Chapter 358

Since graduating six years ago, Su Bei had been in a state of working in fits and starts. It was one thing when he was in college, but who would have thought he’d continue slacking off after graduation, disappearing from time to time to travel? Those who knew he was an Ability user understood, but those who didn’t would have mistaken him for some kind of travel blogger!

Especially now, with so many spaces appearing in the world, Su Bei’s strength allowed him to venture into any of them. Inside these spaces, one could not only witness scenery unseen in the outside world but also sometimes make money. This also led to Su Bei frequently being out of contact, with no one knowing which space he had entered.

Therefore, every time he returned, any acquaintances who were free would come over to see him and ask how long he planned to stay this time. It would be even better if they could invite Su Bei to enter a space with them.

“About a month, I guess,” Su Bei replied after a moment of thought. “But I won’t be entering any spaces for the first half of the month.”

The “spaces” he referred to were the spatial rifts that had not yet been extensively explored by humans. Since the third season of the manga began six years ago, several spatial rifts had appeared one after another around the world, leading to other worlds.

It was only then that everyone realized that the flora and fauna summoned by Summoner-type Ability users weren’t created out of thin air but were brought from the spaces they were linked to.

For example, the great dragons Meng Huai had summoned and conquered came from a draconic space. They later visited that space and successfully secured the help of the Dragon Clan.

Of course, that was already in the past. In short, after the appearance of the spatial rifts, the status of Summoner-type Ability users rose to unprecedented heights, and they became extremely popular in exploration teams.

After all, if they traveled to the world where their summons originated, they would have a significant natural advantage. Not only would they have native summons to guide them, but they would also be highly attuned to that space. Having one in the team could double their effectiveness.

But that only applied to the weak. For someone like Su Bei, no matter which space he went to, as long as the creatures inside had a brain, they wouldn’t dare do anything to him after learning about his abilities.

What kind of enemy could be more terrifying than one who could decide the fate of an entire race?

That’s right. After nearly two years of experience during the third season, even though Su Bei had intentionally tried to be a marginal figure, he had still made great progress under the prevailing trends.

Whether he leveled up on his own or used the forum due to the pressure to survive, he was now a publicly acknowledged powerhouse in the Ability World. He had even overcome his previous weakness of being limited by his Mental Energy, which prevented him from using his ability on a large scale. The current Su Bei could change the destiny of entire groups.

Unless he could be instantly killed without his knowledge, who would dare to touch him? Trying to use items to block his ability and prevent him from sensing danger was also difficult to pull off, as Su Bei himself was well aware of this weakness and naturally had many countermeasures.

Returning to the present, upon learning that he would be “in business” for the next month, Si Zhaohua lowered his eyes and asked with feigned nonchalance, “How about taking a commission at my place? You can help me adjust my luck for half a month, and then we can enter a space together for the other half.”

“Isn’t that a bit much?” A female voice laced with laughter sounded from outside the door. “Trying to monopolize Su Bei’s time?”

The two, having long sensed someone approaching, were not surprised at all. They smiled and looked at the green-haired woman who walked in.

Zhao Xiaoyu gave them a playful wink, revealing a lively expression she rarely showed to outsiders. “You have to include me!”

“Of course,” Si Zhaohua gave an affirmative answer, a hint of reminiscence flashing in his azure eyes. “I still remember the first time the three of us teamed up was when we were kidnapped. To think so much time has passed in the blink of an eye.”

It had indeed been a long time—six years had passed. Zhao Xiaoyu felt a bit nostalgic. “Even the Black Flash Organization feels like something from a long, long time ago.”

However, she quickly pulled herself out of her memories and said with a smile, “So, should we just sneak away now without telling the others?”

Although he didn’t mind, Su Bei, who understood the situation well, shook his head and said honestly, “That’s unlikely. When I came in just now, a lot of people outside left. They were probably from several different factions.”

As someone who could change destiny, his business had always been booming. And unlike a family power like Feng Lan’s, as an independent, he was an easier target for others to win over, which meant he received more harassment.

But this was near Endless Ability Academy, after all. Those factions weren’t capable enough to plant lookouts here, so the people who left were likely Jiang Tianming’s group. That was also why Su Bei hadn’t acted.

Hearing him say this, Zhao Xiaoyu was unconcerned. “Anyway, I was the one who got here first. First come, first served.”

Si Zhaohua nodded in agreement, persuading Su Bei with a deep understanding of him, “If you stay here, you’ll have to face an endless stream of invitations. But if you leave with us, you won’t have so many troubles.”

