Adventure Group of Life Professions

The autumn sunlight pierced through the forest like sharp swords, driving away the last wisps of morning mist. The forest buzzed with insect calls, but they couldn't drown out the girl's excited voice.

Listening to Tian Lan's incessant chatter, Fang Heng finally understood the composition of this temporary team. Etila was naturally here searching for her younger brother, and the Paparal crossbowman accompanying her was actually a companion she brought from Sangshak.

Fang Heng's previous guess was correct; he was indeed a Chosen, ID Parker, a crossbow shooter (invested up to Tier 1 in crossbow marksmanship) with some rogue skills, particularly adept at cartography and kitchen pilfering.

Of course, the latter was an addition Tian Lan made with a wrinkled nose. She indignantly told him how much stuff disappeared from the kitchen daily – sausages, apples, even sour cheese and garlic. Everything was eventually found in a large sack under Mr. Paparal's bed.

Fang Heng listened to her vivid description, as if the kitchen belonged to her, even though it was clearly the inn's property.

This Mr. Paparal did indeed have some peculiar traits. It was rare to see such a versatile individual among Chosen. A crossbowman one moment, a rogue the next, and proficient in the life profession of cartography – Fang Heng had never seen anything like it before.

No wonder a Level 7 character only had a Level 5 main profession.

Recalling the other party's performance in combat earlier, Fang Heng came to a conclusion. He thought this was probably a typical Paparal. Although the other party was a Chosen, perhaps after spending so much time with other Paparals, he had assimilated.

This was by no means Fang Heng's malicious slander, but a historical fact. The seventeenth governor of Sangshak once famously said:

'These detestable little fatties can't get anything done. Their only use is on the barbecue grill—'

Of course, not long after saying this, the governor "retired with honors" due to political incorrectness. However, the politically incorrect part wasn't what most people thought about the barbecue grill, but because the Paparals unanimously considered "little fatties" to be the greatest insult.

As for barbecue?

Well, Paparals loved outdoor barbecues. Remember to use Number 3 Snow Wood charcoal.

Incidentally, the governor's successor was the famous 'Long Beard Jack', who was beloved by the Paparals for ordering all factories in Sangshak to shut down for a year.

Etila herself was a follower of Ameya. Of course, no forest elf disliked this forest goddess, so the elven girl was both a hunter and a druid. And naturally, all forest elves were excellent hunters.

In short, Etila was a typical forest elf girl, skilled in hunting, plant cultivation, and game preservation. However, according to Tian Lan, her highest-level profession wasn't hunter or druid—it was a life profession.

Chef—

"Miss Etila's cooking is frighteningly good!" Those were the French lady's exact words.

And to conquer a French person's palate, that evaluation should carry considerable weight. However, Fang Heng felt even hungrier upon hearing this. His only sustenance since yesterday had been a single biscuit. He couldn't help but touch his empty stomach, feeling slightly dizzy, and a rumbling sound ensued.

Thinking of the biscuit from earlier, he looked around and found that the fairy lady was still nowhere to be seen.

And the other party in this team—the trainees—weren't from the same place either. For example, the tall trainee boy who hadn't spoken much, ID Luo Yu, and Jita were both trainees from the Taboris Oak Knights.

Through Tian Lan's introduction, Fang Heng learned that it was a Free Guild and one of the four main guilds of the Rainbow Alliance. Free Guilds, as opposed to Club Guilds, generally referred to guilds formed in the New World without any background or capital investment from the real world.

Of course, that was in the past.

As Free Guilds developed and grew, some prominent ones began to venture into real-world affairs. A prime example was 'Ishurian Eastern Economic Community' (Ishurian Eastern Economic Community), one of the top ten major guilds in the country. Its predecessor was merely a loose alliance of a commercial nature. Later, to resist the pressure and squeeze from Major Guilds, it gradually formed an organized political entity and established a corresponding massive Free Guild.

This guild even received official recognition from Kaolin-Ishurian, becoming one of the three major merchant alliances in Kaolin-Ishurian. Its influence in Kaolin-Ishurian was no less than that of the Rainbow Alliance and the Descendants of Flor. Its fame within the New World inevitably spilled over into reality. When the first batch of retired personnel from the 'Ishurian Eastern Economic Community' returned to reality, it marked the first time this largest Free Guild in the country had a real-world foundation.

However, unlike the philosophy of Club Guilds, Club Guilds are often reality-centric, with their subordinate relationship being that New World affairs serve the needs of real-world interests.

The relationship between Free Guilds is much more ambiguous. Their real-world operations are sometimes just a trainee training institution, or even just an office. But sometimes, this relationship is reversed, conducting a reverse flow of benefits for long-term interests.

