"Elder Zhong, my skill isn't convenient to demonstrate."
Qin Yang smiled at Zhong Yu'an.
Dean Wang urged from the side, "Do you not trust Elder Zhong and me? We're not trying to pry into your secrets—we just want to assess the strength of your vocation."
Elder Zhong raised his hand and chuckled, "Forget it. Keeping your key skills hidden is the right thing to do."
Hearing this, Qin Yang's impression of Zhong Yu'an improved slightly.
In this world, threats didn't just come from monsters.
Other people could be hell.
The competition among professionals was fierce. Powerful professionals always kept their trump cards hidden—not to guard against monsters, but against other people.
Since the vocation altar didn't display any information, the students were all guessing Qin Yang's vocation.
"What the hell is Qin Yang's vocation?"
"Judging by the omen, it might be a transcendent vocation."
"Damn it! A transcendent vocation? I'm so jealous!!!"
"This world is so unfair! Qin Yang plays around all day and awakens a transcendent vocation, while I grind nonstop and only get a Swordsman!"
"Don't panic! Like Su Chenxing said, the strength of a vocation is determined by the person!"
"Yeah, let's just follow Su Chenxing! He's the one with a future!"
No one envied Su Chenxing for awakening an excellent vocation. He was extremely talented and hardworking—it made sense for him to awaken a powerful vocation.
But Qin Yang was different...
He was the second-generation heir of the Longge Guild. Apart from having a good father and being handsome, he had no other merits! During the three years at the vocational academy, he barely attended any classes. While everyone else was training in the snow, he was soaking in hot springs with the school beauty.
And the worst part?
He posted about it on his social media!
The students all remembered that night when Su Chenxing cried his heart out.
Without a doubt...
The senior he couldn't let go of had been "conquered" by Qin Yang.
His mindset exploded!
This kind of scum who didn't do anything decent—if he wasn't struck by lightning, fine, but why did he have to awaken a transcendent vocation?
Heaven, open your eyes and look at me!
Just as the students were losing their minds, Elder Zhong spoke up, "Since Qin Yang has awakened a hidden vocation, the array won't display the information. I'll announce the result verbally."
The crowd fell silent.
Elder Zhong declared loudly, "Qin Yang has awakened a vocation called 'The Supreme Sovereign.' Its strength is currently unclear and requires further observation."
Hearing this, many people breathed a sigh of relief.
"A hidden vocation, huh? It's okay, but not very useful, to be honest."
"Why not useful? Are hidden vocations weak?"
"Not weak, exactly, but there's no experience or summaries from predecessors. You have to figure out everything yourself—how to match equipment, combine skills, trigger vocation quests..."
"I see. Qin Yang wouldn't even copy homework. Making him develop a vocation from scratch would be tough."
"Tsk, this hidden vocation would be better off with me! He definitely won't make the most of it!"
"You might as well go all the way and ask him to give you his dad."
The discussions below the vocation altar grew louder and more absurd.
Qin Yang didn't get angry. Instead, the corners of his mouth curled up.
A prompt appeared before his eyes:
***
[Facing the contempt of the masses, you choose...]
[Benevolent Ruler]: Deliver a rousing speech to win back their hearts. (+5 Imperial Authority/hour)
[Tyrannical Ruler]: They are nothing but ants. Ignore them. (+10 Constitution)
[Despotic Ruler]: Choose a troublemaker and annihilate their nine clans to intimidate the world. (+10 Strength)
"A choice system?"
Qin Yang was delighted.
As expected of a unique hidden vocation!
It even came with a built-in choice system!
Without hesitation, Qin Yang decisively chose to be a Tyrannical Ruler, gaining +10 Constitution!
Professionals rarely lived to old age, but their lifespans were much longer than ordinary people—all thanks to high Constitution. The higher the Constitution, the less likely they were to fall ill. Even if injured, they had stronger self-healing abilities. Some could even grow stronger with age!
Qin Yang couldn't suppress his smile.
For professionals, the most direct way to gain attributes was by leveling up. Before level 31, each level-up granted a total of 13 attribute points. To obtain extra attribute points, one had to rely on wealth or luck. In short, it wasn't easy.
But Qin Yang?
