Chapter 193

Chapter 193

"That’s great! We can keep looking for the butler assistant!" Mo Xiaotian cheered, finding the reasoning sound.

His outburst drew odd looks from the group. With a life lost, his reaction seemed off.

Su Bei took it in stride. He’d long noticed Mo Xiaotian’s weak sense of good and evil, with little regard for human life, fitting his upbringing in a villain organization.

Facing their strange gazes, Mo Xiaotian grinned as if oblivious, continuing to eat his flatbread. Others withdrew their looks, assuming he was too naive to grasp the gravity.

Halfway through the meal, Zhang He arrived, wearing a polite smile. "Our people have gone with Teacher Meng to fetch the Ability Government. Please pause your tasks and follow me to the cafeteria to rest. We’ve prepared plenty of snacks."

Cooking lunch in this situation was impossible, so snacks were the workaround.

In the cafeteria, Su Bei habitually activated his ability, checking everyone’s Destiny Compass. One glance left him with a peculiar expression.

Unbelievable—everyone’s large pointer had shifted unnoticed. A few were at the “eating” point, but most were at “poisoned.”

Something was about to happen in the cafeteria, Su Bei nodded knowingly. Was it the butler assistant’s doing or the staff’s?

He suspected the latter. Zhang He’s timing was too convenient—right when no teachers were watching and most were gathered. Plus, a doubt: Meng Huai was reliable. Would he really leave the factory without a word?

Shaking his head lightly, Su Bei bit into his bread. His own food was safe.

Suspecting Meng Huai was in trouble, he probed the first floor with mental energy again. Meng Huai was indeed gone, along with Jiang Tianming and five others.

His mental energy sensed an empty first floor—no one.

Were they trapped together or gone for different reasons? Either way, it signaled something unusual downstairs. Retracting his mental energy, Su Bei followed the group.

As Zhang He promised, the cafeteria was stocked with snacks: plated chips, fries, chocolates, candies, egg yolk pies… and various drinks, like a snack party.

Knowing some insider info, Su Bei saw the issue—the snacks weren’t in sealed packages, all served on plates or in cups.

Such food was easy to tamper with. Life Tech Machinery Co., Ltd. preparing this specifically was transparent to those paying attention.

Su Bei was curious: what was Life Tech Machinery Co., Ltd. planning? If they all got hurt here, Endless Ability Academy would investigate. With so many involved, the Ability Government would too. How would the company clear its name?

Even if they did, after this, no ability user would buy their products. Hiding a death in the factory wasn’t worth this cost.

So Su Bei guessed the poison wasn’t lethal but had another purpose. Maybe like the red liquid Black Flash made, addictive and controlling. Or something else.

Since Feng Lan’s ability didn’t warn them, the poison likely wouldn’t act quickly. Most here would fall for it.

Mo Xiaotian ate heartily, oblivious, then said oddly, "Why do these snacks feel kinda greenish?"

This kid was too honest. His keen observation spotted the issue, yet he didn’t think twice, eating more eagerly than those who didn’t notice.

His comment made others look. Indeed, on closer inspection, the snacks had a faint green sheen.

Under dim lighting, green was subtle, especially so thin. Without Mo Xiaotian’s remark, no one would’ve noticed.

Green? Su Bei instantly thought of [Life Essence]. Was Life Tech Machinery Co., Ltd. using food laced with it to drain their life force?

Life force was hard to sense. Losing a bit might just feel cold, with no immediate signs.

But if that was their plan, they’d miscalculated. With Ai Baozhu here, even slight aging would be detected, exposing their scheme.

"These snacks are laced with a variant of [Life Essence], a liquid that slightly boosts life force," Zhang He smiled, seeming proud. "Our boss, seeing the activity was disrupted, offered this as compensation."

A boost to life force stunned everyone. That was a big deal—life force items were priceless, even small boosts coveted by aging, powerful ability users.

Zhang He was pleased with their shock. "The more you eat, the more essence integrates, enhancing the effect."

That made sense. No one doubted it. They grabbed seats and dug in. A rare chance to boost life force—only a fool would miss it.

“Fool” Su Bei leisurely piled snacks onto his plate, seemingly planning to eat after stacking. But once his plate formed a small tower, he stood. "I’m hitting the restroom."

Everyone looked at him, stunned. It was like saying “I’ll browse before buying” during a timed sale—a waste of opportunity.

But seeing his towering plate, they assumed he’d eat only that, taking his portion based on appetite. With his share secured, no rush to eat. Clearing his stomach first made sense.

Thinking this, Li Shu got mischievous. "You’re going to the restroom. What if your snacks get cold? I’ll clear your plate for you. Just grab more when you’re back." If there were snacks left when he returned, they’d lose!

High schoolers could eat a ton, especially ability users with superior physiques. Despite the snack abundance, split among nine, each got little.

"Try it," Su Bei gave him a sly glance, leaving the cafeteria.

He had no intent to warn them. While stacking snacks, he’d observed everyone. Mo Xiaotian, eating earliest, had downed half a plate with no issues. Feng Lan, who could see five seconds ahead, showed no reaction, confirming the poison wouldn’t act soon.

With no evidence or symptoms, and Zhang He’s solid excuse for the green glow, what could he say?

Sure, if he spoke, Feng Lan and others would believe him. His and Feng Lan’s prophetic reputations in class were solid.

But come on, was he some goody-two-shoes? If he warned them there, it’d spark a fight with Zhang He. How could he slack off then?

Entering a restroom stall, Su Bei used an Invisibility Charm. He climbed atop the door, leaping out like a cat, landing silently.

Leaving the restroom, he headed beyond the cafeteria. The first floor was empty, Jiang Tianming and others gone, vanished. The familiar scene made Su Bei pause. In this Manga world, space ability users were too handy.

He’d encountered multiple events splitting people into separate spaces, an effective way to divide battlefields, forcing opponents to split forces.

Searching, Su Bei soon found the event’s epicenter. In the last workshop, a chair was toppled, lifeless products scattered on the floor, clearly indicating something had happened.

Groping around, he found no entry to another space. Thinking, he went to the second floor, straight to Zhang He’s office. It was easy to find—unlike the multi-person offices, this was a single-person one, obviously his.

Zhang He’s office was clean and professional, with minimal decor. Lan Subing had likely been here; other areas showed search traces.

But the desk area had few signs, probably her avoiding Life Tech Machinery Co., Ltd.’s secrets.

She’d avoid it, but Su Bei wouldn’t. He came here for those secrets. Finding butler assistant data could clarify the event’s truth.

Using a gear along the wall, avoiding camera blind spots, Su Bei smashed the office’s surveillance. Then he boldly opened drawers, pulling out documents to review one by one.

The documents weren’t critical—mostly client and staff info. Client data was irrelevant, so he focused on staff, specifically the deceased.

Deceased: Li Jinhui, male, 31, ability [Mental Torture]. As the name suggested, it tormented the mind, likely like needles in the brain.

Such an ability seemed useful, so why was he a regular employee? Life Tech Machinery Co., Ltd.’s benefits were great for ordinary people or weak ability users.

For strong ability users, a trip to a Different Space earned far more than regular work.

Was [Mental Torture] ineffective against Nightmare Beasts? If it only worked on humans, it’d be useless in today’s society, where even torturing criminals wasn’t condoned.

Some families with private dungeons might hire him, but Li Jinhui ended up at Life Tech Machinery Co., Ltd. Was it just for the benefits, aiming to be a regular worker, or was there a hidden motive Su Bei didn’t know?

He couldn’t help linking Li Jinhui’s death to his ability. Using it would surely offend targets, making revenge killing plausible.

Was it tied to the butler assistant? Su Bei wasn’t sure. He didn’t know if the author meant to weave two events here or tell one story.

But a Manga author wouldn’t toss in an unrelated minor event during a major arc, so even if Li Jinhui’s death was a regular vendetta, it’d tie to the main event.

The drawer documents were useless. Su Bei eyed the computer. No doubt it held clues, but—as expected—it demanded a password.

Password-protected computers were standard, especially in stories. If he had to guess, there’d be a two-try limit, with a third failure triggering an alarm.

No, in an ability world, it might be deadlier—maybe death itself.

At the desk, Su Bei propped his chin, pondering the password. From gathered info, he had Zhang He’s birthday and hire date.

A four-digit password should stem from those, but Su Bei’s Manga-reading experience told him it wouldn’t be that simple.

If not one of those dates, what was it? Su Bei reexamined the documents, listing Zhang He’s info on another sheet, but found nothing useful.

If the password wasn’t tied to Zhang He, then who? Instantly, Su Bei thought—Boss!

A company computer with passwords tied to the boss' dates wasn’t unusual.

Realizing this, Su Bei searched for boss-related info. Soon, beside a housing contract in the drawer, he found a thank-you letter.

It thanked the boss for mentorship, gifting him the house for his birthday.

The letter mentioned the boss' birthday: July 21.

0721!

Su Bei entered the password. The computer unlocked, its wallpaper the Life Tech Machinery Co., Ltd. logo.

Logging into a chat app, likely a work account, the contacts had formal avatars. The pinned contact, labeled “Boss,” was his target.

