He still had to maintain his public persona. Moreover, Lin Shubei had not expected Lu Renyi to trust him so much. He could not resist puffing out his chest and shooting a smug look at the two people behind him.
Then he composed his expression and looked at Zhou Cheng.
"I've found someone. This is absolutely fair and impartial. He isn't from Class F, so no one can say you're bullying us. Tell me what we're competing in. I'll see it through to the end."
Only after standing beside Lin Shubei did Lu Renyi realize that the protagonist's overdramatic adolescent aura seemed to have surrounded him.
Should he run away in a moment?
Lu Renyi's gaze darted around as he tried to find a safe route that would let him sprint back to the dormitory.
"Host, this is a rare plot point you can pass through safely. Don't casually think about running away!"
Lu Renyi drew back the left foot he had just shifted. He put on a solemn expression and pretended nothing had happened. Outwardly, he listened to Lin Shubei and Zhou Cheng trade harsh words; inwardly, he haggled with the System.
"This may be a comic-book world, but I'm a conscious, living person. Being surrounded by an ocean of chuunibyou declarations all day is damaging to my physical and mental health."
"...Then should I apply for a small cash reward for you?"
Remembering how Lu Renyi had asked for cash earlier, the System tentatively tested where his bottom line lay.
Lu Renyi was clearly willing to lower that line for money.
"Certainly, boss. I'll work hard!"
When Lu Renyi finished spacing out, he saw Lin Shubei playing rock-paper-scissors with Zhou Cheng. After Zhou Cheng won, he led someone into the room beside the testing chamber. It was a simulated exercise room, and its most basic use was reproducing various combat environments for training.
Noticing Lu Renyi's confusion, Lin Shubei conscientiously took on the role of explaining.
"He said we need to settle this quickly, but we can't fight directly out here or the academy will discipline us. So we'll choose an environment in the simulated exercise room and finish within ten minutes. Rock-paper-scissors decided who got to set the environment."
Understood. That was why Lin Shubei had lost the game just now.
The protagonist's group was the group most likely to encounter danger and trouble. The System's words surfaced in Lu Renyi's mind at a most inopportune moment.
Well, he had already boarded the pirate ship. He might as well follow its rules.
"Then let's go in too. I have class tonight."
"No problem. Don't worry, Lu Renyi. I'll definitely help you. Just stand behind me later. I guarantee they won't lay a finger on you!"
"Why, thank you."
"You're welcome! I like straightforward people like you who draw their blades when they see injustice!"
Lin Shubei's direct attack knocked Lu Renyi's sarcasm straight back at him. Lu Renyi knew it was an act, but he still felt sorry for Lin Shubei's friends. If they had to spend time with him in public too, they must have had a difficult time before, right?
Only after everyone entered did Zheng Jue step forward and bring the restless crowd under control. Ke Qi was not afraid of him. He quietly edged closer, intending to glance at Lu Renyi's report, only for Zheng Jue to catch him in the act.
"Teacher, that report isn't anything shameful. It won't hurt to let me look, will it?"
Ke Qi understood the purpose of this assessment perfectly well. It was nothing more than preparation for next year's World Ability User Tournament.
Unlike other academies, every team selected from Supernova Ability Academy included not only the strongest people in Classes S and A, but also quite a few from Class F.
The academy publicly claimed that it evaluated overall strength, but some of the selected students looked so frail that another person could seemingly kill them with a single slap. Unfortunately, the entire Ability User Tournament was confidential. Only those with admission passes could watch, and they were forbidden from publicizing it.
As a result, some people in the country believed that the academy's failure to achieve a good result came from not selecting everyone from Class S like other academies did.
When Zheng Jue notified them early about the assessment, Ke Qi had already suspected it was related to the tournament. The records of everyone qualified for the later national selection would be marked in each category and archived in advance.
The atmosphere between Lu Renyi and Zheng Jue had been far too strange. Instead of the relaxed and pleasant exchange most people had seen, Ke Qi believed it had been a pretense. Lu Renyi was one thing, but why had Zheng Jue also spoken in such a guarded, roundabout way?
"Excessive curiosity kills everyone. Don't ask what you shouldn't."
Zheng Jue knew what Ke Qi was asking about. Ke Qi had merely noticed Zheng Jue's attempt to probe Lu Renyi.
But Zheng Jue found it strange too. Given his personality, speaking indirectly or issuing veiled warnings should have been impossible. Yet when he faced Lu Renyi, he had instinctively softened his manner instead of intimidating him within a few sentences as usual.
