Chapter 308

The crisis wouldn’t start so soon. Zhao Xiaoyu and Zhou Renjie planned to leave the day after tomorrow, deciding to first have a full day of fun with everyone tomorrow.

As for Su Bei, since he had decided to stay and face the danger together, he naturally couldn’t focus solely on the guardian deity. He had speculated before that this event was likely part of the main storyline, so the crisis would probably involve Nightmare Beasts.

With this in mind, while out having fun the next day, Su Bei repeatedly asked the tour guide, staff, and shopkeepers about matters related to Nightmare Beasts. His reason was ready-made: with Nightmare Beast disturbances occurring all over the world, the peaceful state of the Afei Nation made him curious.

“It’s thanks to our guardian deity.”

“Of course, it’s because the guardian deity is protecting us!”

“With the great guardian deity around, we know the moment a Nightmare Beast appears.”

The answers from all three parties were surprisingly consistent, all attributing it to the guardian deity. Su Bei certainly didn’t think they were lying. Judging by their attitudes of reliance, reverence, and pride, that had to be the truth.

Having a deity who could help them get advance information on Nightmare Beasts and prepare accordingly was indeed a joyous thing. But after learning this, Su Bei couldn’t help but think of a new problem.

Arriving at the entrance of a clothing store, Su Bei, who had no desire to shop, sat on a bench next to the entrance with the tour guide. It was worth noting that among the boys, only Si Zhaohua, Zhou Renjie, and Li Shu were quite interested in shopping, while among the girls, only Ling You was uninterested.

Knowing full well that their shopping would take a long time, Su Bei took the opportunity to curiously ask the guide beside him, “What is the education system for Ability users like in the Afei Nation? If Wu Mingbai returned to the country, could he attend an Ability academy?”

“Our country’s Ability academy is in the capital, and it’s called the ‘Afei Royal Ability Academy.’ If our honored guests are interested, I can take you to see it tomorrow,” the guide answered immediately.

Only one Ability academy in total? That was too few. Although the Afei Nation was much smaller than their own country, could a single academy truly accommodate all the new Ability users each year?

Su Bei showed a thoughtful expression and took out his phone to search for “Afei Royal Ability Academy.”

From the information available online, it was clear that this was a school with a beautiful environment and comprehensive facilities, even more luxurious than the Alpha Ability Academy they had visited before.

But that was normal. It was called a Royal Ability Academy, after all, funded and established by the royal family, so of course it would be much more luxurious.

However, this Ability school’s annual enrollment was even smaller than Endless Ability Academy’s, with only two hundred students.

A country producing only two hundred Ability users a year? Su Bei didn’t believe it. By doing this, the Afei Nation must have lost many less powerful Ability users, and perhaps even some who could have become very strong were overlooked.

With the guardian deity present, an output of two hundred Ability users per year was sufficient. But what if something happened to the guardian deity? If Nightmare Beasts invaded at the same time as the mountains collapsed and the earth split, what would the Afei Nation do? Other resources could be replenished on short notice, but the number of Ability users could not be quickly replaced.

Seeking aid from other countries was a viable option, but if the Nightmare Beasts truly intended to cause trouble, would they really give them the chance to call for help after the disaster struck?

The best method was to seek help before the disaster occurred. However, Feng Lan’s prophecy only foresaw the land collapsing, not a Nightmare Beast invasion. The king of the Afei Nation most likely wouldn’t seek support in advance.

Then, without a doubt, the protagonist group would have to play a major role again.

Sighing softly, Su Bei was about to say something when his brow suddenly twitched, his expression becoming intrigued. Since he had been looking down at his phone, no one had noticed his change in expression. Su Bei no longer intended to speak and stood up. “I’m going to the restroom.”

“I’ll go too.” Wu Jin stood up, wanting to go with him.

