Chapter 348

“Is there anything else you need me to do?” Ai Baozhu asked with rare consideration after arranging for Su Bei to stay in the room next to hers. Of course, her thoughtfulness wasn’t without reason. Knowing that Su Bei must have a purpose for coming, she naturally had to be more attentive. What if she could coax the truth out of him?

Seeing Su Bei shake his head, Ai Baozhu cut right to the chase, her hidden motive revealed: “Why did you tell me to be careful earlier?”

“As one of only two defenders in Sanctuary City, isn’t it normal for me to tell you to be careful?” Su Bei replied leisurely.

Unfortunately, Ai Baozhu wasn’t buying it. She snorted lightly, “Would you have reminded me if that was all?”

In her impression, Su Bei wasn’t the type to meddle in others’ business, let alone offer a casual warning for no reason. He wouldn’t have warned her unless he had foreseen some unexpected danger in her immediate future.

It had to be said that Ai Baozhu did know Su Bei quite well; she was right. But Su Bei couldn’t give her a specific warning. For one, he didn’t know exactly what would happen, and for another, it was a fixed plot point.

If Ai Baozhu didn’t run into trouble, how would the sacrifice unfold? And how would Jiang Tianming and the others play their part? So even if he warned her, it would be useless; it was bound to happen.

Su Bei feigned sadness, wiping away non-existent tears. “I never knew you saw me this way. How heartbreaking.”

This time, Ai Baozhu finally couldn’t hold back. She rolled her eyes and got up to leave. “Forget it, I won’t ask you anymore.”

Just as she reached the door, she suddenly remembered something and turned her head to ask, “Can I tell the others you’re here?”

She was referring to Jiang Tianming and his group.

Su Bei thought for a moment. Although telling the others didn’t seem like a problem, it was better to avoid unnecessary trouble. He refused, “Better not. they’ll find out when the time comes.”

His words were practically an outright declaration to Ai Baozhu that something was going to happen in Sanctuary City No. 3. Honestly, she really wanted to report this to her superiors and have them send more reinforcements.

But since Su Bei hadn’t requested it, Ai Baozhu felt it was best not to do anything unnecessary. After all, destiny was an intangible thing. Su Bei could see destiny and could change it precisely. But she couldn’t see it. What if she inadvertently and by some twist of fate brought about the predetermined misfortune? That would be terrible.

The Nightmare Beasts were set to make their move in a week at most. So, for the next few days, Su Bei didn’t stir up any trouble. Instead, he slowly wandered around Sanctuary City No. 3, partly to familiarize himself with the terrain and partly to find people whose Destiny Compasses were unusual, connecting them in advance.

Su Bei’s Destiny Connection didn’t have to be activated and used immediately; he could also set a delay. That is, he could connect them in advance and activate it a few days later, and the connection would not break during that time.

However, it could only be maintained for three days at most; any longer was impossible.

By connecting some in advance over these few days, he could effectively conserve his Mental Energy later. After all, humans were different from Nightmare Beasts; their Destiny Compasses were far more complex. Even in a large group, it was difficult to have the kind of large-scale repetition seen in Nightmare Beasts.

The scenery in the Sanctuary City was unique. Because it was a temporary city, it was very simple overall, without any extra decorations. All the houses were made of stone to make them more solid.

As far as Su Bei knew, every house here had a basement underneath, specially built by another Earth Element Ability user. It could provide residents with a second layer of protection and also effectively prevent enemies from breaking through from underground.

The city’s residents patrolled in shifts, covering the entire city to ensure that no matter when a Nightmare Beast appeared, someone would react immediately. Although ordinary people couldn’t eliminate Nightmare Beasts, they could at least call for other Ability users right away.

In this serious and tense atmosphere of war, an idler like Su Bei seemed completely out of place. If Ai Baozhu hadn’t personally brought him in, he probably would have been arrested as a spy or kicked out as a loiterer long ago.

But they didn’t know that Su Bei wasn’t actually wandering around idly; he was just connecting the residents’ Destiny Compasses.

On the fourth day, Su Bei felt a jolt of energy the moment he stepped outside.

It’s finally here!

At this moment, the Destiny Compasses above everyone’s heads had changed drastically. The minor pointers were all uniformly pointing to the far right, while the major pointers were in various positions, though the vast majority were in the lower half of the compass.

“Did the protagonist team fail to make an impact?” Suddenly remembering something, Su Bei asked the ‘Manga Consciousness’ in his mind with some confusion, “Or did the author factor what I’m about to do into his plan?”

He had originally thought this sacrifice would end with the protagonist team finding the Cross Nightmare Beast’s gathering place and foiling the plot of the Nightmare Beasts and the Black Flash Organization. But seeing that so many people were still destined to die here, he knew that wasn’t the case.

Therefore, he suspected this situation was happening because the author had written him into the manga, requiring him to save people to achieve a no-casualty clear.

But that was also a bit strange. After all, he wasn’t a manga character and wasn’t controlled by the author. Wasn’t the author worried he might fail? Although, in the author’s eyes, a failed attempt might just mean the deaths of some villagers, Ai Baozhu was still here. If he failed, Ai Baozhu would face the same danger as everyone else.

