Chapter 10 : Chapter 10
Chapter 10: City Lord: Then I Have Even More Reason to Go!
Meanwhile, outside the dungeon, the place was already packed with people.
After word spread that the dungeon might have malfunctioned, even the War Academy’s Vice Dean had come in person.
Zhao Xuan’s complexion had finally improved, and the crowd began whispering among themselves.
“If the dungeon really malfunctioned, then what is going to happen to the person inside?”
“He will not get killed over and over again by magical beasts, will he...? That is kind of pitiful.”
“Then what happens to the wager?”
“Judging by Ye Ze’s usual results, he probably still would not have beaten Young Master Zhao. The one million eight hundred thousand or so he saved up over the years is probably gone for good!”
“...”
Hearing the crowd’s discussion, the corners of Zhao Xuan’s mouth kept curling upward.
Even the Vice Dean could not help but shake his head. “This Ye Ze has gotten too used to being first in his grade...”
“He has failed to recognize reality!”
“He actually went and made a bet against the advanced class?”
Amid the noise and commotion, the giant blue screen above the dungeon entrance suddenly changed!
This was the interface used for student party formation and ranking updates, yet all the text on the screen vanished… and was replaced by an extremely eye-catching announcement:
【Congratulations to ‘Ye Ze’ of War Academy, Linyuan City, East China Region, for achieving the first clear of the Hell-difficulty Novice Dungeon - Magical Beast Mountain Range!】
【Ranked first on the national Hell-Difficulty Clearance Rankings!】
The announcement on the dungeon interface was dazzling.
But the entire place fell into dead silence, as though time itself had frozen for more than ten seconds.
Zhao Xuan: ???
Vice Dean: ???
All the students watching: ??????
At that moment, every last person present wore the same expression: utter confusion and blank shock.
They could not believe it.
They simply could not believe it.
A poor Summoner—a poor Summoner whose combat power was even inferior to a Warrior’s when he had no money to raise his summoned beasts—
had cleared Hell difficulty?
Who could possibly believe that?
The very next instant, everyone’s eyes shifted in perfect unison toward the ranking board beside it.
This was the Novice Dungeon clearance ranking.
Before this, the board had only contained records for the first five difficulties: Normal, Advanced, Difficult, Nightmare, and Calamity.
But now, the Hell-difficulty ranking finally displayed a single name:
【Hell Difficulty - Novice Dungeon Clearance Ranking】
【1】Ye Ze — Clear Time: 2 hours 13 minutes
————
The Vice Dean pushed up the glasses on his nose and began to wonder whether he had suddenly developed presbyopia.
As for Zhao Xuan and the female secretary beside him, both had gone deathly pale, utterly drained of color.
This was a nationwide ranking board. Ye Ze’s name was right there on it!
There was no way not to believe it now!
“This is insane! A solo clear on Hell difficulty!”
“Bug, it has to be a bug!!”
“And it only took a little over two hours! If I remember right, even the clear record for Calamity difficulty takes more than four hours!”
If anyone had learned at that moment that the most terrifying boss in Hell difficulty had actually been the part that took Ye Ze the least amount of time, one could only imagine what they would have thought.
Still, someone suddenly had a wild thought.
“Do you think... maybe this is what a poor Summoner’s true strength actually looks like?”
“Could it be that rich people playing Summoners are actually not as strong as poor people playing Summoners?”
“What kind of nonsense is that!”
“Even if that were true, obviously it is Boss Ye Ze who is strong!”
“Exactly...”
Sensing how everyone’s attitude had changed in an instant,
all the light vanished from Zhao Xuan’s eyes. “It is over. This time it is really over!”
But the one even more panicked was the female secretary from the Zhao Guild standing beside him.
“I think... I called Ye Ze ‘stupid’ today?”
“I insulted a Class User who achieved the first clear of Hell difficulty?”
At the thought of that, her body could not help trembling.
She was not a Class User herself. The position she had now existed entirely because of the Zhao Guild behind her.
So instinctively, she wanted to contact Zhao Xuan’s father, the Zhao Guild’s chairman.
But unexpectedly, that major guild chairman sent instructions first:
【You are at War Academy, right?】
【A national number one from a Hell-Difficulty Dungeon has appeared at the academy! Get to know him as soon as possible. It would be best if you can build a good relationship with him first!】
The moment a nationally renowned Class User like this appeared, every major guild and consortium would scramble to take notice.
Even if they could not recruit him, they would still try their best to show goodwill.
But now... heh.
The female secretary’s scalp tingled with dread. What was she supposed to do now?
Who could have imagined that a poor Summoner could achieve something like this?
