My Professions Have Too Much Personality - Chapter 374 - 220: Overlooking (2)

“Enemy attack!”

A sharp cry suddenly rang in his ears. He snapped his eyes open, his expression hardening. ’They’re here already…’

The thought had barely passed when he bolted from his room, running right into an equally grim-faced Wan Chen. They exchanged a look and went to the base’s main hall together.

Their speed was so great it created a whistling wind, mostly stirred up by Wan Chen.

“Come to my side,” Xia Jie said in a low voice, his expression grave as he stared at the base’s main gate.

Lin Yue, Lan Hao, Ming Lin, and the others arrived one by one. The remaining guards also gathered around Xia Jie, their hearts filled with alarm and uncertainty as they scanned their surroundings with extreme vigilance.

“As expected of the Bronze Sect…”

BOOM!

The base’s main gate was suddenly blasted open, and a suffocating life aura washed over them.

A writhing darkness spread across the metal walls and floor. Wherever it passed, light was devoured, leaving behind a silent, desolate black. As if possessing a will of its own, it slowly crept toward the group.

“Since you know we’re from the Bronze Sect, leave at once, and we’ll pretend this never happened,” Xia Jie commanded in a low voice.

“Heh…” A voice sneered from the shadows. “A pity. The ones I’ve come to kill are from the Bronze Sect.”

Xia Jie’s expression was grim. A crimson Energy aura surged around him, layered like molten lava. It spread out from under his feet, colliding with the encroaching dark substance.

BOOM!

Like water crashing against fire, the collision unleashed an Energy storm.

In an instant, the entire base shuddered violently, as if seized by an invisible giant hand.

With a piercing shriek of tearing metal, the alloy floor buckled upward. The several-meter-thick composite armor plates were like fragile tin foil.

Earth, stone, and metal fragments formed a swirling storm within the turbulent, intertwining red and black Energy. Violent Energy fluctuations, carried by shockwaves, scattered in all directions.

BANG!

After a momentary stalemate, Xia Jie took a step back, his face exceptionally grave.

Yet, from just a simple collision, the surroundings had been turned to ruin, and the entire Meteor was cracking apart with audible snaps.

’Xia Jie is no match for him…’ Su Chen realized this instantly, and his brow furrowed slightly.

’But this guy clearly isn’t from the Cyan Sect; he must be a professional assassin. If these assassins manage to force the Ancient King out, it would be a huge loss.’

“Stay behind me,” Xia Jie repeated emphatically. He scanned the area; black figures stood all around, and the gaunt old man watched him from a distance like a hawk.

Seeing that everyone had clustered together, Xia Jie abruptly crushed a white, fingernail-sized orb of wind in his hand.

WHOOSH—

A white gale erupted, expanding ceaselessly. Like a polar behemoth breaking its chains, it lunged in all directions. Wherever it touched, the air crystallized into ice, and a creeping shell of frost covered the ground with a piercing CRACKLE.

Even the lava left behind from the aftershock of their earlier collision turned to ice in an instant, and it even froze the Meteor that had been on the verge of splitting apart.

“The Breath of Respite!” The gaunt old man’s face was aghast. Heedless of anything else, he immediately turned to flee, but the white storm was faster than he had imagined and had already enveloped him from all sides.

The bone-chilling cold didn’t come from without, but from within. His steps grew stiff, his thoughts stagnated, and the look of terror on his face froze into ice crystals.

’So Old Qing left a trick up his sleeve after all.’ Su Chen breathed a sigh of relief. Everyone was standing within a certain radius of Xia Jie, covered by a barrier of wind that protected them from the white, frigid gale.

’I wonder how many Professional Abilities are contained in this wind…’ Su Chen mused. In the blink of an eye, the other assassins had all turned into icicles.

But the white storm showed no sign of stopping; on the contrary, it grew even more intense.

“The Breath of Respite? Qing Cang really is thorough. To think he’d leave them a contingency plan like this…”

Outside the Meteor, a pair of eyes watched the white storm explode from its surface. The owner of the eyes frowned and turned their head to glance at the distant Taiyue Hub.

…

“Thank goodness…”

Xia Jie couldn’t help but admire how thorough Lord Qing Cang was. Before leaving, he had set up countermeasures in the area, providing a fallback whether they were dealing with hidden enemies or facing a powerful foe.

However, as he watched the white storm rage more and more violently around them, a hint of worry appeared in his eyes.

Lord Qing Cang had only given him the means to unleash it, not how to rein it in. ’If this continues, what if it attracts more enemies?’

“Hm?” His expression faltered. He saw the ever-intensifying white storm suddenly freeze in place and then begin to gradually contract.

’Someone else is here?’ His face turned grim, his heart pounding with anxiety. ’Anyone capable of suppressing the Breath of Respite must be at least a Tier Nine Professional…’

A blurry figure descended from the sky. Before he could get a clear look, Xia Jie focused his eyes and couldn’t help but show a delighted expression. “Supervisor Hu?”

“Xia Jie…” Hu Qi suppressed the scattering white storm, confining it to a specific area, and landed before the group with a gentle smile.

’This man…’ Su Chen could clearly see that many people, including Wan Chen, breathed a sigh of relief and showed expressions of joy.

“This is Hu Qi, one of the higher-ups in the Sect who manages logistics and resource allocation,” Wan Chen explained quietly. “He has a good reputation, and many people are on good terms with him.”

“I’ve finally found you…” Hu Qi said as if breathing a sigh of relief. He scanned the surroundings, his gaze sweeping past Su Chen without lingering.

He faintly sensed something was off. ’How is it that no one in this group is injured?’

Hearing this, the joyful expressions on the faces of the group faded slightly. ’Could it be Lord Qing Cang is…’

Xia Jie seemed to realize something and quickly asked, “What happened to Lord Qing Cang?”

“He’s fine, just heavily injured. He regrouped with us a few days ago,” Hu Qi explained, shaking his head. He then added considerately: