Chapter 222

Chapter 222

The three finalized their plan and, upon reaching the neighboring tribe, saw a few people from earlier. Su Bei immediately approached. Pretending to have wandered over by mistake, he acted flustered, gesturing wildly: “Can you understand me?”

His age was always his best cover; panicking in such situations was normal for someone young. Plus, as a minor, people were less likely to suspect him. Even if the underground humans’ perceptions differed, they’d instinctively see him as weak.

Naturally, they couldn’t understand, and after sizing up Su Bei and the others, they spoke in gibberish. One of them left, while the other two made soothing gestures, signaling them to wait.

Though the language was a barrier, many gestures were universal. Understanding their intent, Su Bei put on a grateful expression and waited patiently.

Soon, the one who left returned with Caige. Seeing the trio, Caige was surprised and asked in her song: “How did you end up here?”

“We came looking for you,” Su Bei answered truthfully. He disliked outright lying; the world of Ability users was too complex. Who knew when he’d run into someone like Wu Jin who could see through lies? Being caught lying would put him at a disadvantage, so it was better to stick to the truth when possible. “Looking for me?” Caige asked, puzzled.

Su Bei nodded: “I wanted to ask if you can still handle sunlight. The cave we fell through connects to the surface, so there must be light coming in. If you can’t handle UV rays and something happens when you take us there, we’d feel really guilty.”

This question had a flaw, as the underground people had found them at that cave, so they’d been there without issue. But this was intentional on Su Bei’s part.

“You forgot the clan leader brought you back from there. No light came in,” Caige replied with a smile.

As Su Bei expected, Caige caught the flaw and pointed it out. He feigned embarrassment: “Sorry, I didn’t think of that. I was meddling and worrying for nothing.”

While speaking, he subtly tugged at Wu Jin’s hem, signaling his turn. Though Wu Jin didn’t fully grasp what Su Bei wanted him to ask, echoing Su Bei was always safe.

So, he casually tilted his head, revealing his stunning profile, his expression tinged with guilt, looking utterly pitiful: “Did we waste your time with this question? We’re really sorry; we didn’t think it through.”

“No worries, no need to apologize. You’re actually quite thoughtful,” Caige said. Despite his appearance not fitting her aesthetic, his face stirred an astonishing sense of beauty in her. Her expression briefly dazed, she instinctively wanted to comfort: “We indeed can’t handle light…”

Relying solely on passive charm fell short. Mid-sentence, Caige snapped back, realizing she’d misspoken, and quickly added: “I mean, we’ve lived underground so long, I’m guessing we can’t adapt to surface life anymore.”

But this was enough. A glint flashed in Su Bei’s eyes, though he pretended not to notice anything amiss, nodding naively: “That’s such a shame. I was hoping we could bring you to the surface someday.”

In his mind, though, he thought: As expected, they’ve known about the surface world and likely been there, or they wouldn’t know they’re sensitive to light.

If they’ve been to the surface, they must have a direct way back. Yet they clearly had no intention of taking them there, instead claiming they’d help find the cave they fell through.

The issue was obvious: they had no intention of letting them leave.

But their attitude didn’t suggest they wanted to kill them either. Given this, Su Bei’s second probe seemed unnecessary. Regardless, they definitely didn’t want them returning.

Caige shook her head, about to say something, when someone nearby interrupted: “Then tell us about the surface. Are all the people there as strong as you?”

If he wasn’t mistaken, this was likely a man, with white hair cropped into a buzz cut, wearing slightly masculine clothing. Notably, not all men here had short hair; many, like the clan leader, had long hair.

Likely due to arriving underground centuries ago, many retained ancient customs. But some were modernizing, with hairstyles reflecting this shift. Even in isolation, small societal progress continued.

This buzz-cut man’s words made Su Bei’s eyes light up. Curiosity about the surface was good news. Curiosity was the start of everything. If he could spark this man’s longing for the surface, he might lead them out.

Though Caige said they couldn’t handle light, given they had glasses to adapt to darkness, who knew if they had tools to return to the surface? They’d come from there originally; surely they’d left some fallback.

With this in mind, he smiled and began describing. He avoided sensitive topics like strength that could cause unease, focusing on interesting things: playing games, watching TV shows, and delicious foods.

