Chapter 1: Dangerous 'Professional Awakening'
“Are you ready?”
The night was as deep as water.
The young man's voice softly echoed in the quiet night.
“Wait, wait a moment.”
The girl’s voice, clearly trembling, paused, followed by the sound of her trying to regulate her breathing.
Outside the Base City, in a remote, desolate forest.
Two figures were bathed in moonlight.
High above, a grotesque scar, almost splitting the sky in two, radiated a crimson light, dyeing the otherwise pristine moonlight with a reddish hue.
By the crimson moonlight, it was clear these were a boy and a girl, both around fifteen or sixteen years old.
They stood in a clearly man-made, flattened circle.
Faintly, crisscrossing patterns could be seen, forming an eerie array.
In front of them, there was a bowl filled with an unknown liquid. It was too dark to see clearly in the moonlight, appearing black.
Hearing Qin Xiaoyou's voice, Qin Fang paused the hand he was about to use to pick up the bowl.
Qin Fang, at fifteen or sixteen, was not very tall, just over one meter seventy, but his slender build and good proportions made him appear quite lithe.
He had a head of slightly messy black hair, a very handsome face, fair skin, eyes like polished lacquer, and a pair of phoenix eyes that looked deeply at even dogs… his appearance was truly striking.
“Are you nervous?”
He softly asked the girl beside him.
By the moonlight, Qin Xiaoyou’s sweet little face could be seen tensing, and her other hand, gripping his, noticeably tightened, yet she bravely insisted: “No, not nervous.”
She said she wasn't nervous, but the way her little face was taut, anyone could see she was lying.
Qin Fang naturally knew she was lying.
After all… it concerned Professional Awakening.
And in a moment, she might have to face unknown horrors.
How could she not be nervous?
But…
There was no other way.
Qin Fang's mind quickly flashed through the past two years since he had transmigrated.
World invasion, monster invasion.
This world's malice towards ordinary people had reached its peak.
If it weren't for the orphanage's support over these two years, he didn't know how many times he would have died.
Now, he and Qin Xiaoyou were preparing for the 'Professional Awakening Ceremony'.
After the world invasion, the world's rules seemed to have changed, and people in this world could awaken 'Professions'.
Once one became a 'Professional', they could possess extraordinary power.
To become a 'Professional', there were two prerequisites.
First, be at least fifteen years old.
Second, undergo the Professional Awakening Ceremony.
Both of them had met the first condition.
Now, they were preparing to perform the Professional Awakening Ceremony.
For the wealthy, the Professional Awakening Ceremony was very safe.
There were specialized Professional Awakening arrays, Professional Awakening crystals, and plenty of Professional security on site…
They could calmly handle any situation that arose.
But for people like Qin Fang and Qin Xiaoyou, who had no money… the Professional Awakening Ceremony was very dangerous.
The emergence of Professionals seemed to be specifically to counter the 'world invasion'.
Naturally, when a Professional Awakening occurred somewhere, monsters from the nearby 'invading world' would sense it immediately, then rush over to destroy or kill the newly awakened Professional…
Qin Fang had seen those monsters in the past two years; they were terrifying, completely inhuman, one could say.
For example, this Professional Awakening array beneath their feet, no one knew who left it, but when Qin Fang and Qin Xiaoyou first discovered it, there were three unrecognizable corpses, gnawed beyond recognition, lying nearby…
It was terrifying.
But…
There was no other way.
Having come to such a dangerous world, if they couldn't become Professionals, then a dead end ultimately awaited them.
…Especially since a Tier 2 dungeon had recently appeared nearby, and it hadn't been perfectly cleared for nearly a month, causing panic in the Base City.
The dungeon monsters inside could very likely appear in the real world at any time.
Many people had even planned to flee.
Others, with money and strength, naturally had no problem fleeing.
But Qin Fang and Qin Xiaoyou were just orphans, without money or strength…
Where could they run to?
…They could only risk everything.
“It’s okay, even if monsters are really attracted, as long as one of us awakens a combat Profession, we can easily handle it…”
Qin Fang gently reassured Qin Xiaoyou.
