Sū Chén led his troops forward.
This time, the advance was much faster than the previous one.
Because the warriors had leveled up, not only their stats but also their combat skills had improved.
They could not only use block, but also attack from multiple angles, greatly increasing their efficiency in cutting and slashing.
This time, Sū Chén only took twenty minutes to reach the courtyard gate.
After breaking through the iron fence gate, the upgraded veteran soldiers of the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry faced the Skeleton Warriors.
With shields for blocking, the soldiers would no longer suffer casualties like last time.
They used constantly changing sword techniques to break through the defense of the Skeleton Warriors.
What was an evenly matched battle last time became effortless this time.
The climax of the battle was the moment Sū Chén unleashed Imperial Might Tremor.
As soon as the skill was activated, the 100 fighting soldiers were enveloped in golden holy light.
Layers of brilliant golden light surged outward from them as the center.
At the intersection of several light rings, the Skeleton Warriors that received the superimposed damage were immediately annihilated into white powder.
After Imperial Might Tremor appeared, the Skeleton Warriors were defeated in droves and were instantly wiped out by the soldiers.
The experience notifications on the panel also scrolled by at an unprecedented speed.
[Killed Lv. 10 Skeleton Warrior, EXP +396, skeleton bone powder +2]
[Killed Lv. 10 Skeleton Warrior, EXP +402, skeleton bone powder +4]
[Killed Lv. 10 Skeleton Warrior, EXP +415, shattered skull +1]
...
As expected of an area-of-effect skill, Sū Chén mused inwardly.
Imperial Might Tremor combined with the soldiers was an invincible combination in chaotic battles.
After all the experience was gained, the leveling-up pillar lit up.
Sū Chén broke through to Lv. 11.
[Name: Sū Chén]
[Class: The Supreme Being (Unique)]
[Level: 11 (2.53%)]
[Strength: 120 (+20)]
[Agility: 120]
[Spirit: 250 (+50)]
[Constitution: 120]
[Equipment: Skeleton Ring]
[Item: Reset Crystal]
[Skills: Summon General Diänwěi (Lv. 11), Imperial Might (Lv. 11), Vast Imperial Might (Lv. 1)]
[Summon General Diänwěi (Lv. 11): Summons General Diänwěi, who can be controlled to fight. Consumes 180 Spirit.]
[Imperial Might (Lv. 11): Issues a compulsory order to targets within range. Refusal to comply will result in Spirit damage and mental sluggishness. Consumes 100 Spirit.]
[Vast Imperial Might (Lv. 1): Grants allied units an Imperial Might aura that lasts for ten seconds. The aura deals damage equal to 30% of allied unit's HP to enemies within a 3-meter range (effect is stackable). Consumes Spirit: 2 * number of targets summoned.]
Upon reaching Lv. 11, his Spirit reached 250 points, plus the 50 points from the Skeleton Ring, for a total of 300 points.
He could use Imperial Might three times consecutively, but Vast Imperial Might, if applied to everyone at once, could still only be used once.
Sū Chén noticed that initial skills followed his level progression, while Vast Imperial Might did not.
He guessed that future skills would be like this, requiring continuous practice to level up.
In addition to skill and stat improvements, his summoned units also upgraded.
After Diänwěi broke through Lv. 10, each level increased his four-dimensional stats by 300 points, while the soldiers gained 30 points each.
Diänwěi's four-dimensional stats directly reached 2300, while the soldiers' stats became 230.
Monster-killing speed in Rare Dungeons was fast. If this were a Normal Dungeon, he might only be Lv. 10 now.
Putting away the panel, Sū Chén led his troops to march towards the castle.
Easily killing the elite guarding monster, Sū Chén, relying on the map, directly arrived at the BOSS room.
Before the BOSS battle, Sū Chén spread his soldiers throughout the entire cave.
When the Skeleton King summoned Skeleton Warriors, he activated Vast Imperial Might.
The golden ripples illuminated the entire cave, and within seconds, hundreds of Skeleton Warriors turned into dust.
Finally, Sū Chén used Imperial Might to restrict the Skeleton King's movement, and Diänwěi cleared its HP bar in three strikes.
From the BOSS's appearance to its end, it took less than 5 minutes, several times faster than last time.
This was the improvement brought by leveling up.
This was the charm of speedrunning!
With the BOSS dead and the castle collapsing, Diänwěi picked up the princess and ran out.
Finally, returning the princess to the Old Man, the dungeon was cleared, and the Teleportation Array descended.
This time, Sū Chén only took an hour to clear the dungeon.
Outside the dungeon, shortly after Sū Chén's second entry.
The top ten students from the training dungeon of First High School were gathered and sent to the Dungeon Hall.
As the elites of this year's cohort, they also possessed the right to enter the training dungeon.
Among them, Gu Xia was second, following Sū Chén, and behind him were the top students from each class.
This ranking was already known to the teachers when entering the dungeon, and was generally as expected.
What was more unexpected was that Sū Chén's good friend, Gāo Zhèng, achieved a respectable tenth place.
His two female teammates also achieved eighth and ninth place respectively.
The students from Class 1 followed Gu Xia to the second floor and encountered the top ten students from Second High School, who were also heading to a Rare Dungeon for training.
As the two groups met, the atmosphere became somewhat delicate.
First High School and Second High School were the only two transmigration high schools in Nanshan City.
The two high schools had been competing for students, competitions, and Gaokao results for years.
This competitive atmosphere had spread from the schools to the students.
Eight years ago, Luò Qiānshān, a prominent figure from First High School, defeated the top student from Second High School with an overwhelming Gaokao score.
Due to the star effect, First High School subsequently absorbed almost all the excellent student resources in Nanshan City for several years, consistently outperforming Second High School each year.
In recent years, Second High School had caught up again, even winning the title of City Champion last year.
The ten-person team from Second High School became agitated upon seeing the students from First High School.
"First High School is here, First High School is here."
"Why is Gu Xia leading them? Where is Gāo Cóngyún? Wasn't Gāo Cóngyún the number one of their year?"
"Did something happen?"
"If Gāo Cóngyún has an accident, won't First High School have no one this year?"
A bald man walked out of the Second High School team, looking very experienced.
"Where is your school's Gāo Cóngyún?" the bald man asked smugly.
Gu Xia led his team straight through, showing no intention of acknowledging them.
The Rare Dungeons rewarded by the two schools were very close, with the teleportation portals less than 10 meters apart.
Gu Xia led the First High School students to get ready, while the Second High School students all watched.
Gu Xia's disregard provoked their desire to stir up trouble.
This was a good opportunity to crush the morale of First High School.
They began to discuss loudly.
"Gāo Cóngyún isn't here, so First High School is finished for this year. They can't compare to us."
"Just look at them, they're dejected."
"And they have a woman leading them. Not a single man from First High School is brave enough."
Every word pierced the ears of the First High School students.
Gāo Zhèng suddenly threw his water bottle and stood up, shouting.
"Baldy, what are you yapping about!"
The bald man grinned sinisterly, "What, you're not convinced?"
...
...