The sun rose gently into the sky, bathing the earth in its warm glow, heralding the start of a new day.
Another team approached the dungeon entrance.
"Hey, where is everyone?"
"It's usually so busy here."
"Strange. Did something happen?"
They exchanged confused glances but shrugged it off, choosing the normal difficulty and stepping into the dungeon.
Soon, more adventurers began arriving, and the dungeon entrance once again bustled with activity.
As the cooldown period ended, Lin Moyu reappeared. Without a word, he walked directly into the dungeon.
"That guy is so weird."
"Yeah, totally cold. Doesn't talk to anyone."
"Still, those creatures he summons are pretty cool—creepy, but cool."
"Cool or not, he just ignores us."
"I saw him go in alone. Is he soloing?"
. . .
From afar, Xia Xue spotted Lin Moyu and his skeletal warriors. The undead figures, terrifying yet commanding, were unmistakable. She sighed, a mix of frustration and admiration in her eyes.
"It's him again…"
She had just reached level 10 and hurried to the dungeon, eager to prove her worth. As an Elemental Mage, her rare class made it easy to find teams willing to take her in. Even though the West Sea Mine dungeon was level 14, it wasn't supposed to be too hard, especially on normal difficulty. Yet, Lin Moyu had chosen to solo a much tougher, nightmare-level challenge.
"I won't lose to him," she muttered under her breath, determination flashing in her eyes.
Quickly finding her own team, she entered the dungeon as well.
Inside the nightmare-level dungeon, Lin Moyu continued his relentless assault. His army of 72 skeleton warriors plowed through the Goblins, leaving nothing in their wake. The army's efficiency had increased drastically after his recent upgrades, making the dungeon crawl faster than ever before.
In just 45 minutes, Lin Moyu reached his old foe—the Goblin King.
"Time to wake up."
Before the Goblin King could fully rise, it was met by the relentless onslaught of the skeletal warriors. Flames flared from its mouth, but Lin Moyu's Soul Flame interrupted its attempts to use skills.
Within 30 seconds, the king of the dungeon fell once more.
[Kill the Goblin King. Experience +40,000] [Obtain a bronze-level weapon: Goblin King's Longbow] [Obtain a low-level monster crystal nucleus]
Lin Moyu inspected the longbow's attributes briefly before stashing it away.
[Longbow of the Goblin King: Bronze level. Strength +10. Agility +10. Bow skill power increased by 3%. Usable after level 12.]
The Goblin King's eyes flickered with frustration and recognition, as if it remembered Lin Moyu from their previous battles.
"Don't look so down," Lin Moyu whispered mockingly. "This won't be the last time. At least I make it quick. And really, you'd be dead no matter who comes through here."
As expected, he hadn't leveled up this time, still 20% short of reaching level 14.
"Next run should do it."
He left the dungeon quietly, disappearing into the shadows.
Later that afternoon, a group from the Dynasty Guild arrived at the dungeon entrance. They weren't here to grind levels, though. They were investigating the mysterious disappearance of Zhao Ji and his team, along with several others.
The scattered adventurers who had witnessed yesterday's events had all vanished, as if swallowed by the earth. It was as though the very memory of what happened had evaporated along with them.
The Dynasty Guild's members, unusually restrained, asked polite questions, but no one present had any answers.
After hours of fruitless investigation, they were forced to leave empty-handed.
However, word soon spread that the Dynasty Guild had attempted to block access to the dungeon. This sparked outrage among other adventurers, leading the Professional Association to issue a stern warning: no guild, not even the Dynasty, had the right to monopolize dungeon access.
At Dynasty Guild headquarters, the atmosphere was tense.
Wang Wei, the guild's president, stormed into the room, furious.
"Are you out of your mind?" he shouted at Wang Zhihao, his son. "Blocking the dungeon? Do you think we run the empire?"
Wang Zhihao stood there, silent, head bowed.
"You've put the entire guild at risk! The Shenxia Empire and the Professionals Association are watching us closely now. You want to die? Fine, but don't drag us down with you!"
After the tirade, Wang Wei sighed and waved him off. "Stay in the guild for now. No more dungeons. Your level's high enough, anyway. Just focus on the big exam."
Wang Zhihao hesitated before asking, "What about Zhao Ji and his team?"
"I've already sent people to investigate. Stay out of it. There's more going on here than you can handle."
Dismissed, Wang Zhihao left the room, still troubled. Even though he had reached level 16, the looming mystery of his missing comrades weighed heavily on his mind.