Novel Full Chapter 45: The Panic of the Professions: Deceitful God’s Power
Chapter 45: Chapter 45: The Panic of the Professions: Deceitful God’s Power
The first promotion requirement for the Gale Hunter was complete.
Qi Chuan had died a gruesome death. He lay on his back, two bloody holes where his eyes should have been.
’The Spiritual Resilience of a Tier Two Professional is really high,’ Su Chen thought, rubbing his temples as a throbbing pain pulsed through his head.
Professionals on the Physical Side didn’t specialize in training Spiritual Power, but promotions still increased their Spiritual Resilience.
It was impossible for someone from a Low-tier Mental Profession to instantly kill a Professional from a High-tier Physical Profession.
After confirming that Qi Chuan showed no signs of life, Su Chen’s gaze fell upon several small glass vials scattered beside the body. They had been in a metal box but had spilled during the fight.
’A targeted Antitoxic Potion?’
Su Chen picked them up and examined the hazy, light purple liquid swirling inside. There were labels on them. Two vials were left, and he stuffed them both into his Personal Space.
He grunted softly, carefully closing the door. Expanding his spiritual senses and using his Spiritual Vision, Su Chen remained constantly aware of the situation outside.
Iron wires snaked through the air around him. Thanks to his Dual-tasking ability, he could now control more than half of them at once.
SWOOSH!
The iron wires pulled taut, darting back and forth within the walls and creating a continuous series of muffled thuds like a frantic drumbeat.
CLANG!
The sharp clang made Su Chen look toward the left wall. ’Just as I thought… there’s something else here.’
With a little effort, he pried another metal box out of the wall. It was heavy and exquisitely crafted, with a black and yellow finish. Intricate, intersecting lines were embossed on its surface, weaving together to form…
Su Chen scrutinized the pattern, trying to identify it. ’Is that… a vertical pupil?’
CLICK!
The metal box opened on its own. A cross-shaped seam split open in the center, the panels retracting to the sides as black smoke billowed out.
’What the hell is this?’
Startled, Su Chen scrambled backward, but the black smoke was faster than he had imagined. It had already wrapped around his body and was boring its way inside him.
“A delicious… Soul…” A voice, both real and illusory, echoed in his ears. Su Chen’s eyes lost focus, and he seemed to see an old man, his figure as gaunt as withered wood.
The figure’s head was bowed, its scalp bald except for a single vertical pupil that appeared to be its only eye. “I shall bestow upon you a blessing,” the voice said. “Become my most devout Believer.”
’What is this thing?’ Su Chen thought. Cyan Wind Armor swirled around him, but it was powerless to stop the black smoke from pouring into his body.
The panel suddenly displayed a notification—
[Unknown external force detected. Eroding Host’s Professions.]
’Eroding my Professions?’ A chill ran down Su Chen’s spine.
[The Sky Splitter Warrior perceives the danger and rises to the challenge…]
[The Secret Artifact Master observes from the sidelines…]
[The Engineering Apprentice frets helplessly…]
[The Gale Hunter joins the fray…]
[The Space Storer rushes to the scene…]
[The Scholar cries for help…]
A stream of notifications scrolled past. It was the first time Su Chen had ever seen them so active.
[Crisis threatening all Professions detected. Taming external force.]
“You… Your body… How can it be like this…”
The illusory voice in his ear suddenly turned to one of shock and uncertainty. Vaguely, Su Chen thought he saw the withered figure raising its head, but it was already starting to fade.
“…I will remember your scent…”
CLATTER!
The metal box fell to the floor and snapped shut.
[Taming successful. Acquired—Low-tier Deceitful God’s Power: Can be used on unclaimed Professions below Tier Three, causing them to undergo peculiar changes.]
His heart hammered against his ribs, and his forehead was covered in a cold sweat. Just a moment ago, he had been almost completely paralyzed.
’Thankfully, the crisis is over.’
“A Deceitful God can actually erode one’s Professions…” Su Chen murmured to himself, his gaze fixed on the so-called Low-tier Deceitful God’s Power.
’Since the panel has already tamed it, any hidden dangers should be gone.’
After taking a moment to calm down, he looked at the black and yellow metal box on the floor, not daring to touch it just yet.
’No wonder they’re called Deceitful Gods. They’re certainly bizarre. Does this mean Jiang He’s murder, the theft of the Holy Word Stone, and all these other inexplicable incidents are really the work of a Deceitful God moving in the shadows?’