As Zheng Jue's thoughts wandered, his fingers unconsciously rubbed the report in his hand. He recalled the footage of Lu Renyi inside the testing chamber.
Most people were frightened by the enormous number of aberrants the moment they entered. Even if they later discovered that the creatures were virtual, overcoming the fear was no small challenge.
Lu Renyi was different. The first thing he did after entering was glance at the surveillance camera.
The cameras in the testing chambers had been specially designed by the academy's teachers. Tiny and thin, each was no more than a speck attached to a corner of the wall and almost impossible to notice.
Yet Lu Renyi discovered it almost the instant he walked in. He adjusted his stance, and every strike in the battle avoided the camera. Zheng Jue could see only the aberrants he knocked down over and over, along with the various readings on the recorder climbing without pause.
—Almost exactly twice as high as they had been during his admissions assessment.
Speed, strength, reaction time—every score exceeded 90, and Lu Renyi still looked perfectly at ease. When he left, he even waved at the camera in greeting.
There was no conclusion yet regarding his psychic power or ability use, but judging from Lu Renyi's behavior, neither could be poor.
Another person hiding his strength.
Zheng Jue had taught for almost ten years, and nearly every year he encountered students like this. They clearly possessed enough strength to enter Class A or even Class S, yet insisted on pretending to be weak.
That was why the academy's selection covered the entire school. The sensors attached to students could measure their potential as thoroughly as possible and analyze their true strength.
But people like that were generally in Class F. According to habitual thinking, it received the least attention. Zheng Jue and the others, however, were already accustomed to watching Class F in secret every day, and they always found a few promising students.
As far as Zheng Jue could remember, Lu Renyi was the first one to hide in Class C.
Unable to coax out any information, Ke Qi did not press the matter. He could always find an opportunity to sneak in and look later. His ability was suited to infiltration, so naturally he had to make the fullest use of it.
The Class A and Class F students were all undergoing assessments. Other than Qi Yue and Jian Yi, who had originally stood behind Lin Shubei, no one believed Lin Shubei and Lu Renyi would win.
To be precise, even those two only believed in Lin Shubei. To everyone here, Lu Renyi was more like an outsider.
Therefore, when Lu Renyi and Lin Shubei emerged from the simulated exercise room first, most people looked their way. When Zhou Cheng and his teammate were dragged out behind them, heads hanging as vines bound them, the entire training ground erupted.
"It seems there really is a need to expand the selection throughout the academy."
Ke Qi spoke with feeling as he edged toward Zheng Jue.
"This selection should be interesting. I remember the previous ones were mostly Classes S, A, and F. This time, there should be someone from Class C too, right, Teacher?"
"If you want in, work for it. At least that would be better than standing here running your mouth."
Ke Qi had been needled several times by Zheng Jue but showed no anger. Instead, he walked over to Zhou Cheng with a cheeky grin and asked whether he had won or lost.
The result was obvious at a glance, yet Ke Qi insisted on making Zhou Cheng say it aloud. Zhou Cheng could not afford to offend him, so with a face swollen from several punches, he suppressed his anger and admitted that he had lost.
The scene was so bizarre that even Lu Renyi could not help looking away. The protagonist's group consisted of either drama junkies who liked pretending to be sweet, naive fools or dyed-in-the-wool drama junkies. This world was finally doomed.
"You're very strong. Why are you in Class C?"
Lin Shubei held back for a long time but ultimately could not resist returning to the earlier topic. Yet if he had received no answer in the simulated exercise room, he was even less likely to get one outside.
"You're strong too. Why are you in Class F?"
Lu Renyi evaded the subject again, tossing the question back as he prepared to hear the proper speech expected from the protagonist of a hot-blooded shonen comic.
"Because comic protagonists always start in Class F. The back row by the window—the birthplace of kings. How cool is that?!"
Lu Renyi closed his eyes in despair.
The experience from only minutes earlier should have warned him, but he had refused to learn. He stubbornly tried to find some trace of Lin Shubei's usual composure, only to deal himself blow after blow.
A few minutes earlier, inside the simulated exercise room.
The moment Lu Renyi entered, he saw towering trees all around. Even the air had grown noticeably damp.
Zhou Cheng and his teammate had chosen a simulated forest.
"This environment is quite realistic. The room looked tiny from outside, but there's a surprising amount of space in here."
After entering, Lin Shubei returned to his usual self: aloof and taciturn. Seeing this, Lu Renyi gravely discussed with the System the possibility that the protagonist had a split personality.
Neither of them showed the slightest anxiety. They strolled along as leisurely as if they were on an outing. After a full three minutes, Zhou Cheng and his teammate, who had been hiding in the shadows, lost patience first and attacked.