“Not exactly. The people in this city were always expendable. If they don’t die, the sacrifice naturally can’t be completed. But even if they do die, with the protagonist team acting on another front, the sacrifice still won’t be completed either.”

Hearing this, Su Bei had a sudden realization. The author indeed hadn’t factored his actions into the plan, but he had left him plenty of room to maneuver. Success or failure wouldn’t affect the plot’s development.

With no worries holding him back, he turned to find Ai Baozhu. Since today was the day the Nightmare Beasts made their move, Ai Baozhu would surely be the first one in trouble. He wasn’t going back now to prevent her from getting into trouble, but to see if he could rescue her in time after it happened.

He woke up at eight o’clock. Ai Baozhu had been getting up earlier recently, usually around six. At this time, according to her usual routine, she should be on the city wall.

With this in mind, Su Bei made his way to the city wall, but he didn’t see her there. He casually found a guard and asked, “Where did Ai Baozhu go? Shouldn’t she be on patrol here now?”

The guard knew Su Bei was Ai Baozhu’s friend, so he didn’t hide anything. “A leader just called Miss Ai Baozhu away.”

“Which one?” Su Bei instantly realized something and immediately asked, “Where did they take her? Or where is that leader’s office?”

Although this matter probably shouldn’t be disclosed to an outsider, Su Bei’s sudden seriousness compelled the guard to subconsciously blurt out the answer: “In Building A, room 502.”

Seeing Su Bei turn to leave, he quickly called out to him, “Hey, where are you going? The leader must have business with Miss Ai Baozhu. If you interrupt them, you’ll definitely be punished.”

Su Bei didn’t look back, merely waving his hand. “It won’t involve you.”

With no one stopping him, he walked away quickly and soon arrived at Building A, room 502. There was no need to knock at a time like this. His ability was his excuse; even if he was wrong, he could just blame it on a premonition from his power.

But in the end, he wasn’t wrong. Because the room was simple and unobstructed, the scene inside was clear the moment he kicked the door open. A middle-aged man was holding a cigarette, looking with a stunned expression at Su Bei who had suddenly appeared at the door. Beside him, Ai Baozhu was slumped over a chair, unconscious.

It only took a moment for the man to react. His expression turned fierce, a dagger instantly appeared in his hand, and he was about to plunge it into Ai Baozhu’s neck.

Su Bei shot a gear just in time, striking him squarely on the wrist and interrupting the man’s action. At the same time, a pink glow emanated from Ai Baozhu’s neck; it seemed her self-defense system had been triggered.

Su Bei gave him no second chances. As the man was about to make another move, he directly manipulated his Destiny Compass, instantly causing the man to have a heart attack and collapse to the ground.

Logically, he should be conserving his Mental Energy at a time like this, especially with a major task ahead that would consume a lot of it. But for this man to become a leader in a sanctuary, his strength was not to be underestimated. If he didn’t strike first and defeat the man as quickly as possible, Su Bei was afraid he’d suffer a setback from carelessness.

After dealing with the man, he went over to check on Ai Baozhu’s condition. She was in a deep sleep and wouldn’t wake up no matter how much he shook her. Su Bei sighed and walked to the window. He had already heard a commotion from outside, and a glance confirmed it.

At some point, Nightmare Beasts had quietly appeared in every corner of the city. The Ability users were caught completely off guard and could only scramble to fight back.

But this was to be expected. When a leader of the Sanctuary City was on the Nightmare Beasts’ side, it was only natural for problems to arise from within.

Su Bei placed a defensive item next to Ai Baozhu, covering her with a protective shield, then left and headed towards the city wall. He needed to get to the highest point to see everyone’s Destiny Compass.

At this time, the city wall was empty, with only a few guards left. With an internal crisis, they had no mind to worry about the outside. Besides, Sanctuary City No. 3 was located between several other sanctuaries and there was no Interdimensional Gate nearby, so the likelihood of trouble from the outside was low.

The few remaining guards didn’t stop him either. After all, Su Bei couldn’t possibly open the main gate by himself. Since he couldn’t open it, what was the harm in letting him go up the city wall?

Arriving at the highest tower, Su Bei activated his ability, connecting everyone’s Destiny Compass. Because he had already connected many over the past few days, it didn’t consume much Mental Energy this time. He directly linked everyone’s Destiny Compass and uniformly adjusted their major pointers to the top.

Next, he used his remaining Mental Energy to start connecting the Nightmare Beasts’ compasses. He stopped just as his energy was about to run out and activated the instant skill!

The next second, large rocks suddenly fell from the sky, precisely smashing into every Nightmare Beast Su Bei had connected.

Su Bei looked up and could only faintly see two black dots in the sky. He raised an eyebrow, thinking this was a truly interesting way to die.

Remembering what he needed to do, he smiled faintly. “The principal told me to come, so I came. I’m such a good student.”

Since the author also wanted him to reveal his identity as the leader of the ‘Destiny’ organization in front of the readers, after seeing these words, he would probably add the information about Principal Wu Di asking the leader to personally come and help to the manga.