Although Su Bei had something to do on this trip, he didn’t refuse him. The two of them walked towards the restroom together. Halfway there, Su Bei suddenly spoke, “You know how I am. If I suddenly disappear, it means I’ve seen something interesting.”

Wu Jin paused for a moment, then immediately understood. “Something interesting is about to appear? What is it?”

“A secret,” Su Bei said, walking into the restroom first. After Wu Jin entered a stall, he quietly slipped back out and headed straight for the corner of the staircase.

“Su Bei!” Seeing the figure suddenly appear in the doorway, the red-haired boy in black clothes inside widened his eyes, crying out in a mix of shock and delight.

Su Bei’s expression relaxed, and a corner of his mouth curled up. “Long time no see, Mo Xiaotian.”

Though it hadn’t been long, Mo Xiaotian had changed a lot. The first thing you could notice was that he had grown taller. The old Mo Xiaotian had been the shortest in class, but now he had grown quite a bit, already slightly taller than Wu Mingbai.

Su Bei was certain that if Wu Mingbai realized this, he would be furious.

The change in height and weight wasn’t the most obvious thing. To Su Bei, Mo Xiaotian’s most significant change was the great improvement in his ability.

Just now, Su Bei could sense with his Mental Energy that the air was saturated with the flavor of Mo Xiaotian’s Mental Energy. This meant that his ability to control air was no longer limited to a small area, but a much wider expanse.

Only then did Su Bei truly realize the powerful potential of the [Air] ability in Mo Xiaotian’s hands, even though he wasn’t using it to attack.

It went without saying that a stronger Mo Xiaotian hadn’t come to the Afei Nation just for a vacation.

Although Su Bei appeared calm on the surface, his mind had been racing from the moment his Mental Energy sensed Mo Xiaotian’s ability. Mo Xiaotian’s long-awaited appearance here could only mean that the Black Flash Organization was making a move in the Afei Nation.

Combining the three known pieces of information: they now wanted to cooperate with Nightmare Beasts, the guardian deity Godean Zhuo was a Nightmare Beast that favored humans, and the guardian deity might fail soon.

Su Bei came to a conclusion: the Black Flash Organization probably wanted to control or modify Godean Zhuo to make it serve the Nightmare Beasts. And as the Saint, Mo Xiaotian was, if there were no surprises, the person assigned to complete this task.

“Su Bei, how did you find me here? Do the others know? I’m sorry, I just wanted to see you guys from afar, I didn’t expect to be discovered…” The more he spoke, the more dejected Mo Xiaotian became.

Su Bei shook his head. “I haven’t told them. What are you doing in the Afei Nation this time?”

“I have a mission to complete. It’s confidential, so I can’t tell you.” Mo Xiaotian was as honest as ever, but his face lacked its usual happiness. “But I can tell you this: it’s best if you all leave early.”

Su Bei ignored the warning and suddenly asked, “Unhappy?”

Mo Xiaotian pressed his lips together, looking at him as if he wanted to say something but was holding back. Su Bei knew he had to strike while the iron was hot; if he let the other boy calm down, he probably wouldn’t talk.

So he immediately led Mo Xiaotian outside, saying as they walked, “I’ve already told Wu Jin I’m leaving the group for a bit. I have plenty of time to listen to your story. Since you’re here, how can we not catch up? They might ignore you, but do you think I would?”

His words were shrewdly crafted, and Mo Xiaotian was instantly moved to the verge of tears. “Waaah! Big Bro Bei, you’re too good to me! I really have so much I want to tell you guys!”

Although he said that, with so many people around, he wouldn’t say much even if he wanted to catch up.

It wasn’t until he followed Su Bei to a small corner behind a flower bed outside the shopping mall, a place where it was difficult to be overheard or noticed, that Mo Xiaotian finally spoke again. “I’m sorry, I really can’t warn you about anything. Grandfather… he’s been in a bad mood lately, and the organization has a lot more rules now. As the Saint, I have to set an example and can’t just break them.”