To his surprise, the other party seemed uninterested. Though his lack of eyes hid his expression, his body language—subtle head shakes, unconscious arm swings—showed impatience.

Soon, he said something to Caige, gesturing for her to translate. But hearing him, Caige’s expression shifted, and she firmly told Su Bei: “Xiao Fan isn’t feeling well. Talk to him next time. Good kids, you two head back. I’ll take him to the doctor.”

Seeing the dismissal, Su Bei complied, bidding farewell and leaving with Wu Jin and Si Zhaohua.

Once out of sight, Si Zhaohua frowned: “They’ve been to the surface?”

Wu Jin had the same question. Though he hadn’t initially understood Su Bei’s intent and just followed along, Caige’s response made him realize Su Bei’s goal and the information she’d let slip.

“Seems like it, and they clearly don’t want us going back,” Su Bei shrugged, not dwelling on it. Instead, he asked: “Wu Jin, in your perception, what was that buzz-cut guy’s emotion when I answered his question?”

Sensing emotions was another of Wu Jin’s passive abilities, usable even with his Ability sealed, though less keenly: “I wasn’t paying attention when we first spoke to Sister Caige, but when you mentioned taking them to the surface, his emotions spiked briefly—probably joy. Later, when you answered his question, he was impatient.” In his area of expertise, he could say anything bit more than usual. Afterward, he clammed up, not wanting to say more.

Su Bei glanced at him, amused, and began pondering Wu Jin’s words. The joy suggested the buzz-cut man was indeed interested in the surface and wanted to go.

But he wasn’t interested in the entertainment Su Bei described, but rather a topic that made Caige’s expression change.

What could it be?

Su Bei was intrigued. Caige definitely knew something but had stopped the conversation. He felt she wasn’t just guarding against them but possibly against the buzz-cut man.

If Caige and others didn’t want Su Bei’s group returning, they likely didn’t want to go to the surface either, especially knowing they were light-sensitive. The buzz-cut man’s interest clashed with this, enough for Caige to be wary of him.

“His desire to go to the surface—could it be more than curiosity?” Si Zhaohua, adept at conspiracy theories, mused. “The surface has more space and resources. Even if they weren’t originally from there, learning about it would make them covet a better environment. Especially since they were driven down from the surface.”

As he spoke, Su Bei caught his drift: “You think Xiao Fan wants to lead his whole clan back to the surface?”

Si Zhaohua nodded: “Maybe we can use him to get back. Let’s discuss it with the others when we return.”

Back in the room, Jiang Tianming and the others hadn’t returned. Su Bei checked his phone for the time. Though it had no network or signal, basic functions worked. It was 8 p.m., and he wondered about the surface.

Cyril hadn’t lied; this was likely an independent space. Otherwise, with so much time having passed, their teachers would’ve found them. If the cave above was inaccessible, even finding it might not help them return.

Perhaps that’s why the clan leader was willing to take them to the cave tomorrow—knowing it was no longer a viable exit. They’d need another way back.

Caige surely knew this method, and the tribe leaders might too. Getting it through questioning was unlikely; they’d need to investigate their rooms.

Deciding tomorrow’s plan, Su Bei opened his phone to read manga. Though he couldn’t charge it here, and reading would drain the battery, phones were mostly useless underground except for timekeeping. Others had phones, so he might as well finish the updated manga chapters.

The manga started after their personal exhibition, with Ai Baozhu and others touring the venue. Their lack of reaction upon returning suggested they noticed nothing unusual.

But the manga’s perspective differed. The author, to plant foreshadowing, subtly revealed flaws. For instance, at the audience seats, occasional noises sounded. With people around, they assumed it was staff, not suspecting an issue in the seats.

Near the arena, they sensed hostile gazes but couldn’t pinpoint their source amid the crowd.

In the moment, they didn’t notice, but readers did, speculating something bad was coming. This was the advantage of the omniscient perspective; the author’s hints were easily caught.

After the foreshadowing, the plot moved to the next day’s team battles. The first match, not involving the protagonists, got a single panel. The real battle plot began with the second match, between Houde Ability Academy and Endless Ability Academy.

Since Su Bei was in this match, he read closely. The first half showed Jiang Tianming and others dominating, with comments full of praise.

