The Secret of the Four Professions

For the next while, Lin Yi stayed upstairs in the guesthouse and did not dare go back down.

As a member of the Militia Team, he knew full well how terrifying Monsters were.

If that Shocking Pig charged into the village, probably no one would escape its jaws—not even him.

Even though he now had several hundred points of Qi-Blood and 14 points in the Strength attribute, he had no ability to resist a Monster that was at least Level 5.

Perhaps the caller's description had been particularly grim. About twenty minutes later, Lin Yi heard police sirens outside.

Wail, wail...

Looking down from upstairs, Lin Yi saw from their uniforms that even the local Armed Police Force seemed to have been mobilized.

The Armed Police captain stepped out. "Who reported this? What exactly happened?"

The elderly man from earlier came forward and explained what had just happened to the Armed Police officers.

A two-meter-tall wild boar with red eyes?

Eating people on the road?

The Armed Police officers frowned. They did not quite believe there could be a mutated wild boar two meters tall.

That was far too outrageous!

They then arrived at the scene and found two large pools of blood on the ground.

"Captain, it looks like people died. Their bodies were dragged into the mountains."

"Captain, we found wild boar tracks. They really are unusual, and this boar seems to have appeared out of nowhere..."

Red eyes!

This Armed Police captain seemed to think of something. He immediately stopped everyone from entering the mountains to search and found the old man again. "Sir, are you certain that wild boar had red eyes?"

"Yes, yes! We all saw it. Its eyes were blood-red. It was terrifying."

After questioning several people, the Armed Police captain's expression immediately changed. He then called the Armed Police headquarters in Linhe City.

Around midnight, Zhang Baichuan at the Linhe City Police Department received news that a Monster had supposedly appeared within Linhe City.

Based on the witnesses' descriptions, the Monster was very likely a Shocking Pig.

He immediately notified the relevant departments, collected live ammunition, and rushed toward the small village where Lin Yi was staying.

The next morning, after being kept awake by the commotion all night, Lin Yi went downstairs to wash up. After asking around, he learned that several groups of armed police officers had arrived from the city overnight and dispersed into the mountains to search for the wild boar.

Quite a few gossiping villagers had gathered at the entrance to the village, chattering among themselves.

"Hey, I heard Old Ginger's body was found up in the ravine. He died horribly. The wild boar ate all his internal organs clean..."

"Who wouldn't say so? And Little Liu too. He was probably the first one to hear the noise and go over, but who knew he'd get bitten to death by that wild boar? Last night, I heard someone crying for help. It was probably Little Liu. Poor kid, he wasn't even married yet..."

At that moment, Lin Yi received a message from Boss Zhu at the slaughterhouse. Because the wild boar had attacked the village, all nearby factories had temporarily shut down.

Of course, if Lin Yi wanted to come over, he could enter through the back door. The factory had received several dozen live cattle today for Lin Yi to slaughter.

It had to be said that Boss Zhu was quite thoughtful.

But after thinking it over, Lin Yi realized that the Monster Beast would not only crave human flesh and blood; it was also especially sensitive to the Qi-Blood of ordinary animals.

The slaughterhouse was rich in Qi-Blood. It might truly attract the Shocking Pig's attention.

There was no need to take that risk today.

He only hoped the troops who had entered the mountains last night were capable enough to deal with the Shocking Pig quickly.

Around noon, Lin Yi, who was in the guesthouse, heard a string of gunshots coming from the nearby mountains...

At the same time, on a densely vegetated slope, the massive Shocking Pig lay in a pool of blood.

The soil beneath the Shocking Pig's hooves was riddled with bullet holes carrying the scent of gunpowder.

It was clear that the Level 5 Shocking Pig had only fallen after an entire round of intense gunfire.

Holding a walkie-talkie, Zhang Baichuan instructed the squads to approach in an orderly manner.

"I'll say it again. Confirm whether this mutated wild boar is completely dead."

"Captain Zhang, confirmed dead!"

"Good..."

Only then did Zhang Baichuan, who had been busy for most of the night, finally breathe a sigh of relief.

During training in the Capital City, he had encountered cases of Monster Beasts from Apocalypse World invading reality. Back then, there had been many casualties.

Fortunately, this Shocking Pig had appeared in the mountains outside the city. Not only were the deaths few, but there were also very few witnesses.

If it had happened inside Linhe City, countless people might have been killed or injured.

And without using heavy firearms, he alone would not have been enough to kill this Shocking Pig.

"Come to think of it, this is Linhe City's first case of an Apocalypse Monster Beast invasion. Now I have a reason to report to headquarters and request more official team positions. And this Shocking Pig's corpse is valuable too..."

Zhang Baichuan then walked over to the Shocking Pig's body and waved for the others to transport it back.