Was she supposed to tell the chairman:
The Class User you want to build a good relationship with was insulted by me this morning?
...
Meanwhile, over at the City Lord’s Mansion, City Lord Wan Feipeng had just finished preparing all the materials needed to repair the dungeon.
His assistant came rushing over again in a fluster.
“City Lord, you do not need to go anymore! The dungeon did not malfunction!”
“The hell? Are you messing with me?” Wan Feipeng had only just begun to show a trace of displeasure
when the assistant added again, “It is not that the student could not come out. He cleared the dungeon.”
“He cleared the hell-difficulty novice dungeon! There is a nationwide announcement now!”
Wan Feipeng: “?”
This burly sixth-rank Hunter’s mind seemed to crash on the spot for two full seconds.
A hell-grade dungeon!
The Hell-grade dungeon he had personally designed, specifically to crush the arrogance of rich second-generation brats, had been cleared?
“How could anyone possibly clear the boss I designed at the end?”
“The clear record is already there. It really was cleared,” the assistant added at last.
“So you really do not need to trouble yourself.”
Before he could even finish speaking, Wan Feipeng shot out one heavily muscled arm and grabbed the assistant by the collar.
“The hell I do not! That means I have even more reason to go!!!”
“The nation’s number one first clear of Hell difficulty appeared in my Linyuan City. That is way more important than repairing some dungeon!!”
Only then did the assistant seem to come back to his senses. “R-right, of course...”
Wan Feipeng was now extremely excited.
“Put all these repair materials back in the warehouse. I need to get there as soon as possible!”
As soon as he finished speaking, the speed of a sixth-rank Hunter was put on full display.
With a loud bang, he smashed through the gates of the City Lord’s Mansion like a tank and charged out at top speed.
The assistant left behind in the office sighed helplessly, as though long since used to this.
“City Lord...”
“War Academy is in the north of the city. The direction you are heading is south...”
...
Inside the dungeon, Ye Ze had no idea what was happening outside. He was still marveling at the countless notifications he had received.
“As expected of a first clear on Hell difficulty. The rewards really are generous!”
After the boss died, the dungeon could only remain open for another ten minutes.
Ye Ze prepared to check his rewards.
The Crimson Demon Lion had dropped a total of three items, all of which had been collected into his backpack.
There were also 10 Crystal Stones, bringing his total number of Crystal Stones to 26, with a market value of at least 260,000.
Ye Ze could not help sighing in emotion. Class Users really did make money fast!
As for the remaining items, they were two Level 4 pieces of equipment. Equipment dropped in the Novice Dungeon matched the Class User’s level:
【Crimson Demon Blade (Rare ☆☆☆☆☆)】
Damage Multiplier 140%, Strength +10, Agility +10, Equipment Level: 4.
Special Effect: Ignores 30% of the target’s defense when attacking.
————
【Crimson Spirit Bracers (Rare ☆☆☆☆☆)】
Damage Multiplier 125%, Strength +10, Constitution +5, Agility +5, Equipment Level: 4
Special Effect: Attack speed +40% when attacking or casting skills.
————
These were two top-tier Rare-grade pieces of equipment, nearly on par with Outstanding grade!
And both equipment effects were extremely practical.
Their value was enormous!
Even Zhao Xuan, with the support of the Zhao Guild, one of the ten biggest guilds in the East China Region, only wore an ordinary set of Rare equipment, mostly no more than one or two stars.
That was because Rare equipment with excellent attributes was extraordinarily difficult to obtain. There were very few pieces on the market, and bidding wars were common.
The market price of each piece started at at least one million, and they were often impossible to buy at any price!
Still, considering that these two pieces had dropped from the Crimson Demon Lion, it was not surprising.
If he sold them all, it would be enough for Ye Ze to open another Hell-difficulty dungeon.
But there was no need.
Ye Ze decisively equipped the two summoned beasts with them instead.
He gave the Crimson Demon Blade to Shadow Squirrel, and the Crimson Spirit Bracers to Kung Fu Panda.
Summoned beasts could equip gear just like Class Users!
This was one of the reasons why Summoners had such a high ceiling, and also one of the reasons why they burned through money so fast.
Equipping every summoned beast with a full set of gear was something ordinary people could absolutely never afford...
After that, Ye Ze looked at the treasure chest in his backpack.
【Dungeon First-Clear Exclusive Treasure Chest (Hell-grade)】!
Ye Ze was extremely eager to see what this chest contained.
According to the textbook Social Practice Class — Dungeon Strategy Guide:
there was a very high chance that a first-clear treasure chest would contain a class-exclusive piece of equipment...!