Zhou Cheng's ability controlled the earth element, while the other person's controlled the wood element. This virtual environment was extremely advantageous to both of them. Otherwise, they would not have decided to end things quickly after seeing Lu Renyi and Lin Shubei amble along.
Zhou Cheng ranked only in the lower middle of the expert-packed Class A, but he craved the spotlight. He could only find other ways to stand out, and Lin Shubei was the method he had chosen.
For more than a decade, Zhou Cheng had always been treated like the moon surrounded by stars. But in Class A, few people fawned over him, no matter how much wealth or power his family possessed. The enormous contrast peaked today when he arrived for the assessment and saw Lu Renyi and the Class F students.
He might not compare to the others in Class A, but surely he couldn't be inferior to someone from Class C or Class F too, could he?
Besides, Zhou Cheng had researched this year's incoming students in advance. Only a few families possessed real wealth, power, and influence, and most of their children were in Class S. Their class had Ke Qi, while Class F had the Xie family's youngest.
Other than them, Zhou Cheng took no one seriously. He had deliberately avoided the Xie family's student, fearing it would be difficult to clean up the aftermath. He had not expected Lin Shubei to be so easy to provoke. After only a few sentences, Lin Shubei had proposed a contest himself.
Perfect. Zhou Cheng could vent his frustration too.
When Zhou Cheng and his teammate attacked, the surrounding trees extended their branches. Even the grass on the ground grew wildly, trying to bind Lu Renyi and Lin Shubei's hands and feet.
Lin Shubei planted two steps on a lashing vine and used it as leverage to kick at Zhou Cheng's neck and shoulder. He then landed on a tree branch and reached down toward Lu Renyi, who still stood where he had begun.
"Come up here. It's dangerous below."
Lin Shubei had complete confidence in his strength. He believed that although various circumstances had landed him in Class F, he was probably a little stronger than Lu Renyi. Moreover, his attention was fixed on Zhou Cheng and his teammate, so he failed to notice that the environment had not affected Lu Renyi at all.
Zhou Cheng was different. He was clearly less wary of Lin Shubei than of Lu Renyi. Even though Lin Shubei's kick had left his shoulder throbbing, Zhou Cheng's instinctive contempt for Class F under the ranking system remained unchanged.
"Why aren't you attacking Lu Renyi?"
"I am, but he seems to be dodging everything."
Zhou Cheng thought it natural that someone in Class C would be stronger than Lin Shubei. It was perfectly normal for Lu Renyi to evade the attacks, so he relaxed.
If the attacks were ineffective, that was probably due to Lu Renyi's own ability. Since he could control plants, Lu Renyi must also possess a wood-element ability.
With that thought, Zhou Cheng finally began using his own ability. His precise control over the earth element allowed him to reshape the ground beneath his feet however he pleased.
For example, he could raise earthen spikes of all shapes or create fissures that collapsed the instant someone stepped on them.
No one could die inside the simulated exercise room. These things were virtual and could cause injuries at worst. As for how severe those injuries might be, this was only a spar. Accidents happened, did they not?
The moment Zhou Cheng placed his hand on the ground, a seemingly bottomless fissure raced directly toward Lu Renyi. Lin Shubei intended to pull Lu Renyi away, but the surrounding vines attacked again. They could not hurt him, but their sheer number inevitably kept him occupied.
"Using lethal moves against a classmate? Careful, or I'll tell the teacher once we're outside."
Lu Renyi calmly stepped aside. He walked across the shaking ground as steadily as if it were level. When his gaze swept over, the bad premonition Zhou Cheng had felt from the beginning reached its peak.
Before Zhou Cheng could defend himself, Lu Renyi charged directly at him and swept a leg toward his waist and abdomen. Caught off guard, Zhou Cheng flew backward and only stopped when he struck a nearby tree trunk.
By the time he assumed a fighting stance, Lu Renyi was in front of him again in almost the blink of an eye. His attacks were so swift that Zhou Cheng had no time to react.
The person controlling the plants around Lin Shubei was also beginning to struggle. When he divided his attention to look toward Zhou Cheng, he saw a human figure hurtling in his direction.
With no more vines blocking his view, Lin Shubei finally saw the scene before him. Zhou Cheng and his teammate lay stacked atop each other like acrobats, while Lu Renyi stood nearby, yawning as he admired the scenery. From time to time, he even kicked Zhou Cheng and told him to get up.
"Hey. You were the one who said using lethal moves was fine. Why are you playing dead now? And you—I didn't even attack you. I only threw someone on top of you. Is this really necessary?"
