"Reading memories..." Su Chen's eyes flickered slightly as he considered performing such a highly sophisticated action as memory reading.
To achieve this, one had to be a mental-type professional at least three tiers higher than the target's professional tier.
When he struck earlier, he had already seen that this woman was a 2nd-tier professional. In other words, one had to be at least a 5th-tier mental-type professional to read her memoriesāsomeone at least at the level of a deputy minister.
'I wonder if they will notice the mental seed I implanted while reading her memories.'
After a moment of hesitation, Su Chen still decided to annihilate the mental seed first.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the interrogation room, the temporary person-in-charge was reviewing the documents handed over by his subordinates.
"There is indeed the lingering aura of an Evil God at the scene, similar to the previous situations..."
He wasn't actually surprised, but then he heard a subordinate's report: "A large, imposing procession of inquisitors from the Adjudication Court has arrived."
His expression changed drastically. Slamming the report down, he shouted angrily, "Do they want to start a war!?"
...
The impact caused by Liu Chen's death vastly exceeded Su Chen's expectations.
It wasn't until the afternoon of the next day that Su Chen learned that the group of inquisitors from last night had blocked the Supervision Department headquarters building, just sitting there without saying a single word.
Whether it was section chiefs, deputy ministers, or even the minister of the Supervision Department stepping forward, none of it had any effect.
A violent conflict nearly broke out. It was only reluctantly mediated when the Second Chief Inquisitor, who had stayed behind, went there in person.
The Supervision Department then handed over Liu Chen's corpse. However, they absolutely refused to hand over that eyewitness, no matter what. In their words, the Adjudication Court had no law enforcement authority inside Yingfeng.
Giving the corpse was merely to comfort the family; the investigation still relied on them.
Naturally, the higher-ups of the Adjudication Court were also furious over this. Several inquisitors had died in succession, and this time it was even an Inner Court Seedāa 3rd-tier professional with a Red Gold talent.
In the past, this would have turned the sky upside down long ago.
After several days of a stalemate, Chong Jingtian stepped forward personally, and only then did the Security Bureau allow the Adjudication Court to participate in an exclusive investigation regarding this matter.
Once the Adjudication Court made a move, it was explosive. In just a few short days, thousands of people were arrested, and quite a few Evil God Cultists were killed. As a result, even those engaged in petty theft didn't dare to act.
However, it was only clarified later that those who primarily took action were inquisitors from the Liu Family. Using this incident as an excuse, they carried out private vengeance against quite a few of their adversaries.
All in all, it took over half a month for this storm to gradually subside.
...
"I've said it before, the people who attacked were not Believers of Black Buddha!"
In a certain corner of Yingfeng, several Evil God Cultists had gathered together. Facing questions, a Believer of Black Buddha retorted through gritted teeth, "Liu Chen wasn't even one of those who destroyed the Pang Family that day. Why would we attack him?"
A Faceless Ghost Cultist said in exasperation, "I told you long ago that attacking people with such high status would provoke fierce retaliation from the Adjudication Court. If we killed a few ordinary inquisitors, the Supervision Department could still forcefully hold them off. But killing an Inner Court Seed forced them to make concessions and let the Adjudication Court vent their anger within Yingfeng."
The Believer of Black Buddha was so angry he wanted to vomit blood. "I'll say it again, those who acted were not our people!"
"The Supervision Department and the Adjudication Court have both confirmed it. How many times have they dealt with us? Could they still be mistaken?" A cultist with crimson eyes asked in dissatisfaction.
"I... I..." The Believer of Black Buddha only felt surges of hot blood rushing to his head. "The Adjudication Court is watertight. Even the whereabouts of ordinary members are difficult for us to determine, let alone an Inner Court Seed."
"With such a specific location and such a decisive kill, how could it possibly be us!"
Although there were quite a few cultists lurking in Yingfeng, all the major organizations possessed methods to detect Evil God Cultists, making it very hard to plant loyal followers inside.
And those middle and upper-level figures weren't easy to fool either; bribing them wasn't simple.
