Profession?
Su Chen was stunned as fragmented memories flooded his mind.
Professionals were, without a doubt, the most revered class in Southwind City, possessing all sorts of incredible powers.
It was safe to say that every refugee yearned to become a Professional. It was a way to find stability and no longer live in constant fear.
But becoming a Professional wasn't so simple. Every profession required an extremely demanding ritual to be initiated.
Let alone the difficulty of the ritual, even the names of the rituals themselves were considered secrets, to say nothing of their details.
And according to the bits and pieces of information his predecessor had gathered, the slightest error in a ritual could lead to a failed initiation, turning one into a terrifying monster.
'And this panel of mine… it seems it can gather information from the outside world and then provide the initiation requirements?'
Su Chen's throat bobbed. He immediately understood what this meant. Just by leveraging this information gap, he could make a fortune.
"I… I'm… a tutor at Southwind Academy, and a member of the Jiang Family. If you… if you dare…"
"Haha…" The short man sneered. He had already walked up to Jiang He, his voice low. "Of course I know who you are, madam…"
The conversation between the two reached his ears, somewhat cooling Su Chen's burning excitement.
He composed himself. 'Future aside, I haven't even solved the trouble right in front of me.' His gaze fell on [Basic Combat]. It seemed to be his only hope.
But… in his peripheral vision, he glanced at the burly figure next to him. The muscles on his chest were bigger than Su Chen's own head.
'Try to get initiated as a Secret Magic Apprentice?'
'I've heard that for Low-tier Professions, you can attempt initiation without meeting all the advancement conditions. Even if it's risky, it's not an impossible gamble.'
'But where am I supposed to find a dark environment right now...'
[The host's current perilous situation has been detected. The Secret Magic Apprentice is thinking…]
Su Chen's gaze sharpened. 'The panel can change?'
[The wise Secret Magic Apprentice has decided to take a step back. The Secret Magic Apprentice can now only be initiated after all advancement conditions are met, which will grant an additional reward.]
The characters gradually faded. 'What… What the hell?'
'This profession can think for itself?'
'I have to meet all the initiation conditions?'
'And who the hell knows what the second advancement condition is?'
A flood of questions filled his mind, leaving Su Chen completely dumbfounded.
Then, a sharp gaze snapped him back to his senses. The big guy next to him was staring intently, seeming to have noticed his strange behavior.
Su Chen's heart leaped, but the man made no further move.
He pondered silently. 'If these two aren't Professionals…'
"Madam, it's time to go…"
The short man had already risen and stepped to the side. He extended his arm, and a green hemp rope slithered out from his black sleeve.
Controlled by an invisible force, it coiled around Jiang He like a nimble viper, slowly lifting her and placing her on the sofa.
"Rope Master…" Jiang He squeezed the words through her teeth. Her gaze shifted to the burly man, despair clear in her eyes. "A Warrior… Two Professionals. Who wants me dead?"
"Apologies, Madam. We're professionals," the Rope Master said with a shrug.
"Professionals…" A bitter laugh twisted Jiang He's pale face. "A lowlife who only services whores. You're not even as good as that Warrior over there. He's gone through the Body Refining Trial and can at least change his profession. And you? You have no future, and you talk about being a professional?"
He could clearly see the stiff expression on the short man's face. Insulting both of them at once might not have had much effect, but praising one while denigrating the other was a different story.
At the very least, the big guy next to him had lifted his head a little higher.
'Wait…' A thought struck him, and he hurriedly opened the panel.
[Tier One Middle-Level Profession discovered—Warrior]
[Warrior advancement condition discovered—Body Refining Trial: Break your body's limits ten times through arduous training.]
[Second Advancement Condition: ???]
'A new profession really did appear. But only Warrior, not Rope Master. It seems the name alone isn't enough.'
Su Chen grew more anxious. 'This won't work either. I don't have the real-world conditions to complete the Body Refining Trial.'
[Host's crisis detected. The Warrior profession is starting to think…]
Su Chen's expression changed slightly. 'Don't tell me...?'
[The valiant Warrior profession has decided to forge ahead, proactively revealing the other advancement conditions. Fulfilling any one of them will allow for a perfect initiation, but all other advancement conditions must be completed within one month of initiation, or the profession will be erased.]
Huh? Oh!
Su Chen's heart leaped. Just as he'd expected, the second advancement condition under the Warrior profession was no longer a series of question marks.
[Warrior Profession Second Advancement Condition: Possess at least one physical-type Mastery Skill.]
Su Chen frowned instinctively. 'A physical-type Mastery Skill? Where would I...'
'No,' he thought, his eyes suddenly lighting up. 'I still have the gift from my past life, [Basic Combat]. That should count as physical-type, right?'
"Your turn…"
Suddenly, Su Chen's expression changed. The short man had appeared beside him at some point.
His attention had been almost entirely focused on the mental panel. He had only vaguely heard the man saying something like, "The madam has a lot of spirit," and "I hope she can still talk like that in a little while..."
"Nice-looking shell…" The short man seemed to be sizing him up for the first time, a hint of admiration in his sinister gaze. "No wonder you could trade your body for a Borrowing Letter…"
'A Borrowing Letter? Not an admissions letter?'