Just as he finished speaking, three more people entered the small hardware store. Lan Subing commented, “Can you guys not act so much like the big bad wolf trying to trick a child?”

Jiang Tianming looked directly at Su Bei and got straight to the point. “We’ve discovered a new spatial rift. The world inside seems to be related to world lines. What do you say? You in?”

After speaking, he turned to Si Zhaohua and the others. “This invitation is open to you all as well. It seems like a very interesting space.”

As expected, the three of them were intrigued. Su Bei asked with great interest, “World lines? What do you mean? What did you see in that space?”

Normally, exploring a new spatial rift required sending one person in first to get a general look at the environment and the existing races to determine what kind of space it was.

Evidently, Jiang Tianming’s group had seen something interesting.

Indeed, Jiang Tianming said with a strange expression, “It’s a very magical space. It’s like a silken cave, filled entirely with golden threads. The entire world is a blank void except for these threads. All the golden threads are untouchable—I mean literally, you can’t touch them. I used an item to perceive them and sensed that these golden threads might be related to destiny, so I came to find you.”

They had discovered this space half a month ago and had been waiting for Su Bei to return. Although Su Bei wasn’t the only destiny-type Ability user in the world, when you know the strongest, who would settle for second best if they have a choice?

“No problem, let’s go on the fifteenth then,” Su Bei readily agreed. He had some things to take care of over the next few days.

Although the ‘Destiny’ organization was mature and required little of his involvement, its ties with the government had strengthened during the third season of the manga, so he sometimes needed to issue missions and the like in his capacity as the organization’s leader.

Besides that, he also had to quickly sell the items he brought back from the spatial rift. Keeping things from a curse space was very dangerous; who knew when they might suddenly backfire? If it weren’t for the constant buyers and their generous offers, he certainly wouldn’t have brought them out.

Just as this thought crossed his mind, Zhao Xiaoyu, standing beside him, asked with a curious expression, “By the way, Su Bei, where have you been all this time?”

After graduating from high school, Su Bei had chosen to attend university. However, he didn’t pursue a master’s, a doctorate, or a civil service career. Instead, after finishing his four years of college, he began a life of traveling and working.

According to him, the reason he didn’t pursue further studies was that he felt there was no need for deeper exploration; he just wanted a diploma.

It was worth mentioning that Su Bei had majored in psychology in college. Although he claimed he chose this major because he wanted to study human psychological activities, Zhao Xiaoyu strongly suspected it was because he thought being a psychological counselor was the easiest job.

In the two years after graduating from college, Su Bei didn’t continue to travel on his home planet but instead tirelessly explored the spatial rifts. In Su Bei’s own words, “I can go to those places anytime, but I can only go into the spatial rifts when I’m strong enough.”

In short, whenever he disappeared, it was usually into a spatial rift. Every time he came back, everyone would ask about his travel experiences. This wasn’t just limited to him; others would also share their stories if they had a particularly magical experience in a rift.

Even though they had graduated several years ago, their relationship was still excellent. After all, the members of S-Class had been through so much together; it was no exaggeration to say their bond was rock-solid.

“I went to a space in Antarctica. The sky there was the most beautiful, constantly displaying a purple aurora, though it was likely the physical manifestation of a curse.” Su Bei recounted his experience in a calm, unhurried manner. “There were no living creatures in that space. Everything inside, including the air, was cursed. Moreover, these curses can be brought out of the space. I’ve already reported it to the government and had it marked as high-risk.”

If not for his ability to constantly check his own luck and the special isolation suit he used to semi-isolate himself from that world, he wouldn’t have been able to admire the scenery inside.

Although he described it simply, no one would overlook the danger hidden within his words. Wu Mingbai pursed his lips. “You say you like to slack off, but you’re clearly an adventure enthusiast, aren’t you? How could you stay in a space like that for so long?”

Su Bei had stayed inside for so long mainly to gather intelligence for the ‘Destiny’ organization. Since he was already there, wouldn’t it have been a wasted trip if he didn’t collect a sample of every curse inside to add to their database?

But as for enjoying adventure, well, there was a little bit of that. Su Bei didn’t deny his words and said with confidence, “I like to take meaningful risks.”

It had to have either good scenery, the potential to make money, or a way to increase his strength. It had to be at least one of the three; otherwise, it was just trouble for him.

The destiny space Jiang Tianming had invited them to was, for him, a chance to increase his strength. Threads with the aura of destiny? He already had a guess. Whether it would enhance his power or not remained to be seen, but it would definitely be interesting.

He had a hunch that he might actually be able to touch those threads.