The Faceless Ghost Cultist cut in, "Enough, we need to lay low for a while. Especially you guys. I know you're still keeping an eye on that guy called Su Chen, but it's best not to do anything right now."
The Believer of Black Buddha felt indignant and aggrieved in his heart, almost vomiting blood.
...
"Phew... The final body forging method has finally reached the Master level..." Su Chen exhaled a breath of hot air. His skin even faintly emitted a transparent luster, appearing white and translucent.
[E-Rank Mysterious Iron Body Forging Method leveled up to Master. Acquired abilityāMysterious Skin: Skin like hundred-forged steel. Slightly increases defense and elemental resistance.]
All of his class advancement requirements had been completed. Su Chen immediately chose to undergo class advancement.
In an instant, lightning flashed brilliantly within his pupils, and it was as if his entire body had been violently struck by wildly thrashing thunder. Amidst the surging gales, sharp wind blades slashed against the surrounding walls.
It was only because the structural materials of the gravity room were extremely sturdy that they were able to withstand it.
At the final moment before the intense pain submerged him, his psychokinesis swept up the Spirit Realm Instrument and sent it into his storage space.
On the surface of Su Chen's skin, spiderweb-like lacerations began to surface. However, what appeared within these wounds wasn't blood-red muscle, but rather blue-glowing lightning plasma.
This kind of metamorphosis overturned nearly everything, from the inside out.
Su Chen let out muffled groans. Compared to the mental metamorphosis, the physical metamorphosis was even more excruciating. Root-like raised veins surfaced in his subcutaneous tissues, and muffled sounds, like wet wood being crushed, echoed from his chest cavity.
His bones felt as if they were being forcibly crushed and then reformed.
Panting heavily, Su Chen had already collapsed onto the floor, simply allowing his body to undergo its changes.
In the past, he had always advanced to an upper-tier class first before upgrading from the upper-tier class to a top-tier oneāthe process was split into two steps. This time, however, the two were merged into one, making it appear even more violent.
The abilities produced by the three body forging methodsā[Gale's Resilience], [Thunder Bone], and [Mysterious Skin]āalso turned into his accumulated foundation for the advancement, enhancing his power from every aspect.
[Wrath of Wind and Thunder mutated to -> Azure Thunder Cloud-Crumbling: Gather azure thunder and channel the power to crumble clouds. The longer it is charged, the more immense its power. Note: The body's limit to withstand this must be considered.]
[Frenzy Thunder Wind Armor mutated to -> Indestructible Thunder Aura Armor: Can drain external attacking forces to convert them into a source of your own power.]
[Wind and Thunder Shadow Concealment mutated to -> Azure Thunder Divine Movement: Aided by azure thunder, you can unleash extreme speed for a short duration.]
[Wind and Thunder Adept has similar compatibility with the new class abilities. Fused into -> Azure Thunder Sovereign: Within a localized area, your own abilities receive a massive enhancement, and you can suppress targets.]
It was a long while before this metamorphosis came to an end. However, the lingering aftershocks of pain hadn't completely faded, and Su Chen didn't even want to move a single finger.
After another long while, this pain gradually receded. Replacing it was a kind of booming vitality and a sense of power roaming everywhere within his body.
He leaped up all at once, his head bumping onto the ceiling of the gravity room with a thud. When he clenched his fists, he emitted a series of rapid, popping sounds from his bones.
First, he routinely swept a glance over his panel. The intensity of this metamorphosis was extremely high. [Azure Thunder Cloud-Crumbling] could be charged up, and it even specifically noted that it was prone to backlashes, a clear indication of its magnitude of power.
The Indestructible Armor couldn't only defend, but also absorb the enemy's power. Divine Movement could erupt with extreme speed. Both were very impressive.
'But why does it feel like my wind element got swallowed up?' As dark azure electrical arcs flashed in his hands, Su Chen pondered internally. 'Or did they perhaps fuse together completely?'
'As long as the strength is there...' Su Chen wasn't too bothered by it. Rather, the new ability [Azure Thunder Sovereign] made him quite curious.