It was not until evening that the villagers, including Lin Yi, received an official government notice saying that the mutated wild boar had been killed and everyone could travel safely.

Only then did Lin Yi dare head to the Slaughter Factory and continue his work slaughtering cattle.

That night, Lin Yi logged into Apocalypse World and checked his Attribute Panel.

Player: Green Mountains Never Age

Status: Normal

ID: 007

Gender: Male

Level: 3

Health Points: 578

Experience Points: 0/400

Satiety: 67/100

Strength: 14 (the normal limit for adult men is 10 points; affects physical damage and the maximum weapon weight you can use...)

Constitution: 8 (the normal limit for adult men is 10 points; affects maximum Health Points, Health Point recovery speed, basic toughness...)

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Agility: 10 (the normal limit for adult men is 10 points; affects movement and reaction speed...)

Endurance: 11 (the normal limit for adult men is 10 points; affects maximum stamina, stamina recovery speed, and carrying capacity)

Qi-Blood: 16 (6 points came from Blood Food)

External Art: Starfall Archery-LV1 (14/500): For every 1 point of Qi-Blood attached to an arrow, arrow damage increases by 2%. The seventh consecutive arrow can unleash an additional 12% damage.

...

Initial Talent: Omnipotent Talent (Red)-LV1--Blood Siphon

Over the past few days, Lin Yi had slaughtered more than two hundred cattle, finally raising his Health Points above 500.

Compared to the 97 Health Points he had at Level 1, having five times as much Health Points gave Lin Yi a tremendous sense of security.

However, Lin Yi had already used up his Contribution Points and could no longer exchange them for Qi-Blood. His Qi-Blood was still stuck at 16 points.

His insufficient Qi-Blood also made his Starfall Archery training terribly inefficient.

Even though Lin Yi practiced archery in the Second Team Yard of Apocalypse World whenever he had time these past two days, the Proficiency of Starfall Archery was still rising very slowly.

Although the Shocking Pig in reality had now been dealt with, Lin Yi had developed a sense of urgency.

He was afraid that one day, all the Monsters from Apocalypse World would appear in reality.

The only solution was to rapidly increase his own strength and face the unknown dangers ahead.

In Apocalypse World, beneath the dim sky, the Temple's red light illuminated half the heavens.

In the yard of the Militia Second Team, Lin Yi was shooting arrow after arrow at a Wooden Target when Dugu Feng hurried in.

"Brother Qingshan, I knew you'd be here. I have good news for you. Ancient Pool Village is preparing to form the Fifth Militia Team, and every member of this Militia Team will be made up of Newborns like us."

Lin Yi raised an eyebrow. "Brother Dugu, where did you hear that?"

"Hehe, one of my brothers in the First Squad heard it from Captain Gu Liehai himself."

Lin Yi could not help nodding. The good brother Dugu Feng spoke of was named Chang Kongkuo. Rumor had it that he was a Ninth Rank High-level Player and one of the earliest players to enter Ancient Pool Village.

The news he had revealed was probably accurate.

After thinking it over, Lin Yi said, "Brother, you're Level 4 right now, and I'm Level 3. Even if they form the Fifth Militia Team, we probably aren't qualified to join, are we?"

Strictly speaking, Lin Yi and Dugu Feng were not yet official members of the Militia Team. They were only Reserve Members.

"That's true, but the proposal to form this Militia Team was decided jointly by the Village Chief and the Three Village Elders. And this Militia Team formed by us Newborns will receive special training from the village!"

Special training?

Lin Yi sneered inwardly. Training was possible, but they might also be treated as cannon fodder.

After all, as casualties in the Militia Teams increased, the village had no outstanding young people left to fill the ranks. To maintain Ancient Pool Village's safety, they could only rely on rapidly growing Newborns.

Still, everything had its pros and cons. As long as the benefits were sufficient, taking some risks was worthwhile.

"Brother Dugu, how do we join the Fifth Militia Team, and how will we be trained?"

Dugu Feng said, "I heard they're looking for Newborns with high potential, good character, and excellent qualities. But all Newborns in the Four Militia Teams, including the two of us, are qualified for direct selection. As for the training, it seems the Village Elders of Ancient Pool Village will personally lead us to Kill Monsters to Level Up."

"Impressive. Village Elders leading us to level up? That's an enormous investment!"

Lin Yi was somewhat surprised. It was said that Ancient Pool Village's Three Village Elders were all top experts far beyond Level 10. Even if they were not Professional level, they were probably not much weaker. If they personally led players to level up, the players could likely reach Level 10 in a short time.

Dugu Feng laughed. "Interested now, aren't you, brother? To be honest, I was shocked too when I heard the news. But high returns mean high risks. If they raise us up, we'll have to contribute to the village. After all, Ancient Pool Village doesn't support freeloaders."