He could gain attribute points just by making choices.
This gave him another option between lying flat and grinding.
"Option C: Lying Flat While Grinding."
Just then, Dean Wang fawned, "Qin Yang, congratulations! You may go now. The ceremony must continue. Give my regards to your father!"
"My father..."
"I rarely see him myself."
Qin Yang shrugged and stepped down from the vocation altar.
His father, Qin Chuan, was a grinding maniac. He could spend years away from home to conquer secret realms. This kind of life-and-death grind was exactly what Qin Yang had done in his past life.
But in this life, Qin Yang didn't want to live like that.
He had money and talent. Even while lying flat, he could out-grind a lot of people.
Working himself to death? Impossible.
I am a body worth ten thousand gold—if I break, what will become of the world?
After the vocation ceremony, Qin Yang casually tore open a town-return scroll and teleported home.
The moment his feet touched the teleportation array, he saw forty servants lined up in two rows in the front courtyard of the Qin residence. The butler, Chen Si, stood in the center, dressed in formal attire.
"Congratulations, Young Master, on awakening a hidden vocation! May your journey be boundless and your ascent to the peak swift!"
As Chen Si led the cheer, waves of congratulations crashed over Qin Yang like a storm.
Qin Yang smiled and said to Chen Si, "Thank you. You're too kind."
Chen Si raised an eyebrow and smiled. "Young Master, the family head is still in a secret realm and cannot congratulate you in person. However, he has something for you."
With that, he clapped his hands, and ten servants stepped forward, each carrying a treasure chest. Chen Si took out a list from his pocket and, as he opened each chest one by one, announced loudly:
"Family Head Qin Chuan bestows upon the Young Master..."
"A green-grade, no-level weapon!"
"A green-grade, no-level armor set!"
"Five beginner-level all-attribute fruits!"
"Ten bottles each of superior spirit potions and superior healing potions!"
When he reached the last chest, Chen Si took out a black card, chuckled, and whispered, "Young Master, this is the Supreme VIP Card for the Sea King Palace..."
"The Sea King Palace!"
Qin Yang's pupils dilated in shock!
The Sea King Palace was this world's equivalent of the Teaching Bureau—a man's ultimate paradise. There, you could see catgirls, fox spirits, succubi...
When he turned eighteen, his father had taken him to the Sea King Palace once. The extreme pleasure he experienced there had made him lose interest in human women for a time.
Unfortunately...
Accessing the full services of the Sea King Palace required status. Without the Supreme VIP Card, no amount of money could buy you anything beyond watching the exotic dancers perform. Intimate interactions were out of the question.
Qin Yang swallowed hard.
His father really understood him!
To say he didn't like these rewards would be a lie.
But Qin Yang had a feeling that Qin Chuan's gifts never came without strings attached.
Qin Yang looked at Chen Si and asked, "So, what's the cost?"
Chen Si narrowed his eyes and smiled. "The family head wants you to reach level 15 within a month."
Reach level 15 in a month?
That was way too intense!
Qin Yang furrowed his brow.
Leveling up in this world wasn't as simple as playing a game. Professionals didn't have health bars—one wrong move, and you were dead. From level 1 to 15 was the weakest period for new professionals. Their skills were incomplete, their combat experience lacking, and their four attributes were low.
In a secret realm, successfully killing three or four monsters was considered a good haul. Under these circumstances, most people would take a year or two to slowly grind their way to level 15.
There were, of course, reckless individuals who pushed themselves to the limit to get ahead and win the starting line. But that was too risky—many geniuses had fallen that way.
As a rich heir, Qin Yang could hire people to help him level up. But the real issue was that Qin Yang didn't want to grind anymore.
"If I do it this time, next time the demands will be even more outrageous."
"That's how workloads pile up."
Thinking of how his boss in his past life had driven him, Qin Yang was about to refuse.
Suddenly, a prompt appeared before his eyes:
***
[Facing the Emperor Emeritus's decree, you choose...]
[Benevolent Ruler]: Obey the teachings and strive for excellence. (+5 Imperial Authority/hour)
[Tyrannical Ruler]: Pretend to agree, but procrastinate. (Imperial Treasure: Portrait of Beauty—Daji