Chapter 27: It’s Not a Contest to See Who Lasts Longer in the Dungeon Anyway

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Dungeon Entrance.

Since Gu Chen and Li Wenhui had both entered the Hell-level novice dungeon, the crowd gathered in the plaza had grown immensely, outnumbering even the guards of the sanctuary.

Although it was the critical period for the academy exams, waiting for two or three hours to see which of the two would fail first was quite entertaining.

Yes, it would take two to three hours.

In the past, challengers entering Hell-level dungeons had a longest survival record of 6 hours and 43 minutes, reaching the stage of the Red-Robed Priest in the sanctuary.

But those were all level 9 or 10 transferred students, since novice dungeons only open to transferred students under level 10.

Gu Chen and Li Wenhui, being level 5 and level 4 respectively, dared to descend into the Hell-level dungeon—a reckless move nobody quite understood.

Therefore, in everyone's eyes, two to three hours was enough to determine the victor.

Curiosity stirred within the crowd; everyone wanted to witness who would ultimately claim victory in this million-value wager.

"Three hours in, and both Hell-level dungeons are still running. Looks like the battle is fierce."

Since the novice dungeon was an artificial construct, the dungeon status would remain active as long as the challengers were not entirely wiped out, making it easy to track progress.

This allowed observers to judge whether the teams inside were still clearing the dungeon.

"I guess Gu Chen is close to breaking."

"Yeah, a civilian leading four actors, and still holding on this long is impressive."

"Li Wenhui should have reached the main hall by now. After all, he's the class leader of the elite class, leading top students."

"I think Gu Chen is very strong. What ordinary civilian could last this long in a Hell-level dungeon?"

"Hard to say. Maybe he's just hiding somewhere to stall for time..."

The crowd buzzed with speculation, while the dungeon entrance remained calm and silent.

Half an hour later, nearly four hours had passed since Gu Chen and Li Wenhui entered the Hell-level dungeon.

Both dungeons were still active, indicating ongoing battles inside.

This only heightened the crowd's curiosity.

The difficulty of the Hell-level dungeon was obvious; for either Gu Chen or Li Wenhui to endure this long defied all expectations.

Just then, the dungeon entrance suddenly flashed with light, and a figure was teleported out.

"He's out!"

"Huh? Only one?"

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The crowd’s expressions immediately became complex.

Whichever team it was, five had gone in and only one came out, meaning the others had perished inside and the battle must have been brutal.

The light quickly faded, revealing a weak figure stumbling and collapsing onto the ground.

Eyes fixed on him, the crowd began to speculate.

"Who came out?"

"Should be Gu Chen, right?"

"Exactly. The four actors died; only he survived."

"Such a shame, both for themselves and others."

"Wait, that’s Li Wenhui. Why is he out?"

"Impossible!"

Li Wenhui was covered in blood, his rare-grade equipment marked with numerous battle scars.

His face was pale and haggard, looking as if he had barely a thread of life left.

Yet, when Li Wenhui steadied himself and noticed the crowd’s astonished expressions, a surge of pride welled up within him.

"I reached the main hall and dealt over 20,000 damage to the level 13 Black-Robed Deacon. Who else can claim that?"

After more than two hours of fierce fighting, his team had successfully advanced to the main hall.

However, the Black-Robed Deacon was a level 13 elite monster, and with over fifty Fallen Guardians spawning simultaneously, Li Wenhui’s team was eventually overwhelmed.

In the end, he sacrificed the newly recruited Thunder Mage as bait, using the entire team to delay the Black-Robed Deacon’s assault while he slipped away amidst the chaos, barely escaping combat mode before teleporting out.

"Abandoning my teammates might be despicable, but at least I survived. Only by living on can one claim the title of the strongest professional," Li Wenhui reassured himself.

Whispers rose among the crowd, disbelief painted on every face.

Wasn’t Gu Chen supposed to be the first out?

How could it be Li Wenhui?

Li Wenhui caught their expressions, lifting his head slightly like a triumphant general, interpreting their shock as awe and reverence.

He then turned to his loyal subordinate waiting outside and asked, "What’s Gu Chen’s dungeon status? Has he died inside?"

The subordinate’s face stiffened slightly. "Gu Chen… he’s still clearing…"

"What?"

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Li Wenhui’s smile froze instantly, his expression as if he had seen a ghost.

"Say that again?!" he roared angrily. "It’s been almost four hours. How could he still be clearing?"

He found it hard to accept. His own team had two rare-class professionals, far stronger than Gu Chen’s team of actors, yet they had nearly been wiped out.

Gu Chen’s team entered before his—how could they still be in progress?

"Maybe… Gu Chen’s team kills monsters more slowly," the subordinate muttered.

Li Wenhui paused, his expression softening somewhat.

That made sense!

He had reached the Black-Robed Deacon inside the main hall, while Gu Chen’s team might still be tangled up with the Fallen Guardians in the plaza.

Gu Chen and he were simply not on the same level.

"Well, the bet is on clear ratings, not on who lasts longer inside."

"Set up my tent here. I want to wait for Gu Chen to come out and see for myself how he loses."

Those nearby nodded in agreement upon hearing Li Wenhui.

"Right, the bet’s about clear ratings. Gu Chen lasting long doesn’t guarantee a high rating."

"I said it before, Gu Chen’s probably just hiding inside, stalling."

"A civilian summoner with four actors? Maybe they haven’t even entered the temple gates yet."

"Hey, you might be right."

...

Li Wenhui lay inside his tent, opening his team’s clearance record.

Though they hadn’t succeeded, the dungeon system still assigned a rating—albeit a low one.

"C rating? Seems a bit low..."

Li Wenhui frowned. "But this is a Hell-level dungeon. Ordinary transferred students basically all die inside. I not only survived but earned a C rating. That’s impressive."

A smile crept across his face, already picturing himself winning the 500,000 wager.

"Gu Chen, what rating will you get? D? Or E? Haha, I bet you’ll die inside."