My profession is too unique.

Chapter 59 The Armor at the Peak of the Second Order, Half-Step to the Third Order
Outside Nanfeng City, at the ruins' outpost, Yuan Chenyang's face was grim, and the crimson iron longsword in his hand emitted a chilling flame.

The surrounding area was a mess, with large craters emitting blue smoke everywhere, metal debris scattered all over the place, mixed with painful screams.

The logistics team moved across the battlefield, searching for the wounded and collecting the bodies.

"Another high-level ruin, it should hold a lot of good stuff. I wonder if it's a blessing or a curse." Yuan Chenyang sheathed his long sword and looked at the huge metal wreckage in the distance, next to which were a large number of overturned construction machines.

Just then, an exploration guard in charge of logistics came over and reported in a low voice: "Minister Yuan, Nanfeng has news about you."

Yuan Chenyang's brow twitched slightly. He went to the garrison point, retrieved the information, which came from Sun Tai and was sent through official communication channels. It was very brief:
"Minister, Su Chen has advanced to the second-tier profession. Please rest assured, everything is fine."

"Second stage?" Yuan Chenyang's eyes lit up, his bald head seemed to shine even brighter. He calculated the time and frowned: "It's more than a month faster than I expected. This kid isn't eating or drinking."

"Sigh..." He sighed. How much hardship must have been in the past for him to be so resilient.

"...Guaranteed at least a Tier 3 relic, possibly even a Tier 4 or Tier 5 relic..." A voice suddenly came from behind.
who! ?

Yuan Chenyang's pupils contracted, and his body reacted faster than his mind, turning around to attack. But when he saw who it was, his expression changed drastically, and he quickly stopped.

"...Old Xia, what brings you here?" Yuan Chenyang felt a chill run down his spine as he looked at the hunched, white-bearded old man before him, whose deep-set eyes and sinister gaze sent shivers down his spine.

"Can't I come?" the hunchbacked old man asked calmly.

"No, that's not what I meant." Yuan Chenyang hurriedly shook his head, but in his heart he was cursing Ying Feng's group for sending this killer.

"Are you insulting me again?"

Yuan Chenyang's heart skipped a beat, and he was met with the old man's sinister gaze, which sent a chill down his spine.

"No, no..." He quickly shook his head.

Xia Hanshi said calmly, "...Nanfeng City is quite lucky. Half a year ago, they discovered a third-tier ruin and even unearthed a profession containing spatial characteristics. I wonder what's inside."

"Thanks to you, sir," Yuan Chenyang said cautiously.

"You reported to Xingfeng that you handed over something?" Xia Hanshi said calmly.

Yuan Chenyang's expression changed. Of course he had it, but he wasn't going to give it to the other party.

Xia Hanshi said indifferently, "Your teacher should have come this time, but since you were the one who lost the Sacred Word Stone, I was afraid he would protect you, so I fought with him. He didn't win."

“It is…it is a top-tier first-level profession,” Yuan Chenyang said helplessly.

"Oh?" Xia Hanshi instantly became interested and stretched out his withered palm.

“I…” Yuan Chenyang’s face was tense.

"Do you think I would take credit for your work?" Xia Hanshi asked coldly.

Yuan Chenyang lowered his head resignedly, pulled up the encrypted information, and showed it to the assassin.

"...Over five years of accumulated running experience...Master-level basic training methods...Twenty breakthroughs to the limit...Physically speaking...The shadow of a powerhouse and a swift runner...Interesting..."

Xia Hanshi stroked his chin and asked, "What is a higher-level profession?"

Yuan Chenyang explained, "The details of higher-tier professions are not yet clear, but first-tier professions have strong compatibility and should be compatible with many higher-tier professions."

Xia Hanshi nodded, then stared intently at Yuan Chenyang: "Where did you come from?"

"I found out by chance." Yuan Chenyang gritted his teeth, feeling his bald head go numb. If this guy found out about Su Chen's Crimson Gold Spiritual Talent and that he was a refugee, he would definitely be forcibly taken away.

But this is not a good thing. He had long heard of Xia Hanshi's reputation. In pursuit of something, he had ruined more than one promising talent.

In his opinion, the right way for Su Chen to erase his identity as a refugee and then enter the courtroom step by step was to erase his identity as a refugee.

"Haha..." Xia Hanshi suddenly burst into laughter.

Old Yuan felt the surroundings growing increasingly cold, and even his bald head glistened with moisture.

"I will remember your contribution."

The pressure suddenly dissipated, and light, airy words drifted over.

Yuan Chenyang breathed a sigh of relief, then heard the other party ask, "What's the situation in Nanfeng City?"

When the matter was brought up, Yuan Chenyang composed himself and quickly began to recount the events, from the loss of the Sacred Word Stone to the discovery of the Black Tuo believers, and then to the empty shell of the mysterious artifact.

Of course, he glossed over the parts involving Su Chen, speaking vaguely about them.

“An empty, mysterious artifact… Interesting…” A cold glint flashed in Xia Hanshi’s eyes. “Any clues?”

Yuan Chenyang hesitated for a moment, then said hesitantly, "The Minister of the Interior, Zhou Xian, his son is the vessel that transported the Sacred Word Stone."

"What did they find out?" Xia Hanshi asked casually.

“Uh, it’s just a suspicion, there’s no evidence yet…” Yuan Chenyang shook his head.

Xia Hanshi frowned and sneered, "You high-ranking officials are indeed protecting each other. Evidence? Arrest them and dismember them, then we'll have evidence."

Although Yuan Chenyang had thought about it that way, hearing it now still made his heart skip a beat, and he hurriedly said, "He also came from the Tribunal."

Xia Hanshi said casually, "I don't care where he came from."

Then, he changed the subject, "By the way, the reason the Holy Word Stone was retrieved was because you sent an undercover agent?"

Yuan Chenyang felt a chill run down his spine, but calmly replied, "Yes, it's one of my students. It was arranged a long time ago."

Xia Hanshi simply nodded, and a sudden gust of wind swept him into the sky: "I see. In that case, you should just stay here quietly."

.........

The logistics and internal affairs departments are closely linked, and the two section chiefs have a good relationship.

Fatty Sun led Su Chen to the logistics department, familiar with the area. Many people greeted him along the way, and he responded to each one with a smile. "This must be the minister's student," Qian Hui said in the logistics section chief's office, inviting the two to sit down and making two cups of tea.

The other person was a thin middle-aged man with a gentle smile on his face. "You don't usually come over for a visit."

"I've often heard Brother Sun mention that you're the head of the Supervision Department, and I've wanted to meet you for a long time," Su Chen replied politely, which made the other man's smile even wider.

"Has the city lord's order come down yet?" Fatty Sun took a sip of tea, his face full of disdain. "Old Qian, I heard you got a batch of 'Azure Cloud Fall' from Tie Yun through someone. Are you reluctant to give it up?"

"That's just a rumor." Qian Hui waved his hand, not giving Fatty Sun a chance to continue. "The city lord's order has already been issued, so I'm just waiting here."

"This is the list of second-tier weapons." Qian Hui took a thin piece of paper from his desk and handed it over.

Su Chen didn't take it; instead, Fatty Sun snatched it away, but he didn't care.

On the way here, Lao Sun said that if this matter were entrusted to him, he would definitely give him a satisfactory answer.

"This is it..." Fatty Sun glanced at it and said disdainfully, "The Fire Condensation Sword... the Ice Molding Spear... these are all antiques."

"That's because ordinary people aren't qualified to take it," Qian Hui said irritably. "It's not like you're the one choosing. Hurry up and give the list to Brother Su."

Fatty Sun still held it in his hand and chuckled, "I remember, the research department sent over a prototype armor a while ago."

Qian Hui's brow twitched violently, but he said nonchalantly, "That's right, the research department has developed a new type of armor."

"Let's see if we can place an order. The cost is too high, so I rejected it."

"That prototype armor is also a Tier 2 weapon, right?" Fatty Sun stared straight at him.

"...It was built to the standards of a Tier 2 weapon, but the cost of the prototype armor far exceeded the standard." Qian Hui emphasized, "And I've already sent it back."