That's what he said.
But in truth, Qin Fang himself wasn't confident.
Awakening a Profession in this world was entirely up to fate.
Completely random.
There was no way to interfere with the awakening result.
And unfortunately, the number of combat Profession awakenings was very low.
The ratio to life Professions was almost 1 to 9.
Out of ten people, only one might become a combat Professional.
…Some speculated that this was a trick played by the invading worlds behind the scenes.
But firstly, there was no concrete evidence.
Secondly, even if there was evidence, there was nothing they could do.
They could only leave it to fate.
Qin Fang's reassurance seemed to have some effect; Qin Xiaoyou's trembling body finally stopped shaking.
She gritted her teeth and whispered, “Brother, I’m ready… let's begin!”
But when she said the last three words, 'let's begin', there was a hint of gritting her teeth.
Qin Fang said no more; he also took a deep breath, then reached out and picked up the bowl from the ground in front of him.
Then he only heard him whisper, “Professional… Awakening!”
With that, he abruptly flipped the bowl over and pressed it directly onto a pattern on the ground.
At this moment, by the silver moonlight, it was finally clear that the bowl of dark liquid was not black… but crimson.
It was blood.
His and Qin Xiaoyou’s blood.
The blood seeped into the ground, then slowly permeated into the array lines nearby.
Qin Xiaoyou stood beside Qin Fang, nervously watching the magic array on the ground.
It was quiet all around.
At a certain moment, something magical happened.
Crimson halos appeared one after another, and in just a short while, they covered the entire array, enveloping both of them.
Immediately after, light appeared on their bodies.
Qin Fang's eyes lit up.
It had begun!
He stared intently at his own body.
At a certain moment, transparent, colorless light flickered on his body…
Wait a minute…
Colorless light?
Qin Fang was startled, then fell silent.
The world had been invaded for over thirty years, and now there was already a clear understanding of the Professional's Profession levels.
Although he was an orphan, he knew these common facts.
Profession grades could be distinguished by color during awakening.
The higher the grade, the stronger the Professional's potential and the more powerful the Profession.
Not only would they possess more powerful 'Professional Skills', but also higher 'Growth Rate' and 'Professional Coefficient'.
…The gap was even greater than between a whale and a commoner in a pay-to-win game in his previous life.
The currently known levels, from low to high, were 'White Common', 'Green Elite', 'Blue Excellent', 'Purple Epic', 'Gold Legendary', and 'Rainbow Divine'.
Colorless?
Had it failed?
Qin Fang was silent.
…Awakening Professions, life and combat were 9 to 1.
The remaining 90%…
Was failure.
Meaning 'Non-Professional'!
He was a Non-Professional?
Even with Qin Fang's temperament, he felt a deep sense of powerlessness at this moment.
…The plans for the future needed to change…
He thought.
In such an extraordinary world, Profession was king.
Without a Profession, he was destined to sink to the bottom of society.
Even though he had mentally prepared himself sufficiently, when it actually happened, he still felt a sense of powerlessness and stifling frustration.
As he was thinking, a soft white light flickered beside him.
Qin Fang turned his head to look.
Qin Xiaoyou was entirely bathed in a white light.
White…
A Common Profession?
A hint of disappointment surfaced in his heart again.
In a world where Profession was king, a Common Profession meant being inherently behind others.
However…
It was still better than him having no Profession.
He quickly adjusted his emotions and quietly asked, “Xiaoyou, what Profession?”
Qin Xiaoyou’s gaze was unfocused, looking straight ahead.
Qin Fang knew that was the Profession panel.
Only the person themselves could see it.
Hearing Qin Fang's question, she instinctively turned her head to look at Qin Fang.
Her eyes made Qin Fang's heart sink.
…Not a combat Profession?
Just as he was thinking, a heavy thudding sound echoed through the dim, dense forest.
It sounded as if something was rapidly approaching.
Qin Fang's expression tightened as he looked in that direction.
…It seems they had attracted monsters after all.