After the Abyss Dungeon was cleared...
The Spirit Tamer Alliance began cleaning up the scene.
Various government organizations and departments stepped in, rescuing the injured and repairing the ruined city.
Han Yue knew that Mo Shiyu had only just contracted Xia Yuan, an SSR. Their Soul Contract was still unstable, making them easy targets for other Contract Spirit Masters with ulterior motives.
So she thoughtfully sent the Ice Soul Queen, who still had a little spirit power left, to drive Xia Yuan and Mo Shiyu back to the academy.
Xia Yuan had never expected this swordswoman Contract Spirit, who looked like a medieval female knight, to be such a skilled and flashy driver.
She launched the car from a standstill and drifted around corner after corner at breakneck speed.
The unconscious Mo Shiyu swayed all over the place, so Xia Yuan had to tuck her under his arm to hold her steady. "Miss Ice Cream, did your old world have cars too?"
The Ice Soul Queen rolled her eyes at him through the rearview mirror and answered calmly, "No. But how long do you think I've been in this world? It's been over ten years. Naturally, I've adapted. Racing is my usual hobby."
Xia Yuan slumped in the back seat. With Mo Shiyu's spirit power exhausted, he was feeling drained too. "Come to think of it, Han Yue didn't seem to have much spirit power left either. How are you still so energetic after fighting that boss?"
The Ice Soul Queen gave a smug snort.
"I'm level 95. I can equip five Inscriptions. Since I don't need more damage, I equipped an Inscription set that replenishes my own spirit power."
"Even if my Contract Spirit Master runs out of spirit power, my Spirit Power Inscriptions let me keep fighting on my own for a while."
She glanced at Xia Yuan again. As though she had finally found something she could beat him at, she explained with particular enthusiasm:
"You're only level 38, so forget about Inscriptions. You can't equip them until you break through at level 50."
"And you can only equip a complete set of five Inscriptions after breaking through at level 90!"
None of this surprised Xia Yuan.
After all, the gacha games he had played in his previous life all had things like this.
Artifacts, Relics, and so on...
If he could only equip them after his level 50 breakthrough, he would have to wait a little longer. Spirit power was what he needed most right now.
Draining Chubby Yu within an inch of her life every time was a little cruel, too...
Xia Yuan took a moment to check the system.
It certainly lived up to its reputation as a max-level Abyss boss.
After this battle, the system's reward progress bar had reached 20%!
It had shot up a full 10% from before!
Xia Yuan made up his mind.
Whenever he had the chance, he would definitely get involved in these Monster Dungeon disasters that erupted outside.
"What did that dragon-girl Abyss boss mean by her last words?"
"And who was she referring to when she said 'they'?"
This was what Xia Yuan was most curious about.
Clearly, the monsters in this world's dungeons might all possess minds of their own.
They were not simply collections of game data.
The Ice Soul Queen chuckled dryly.
"Who knows?"
"Maybe she was just making threats before she died."
Her tone grew much colder.
"But the 'they' she mentioned most likely referred to World-Class Wanted Bosses."
"As much as I hate to admit it, they really are powerful."
This was Xia Yuan's first time hearing about World-Class Wanted Bosses. "How powerful, exactly? Are you saying the entire Spirit Tamer Alliance of Great Xia can't defeat them?"
The Ice Soul Queen continued:
"Only bosses who have killed a million humans and have never been defeated qualify to become targets of worldwide bounties and hunts."
"They're ranked by their kill counts. At the very top, there are even ultimate bosses left over from ancient times with more than a hundred million lives on their hands!"
Even Xia Yuan's heart lurched at the number a hundred million. "Bosses left over from ancient times? They still haven't been defeated?"
The Ice Soul Queen drew a deep breath. Proud as she was, she seemed to lose all her arrogance when discussing World-Class Wanted Bosses.
"Those monsters aren't just absurdly powerful. Every one of them is frighteningly cunning. They can even hide the boss markers above their heads, take on ordinary human appearances, and live concealed in human society."
"There was a case before where an old security guard at an apartment complex argued with a resident. In a fit of anger, he turned into a World-Class Wanted Boss and killed everyone living in the building..."
Xia Yuan felt a little unnerved by that. He glanced at the pedestrians outside the car window.
If monster bosses were hiding among these ordinary people, they really would be impossible to guard against.
"But... bosses that rare should give tons of experience and loot if you kill them, right...?"
Xia Yuan rubbed his chin, mulling it over.
The Ice Soul Queen scoffed. "You really don't listen, do you? They're not easy to deal with. Even a top-tier SSR leading a raid team of max-level SRs might not beat them."
