Welcome to Ability Store

Chapter 142 - 141: Come If You Dare

As soon as the show went into intermission, many audience members sprang from their seats, eager to rush toward the stage, as if they feared they’d miss their chance to register.

Their enthusiasm prompted even more people to give it a try. Chen Xuan casually counted and noticed there were at least thirty to forty spectators gathered near the stage.

Do so many people really have abilities?

No... It’s likely many are just here to get on camera. After all, this isn’t a serious assessment, and failure doesn’t come with any losses. Moreover, some viewers might very well be planted by the TV station, mainly to create atmosphere.

Besides, even if one has no abilities at all, it doesn’t necessarily mean immediate elimination.

Looking at the challenge setups designed by the production team, it’s clear. There are five scenarios in total: balancing beam obstacle course, testing physical coordination; mannequin destruction, assessing aggressive capabilities; indoor hide and seek, examining tracking and hiding skills; machine dodgeball, testing dynamic reactions; real-life stage, sparring with the bodyguards invited by Jiang Wenbin. Difficulty is ranked from low to high, with a full score being 100.

I must say, these challenges do fit the variety show vibe. Even an ordinary person could compete alongside an Ability User for a round. The issue is, using them to select guardians suitable for ability combat seems rather unserious.

Yet Chen Xuan understands... Without the Dimensional Limit Mechanism, there’s simply no other way to test abilities; performance is the only means of showcasing them.

"Aren’t you going to register?" Lin Qing teased, "If you participate, you could easily get a twenty-million annual salary."

"Forget it, I don’t want to lose face." Chen Xuan sneered. "Besides, the battles between Ability Users are nothing like they imagine. Even if the Dimensional Limit Mechanism organized them, they probably wouldn’t produce any result."

Because he’s seen them and has truly battled with Ability Users.

The opponent wouldn’t dare call themselves an Ability User without pulling out a gun right from the start.

In other words, if your ability can’t shoot farther or faster than a gun, you might as well just use a gun.

Ten minutes of rest soon passed.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the final list of candidates is out!" With the host Huanxin’s voice, the large screen behind her suddenly displayed a new roster. In addition to the ten previously determined contestants, forty-five more audience members were added, with their names neatly listed in five rows.

The registrants also stood on one side of the stage, waiting for the challenge to begin.

"How long is the recording for the show?"

Chen Xuan overheard someone beside him discussing.

"I think it’s only four hours. Can so many be finished?"

"Truly unexpected! Who would’ve thought forty-five eager audience members would register; tonight’s definitely going to be lively!" Huanxin laughed, "But with this many registrants, we’ll have to adjust our original screening plan."

At this moment, props for the first two rounds were already moved from backstage to the stage, consisting of a pool filled with bouncing balls and seven or eight mannequins typically seen in clothing stores.

She walked over to the mannequins, gave one a gentle push, and surprisingly nudged it right off the stage.

Next came the second, then the third—soon, all mannequins were toppled on the ground, and even two had their heads knocked off.

Seeing this scene, everyone looked at each other, utterly puzzled by what the production team intended.

"Wait... Huanxin, what are you doing?"

A man with headphones ran out from backstage, angrily glaring at the female host, seemingly wanting an explanation from her.

"Director Shen, didn’t I make it clear? With too many registrants, the original plan is unfeasible, we have to optimize the screening method."

The man laughed angrily, "Are you kidding me? Who’s supposed to be the director here, you or me? Who taught you to do things this way!?"

"What’s happening, is there a conflict within the production team?"

Everyone suddenly grew interested.

"Aren’t they supposed to be professionals? How could they make such a rookie mistake..."

"Quick, record it. This segment will definitely be cut out."

Many spectators pulled out their phones, aiming at the pair on stage. Soon, someone discovered something new, "Wow, there’s signal now!"

"I can connect to the internet too! Have they lifted the block?"

"This is going to be entertaining!"

It’s no surprise that under such circumstances, there were bound to be thrill-seekers live-streaming.

"Ultimately, I’m the host of the show, just do as I say." Huanxin seemed unfazed by the director’s reprimand, "The cameras are still rolling!"

"Stop, stop, everyone get the hell off!" Director Shen shouted angrily, "And you, give me the microphone, go take a break!"

He angrily approached the female host, reaching out to snatch the microphone from her.

Something’s wrong, Chen Xuan felt a sense of unease rising inside. Jiang City Regional Channel wasn’t a small TV station, it’s a nationally renowned satellite unit, how could they not have a contingency plan for an excess of registrants? And to host such a popular show, the host must undoubtedly be a professional from the station, shouldn’t she know the director has decision-making power above her?

He took out a scan gun and aimed it at the host Huanxin.

The screen instantly displayed four abilities!

One of them was "Strong Robbery."

"Now this is really a big deal..." he murmured.

Just then, Huanxin turned and yelled angrily at Director Shen, "Who allowed you to call for a stop? This is my show, don’t even think about interfering!" With that, she gave him a push, like she did with the mannequins—while the opponent, a man over 1.7 meters tall, flew backward in an instant, crashing heavily into the screen, creating a massive hole in the electronic display.

Sparks crackled and sizzled.

The scene suddenly fell silent.

"Hey, hey... What’s going on?"

"Did someone just get knocked flying?"

The audience was dumbfounded!

Is this still the recording site for the ability showdown?

"Okay, the troublemaker’s now taking a break; let’s continue our challenge." The host once again plastered a bright smile on her face, "Keep all cameras on, we mustn’t let the ones outside miss this exciting show."

"The new challenge rules are simple, just two options, you can choose one—either battle against a contestant on stage or pick me as your opponent. No restrictions on methods, whoever survives is the winner."

The crowd erupted!

"What the hell!"

"Are you nuts? What kind of crappy rule is that?"

"Enough, I’m quitting this show!"

Immediately, several people on stage wanted to leave.

"Then you’ll all perish." Huanxin smirked, "Take a look at what’s above your heads?"

Everyone looked up—a seemingly normal ceiling, besides the ventilation ducts and the mechanical arms suspending cameras, there were many decorative balloons hanging, a detail everyone had noticed when they first arrived.

"Actually, those aren’t ordinary balloons." The host explained cheerfully, "They’re filled with gas potent enough to kill within thirty seconds; a typical mask won’t protect against it. The moment anyone on this stage dares to leave my sight, I’ll detonate these hundreds of balloons, and none of you will survive until the ambulance arrives."

The spectators wanting to leave also froze.

"Who says so, huh?" one of them blustered weakly.

"Then why don’t you give it a try? I could prepare a special gas for you alone." Huanxin chuckled, then grabbed her cheek and gave it a hard pull. A thin mask was torn away, revealing another woman’s face beneath, "Allow me to reintroduce myself; I’m Lu Lixin, and my ability is to alter the composition of gases, turning air into deadly toxins or flammable and explosive hazards. Didn’t President Jiang mention that the pedestrian mall explosion half a month ago was caused by an Ability User?"

Saying this, she specifically glanced at Jiang Wenbin, still in shock to the side, "Apologies, President Jiang, that was my doing."