Lin Shubei walked over with a complicated expression. He looked at the two people on the ground grimacing in pain, then at Lu Renyi, whose persona was obviously unlike the composed one he had seen in the dormitory.
"Your ability is impressive. I saw him change the shape of the ground, but you didn't seem affected. Are you also an elemental type?"
"My student record says I'm psychic-type. I just dodged quickly and fought him, that's all."
The same psychic type as Lin Shubei. Had Lu Renyi also controlled someone's mind, allowing him to avoid injury from Zhou Cheng's ability?
"Do you want to see my ability? Its effect isn't as flashy as theirs."
Most psychic-type abilities involved manipulating thought and lacked any one-hit-kill trump card. But people with exceptionally high psychic power could control an enemy's mind and force them to hang themselves. Lin Shubei was also a psychic-type ability user, so he naturally knew that these abilities could never look as flashy as elemental ones.
"I'm psychic-type myself, so I know these abilities well. Besides, psychic types are powerful. Think about it—we can kill without leaving a trace. How cool is that?!"
Yes, while inexplicably pretending to be a sweet, naive fool before Zhou Cheng and his teammate, Lin Shubei had immediately imagined using his ability to kill. How cool indeed.
"Then I'll show you. You can crouch down and watch their expressions."
As Lu Renyi spoke, he extended a hand toward Zhou Cheng and his teammate. Lin Shubei obediently crouched. Then he felt a powerful surge of energy flow from Lu Renyi's hand toward the two people on the ground.
Lin Shubei could not see the energy's path. He could only sense how pure it was as it slowly enveloped the two men.
Lu Renyi's psychic power could not be low. At the very least, it was higher than Lin Shubei's own. Lin Shubei knew he could not currently maintain such a continuous, stable output.
"That should do it."
Lu Renyi's words pulled Lin Shubei from his wandering thoughts. He was crouched directly before Zhou Cheng, so when his focus returned, Zhou Cheng's expression was the first thing he saw.
Unlike the grimacing cries of pain from moments before, Zhou Cheng now stared blankly with wide, unfocused eyes. His face was pale, his mouth gaped without producing a sound, and his entire body trembled.
The person beneath him was the same. He could not even tremble, only quiver his lips and stare straight ahead. Both looked trapped in a nightmare.
This differed from the psychic manipulation Lin Shubei knew. Normally, if he wanted to control someone's actions, he had to issue the corresponding command. Even if he stopped them from moving, they would not show such naked terror.
"My ability is called Silent Prison. It can plunder anything from a space enclosed by psychic power: color, temperature, sound, psychic power, life force—even things that exist only as abstract concepts."
Lu Renyi's voice came from beside him. Lin Shubei turned and saw that Lu Renyi had also crouched to study Zhou Cheng and his teammate's expressions. When their eyes met, Lu Renyi even smiled.
"You think it's rather boring too, don't you?"
The moment Lin Shubei met Lu Renyi's gaze, cold sweat erupted across his body. This was the first time he had been so close to Lu Renyi, and therefore the first time he noticed faint streaks of dark red mixed into Lu Renyi's irises. When Lu Renyi looked at someone from close range, he resembled a vampire from a novel hiding among the crowd.
But Lin Shubei was not frightened away. On the contrary, he found it fascinating.
"That's an impressive ability, but if you're this strong, why are you in Class C? Shouldn't you be in Class A? You're far stronger than this guy. Did you want to avoid attention? You could have joined Class F instead. We might even have met sooner."
The flood of words struck Lu Renyi so quickly that he did not know which part to mock first. Class F clearly drew plenty of attention too. Had Lin Shubei not noticed that Classes S, A, and F shared the same group of teachers?
Lu Renyi felt that pointing this out would be too obvious, so he could only throw the question back.
"You're quite strong too. Why are you in Class F?"
For a moment, Lin Shubei did not know how to answer. He asked Lu Renyi to give him time to organize his words.
Lu Renyi nodded indifferently and withdrew his psychic power. When the two men abruptly regained awareness and gasped for breath, he grabbed one in each hand, hauled them up, and left the simulated exercise room.
The recollection ended.
Lu Renyi had not expected the answer Lin Shubei spent so long devising to be something like that. He could not decide whether to praise Lin Shubei for his self-awareness as a protagonist or mock him first.
"What about you? You still haven't said why you're in Class C. With your strength, shouldn't you at least have a chance at Class S?"
The question stirred up a storm. The discussion Zheng Jue had just suppressed erupted the instant Lin Shubei finished speaking.
"System, are you sure Lin Shubei wasn't sent by you to make my life miserable?"