Chapter 348 - A Guide for Background Characters to Survive in a Manga

Chapter 348: The Rescue "Is there anything else you need me to do?" Ai Baozhu asked Su Bei with rare consideration after arranging for him to stay in the room next to hers. Her attentiveness, however, wasn't entirely without a motive; she knew Su Bei must have a purpose for being here and was hoping her diligence might coax the truth out of him. Seeing Su Bei shake his head, Ai Baozhu unfolded the too-small map of the Yan Kingdom, revealing its sharp edge. "Why did you tell me to be careful earlier?" "As one of only two defenses in this refuge city, isn't it normal for me to advise you to be cautious?" Su Bei replied leisurely. Unfortunately, Ai Baozhu wasn't buying it. She snorted lightly, "If that were all it was, would you really bother to warn me?" In her experience, Su Bei wasn't someone who meddled in others' affairs, let alone gave unsolicited warnings. If he did mention something, it meant he foresaw some unexpected danger awaiting her. Admittedly, Ai Baozhu indeed knew Su Bei quite well; this was precisely the case. However, Su Bei wasn't able to warn her about specifics. Firstly, because he wasn't aware of exactly what was going to happen, and secondly, because it was part of a fixed storyline. If Ai Baozhu remained unscathed, how would the sacrifice unfold, and how would Jiang Tianming and the others play their roles? So even if Su Bei warned her, it would be to no avail, as events were destined to happen. Feigning sadness, Su Bei dabbed at nonexistent tears. "I didn't expect you to see me this way; it truly breaks my heart." Ai Baozhu finally couldn't hold back, rolling her eyes as she got up to leave. "Fine, I won't ask you anymore." Just as she reached the door, something seemed to occur to her. She turned around and asked, "Can I tell others that you're here?" She meant Jiang Tianming and the group. Su Bei pondered for a moment; although telling them didn't seem like an issue, it was better to keep things simple, so he declined, "No, they'll find out when the time comes." This statement almost openly informed Ai Baozhu that something was going to happen in Refuge City No. 3. Truth be told, she was tempted to go and alert the leaders immediately, urging them to send additional reinforcements. But since Su Bei hadn't made such a request, Ai Baozhu decided against making any unnecessary moves. After all, fate was a nebulous concept—Su Bei could see it and alter it precisely. However, she couldn't, and acting on a hunch might inadvertently fulfill the predetermined misfortune. In about a week, the Nightmare Beasts would make their move, so for the next few days, Su Bei didn't stir up any trouble. Instead, he leisurely explored Refuge City No. 3, both to familiarize himself with the terrain and to identify individuals with uniquely significant fate compasses, preemptively linking their fate compasses together. Su Bei's fate linking wasn't restricted to immediate activation and usage; he could leave a window of time open. Essentially, he could connect the fates in advance and trigger them days later, and the connection wouldn't break during this period. However, he could only maintain this link for a maximum of three days, no longer. By connecting some fates ahead of time, he could effectively conserve mental energy. Humans and Nightmare Beasts were different—the fate compasses of humans were far more complex. Even in large group environments, replicating on a large scale like with Nightmare Beasts was challenging. The scenery of the refuge city was unique. Due to its temporary nature, the city was quite simplistic, with all buildings made of stone to ensure durability. As far as Su Bei knew, each building here had a basement, constructed specifically by a soil-element defensive superpower user. This offered residents an additional layer of protection and effectively thwarted enemy attempts to break in from underground. City residents patrolled in shifts, covering the entire city. This ensured that no matter when an eye beast entered the city, there would always be someone to respond immediately. While ordinary people couldn't eliminate Nightmare Beasts, they could call other superpower users to handle them in time. Amidst the serious and tense war atmosphere, idlers like Su Bei seemed out of place. If Ai Baozhu hadn't personally escorted him in, he might have already been mistaken for a spy and captured, or driven out as a freeloader. What they didn't know was that Su Bei wasn't idling; he was connecting the fate compasses of the residents. On the fourth day, Su Bei felt invigorated upon leaving his room. At last, the moment had arrived! All the fate compasses above people's heads had transformed, with the small pointers uniformly directed to the far-right, while the large pointers varied in position, mostly pointing to the lower half. "Did the protagonist group fail to act?" Su Bei suddenly recalled something and queried "Manga Awareness" in his mind. "Or has the author included what I'm about to do in his plans?" He had initially thought the sacrifice would conclude with the protagonist group discovering the Nightmare Beasts' den and thwarting the "Black Lightning" organization's plot. But seeing the casualties, he realized that wasn't the case. He suspected it might be because the author had included him in the manga storyline, necessitating his intervention to deliver a no-casualty completion. But even that seemed odd since he