In terms of professionalism, Club Guilds are clearly more professional, but the advantage of Free Guilds lies in their flexibility, which is also one of their long-term advantages.

The Taboris Oak Knights were also a fairly large Free Guild, though not a behemoth like the top ten guilds. Domestically, it was considered a second-tier guild. Fang Heng's method of distinguishing between first and second-tier guilds was simple: he had or hadn't heard of them. It had to be said that this method, while crude, was sometimes remarkably accurate.

As for Tian Lan's background, it was much more "noble." She stated her real name was Fuli. Although she didn't talk much about her trainee status, Fang Heng deduced from bits and pieces of information that her patron was likely the Twelve-Colored Iris Guild.

This was no ordinary name—

The Club behind the Twelve-Colored Iris Guild, Secret, was one of Europe's three oldest established powerhouses and the most historic, with origins tracing back to the rise of esports in the early 2000s. After several reorganizations, it joined the Super Competition Alliance after the Star Gate Era. The Twelve-Colored Iris Guild under it remains the top guild in Europe.

However, what puzzled Fang Heng was the young girl's casual attitude towards her own guild.

Trainees like Luo Yu and Jita, from mere second-tier guilds, generally wouldn't dare to easily disobey the orders of the Taboris Oak Knights, and would even yield to the guild's requirements for their trainee assessments.

This was actually against regulations, as the supplementary clauses of the Suva Declaration stipulated that the general assessment for Chosen trainees was to achieve a full 300 points. The first to complete within the time limit among the same batch of assessors would win, with no more than three assistants allowed during the assessment, and their tier not exceeding Tier 2, making it a basically fair competition.

This supplementary clause was not mere empty words; in most cases, it was one of the basic behavioral guidelines for Chosen in Aethelria, an extension of human law into the New World. The Chosen even referred to it as the Super Competition Alliance Charter, indicating its significance.

However, even the "Charter" had to yield to reality in some circumstances.

The reality was that since the Star Gate Era, about two generations had passed on Earth, yet the number of Chosen had hovered around only twenty million. Moreover, their proportion in the total population had not only failed to rise but was actually declining.

This was because the output of Luminous Matter had always been limited, so only the best could be selected. Against this backdrop, the competition for Chosen slots was extremely fierce. Sometimes, it was not just a contest of talent and effort, but even a battle of wealth, status, and power.

If it weren't for this, Fang Heng wouldn't have chosen the last resort of sneaking in.

The same applied among trainees. Trainees did not necessarily become Chosen; at best, they only obtained a ticket. However, those who received this ticket often yearned to become Chosen even more than ordinary people, so the intensity of their competition could be imagined.

Guilds, which held the power to decide who got the slots, had an absolute advantage over trainees. There was no fairness in this matter, as the commercial nature of Super Competition dictated that only the guilds themselves had the right to decide who was more beneficial to the guild's development.

This was something even the "Charter" could not change—

This even led to some gray areas outside the law. Fang Heng had tried various methods before deciding to sneak in, so he was relatively clear about the inside story. He knew that the behavior of Luo Yu and Jita was considered normal for trainees.

No trainee was not anxious about their future.

But this French girl was clearly an exception.

She had even come to Kaolin-Ishurian to complete her trainee graduation exam. Generally, Kaolin-Ishurian and the Knight Nations of Guta were considered the spheres of influence for Chinese Chosen, while the European Union's actual control area was in the southwest of Luotao.

It was almost a joke. After hearing Tian Lan's serious description, Fang Heng felt that she was less here to take an exam and more here for tourism…

However, the professions of these few trainees were quite conventional.

Since trainees were considered tourists, they were generally detached from Combat Professionals. All three were Life Professionals. Among them, Fuli was good at negotiation—she said so herself. Of course, Fang Heng simply thought of the little girl as a lively chatterbox.

In short, she learned some business skills and appraisal methods for this purpose, taking on the team's logistical work.

Of course, in her own words, she aspired to be a bard – but that would be after becoming an official Chosen. However, judging by her demeanor, she never seemed to doubt her ability to become a Chosen.

Even Fang Heng felt that this young French girl was perhaps a bit too optimistic.

As for Jita, the youngest trainee who appeared very shy and timid, Tian Lan had stated from the outset that she wanted to become a Scholar. Although this profession sounded like that of a bookish scholar who spent all day dealing with scrolls, various curiosities, and specimens, Fang Heng knew very well that it was actually a rather formidable Combat Profession.

Scholars primarily fought using Grimoires. Their Grimoires were an ancient legacy, very similar in principle to the Magic Devices of Alchemy, both converting and using Aetheric magic power through a medium (a core crystal) – this was because the human body could not directly withstand magic power.

