Chapter 381: Exposed! Dual Professional!

How is this possible?

That was the first thought that appeared in the minds of the many onlookers upon hearing Crow’s words.

Li Wu, who was blocking the only path, didn’t share this thought, but he stared at Su Ming with flickering eyes.

As for Crow, the disbelief and astonishment in his heart lingered.

It couldn’t be helped.

Although he had long known that Su Ming was a Dual Professional, no matter how Crow thought about it, he never could have imagined that Su Ming would become as strong as he was now.

How long had it been?

At most, it hadn’t even been four months!

Just over three months ago, in the Longyao City Underground Ruins, Su Ming had broken through his limits right before his eyes, Awakening the ability of Demonization and becoming a newly promoted Upper-Rank Professional.

In other words, just over three months ago, Su Ming had barely stepped into the Domain of a Four-Star Hunter.

But now?

Six-Star!

The combat power Su Ming displayed was definitely at the Six-Star level!

This wasn’t like the last time in the Longyao City Underground Ruins, where he had burst out with such power only after taking drugs. This was genuine Six-Star combat power, completely lacking the sense of instability and unreliability from before!

In just over three months, he had advanced from Four-Star to Six-Star, leaping two whole star levels?

Was this some kind of joke?

In response, Su Ming merely gently patted his chest and then suddenly smiled.

“Don’t look at me like that,” Su Ming said calmly. “I’m different from you.”

How could a cheater using hacks be the same as the natives?

As a man with a Golden Finger, Su Ming gave off a sense of righteous confidence, as if it were only natural.

Unfortunately, others wouldn’t understand.

“I don’t believe it!”

Crow roared with a grim expression.

“I don’t believe you could become a Six-Star Hunter in such a short time!”

Ignoring the injury on his right shoulder, Crow stomped his foot, shattering the ground beneath him as he transformed into a gust of wind, charging toward Su Ming.

“Clang!”

In a deafening clash, Crow’s left gauntlet slammed violently against Su Ming’s raised Fire Tusk.

Shockwaves of force erupted, shattering the ground between Su Ming and Crow and sending countless fragments and rubble flying.

Crow launched a furious, overwhelming assault, his face contorted with rage. It was even more ferocious than before, with countless fist, palm, and claw shadows raining down on Su Ming.

Naturally, Su Ming was not one to back down.

“Don’t think it’ll be like last time.”

In that split second, Su Ming also recalled his previous battle with Crow.

Although he had emerged victorious in that battle, the dangers involved went without saying.

It could be said that in that fight, if even a single link had gone wrong, if even one accident had occurred, he would have undoubtedly lost.

In fact, with slightly worse luck, Su Ming could have ended up as the loser of that battle, a victim at Crow’s hands.

Even Su Ming had to admit that the battle with Crow was the most perilous and dangerous of all the fights he had experienced in his life.

If he had taken even one wrong step back then, he wouldn’t be standing here today.

This time, Crow had undoubtedly come for revenge.

But wasn’t Su Ming the same?

The moment he saw Crow, a torrent of negative emotions surged within Su Ming’s heart.Perhaps influenced by the Demon Emperor Sword, or perhaps stirred by the sudden emergence of Sin, which awakened the hidden ferocity within him, Su Ming erupted with a terrifying Aura that enveloped his entire body.

“This time, I will truly surpass you.”

Su Ming’s voice rang clearly in the ears of everyone present.

Then…

“Twenty-Eighth Form: Spiral Fire.”

Spirit Power surged in Su Ming’s palm, transforming into three circular arrays that materialized and unleashed a spiraling, magnificent flame, hurtling toward Crow.

“Boom!”

Amid the roaring explosion, the spiraling, magnificent flame collided with countless fist shadows, palm shadows, and claw shadows.

The storm of fist, palm, and claw shadows attempted to blow the flames aside and strike Su Ming.

Yet the spiraling, magnificent flame relentlessly incinerated the storm of attacks, annihilating it completely.

Before long, both sides exploded simultaneously, canceling each other out, with neither gaining the upper hand.

But Crow was at a disadvantage.

Using his physical body to withstand a Spirit Art, even with the protection of his alchemical weapon gauntlets, Crow was forced back by the explosive wave of flames, the corner of his cloak singed.

At that moment, Su Ming charged forward like a bolt of lightning, his flaming saber transforming once more into a breathtakingly brilliant saber light, crashing toward Crow.

