Chapter 696 Suppressing Superpowers

"Everyone, step back."

Professor Tang spoke again when no one moved immediately.

The people surrounding the table retreated several meters.

Lei Ying dispersed the weak flame above his palm and frowned.

He hadn’t touched the black mist, yet his superpower was already affected.

It felt as if something heavy had pressed down on his energy core and slowed its rotation.

He could still use his ability, but it took more energy than usual. Even then, the power he released was less than half of what it should have been.

"What about your cultivation?" Chu Miao asked.

Lei Ying circulated the spiritual energy in his meridians before shaking his head.

"My spiritual energy seems fine."

That was somewhat reassuring.

Most core members of the Chu Sect cultivated while possessing superpowers. Even if their abilities were suppressed, they wouldn’t become completely helpless.

However, the same could not be said for the majority of ability users outside the sect.

Commander Shen turned to the other military officers.

"Are any of you affected?"

Two of them nodded.

One was a wind ability user, while the other had enhanced strength.

The remaining officers were ordinary cultivators, so they did not notice anything unusual.

Professor Song observed the black mist spreading inside the protective cover.

"It specifically targets energy cores formed after superpower awakening."

"Could it damage them?" Commander Shen asked.

"We don’t know yet."

Professor Song looked at Lei Ying.

"Would you be willing to help us test it?"

Lei Ying took another step back.

"I suddenly remembered that I have somewhere to be."

The saber-toothed tiger, still in its smaller form, sat near the wall and looked at him.

"Weren’t you complaining earlier that no one appreciated your ideas?"

"Having a useful idea and becoming a test subject are two different things."

Professor Tang adjusted the controls on the protective cover.

"We will not expose you directly. I only need you to stand nearby while we measure the changes in your ability."

Lei Ying hesitated.

"Will it hurt?"

"It shouldn’t."

"Shouldn’t?"

"We have never tested it before. How would I know for certain?"

Lei Ying turned toward Chu Hao.

"You have a superpower too."

Chu Hao folded his arms.

"My swordsmanship is more important."

"What kind of excuse is that?"

"A reasonable one."

Lei Ying looked around the room, but every other superpower user avoided his eyes.

He finally sighed and walked toward the protective cover.

"If something happens to me, remember that I sacrificed myself for humanity."

"You are standing three meters from a sealed box," Chu Hao reminded him.

"A sacrifice is still a sacrifice, no matter the distance."

Professor Song pointed to a marked spot on the floor.

"Stand there and stop talking."

Lei Ying obeyed.

Professor Tang placed several instruments around him before asking him to produce a small flame.

A bright red flame appeared above his palm.

It looked normal at first, but as Professor Tang opened a tiny ventilation port on the protective cover, a trace of the black mist escaped into a second sealed chamber.

Lei Ying’s flame immediately shrank.

The instruments on the table began displaying different readings.

Professor Wu wrote down the results.

"Ability output has fallen by thirty-two percent."

Professor Tang released a little more mist.

The flame became smaller again.

"Fifty-one percent."

Lei Ying’s face lost its playful expression.

He could feel his energy core becoming increasingly sluggish. It wasn’t painful, but controlling his ability was getting harder.

It felt like trying to run through deep mud.

"That’s enough," Chu Miao said.

Professor Tang immediately closed the port.

An air purification device pulled the escaped mist into a glass container.

A moment later, Chu Miao waved her hand and sent a gentle stream of spiritual energy through Lei Ying’s body.

The pressure around his energy core loosened.

"Try again."

Lei Ying raised his hand.

The flame returned to its normal size.

He carefully checked his energy core before relaxing.

"There doesn’t seem to be any permanent damage."

"For such a short exposure," Professor Song corrected him. "We still don’t know what would happen if someone remained in that mist for several hours."

"Or several days," Professor Wu added.

Lei Ying looked at them.

"Must you make everything sound worse?"

"We are researchers. We have to consider the worst possibilities."

Chu Miao examined the black mist in the glass container.

It remained active even after being separated from the crystal core.

"What happens when spiritual energy touches it?"

Professor Tang looked at her.

"We haven’t tested that yet."

"I will."

Ye Xuan caught her hand before she reached for the container.

"I’ll do it."

Chu Miao looked at him.

"Ah Xuan, it only suppresses superpowers."

"And I have a superpower."

That was precisely why he was more suitable.

Unlike the others, Ye Xuan’s lightning and ice abilities had reached a very high level. He had also just advanced to the Divine Transformation stage, so his cultivation could protect him if something went wrong.

Chu Miao thought about it and nodded.

"Be careful."

Professor Tang moved the glass container into another protective chamber.

Ye Xuan stood beside it and released a thin strand of lightning.

The purple lightning entered the chamber through a small opening and touched the black mist.

Crackle!

The mist scattered for an instant.

However, instead of disappearing, it gathered again and wrapped itself around the lightning.

The bright purple strand became dim.

Ye Xuan’s eyes narrowed.

His lightning ability was being consumed.

He increased the output.

The chamber filled with purple light.

This time, the black mist couldn’t suppress it completely. Part of it burned away, while the rest retreated to the corners of the container.

Professor Wu watched the readings.

"A sufficiently powerful ability can resist it, but the energy consumption increases several times."

"That would be dangerous during a long battle," Commander Shen said.

An ability user might be able to forcefully break through the suppression for a short time, but they would exhaust their energy much faster.

If surrounded by zombies, running out of energy could be fatal.

"Try using spiritual energy," Chu Miao suggested.

Ye Xuan withdrew his lightning and sent a small wave of spiritual energy into the chamber.

The result was completely different.

The black mist twisted and attempted to avoid the spiritual energy.

When the two came into contact, the mist thinned noticeably.

Professor Tang leaned closer to the instruments.