Chapter 178 - 177: Depleting Too Fast

Duan Feiye’s expression shifted slightly.

He had guessed that Xu Jianjuan had followed him because she had something to say.

But the way she asked made the corner of his mouth twitch uncontrollably.

Duan Feiye studied Xu Jianjuan with a probing gaze. "That’s not a place you can go."

As far as he knew, Yan Qin and Xu Jianjuan weren’t close.

In other words, Yan Qin had spent a vast amount of resources trying to curry favor with down-and-out nobles who liked to put on a brave front.

Duan Feiye had noticed the pity and regret Xu Jianjuan showed for Yan Qin, but he didn’t think she would get involved.

So why was she asking about the apartment now?

Other than Yan Qin, Duan Feiye couldn’t think of any other reason.

He wasn’t tall enough to meet her gaze directly, and when he lowered his eyes, all he could see was her high ponytail.

Duan Feiye’s shoulders relaxed, and a playful smile touched his tone. "Are you pitying Yan Qin?"

Xu Jianjuan no longer remained silent. "She chose her own path. There’s nothing to pity."

Whether or not to forgive Yan Qin was Jian Yu’s business.

She just wanted to know where the Border Area Apartment was.

’In my past life, I knew so little. I really thought getting into the Central Academy made me some kind of savior.’

’Later, after studying the history of the nobility, I learned that fortunes always turn. For ordinary people to be protected and live stable lives was already a great privilege.’

’In the early years, when the Soul Beast bloodline awakened, those who couldn’t control their forms or their Soul Beasts were hunted and killed by ordinary people, chased down like prey to be studied.’

’Now, the establishment of a noble class was merely a reversal of status. Humanity was divided into two types: the nobles became the superiors, and the commoners, in turn, became their prey.’

’In this life, I just want to live for myself.’

Her vision gradually focused. Coming back to her senses, she offered a deathly smile. "Sorry to have bothered you."

The smile vanished from Xu Jianjuan’s lips, and she turned to leave.

Duan Feiye watched her retreating back. "It’s near the Alliance Base. If you’ve got the skills, you can try testing in to see for yourself."

Xu Jianjuan paused but didn’t turn around.

She said softly, "Thank you."

Duan Feiye gave an elegant, slight bow and departed quickly.

...

Jian Yu logged out of the game and found that the two people beside her were both awake.

She stopped herself mid-stretch and glanced from side to side.

One was lazing about with a hint of pent-up energy.

The other was arrogant and alluring, and when he saw her looking, he grinned at her.

Jian Yu felt a bit dizzy, unable to think of a topic for conversation.

After checking the time, she asked awkwardly, "Are you guys hungry?"

Pei Yin leaned over, pressing against her. "We didn’t sleep, so why are you so out of it?"

Before he pulled away, Jian Yu wrapped her arms around his waist for a moment. "Aren’t you guys going to the competition today?"

Pei Yin sat back up, his tone self-righteous. "Nope. It’s a freshman event. We’d just be sparring partners if we went. It’s boring."

He glanced at Jian Yu’s wide eyes. "I was in the first half, and Si Xu and the others are in the second. Xi Yu and your Ayan are usually there for the whole thing. He’s slacking off, leaving your Ayue there all by himself."

Ling Yanzhi took out an insulated lunch box. "We just grabbed a few things. See if there’s anything you don’t like."

A partitioned dining table was set up, displaying seven or eight dishes.

Pei Yin turned on the ventilation system to clear the air. "Everything you picked... isn’t it all stuff she loves to eat?"

He walked back, scanned the spread, then pulled out a nutrient pack and chugged it like water. "Suddenly, I’m not really used to eating real food anymore."

Jian Yu looked at him, a beat too slow. "You seem angry."

Pei Yin said sourly, "Of all this food you’re eating, not a single dish was picked by me."

The meat was chosen by Xi Yu, the vegetable dishes and soup were from Ling Yanzhi, and the fruit was added by Si Xu.

Jian Yu asked curiously, "What did you get?"

