Defying the Strong: A First-Rank Top-Tier Profession, Mystic Artificer

According to Jiang He, even Southwind Academy students were not entirely exempt from leaving the city.

Coupled with the previous assassination attempt, the mastermind likely would not let things go. Along with the small game between him and Jiang He, Su Chen could not help feeling pressed for time.

"Becoming a Strongman at least gave me some ability to protect myself, but..." His gaze fell on "Arcane Apprentice."

A first-rank upper-tier profession—he had already seen how powerful it was.

Two professionals, who had even poisoned him beforehand; without him, they probably would have needed to go through some trouble.

As for "Rope Master," he pondered it for a moment, then found it somewhat distasteful.

When Old Ghost had been hit by the AoE mental attack, he had performed even worse than that big fellow. No wonder Jiang He called it a trash profession.

Controlling ropes probably did not rely on mental power either. It was somewhat useful, but not by much.

"I need to become an Arcane Apprentice as soon as possible..." Su Chen made up his mind.

But just as he was about to begin Candle Flame training, several lines of text suddenly appeared on the panel.

[Detecting the host's inner contempt, the Rope Master flew into a rage from humiliation and reached its demonic claws toward the Arcane Apprentice, intending to devour it whole. The Arcane Apprentice responded with disdain and instead swallowed it.]

[Obtained first-rank top-tier profession—Mystic Artificer. Possesses the shared profession traits of Rope Master and Arcane Apprentice. Can be assumed upon fulfilling advancement requirements.]

Su Chen stood dumbfounded as he watched the two professions slowly merge. Only after a long while did he manage to say, "It can... work like this? Defying the strong and getting killed instead?"

He wanted to say something, yet had no idea what to say.

It was a first-rank top-tier profession. Jiang He was only an Arcane Apprentice, a "first-rank upper-tier" profession. This was top-tier, two levels above Strongman. He should have been excited.

But the way he had acquired it left him... speechless.

After examining it carefully, his gaze settled on the words "profession traits."

In that long passage, those were the only words he did not quite understand. "What do profession traits represent? I'll probably have to find the answer at Southern Academy."

His gaze shifted to the advancement requirements. Rope Master and Arcane Apprentice each had two requirements, but Mystic Artificer had three.

[Mystic Artificer advancement requirement one: Obtain a first-rank special item (Blue-veined Hemp Rope obtained).]

[Mystic Artificer advancement requirement two: Raise the Candlefire Mental Training Method to the "Master" stage.]

[Mystic Artificer advancement requirement three: Endure for one minute in the Whispering Trial.]

[As it inherits from Arcane Apprentice, all conditions must be fulfilled before the profession can be assumed. An additional reward may therefore be obtained.]

It was a fusion of the two, but the difficulty had increased. Fortunately, the item requirement was not limited to ropes; other first-rank items should work as well.

"What an unexpected gain..." Su Chen still felt strange, unsure what special abilities this profession possessed.

Suppressing his emotions, he found himself unable to sleep in this place. He simply began mental training, constructing a candle flame in his mind.

After just one attempt, he felt his mind become slightly clearer, as though some impurities had been wiped away.

[Candlefire Mental Training Method—Proficient: 1%]

It had already risen from Beginner to Proficient.

"That felt pretty good..." Su Chen savored the sensation, still wanting more, and soon immersed himself in training.

Dong—

A long, droning chime made Su Chen open his eyes. He felt slightly fatigued.

[Candlefire Mental Training Method—Proficient: 55%]

The improvement really was rapid. It had already been the latter half of the night when he returned, yet only a few hours had passed.

This was the morning bell, signaling the beginning of a new day.

Su Chen rubbed his face, feeling somewhat hungry. Strongman had improved his physique, but it had also accelerated his metabolism.

He opened the cloth bag Little Pigeon had delivered yesterday and wolfed down its contents. After eating his fill, he felt much better.

"Southwind Academy..." Su Chen tidied himself up a little and prepared to find Jiang He to complete the formalities.

When he emerged from the shack, there were already people moving about outside. Several people looked at him in surprise; the poor visibility last night had prevented them from seeing his face clearly.

Now that they saw him clearly, they could not help feeling jealous as they looked him over from head to toe.

They looked familiar. Huang Peng, Black Dog... they were some of the people from last night.

These people were not bad enough to rush over and mock him again, but neither were they good enough to welcome him. They had clearly "expelled" him, or rather, they were waiting for him to recognize reality and apologize on his own.