Crow’s perception erupted fully, allowing him to exhibit astonishing speed. His figure moved like a phantom, narrowly evading Su Ming’s saber strike.

As an agile and skillful fighter, combined with his mutated ability of superhuman perception, Crow—having already suffered a near-fatal blow earlier—dared not be the slightest bit careless. He barely managed to avoid Su Ming’s slash.

But this was only the beginning.

“Thirty-Seventh Form: Scythe Arc Slash.”

When one strike failed, the three circular arrays floating above Su Ming’s other hand—the one not holding the saber—instantly multiplied to four. A crescent-shaped slash, brimming with spirituality and even brighter and sharper than the previous breathtaking strike, shot forth violently.

“Bang!”

With a resounding explosion, the crescent slash struck the gauntlets Crow hastily raised, unleashing astonishing Spirit Power that sent him flying backward.

Su Ming pressed his advantage relentlessly, darting forward at extreme speed to pursue the black-clad Crow. With one hand gripping his saber and the other hovering with circular arrays, he unleashed a continuous barrage of profound and dazzling saber lights and a variety of powerful Spirit Arts, blanketing the area as they rained down on Crow.

Crow had no time to counterattack, nor could he afford to think too much. Relying solely on his exceptional speed, agility, and perception, he dodged frantically. When evasion was impossible, he used his gauntlets—imbued with Iphengal—to block, appearing both utterly disheveled and perilously close to defeat.

The two of them expanded the battlefield around them, their figures flashing back and forth across the entire basin—above, below, left, and right—as saber lights and Spirit Art bombardments struck the surroundings, either shearing off rock walls and ground slabs or causing continuous explosions throughout the area.

Such momentum and such an intense battle left Xu Xiayan and the others utterly stunned.

Witnessing Su Ming wield breathtaking Blade Art with one hand and display masterful Spirit Art with the other, single-handedly overwhelming a Six-Star Peak-level existence and forcing his opponent into a desperate escape, a myriad of complex emotions surged within Xu Xiayan and the others.

By this point, no matter how foolish or unbelievable they might have been, they finally understood.”Su Ming is not merely a Sorcerer.”

“He is both a Sorcerer and a Hunter.”

“He is a Dual Professional.”

Moreover, he is an exceptionally outstanding Dual Professional.

Hunter Rank: Six-Star.

Sorcerer Rank: Five-Star.

The Commander of 『Azure Mercury』 was actually a Professional with both professions approaching the Upper-Rank!

In terms of Hunter strength, he was no less than any of the Commanders, Vice Captains, or Six-Star level figures present from the major teams!

In terms of Sorcerer strength, he wasn’t just capable of using Advanced Spirit Arts—he was a genuine Upper-Rank Sorcerer!

And such a person was only eighteen years old this year!

A Genius?

No!

This was a Prodigy! A monster!

“What a Su Ming…”

These were the only words left in everyone’s hearts.

Even Xu Xiayan felt rather complicated.

“So this is his true strength.”

No wonder her aloof niece, who had always been indifferent to others, treated this junior—who was even a year younger than her—differently.

Xu Xiayan had always thought Su Ming merely had potential, the possibility of reaching the summit, but she never imagined he had already unknowingly surpassed her.

Searching her heart, Xu Xiayan admitted that with her own strength, she likely stood no chance against Su Ming, who was now fully unleashing his dual-profession power.

“It seems we do have a chance to leave after all.”

Xu Xiayan looked at the path blocked by Li Wu, and her previously despairing heart was suddenly filled with hope.

As for Li Wu, whom Xu Xiayan was watching, the cold glint and Killing Intent in his eyes as he stared at Su Ming were gradually intensifying.

Su Ming’s outburst was a boon for Xu Xiayan and the others, but for him, it was a disaster.

An eighteen-year-old Six-Star Hunter?

An eighteen-year-old Five-Star Sorcerer?

Either achievement alone would be enough to cause an uproar in the human world and become a historic feat. Yet now, both appeared in one person?

A Dual Professional Upper-Rank Professional not even twenty years old?

Li Wu immediately thought of someone.

A figure known as the legend of Tianfeng City, standing at the pinnacle of humanity, who had always protected the human world and its race, suffocating those from their underground world.

He was humanity’s final fortress.

He was undoubtedly the strongest among humans.

In Su Ming, Li Wu saw that person’s shadow.

No, not quite.