’This thing is definitive proof that there was something wrong with Qi Chuan. If that’s the case, I don’t have to hide this killing.’ Su Chen immediately pulled his Wristband from his Storage Space, turned it on, and scrolled through his contacts until he found Old Yuan.
Qi Chuan had to die. He had bribed Hu Xiang and sent people to kill him. It didn’t matter whether he was one of Zhou Xian’s men or had connections to a Deceitful God.
The only difference was that if there were no connection to a Deceitful God, Su Chen would have had to clean up the mess himself. But now, he could have someone else handle it.
“Teacher, I’ve found something. Please come as soon as you can.” He kept his message vague. Who knew if Southwind’s data hub could intercept these conversations.
The signal was weak, so Su Chen had to lean out the window to send the message. On the floors below, lights had begun to switch on.
Old Yuan’s reply came quickly. “…I’m tied up at the moment. If it’s not a big deal, have Old Sun go take a look first.”
“It is a big deal.”
A moment later, another reply came. “Understood. I’ll get there as soon as I can. If you need help, contact Old Sun.”
Su Chen thought for a moment, then opened another chat. “Brother Sun, edge of South City… bring people, quick.”
…
Meanwhile, somewhere in Southwind City, a figure in a black, hooded robe suddenly snapped their head up. Their pupils were pitch-black, and their face was a mask of uncontainable shock. “The Sacred Artifact… it’s gone!?”
…
Su Chen then searched the room inside and out one more time. Just as he confirmed that nothing had been missed, Fatty Sun arrived with his men.
The veteran inspector, a suspected Tier Two Professional, pushed open the door, panting heavily with sweat beading on his forehead.
His eyes swept over the corpse on the floor, but he immediately rushed toward Su Chen, who was standing by the window, and asked with concern,
“Kid, you’re not hurt, are you?”
Several Inspector Guards filed in behind him. They were familiar faces—his colleagues from the Seventeenth Patrol Guard.
“Han Da, Lili…” Zhao Xiong gestured to his left and right, and the group began to move cautiously around the corpse.
“Boss, this person… is that… Qi Chuan?” Han Da asked, his head snapping up in astonishment after just a brief glance.
“Qi Chuan?” Fatty Sun’s ears perked up, and his expression changed drastically. “Ah, kid, you have such a short fuse! How could you kill him?” he said, looking flustered.
“Was it because of that woman who came last night? What did she tell you? Did you record it? You need to go, now! We’ll cover up the scene…”
Zhao Xiong and the others exchanged subtle glances, looking as if they had just stumbled upon some major gossip.
Su Chen gave a helpless smile. “Where would I go? Even if you covered it up, I couldn’t hide it from my teacher.”
Fatty Sun’s expression flickered. His deference to Su Chen was entirely due to Yuan Chenyang; there was no way something like this could be kept from him.
But he immediately changed the subject, asking with feigned surprise, “This Qi Chuan was a Tier Two Professional, wasn’t he? Kid, how did you manage to kill him?”
“He was starved for a few days at the Inspectorate, and I drugged him a little…” Su Chen replied casually.
’So ruthless.’
Fatty Sun’s lip twitched. He found Su Chen’s calmness to be unnatural, which made him wonder. Something was off.
’Su Chen had already killed the man; there was no need to call them over to sanitize the scene. He could have just dealt with it himself.’
“Ah… Lili…” Su Chen said suddenly. “Don’t touch that.”
Lili froze. She looked at the object covered by the Shadow-avoiding Robe, shrugged, and turned to inspect something else.
“…Why does this wall look like it’s been sprayed with bullets? It’s full of tiny holes…” Han Da said, leaning close to it.
“What’s going on here?” a deep voice boomed from the doorway, making Fatty Sun jump.
’How did Inspector General Yuan get here so fast?’ Fatty Sun wondered. ’I only just sent out the message.’
Zhao Xiong and the others instantly snapped to attention, swallowing nervously and not daring to make a sound.
“Is this Qi Chuan?” Yuan Chenyang walked in, frowning at the corpse on the floor. His gaze moved past Fatty Sun and settled on Su Chen. He sighed. “Go home. I’ll take care of this.”
Su Chen was rather surprised. He had expected Old Yuan to ask for an explanation.
“Teacher, over there.” Su Chen pointed to the spot covered by the Shadow-avoiding Robe.
Yuan Chenyang’s eyes flickered. He walked over and lifted a corner of the Shadow-avoiding Robe. After just one fleeting glance, his pupils contracted sharply.
’This is… a Deceitful Artifact!’