A Guide for Background Characters to Survive in a Manga-Chapter 71

Chapter 71

Dinner was not arranged by the school. Anyway, there was a food street nearby, so Meng Huai simply waved his hand grandly, letting the students roam freely.

Of course, the school would not reimburse the cost of eating at the food street. Those who wanted to save money could eat at the small restaurant next to the hotel, where the school would cover the bill.

However, even the poorest students, Jiang Tianming and Wu Mingbai, had no intention of pinching pennies this time.

They also needed to relax a bit. Moreover, having learned the price of Nightmare Beasts today, the two were optimistic about their future earnings and were no longer as frugal as before.

Leaving the hotel, everyone briefly shared their plans. Jiang Tianming, Wu Mingbai, and Zhao Xiaoyu planned to convert their gains from the day into cash.

Ai Baozhu and Lan Subing, not feeling hungry yet, decided to go shopping together. The rest of the group obediently went to eat.

Oh, this group didn’t include Zhou Renjie, who was still holed up in his room, sulking. Regarding his lunch, Si Zhaohua said he’d buy something to bring back for him.

Arriving at the nearby food street, the mixed aromas of spices and meat wafted over, making one’s mouth water.

As everyone knows, skewers are a great thing! No matter the night market, skewers are the ultimate go-to for a satisfying meal!

But our young master Si Zhaohua clearly didn’t think so: “Is there not a single restaurant around here? I’m not eating at these roadside stalls. Su Bei! Keep that skewer away from me!”

Su Bei, holding a skewer in one hand, looked at him with a teasing grin: “Have you never eaten skewers in your life? Even the skewers you eat in a restaurant are grilled outside!”

“Then I won’t eat skewers!” Si Zhaohua, unusually inelegant, rolled his eyes. “Roadside stalls are filthy.”

“Actually, roadside stalls aren’t as dirty as you think.” Without Jiang Tianming around, Li Shu typically adopted his gentle, heartthrob persona. “The uncle wouldn’t cheat us, right?”

The skewer vendor uncle smiled at the group of vibrant students but didn’t chime in.

Mo Xiaotian ate with the least grace, tearing off a huge chunk of meat with one bite, his mouth stuffed full, his words muffled: “Ze guo zhen de chao ma wei, zhao hua kuai lai chi a (This is really super delicious! Zhaohua, come eat)!”

Si Zhaohua already wanted to leave, afraid his white shirt would get stained with oil here.

Sensing his intent, Su Bei shouted: “Stop him!”

At his words, Mu Tieren and Mo Xiaotian flanked Si Zhaohua from behind, blocking his path.

“What are you doing?” Si Zhaohua turned and glared at him.

Su Bei shrugged nonchalantly: “Look, even Feng Lan and Qi Huang aren’t complaining. Why are you making such a fuss? Got a cleanliness obsession?” The two mentioned were indeed each holding a meat skewer, eating heartily. Hearing him, Qi Huang critiqued Si Zhaohua’s behavior: “Don’t like skewers? No taste!”

Mo Xiaotian, standing opposite Si Zhaohua, gave her a thumbs-up, echoing indignantly: “No taste!”

Even the usually aloof Ling You and Wu Jin silently nodded.

Si Zhaohua: “...”

Thankfully, there were still kind souls. Feng Lan swallowed his bite of meat and said calmly: “There probably aren’t any restaurants nearby. This stall is relatively clean.”

This wasn’t entirely to comfort Si Zhaohua. Compared to stalls set up right by the roadside, this one, tucked further in, was indeed much cleaner.

Si Zhaohua still frowned but knew he couldn’t skip dinner. Why not order takeout? With that thought, he opened his phone, searched, and then showed a despairing expression. This place had no takeout!

Seeing his phone screen, Su Bei burst out laughing: “This is Ability users’ territory. Ordinary people aren’t usually allowed in. Where would takeout come from?”

Clearly, there were no other options. Si Zhaohua gritted his teeth, finally taking the skewer Su Bei handed him and, with a do-or-die resolve, took a bite.

Hm? The taste wasn’t bad?

Seeing him silently take a second and third bite, everyone exchanged smiles, and no one mocked him further.

