Lin Mu raised an eyebrow.
The trouble Mu Wanqing had mentioned had arrived so soon.
He couldn't be bothered to waste words on these "student thugs" who blocked the way to collect tolls.
He simply walked around them and headed for the staff member at the registration desk.
"Hello. I'd like to register to enter the dungeon."
The staff member responsible for registration glanced at Lin Mu, then at the bald, burly man glaring at him from the side.
A troubled expression appeared on his face.
"Student, this... Senior Iron Mountain and the others..."
He didn't finish, but his meaning was obvious.
"Iron Mountain?"
Lin Mu looked at the bald, burly man, his expression calm.
"Do I need to pay him?"
"Th-that isn't an Academy rule, exactly, but..."
The staff member stammered, looking a little nervous.
"Since it's not a rule..."
Lin Mu cut him off.
He slowly pulled from his pocket an ancient-looking token, jet-black all over and engraved with the character "One."
He casually set it down on the registration desk.
Thud.
It was a soft sound, yet it felt like a heavy hammer.
It slammed into the hearts of the staff member and everyone around them!
"Th-this is..."
The staff member's eyes widened the instant he saw the token!
The hesitation and unease on his face were instantly replaced by utter terror and reverence!
Thump!
Under everyone's astonished gaze, the LV.20 staff member's legs gave way.
He slid right off his chair!
His voice trembled violently with terror, almost breaking into tears!
"I was blind to your stature! I didn't know the Heaven Branch's chief was standing right in front of me!"
The moment the word "chief" was spoken, the entire entrance area fell dead silent!
Everyone's gaze froze.
"Are you a student too?"
Lin Mu asked the staff member.
"Yes. The school gave me this opportunity to work while studying..."
"I was wrong! I shouldn't have joined forces with them!"
"Please don't report me, Chief! I promise I'll turn over a new leaf!"
He spoke through tears, and he knew all too well how much influence Lin Mu wielded.
The bald, burly man known as "Iron Mountain"...
The arrogance and bluster on his face froze like a statue encased in ice.
He stared fixedly at the token, his mind completely blank.
Heaven Branch... Number One... Cloud Viewing Residence... Chief?!
That peerless prodigy who had broken the Academy's all-time entrance exam record with a score of 140,000 points?!
Gulp.
Iron Mountain struggled to swallow.
A chill shot from the soles of his feet straight to his scalp!
He remembered Lu Hu, who had been stripped of his Heaven Branch qualification in front of everyone on the plaza yesterday, then passed out after vomiting blood from rage.
An icy terror instantly engulfed him.
Lin Mu took back his token, too lazy to bother with these parasites.
People like this existed everywhere. The Huaxia First Academy was no exception!
Thump!
He kicked Iron Mountain to the ground.
Then he spoke calmly to the staff member, who was on the verge of fainting.
"Can I go in now?"
"Y-yes! Of course, Chief! Please, go ahead!"
The staff member scrambled to his feet and personally opened the highest-priority entrance for Lin Mu, his posture utterly servile.
Lin Mu strode toward the portal that radiated an eerie glow.
He had remained calm and unruffled the entire time.
All he left behind was a crowd of students frozen in place.
Iron Mountain lay on the ground, trembling violently.
What had he done to deserve this?!
He'd picked a fight with a new student he absolutely couldn't afford to provoke!
A flash of light, and Lin Mu vanished into the portal.
He took out the [Wisdom Enlightenment Potion] and began modifying it.
[Wisdom Enlightenment Potion]
Effect: After consumption, enter the "Wisdom Enlightenment" state. For the next three hours, all experience gained from killing monsters is increased by 200%.
"Change 'for the next three hours' to 'for the next hundred million hours'!"
"Change 'experience gained is increased by 200%' to 'experience gained is increased by 900%'!"
Buzz—!
The blue potion in Lin Mu's hand suddenly burst into dazzling light!
The bottle shook violently!
The clear blue liquid inside had transformed into a deep, rich blue.
A few seconds later, the light faded.
The potion bottle settled down, but the liquid inside had changed completely.
[Wisdom Enlightenment Potion]
Effect: After consumption, enter the "Wisdom Enlightenment" state. For the next hundred million hours, all experience gained from killing monsters is increased by 900%.
Lin Mu looked at the new description, his heart pounding.
