The Dungeon Management Center.
Many professionists who had come to challenge dungeons saw so many big shots gathered around the Wailing Cavern.
They couldn't help squeezing their way over, too.
The place was already packed with people.
Countless pairs of eyes stared at the display screen.
"It changed again! Look! He's level 7!"
A high-pitched shout erupted from the crowd like a spark tossed into boiling oil.
The information on the screen shifted again, beating a war drum in everyone's heart.
[Wailing Cavern]
[Challenger: Lin Mu]
[Class: LV.7 Necromancer]
[Entry Time: 01:35:53]
[Current Rating: B]
"My God! It's only been half an hour, and he's leveled up again!"
"He's a Necromancer, and he's in the Wailing Cavern! How is he even doing this? Are the monsters in there made of paper or something?!"
"This is insane! Lin Mu's practically not human!"
The uproar was deafening; even a fly passing overhead would have been shaken out of the air.
Principal Qu Qingfeng's face was flushed with excitement.
He clenched his hands tightly, his knuckles turning faintly white from the pressure.
Beside him, Instructor Mu Wanqing's eyes rippled with surprise.
Director Ji Xiangwen pushed up his glasses, his gaze flickering behind the lenses.
He was clearly just as shaken.
The other representatives from the top academies exchanged glances.
They saw shock and confusion in one another's eyes.
A Necromancer, alone, in the Wailing Cavern, with a B-rank rating...
Those words together were a miracle that defied all reason!
Yet before everyone could fully recover from the last shock,
the characters on the display screen flickered without warning and refreshed again!
[Wailing Cavern]
[Challenger: Lin Mu]
[Class: LV.8 Necromancer]
[Entry Time: 02:15:53]
[Current Rating: S]
"Pfft—"
Someone had just picked up a thermos and taken a sip of water when a goji berry shot straight out of his mouth and landed on the head of the person in front of him.
He choked and coughed repeatedly.
"S... S-rank?!"
A young staff member tasked with recording the results dropped his clipboard with a clatter.
He didn't even notice.
He just stared at the screen, mouth hanging open wide enough to fit an egg.
The entire plaza fell into deathly silence.
Not a pin could be heard dropping!
Then—
the crowd erupted in shouts and screams like a volcano!
"S-rank! Holy shit, it's S-rank!"
"Two hours! He went from LV.4 to LV.8 and got an S-rank rating! H-how is that even fair?!"
"This is insane! Lin Mu's going to defy the heavens!"
"This... this isn't just a genius. He's a monster! A complete and utter monster!"
Principal Qu Qingfeng felt dizzy. This happiness had come far too suddenly.
He could barely stay on his feet.
Fortunately, Director Liu was quick to steady him.
"Principal Qu, stay steady! Hang in there!"
Director Liu's voice was trembling too. He was clearly stunned by this unbelievable result.
Instructor Mu Wanqing's breathing seemed to quicken slightly, too.
Her slender, fair fingers unconsciously toyed with the edge of her clothes.
S-rank!
Even she—
when she first imagined Lin Mu might achieve a miracle, she had never dared to hope for such an outrageous result!
"How did that child... manage it?"
Mu Wanqing was full of questions.
"It seems Lin Mu must have reached his limit by now."
A recruiter from Heavenly Mansion Academy took a deep breath, trying to calm his racing thoughts as he analyzed the situation.
"After more than two hours of intense fighting, his level has soared, and he's earned an S-rank rating. That's already an incredible achievement."
"Most likely, he'll find a concealed spot to lie low, recover, and wait for the time to run out before looking for a chance to kill the boss."
Most people present agreed with this assessment.
After all,
the rules of the Wailing Cavern required challengers to survive for twenty-four hours and kill the final boss.
In their eyes,
Lin Mu had already created a legend.
If he could preserve his S-rank rating and make it out safely, that would be fortunate enough.
Sure enough,
the information on the display screen remained unchanged for more than an hour.
It seemed to confirm everyone's guess.
Some of the professionists who had gathered to watch gradually left, too.
They were getting ready to challenge their own dungeons.
After all, staring at a screen all day wouldn't put food on the table.
Just then,
another commotion rose from the outer edge of the entrance.
"Look! Is that... Mayor Fan?!"
Someone with a sharp eye recognized the newcomer.
Xilin City Mayor Fan Zhiheng was accompanied by two assistants.
His expression was serious as he walked steadily through the crowd.
He headed straight for the entrance to the Wailing Cavern.