“Hey? Ling You, could you hear Qi Huang just now?” Suddenly, Mo Xiaotian, as if discovering a new continent, asked in surprise.

Since Ling You wore earphones, they usually assumed she couldn’t hear clearly and would deliberately raise their voices when talking to her.

Ling You spoke in a cool, clear voice: “The night market’s too noisy, so I didn’t play music.”

Previously, she wore earphones partly to avoid people talking to her and partly to listen to music to relax. But with the crowded night market, she stopped listening to music to avoid missing conversations.

Unlike Lan Subing’s social anxiety or Wu Jin’s low presence, she was simply aloof and spoke little, but she’d still respond when spoken to.

“I see. So what music do you usually listen to?” Mo Xiaotian, unfazed by her cool demeanor, asked enthusiastically.

Ling You wasn’t deliberately cold; it was just her natural personality. She replied: “Sad music. It helps me brew viruses that are more likely to kill.”

Her Ability was [Plague], an extremely powerful and highly destructive Ability. But plagues came in many forms, not all deadly.

So far, the viruses Ling You had mastered could barely be called plagues, at best common viruses. Based on her research, the worse her mood, the easier it was to develop stronger viruses.

Compared to other methods, listening to sad music was relatively the easiest.

The group was surprised to learn her earphone habit was tied to Ability development. After her explanation, Su Bei asked curiously: “If you listen to happy music, could you develop something like a laughing poison?”

Mo Xiaotian’s imagination was sparked, and he jumped in: “And if you listen to calm music, could you create a euthanasia poison?”

“Listening to rock music would make a rabies virus!” Qi Huang added, her imagination running wild.

Seeing others about to join in, Ling You hurriedly said: “I’ve tried. Other emotions don’t work. And what you’re describing isn’t something I can develop. The key to a plague is its contagiousness.”

Her Ability wasn’t poison; it was [Plague]. Against individuals or small groups, her Ability might not be strong. But in a crowd, Ling You could shine.

This Ability was indeed something special.

Growing boys could eat their parents out of house and home. Laughing and joking, everyone ate a ton, the pile of skewers enough to circle the Earth, truly boosting the vendor’s revenue.

Notably, despite his complaints, Si Zhaohua ate plenty. Mo Xiaotian had the biggest appetite, followed by Mu Tieren, then Si Zhaohua.

But that was only because Jiang Tianming and Wu Mingbai weren’t there; otherwise, Si Zhaohua might have ranked lower.

Su Bei didn’t focus on him, instead staring in shock at Mo Xiaotian, unable to fathom how such a small frame could hold so much food.

Mu Tieren’s physique made his appetite seem reasonable, but Mo Xiaotian, noticeably smaller than Su Bei, ate even more than Mu Tieren, which was absurd.

Looking at Mo Xiaotian’s barely bulging stomach despite eating so much, Su Bei couldn’t help but quip: “Is there a Different Space in your stomach?”

Mo Xiaotian rubbed his belly, grinning: “I’m still growing. My family says a big appetite is a blessing.”

“That’s true,” Mu Tieren nodded affirmatively. “A big appetite is a blessing.”

Su Bei dropped the topic, too lazy to ask why Mo Xiaotian ate so much yet stayed so short. Comic worlds often lacked logic in this regard; being short as a teen didn’t mean staying short as an adult.

Sated (sans alcohol), the group strolled back, taking a detour through the street selling items. They ran into Jiang Tianming’s group, who had finished dinner, and returned together.

These items were typically made by Ability users, storing their Abilities in containers that could hold them for others to use.

Like the Invisibility Charms and Fireball Charms provided by the school.

Compared to the school’s, these were far cruder and less useful, mostly trivial items.

But where there’s a protagonist, there’s always a chance to strike gold. Jiang Tianming managed to buy a sealed talisman paper from the dazzling array of goods.

The vendor said he’d found it during a Different Space adventure. A professional appraisal only concluded it had multiple seals, but since they couldn’t be undone, it was unusable. After some haggling, Jiang Tianming bought it at a rock-bottom price.

Su Bei’s mouth twitched as he said to [Manga Consciousness] in his mind: “If I remember correctly, this is a comic world, not a novel world, right?”