Pei Yin adopted a doctor’s tone. "I prepared a medicinal meal for you. It’s good for your health, but they said you wouldn’t like it."

Jian Yu fell silent.

She really didn’t like it.

Pei Yin felt a surge of frustration. "You would have been better off not asking."

Ling Yanzhi handed Jian Yu a pair of chopsticks. "Does the game need any improvements?"

Jian Yu said hesitantly, "The settings are a bit... invincible."

She opened her Star Brain and logged into the game’s backend.

Pei Yin raised an eyebrow. "What’s wrong with being invincible? Games are meant for you to beat, not for them to beat you."

He raised a hand and swiped the game screen over to himself.

He opened the game and looked at the parameters.

Pei Yin was silent for a moment. "It is a bit invincible. Infinite energy consumption. No wonder you could play for so long."

It was configured based on Jian Yu’s condition, but many of the values were clearly wrong.

He searched for a long time but couldn’t find any leveling progression.

Jian Yu hastily shoveled down two mouthfuls of rice. "Mhm."

She looked up, her large eyes darting around cleverly.

Ling Yanzhi chuckled. "We wanted her to experience the fun of it."

He looked down and met Jian Yu’s gaze. "You eat first. We can talk after you’re done. I’ll adjust it."

Pei Yin fiddled with the game screen. "I may be a doctor, but I should know a little about this stuff too."

Having studied her for so long these past few days, he felt he had a decent understanding of Jian Yu. "In a bit, I’ll ask some questions. You just nod or shake your head."

Jian Yu nodded. "Okay."

That was the only nod.

After that, it was all head-shaking.

"..."

After a good deal of fuss, it was clear the problem was significant.

Pei Yin estimated, "So, in other words, you can fight a 2S Awakened, but only one at a time. Maybe you can barely take on a 3S Awakener? And you can handle 10 to 15 opponents below Level 2S?"

He stopped fiddling with the chain on his hip with his right hand.

Ling Yanzhi’s lazy posture also straightened into a serious one.

"..." Jian Yu watched as their expressions shifted from hesitation to surprise, and finally to gravity.

Finishing her last bite of food, she reached out to clean up.

"Let me, Yu Baby." Red Snake slithered over, and with a sweep of its tail, flicked everything into the Space Ring.

Its immature, doll-like voice was crisp and androgynous, like a small child’s before their voice changes.

"Thank you." Jian Yu stroked its head as it came closer, her fingers curling around its tail.

Perhaps worried about being overheard, Ling Yanzhi and the others rarely mentioned that her Soul Beast was fake anymore.

Jian Yu understood their caution and rarely brought up the truth herself.

She looked up, breaking the silence. "My Soul Beast... is it very different from yours?"

Ling Yanzhi’s gaze fell on her fingers, and his Adam’s apple bobbed.

Half of Red Snake’s tail was coiled around Jian Yu’s wrist. The contrast between red and white was stark, creating a strange, eerie beauty.

"You defeated Yan Yu without much effort, but you were exhausted afterward?" Pei Yin’s brow furrowed. "Your Soul Beast’s energy is being consumed a little too quickly."

’Is it a matter of quantity?’

He recalled their first experiment. "That day we took you to test your abilities, you killed several people in an instant."

Ling Yanzhi reminded him, "The strongest among them were S-Class. The rest were just Half-awakened."

The incident with Liu Xing didn’t give Jian Yu a chance to go all out.

But merely summoning the nearby Alien Beasts had also drained a lot of Jian Yu’s energy.

"Normally, a 3S Awakener’s consumption rate isn’t that high. They could take on five Yan Yus without a problem."

Ling Yanzhi thought of the emotion detector that had been collecting dust. "Your energy replenishment... does it require emotions?"

Pei Yin shot back, "Then how much emotion would that take? It seems like she’s never fully charged."

Jian Yu didn’t know either.

She wanted to ask Shi Zhao, but when she opened her Star Brain, she saw he hadn’t replied to her dozen or so messages.

She had no idea what had happened to him.

She wanted to find him, but the question was, where were the Primordial Beast Clan People?