Readers weren’t surprised. After so many crises and power-ups, if Jiang Tianming’s group could only tie with other students, those dangers would’ve been for nothing.

The turning point came when the opponent’s support, Li Bowen, rushed at Su Bei, and Su Bei said: “Oh, you’re here to drag me down with you.”

Like Jiang Tianming’s group, readers instantly sensed something off from their dialogue.

“What’s going on? Dragging someone down?”

“Weren’t Jiang Jiang and co. set to win? What’s Su Bei mean?”

Wu Mingbai also stood out. Elemental Abilities had a raw power aesthetic. The manga gave a wide-angle overhead shot of the arena cracking inch by inch, visually stunning.

Then, Jiang Tianming’s Ability finally shone, neutralizing Huangfu Mingzhe’s ultimate move.

When the move vanished, the author drew Huangfu Mingzhe with a shocked, cartoonish bean-eyed expression. Su Bei badly wanted to pluck it out and show the real Huangfu Mingzhe.

The match ended, concluding the chapter. Su Bei dove into the next.

It opened with the entertainment match voting, with the top ten’s popularity clearly displayed. The results were unsurprising; those with prior plot relevance were chosen. Readers had predicted these picks long before.

Zuzong’s name, unsurprisingly, sparked shock again—not in the manga but in reality. Su Bei saw comments saying, “Learned something; I’ll name my kid this too.” He could only silently mourn for those kids. The name was advantageous but begged for trouble.

After a brief daily-life segment, the next page showed Feng Lan’s Prophecy. Readers praised the team’s luck in having a prophet while hoping Jiang Tianming’s group could avoid danger through it.

Everyone knew that was impossible.

Sure enough, readers soon saw the group misjudged the focus, assuming the enemy targeted the audience.

“Oh, my babies, the real danger’s you!”

“Hahaha, I’m dying!”

“Process right, result wrong.”

“Feng Lan’s Prophecy is accurate but so easy to misinterpret.”

“Save the kids!”

“Instinctively worrying about the audience—good babies, just not the brightest…”

To Su Bei’s surprise, the next scene was his late-night talk with Mo Xiaotian. The author had included it!

After reading, Su Bei didn’t mind. The author wasn’t hinting at Mo Xiaotian’s identity. Beyond surprise that “Mo Xiaotian thought of this,” their talk seemed like mildly funny daily life.

The only unusual part was Su Bei’s reaction after. The author captured his solemn expression, with purple eyes darker than usual, like a storm brewing within.

This sparked much speculation.

“Why’s Su Bei like this?”

“Is there a problem with this talk? I didn’t catch anything.”

“Seems to tie to the anomalies Jiang Jiang’s group noticed earlier…”

“Did Su Bei sense something wrong with the venue?”

“Feels like Mo Xiaotian woke him up, or he saw something through the Prophecy.”

“Gotta say, Su Bei looks hot like this.”

For the second day’s entertainment matches, the author didn’t draw every Hide-and-Seek game, focusing on Lan Subing’s match with select highlights from others. The scenes were harmonious, but readers knew it was the calm before the storm.

Sure enough, the afternoon’s first match went wrong. Black-clothed figures from the audience seats poured out, sacrificing lives to form a magic array, summoning Cyril and Li Xiang.

The bloody scene shocked readers, who complained about the jarring shift from peace to gore.

Such a bloody start signaled that Black Flash wasn’t messing around. Cyril dropped a bombshell, pushing them to the edge: join Black Flash or die. Even in a shonen manga, such stark choices were rare. Readers prayed for a quick turn, hoping no one died, as that would ruin the fun.

A turn came, but not from danger to safety—more like from a tiger’s den to a wolf’s lair. When the group decided to take Cyril and Li Xiang down with them, Wu Mingbai and Huangfu Mingzhe collapsed the arena again, landing them in the underground world. The manga’s final panel showed vague silhouettes surrounding them in pitch darkness.

Su Bei knew the forums would be buzzing about this last scene.

Though pointless—readers couldn’t guess much or know more than he did—Su Bei opened the forum. With nothing else to do but wait, it was better than boredom.

As expected, the forum was full of posts speculating where they’d landed. He clicked into the most popular one.