden trump card from Endless Ability Academy, ready to catch them off guard.

Now, as Huangfu Mingzhe looked at Wu Jin, he indeed felt that there was a big problem. If there wasn’t a big problem, why would he hide himself so carefully? Wasn’t it to act like Su Bei and produce a miraculous effect at the last moment?

Since he couldn’t take out Lan Subing for now, he would unexpectedly take out this purple-haired young man! Having figured this out, Huangfu Mingzhe pretended to fight more fiercely with Jiang Tianming and the others, but in reality, he adjusted his angle, then suddenly used his old trick, a teleportation, to appear behind Wu Jin.

However, Wu Jin wasn’t a pushover either. He had been on guard against Huangfu Mingzhe lunging at him. Immediately, he swept all his fringe back with his fingers, activating his Succubus ability fully.

The director was also very sharp, immediately projecting Wu Jin’s exquisite face onto the big screen. In an instant, the entire venue fell silent, and Huangfu Mingzhe, who had been preparing to attack, also stood frozen on the spot.

“Hiss!” Someone gasped, a sound particularly noticeable in the silent venue. Everyone finally reacted, and a wave of murmurs immediately rose.

“My god, he’s too good-looking!”

“Mom, I’m in love!”

“What kind of god-tier beauty is this? Oh my goodness! There’s actually such a handsome contestant!”

“One minute, I want all his information!”

“If you had told me you were this good-looking earlier, I would’ve fallen in love already, okay?”

“Wait, isn’t Lord Huangfu’s reaction a bit off?”

“Is it love at first sight?”

“He’s clearly been controlled!”

As they said, Huangfu Mingzhe was now under Wu Jin’s control. Without any prior preparation, and facing Wu Jin’s face at such close range, no matter how high his Mental Energy, he would absolutely be controlled.

Wu Jin didn’t ask for much. He knew there was an Ability user among the protected support team who could remove control effects, so he didn’t try to make Huangfu Mingzhe attack Skydome Ability Academy’s other contestants. He simply wanted this opponent to be taken off the stage.

However, Skydome Ability Academy’s support who could remove control effects reacted swiftly. Upon realizing Huangfu Mingzhe was controlled, he immediately cast a skill on him.

The pink hearts in Huangfu Mingzhe’s eyes dissipated, and he regained his clarity. Once his mind was clear, recalling his actions just now, he instantly turned red with shame and anger, as if white smoke was rising from his head.

“You’re dead!” Huangfu Mingzhe roared furiously, then charged straight for Wu Jin. Unfortunately, Jiang Tianming and the others had already arrived, both entangling him, preventing him from bothering Wu Jin. And Wu Jin, after revealing his face, no longer hid, truly beginning to use his ability.

His ability had never been publicly used before, so let alone the opponents, even Jiang Tianming and the others didn’t know the full extent of what he could do. However, since they hadn’t coordinated with Wu Jin before, they just needed to let him be and protect him.

At this moment, Wu Mingbai, who had been silent for a long time, finally made his move. With one strike, he went big, pressing his hand to the ground. Then the entire arena began to shake, rapidly cracking.

Probably no one expected him to cause such direct damage to the arena. Skydome Ability Academy’s defensive Ability user, hiding in the corner, had nowhere to escape. The fortress they had painstakingly built was directly overturned!

That defensive Ability user’s fortress was originally made of stone, and stone belonged to the Earth Element, so it was naturally countered by Wu Mingbai’s Earth Element ability. This was one of the reasons Meng Huai had him participate.

The reason he hadn’t made a move earlier was that Wu Mingbai was quietly trying to breach the opponent’s defenses without attracting attention. He had been secretly probing the situation within the arena, letting his Earth Element slowly permeate the entire stage.

And when he successfully completed his preliminary preparations, the opposing defensive Ability user had no room to resist. He didn’t even react before being exposed on the open arena.

The others, who had already discussed this plan with Wu Mingbai, naturally wouldn’t miss this excellent opportunity. Wu Jin quickly controlled the opposing crowd control remover, then said to Lan Subing, “I’ve controlled that blue-haired one.”

“Blue-haired one” was the opponent’s crowd control remover.

The Succubus ability has a very perverse characteristic: if someone breaks free from his control, they will be marked by him, allowing him to control them more easily.

Of course, this marked control is equivalent to a passive skill, essentially charming the opponent with his face, but unable to command them to do anything, only to make them do nothing.

Hearing him say he had controlled the opponent’s most important crowd control remover, Lan Subing was initially surprised, but then chose to trust her teammate, understanding perfectly and beginning to use Word Spirit to control and harass Huangfu Mingzhe.

The reason she hadn’t been able to maximize her ability’s advantage before was because of that crowd control remover, who would often nullify some of her skills whenever she used Word Spirit. Now that person was controlled, she could naturally unleash her full potential.

The others, meanwhile, rushed towards the remaining supports. Without defensive protection, those supports were like fish on a chopping block to them, easily eliminated. Huangfu Mingzhe could, at most, block one person; the rest could only watch helplessly as their teammates were attacked.

At this point, victory was essentially decided. All of the opponent’s supports had been eliminated, leaving only Huangfu Mingzhe. Even if he was strong, he couldn’t stand alone. However, he showed no intention of conceding. Instead, he proudly raised his head. “Do you think I’ve lost just because my supports are eliminated? What a joke! Now, let me show you what real strength is!”

As he spoke, he suddenly ascended amidst clouds and mist, his entire body radiating golden light. The light grew brighter and brighter, gradually turning him into a small sun, so dazzling that people couldn’t open their eyes.

Si Zhaohua recognized the skill at a glance and stood up in surprise. “He can actually still use that skill!”

He was referring to the skill Huangfu Mingzhe used to counter his ultimate move during their battle. He had thought that, like himself, the opponent wouldn’t be able to use it again for a while, but he didn’t expect him to be able to use it a second time.

“It must be the support’s ability.” Su Bei pointed at the support who possessed the skill-enhancement ability. “His ability is [Multiplier Boost]. It makes sense that he could double a skill, right?”

Before being eliminated, that support and Huangfu Mingzhe both emitted the same white light, leading Su Bei to guess that it was he who provided Huangfu Mingzhe with the opportunity to use his ultimate move a second time.

Si Zhaohua nodded, a hint of worry in his eyes. He had personally fought against Huangfu Mingzhe then and knew best how powerful that skill was. “That ability of his isn’t easy to deal with. Even I had to expend all of Divine Judgment’s energy to resist it. Tianming, he simply won’t—”

Before he could finish, the words caught in his throat. Si Zhaohua stared blankly at the scene in the arena.