"Shh, don't make a sound..."
An's eyes were cold as she stood in front of Chen Qi, aiming her magic wand at the small houseboat.
A fierce whirlwind suddenly rose around them, as spiritual power converged at the tip of the wand!
Just a mere thief, she would bring them to justice!
Doomed!
Chen Qi placed a hand on his forehead.
The uneasy little black flower was undeniably the Flower Witch.
Why had the Flower Witch come to his boat?
An, after all, was an official from Shell Country, and now, the Flower Witch was on Shell Country's official bounty order.
If she truly discovered the Flower Witch, she might just stuff her into a sack and drag her off to claim the reward.
Most importantly, on this bustling wharf, they absolutely couldn't expose the Flower Witch's identity!
He must stop An Aotian from discovering the true identity of the Flower Witch.
Firstly, keep the Flower Witch well hidden... Chen Qi organized his thoughts.
Then, the Flower Witch poked half her head out of the boat window.
Stare—
Although her eyes were hidden by the hood, Chen Qi could still feel that intense gaze filled with a trace of hostility.
Being suddenly pointed at with a magic wand was by no means a pleasant experience.
"..."
For a moment, Chen Qi was stunned.
"Hmm?"
An's grip on the magic wand loosened slightly.
Not a thief? When facing a nearly completed magic cannon, a thief's first reaction should be to run!
She knew that once she fired the magic cannon, this small houseboat would be obliterated!
Yet, the person opposite her seemed to want to fight her while showing no fear in the face of such mighty spiritual power.
Moreover, their own spiritual power field wasn't in the slightest bit disordered.
It was a master!
And there seemed to be a faint scent of perfume.
A young woman?
In that instant, An thought of her senior at Royal University who loved seafood.
Who is this? Why is she on your boat? An turned her head and asked coldly,
"Qi, who is this?"
"An avid foodie, a devoted fan of moonlight fish, and just like me, an informant for the newspaper," Chen Qi improvised a vague identity for the Flower Witch:
"She has spent quite some money in my street-side restaurant, so we're rather familiar. However, she's rather scatterbrained."
Avid foodie...
The dining boat itself was a place of business, and it was marginally reasonable for a customer to be waiting in a restaurant.
An blinked and leaned in to whisper,
"But why is she dressed so warmly?"
The Flower Witch quickly bowed her head again, not wanting An to see her.
Chen Qi explained, "She's sick, there's something odd about her face."
There was no one more recognisable than a witch who grew flowers.
An was shocked, realising her own indiscretion.
During the course of studying the path of the Transcendent, it wasn't uncommon to see individuals with disfigured faces.
She had just threatened a sick person.
An put away her magic wand and bowed,
"I am very sorry, I was rude just now."
Stare—
The Flower Witch timidly replied,
"It's okay..."
An lifted her head, her blue eyes like those of a hawk, curiously staring at the Flower Witch for a moment, then turned her curious gaze toward Chen Qi.
Something was off, extremely off!
Although she sensed something was slightly amiss, it was very impolite to reveal someone's cloak on the street.
Perhaps, it was really as Chen Qi had said, the other party was not convenient to be seen.
But what she hadn't expected was that Chen Qi actually had his own die-hard fans.
Something fishy! An withdrew her gaze and coughed twice, "I will take my leave now, if fate allows, see you at Sea Demon Gorge."
"Goodbye."
...
...
Wait, have I ever said I would definitely go to Sea Demon Gorge?
Chen Qi turned his head, watching An disappear at the end of the port, and heaved a long sigh of relief.
Finally, she was gone.
The Flower Witch had almost been caught alive by the officials of Shell Country!
Fortunately, it was An who found the Flower Witch. If it had been Pelle... he didn't dare to think of the consequences.
Chen Qi walked into the boathouse, started the engine of his small houseboat, and immediately set off toward the uninhabited sea.
He needed to find a quiet place to assimilate his Second-tier Occupation Card.
