Chapter 14
“Active?” Su Bei raised a surprised brow, nearly forgetting his forum account. This was good news. It let him shift from reactive to proactive, steering forum discussions.
Excited, he asked: “Can I log in directly?”
“Manga Consciousness” confirmed: “Yes, but as a new account, you need to choose a name.”
Though anonymous, the forum required account names for posts to prevent trolling.
Names could change every three months—real-world months, an eternity in manga time—so naming was critical.
Logging in, Su Bei reached the profile page. After much thought, he settled on—“Prophet.”
The next morning at 8 AM, Class F sat promptly in the classroom, awaiting their first lesson.
Despite itching to check the manga, Su Bei didn’t dare use his phone during the first class, dutifully powering it off to listen.
As the bell rang, a refined, glasses-wearing female teacher entered.
She stepped to the podium: “Happy first day, students. I’m your Ability Theory teacher, Zhou Minwen. Call me Teacher Zhou. Since we have a quiz at month’s end, let’s not waste time and start the first lesson.”
She swiftly wrote on the board: “What Are Abilities?”
As class began, Su Bei focused. Unless you could afford private Ability tutors, this knowledge was exclusive to the academy.
Though theory seemed useless, like all theory courses, skipping it risked big trouble.
The teacher continued: “You’ve likely had guesses about this question since awakening your Abilities. I’ll call on a few students to answer, and it’s a chance to know each other.”
The student nightmare of being called on arrived. Those who knew the answer sat confidently, while others fidgeted, dreading embarrassment.
Whether by plot inertia, the first called was Jiang Tianming. After his pre-school adventures and Lan Corporation’s tutoring, he answered easily: “It’s an energy in the human body.”
The first student nailing it saved time. Teacher Zhou was pleased: “Correct, Jiang Tianming, right? Studied ahead?”
Jiang Tianming nodded honestly.
She didn’t mind, knowing many students learned about Abilities pre-enrollment. Waving him down, she continued: “Abilities are an energy in our bodies. We develop this energy to enhance our Abilities. A key point: this energy exists in all humans.”
Pausing for reactions, she saw many unprepared students gasp, thinking only awakened Ability users had it.
“If everyone has it, why do only we awaken Abilities?” an impatient student asked.
“Because our energy is more active, making awakening easier. Most Ability users awaken at 15, when our energy peaks. But experiments show ordinary people, younger or older, can awaken under extreme stress.”
Like Wu Mingbai, who awakened before 15.
The teacher explained Ability activity, types, strength, and their interplay simply.
Ability types were innate. Higher activity eased awakening. Strength depended on development methods and user aptitude. More active Abilities were easier to develop.
Knowing Class F had mostly useless Abilities, she cited cases of “trash” Abilities becoming powerful through deep development.
The most famous was top celebrity Lin Zhi, whose initial Ability, [Gardenia Smile], made her laughter emit a gardenia scent—a classic trash Ability, landing her in Class F.
Through development, her scent could now affect souls. Seeing her smile or hearing her laugh marked you for tracking or attack, and weaker-willed people instinctively liked her.
Rising from Class F with a “useless” Ability to a renowned Ability user, she was an idol to many.
But such cases were rare. Most Class F students were better off ignoring their Abilities or, like Su Bei planned, using them for modest profit.
At the lesson’s end, the teacher stressed gravely: “I know many of you dislike your Abilities, but unlike faces, you can’t ‘fix’ them. All known attempts to change innate Abilities ended in dire consequences—permanent disability, Ability loss, or death. Most people lack Abilities. If you dislike yours, live as a normal person after graduation. Don’t risk your life for a slim chance at power. Cherish life, love yourselves. Class dismissed!”
“Goodbye, Teacher!”
As she left, the quiet classroom buzzed. Su Bei didn’t rush to the manga, turning to Feng Lan: “Your prophecy about something happening on the first day came true.”
Feng Lan, somehow informed of events, thought and warned: “The school’s not safe lately. Be careful.”
“Of course,” Su Bei feigned ignorance. “After yesterday’s incident, it’s definitely not safe. Wonder who did it.”
At the last line, he asked curiously: “Can you use [Prophecy] to find the killer?”
If so, this first manga event might just be the author’s ploy to connect the protagonist trio with Feng Lan.
That’d be ironic for Su Bei.
Luckily, Feng Lan shook his head: “I’ve used this month’s specific prediction. Next use is next month. By then, if the killer’s not caught, they’ve likely covered their tracks.”
Relieved, Su Bei said: “I bet someone will approach you about it. Don’t want trouble? Just refuse. I’m hitting the bathroom.”
With a ten-minute break, he rushed to check the manga.
Behind him, Feng Lan’s face showed rare complexity: “Could it be him…?”
In the bathroom stall, Su Bei opened his phone, launching the app. The manga had updated. Taking a deep breath, he dove in.
[The manga opened with the school gates, a red banner reading, “Happy First Day, First-Years!” Students in uniforms, backpacks slung, entered in pairs, faces full of anticipation. Awakening Abilities and joining the academy was an exhilarating journey for these young blooms.]
Having read the first manga, Su Bei knew the artist’s skill. Simple character shots built reader excitement for the school arc.
As expected, real-time comments went wild, restricted to the top to avoid flooding the screen.
[Next, the protagonists in blue uniforms appeared. Manga Jiang Tianming, Lan Subing, and Wu Mingbai mirrored their real selves, creating an odd dissonance.
Chatting, they recapped events from the first manga’s end to the school start, summarized in a few flashback panels. After bridging the prior plot, the trio entered the teaching building.
Since Wu Mingbai was in a different class, they parted reluctantly—though only Wu Mingbai, the drama queen, was reluctant. Jiang Tianming and Lan Subing were unfazed.
Notably, Lan Subing’s inner monologue snarked the whole way. She mentally roasted the boys’ outfits, the “Happy First Day” banner, their summer blunders, and Wu Mingbai’s overacting.
Who’d guess this silent beauty had such a rich inner world?
As classmates trickled in, Su Bei watched closely, noting who got close-up shots. Common sense said those with close-ups had future roles.
Unsurprisingly, Feng Lan got one. Su Bei’s first look at manga Feng Lan: white hair, golden eyes, a face hitting national heartthrob vibes, filling a full panel.
Lan Subing’s inner voice chimed in: “What a hot guy!”
The shot lingered until Feng Lan walked to the back, flopped down, and slept, shifting to the next character.]
This segment had plenty of comments, praising Feng Lan’s looks and the season’s high character quality.
Zhao Xiaoyu, the first to self-introduce, Mu Tieren, who led the running, and Wu Jin, who trailed last, each got minor shots.
Close inspection showed they were drawn more detailed than others, subtly so.
Su Bei noticed because he sensed these three were special. Barring surprises, they were likely key characters!