Su Chen couldn't help but feel confused, but he saw the floating green hemp rope had already entered through his sleeve cuff and was winding around his limbs. His body began to move against his will.
"...A refugee, threatened by an academy tutor, is accidentally killed by her in bed. But before dying, he manages to kill her too. A double death... that should be a plausible story…"
He rubbed his chin, narrating with a savage grin: "When the Inspector Guard comes in, they'll find the two of you lying naked on the sofa. With a scandal like this, neither your family nor the academy will want to publicize it. The case will be closed quickly, won't it…"
The Rope Master looked at Su Chen again, a strange smile playing on his lips. "You're getting off easy, little guy. You get to enjoy this beautiful body before you die. But don't worry, I won't let you finish. You can hold it in."
Jiang He's face was pale. It was unclear if she was frightened or something else, but she said nothing more.
Bound by the rope, Su Chen walked uncontrollably toward the sofa. Just then, the lights in the room dimmed.
The short man's face changed drastically. He snapped his head toward Jiang He, whose face was twisted in a vicious expression. Her lips parted, and she let out a sharp cry: "Suppress—!"
The sound wasn't loud, yet it seemed to come from a great distance—shrill and piercing, slamming viciously into the minds of the three men present.
Su Chen felt his body go limp, as if he'd been clubbed on the back of the head. From behind him came two muffled thuds and agonized cries.
"Go! Go, cover her mouth!" the Rope Master roared, clutching his head and hunching over.
The Warrior, however, seemed to be different. Though he also appeared to be in great pain, he could still manage to move, stumbling toward Jiang He.
Su Chen had already fallen to the ground. For some reason, he wasn't in as much pain; his thoughts were even clearer than before.
A huge shadow stepped over him. It was the big guy.
Su Chen's thoughts raced. 'No one is paying attention to me. This is the perfect moment.' He didn't hesitate.
'Equip [Basic Combat]!'
A strange sensation instantly flooded his entire body, like countless ants crawling between his bones. His muscle fibers subtly thickened, and his frail body underwent a silent transformation.
But in this situation, no one had the mind to pay him any attention.
Su Chen clenched his jaw, his pupils shot with blood, and stared intently at the panel that only he could see.
[Advancement condition has been met]
Behind the Warrior profession, the word 'Initiate!' appeared in clear text.
His gaze fixed on the word. As if sensing his resolve, the Warrior profession suddenly dissolved. Su Chen felt his heart give a ferocious leap, as if struck by a war drum.
[Warrior profession has been initiated]
[Ability acquired—Strong]
Immediately after, a far more intense transformation washed over him. His muscle tissue felt like it was being torn apart and then forcibly stitched back together.
The power his body wielded increased explosively, but the change didn't make him burly like the big guy. Instead, it made his physique more well-proportioned.
THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!
The sound of his own heartbeat rang in his ears. The changes brought on by equipping [Basic Combat] and initiating the [Warrior] profession were too immense. Coupled with the strange effect from Jiang He, his consciousness was nearly overwhelmed.
Fortunately, the transformation ended quickly. The pain in his body rapidly faded, and at the same time, the agony in his mind diminished to almost nothing.
With no time to get used to the changes in his body, he snapped his head around to look at the Rope Master, who was still clutching his head and groaning.
At the same time, the Warrior had just reached Jiang He. His hand reached for her head, his eyes wide and blood seeping from his nose and mouth.
The strange sound suddenly vanished. The Rope Master let out a sigh of relief, feeling as if a great weight had been lifted.
"Damn it. Don't worry, I'll make sure you two die a very…" the Rope Master snarled, but his face suddenly froze as a shadow fell over him.
His throat bobbed. The fallen hemp rope beside him twitched, but before it could act, he felt a hand land on his head like an iron band, appearing from nowhere.
A sharp, stinging pain reminded him that if the other person squeezed, it would cause irreversible damage to his skull.
"Don't move…" a cold voice said. The Rope Master's body trembled, his downcast face showing a hint of utter disbelief.
'How… How is this possible…?'
"Huuu…" Su Chen slowly exhaled, now standing beside the Rope Master. He hadn't killed the man outright because he still needed to negotiate with the other one to keep Jiang He alive.
Otherwise, even if he escaped today, the Inspector Guard would be on his tail by tomorrow, and he would still be doomed.
"Old Ghost…" Just then, the Warrior also turned around. Six eyes met, filled with astonishment.
Sure enough. Su Chen breathed a sigh of relief. The Warrior hadn't killed Jiang He, only covered her mouth. After all, before Su Chen had made his move, they couldn't have predicted this turn of events.
"You…" The Warrior seemed unable to process the situation, his brows tightly furrowed.
Jiang He was also staring at Su Chen in utter disbelief. The Warrior's burly frame had blocked her view just now, so she hadn't seen what had happened to Su Chen at all.
She never would have imagined that in the blink of an eye, he had subdued the other man, the Rope Master.
His previously gaunt upper body had become lean and powerful, his muscles perfectly proportioned. The look on his face was even more unfamiliar to her.
Cold, vigilant, and ferocious.
She had never seen any of it on Su Chen before.