Chapter 55

Chapter 18: Ningning Cheerleader

　Bai Ling held up her index finger, and Yuan Xiaoling instinctively flinched, thinking she was about to get it bad.

　But Bai Ling just wanted to show a number one.

　”Firstly, more and more people are awakening their spiritual power, so the number of Spiritual Energy Manipulators keeps growing. But human society’s resources are limited; the cake won’t keep getting bigger forever. There will be conflicts eventually.”

　Then, Bai Ling also held up her middle finger, and Yuan Xiaoling flinched again.

　Reflex action, sorry about that.

　”Secondly, there are always conflicts in people’s lives, especially with the internet age dragging on for so long—almost everyone has been trolled at some point. You never know how long someone who’s had a grudge against you will hold onto it or if they’ll suddenly snap and try to retaliate against you.”

　”Spiritual awakening can happen quite abruptly. Maybe a plain old homeless guy wandering the streets could one day just gain powers out of nowhere. Plus, breaking through tiers is highly emotional. Extreme fluctuations in emotions can lead to sudden enlightenment or achieving divine insight in a flash, which corresponds to the ‘technological explosion’ in the original story.”

　At this point, Bai Ling paused briefly. She had originally broken through to Fifth-tier due to immense anger and sorrow after being stabbed in the back by Xin Lan.

　”They think that if they reveal their abilities, someone they’ve conflicted with might also be a Spiritual Energy Manipulator. They’d worry that once they grow stronger, they’ll seek revenge. So, they may act preemptively, eliminating the threat before it grows. This corresponds to the suspicion chain from the original story.”

　Bai Ling’s gaze turned icy.

　”Thus, early on in the circle of Spiritual Energy Manipulators, an erroneous rule was established—and during this initial phase… the current stage—it’s still being applied.”

　”Dark Forest,” Yuan Xiaoling interjected.

　”More or less like that.”

　Bai Ling had also thought that the assassinations she encountered in her previous life were probably related to this rule. As for investigating the truth, it merely reminded the other party of her existence.

　Yuan Xiaoling had almost shrunk under the chair, only her little head showing above the table: “You say the Dark Forest is an incorrect rule for Spiritual Energy Manipulators… then what’s the correct one?”

　”Who knows? Maybe in the next phase…” Bai Ling said casually, “Anyway, you’ll find out soon enough.”

　Calculating the timeline, the next phase should be approaching soon, starting with the collapse of Tianhai Tower.

　Speaking of which, the “bomb maniac” Ray Sen, who was supposed to blow up the load-bearing pillars of Tianhai Tower in the future, had already been killed by herself ahead of time. Would Tianhai Tower still collapse as scheduled? Would it happen differently?

　In her previous life, Bai Ling had heard some rumors that Ray Sen wasn’t smart enough to come up with such a clever plan himself. It was most likely someone else’s idea, probably someone familiar with the building’s internal structure, working inside and out.

　Unfortunately, Tianhai Tower isn’t a place where you can just poke around freely. It’s impossible to investigate openly because it’s the headquarters of the Hai Tian Yi Se Chamber of Commerce, where nearly half of all Spiritual Energy Manipulators in Tianhai City are located…

　A swarm of ants can kill an elephant, and last life, she was bitten to death.

　”Keep speaking in riddles, keep being a riddler,” Yuan Xiaoling pouted her cheeks slightly and muttered softly, “Don’t let the riddle person near the bed!”

　Pfft, Bai Ling thought, so what? If not the bed, then the sofa, balcony, bathroom, playground, swimming pool… anywhere works.

　”Bai Ling, Big School Beauty Yuan~”

　Outside the door, Bai Ling’s two roommates returned, calling out through the door: “The match is about to start, but we’ll give you twenty minutes. Hurry up!”

　After saying that, they left again, their chatting voices gradually fading away—

　”Why twenty minutes?”

　”Because it’s a reference to ‘Starship Troopers.’”

　”Wow, you watched that old movie from ’97 too?”

　”You did too, otherwise how would you know?”

　”I don’t care, you’re so dirty.”

　”…”

　Bai Ling looked at Yuan Xiaoling, and Yuan Xiaoling looked back at Bai Ling.

　”The game’s about to start,” the white-haired maiden stood up, “after basketball tonight, I’ll come to your dormitory to deal with you.”

　”?!?”

　Why deal with me?! What happened?!

　…………

　In the rest area of the basketball team of Class Seven from the Physical Education Department, Bai Ling’s opponents. Just before the big battle, there was no serious atmosphere among the players at all. Instead, they gathered together laughing and joking around.

　”Do you think Bai Ling can really score from half-court?”

　”I’m wondering if she can pierce right through the backboard.”

　”They say Big School Beauty Yuan is coming too.”

　”Will she wear the cheerleader uniform? Can’t wait to see.”

　”Same here.”

　Amidst all the laughter and jokes, only one tall and muscular boy sat silently in the corner.

　”Hey, Han-shao, why are you sitting alone over here, not excited at all?” A nearby boy patted his shoulder, “You’re our ace, we’re counting on you later.”

　Muron Han raised his head and looked at him, “What do you need me for?”

　”For showing off the brilliance of our Class Seven!” The boys nearby said matter-of-factly, “Show them what you’ve got!”

　But none of this talk mentioned winning or losing.

　Indeed, when Bai Ling and Yuan Xiaoling joined, the result of this match had nothing to do with victory or defeat anymore. They were just having fun while studying, not professionals.

　Ace? Hmph, Muron Han scowled, clenching his fists tightly.

　He wished he could be like his teammates, where winning or losing didn’t matter, as long as he could look cool. But the opponent was Bai Ling, the girl who stole the school beauty title.

　What good is looking cool if you don’t crush the opponent hard? Only then will the cheers of that Blonde Busty Girl ever be for you.

　Damn it, he clearly had strength (referring to basketball) that matched hers, why hide it, why not use it!

　”The game is about to begin~” came a call from outside the locker room, “Please enter the competition corridor~”

　Pushing open the unlocked door, the lights of the gymnasium mixed with the cheers of the crowd welcomed the basketball players from both classes.

　Of course, most eyes were focused on the aloof girl from Class Five’s basketball team and the Blonde Busty Cheerleader waving pom-poms on the sidelines.

　”Yuan Xiaoling! Yuan Xiaoling!”

　”It’s really the cheerleader uniform, ah I’m rushing!”

　”Slurp slurp slurp slurp slurp…”

　The atmosphere is the strangest thing. Being surrounded by such a lively environment, you can’t help but get pumped up yourself.

　Yuan Xiaoling energetically waved the specialized pom-poms of the cheerleaders, shouting odd calls like “Go go go! Boom boom boom!” “Psychic power three-pointer! Boom boom boom!” “Mind blast! Boom boom boom!”

　Dabeitù was held high, but since she was wearing a size-too-big outfit, there was no worry about revealing anything south of the equator when she waved her hands.

　Standing in the center of the court, Bai Ling felt the cheers from the crowd gradually shift from generating electricity for Yuan Xiaoling to chanting her name.

　”Bai Ling! Bai Ling! Bai Ling!”

　It was strange, inexplicably, why did she feel a bit fired up?

　Bai Ling didn’t know whether this feeling was because of the Blonde Busty Cheerleader in the cheerleading outfit on the side or because of the cheers from the surrounding audience.

　Anyway, she suddenly felt that occasionally enjoying campus youth might, possibly, seem… It Turns Out.