Opening the chat, the latest message was Zhang He urgently reporting Jiang Tianming’s group’s disappearance. The boss reassured him they were sent away by him, and to focus on the second-floor guests.

Above that, the boss instructed Zhang He to mix the [Life Essence] variant with snacks as compensation for the disrupted trip. Zhang He praised the boss' generosity.

The chat was surprisingly normal, no conspiracy, which surprised Su Bei. He’d expected truth in private chats, but they used grandiose excuses. Were they wary of tech recovering chats?

But that felt off. Was this really a concern in an ability-driven Manga world?

Su Bei felt something was off and continued scrolling up the chat records. Above the previous messages, there was a directive from the boss, instructing Zhang He that he would personally handle Meng Huai and that Zhang He didn’t need to worry about it.

Seeing this, Su Bei raised an eyebrow, as if realizing something.

He’d been puzzled before—Wu Jin hadn’t seemed to sense Zhang He lying. If he had, he would’ve told Su Bei, no doubt.

After all, Wu Jin’s [Succubus] ability was highly sensitive to emotions. Lying, with its significant emotional fluctuations, was hard to hide from him.

As a director of a major company, it was plausible Zhang He had an item shielding him from mind-reading abilities.

But now, it seemed less about an item and more that Zhang He wasn’t lying—or rather, he genuinely believed he wasn’t. The boss was deceiving not just them, the outsiders, but his own people too.

Zhang He likely thought his company was clean. At most, he might know some product creation secrets, but he was clueless about the boss' schemes and arrangements for this incident.

Though he didn’t know the truth, the chat records still held plenty of noteworthy details. The boss consistently gave Zhang He seemingly reasonable tasks that implicated him in the scheme. No matter how legitimate the reasons appeared, simply listing what the boss had Zhang He do revealed his true intentions.

For instance, he had Zhang He serve them food laced with a variant of [Life Essence]. When Zhang He reported the butler assistant’s escape, the boss immediately ordered a factory lockdown and agreed to let Zhang He seek the students’ help.

An earlier conversation was particularly intriguing. The boss instructed Zhang He to agree to any requests from the Endless Ability Academy visitors. At first glance, it seemed harmless, perhaps just overly indulgent toward guests.

But combined with later events, it was chilling. Su Bei was certain that without this order, Zhang He would’ve rejected their offer to help.

After all, in his eyes, the butler assistant’s escape was a major secret to keep under wraps. Why would he agree to their assistance?

It seemed the butler assistant’s escape was tied to the boss. Was it genuinely trying to flee, with the boss secretly aiding it? Or was it the boss' pawn from the start, the escape a staged ploy targeting Endless Ability Academy?

Continuing through Zhang He’s chat records, Su Bei scrolled far before finding more useful content—this time about Li Jinhui.

The boss sent Li Jinhui’s profile to Zhang He, instructing him to place the man in the workshop. He didn’t need to assign him work; as long as Li Jinhui caused no trouble, the boss would handle him personally.

Reading this, anyone might assume Li Jinhui was the boss' relative or friend. But combined with Li Jinhui’s ability, Su Bei keenly sensed something amiss.

The boss placed Li Jinhui in the factory without giving him regular tasks. Was there a hidden agenda?

Su Bei searched the chat interface for “Boss” and “Li Jinhui.” For the former, Zhang He was always respectful, rarely discussing the boss privately.

For the latter, the apparent nepotism hire, Zhang He complained twice. He said Li Jinhui did nothing, staying holed up in his room, only emerging for meals. Recently, he’d been slightly more active but still elusive, like a dragon seen only briefly.

Li Jinhui’s recent change caught Su Bei’s attention, though he couldn’t pinpoint the reason.

Finding no more useful info, Su Bei closed the chat app and began browsing the computer’s stored files. It was futile—Zhang He’s computer had too many files. Without clues, sifting through them all was impossible.

Giving up, Su Bei quickly tidied up, restoring everything to its place. Feeling confident nothing was amiss, he left Zhang He’s office and returned to the first floor.

In the office, with the surveillance already destroyed, Su Bei hadn’t used an Invisibility Charm. Now, leaving, he activated one and headed straight for the cafeteria. The cafeteria was empty. Earlier, his mental energy sweep of the factory revealed no classmates present. Apart from the few staff in their rooms, there was no one else.

Well, not exactly surprising. If someone planned to act against them, keeping everyone in the factory would complicate things. Splitting them up made it easier for the mastermind to move.

Interestingly, his mental energy had collided with another’s. They tried tracing his, but Su Bei withdrew too quickly, giving them no chance.

Who in this factory had advanced mental energy like him? No need to guess—most likely the boss of Life Tech Machinery Co., Ltd.