10: Chapter 10 They blew it up at the drop of a hat!

As Lu Yuan's team disappeared into the dungeon portal, the entire venue erupted in a buzz of excitement.

Everyone was debating whether Lu Yuan or Xu Qianqian would ultimately win.

The homeroom teacher, Xiao Ren, approached Bai Zhi and looked at the dungeon clearance record with a sense of nostalgia.

[Difficulty: Hard · Land of Flames]

[Clearance Record: 2 hours 38 minutes 09 seconds]

[Record Holders: Bai Zhi, Li Muyun, Wei...]

Xiao Ren sighed, feeling a bit sentimental.

"It's been eight years. I didn't expect that no one would have broken this dungeon record yet."

A hint of reminiscence appeared in Bai Zhi's beautiful eyes.

That's right; the fastest clearance record for the Land of Flames was set by a team she led back in the day.

Eight years later, that record remained unbroken.

It was one of the achievements Bai Zhi was most proud of.

"Today, this record is going to be surpassed."

A faint, almost imperceptible smile appeared at the corner of Bai Zhi's lips.

Xiao Ren was slightly surprised. "Oh? It seems there is someone among these two teams that you have high hopes for."

"In that case, I, as a teacher, will also have to look forward to it with great anticipation."

...

Inside the Land of Flames dungeon.

After a dizzying sensation of spinning, the scene before Lu Yuan's eyes gradually became clear.

Before him lay a forest of fiery red.

The trees were towering and dense with foliage, but every single one of them was ablaze.

A scorching heat rushed toward him, as if he were standing inside a burning furnace.

"This dungeon is quite stifling," Lu Yuan muttered, wiping the sweat from his forehead.

The Slime, however, became active.

"I like it here!"

Normal Slimes are weak against the Fire element, but Lu Yuan's Slime was an exception.

Because it could Self-destruct!

'Master, let me Self-destruct to raise the temperature for them!'

The Slime was a typical 'bully the weak, fear the strong' type.

When its strength was low, it was incredibly cowardly, but as its strength grew, it became increasingly arrogant.

Now, it wanted to Self-destruct at the slightest disagreement.

Shanji and the others had already entered combat mode.

Shanji took out a Holy Shield, and a golden light slowly flowed from beneath his feet, enveloping all five of them, shielding them from some of the scorching heat of the flames.

"Boss, this dungeon isn't easy to deal with; we need to be careful."

In a Hard-level dungeon, the monsters' attributes are boosted in every aspect, and there are Elite monsters as well; it's much more dangerous than the wild.

Shanji looked serious.

"I am a Holy Shield Knight with the thickest health bar, so I'll be responsible for leading the way."

Liu Jiesen transformed, wielding a blade in one hand and a shield in the other, guarding Lu Yuan's left side.

"I am a Warrior and can protect Boss at close range."

The only girl, Yang Liu, drew her bow and notched an arrow, taking her position to the right of Lu Yuan.

"I'm an Archer, responsible for scouting and dealing damage, while also helping Boss distract enemies."

Finally, the muscular Li Meng, holding his staff, patted his sturdy chest.

"Boss, don't worry, I, Li Meng, have plenty of healing!"

Shanji gripped his shield tightly, his gaze sweeping over everyone.

"We only have one mission—protect Boss and don't let any monsters hurt him!"

"Understood!" the three of them replied in unison.

Lu Yuan: "..."

"Fine, I'll just lay back and relax."

He didn't really care; it was going to be a steamroll anyway.

The Slime lay on Lu Yuan's shoulder, curling its lip in disdain.

'A bunch of weaklings wanting to protect Master? How laughable.'

'Only I can protect Master!'

...

The team began to move forward.

Throughout the flaming forest, the crackling sound of burning flames could be heard everywhere.

Shanji walked at the very front, shield held high, moving cautiously.

Suddenly, rustle, rustle...

A faint scraping sound came from ahead.

Shanji stopped in his tracks, his entire body instantly tensing up.

"Stop!"

Everyone stopped immediately, holding their breath.

Following that, a massive dark shadow slowly emerged from the sea of flames in the burning forest ahead.

It was a tree—a willow tree with all its branches completely ablaze.

[Fire Treant (Elite · Lv.6)]

[Health: 1800/1800]

[Skills: Flame Lash, Scorch, Root Entangle]

Li Meng's expression changed drastically.

"An Elite monster, a Level 6 Elite monster!"

How were they supposed to fight this?

Shanji took a deep breath.

"Don't panic! Everyone, don't panic!"

"This thing has high attack, high defense, and high health, but it's slow. We can handle it!"

"I'll go up and tank it; you all go all out with your damage!"

He took a deep breath, raised his shield, and prepared to charge.

Just then—a gelatinous object was thrown from the middle of the team.

The Slime traced a parabolic arc and landed with a splat in front of the Fire Treant.

Shanji's pupils constricted.

"Boss!!! Why did you throw the Slime out!!!"

He was completely stunned. What was the Boss doing?

The Slime was so weak, slow, and afraid of fire! Wasn't this just sending it to its death?!

Liu Jiesen sighed. It was over! The Boss's Slime was done for!

But that was fine, too; ending the Novice Dungeon early meant they wouldn't have to suffer anymore.

The Slime wiggled its butt, swaying from side to side in front of the Fire Treant.

"Come on, hit me!"

The Fire Treant had never encountered such an outrageous request.

*Whack!*

A branch lashed out at the Slime, sending it flying.

-73!

A damage number floated up from above the Slime's head.

Shanji closed his eyes in despair. It was over; it was completely over now.

73 points of damage! This one hit must have taken half the Slime's life...

Wait, Shanji opened his eyes abruptly, filled with disbelief.

The Slime was fine. Its health bar... why was it so long!!

*Whack, whack, whack...*

After several successive lashes, the Slime was sent flying.

But after being hit, not only was it not afraid, but it was actually very excited.

It seemed that getting hit was a reward.

No one noticed that every time it was attacked, a piece of mucus tissue would Split from the Slime's body.

Watching the mucus splatter onto itself, the Fire Treant paused for a moment.

What was this?

The flames on its branches instantly ignited the mucus.

And then—*Boom!!!*

An orange-red explosion of fire erupted.

-940!

-940!

-940!

A massive damage number floated above the Fire Treant's head, and the entire tree shook violently.

*Boom! Boom! Boom!!!*

Explosions occurred one after another.

One piece, two pieces, three pieces...

Every piece of mucus that exploded kicked up a terrifying shockwave.

The roaring sound echoed throughout the entire Land of Flames.

Flames churned, and smoke filled the air.

When the smoke cleared, only a pile of charred charcoal remained in place.

One-shot kill!