Even that person, at Su Ming’s age, had never achieved such accomplishments, such potential and talent.

If Su Ming were allowed to grow, Li Wu was certain he would at least become a second ultimate powerhouse like that person.

“He cannot be allowed to leave alive!”

Boundless Killing Intent surged in Li Wu’s heart.

Originally, he hadn’t intended to let anyone here survive.

Just as before, no matter what kind of Professional they encountered, Li Wu’s order had always been the same: kill them all.

Along the way, countless Professionals had died by their hands.

Li Wu’s philosophy was to kill as many as possible—ideally, eliminate everyone, leave no one alive—to best conceal the purpose of 『Sin』’s current mission and prevent Tianfeng City from noticing their upcoming actions.

But now, Li Wu’s objective had changed.”The others are irrelevant; it doesn’t matter if they escape.”

“But this Ming Wang, this Su Ming—he absolutely must not be allowed to escape.”

“He must die here.”

Otherwise, this man would surely become a calamity.

Not to mention, the Demon Emperor Sword is still in his possession.

That Divine Artifact must be reclaimed.

“Qing Qing!”

At this thought, Li Wu turned toward the corner, looking at the young woman who had been licking her wounds there.

But at this glance, Li Wu froze.

For in that corner, there was no one.

……

“Boom!” “Boom!” “Boom!” “Boom!” “Boom!”…

The explosions were incessant, abrupt and spectacular.

In mid-air, bubble-like spheres had unknowingly filled the surroundings in all directions. As a disheveled figure retreated into them, they immediately triggered a chain reaction, exploding one after another.

The fiery waves from the explosions turned half the sky over the basin into a blazing crimson hue.

Amid the flames, Crow was driven to a dead end.

How could he evade this?

How could he dodge it?

There was simply no way to avoid it!

“Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh!”

Bathed in the scorching flames, Crow’s black clothing was completely reduced to ashes, and even the mask on his face burned away, revealing his unexpectedly youthful, childlike face.

This was the appearance Crow had always wanted to keep hidden from others.

In the underground world, the most feared individuals were never those who were handsome and young, but those with fierce and menacing looks.

Because of this face, Crow had faced numerous challenges in the underground world, and even after becoming a Six-Star Professional, there were still those who provoked him because of his youthful appearance.

After all, humans are visual creatures.

Judging by appearances is an inherent flaw in most people’s nature.

The Underground Professionals in the underground world were no different—when they saw someone young and childlike, they often assumed they were easy to bully.

Crow had encountered many such incidents when he was a lower-rank Professional, and even after becoming an Upper-Rank Professional, he couldn’t completely avoid them, making him deeply resentful of his appearance.

This was the result of mistakenly ingesting a rare natural treasure in his youth, which froze his appearance at that time, making it impossible to change.

Thus, for nearly thirty years, Crow had navigated the underground world with this childlike face, treating his appearance as a forbidden topic, never allowing anyone to touch or even mention it.

Under normal circumstances, if his face were exposed, Crow would fly into a rage and might even kill everyone who had seen his appearance within his line of sight.

But now, Crow no longer had such thoughts.

The only thought remaining in his mind was the same as before.

That was, to defeat Su Ming.

“Roar!”

Suddenly, bathed in the flames and on the verge of being incinerated, Crow let out an inhuman roar.

Demonic energy surged from his body.

Demonic power erupted from within him.

A torrential force whipped up gusts of wind, blowing away the surrounding flames.

In this state, Crow’s entire body began to transform.

His hands morphed into sharp claws, merging with the essence of Yifenger.

His body did not swell or grow larger, but countless scales sprouted, draping over him like armor.

And from Crow’s back, a pair of black wings unfurled, as his head gradually transformed into a fearsome, pitch-black beast’s head.That form resembled a demonic creature with a pair of crow wings—more sinister than a devil, more terrifying than a fiend.

“Roar!”

Crow underwent Demonization, simultaneously dispersing the surrounding flames while fixing a pair of ice-cold eyes upon the space ahead.

There, Su Ming remained with an alchemical saber in one hand and a circular array in the other. Even upon witnessing Crow’s Demonization, not a flicker of change crossed his expression.

“Finally decided to fight with your life on the line?”

Su Ming merely smiled.

A smile of utter tranquility.

“Come.The utterly bland provocation instantly transformed the demonized Crow into a blur of afterimages, shooting forth with overwhelming force.

The momentum was staggering.

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(End of Chapter)