Fatty Sun said with a smile, "Have you forgotten who came looking for Brother Su that night?"

Qian Hui was momentarily stunned, then his face stiffened.

Fatty Sun continued, "Should we have Brother Su call Jiang He and ask if the package has been delivered?"

Su Chen was speechless; the gossip spread way too fast.

Qian Hui said helplessly, "Old Sun, don't make things difficult for me. We also paid for that prototype armor."

“Sigh…” Fatty Sun ignored him and looked at Su Chen with difficulty. “Brother, go back and tell the city lord that you can’t perform your duties, and the logistics are stuck.”

"When Minister Yuan returns, please put in a good word for me. I have already done my best."

Qian Hui felt a surge of frustration, both because of the city lord and Yuan Chenyang.

"Fine, fine, fine!" he gritted his teeth and said, "Here you go, here you go!"

"If we had done this earlier, it would have been wonderful." Fatty Sun leaned back, crossed his legs, and sipped his tea with a smile.

"Brother Su, wait here for me for a moment." Although he was quite taken aback by Old Sun's retort, Qian Hui still managed a smile when he looked at Su Chen.

"Thank you for your help." Su Chen remained polite. After the other party left, he asked in a low voice, "What is that prototype armor?"

"I heard it's based on Yingfeng's technology, but it's very expensive, and we can't afford it. The research department built a prototype, but the logistics department scrapped it after evaluation," Fatty Sun explained in a low voice. "Among weapons, defensive weapons are the most precious."

"With the same materials, we could probably make two longswords and four daggers. Many people are eyeing that prototype armor, but Qian Hui is determined not to let go."

“If you didn’t have the city lord’s and minister’s backing, he probably wouldn’t have let go.”

Su Chen nodded in realization, not expecting that being used as bait would have such benefits.

After waiting a while, Qian Hui returned carrying two metal boxes, one large and one small. Through the crack in the door, Su Chen could see that many members of the logistics department were looking at them in surprise.

More accurately, I was looking at the long, narrow black metal box.

Upon entering the room, Qian Hui's grim expression eased somewhat. Reluctantly, he tossed the suitcase onto the table, pressed the combination lock on both sides, and with a click, wisps of white mist escaped.

A suit of armor, woven from dense blue scales, appeared, layered together.

"...It is made of second-tier Azure Lion scales, with the aid of secret engravings and semi-nanotechnology..." Qian Hui stroked the armor, his heart bleeding. "It is called Azure Scale Chainmail."

Fatty Sun's eyes widened, and he nudged Su Chen beside him, "Try it on..."

Su Chen looked around. Qian Hui seemed to have resigned himself to his fate and waved his hand, saying, "No need to take off your clothes, come here."

He asked Su Chen to extend his finger and place it on the surface of the armor.

[Azure Scale Chainmail (Tier 2): Designed based on a prototype armor, employing a complex manufacturing process that nearly surpasses this tier.]

The scales piled up together undulated like waves.

As if drawn by an invisible force, it darted into Su Chen's sleeve and then gradually spread throughout his body, forming an inner armor that clung tightly to his skin.

Upon pulling aside his clothes, one could see that his entire chest was covered in blue scales, which rose and fell like breathing, with the scales moving between them as if adapting to his body shape.

But Su Chen felt no discomfort whatsoever, not even a cold sensation; it felt very warm and soothing.

"Is this really Tier 2?" Su Chen couldn't help but be surprised.

Qian Hui explained, "This is a prototype armor, and it uses a lot of different materials. If it is to be mass-produced, a lot of materials and processes will have to be reduced."

"But in theory, it should be somewhere between second and third order."

"Peak of the second tier, half a step into the third tier..." Su Chen stroked the scales on his chest, a sense of security welling up inside him.

If combined with the [Secret Tool Enhancement] ability and [Wind Barrier] is attached to it, the defensive power could probably be raised to another level.

However, currently only one secret tool can be controlled. To achieve this synergy, we can only hope that the [Secret Tool Master] can increase the number of tools they can control after advancing in rank.

(End of this chapter)