After trying it out a slightly, the moment his mind willed it, a boiling surge of power erupted from deep within his body, causing the lights in the entire gravity room to flicker erratically.
Even without fully entering the Azure Thunder Sovereign state, Su Chen could roughly discern that within this state, he could fully control all lightning elements within that area.
However, this kind of domain currently only had a range of around three meters or so.
'Liu Chen... is far inferior to the current me...'
He dispersed his ability. If the gravity room had issues, it would still need to be repaired. His reference target had already shifted from Zhou Xian to Liu Chen.
This guy had top-tier classes for both his 1st and 2nd tiers, possessing a robust foundation. But he had played it safe for his 3rd tier and only picked an upper-tier class.
Even though his class development had already reached the later stages, Su Chen still felt that in a head-on battle, the other party couldn't possibly be his match.
'It's not just because of the strength of a top-tier class. It's also due to the gradual, bit-by-bit accumulation from body forging methods.'
Su Chen couldn't help but recall that back when he was a 1st-tier top-tier professional, he had been completely no match for ordinary 2nd-tiers.
Now that he had just advanced to the 3rd tier, the vast majority of 3rd-tiers were probably no longer a match for him. They would absolutely have to have a top-tier loadout as well.
'As for risky things like fighting across tiers, it's best to do that as little as possible. Doing curbstomps feels much more satisfying.'
He tidied up briefly, went upstairs, and took a shower. Droplets of liquid rolled back and forth on the surface of his skin. With a light tremor, water vapor permeated the air, leaving him fresh and clean.
Before going to bed, he sent a message to Gu Bing, telling her to start preparing 3rd-tier auxiliary potions. It had been quite some time since Liu Chen died, and absolutely nobody suspected him. It was due time he began laying his hands on all sorts of 3rd-tier resources.
Gu Bing responded with a massive question mark, clearly very shocked, but she hurriedly agreed.
He couldn't help but think, 'For 3rd-tier auxiliary potions, I will have to consume five or six million gold every month. This is truly terrifying. It's estimated that the Gu Family will find this very hard to withstand...'
Early the next morning, Su Chen woke up full of energy.
"Get some food going, I want to eat a huge meal!"
Perhaps it was because he hadn't metamorphosed that long ago, but it made his appetite surge wildly. He specially had someone deliver a table full of food from the cafeteria.
However, when he was just halfway through his meal, Ming Lin came knocking.
"Whoa, such a great appetite today!" Ming Lin was already quite familiar with him by now. Upon walking in and seeing the fully loaded table of food, he couldn't help but be amazed.
"Want a bite?" Su Chen gestured for him to sit. Ming Lin dropped by to look for him occasionally, and their relationship could be considered pretty good.
"Never mind." Ming Lin waved his hand. "I definitely don't have your good appetite."
"What's the matter? STILL haven't caught the person?" Su Chen stuffed down a large chunk of roast meat with crispy skin and tender flesh. Almost as soon as it entered his stomach, his powerful digestive system turned it into a stream of heat, merging into his body to nourish his newly metamorphosed cells.
Core Seeds couldn't just sit around idly as freeloaders; there were times when they had to perform actual duties. Management skills and ways of thinking were typically reflected in concrete matters.
"Don't even mention it. The people from the Liu Family are way too scummy. Using Liu Chen's death as an excuse, their entire family has expanded by at least thirty percent..." Ming Lin said in dissatisfaction. "And catching the murderer? The Liu Family probably wishes Liu Chen would come back to life just to die once again."
"They've certainly caught a lot of Evil God Cultists and peripheral members. But it's still that same old issue: the peripheral members know very little, and they can't pry open the mouths of the cultists..."
"You didn't come here specifically to complain, right?" Su Chen didn't really care. This entire matter started with Liu Chen's death, but now Liu Chen's death had ironically become the least important part of it.
Many things were precisely like this. Once things began, the direction they would ultimately develop in couldn't be controlled even by the instigator of the incident.
"It's not that. I'm here to invite you to watch a good show." Ming Lin let out a somewhat inscrutable smile. "Chu Xuan succeeded."
"Succeeded in what?" Su Chen was a bit dumbfounded, feeling somewhat blank.