When the small houseboat stopped atop the deserted sea, Chen Qi looked back.
The Flower Witch had taken off her cloak and was sitting at the table, with a sad little blue flower of self-reproach popping up on her head one moment and an angry little red flower the next.
Her expression was also changing constantly.
Conflicted...
Eventually, the self-reproaching sad little blue flower overcame the angry little red flower.
The Flower Witch clasped her hands together and apologized,
"Sorry, I saw Bounty Hunters at the dock and got scared of being discovered, so I sneakily unlocked the door and slipped in."
Is that so... Chen Qi replied,
"It's okay, when I'm free, I'll make a key for you."
After all, there wasn't anything of value on his small houseboat.
The Flower Witch seemed to be without a fixed abode as well.
Her situation indeed was not optimistic, and she had to be careful everywhere.
For some inexplicable reason, her bounty had increased by another two million, reaching twenty-two million.
Hearing Chen Qi speak, the Flower Witch's cheeks reddened slightly, and she felt much more at ease, resting her chin on her hands as she asked,
"Chef, that person seemed so strong!"
On her head appeared a small red flower as she pouted and asked,
"Who is she?"
The talent of the Flower Witch to conceal her presence was very strong.
But she had never imagined that such perfect hiding could be discovered in an instant.
She even had a momentary thought that An might be stronger than her!
Chen Qi replied,
"Our Maro Town's new mentor An, a very formidable Mage."
"New mentor, An..."
The Flower Witch crossed her arms over her chest, lost in thought.
Then, she clenched her fists tightly, staring fixedly at Chen Qi.
There was a strange feeling...
She had something to ask Chen Qi but didn't know how to begin.
Chen Qi stopped the houseboat,
"Flower Witch, please wait for me for a moment. Before handling any matter, I must first assimilate the Second-tier Occupation Card."
Assimilation of Second-tier Occupation Cards!
The Flower Witch was startled; they had only been apart for twenty days, and Chen Qi had already found a Second-tier Occupation Card.
Moreover, it seemed to be the rare Shadow Lamp Occupation Card!
The Flower Witch didn't speak again, as assimilating a Second-tier Occupation Card required silence.
Chen Qi took out the card.
Now, he had met the usage conditions for the 'Travel-Desiring Shadow Assassin'!
Chen Qi bit the bullet and bit into his right hand.
A large amount of blood dripped from his hand, staining the card.
The card seemed to be melted by the blood and gradually merged into it.
Last, with the Extraordinary Power of the card and the blood merged and then spread to his soul.
A prompt appeared before his eyes!
[You are assimilating the power of light and shadow.]
Chen Qi closed his eyes, his face instantly becoming flushed, and his body grew hot.
In that instant, he felt as if he were a sword on a forge, subjected to the hammering of Extraordinary Power, being remade.
He also felt like an empty vessel, continually filled with a vast array of strange knowledge.
Beyond that, the Hunter's remaining Spiritual Power deep within his soul was resonating with this stream of Extraordinary Power.
His body, soul, and source of Spiritual Power were all being elevated!
Birds flew across the sky, and the waves gently brushed against the small houseboat...
...
After an indeterminate amount of time, Chen Qi opened his eyes again.
The burning sensation in his body gradually subsided.
His whole being's aura had undergone a stark transformation!
At this moment, he knew clearly that he was now a Second-tier Transcendent, a Shadow Assassin!
Chen Qi turned his head, feeling waves of fatigue.
At this moment, the Flower Witch, who had been waiting for a full two hours, stretched out her fair right hand toward Chen Qi and opened her five fingers.
"?"
What was she doing? Chen Qi didn't understand.
Then, the Flower Witch's tiny right hand pointed downward, her index finger and thumb rubbing together, and then she lifted it up.
Click!
After a crisp snapping sound,
The Flower Witch produced a small yellow flower of celebration in her right hand,
"Congratulations on your advancement to Second-tier, Qi!"