Chapter 91
Having a dungeon boss personally open the back door for you—felt even better than outright cheating.
Lu Chuan, of course, was the first to clear the maze. He even had the leisure to ask the Blood King how many points he’d earn once the dungeon ended, and how best to distribute them to his stats.
The Blood King, having already bent the rules for him, didn’t mind. In fact, he found it oddly reassuring that at least Lu Chuan wanted to improve himself. That was enough—he couldn’t expect too much.
So he dutifully explained how to assign points and train.
“Few dungeons require pure brute force to clear, but there are some. Since you have teammates, that usually won’t be a problem. If it ever does come down to raw strength, items can carry the load. But strictly speaking, there’s never only one way to clear. Just stay alert—that’s what matters most.”
“Of course—my life’s important.” Lu Chuan nodded. “So… got any more items for me?”
Didn’t he say earlier he didn’t want any?
Humans were greedy indeed.
“I figure you want me to stay alive longer. Since you’ve already paid me, might as well throw in a bit more. I’ll take it all.” Lu Chuan grinned shamelessly.
So the bottom line eroded, step by step.
Seeing how tolerant the Blood King was becoming, Lu Chuan kept pushing further.
The dungeon had effectively split into two modes:
Lu Chuan, chatting cheerfully with the Blood King.
Edith and the others, fighting desperately for their lives.
The former gained the Blood King’s friendship.
The latter, battle-hardened skill.
Everyone’s future looked bright—how delightful.
Only eight people cleared the maze, including Lu Chuan.
Among them, Edith and Wu Yue wouldn’t oppose him. Of the remaining five, three had contracts with him and couldn’t.
So what was the point of continuing?
Even knowing Lu Chuan shouldn’t have lasted this long, no one objected. They tacitly accepted his presence.
The Blood King made a token appearance, sparred a little with the others, handed Lu Chuan third place, slipped him a few items in private, and closed the dungeon.
He needed to rebuild it anyway—Final Battle: Blood Kingdom couldn’t continue as it was. Following Lu Chuan’s advice, he would upgrade, expand, and test more players.
Otherwise, the Main God would keep restricting his actions.
“You people are getting weaker and weaker,” the Blood King said theatrically. “Utterly boring. This dungeon won’t open again. Get out.”
Then he vanished.
A system chime followed: [The Blood King is shutting down this dungeon. Participants, please leave within 24 hours.]
The survivors exchanged confused looks.
“Does this mean… we all passed?”
“I… think so?”
“Then what are we supposed to do for 24 hours?”
“No idea—it’s the Blood King’s order.”
They couldn’t figure it out.
It felt like they’d just played along with the Blood King, who never truly challenged them, and now he was closing the place down.
Were they really so weak he didn’t think testing them was worth it? That couldn’t be it… could it?
Either way, they’d never know the truth.
“Hold on.” Lu Chuan finally remembered he had some connections with them. “The Blood King and I hit it off. Before he left, he asked me to handle something. You can help too.”
Two of them, who’d never interacted with Lu Chuan, didn’t understand why the others followed his lead so readily.
But people followed the crowd. With no one objecting, they obediently went with Lu Chuan back to the Blood King’s palace.
“The Blood King said I should take care of all this.” Lu Chuan beamed sweetly. “So, please—help me move everything out of this hall. Take whatever you can. If it’s too heavy, break it down. If it really can’t be moved, leave it for now—I’ll come back later.”
Edith stared at him, horrified. Even the slowest person could see why the dungeon had ended so strangely.
It was all because of Lu Chuan!
What had he said to the Blood King, to make him hand over his own palace?
“And don’t forget—you all owe me. Time to pay up.” Lu Chuan lowered his eyes with a smile. “The Blood King already gave me his treasures.”
“Of… of course.”
“Absolutely.”
Everyone except Edith now looked at Lu Chuan with fear—greater fear than they’d ever shown the Blood King.
Especially Wu Yue.
He realized he couldn’t understand this player at all.
Were young players nowadays really this terrifying?
*
24 hours later.
[Congratulations, player, for clearing Clash of the Blood Kingdom. Rewards have been issued. Please check your inventory.]
Hearing the system chime, Lu Chuan promptly chose to return to reality.
In this dungeon, he hadn’t shown any particularly amazing achievements, and his deal with the Blood King was done in secret. So the game system only gave him an A? rating.
