My Avatar Is Becoming the Final Boss-Chapter 29: Visit

【1 remaining unused Skill Point detected. Would you like to continue developing the Skill Tree?】
Ji Minghuan leaned back against the headboard, tilted his head, and glanced at the newly unlocked skill under the “Stealth” branch.
【Branch 1 (Stealth): Binding Restraint Sensory (Learned) → Binding Restraint Verity (Learned) → Binding Restraint Camouflage (Available to Learn, requires “1” Skill Point to unlock) → Unknown → Unknown】
He lifted a finger and lightly tapped the newly unlocked skill, causing a detailed panel to pop up.
【Binding Restraint Camouflage: Grants your Binding Restraints invisibility. When you wrap yourself in the restraints, you will enter an invisible state. (However, if you approach someone whose overall Attributes are significantly higher than yours, they may still detect your presence.)】
Staring at the skill description, Ji Minghuan thought: “Nice, this works great for tailing people… but am I going too heavy on this branch? Feels a little lopsided.”
In the current skill tree before him, only the “Stealth” branch was growing long and healthy, while the “Frenzy” and “Malice” branches drooped like sickly weeds, ready to wither at any moment.
“But this is the only route that works for now… the combat branches aren’t really useful anyway: can’t beat strong enemies, and weak ones are easy enough without them.”
Ji Minghuan scratched his head, expressionless. “Learn it. No better options right now.”
He lifted a finger and long-pressed the skill icon. The icon shifted from bright to dark, blooming with a red-black glow imbued with true name energy.
【1 Skill Point consumed. Successfully learned ‘Binding Restraint Camouflage’ under the ‘Stealth’ branch.】
【Next skill under the ‘Stealth’ branch is now available for learning.】
Ji Minghuan glanced at the newly unlocked skill under “Stealth” and mumbled, “This branch is just nonstop with the great skills… no breaks at all.”
【Binding Restraint Trap: Deploy a trap composed of Binding Restraints on the ground. When an enemy steps into the trap, their legs will be instantly bound and entangled. (Traps created by this skill will inherit effects from Binding Restraint Sensory, Binding Restraint Detection, etc.)】
“This one sounds devious… very tempting… too bad I’m out of Skill Points.”
Seeing there was nothing else to do, he pulled up the Character Development System panel.
【This character’s exclusive development system is—‘Social Star System’.】
【Core rule of the ‘Social Star System’: For every new Extraordinary Species you form a cooperative relationship with, you will receive rewards from the development system.】
【Current progress—Development Quest 1: Form a friendly cooperative relationship with 1 Esper (regardless of alignment). (Reward: 1 Attribute Point)】
【Development Quest 1 complete. Reward acquired: 1 Attribute Point.】
【Development Quest 2 now active: Form cooperative relationships with a total of 3 Extraordinary Species (Current progress: 1/3. Cooperative partner acquired: Reality-altering Esper “Blue Arc”).】
Ji Minghuan raised an eyebrow, eyes gleaming in the dark: “Wait, do collaborations with Harmless-level Espers count? If so, I could find hundreds of partners in a day and max out my stats.”
He thought, “Let’s test it. Won’t take much time. I’ll treat it like a bedtime wind-down. I’ll just find a nearby Harmless-level Esper. Though… it’s risky to go out right now, with both Dad and Bro home.”
Ji Minghuan opened his Personal Panel and used the reward Attribute Point to boost “Strength.”
【Game Character No.1 ‘Black Cocoon’ Strength attribute has changed: C+ → C++】
He pulled the phone from under his pillow and logged onto the Reality-altering Esper Association’s website. Meanwhile, he used the Binding Restraints to grab a notebook and gel pen from the nightstand. He tore a page from the notebook and wrote a line with the pen:
—“Sleeping. Do Not Disturb. Or I’ll run away just like Little Sis.”
Gotta admit, Binding Restraints were flexible enough for this kind of fine motor work—the handwriting even looked neater than Ji Minghuan’s own.
Then he used the restraints to pull out a bottle of glue from the drawer, tightened his grip around it, got out of bed, turned the doorknob, stepped into the hallway, and glued the paper onto the door.
Then he returned to the room, shut the door, and locked it.
“Okay, now I’ve got free time.”
Knowing Gu Qiye, no matter what he might want to talk about later, he’d definitely leave Ji Minghuan alone after seeing that note on the door.
Because deep down, Gu Qiye still felt guilty about the fight with their dad in front of the younger siblings. Now that one sister had already run away from home, he wouldn’t want to see his brother act out and storm off too.
And Gu Zhuo’an? No need to even mention him. That man had zero standing in the household—basically living like a convict on parole. At this hour, he was likely asleep in his room.
Ji Minghuan pressed the Binding Restraints to the wooden floor of his room, letting his senses seep downward like rain.
While spying on Gu Qiye reading in the downstairs living room, he also retrieved his mask and trench coat from the storage box beneath the bed, slowly putting them on. He pressed the mask’s earpiece button and activated the built-in voice changer.
Gazing at his phone screen, he silently murmured, “Let’s see… which well-known Harmless-level Esper is nearby? I’ll just randomly pick a lucky one.”
Almost every Harmless-level Esper’s profile was listed on the Reality-altering Esper Association’s official site, making it easier for large companies to do background checks. Only Harmless-level Espers were eligible to work alongside regular people, and in certain jobs, their special abilities could even shine.
Ji Minghuan was now browsing through those Esper profiles.
After a while, his gaze locked onto one particular file photo.
“You’ll do… bookstore owner, Harmless-level Esper with the codename ‘Photo Retriever’.”
Honestly, Ji Minghuan wasn’t sure if sneaking out through the floor-to-ceiling window would alert his brother on the first floor or his dad on the third.
To be safe, he used the Binding Restraints to wrap his whole body like a black mummy—including the mask and trench coat—only his eyes remained exposed.
In the next instant, he activated his newly learned skill—【Binding Restraint Camouflage】. The dark restraints began to shift color, becoming a kind of transparent camouflage. Ji Minghuan, fully wrapped inside, faded from sight.
“Works like a charm.”
Ji Minghuan curled his lips into a grin, pleased by the transparency of his own body. He took a few cautious steps while staying in stealth mode, perfectly blending into the air, then gently slid open the window.
He redistributed his body weight through the floating restraints, leaped out the window, and dove into the moonlight.
…
…
Five minutes later, Lijing City, Brolly Bookstore.
Amber lighting spread across the empty shop. At this hour, hardly anyone came to bookstores. Most would’ve already closed, but this one also doubled as a café, so it stayed open a bit later.
The young owner stood outside and flipped the sign from “Open” to “Close.”
Then he returned inside, jazz music playing as he did his closing routine: organizing bookshelves, wiping tables and the radio, returning hardcover books from the café area to their places on the shelf.
The coffee machine chimed. He picked up a cup and poured himself some hot coffee, placing it on the counter. A wave of fragrant steam rose into the air.
He smiled faintly, took a deep breath of the warm, comforting air, and was just about to savor this last quiet moment before closing when—
Suddenly, something odd appeared in the corner of his vision.
He froze for a second, set the cup down, and slowly looked up.
Hanging upside down from the ceiling, just inches from his head, was a massive black cocoon.
Strangely… even though it was right above him, the owner hadn’t noticed it at all until just now.
It was almost like… this black cocoon could turn invisible.