Director Ji Xiangwen, Principal Qu Qingfeng, and the others hurried over to greet him.
"Old Fan, what brings you here?"
Ji Xiangwen asked, sounding surprised.
Fan Zhiheng waved a hand and fixed his gaze on the display screen.
"I just heard the news. Apparently, that boy Lin Mu... has caused quite a stir in the Wailing Cavern."
His voice was steady, but held a note of expectation.
"How are things now?"
Qu Qingfeng hurriedly recounted the incredible changes that had appeared on the display screen,
along with everyone's speculations.
He reported everything to Fan Zhiheng in detail.
Even a man as composed as Fan Zhiheng couldn't hide his shock when he heard the news.
"S-rank rating... LV.8..."
He murmured to himself, his eyes full of disbelief.
"Looks like we vastly underestimated this young man's potential!"
The big shots gathered together once more.
They discussed the information on the display screen in low voices.
Their words were filled with amazement and curiosity about Lin Mu.
Just as everyone thought the climax of the challenge had passed
and all that remained was a long wait,
the display screen, which had been silent for over an hour,
suddenly erupted in a dazzling light!
The characters flashed wildly, rearranging themselves!
"It changed again! It changed again! Look!"
A rookie professionist who had been standing guard in front of the screen
let out a hoarse scream!
Everyone's eyes—
including those of Fan Zhiheng and the others, who had just been discussing the situation—were drawn to it in an instant!
At that moment, it felt as if their hearts had stopped beating!
[Wailing Cavern]
[Challenger: Lin Mu]
[Class: LV.9 Necromancer]
[Clear Time: 03:15:53]
[Overall Rating: SS]
"H-he cleared it?!"
Principal Qu Qingfeng's eyes bulged, and his voice went shrill.
"SS-rank?!"
The teacup in Ji Xiangwen's hand hit the ground with a crash.
Tea splashed everywhere, and the unfurled leaves stuck to his leather shoes.
He didn't even seem to notice.
Fan Zhiheng took a sudden step forward.
He stared fixedly at those glaring letters: "SS."
The shock made the muscles in his face twitch.
The entire plaza fell silent again!
More completely than at any time before!
If an S-rank rating was a miracle, a legend,
then this SS-rank rating, earned by clearing the Wailing Cavern more than twenty hours early...
was an outright, merciless demolition of everything people thought they knew!
"Impossible! There's no way!"
The uniformed middle-aged man from War Academy bellowed, veins bulging on his forehead.
"The rules of the Wailing Cavern require you to survive for twenty-four hours! How could he clear it in just over three hours?!"
"And with an SS-rank rating! C-could the system be wrong?!"
The professionists around them erupted, too!
"That's way too fast! It makes no sense!"
"Isn't the Wailing Cavern supposed to require you to survive for at least twenty-four hours? Can someone tell me what's going on?!"
"Could it be... could he have killed every monster in there? Including that LV.10 Lord-rank boss?!"
At that thought, everyone drew a sharp breath.
They all looked at the screen, forgetting to blink!
Instructor Mu Wanqing took a deep breath.
She struggled to calm the storm raging in her chest.
She gazed at the "SS" rating on the screen and the absurdly short clear time.
Her voice trembled faintly as she spoke.
"Look—how many levels has he gained in such a short time?"
Only then did everyone notice that Lin Mu had already reached LV.9!
He'd gone from LV.4 to LV.9 in just over three hours!
"I'd guess..."
Mu Wanqing's gaze turned deep and sharp.
"Lin Mu must have cleared out every monster in the [Wailing Cavern], including the final Boss, the [Cave Lord]!"
"Since there are no threats left in the Dungeon and no need to keep challenging it, it's entirely possible the Dungeon judged him to have cleared it ahead of time!"
Mu Wanqing's words struck everyone's hearts like a thunderbolt from the heavens!
He'd killed every monster?!
That idea—
Was even crazier than clearing the Dungeon outright!
Even more unbelievable!
Everyone's mind went completely blank. They couldn't comprehend a reality so far beyond their imagination.
Someone wanted to argue.
But they couldn't come up with a single reasonable objection.
Everyone had their own theories.
But Mu Wanqing's guess was undoubtedly the closest to the truth—and the most chilling!
Amid the intense shock and confusion,
the dim Light Gate of the [Wailing Cavern] suddenly rippled.
Then a brilliant light burst forth!
A figure stepped out!
"Look! Someone's coming out!"
Before you continue