I Really Deserve to Die

Wang Feng and the others had been focused on the battle between the principal and Niu Wudi.

At Lin Qi's reminder, they looked outside the school gates. One look was all it took to drain the color from every face.

The red-robed opera performer on the stage was still singing.

Below the stage, villagers appeared one after another.

They sat on little stools, quietly watching the performance.

Their bluish-purple skin made it clear that every villager before them was a supernatural entity!

If they waited any longer and the space below the stage filled up with those entities, they would be doomed!

"Go!"

Seeing the other survivors still backing away in panic, Lin Qi took Wang Feng and the others and led the charge out of the school.

"Go!"

Seeing Lin Qi take the lead, Wang Feng gritted his teeth and hurried after him.

All he could do now was trust that Lin Qi had a way. If they could not get out now, they would never get out.

"We're going too!"

Seeing someone dare to lead the charge, the girl in the green dress followed at a brisk pace with Niu Wudi's men, without the slightest hesitation.

When the remaining survivors saw that even the girl in green was leaving, they did not dare delay for a moment and hurried after them.

"Bro, do me a fav-"

The instant Lin Qi passed the principal, he quietly activated his control skill. He did not hand over a thousand Ghost Cash, intending to use that brief window of control to rush past the principal.

His ability did indeed take effect.

The instant the principal was immobilized, Niu Wudi's massive bear paw slammed into him, leaving him unable to defend himself.

"Pfft."

A faint sound rang out.

The principal's body burst into a cloud of black mist, but quickly re-formed.

This time, he materialized right in front of Lin Qi.

"Bro..."

Lin Qi was just about to use his ability.

But the principal gave a light wave of his hand, and a cloud of black mist shot into Lin Qi's mouth. The words he tried to utter became silent whimpers!

"Mmph..."

Lin Qi was horrified. He had never imagined his ability could be interrupted like this!

Watching the principal approach step by step, he hurriedly retreated.

"He... wasn't even using his full strength." The girl in green was horrified as well. The principal's abilities were among the strongest she had ever seen!

He could not die, could manipulate black mist, and could easily overwhelm Niu Wudi in combat!

Watching Niu Wudi charge at the principal again, the girl in green's eyes began to shift. "Niu, uh, I remember the captain needed me for something. I'm heading out first. I'll wait for you outside..."

"Don't you run off yet!!!"

Niu Wudi roared in anger. He clearly knew the girl in green had an ability that let her escape combat unharmed.

He abruptly turned away from his charge at the principal, grabbed the girl in green and several of his men, and hurled them toward the school gates. "Take my people with you. Even if you can't get them out in the end, I won't blame you."

He towered over the school fence. Throwing ordinary people over it was effortless!

Niu Wudi had thought this would get his men out.

But to his surprise...

The principal merely raised his eyes slightly, and several more clouds of black mist formed out of thin air. The people flying through the air were forcibly entangled in the mist, dragged back, then slammed into the ground.

"Pfft!"

The girl in green hit the ground and spat out a mouthful of blood. She hurriedly began healing herself and the companions who had fallen with her. "Niu, looks like we really are out of options. Once I finish healing everyone, I'm heading out."

"Fuck! Get out of my way!"

Niu Wudi paid the girl in green no further attention, seemingly accepting what she had said. Brimming with rage, he continued charging at the principal, his bear paw blasting toward him like a cannonball once more.

Despite his boundless fury, the outcome did not change in the slightest. Every time he attacked, the principal sent him flying. It was a completely one-sided thrashing!

With the principal's attention drawn to Niu Wudi, Lin Qi finally regained the ability to speak.

He looked at the principal, a trace of puzzlement in his eyes. "Wang Feng, have you noticed something?"

"Noticed what?" Wang Feng frowned at Lin Qi. He could not understand how Lin Qi still had time to play guessing games with him in a situation like this.

"Have you noticed that the principal hasn't initiated a single attack from the start? The students in the school haven't attacked either. And even when the principal caught the survivors, he still didn't kill them." Lin Qi's voice was low as he pointed at the entities outside by the stage, which had not moved at all. "Maybe the principal doesn't want us facing those entities?"

"Huh? Now that you mention it..."

Wang Feng looked toward the battle. Every attack had come from Niu Wudi. The principal had never once struck first.

"You mean he doesn't want to hurt us, and is only stopping us from leaving the school?" The girl in green had appeared behind Lin Qi at some point. She seemed to have realized something too.

The two exchanged a glance and spoke almost in unison. "Could the principal be protecting us?"

The instant those words left their mouths, both felt their understanding of the world veering in an incomprehensible direction.

Ever since the supernatural resurgence, when had it ever been anything but entities chasing people down to kill them? Protecting them? That sounded like a joke.

"Maybe that really does make sense."

The girl in green looked outside the school gates. More and more villagers were gathering below the stage.

Compared with the principal, the opera performer onstage looked more lethal.

Realizing this, she could not help giving Lin Qi a few more looks. "You're pretty good. The principal really might be stopping us from leaving the school. After all, if we leave, we'll be facing that opera performer and over a hundred villager entities!"

"Maybe." Lin Qi found it a little hard to believe too. He had never encountered an entity protecting humans before.

"I told you the principal was a good person. Even becoming an entity couldn't change his kindness." Hearing their conversation, Xiao Wu's eyes filled with reverence.

"Maybe his convictions were strong enough that some of his consciousness remained?" The girl in green pondered for a moment. "Now isn't the time to study that."

She called to Niu Wudi, "Niu, come back! The principal doesn't seem to want to hurt us!"

"Huh?"

Niu Wudi was sent flying by another punch. Somewhat puzzled, he moved behind the girl in green, a deep, muffled voice emerging from the giant bear's mouth. "What do you mean?"

"Look."

The girl in green offered no explanation, merely pointing at the principal.

Sure enough, once Niu Wudi stopped attacking, the principal stopped fighting too. He simply stood quietly where he was, watching them with those lifeless eyes, making no further movements.

Under the principal's gaze, Lin Qi felt inexplicably guilty. He had secretly pocketed eight hundred of the principal's money, yet not only had the principal held no grudge, he was even using his lingering instincts to protect them.

Thinking about it now: I really deserve to die...