[Manga Consciousness] saw no issue, even sounding smug: “Novels can borrow comic tropes, and comics can borrow novel tropes. That’s called blending the best!”

“Whatever makes you happy.” Su Bei shook his head helplessly, his gaze lingering on the talisman.

Since [Manga Consciousness] said so, that talisman must have significant value.

What could it be?

Back at the hotel, Ye Lin was at the entrance. Wu Jin finally brought up a topic, seemingly casually (though his “casual” was quite deliberate): “Is Teacher still angry?”

Ye Lin’s eyes flickered, glancing subtly at Su Bei before smiling and shaking her head: “It’s fine now.”

She turned and left.

Once she was gone, everyone looked at Wu Jin. Ai Baozhu asked curiously: “Angry about what? Teacher Ye gets angry?”

Lan Subing’s gossip instincts kicked in, her eyes gleaming with excitement: “Did she fight with Teacher Meng or Teacher Lei?”

Surrounded, Wu Jin looked to Su Bei for help. He wasn’t socially anxious but wasn’t used to being the center of attention with his hair covering his face.

Catching his gaze, Su Bei spoke up: “The teachers weren’t satisfied with our training results today and argued about whether to stop accompanying us starting tomorrow.”

At that, everyone’s expressions shifted. Even the weakest in Class S were proud. Hearing the teachers were dissatisfied with their performance naturally stung.

After pondering why the teachers were unhappy, Jiang Tianming asked tentatively: “Is it because we were too lax?”

It was the only reason he could think of for the teachers to consider not following them. With teachers around, even knowing danger was near, they couldn’t feel any urgency.

Su Bei nodded: “They said they won’t follow us tomorrow but are worried about parents causing trouble, so they’ll give us a liability waiver.”

He looked at Si Zhaohua and the others, his tone serious but laced with mockery: “If you’re afraid of danger, you can choose not to sign. The teachers will specifically follow those who don’t.”

Qi Huang, with her fiery temper, was the first to react, catching Su Bei’s hidden meaning. What “worried about parents causing trouble”? It clearly meant fear of their families pressuring the school.

“Huh? You think I’d be scared?” Qi Huang said firmly. “I was prepared for all kinds of dangers when I awakened my Ability. As long as the contract’s fine, I’ll definitely sign.”

Though he knew the school wouldn’t scam them, Si Zhaohua was more cautious: “We’ll see the contract tomorrow.”

Having dealt with the teachers’ task, Su Bei leaned back on the sofa, relaxed, watching everyone chat. Suddenly, [Manga Consciousness]’s prompt sounded in his ear: “[King of Abilities] has updated. Please take note.”

The comic updated? Su Bei raised an eyebrow. This update took a long time, a full month, longer than any previous one.

Since the team battles ended, they hadn’t experienced much, just training, training, and more training. But Su Bei didn’t think this time was wasted. Undoubtedly, everyone had made significant progress, like a collective intensive course.

Honestly, he wished for more such training. Growing stronger always felt safer. Once he was ridiculously powerful, facing villains would be a breeze, right?

But he knew without thinking that villains’ strength always scaled with the protagonists’, especially in this comic world where evil often outpowered good.

The more they trained outside the comic’s plot, the stronger the villains would become. Thinking this, he’d rather skip the training.

That aside, after [Manga Consciousness]’s prompt, Su Bei could feel himself getting slightly stronger. But he couldn’t pinpoint where exactly and would need to explore it later.

Back in his room, he didn’t immediately check his phone but first examined himself to identify what had improved.

After testing his Ability’s functions, Su Bei showed rare excitement. He had enhanced the one ability he needed most—reducing the cost of altering fate!

This was likely due to the plot where he snapped his fingers to defeat the Purple-Haired Woman, a memorable scene that brought a bigger change.

In truth, that change was minor. He acted when the Purple-Haired Woman was already crumbling, like the final straw. It barely affected the process or outcome, using only a quarter of his Mental Energy, which let him stay composed.

But in the readers’ eyes, he single-handedly defeated her with ease. They believed he could effortlessly alter fates, so his fate-altering cost dropped significantly.

Now, repeating that action would likely cost only a tenth of his Mental Energy.