wasn't a manga character and wasn't under the author's control. Didn't the author worry about him failing? However, the awareness clarified, "Not exactly. This city's residents are insignificant—to die or not die. Their survival doesn't affect the story. Even if they perish, the protagonist group's actions elsewhere prevent the sacrifice from completing." Su Bei was suddenly enlightened upon these words. Indeed, the author hadn't included him in the storyline but had given him ample space to act. Whether he succeeded or failed wouldn't impact the plot's progression. With that reassurance, he turned to find Ai Baozhu. Since today's the day of the Nightmare Beasts' operation, Ai Baozhu would surely be the first in danger. Su Bei wasn't aiming to prevent her from getting into trouble but wanted to save her promptly once it happened. He had risen at eight, but Ai Baozhu had been waking even earlier these days, typically at around six. By this hour, she should be at the city wall, following her usual routine. With this thought, Su Bei made his way to the city walls, but he didn't find her there. He inquired with a nearby guard, "Where did Ai Baozhu go? Isn't she supposed to be on patrol here now?" The guard, knowing Su Bei was Ai Baozhu's friend, didn't hide anything. "Miss Ai Baozhu was just called away by a leader." "Which leader?" Sensing something amiss, Su Bei pressed, "Where was she taken, or where is that leader's office?" Although it seemed like information that shouldn't be disclosed to outsiders, Su Bei's sudden seriousness prompted the guard to instinctively respond, "Building A, room 502." Seeing Su Bei turn to leave, the guard attempted to stop him, "Hey, where are you going? If you disturb an official meeting, you'll certainly be punished." Su Bei didn't turn back, merely waving him off, "It won't involve you." With no impediments behind him, Su Bei quickly left and arrived at Building A, room 502. In these circumstances, knocking was unnecessary; worst-case scenario, his superpower could excuse any wrong assumptions as a mere indication. As it turned out, his instincts were correct. Due to the simplicity of the room and the lack of obstructions, he could see everything clearly after kicking the door open. A middle-aged man, cigarette in hand, stared in shock at the sudden appearance of Su Bei at the door. Beside the man lay Ai Baozhu, unconscious on a chair. In an instant, the man recovered, his expression turning vicious as a dagger appeared in his hand, poised to strike Ai Baozhu's neck. Su Bei immediately shot a gear at the man's wrist, disrupting his action. At that moment, a pink glow emanated from Ai Baozhu's neck, indicating her self-defense mechanism had activated. Su Bei didn't give the man any chance; as the man moved to act again, Su Bei manipulated the fate compass, causing the man to suffer a sudden heart attack and collapse. Ordinarily, he might have conserved his mental energy, especially with an upcoming task that required significant mental reserves. However, being a leader of a refuge, the man's capabilities couldn't be underestimated. If Su Bei didn't act swiftly, he risked losing the upper hand. After dealing with the man, Su Bei checked on Ai Baozhu. She remained deeply asleep, unresponsive to any attempts to rouse her. Su Bei sighed, heading to the window. He'd already heard the noise outside, and now, seeing the situation confirmed it. Nightmare Beasts had silently infiltrated various parts of the city, catching the superpower users off guard and forcing them into a frantic defense. This was expected, given that a refuge leader was in league with the Nightmare Beasts. Issues within the city were almost inevitable. Su Bei placed a defensive item next to Ai Baozhu, enveloping her in a protective shield, and then headed out towards the city tower. His goal was to reach the highest point, allowing him to view everyone's fate compasses. At this moment, the city tower was nearly deserted, with only a few guards remaining. With internal issues at hand, there was little concern for external threats—after all, Refuge No. 3 was surrounded by several others and lacked a Nightmare Gate nearby, making the likelihood of external trouble quite slim. The few guards present did not stop him. After all, Su Bei alone couldn't open the main gates, so what harm could there be in letting him ascend the tower? Reaching the highest spire, Su Bei activated his superpower, linking everyone's fate compasses. Thanks to his past few days of preparation, it didn't consume much mental energy, as he efficiently connected everyone's compasses and aligned their main needles to the upward position. Following this, he used his remaining mental energy to connect the compasses of the Nightmare Beasts, stopping just as he was on the verge of mental exhaustion, and instantly unleashed his skill! In the next moment, massive stones rained down from the sky, precisely striking each Nightmare Beast linked by Su Bei. Su Bei glanced upward, spotting two faint black dots in the sky. He raised an eyebrow, amused by the peculiar method of demise. Remembering the task at hand, he couldn't help but smirk slightly. "When the principal asks, I come running—what a diligent student I am," he mused. Since the author seemed keen to reveal the identity of the "Fate" organization's leader before the readers, seeing this comment, they would likely insert information in the manga that Principal Wu Di asked for the leader's personal involvement.