Chapter 56: Chapter 56: [Black Tuo Followers]? Forced Induction "You want to kill me!" Pan Yu’s face twisted. "You’re courting death!" Hu Xiang’s expression grew grim. He had aimed for his opponent’s heart, but at the last moment, Pan Yu managed to shift his body just enough to dodge the fatal blow. Hu Xiang tried to yank his spear out but failed. Instead, his opponent used the leverage to charge toward him. Blood trickled from the corner of Pan Yu’s mouth. He gripped the spear embedded in his body with his left hand, and with a flash of dark light from his right, a dagger shot toward Hu Xiang. But in that instant, his vision blurred, and he was dazed for a moment. His movements slowed, and Hu Xiang seized the fleeting opportunity. Flames surged into the spear like a fiery dragon, instantly igniting Pan Yu’s body along the weapon’s shaft. BOOM! Searing flames turned Pan Yu into a human torch. The excruciating pain wracking his body made it difficult to think. ’Who wants to kill me?’ ’Even if my identity was exposed, it shouldn’t have been an ambush like this!?’ "No, I absolutely cannot die here!" The will to survive made him squeeze out every last drop of strength from his body. Adrenaline surged, and under the glare of the surrounding lights, his body began to emit a gray, misty glow. Like an arrow loosed from a bow, he shot toward the blinding lights around him. He could hide in the shadows. As long as these lights were gone, this guy wouldn’t be able to do anything to him! ’Just... just one! If I can just destroy one, it’ll be enough!’ The living room wasn’t large to begin with. With his burst of speed, Pan Yu was incredibly fast, reaching one of the large lamps in the blink of an eye and stabbing with his dagger. With a POP, the lamp went dark. "Not good!" Hu Xiang tensed. He excelled at frontal combat, but his speed was nothing special. If Pan Yu escaped, the consequences would be unimaginable. Hope ignited in his eyes, but in the next moment, a wild wind howled around him. A chill that shot up from the base of his spine made him want to dive into the shadows without even daring to look back. But it was too late. The Cyan Rope in Su Chen’s hand shone with increasing brilliance, its power amplified by the highly compressed Wind Element coating it. CRACK! The tip of the Cyan Rope cracked like a whip. Pan Yu felt an excruciating pain in his back, and then the sensation in his lower body vanished. "There’s... someone else!?" His body swayed and collapsed. Hope faded from Pan Yu’s eyes, replaced by bitter unwillingness as he twisted his head around with all his might. Backlit by the light, he could only make out a blurry silhouette, who seemed to be rubbing their temples. But even without seeing a face, just the sight of that vaguely familiar figure made Pan Yu forget the agonizing pain in his body. ’Su Chen!’ ’I haven’t even made a move against him, and he’s come to kill me!?’ Reflected in Pan Yu’s gradually dimming pupils was the image of Su Chen bending down, pulling out the dagger, and examining it closely. [Path of the Hunter has completed objective: 1] [Shadow Dagger (Tier Two): Forged from grey gold, possesses extremely strong Concealment abilities.] Hu Xiang was still frozen in his charging posture. He swallowed hard, his voice filled with disbelief. "A Tier Two... Professional?" Su Chen was already a Tier Two Professional. No wonder he had felt something was strange. "Tier Two Professionals are hard to kill," Su Chen remarked with a sigh. "You call that hard to kill?" Hu Xiang stared at him as if he’d seen a ghost, then at the corpse on the floor. A bloody hole had been blown open in the center of Pan Yu’s back, a chilling sight. This was the easiest same-tier kill he had ever been a part of. Su Chen had told him to prepare high-powered incandescent lamps long ago, having figured out the enemy’s weakness. The two of them had worked together, expending almost no effort and barely making a sound. Hu Xiang even felt that with the power of Su Chen’s final strike, he could have whipped Pan Yu to death on his own, without any help. But Su Chen had let him strike first to ensure it was foolproof—or perhaps, to plunge Pan Yu into the deepest despair. Hu Xiang felt his initial assessment had been correct. This guy was a "monster." "So, what’s next?" Hu Xiang looked at the corpse on the ground, subconsciously deferring to Su Chen. "You can go. Leave this to me," Su Chen said, waving him off. Then he added, "Oh, right. Can you burn him to ash first?" "He’s a Tier Two Professional, after all. My fire isn’t hot enough to turn him to ash. The most I can do is burn him down to a skeleton," Hu Xiang said, shaking his head. "A skeleton is good enough," Su Chen nodded. He watched as Hu Xiang slowly burned away Pan Yu’s flesh. Just as Hu Xiang was about to leave, he hesitated and spoke again, "Can I ask you for a favor?" "Go ahead." Su Chen’s gaze swept over, his expression growing serious. "You’re definitely heading to Ying Feng. If it’s possible, could you keep an eye out for clues about the Fog Nightmare Pearl for me?" Hu Xiang’s words held a careful, pleading tone. Su Chen was silent for a moment, then a grin spread across his face. "No problem." It might have been a promise that would never be fulfilled, but Hu Xiang still breathed a sigh of relief and left with a sense of hope. 