Necromancer: I Am A Disaster

The Water God's Courtyard was more than just a dungeon structure—it was a masterpiece brimming with artistry. From the flowing water and harmonious melodies to the intricate stone carvings and murals, everything exuded elegance. Even the boss before him radiated an artistic aura, particularly due to the armor it wore, which was adorned with exquisitely detailed engravings.

Lin Moyu took a quick glance and thought of only one word: perfect. But perfect things were often the easiest to destroy—a single flaw could bring them crumbling down.

His Skeletal Warriors rushed in from all directions, unleashing their Berserk Strike skill, while the Skeletal Mages launched concentrated fire. In an instant, the boss was severely injured. Its exquisite armor shattered, leaving its body scorched and blackened.

The boss let out a silent scream as the gem embedded in its trident gleamed. A blue light rippled through the palace, and the temperature dropped sharply, the water ceased to flow, and a thick white mist spread. In almost an instant, the palace was turned into a frozen world.

Skill: Everfreeze!

The freezing attack sealed the skeletons in ice, but its power was insufficient. The skeletons broke free effortlessly and charged forward again. Attempting to freeze them with such a weak attack was wishful thinking.

The Lich Generals raised their staves.

Skill: Nullify!

The ice instantly melted away, freeing the skeletons completely. Lin Moyu then tapped the air with his finger.

The Water God (projection) was cursed, causing the damage it received to increase tenfold. Now free from the ice, the skeletons resumed their relentless assault.

The trident shimmered once more, summoning a massive water tornado to scatter the skeletons. