Qi Chuan's records were spotless. His parents had died in the Mist Slaughter Incident more than thirty years ago. The only thing better about him than Su Chen was that he did not have refugee status.
Jiang He probably would not go to bat for him. From here on out, anyone who made a move for Qi Chuan would provide a thread to follow.
"Black Pagoda, Strange God, Zhou Xian..."
"I only killed your son and took a few things. Was there really any need to keep pressing me like this?"
As he walked, Su Chen muttered to himself.
Within the hazy mist, azure-violet bolts of lightning suddenly tore through the darkness. Winding arcs of light flashed back and forth between the clouds and the ground.
Then came a shriek powerful enough to shake the lungs, like the howl of some colossal creature whose chest had been violently split open. The mist twisted and warped beneath the sound waves.
Bang!
Something seemed to crash to the ground, kicking up a vast cloud of dust.
Whoosh!
A long, slender silver-gray aircraft shot out of the mist.
"It's a third-tier mutant, the Crimson Redhawk Demon..." At the hatch, fierce winds howled, making a black overcoat snap wildly. Beneath white hair was a cold, stern face.
"You're too slow..." A dissatisfied voice came from the corner. The old man lowered his head and swiped across the virtual screen before him without even looking up.
"Chief Justice..." The white-haired man's icy demeanor instantly crumbled, and he could not help looking helpless.
"Look at this..." The old man casually swiped, and the virtual projection moved to the white-haired man's side.
"News from Southwind..." The white-haired man glanced at it, visibly surprised. "The Holy Word Stone was recovered?"
"...Yuan Chenyang sent his own student undercover. Not only did he recover the Holy Word Stone, he even uncovered a Black Pagoda follower?"
"Impressive. I thought he wouldn't escape blame this time," the white-haired man said.
"They've been alerted..." The old man snorted, his tone unpleasant. "The rest will probably pull back and go into hiding. I've made this trip for nothing."
"You can't put it that way..." the white-haired man argued. "They don't know your plan, after all."
"The Holy Word Stone was found, but the Spatial Crystal wasn't." The old man continued as if he had not heard him. "We've alerted Black Pagoda's people. The remaining followers will probably go underground."
"Old Xia, the Spatial Crystal was stolen from Cloudwave. It isn't Southwind City's responsibility," the long-haired woman seated on the other side said.
"But there's a lead, isn't there? Zhou Xian's son was used as a mule. He's highly suspicious," the white-haired man said.
"Yes..." The old man's expression flickered. His withered body looked as though a gust of wind could knock him over. "The director of the Internal Affairs Hall, one of Southwind City's upper echelons, was actually corrupted. Can the rest of Southwind City's upper echelons still be trusted? Why not kill them all? A few might be wrongly accused, but I'm sure they'll understand."
The white-haired man immediately broke out in a cold sweat. "Wait! He's only a suspect. If you kill them all, there'll be huge trouble!"
"Coward!" The old man sneered. He walked to the hatch and jumped straight down. The mist swallowed him whole, and the white-haired man only heard his hoarse voice.
"A third-tier mutant shouldn't have appeared near this air route. I'll investigate what's going on. You go to Southwind City first."
When Su Chen returned to his room, he found an unexpected visitor.
"Teacher?"
Su Chen cautiously approached the door. After spotting the figure inside, he was somewhat surprised.
Old Sun stood nearby, his face wrinkling into a broad smile.
"Someone snuck into your room?" Yuan Chenyang asked bluntly.
"Yes." Su Chen nodded. "We checked the surveillance footage but found nothing."
Fatty Sun immediately said, "I've strengthened security on this floor. There are guards in both corridors, and patrols go through every half hour."
Old Sun had reacted quickly. No wonder Su Chen had seen several burly men.
Su Chen privately praised his efficiency. When something went wrong and the higher-ups asked about it, they could not offer nothing but excuses.
Yuan Chenyang nodded in satisfaction. "Go out first."
"Alright." Old Sun walked out and closed the door behind him.
"Did you capture Qi Chuan?" Yuan Chenyang asked only then.
Su Chen explained, "He previously colluded with Hu Xiang and planned to make a move against me in secret."
"Mm..." Yuan Chenyang suddenly understood. "So this was the explanation Hu Xiang mentioned. As long as you know what you're doing, that's fine."
He stressed again, "Follow the rules. Don't leave anyone anything to use against you."
"Understood."
"Also, this is Engineering Apprentice. Take a look..." He handed over a metal engraved plate.
Su Chen glanced at it—
[First-tier lower-class profession discovered—Engineering Apprentice. After completing the job requirements, you may take up the profession.] [Job requirement one: Complete repairs on one thousand ordinary items.] [Job requirement two: Be a first-tier mental-type professional.]
"This..." Su Chen did not understand. This profession did not seem all that remarkable.
"Don't underestimate it. After a perfect job advancement, it can awaken a professional ability called Dual Focus."
Yuan Chenyang emphasized, "Not the ordinary kind of multitasking gained through practice, but an ability more akin to a machine."
"You aren't the first person to want to train your physical body while simultaneously holding multiple mental-type professions. Training your body first and meditating afterward wastes too much time."