Undoubtedly, this was thrilling news! Improving physical skills, Mental Energy, or Ability functions were all boosts, but none were as valuable to him as reducing the cost of turning the pointer.

Satisfied, Su Bei finally opened his phone. The comic had updated a while ago; he needed to check it quickly.

The latest chapter started from the end of the team battles. Having narrowly escaped danger, everyone was excited. From the visuals, Jiang Tianming’s expression remained heavy, as if deep in thought. Finally, as Su Bei was about to leave the field, he called out to Su Bei, saying he’d come find him later.

The scene shifted to the dorms, with Jiang Tianming standing at Su Bei’s door, hesitating before knocking.

[“When I was escaping, I saw you up in a tree, but when I went back, you were gone. Where did you go during that time?”]

As this question was asked, a flashback followed.

[After successfully detonating the bomb, Jiang Tianming fled with his teammates. Having seen Su Bei jump down from a tree earlier, he instinctively glanced up and unexpectedly saw Su Bei leisurely sitting in the tree, watching the show.

With several black-clad figures chasing him, Jiang Tianming couldn’t call out to Su Bei and kept running. After finally shaking them off, he went back to find Su Bei.

It wasn’t for any specific reason; with everyone scattered, Su Bei was the only one whose location he knew, and he naturally wanted to regroup with a teammate.

But unexpectedly, when he reached the spot, the tree was empty, and Su Bei was nowhere to be found.]

This plot alone seemed innocuous, but combined with the cliffhanger from the last chapter, it easily sparked speculation.

“Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh!”

“What did I say? Su Bei’s definitely the spy!”

“Disappearing at that moment—could he be the owner of those white shoes?”

“Aaah, are they revealing the answer so soon?”

“The spy is really Su Bei?”

“So sudden!”

Su Bei’s vague response seemed to confirm he was the spy. But surprisingly, the later comments weren’t uniformly convinced he was the spy; a small group suspected this was a red herring by the author.

After all, the information was given too blatantly, without any subtle foreshadowing, which didn’t match the author’s style.

Dropping a bombshell at the start, the comic then coasted as if meeting a KPI, shifting to daily life and slowly fleshing out impressions of Class S and its members.

Wu Jin and Zhao Xiaoyu’s inclusion was undeniably surprising, and after Wu Jin admitted to getting in through connections, the comic hinted via Zhou Renjie’s inner thoughts that he might be tied to the principal.

The training content wasn’t very informative. Su Bei planned to skim it, but his flipping slowed.

The only useful part for him was that the comic portrayed him as far stronger than the others.

While others were still in the first training phase, Su Bei was already in the second. Even in the second phase, he outperformed everyone else.

Readers noticed, and the comments flew.

“Class S is full of hot guys and girls, and there are two new characters!”

“Ling You’s so pretty, yay for female characters!”

“Is Li Shu a green tea type?”

“I now think Su Bei’s the strongest this year.”

“Su Bei gives off veteran-crushing-newbies vibes.”

“The daily life is so satisfying!”

“He definitely didn’t go all out in the individual battles, right?”

Looking at the training scenes, Su Bei suddenly felt a realization. Unknowingly... he had caught up?

When he first awakened his Ability, Su Bei knew how useless his [Gear] was, so he never had extra expectations for the Ability world. He and the Ability world were two straight lines, intersecting once in a lifetime.

He wasn’t disappointed or despairing, just regretful. Ultimately, Abilities were just one of many talents, albeit special.

Then, chosen by [Manga Consciousness], learning he nearly died, discovering the world’s truth, he was forced to use readers to boost his Ability.

Everything happened so fast. His body adapted instinctively, but his mind lingered at the start of school. In his heart, he was still the ordinary person who’d leave the Ability world after graduation.

Only now, seeing the comic, did he feel a sense of reality. He was no longer that Class F Su Bei. He was now stronger than most, not even weak in Class S.

He had truly integrated into the Ability world.

Crack

Suddenly, Su Bei felt a faint shattering sound in his mind, and his Mental Energy grew slightly, perceptibly!

With his current high-level Mental Energy, further growth was incredibly hard. That a shift in mindset could drive this was an unexpected bonus.

Good things lift spirits. Two breakthroughs in one day put him in a great mood, and with a smile, he continued reading.

