My Professions Have Too Much Personality

’If the Soldier Master’s abilities are powerful, I might have a chance to take him down with me. At worst, if I wait until I awaken my abilities at 50%, I should still be able to win.’

He pondered for a moment. "It all depends on what the Soldier Master’s abilities are."

Thinking of this, he summoned his panel, drew upon his stored Essences, and applied them to the Soldier Master profession.

He consumed one Crimson Essence and one Sly Fox Essence. Since there were only two requirements left for the Soldier Master profession, the Crimson Essence was unavoidable.

Next, Su Chen also worked on his long-neglected Holy Mark Physician, but unfortunately, he couldn’t avoid using a Crimson Essence for that either. The Sly Fox Essence increased the requirement from five Top-tier Physical Side professions to six, so he had to weaken it back down again.

The only requirement left for this profession was to heal the injured, but there was no practical way for him to complete it. Since it involved the Lan Family’s Holy Profession, it was difficult to ask for help.

He could only try to find a solution through the Creation Copper Heart, but it wasn’t urgent. Attaining the Soldier Master profession was the priority for now.

After checking the time, he saw that Song Yang and the others wouldn’t arrive until tomorrow. Su Chen put away the Fog Ashes and decided to head to the training room to work on his profession progress.

He had spent nearly ten days on Canglan Star without a proper place to train, and he was actually starting to miss it.

...

Meanwhile, the news of Qin Yun’s return caused quite a stir within the Sect, and everyone from top to bottom had their own opinions on the matter.

Qin Yun’s subordinates had not been in a good position during the time this Venerable was away.

Many in the Sect were waiting to see if Qin Yun would rally her forces upon her return and settle some old scores, such as the theft of the Spiritual Fire and the death of Meng Shiyu.

But before any rumors to that effect could start, another piece of news spread through the Sect—

Fan Zhao had colluded with a Deceitful God to assassinate the Star Seed, Su Chen. He was caught in the act by Master Qing and was currently being judged by the Punishment Hall.

His apprentice, Fang Luoxun, had already had his memories searched, revealing Fan Zhao’s plot in its entirety.

The news was like a thunderclap on a clear day, truly sending massive waves through the Sect’s inner circles.

The phrase "colluding with a Deceitful God" hadn’t been uttered in the Sect for many years, let alone in connection with a true core member like Fan Zhao.

It truly shocked many people, and some even suspected that Qing Cang was using his official position to settle a personal grudge.

However, the Punishment Hall was in charge, and during the interrogation and memory scan, high-ranking members from at least two other halls were present as observers. All procedures were followed correctly. The evidence was as solid as iron and could not be faked.

"Why would Fan Zhao ever think of colluding with a Deceitful God? Did he really have to stoop to that level?"

"Anyone who gets involved with Deceitful Gods becomes bewitched. Who knows what goes on in their minds."

"But that’s just too sloppy, isn’t it? Getting caught red-handed like that. When he laid out his plan, didn’t he use some kind of contract?"

The Sect members chattered amongst themselves, but no one offered any explanation of the inside story.

All they knew was that Qin Yun’s faction, far from baring their fangs again upon her return, had become even more withdrawn.

Many of them even stopped making public appearances, as if terrified of being implicated in matters related to the Deceitful God.

...

「Several days later.」

On the floating island where the Profound Celestial Sect resided, Qing Cang arrived once more. Following behind him was a nervous and cautious Ming Lin, who carefully surveyed his surroundings.

"Senior Brother Lu." Qing Cang greeted the approaching Lu Huai with a cheerful smile.

After the two exchanged pleasantries for a moment, Lu Huai’s gaze fell upon Ming Lin, a slight flicker in his eyes.

Just as Ming Lin was clicking his tongue in amazement at the sharpness of the red-haired old man’s gaze, he noticed lights weaving around his body, flashing with an inky black hue.

"Ink Jade?" Lu Huai said, slightly surprised. "This Talent, isn’t it..."

He trailed off. The return on investment for upgrading the Ink Jade Talent was too low, and the number of slots the Bronze Sect had exchanged with them was limited.

Upgrading from Scarlet to Profound Purple was clearly far more valuable than upgrading from Ink Jade to Scarlet.

But before he could finish his thought, he realized this was likely a case of using connections.

Ming Lin looked slightly embarrassed, but Qing Cang was completely unconcerned. "He’s the one."

Lu Huai didn’t press the issue. He shrugged, held out his palm, and the Profound Celestial Instrument materialized above it. "Describe the scene."

Ming Lin instinctively glanced over, but before he could even react, he felt a wave of dizziness and vanished on the spot.

"It’ll probably take three or four days. His Talent is on the lower side," Lu Huai said.

"Mm," Qing Cang nodded. Just as he was about to leave, Lu Huai spoke up again, a slight hesitation in his voice, "I heard... that Venerable Qin Yun has returned?"