"I see..." Su Chen came to a realization. Every profession had its own unique use. He would need to pay more attention in the future.
Some professional abilities might not seem impressive on their own, but when properly combined, they could become entirely different.
Old Yuan added, "I'll have Old Sun arrange for you to work in logistics. Do some work every day, and you'll be able to take up the profession within a few months."
"Thank you, Teacher." Su Chen was sincerely grateful. Things were far more comfortable now than when he had lived in the Southern Academy dormitories.
"Mm." Old Yuan did not stand on ceremony. He handed over a gilded card. "There's one more matter. Zhang Yunqing—Zhang Hengyu's older sister—is holding a banquet tonight. The invitation was sent to the house. Go attend it."
"A banquet?" Su Chen accepted it and looked at its intricate patterns, recalling that Zhou Zong had mentioned this matter before as well.
Yuan Chenyang's bald head gleamed beneath the lights, while his gaze flickered uncertainly. "It'll be some of the city's young people. Her sister also spent time in Yingfeng and knows quite a few things. It would be good for you to get in contact with her."
"I see..." Su Chen pondered this. The explanation did not seem entirely sufficient, but he still nodded. "Since you've said so, Teacher, I'll go."
Yuan Chenyang left. Only after the elevator doors closed did he smile and curse, "Little brat."
"A banquet, huh..." Su Chen rubbed the card, feeling helpless. "This refugee status really is troublesome."
He wondered what those refugee predecessors had actually done.
He checked the time. It was still early.
Su Chen began considering Engineering Apprentice again. Since he had resources, the time needed to take up the profession should not be long.
He sighed. "But things are so complicated right now. Spending time on this really is..."
[Detecting the host's difficulties, Sky-Rending Warrior and Mystic Artificer have had a cordial discussion with Engineering Apprentice. Deeply moved by the host's hardships, Engineering Apprentice has decided to grant a direct perfect job advancement, requiring only that the host, after taking up the profession...]
Huh? Su Chen's cheek twitched. Sky-Rending Warrior and Mystic Artificer had teamed up to bully it, hadn't they?
A direct job advancement... Well, that worked too. He wondered how long the time limit would be this time.
One thousand ordinary items was not an easy requirement either.
Yet Su Chen waited and waited, but the words after the ellipsis never appeared. Until, a moment later—
[Engineering Apprentice has decided that after the host takes up the profession, there will be no need to complete the job requirements within a limited time.]
Huh?
Su Chen thought he had already adapted to the panel, but these few lines still shocked him.
For some reason, he could even sense a kind of grief and indignation from them.
Sky-Rending Warrior, Mystic Artificer, what exactly had you two done?
Was this the crushing dominance of top-tier professions over lower-tier ones?
Su Chen grinned with mixed feelings and happily took up the profession.
Then a vast quantity of familiar yet unfamiliar memories flooded into his mind. Various mechanical creations appeared before his eyes—their details, damaged areas, and repair processes.
It was as if he had truly repaired thousands of broken objects. His head swelled from the strain, and it took him a long while to recover.
[Successfully took up Engineering Apprentice. Professional ability acquired—Dual Focus.] [Dual Focus: The mind can process two tasks simultaneously.]
"Whew..." Su Chen rubbed his temples. The feeling of this knowledge-based profession was truly strange.
He tried it briefly and immediately sensed the difference. His consciousness seemed to split in two, each half able to think about different things.
Under certain circumstances, he could also divide his attention between two things, or even more, but it would only last a moment or an instant at most.
This, however, was like opening two taskbars on a computer. They did not interfere with each other.
"A godly skill..." Su Chen's eyes lit up. Both meditation methods and training methods were extremely complicated.
Under normal circumstances, even with more practice, it was difficult to truly run them simultaneously.
Yet a mere ordinary profession had solved this problem.
He immediately began trying it. His body assumed a stance, and he began meditating at the same time.
The Body Forging Method began to operate, his muscles tensing as stabbing pain gradually spread through his body. At the same time, the Hellflame Meditation Method circulated, heating his mind.
The sensation was extraordinarily strange. Like a child who had received a new toy, Su Chen practiced for more than half an hour before reluctantly stopping.
"I still have to go out today, so I can't exhaust myself too much." Su Chen smacked his lips. "If I paired this with potions, it would feel incredible. I still need to find a way to get some Blackflame Potions. The blood-activating efficiency is still too low."
"Little brother..." Fatty Sun knocked on the door. Only after Su Chen let him in did he gently open it and walk inside with a smiling face. "I've already made arrangements with logistics. You'll be specifically responsible for repairing damaged items, and experienced masters will teach you."
Su Chen once again admired Old Sun's efficiency, but he shook his head. "There's no rush for that."
Fatty Sun paused, though he continued smiling. "Alright, little brother. Just tell me whenever you're ready."
He was about to leave when Su Chen called him back. "Brother Sun, I'd like to ask you to help me sell something."
"Oh?" Fatty Sun looked surprised as he watched Su Chen pull a blurry black garment from beneath the bed.
"Shadow-Hiding Garment?" He could not help staring in astonishment. "You..."
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