Seeing that the news hadn't received its due reaction, Ming Lin lightly narrowed his eyes, wondering if Su Chen was just pretending. He continued, "Chu Xuan has advanced to becoming a 3rd-tier professional, and it's a top-tier class. He succeeded."
"Oh, so it's about this." Su Chen suddenly realized. He had been so busy with his own affairs that he almost completely forgot about this. He couldn't help but say, "He's actually quite impressive to have advanced to the 3rd tier so quickly. Back during the assessment, his development level should have already been in the later stages."
Seeing that Su Chen's reaction was still lukewarm, Ming Lin muttered inwardly. Is this guy just that good at acting, or did he genuinely not care?
Almost everyone in the Adjudication Court knew that Chu Xuan had rallied a large number of factions together even before entering the Adjudication Court, preparing to amaze the world with a single brilliant feat during the assessment. However, his thunder was completely stolen by Su Chen.
Now the people around him had almost all dispersed. He had continually been holding in his frustrations, wanting to defeat Su Chen at the 3rd tier to reinvigorate his prestige.
These entangled grudges and grievances were talked about with great relish by everyone in the Adjudication Court, yet the main party involved seemed completely unconcerned.
"So now that the news has spread, someone has already stepped up to challenge him." Ming Lin quickly added, "The challenge is taking place today, and it's about to start very soon. I haven't seen you at the scene for a long time, which is why I came to invite you."
What he didn't say was that rumors were already spreading, claiming that Su Chen was too afraid to go watch the battle.
Ming Lin had quite a bit of contact with Su Chen and didn't believe it was due to fear. He estimated that Su Chen simply had absolutely no idea about this matter.
"The challenger is Xiong Tao, a 4th-tier professional. He's also quite formidable; there will definitely be something worth watching." Ming Lin couldn't help but sigh. "Stop eating already; let's go have a look."
"Hmm..." Su Chen thought about it and nodded. "Then let's go check it out."
After washing his hands, Su Chen followed Ming Lin to the challenge hall.
Before they even arrived, Su Chen could already hear a cacophony of voices. Even the entrance was completely jam-packed with people. Four large screens had even been specially installed overhead so that inquisitors who couldn't squeeze inside were still able to watch.
"Why are there so many people today?" Su Chen couldn't help but ask in surprise. He remembered that aside from the very first time someone challenged a Core Seed, no other challenges had drawn this large of a crowd.
"US few going back and forth for the past month or two have long lost our novelty. Chu Xuan is a newcomer with an Ink Jade tier talent, and he's also a 3rd-tier top-class professional." Ming Lin gave a half-smile. "Furthermore, the entangled grudges and grievances between you two just make it feel like a story."
"Feel like a story?" Su Chen looked blank. How did this still have anything to do with him?
"Exactly," Ming Lin teased. "An Ink Jade talent was meant to attract the attention of ten thousand people, yet he ended up being completely suppressed by you. To defeat you, he pushed himself to the brink of death to attain survival, advancing to a 3rd-tier top-class professional in a bid for revenge."
"Doesn't that sound thrilling?"
Su Chen: "..."
Ming Lin pointed all around them. "This is just the entrance. Adding the two of us, all six Core Seeds have arrived today."
"They aren't just here to watch a spectacle, right?" Su Chen mused thoughtfully.
Ming Lin nodded. "It's mainly to observe Chu Xuan's performance. Since he advanced to the 3rd tier, he will also enter the challenge ranking system. To become the Chief Seed, one must defeat him. Naturally, they have to come and observe."
Only by knowing oneself and knowing the enemy could one emerge victorious in every battle.
"Excuse me, please make way..." As Ming Lin pushed his way inside, the people he shoved aside were initially slightly displeased. However, upon turning their heads and seeing that it was the two of them, their expressions immediately fell back into place.
"Su Chen..." someone whispered, their eyes filled with excitement. "Chu Xuan's arch-nemesis..."
They had even shouted out 'arch-nemesis'... How bored were these people exactly? Su Chen felt speechless in his heart.
(End of this chapter)