A sharp glint flashed in Qing Cang’s eyes, but he replied calmly, "That’s right. Qin Yun has returned."

"Then..." Lu Huai began, then hesitated. His own sect had told him not to inquire about the matter, especially since he was currently in the Bronze Sect’s territory, and with the Profound Celestial Instrument no less.

If the conversation went south, it could be very difficult for him to leave.

But he still couldn’t help himself, believing that the Bronze Sect wouldn’t go so far as to turn hostile over a couple of questions.

Qing Cang didn’t respond right away. After a moment of contemplation, he invited Lu Huai to sit in a nearby pavilion. He then let out a sigh, his tone heavy.

"Senior Brother Lu, you and I are old acquaintances. The Profound Celestial Ancient King and my own master were on good terms when they were young, and our two sects have coexisted harmoniously for many years."

Lu Huai’s heart skipped a beat. He didn’t know why Qing Cang was suddenly bringing up their personal history and grew wary.

After this preamble, Qing Cang put on a helpless expression and said, "Given our relationship, I won’t hide the truth from you. In fact, Qin Yun knows nothing."

"Knows nothing?" Lu Huai was completely stunned, his expression clearly saying, ’Are you taking me for a fool?’ He couldn’t help but stand up. "Five of the seven Morning Star Tiers are dead, the Prison King is still in a coma, and now you’re telling me Qin Yun knows nothing?"

Qing Cang sighed. "She really does know nothing."

"You..." Lu Huai’s expression shifted as if he were about to explode with anger, but he suppressed it and said in a low voice, "If that’s the case, then I won’t ask any more questions."

It was unclear whether Lu Huai believed him, but his attitude was clearly sour. Without bidding Qing Cang farewell, he left directly.

Qing Cang’s gaze was profound, but he wasn’t surprised. If Lu Huai, who was on relatively good terms with them, reacted this way, there was no telling how others would respond.

...

「A few days later.」

At a gathering hosted by Wei Zhenghong, Chu Ran was laughing heartily, surrounded by a crowd of people congratulating him on his promotion to the Star Amber Talent.

"Thank you, everyone! Thank you all!" Chu Ran replied, unable to contain the excitement on his face.

"Old Su! Old Su!"

Suddenly, Chu Ran’s eyes lit up, and he shouted loudly.

The moment Su Chen walked in, he heard Chu Ran calling his name. Once they’d gotten to know each other, the guy had dropped the formal titles and just called him "Old Su" nonstop.

"Hey, you finally made it," Chu Ran said, sidling up to him and speaking in a conspiratorial tone. "Notice anything different about me?"

Su Chen gave him a strange look and said flatly, "If you’re sick, you should see a doctor."

"Hahaha." Chu Ran wasn’t offended at all. He just grinned and said, "I have the Star Amber Talent now too!"

"Oh really?" Su Chen sounded genuinely surprised.

Chu Ran added, "It’s only Single-Star Amber, but it really does feel different."

While the improvement in his Talent was tangible, a single Tier wasn’t enough to cause an earth-shattering transformation. More importantly, it had satisfied some kind of obsession for Chu Ran.

"And I have you to thank for it," Chu Ran said repeatedly.

"What does it have to do with me?" Su Chen asked, baffled.

"The Profound Celestial Instrument came to our Sect because of you, didn’t it?" Chu Ran said as if it were obvious, then added with a sigh of admiration, "Master Qing is really something else. He tricked the Ancient King, used up a personal favor, and snatched the opportunity right out from under the Royal Court."

"It’s a shame that in the end, with that whole Lost Flame incident, they didn’t even manage to bait any big fish."

"Isn’t Fan Zhao a big enough fish?" Zhao Ming interjected, shaking his head.

"That has nothing to do with Talent," Chu Ran said, shaking his head. He casually picked up a glass of red liquor from a nearby table and handed it to Su Chen. "I heard that follower of yours, Ming Lin, also went to use the Profound Celestial Instrument. It caused a bit of a stir a couple of days ago."

"Oh?" Su Chen’s own network was still too small for him to have heard such news, but he made sure to emphasize, "Ming Lin is my friend, not my follower."

"Friend..." Chu Ran paused for a second, then smiled. "My mistake. Word is, people on Qin Yun’s side originally wanted to use this as a pretext to stir up some trouble."

"But the head of the Spirit Hall, Wen Jing, personally stepped in and put a stop to it. He even reprimanded a few people and told them to behave themselves."

After all, Ming Lin’s Talent was too low, he had no backing, and he wasn’t an important figure, yet he was able to use the Profound Celestial Instrument.

It wasn’t just Qin Yun’s faction; many of the people present couldn’t help but feel that it was unfair, though no one actually made a scene.

"If anyone has a problem with it, they can come find me directly," Su Chen said calmly.

"Don’t worry about it." Chu Ran drained his glass in one gulp, having only brought the matter up as a casual topic of conversation.