Xia Yuan thought for a moment. "I understand World-Class Wanted Bosses now. What about raid bosses? How are they different?"
The Ice Soul Queen replied:
"There's no fundamental difference. Just a gap in strength."
"You can think of raid bosses as the mobs serving under World-Class Wanted Bosses."
Screeech!
The Ice Soul Queen slammed on the brakes and stopped in front of the academy gates. "We're here."
Xia Yuan picked up the limp Mo Shiyu and climbed out of the car.
Before he left, the Ice Soul Queen could not help asking:
"Hey, Xia Yuan. Would you be interested in joining my Contract Spirit team? In other words, becoming Han Yue's Contract Spirit?"
"Our Alliance can offer the girl in your arms compensation she'll be completely satisfied with!"
Xia Yuan waved a hand at her and said lazily, "Even if you gave her all of Great Xia, she still might not trade me away."
The Ice Soul Queen could not help smiling at that. Her icy expression melted into a radiant smile.
"You... really are full of yourself."
"As a Contract Spirit who protects humanity, I'm glad an SSR as powerful as you has appeared."
"Xia Yuan, I hope you can keep that arrogant, invincible attitude even when you run into those World-Class Wanted Bosses!"
Xia Yuan turned toward the academy gates and gave her a thumbs-up. "Count on it. After all, I'm the strongest."
The Ice Soul Queen called after him:
"Also, my real name is Ice Soul. Don't call me by my favorite food. It's too weird."
Xia Yuan's teasing voice drifted back from the distance:
"Got it."
"Miss Ice Cream."
The next day.
News of the Abyss Dungeon disaster that had descended on the South China District of North Sichuan City spread throughout Great Xia.
People affected: 80,000.
Deaths: 1,029.
The Spirit Tamer Alliance had responded swiftly, dispatching both a raid team and a defensive team almost as soon as the Abyss Dungeon erupted.
They had also cleared it very quickly.
But casualties were unavoidable when a dungeon suddenly erupted in the middle of a city.
Especially with an Abyss Dungeon this powerful, featuring a three-phase dragon boss. Keeping the death toll to around a thousand was already a historic low.
So many people had witnessed Mo Shiyu and Xia Yuan's deeds that the major television stations naturally competed to report them.
"According to numerous Contract Spirit Masters who fought on the front lines with the Alliance, a young Contract Spirit Master from North Sichuan Spirit Contract Master Academy named Mo Shiyu made an enormous contribution to defeating this Abyss Dungeon's boss alongside her level 25 Contract Spirit!"
"Reports indicate that this level 25 Contract Spirit is the very SSR who recently emerged at North Sichuan Spirit Contract Master Academy!"
"We hope Great Xia's next generation of Contract Spirit Masters will learn from their example and embrace the courage to press forward without fear of danger...!"
"..."
After the news aired...
Without a doubt, Mo Shiyu and Xia Yuan became famous all over again.
A level 25 Contract Spirit had dared to charge into an Abyss Dungeon crawling with level 50 monsters, then made an enormous contribution to defeating its max-level, three-phase boss.
That was absolutely mind-blowing within Great Xia's Contract Spirit Master community!
It was practically a tall tale that had received official confirmation...
Reporters swarmed in.
Fortunately, the academy's security was solid. Otherwise, Mo Shiyu and Xia Yuan would never have had a moment's peace.
Later, the Spirit Tamer Alliance even sent a special representative to North Sichuan Spirit Contract Master Academy to personally award Mo Shiyu a medal of honor in front of all the students and faculty!
The representative also brought her reward of 10,000 Spirit Stones from the Abyss Dungeon, along with the two top-grade materials she had chosen from the boss's drops!
The medal of honor was no ordinary decoration. It would earn her bonus points when applying to a top Contract Spirit university!
With it, even if she scored terribly on the Contract Spirit Master college entrance exam, she could still get into a first-rate Contract Spirit university at the very least.
The academy's other students were envious beyond words.
This was the allure of an SSR!
Contracting an SSR meant overwhelming combat strength, dazzling everyone, and rising effortlessly toward a bright future!
It could change a Contract Spirit Master's entire destiny!
Below the stage, Jiang Li watched Mo Shiyu bask in everyone's attention and nearly ground her teeth to pieces!
She regretted it so much she wanted to die!
All of this should have been hers!
Xia Yuan should have been her SSR!
Mo Shiyu had stolen everything from her and turned her into the academy's biggest joke!
A dark, venomous look flashed through Jiang Li's eyes as she muttered inwardly:
Hmph... Mo Shiyu, enjoy your moment!
You don't have many happy days left anyway!
If I can't have him, neither can you...!
Before you continue