9: The Land of Blazing Flames

Nine in the morning, outside the teleportation portal for the Novice Dungeon at the Magic City Royal Academy.

The entire school's faculty and students had gathered here, packing the spacious examination grounds so tightly that not a drop of water could pass through.

The air was thick with the students' tension.

Some faces were full of excitement, while others were pale, their legs trembling uncontrollably.

The head teacher, Xiao Ren, stood on the stage, cleared his throat, and said: "There are three Novice Dungeons in total: the Normal difficulty Gloomy Forest, the Adventure difficulty Frost Valley, and the Hard difficulty Land of Flames."

"Although the Novice Dungeons have soul protection and failure will not result in death,"

"the Novice Dungeon is the primary way to obtain qualification for the College Entrance Exam, so please choose carefully based on your own strength."

Xu Qianqian, leading four teammates, walked spiritedly to the entrance of the Land of Flames dungeon.

"Teacher, we want to challenge the Hard dungeon, 'Land of Flames'."

The teacher looked at the people behind Xu Qianqian.

They were all the school's top geniuses.

Especially that person named Deng Tianhao, who also possessed a Diamond-tier profession and was the number three figure in the Magic City Royal Academy, behind only Lu Yuan and Xu Qianqian.

"Qianqian, Tianhao, your lineup is indeed very strong. You can challenge the Hard-tier dungeon, and there is even a possibility of breaking the record.

But you must be careful; do not be careless."

"It would not be worth it if it affected your College Entrance Exam results."

Xu Qianqian smiled confidently.

"Don't worry, Teacher, we certainly won't let you down!"

As she spoke, Xu Qianqian turned her head, raised her slender, swan-like neck, and looked at Lu Yuan at the back of the line.

She made a throat-slitting gesture.

Lu Yuan just smiled and said nothing.

With a backhand motion, he took a set of equipment out of his spatial storage.

A brilliant orange light burst forth, almost blinding everyone.

[Epic-tier Set · protector set]

[Effect 1: HP +1000]

[Effect 2: HP Regeneration +10/sec]

[Effect 4: 10% Damage Reduction]

[Set Effect: Maximum HP increased by 50% (Cap: 100,000)]

Everyone was stunned.

"Holy crap!!!"

"That is... the Epic-tier protector set!!!"

"The strongest god-tier gear for novices!"

All the students were completely crazed.

Even Xu Qianqian widened her eyes, her face full of disbelief.

The value of this set, conservatively estimated, was over five hundred million.

Furthermore, it was priceless and unavailable on the market.

[Equipment is classified the same as profession tiers: Bronze, Silver, Gold, Diamond, Epic, Legendary, Mythical]

"Lu Yuan, you..."

Xu Qianqian opened her mouth, but didn't know what to say.

This was an Epic set; letting Lu Yuan wear it was simply a waste!!

Shanji's eyes lit up.

"Boss! You're being too exaggerated!"

Lu Yuan didn't feel much.

After equipping it, Lu Yuan turned off the special effects that were about to blind everyone.

Only a faint, shimmering shield remained, covering his entire body.

Subsequently, he took out another protector set from his wristband.

"Come, little one, put this on."

Lu Yuan called to the Slime.

The Slime's eyes lit up instantly.

'For me?!'

'Master, you are the best!'

After putting on the Epic set, the Slime puffed out its little chest and spun around triumphantly.

'So cool!'

Unlike Lu Yuan, if it didn't show off, it wouldn't be a Slime!

It turned all the special effects on.

The Slime went from pale blue to a blinding, golden blob.

Lu Yuan opened the attribute panel.

[Slime]

[Level: 5]

[HP: 9400]

[MP: 100]

[Attack: 24]

[Skills: Self-Regeneration (Low Tier), Split (Low Tier)]

[Rune: Silver · Dive Bombing]

[Equipment: protector set (Epic), Spirit Concealment Ring (Diamond)]

With the equipment bonus, the Slime's HP skyrocketed to 9000!!

The attributes provided by the protector set were: HP and HP Regeneration.

It was a perfect fit for the Slime.

Combined with the Slime's newly learned skill: Split.

[Split (Passive Skill): After the Slime is attacked, a small piece of mucus tissue with its own independent HP will Split off from its body.]

Dive Bombing + Split + Self-Regeneration!

Isn't this just invincible!

The only flaw was that the protector set also had a 10% damage reduction buff.

It slightly slowed down the speed at which the Slime could die and Self-destruct.

However, it didn't have much of an impact.

Xu Qianqian's eye twitched wildly when she saw this scene.

"Two sets of Epic-tier equipment??"

"One for the Summoner, one for the Magic Pet?!"

"And that Magic Pet is a Slime?!"

This world has truly gone mad, hasn't it?

A youth with a resolute face behind her crossed his arms and snorted coldly.

"So what if the equipment is good? A Slime is just a Slime; trash is always trash."

Deng Tianhao, a commoner genius specially recruited by the Magic City Royal Academy.

His grades in all subjects at school were second only to Lu Yuan and Xu Qianqian.

He was the undisputed third-place figure!

Another teammate also spoke sarcastically, "Can't help it, some people are just born lucky."

Shanji exploded upon hearing this.

"Bullshit!"

"If you have the ability, you wear an Epic set too! If you don't have the ability, shut up!"

Others were afraid of Lu Yuan, but Deng Tianhao was not.

His gaze was resolute, revealing a hint of disdain.

"Anyone can brag; let's see the real results in the dungeon.

I also want to see how a Summoner who can only summon a Slime is going to clear a dungeon."

The Slime was provoked and couldn't hold back.

'This King Slime wants to blow you all to bits!!!'

Lu Yuan, however, didn't care and pressed down on the agitated Slime with one hand.

"Calm down."

"Only the weak lose their reason because of someone else's words or a single question."

The Slime's anger surged.

'Master, they can insult me, but they cannot insult you! I must blow them up!'

Lu Yuan's lips curled into a wicked smile.

"Then you perform well in the dungeon."

"Crush them with your strength and tell them who the real trash is."

The Slime's eyes lit up, and it clenched its little fists tightly.

'Okay!'

'This King Slime is going to blow everyone away today!'

'Let them know that a Slime also has dignity!'

'That so-called Land of Flames, wait to meet your doom!'

It was full of fighting spirit, and its little eyes were filled with battle intent.

Xu Qianqian watched this scene and suddenly felt inexplicably panicked.

Then, she shook her head violently, throwing those messy thoughts away.

Impossible.

A Slime is just a Slime, the weakest Magic Pet!

There will absolutely be no surprises.

This time, she would definitely win.

Xu Qianqian, full of spirit and vigor, like a white swan, led her team into the dungeon first.

The line at the dungeon entrance moved slowly.

Half an hour later, Lu Yuan finally arrived at the entrance of the dungeon teleportation portal.

The head teacher looked solemn.

"Lu Yuan, are you sure you want to choose the Hard-tier dungeon?"

"The Land of Flames is not something to be trifled with.

The monsters inside are Fire Treants; they have extremely high attack power and extremely high vitality, making them very difficult to deal with."

Lu Yuan nodded, his tone calm.

"Teacher, I am sure."

The head teacher was silent for a few seconds, then sighed.

"Fine, since you insist, I won't stop you."

"But you must be careful."

Shanji and a few underlings also crowded around, each patting their chests and swearing solemnly.

"Boss, don't worry!"

"Once we enter the dungeon, even if we have to risk our lives, we will protect you!"

"If anyone wants to hurt the Boss, they must step over our dead bodies!"

Watching them desperately trying to prove their loyalty, the Slime looked at them with disdain.