A month passed, and the Different Space training began. After showing the protagonists preparing, the scene shifted to a silver-white lab.

[A man in a butler outfit, back to the camera, reported to someone, a Black Lightning mark faintly visible on his neck: “They’ll undergo a week-long training tomorrow. Our people are already in place.”

“Well done.” The person being reported to seemed to be conducting an experiment, occasionally showing a gloved hand holding a scalpel.

He paused, tossing a vial of red potion to the butler: “This time, you go personally. I want them alive.”

“Yes!”]

Su Bei’s brow furrowed slightly. He’d long guessed the Black Flash organization would act during this training, but seeing it confirmed still gave him a headache.

The good news was the boss wanted them alive, meaning he wouldn’t face immediate mortal danger. As long as he wasn’t killed instantly, there was room to escape.

In the Sand Sea Different Space, the comic detailed the setting, giving a general impression.

The environment description was dull, but the classmate dynamic among Meng Huai, Ye Lin, and Lei Ze’en was intriguing, with comments begging for a flashback arc for the trio.

Su Bei doubted it would happen unless their popularity lasted until the season’s end, which might warrant a side story.

After settling in, everyone gathered at the plaza outside the Different Space. The conflict with Skydome Ability Academy was, unsurprisingly, depicted. Wu Mingbai and Jiang Tianming’s unyielding dialogue thrilled readers, and Su Bei’s exchange with Li Shu heightened anticipation.

“These guys are so annoying. Do they think being a year older gives them superiority?”

“Hahaha, Wu Mingbai, master of shade!”

“I love this innocent shade!”

“Can we just beat these guys up?”

“Jiang Tianming is so cool!”

“I’m so jealous of people who can stay calm and clap back in arguments. I just get flustered.”

“Did Li Shu make a move?”

“Li Shu, if you make them pay, I’m buying your merch!”

“Who gets it? I love a vengeful protagonist team!”

Skydome Ability Academy’s later dialogue was shown, revealing their intent to retaliate, raising Su Bei’s eyebrow.

Since they didn’t act today, they’d likely cause trouble in the coming days. With Black Flash also planning to act, Su Bei half-hoped they’d clash and fight each other.

The comic used Jiang Tianming’s perspective to show Su Bei stepping back before the crowd arrived.

After Skydome’s people were driven off, the group entered the Different Space. An overhead view showed a vast desert with a tiny rest stop, surrounded by a transparent blue Barrier.

Invisible to the naked eye, this Barrier was likely set by the Ability Government to protect the rest stop.

The rest stop was crowded. Thanks to the author’s skilled art, the seasoned veterans’ calm contrasted sharply with the protagonists’ inexperience, making it clear who was new and who was seasoned.

The veterans’ amused expressions were also captured. Many protagonists noticed and showed wary looks.

As they were about to line up to leave the rest stop, the camera followed Jiang Tianming’s gaze to Su Bei, who stepped back again. This time, Jiang Tianming joined him.

A thought bubble showed Jiang Tianming’s reasoning: “Su Bei stepping back means something’s up. I’ll follow.”

Feng Lan, about to exit the Barrier, seemed to realize something and stepped aside. Zhao Xiaoyu, seeing this, smartly followed suit.

But Mo Xiaotian, oblivious, strode out carelessly.

The smart ones’ retreat wasn’t for nothing. The first group to leave indeed faced danger.

After fending off ambushing Nightmare Beasts, Si Zhaohua and others, thanks to the veterans’ applause, noticed those who had stayed back, avoiding the fight entirely. freeωebnovēl.c૦m

Thus began the reckoning.

Readers laughed hysterically at this part.

“Hahaha, so shady, Su Bei!”

“Jiang Tianming, you’re no better!”

“Little Tian, didn’t you notice the two in front of you acting off?”

“Hahaha!”

“No wonder that expression. Nightmare Beast ambushes outside the rest stop must be routine.”

“Finally noticed these slackers.”

“Man, they’re all pros at dodging blame.”

“Su Bei: ?”

“Hahaha, that incredulous look!”

“Su Bei, you dared pin it on Teacher Meng? So bold!”