It may not have sounded like much, but that was actually the most he could say as a warning. The atmosphere in the organization was terrible right now. Ever since his grandfather came out of seclusion, even though he claimed to have made a major research breakthrough, Mo Xiaotian could clearly sense that his grandfather wasn’t happy.

And this unhappiness brought with it a hundred times more vigilance than before. Especially after the plan for the World Competition was leaked—even though it was only a small leak, it still enraged his grandfather. Now, the Black Flash Organization strictly forbids leaking any information.

After hearing him out, Su Bei’s thoughts turned, and he understood the Black Flash Organization leader’s intentions. The bad mood was real, but adding more rules to the organization just because of a bad mood had to be a lie.

“Do you really think the Black Flash Organization’s rules have increased just because your grandfather is in a bad mood?” Su Bei asked meaningfully.

However, such a meaningful question was completely lost on Mo Xiaotian, like playing a zither to a cow. His eyes were filled with naive foolishness. “Huh? If it’s not because he’s in a bad mood, what else could it be?”

Su Bei: “…”

A deep sense of helplessness washed over him. Although it was reassuring that this guy was still so foolish, it was also exhausting. He sighed helplessly. “Of course, it’s because what the Black Flash Organization is doing now is even more secretive than before, which is why they need to tighten their management.”

What they did before wasn’t good, but at least their slogan was righteous, giving the members a sense of pride and uniting them. But now they were cooperating with Nightmare Beasts, something many members surely didn’t know about. To keep an eye on everyone, the organization had to implement micromanagement.

Everyone was like a screw in a machine, each with their own duty, unaware of the others’ tasks, but together they would complete the final goal. Only in this way could the leader of the Black Flash Organization command these members as he always had.

A look of confusion flickered in Mo Xiaotian’s eyes. “What we were doing before and what we’re doing now are both things that can’t be known by others. I know that in your eyes, we’re doing bad things.”

Su Bei: “…”

You’re quite self-aware, huh.

Idiots were like that; Su Bei felt he should have gotten used to it by now. Seeing that it was useless to reason with him, he gave up trying to sow discord and honestly went back to gathering intelligence. “You’re the leader of this mission. Are there a lot of people who aren’t convinced?”

He said this in a teasing tone, but in reality, Su Bei was probing for information. This question could first determine if Mo Xiaotian was the leader. If he wasn’t, he could conveniently ask who the leader was.

And if he was, then this mission likely involved some kind of item. After all, based on individual strength alone, there was no way Mo Xiaotian could be the leader.

“Not at all! Being undercover at Endless Ability Academy for a year counts as a great achievement, you know!” Mo Xiaotian said with a grin. “Besides, everyone really likes me!”

Su Bei believed him. If he hadn’t known Mo Xiaotian’s identity as a mole from the very beginning, he probably would have liked him a lot too. Although Mo Xiaotian was an idiot, he wasn’t the type to hold you back. Plus, he always provided great emotional support; even his foolishness was a cute kind of foolishness.

Su Bei was someone who loved watching hot-blooded shonen manga; how could he dislike Mo Xiaotian, who had all the traits of a protagonist? At the same time, he had no doubt that even in a villainous organization, an idiot like him could shine as brightly as a little sun.

It was just a pity he was shining for the villains.

Sighing silently in his heart, he said, seemingly nonchalantly, “Don’t you go losing the key item. You’d definitely be punished if you went back empty-handed, right?”

This foolish kid, Mo Xiaotian, was easily tricked into talking. He patted his chest confidently and assured, “No way! You can rest assured!”

To be honest, Su Bei’s conscience stung a little. He knew, of course, that the reason Mo Xiaotian was so unguarded was because he trusted him.

Although this guy was enthusiastic towards even a complete stranger, he still had his boundaries and definitely wouldn’t reveal any mission-related intelligence.