"That's true. It sounds like you're planning to join the Fifth Militia Team?"

Dugu Feng nodded. "Yes. Although we have a way to Kill Monsters to Level Up in the Second Team, it's too slow. And the higher our level, the more Experience Points we need. I've been in Ancient Pool Village for over a month, yet I'm only Level 4. Who knows how long it would take to reach Level 10? Now that there's an opportunity to level up quickly, I naturally won't miss it."

"Alright, count me in too..."

The next day, Lin Yi asked Gu Chenghu about the Militia Fifth Team that was about to be formed.

Gu Chenghu did not expect Lin Yi to be so well-informed. He then generously told him, "Qingshan, of course you can join the Fifth Team if you want. But it isn't as you said—the Village Elders won't directly take you all the way to Level 10."

"First, the Newborns who join the Fifth Team will be managed collectively by the Village Elders and taught knowledge about dealing with Monsters, Ghost Spirits, and even surviving in the wilderness."

"Once they've trained you sufficiently, the Village Elders will select talented Newborns from the Fifth Team and teach them skills such as drawing Divine Talismans or refining Witch Medicine..."

Hearing this, Lin Yi could not help asking, "Captain, are Divine Talismans and Witch Medicine related to Professional level after Level 10?"

Gu Chenghu glanced at Lin Yi. "You're quite clever. Strictly speaking, there are some secrets I shouldn't casually tell you Newborns. But you've performed well in our Second Team these past few days, so I'll tell you a little."

"Once you reach Level 10, you'll encounter a Bottleneck. By then, your physical qualities will have basically reached the limits of humanity. The next step is to break through a certain limit and enter Professional level."

"As far as I know, there are Four Professions on the Apocalypse Continent: Martial Profession, Witch Profession, Divine Sacrifice, and Sequencer."

Four Professions?

Lin Yi suddenly thought of the four advanced attributes on his Attribute Panel: spirit, internal force, faith, and Spiritual Power. It seemed these four attributes corresponded to the four professions.

"Captain, then Elder Gu Yuan of Ancient Pool Village can make Protective Talismans, so he must be a Divine Sacrifice who follows the faith path. And Elder Gu Yun can make potions. Is he a Witch?"

Gu Chenghu nodded. "Your guess is correct. The Four Professions each have their own special characteristics. Faith can be used to create Divine Talismans, while witch power can be used to brew all kinds of potions."

"Then what are the special traits of Martial Professionals and Sequencers?"

At this, Gu Chenghu shook his head with a bitter smile. "I don't know either. Our village has no inheritance for those two professions. More accurately, our village doesn't even have an inheritance for Witches. We only have an inheritance for Divine Sacrifice."

"Then Elder Gu Yun..."

"That was because he traveled abroad ten years ago and fortunately managed to change professions into a Witch. It has nothing to do with Ancient Pool Village."

Lin Yi continued asking, "Captain, are there differences in rank among the four professions? Which profession is better?"

"I don't know that either. But I once heard Yongqiang say that the Four Professions have mysterious origins and have been passed down on the Apocalypse Continent for thousands of years. Sequencers are the most mysterious and the hardest to change into, while changing into a Martial Professional is the easiest. As long as there is a Martial Arts Stone Tablet, one can change professions. At that time, all the Qi-Blood in one's body will transform into internal force, and the power of External Art techniques will rise to another level."

Seeing the longing in Gu Chenghu's eyes, Lin Yi said, "Captain, it sounds like you're especially interested in becoming a Martial Professional?"

Gu Chenghu sighed. "Yes. I've practiced martial arts my entire life. Ever since I was young, my goal was to become a Martial Professional. Not just me—our other Militia Team captains, Gu Man, Gu Liehai... they probably all want to change into Martial Professionals."

Lin Yi scratched his head and asked in confusion, "Captain, although our village doesn't have a Witch inheritance, doesn't it have a Divine Sacrifice inheritance? Since you've already reached Level 10, why haven't you become Divine Sacrifices?"

Gu Chenghu shook his head. "You don't understand. You can't change into one of the Four Professions just because you want to. Everyone in Ancient Pool Village must be raised in the Temple for a period after birth. If they have Divine Worship Talent, the Temple will react. If not, they can never become Divine Sacrifices in their lives."

"Since Divine Sacrifice has such requirements, Witches presumably have similar restrictions. But the Martial Profession has no requirements at all. As long as you have abundant Qi-Blood and can gain some insight from the Martial Arts Stone Tablet, you can become a Martial Professional."

"Unfortunately, the Martial Arts Stone Tablet only exists in Tianshui City, but the road connecting us to Tianshui City has already been cut off. Naturally, people like us have no path to advance into Martial Professionals."

After hearing Gu Chenghu's explanation, Lin Yi finally understood that advancing into a profession was not so easy.