"A hundred million hours is more than eleven thousand years..."
"This damn thing isn't a timed buff anymore. It's a permanent passive talent!"
Without the slightest hesitation, Lin Mu tilted his head back and drank the potion, which was practically heaven-defying, in one gulp.
"Not bad! Nice and fizzy! Burp—!"
He opened his Class Panel. His current status appeared in the upper-left corner.
["Wisdom Enlightenment" State: Experience gain efficiency increased by 900%!] [Time remaining: 99999999 hours 59 min 59 sec]
Lin Mu stared at the string of "999..." and forcibly suppressed his elation.
Inside the dungeon.
Cold, damp, oppressive.
That was Lin Mu's first impression of the [Abyss Hunting Ground].
The sky was dark red, like congealed blood.
The ground was crisscrossed with ravines, and twisted, fleshy vines could be seen everywhere.
Faint roars and whispers kept worming their way into his ears.
Lin Mu surveyed his surroundings, expressionless.
He raised the [Withered Wood Staff] in his hand and gently tapped it against the ground.
"Awaken."
"Bone Army!"
Rumble—!!!
The entire earth trembled at that moment!
The tremors spread wildly in every direction, with Lin Mu at their center!
One, ten, a hundred, a thousand...
Countless [Steel Skeleton Warriors] burst from the ground!
They wore heavy steel armor and wielded sharp steel spears, their eye sockets filled with flickering Soul Fire.
Nine thousand Steel Skeleton Warriors!
A true Steel Torrent!
In an instant, they filled every inch of land around Lin Mu.
The clanging of metal rang out without end.
Next...
Ninety [Skeleton Artillerymen] silently appeared behind the formation.
In perfect unison, they set up their cannons. Their pitch-black muzzles radiated the aura of death.
"Feel despair."
Lin Mu chanted softly, summoning gusts of cold wind around him.
[Death Prayer]!
An invisible melody of death swept across the battlefield!
The auras of the nine thousand and ninety members of the Bone Army surged!
Attack, defense, speed—all attributes increased by 9004%!
An astonishing boost of ninety-one times!
Lin Mu immediately checked the skeletons' enhanced attributes.
[Steel Skeleton Warrior] [HP: 9527/9527] [Attack: 507780-535080] [Defense: 463190] ----------------- [Skeleton Artilleryman] [HP: 680/680] [Attack: 666120-776867] [Defense: 20020]
"Holy crap! Even if a boss stood there and let the Steel Skeleton Warriors attack it, it probably couldn't hurt them!"
Lin Mu issued an order.
"Go."
"Flatten this place!"
The nine thousand Steel Skeleton Warriors moved!
They became nine thousand charging wraiths, sweeping across the entire [Abyss Hunting Ground]!
Soon, the first wave of Abyss Monsters appeared in the Skeleton Legion's path.
They were a dozen or so LV.20 [Abyss Demon Dogs].
These dog-like monsters were incredibly troublesome in the eyes of other class holders.
But against Steel Skeleton Warriors whose enhanced attacks exceeded five hundred thousand, they were as fragile as paper.
Steel Spear thrust!
They didn't even need a second move!
The [Abyss Demon Dogs] were pierced instantly, turning into black wisps that scattered through the air.
[You killed an Abyss Demon Dog (LV.20) and gained 2000 experience!](Base experience: 200 × 10)
[You killed an Abyss Demon Dog (LV.20) and gained 2000 experience!]
[You killed...]
Lin Mu's experience bar surged at an unbelievable rate!
After just one brief clash...
His level shot straight from LV.17 to LV.18!
[Necromancer Lin Mu has reached LV.18!]
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
The Skeleton Artillerymen adjusted their cannon barrels.
They mercilessly bombarded areas crowded with monsters.
Every cannonball cleared out an area, and a huge amount of experience poured in.
[Necromancer Lin Mu has reached LV.19!]
[The Necromancer Lin Mu has reached LV.20!]
Less than twenty minutes!
Three levels in a row!
If word got out about this leveling speed, every professional on Blue Star would question their entire existence!
Lin Mu couldn't be bothered to give orders himself.
He issued a vague command: "Clear the map."
Then he leisurely sat on a clean, dead tree trunk.
He watched his experience bar shoot up at a frantic pace.
Before you continue