「At that moment, only one or two hours remained before dawn.」 "This is enough, too." Su Chen dismantled the skeleton, placing the bones into his Storage Space one by one. He then went upstairs, grabbed the small safe, and threw it in as well, nearly filling the Storage Space. They had already searched the entire apartment before Pan Yu returned. The only thing of value was likely what was inside this safe. As for anything related to the Deceitful God Sect, they hadn’t found a thing. ’I wonder how long this can be kept secret... Hu Xiang is held in check by the matter with his wife, and with Old Yuan’s reputation to keep him in line, he probably won’t leak this.’ 「As the sky began to brighten, Su Chen returned to the Inspectorate.」 ’The Deceitful God Sect can’t possibly operate in Southwind City forever. Besides, people from Ying Feng have already arrived. I feel like there’s something fishy going on here. I hope they wipe out these evil cults soon.’ ’Pan Yu had it too easy for too long. His profile was investigated so thoroughly that when deliberately targeted, he didn’t even have the ability to resist.’ Su Chen reflected on this, becoming more convinced that it was always better to have a few secrets. ’The dagger’s not bad. A Tier Two Weapon combined with the Cyan Rope can really catch someone off guard.’ Su Chen held out his hand. The dagger materialized. A cyan cord crawled out from his sleeve, wrapping around the hilt and dancing around him like a disembodied arm. With Pan Yu eliminated, he could probably enjoy a period of peace before the Deceitful God Sect confirmed his death. ’Tier Two Professionals are the pillars of Southwind City. Zhou Xian is being watched like a hawk, so he probably won’t dare to make a move himself. I’m much safer now.’ ’As for this safe...’ Su Chen retrieved the exquisite black-and-gold safe from his Storage Space. The material was certainly sturdy. But it couldn’t stand up to a Tier Two dagger. With a little effort, he pried it open. "This is..." Su Chen’s breath hitched. The first thing that caught his eye were three pink Potions. It was Glazed Blood. "This guy actually had such good stuff," Su Chen said in surprise. But on second thought, the guy had a double identity and had been operating in Southwind City for so many years. It seemed perfectly normal for him to have acquired two or three portions. "Thanks for the gift," Su Chen said as he pocketed them without a trace of guilt. There were also ten crystalline white metal pieces. Su Chen opened his Wristband and searched through the library database for a long time before he could identify them. "...Dome Stone... more effective at dispelling mist than Morning Star Stone... a relatively common type of precious metal..." Su Chen weighed one in his hand. "One piece is probably worth five thousand gold." "This guy was probably ready to flee at any moment, converting all his savings into ’gold bars.’" Su Chen was in a good mood. This worked out perfectly for him. If it were actual money, it would be like a debit card tied to a name—useless to him. "Killing and looting... it really is the fastest way to get rich," Su Chen mused as he put the items away. At the very bottom was a paper document. Su Chen opened it and merely glanced at it, but his expression changed slightly: [Special Profession discovered--Black Tuo Followers. Fulfill the requirements to take on this profession.] [Requirement to become a Black Tuo Follower: Possess a reverent heart toward Black Tuo.] [The Black Tuo Follower profession has discovered that the host holds no reverence for Black Tuo. Its fury has been stoked, and it is preparing for a forced induction!] "It’s trying to force the profession on me." Su Chen’s face turned ugly. The panel’s reaction was too fast; he had only glanced at the document, and it had already registered. But very quickly, Su Chen’s expression relaxed. [Sensing the ill intent of the Black Tuo Follower profession, the host’s other professions have gathered around. They are preparing to have a good long chat with this new friend to help it improve its way of thinking and mend its wicked ways...]