“Got punished, huh? (No mercy)”

After traveling through the desert, the teachers vanished. Feng Lan relayed the teachers’ goal—find the “Closed Point.” Jiang Tianming’s analysis confirmed it was due north.

On the way, Qingqing’s group of four appeared. Before showing malice, readers had a decent impression of them. Qingqing’s Ability was interesting, and the team was fun.

After agreeing to cooperate, issues emerged—they asked too many questions.

Each key question was preceded by several others, and with four of them, it felt excessive.

Smart readers already sensed their probing.

During a break, Jiang Tianming, Si Zhaohua, and Su Bei discussed finding the Closed Point. When Su Bei mentioned something they shouldn’t know, comments exploded.

“Yeah, how did Su Bei know?”

“I feel like Su Bei has info channels we don’t know about. The stuff he says doesn’t seem like it’s all from his Ability.”

“Definitely a spy? Did Black Flash feed him intel?”

“So many mysteries around Su Bei. I’m calling him [King of Abilities]’s most enigmatic character!”

Su Bei was surprised by this plot. Though he lived it, he couldn’t know others’ thoughts.

The comic showed Jiang Tianming’s inner monologue, deducing from Su Bei’s words that his info came not from his Ability but another channel, which impressed Su Bei.

This was good for him. He’d planned to use the “Prophet” account to leak this, but now it seemed unnecessary.

The conspiracy erupted when they found quicksand and prepared to search for the Closed Point, starting with Zhou Renjie and Brother Knife returning from the bathroom.

As the sun set, their surroundings grew eerie, shifting from warm to cold lighting.

[After Jiang Tianming’s group went down, Zhou Renjie confronted Su Bei, whom he thought was the strongest: “Su Bei, I need to talk to you.”

He expected Su Bei to be off guard, but Su Bei grinned playfully, as if anticipating: “Good news or bad?”

Bad, of course... Zhou Renjie felt a sinking premonition: “...Good, of course.”

As expected yet unexpected, Su Bei laughed: “Lying. If it’s bad news, I’m not getting involved.”

With that, he vanished.]

Commenters went wild.

“Aaah, Su Bei, you’re such a cool baby!”

“Help! He’s so my type!”

“Predicted it again? Ran so fast!”

“Wait, what’s this vanishing skill? Does Su Bei’s Ability have that function?”

“Dodging danger three times a day, I’m calling you the top escape artist.”

“Danger’s always one step behind me.”

After realizing Wu Jin had vanished too, they swallowed Ai Baozhu and tied up Feng Lan, and the perspective shifted underground.

The underground maze was fun for readers, a classic comic trope that never got old.

But for Su Bei, who wanted hidden info and had seen most of it through a mirror, it was less engaging. He skimmed until they resurfaced, then slowed to read on.

The underground arc wrapped up, and the focus returned to Qingqing’s group. Seeing Zhou Renjie’s assessment of him, Su Bei raised an eyebrow.

Admittedly, Zhou Renjie understood him—or at least the persona he projected. Teacher or not, this persona wouldn’t meddle.

But personally, if the teachers were gone and safety wasn’t guaranteed, Su Bei would contact the school to arrange a rescue.

The comic didn’t vilify Zhou Renjie here, casting him as a comedic, unlucky character.

He loved Qingqing deeply, wanting to help her, but knowing the teachers were watching, he sabotaged her to lessen her crimes and punishment. His inner struggles were peak lovesick behavior.

As the dust settled, Ye Lin tried to give him potion, but Zhou Renjie adamantly refused. As Ye Lin’s expression numbed at his nonsensical rant, readers laughed hysterically.

“Help! Hahaha, Zhou Renjie, you’re so pathetic!”

“Such a tragic guy!”

“Live well on the next planet, kid.”

“...If I were him, I’d break down.”

“Hope when he sobers up and recalls this, he can resist the urge to kill.”

“Hahaha!”

From these comments, Su Bei figured Zhou Renjie’s prior bad impression had mostly faded. Even Jiang Tianming and Wu Mingbai, who’d clashed with him, felt pity after this fiasco, let alone readers.

A clown wasn’t a villain.

Reading these, Su Bei mused. What was the author thinking? To redeem Zhou Renjie, creating a protagonist team with no true villains? Or to lower readers’ guards before hitting them with a bigger twist?