However, the number of Grimoires had not changed since the Numelin Era – neither increasing nor decreasing. Therefore, each Grimoire had to wait until the previous owner passed away or retired before being passed on to the next successor.

This led to the very powerful "field control profession" passed down by word of mouth among the Chosen. They could recreate scenes and terrain, and even alter the way magic power operated. In reality, they were very rare because not many people truly embarked on this path, as no one knew for sure if a Grimoire belonged to them.

Since this profession had several top Chosen in the Second World, Fang Heng happened to be relatively familiar with it.

He guessed that perhaps the Taboris Oak Knights had obtained a Grimoire through some means, which was why they were training trainees like Jita. Of course, this book was definitely not prepared specifically for him. Major Guilds were like this; there were countless people competing for the same position, and only the most outstanding person at the end could emerge victorious.

However, overall, Fang Heng felt that she was quite excellent. Although a bit shy and timid, her speech was refined, and her memory was astonishingly good. Crucially, Tian Lan also said that she was simultaneously an Appraiser and the team's tactician.

This was truly impressive. Either of these positions required an excellent mind. The former needed a thorough reserve of knowledge about curiosities, while the latter was purely a mental endeavor.

The last trainee, a tall young man named Luo Yu, had remained silent until now. Tian Lan said he was a trainee Elementalist cultivated by the Guild, characterized by his particular sensitivity to calculations – this was precisely the potential an Elementalist needed. However, Fang Heng's impression of him was one of bravery and decisiveness. The scene where he rushed out to save that Paparal Crossbowman earlier had left a deep impression on him.

Naturally, he was now also a Life Profession user, a dedicated Bow Maker for Etila, and also possessed some basic woodworking skills.

A taciturn woodworker.

It sounded normal enough, but Fang Heng always felt that the other person had been watching him from the beginning. Yet, every time he looked back, the tall young man would pretend to be nonchalant and shift his gaze away.

Aside from this slightly odd detail, Fang Heng found the team to be quite harmonious overall.

Look, there were Paparal scouts, and ranged professions like Etila. What was even more commendable was that she was also a cook and even skilled at preserving game – how many positions did that save? As for the others, well, their combat power was a bit weak, but from negotiators, appraisers, and even bow makers and woodworkers, this was practically a perfect logistics support unit!

Hmm, all that was missing was an Alchemist.

If any Guild's expeditionary force had such a logistics support unit, this configuration could at least be considered luxurious. Even if such an expeditionary force wasn't top-tier, it would at least be second-tier, right?

Then the question arose—

Where were the combat personnel of this logistics support unit?

Thinking of this, Fang Heng broke out in a cold sweat. "Tian Lan, is your team only composed of you few people?"

Tian Lan shook her head like a rattle drum. "Of course not. We're still missing one person."

"Oh—" Fang Heng finally understood.

He thought about it carefully. In this team, Etila and Parker could barely be considered half-combat professionals. If you added one more relatively strong pure combat professional, it wouldn't be an inferior small team – even if the frontal combat power was lacking, the strong logistical capabilities would be enough to compensate.

But he never expected Tian Lan to continue, "Because trainees can have three assistants, we're still missing one, and we also happen to be short one accompanying Alchemist."

After speaking, she looked at Fang Heng with a pleading gaze. "Brother Ed, do you want to join our team? Aren't you going to Elpaxin? We're also heading back for supplies and rest soon, and we also have—"

Fang Heng couldn't hear the rest of her words because he was picking up his water pouch. Hearing this, he snorted and spat water out of his nose.

Then he couldn't help but collapse on the ground, coughing violently.

He coughed for a long time, startling everyone. Fang Heng quickly waved his hand, indicating he was fine, though feeling uncomfortable. But at this very moment, he saw a hand appear in his field of vision.

It was a slender, girlish hand. On her thin wrist was a red coral bracelet, the favorite adornment of forest elves. He was stunned for a moment, sniffled, and looked up, only to see Etila standing before him.

The elven girl seemed to have composed herself. She nodded at Fang Heng, her emerald green eyes carrying a hint of apology.

Fang Heng couldn't help but recall the scene from before, feeling extremely awkward and unsure how to respond for a moment. Etila, on the other hand, appeared poised and graceful, as if she had forgotten what had happened earlier. She said softly, "Fuli is right, why don't you join us too, Ed?"

Although it was phrased as a question, for some reason, Fang Heng felt that her attitude clearly implied there was no room for refusal.

"But..."

But Fang Heng felt that this team was truly tragic. Six life profession users in one team – wasn't that a circus troupe?

I was discussing settings in the reader group too late last night and was too excited to sleep... (Supplement: I saw someone asking – the map is shared in the reader group because I can't upload images on Qidian anymore, so I can't help.)