Once, when they were on a mission together, they had to disguise themselves as ordinary people. Some guy who thought he was clever noticed something was off and, thinking Mo Xiaotian was easy to fool, started asking him all sorts of questions, trying to trick them into revealing their identities. At the time, Su Bei was about to step in and stop it, but unexpectedly, Mo Xiaotian bluntly said the guy’s questions were weird and refused to answer him.

There was nothing else he wanted to know, or rather, he wouldn’t get any answers even if he kept asking. Su Bei’s gaze shifted slightly, and he ruthlessly wiped the expression from his face, patting Mo Xiaotian’s shoulder. “Alright, catching up time is over. Let’s go our separate ways.”

“Eh? You’re leaving already?” Mo Xiaotian stared blankly at Su Bei’s back, his eyes wide.

“Lord Saint, should I bring him back?” a person in black suddenly appeared beside Mo Xiaotian, asking in a cold, robotic voice.

Mo Xiaotian shook his head, a look of natural confusion on his face. “Why would we bring Big Bro Bei back?”

Mo Xiaotian, who was always the same inside and out, naturally wouldn’t treat them differently. He was an idiot when facing Su Bei, and he was also an idiot when facing the man in black.

The question did indeed make the man in black choke for a moment. He paused for two seconds before answering, “Doesn’t he know a little too much?”

“I don’t think so. I don’t think I said anything that needed to be kept secret,” Mo Xiaotian said, scratching his head with trusting eyes. “Otherwise, you would have definitely stopped me, Uncle.”

If anyone else had said that, it would have been a subtle jab at the man in black for being overbearing. But coming from Mo Xiaotian, it was a sincere expression of gratitude for looking out for him. He was definitely not the type to be passive-aggressive.

The man in black knew this too. A hint of a smile appeared in his eyes as he looked in the direction Su Bei had disappeared. “You’re not the type to leak secrets either. Besides, that kid was very tactful with his questions.”

Although Su Bei was indeed fishing for information, he clearly hadn’t asked about key clues, only some trivial but somewhat useful tidbits. That’s why the man in black had remained hidden and didn’t intervene, letting him chat with Mo Xiaotian.

The man in black wasn’t sure if the blond boy had noticed his presence, but he felt that regardless of whether he had been discovered, the reason for his tactful questions was likely to avoid making Mo Xiaotian a target for everyone’s criticism.

Before Mo Xiaotian mentioned his situation in Black Flash, the blond boy’s attitude had been a bit greedy, using conversational tricks to get Mo Xiaotian to spill as much information as possible. But after Mo Xiaotian finished explaining his circumstances, the other boy restrained himself considerably. The scope of his questions and the timing of ending the conversation were both just right.

“Of course! Big Bro Bei is the best!” Mo Xiaotian grinned foolishly, showing a set of pearly white teeth. “Let’s get back to the mission!”

Meanwhile, after leaving Mo Xiaotian, Su Bei didn’t know where Jiang Tianming and the others had gone and couldn’t be bothered to try and find them, so he turned around and went back to the castle. It might be hard to find other places in the capital, but locating the castle was a piece of cake.

On the way, he contemplated his conversation with Mo Xiaotian. If the Black Flash Organization’s goal was to influence the guardian deity with an item, what should he do with this information?

One thing was certain: the item probably couldn’t be stolen or destroyed. Otherwise, the person following Mo Xiaotian wouldn’t have stood by idly while he leaked information. Only if it didn’t matter that others knew about the item’s existence would he allow Mo Xiaotian to be such a blabbermouth.

Since the item couldn’t be destroyed before the event, he could only think about how to use it to his advantage afterward.

As mentioned before, if he wanted the guardian deity to answer his questions or even help him, he would definitely have to offer sufficient compensation. Su Bei had a hunch that this item was his opportunity to provide that compensation.

He couldn’t ask the ‘Destiny’ organization. From what Mo Xiaotian said, the leader of the Black Flash Organization was likely cracking down hard on leakers, so he wouldn’t get any useful answers even if he asked.

