Upon hearing Zhou Huai's disdainful remark about bathwater, the woman in the water stopped moving.

Then she giggled.

Laughter echoed through the empty underground cavern. She rolled her eyes at Zhou Huai, scolding the young man for his lack of romantic understanding.

"You really don't know what's good for you."

The woman's fair fingers gently stirred the lake water. "Once upon a time, in our era..."

"Those men who call themselves the overlords of heaven and earth, let alone drink the water from my pool. Even just to smell my scent, they would have to queue for three days and three nights."

As she spoke, she stood up from the emerald green lake and strode toward Zhou Huai on the shore.

As she walked, an amazing scene unfolded.

The lake water enveloping her body quickly climbed and intertwined along her fair skin.

In the blink of an eye, the water transformed into a long blue robe draped over her body, partially concealing her curves.

Faced with this scene, Zhou Huai looked away.

In this cruel world, any inappropriate desire can become a deadly poison. Moreover, the woman before him is an ancient monster who has lived for countless eons.

"Alright, stop with your seductive tricks."

Zhou Huai steadied himself and forcefully steered the conversation back on track: "Now that I'm here, let's cut the chit-chat. Tell me directly, how do you plan to help me?"

Hearing these harsh words, the woman stopped in her tracks.

She frowned, her green eyes scanning Zhou Huai up and down, her tone displeased.

"Young man, you are being very impolite."

She raised her chin. "When you come to ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) someone else's territory to discuss cooperation, you should at least tell me your name first, right?"

Zhou Huai's expression froze.

As the woman drew closer, he took a step back.

At the same time, the Great Sage Li Er, standing beside him, took half a step forward. His whisk moved without wind, and the power of law flowed in the air, ready to unleash a fatal blow.

Seeing that the other party did not take any further drastic action, Zhou Huai stopped and uttered two words:

"Zhou Huai".

"Zhou Huai?"

The woman stopped less than three meters away from him, repeatedly uttering the name.

After a moment, she shook her head with disdain. "It's nothing special, just a very ordinary name. It's far inferior to those divine titles that command the wind and rain."

Before Zhou Huai could refute, the woman smiled to herself.

"Listen carefully, my name is—Chun."

Tsubaki?

Zhou Huai silently repeated the word in his mind, and couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

In ancient times, there was a great tree called Chun, which took eight thousand years for spring and eight thousand years for autumn.

This name perfectly matches her original identity as an ancient tree spirit and aligns with her natural disdain for the mortal world.

"We've exchanged names, can we get down to business now?" Zhou Huai pressed.

Chun walked half a circle around Zhou Huai and Li Er.

Then, she stopped, stared at Zhou Huai, and asked a question:

"Before that, I'd like to ask you... what is a professional?"

This question completely baffled Zhou Huai.

He frowned as he looked at the woman in front of him.

What defines a professional? Isn't this the most basic and common-sense thing in the world?

But then I thought about it again. The other party was a remnant soul of the first generation that had been sealed for countless years. It was only natural that it would feel unfamiliar with the rules of this world that had undergone countless version changes.

Left with no other choice, Zhou Huai could only patiently offer a brief explanation.

"The term 'professional' refers to an identity that humans awaken to through a career transition ceremony when they turn eighteen."

"After awakening, we will have our own attribute panel, which is divided into basic values ​​such as strength, agility, stamina, and spirit. At the same time, each class has strict skill tree restrictions. We must gain experience points by killing monsters and clearing dungeons to level up and unlock more powerful skills."

“Mages can only use magic, swordsmen can only use swordsmanship, assassins can only stealthily assassinate... and all skills have cooldown time and mana consumption limitations.”

Zhou Huai used the most concise language possible to describe this hierarchical system that had penetrated the very marrow of all humankind.

However, before he could finish speaking, Chun couldn't help but cover her mouth and giggle.

At first, she just chuckled lightly, but later she laughed so hard she was shaking, her laughter tinged with mockery.

"What are you laughing at?" Zhou Huai's face darkened.

I laugh at your pathetic state! I laugh at your ignorance!

Chun stopped laughing, her eyes turning sharp as she stared intently at Zhou Huai. "In the eyes of you humans from later generations, do you think... it's your status as professionals that grants you extraordinary power to fight disasters?"

Zhou Huai did not refute it, because this was the consensus of everyone in the world.

Those who fail to change jobs are ordinary people at the bottom of society; those who succeed are like rising to the top in one step.

"Utterly foolish!"

Chun snorted coldly, her blue robe fluttering even without wind: "Let me tell you, in that world back then, in our earliest times... there was absolutely no such bullshit distinction between professionals!"

"As long as you have enough talent and comprehension, you can be a mage who casts forbidden spells, a swordsman who cleaves the earth, or even a summoner who commands all beasts, all at the same time, if you want to!"

"There's no skill tree! No rigid cooldown times! And no level cap that would stunt your progress!"

Chun's words echoed in the underground cave.

She extended her slender, pale finger and pointed it at Zhou Huai, "You think it's the rules of the profession that granted you your power? Wrong! Utterly wrong!"

"In fact... it is the deepest shackle imposed on you by the will of Heaven, restricting you the most!"

Upon hearing these words, Zhou Huai stood there stunned.

shackles?!

That's it! How could he not have thought of that!

Recalling the fierce battle outside Donghai City where he had used all his clones to fight against Mr. Duan, that self-proclaimed transcendent being could not only unleash absolute earth-based defense, but also wield fire-based azure serpents, and in the next second, use spatial laws to teleport and kill someone!

At the time, I wondered why the other party was able to break through professional barriers and master various completely different laws and powers.

It now appears that Mr. Duan has shattered the shackles of being a professional! He has reverted to his most primal fighting form!

Seeing Zhou Huai's expression, Chun's tone softened slightly.

“In our world, there were no such restrictions. Everyone had the opportunity to wield world-destroying power as long as they lived long enough.”

"But precisely because of this, the power lost its restraint, causing irreparable chaos and collapse..."

Hearing this, Zhou Huai fell silent.

He could completely understand the other person's statement.

As a transmigrator with memories of two lifetimes, the logic behind this couldn't be clearer!

This is similar to the initial stage of a large-scale online game. In the beginning, the game's planner (the will of heaven) did not have a clear understanding of the game's world view and balance, but only a vague concept.

Therefore, when creating that first-generation (version 1.0) game world, not many rules and regulations were set.

There are no job categories, no skill cooldowns, and no level caps.

The result is—all kinds of stats have gone crazy! Gods are everywhere! You can grab any random NPC and punch a planet to pieces!

Seeing that the game server was about to be overwhelmed by these numerical monsters and the world was about to completely collapse, the will of Heaven could no longer stand by and watch.

That's why there were later version updates!

That's why they used various natural disasters and catastrophes to forcibly erase the lives of the old era and carry out the so-called systemic purge!