Their group had few ways to make a living. Most of them took on tasks issued by the municipal administration. Those professional lords certainly would not do such rotten work, so people like them served as supplemental labor.

That was why sticking together was so important. Otherwise, they would not get even the slightest benefit.

"Is that Su Chen? He really changed?"

"Why does he suddenly look so much like those upper-class people? Did he really step in dog shit and get lucky?"

"No, I heard Wang Gou and the others say that he only slept with her once before she kicked him out. He just got himself a set of clothes."

There was plenty of discussion. Regardless of anything else, his outfit and freshly washed face alone were enough to draw attention.

"Move, move..." A domineering voice rang out as several men, clearly a head taller than the others, approached in municipal administration uniforms.

The leader was covered in fat and muscle, giving off the same impression as that big fellow from last night.

"Captain Zhang is here..."

Huang Peng greeted him enthusiastically.

"Get lost!" The man shoved him aside rudely and walked straight up to Su Chen.

"Where's the money? Hand it over." He was taller than Su Chen, his shadow enveloping him as he sized Su Chen up and unceremoniously held out his hand.

Su Chen narrowed his eyes. Zhang Man was the person in charge of this area, and he was also the one who had connected the original owner of this body with Jiang He.

The man could not possibly have helped him for no reason.

Of course, the original owner had nothing worth scheming for. But Zhang Man had told him that if Jiang He really took a liking to him, yet he could not enter Southwind Academy after sleeping with her—

He was to ask Jiang He for money afterward, and Zhang Man would take eighty percent.

"Su Chen..." Zhang Man sounded casual. Seeing no response, he added a warning to his voice. "Don't get any ideas."

This was not the first time he had pimped someone out. Quite a few refugees thought they had become special after sleeping with an upper-class person. Whenever that happened, he would make them wake up to reality.

Su Chen reached into the inner pocket of his clothes and pulled out a black-and-gold card. "You should recognize this."

"You..." Zhang Man glanced down. His casual expression instantly turned to astonishment, and he blurted out, "You really got into Southwind Academy?!"

The surroundings fell silent, followed by a low murmur. In the distance, Huang Peng and the others stared wide-eyed in shock.

"Su Chen... brother..." Zhang Man's attitude softened considerably. He moved closer and discreetly examined the patterns on the card, confirming that it was not forged.

"Tsk, tsk. I knew you weren't someone who'd stay stuck in the mud, brother." Zhang Man grew even more surprised. That slut... had actually taken a liking to this kid.

A Southwind Academy student already had value. With a little cultivation, becoming a first-rank professional was practically guaranteed. Zhang Man himself was only a first-rank professional.

Thus, in the agreement between him and Su Chen, if Su Chen truly entered Southwind Academy, the payment instead became specific.

"So... five hundred gold..." He rubbed his hands together and gave a low chuckle.

"Do you think I have that now?" Su Chen asked calmly.

"I'm not in a hurry. Just don't forget it, brother." Zhang Man's attitude remained excellent.

Su Chen neither agreed nor disagreed. "I'm going to Southwind Academy to complete the formalities."

"This way..." Zhang Man immediately pointed out a road, then barked, "Get lost, all of you! What are you staring at?"

But when he turned back, he asked with a smile, "Need me to show you the way?"

Su Chen shook his head. He knew the general location and walked straight through the crowd.

Watching Su Chen leave, Zhang Man could not help clicking his tongue again. In a low voice, he muttered, "I've used admission qualifications to trick who knows how many people, and someone actually made it. Good, very good..."

These refugees were resources in themselves, but they needed eyes capable of spotting them. He found prey for quite a few people in the city, men and women alike.

But those little brats had no idea who had taught them this. Every one of them deliberately made themselves look filthy and spoke in affected voices.

"Boss, what if he refuses to pay?" someone beside him asked.

"Refuses to pay?" Zhang Man snorted, then said, "Then let him refuse. What can I do? He's already under Southwind Academy's protection."

"I've already made money from this. I'm not losing out. I only connected the two of them, that's all."

With that, his eyes swept toward the surrounding refugees again, and he roared, "Stop staring! Get the hell to work! If you envy him, take a look at your own faces first!"

The crowd gradually dispersed. Huang Peng and the others remained silent. Someone close to them was about to rise to prominence, and they found it difficult to calm their hearts.