He still had to start with the guardian deity itself.

If the Black Flash Organization wanted to control it, what method could be used to break the control, or simply to free it?

“Su Bei, what did you do later? That clam Wu Jin didn’t say anything, only that you had to leave for a while.” By dinnertime that evening, Jiang Tianming and the others had returned. Qi Huang looked at the guy who had been missing from the group for most of the day and asked with dissatisfaction.

Hearing the question, the others also looked over. They were equally curious about what Su Bei had been up to; it always felt like anything involving him was a bit problematic.

Su Bei answered without thinking, “I saw a cute puppy and played with it for a while. By the time I snapped out of it, you guys were already gone, so I just came straight back to the castle.”

Hearing this, Wu Jin’s expression turned odd for a moment. Others might not know, but how could he not? Su Bei had already predicted his own departure before they even went to the restroom. How could it possibly be because he saw some cute puppy?

But it was clear the other party didn’t want to tell the truth, so he naturally wouldn’t expose him.

“Did you take a picture of the puppy?” Qi Huang didn’t really believe him either, of course, but she still asked curiously.

Su Bei shrugged and said lazily, “Forgot.”

His perfunctory attitude was second to none, and Qi Huang once again gritted her teeth in frustration.

The reliable Mu Tieren decisively stepped in to prevent the impending dispute. He looked at Feng Lan. “Have you told the king about the matter?”

Feng Lan nodded. “I went to see the king after you all left today. They said they would find a way to prepare in advance. As for my request for you all to help, the king refused. He said it hadn’t reached the point where he needed to have students from another country risk their lives for ours.”

It was rare to see him say so much at once. Usually, Feng Lan was a man of few words, cherishing them like gold. But whenever it came to matters that required explanation, he could naturally speak at length.

Lan Subing rested her head on the table, watching him with envy. She also wished she could so freely decide how much she wanted to talk, instead of being a chatterbox with friends and clamshelling up with strangers to the point where you couldn’t get a peep out of her.

No one was surprised by the king’s refusal; it would have been stranger if he had agreed. Although free labor was tempting, sometimes free things are the most expensive. If he sent them to prepare for disaster relief, the World Ability Allied Government could receive the news and condemn him right after.

However, once the danger truly occurred, if they were short on manpower, it would be fine for them to go then.

“I wonder if they’ll be able to do what’s needed,” Zhao Xiaoyu said, mimicking Lan Subing by resting her head on the table. “If this isn’t handled well, ordinary people are going to suffer.”

Things like mountains collapsing and the earth splitting—just thinking about it, you knew it would cause widespread casualties. Especially since Feng Lan hadn’t predicted the specific location of the problem, they couldn’t apply a precise remedy. To prevent losses in advance, the only way was to have all residents living near the mountains temporarily evacuate.

But this would greatly affect the regional economy. A large number of people would be unable to work during this process and could only return after post-disaster reconstruction was complete. For a mountainous country like the Afei Nation, the economic impact would be significant.

If the king cared more about the economy, he might not arrange for their timely evacuation. As the person closest to being an ordinary person among them all, Zhao Xiaoyu couldn’t help but empathize with the common people of the Afei Nation.

“Don’t worry. I subtly questioned him today, and Father seems to care about the lives of his people,” Wu Mingbai said with a smile, giving a cute wink. “If he doesn’t do a good job of saving people in the end, then I think with my status as a prince, combined with this recording, I should be able to help the common folk get to know my family a little better.”

Saying such terrifying words with such a cute expression sent a shiver down everyone’s spine. Lan Subing gave him a thumbs-up. “You actually remembered to record it.”

Wu Mingbai glanced at Su Bei. “I learned it from a certain someone.”

Getting called out for no reason, Su Bei put on an innocent face. “The master leads you to the door, but the practice is up to you. No need to pass the buck; we all know about your ‘good intentions’.”