That was fine. He was already off the Newcomer Ranking, and until he made it onto the Grandmaster Ranking, dungeon results weren’t publicly ranked—no one would know except himself.
As long as it wasn’t ranked, then there was no problem.
An evaluation score wouldn’t earn him more money anyway, so it didn’t matter.
More importantly, he needed to check what rewards the game system had given him.
Name: Lu Chuan
Game Nickname: Arrival of the God of Wealth
Age: 22
Charm: 83/100 (no change)
Stamina: 90/110 (You have 30 free points. Recommended to strengthen.)
Speed: 80/110 (You have 30 free points. Recommended to strengthen.)
IQ: 91/100 (Free points cannot be applied)
Luck: ??? (Suspected interference from extraordinary powers, unable to determine)
Sanity: 62/100 (Your sanity keeps fluctuating up and down)
Achievements:
Godslaying Lord;
Lord of the Golden Tower;
Bewitching Gambler (title);
Executor’s Contract-Bearer (special title);
No.1 on the Newcomer List;
100% Dungeon Clearance Rate;
Extreme Evil Loan Company VIP;
Friend of the Blood King.
Skills: Eye of Wealth, Coins of Wealth
Items: 30 free points to allocate.
Territory: No changes.
Skills (updated): Your combat techniques have improved, reaching beginner level.
Wealth: …increased to an immeasurable amount. You can always easily acquire fortune.
*
The Blood King had given him quite a few interesting items. They weren’t top-tier, but their wide usability made them very convenient—either for his own dungeon runs or to resell.
But the most important was the 30 free points the game system awarded, which could be used to boost stamina or speed.
For a combat-focused dungeon, that kind of reward was pleasantly surprising.
“System, what do you think? Should I max out stamina? Or speed? Maybe go fifty-fifty?” Lu Chuan studied his stats, feeling he should consult #888.
[Max out speed first. If you can’t win, you can at least run.] #888 thought for a moment, then worriedly added, [Host… you’re not going to ignore my answer again, are you?]
Being written off as the “wrong answer” for so long had almost traumatized 888.
“Before, yes. But not anymore. What you said makes sense. I also think speed should go first.” Lu Chuan chuckled, and maxed out his speed.
Speed: 110/110 (You have reached your current maximum speed).
As for the rest, he’d decide later.
There were plenty more dungeons ahead—no need to rush.
When he exited the dungeon, he saw Edith waiting happily.
“Brother Lu, with these points added, my stamina and speed are both maxed at 150. Next step, I’ll push for 200. Then I can face Wu Yue head-on without losing.”
Edith’ words made Lu Chuan’s smile freeze slightly.
“Your stamina and speed… are 150?” he asked in disbelief.
His own were just 110—only recently expanded.
He’d been planning to test out his boosted speed outside. But after hearing this, his heart nearly shattered.
“Yes. As a Swordbearer-type ability user, both stamina and speed start at 120. But it gets harder to level later on,” Edith explained honestly. “That’s part of how our class works. Otherwise, how could we compete with other ability users?”
That made sense.
And anyway, he didn’t need to compare himself to Sword-bearers.
“What about your wealth value?” Lu Chuan asked after a moment.
Edith’ mind blared alarms. She remembered Shen Li’s repeated warnings never to let Lu Chuan know how much money she had. She hesitated—what number was safe?
Too low, and Brother Lu might not believe her. Too high, and what if Brother Lu set his sights on her money?
After much thought, she vaguely muttered something like, “Just a few hundred thousand, I spend recklessly.”
That satisfied Lu Chuan.
As long as no one’s wealth value surpassed his, other stats—stamina, speed, sanity—didn’t matter.
Everyone’s sanity was higher than his anyway, and he didn’t care.
“You still need to focus on making money. Don’t follow Shen Li’s example.” Lu Chuan lectured earnestly. “A young man who doesn’t strive will regret it in old age. If you end up penniless, your whole life is wasted, understand?”
“Understood, understood.” Edith discreetly wiped cold sweat from her forehead, assuring him she got the point.
Only then was Lu Chuan satisfied.
This child was teachable.
“Lu Chuan, Edith—you’re out.” Before they could look for Shen Li, Shen Li came running over.
“Check the Grandmaster Ranking! Cynthia just filled a slot—she’s become a Master-Rank player!”
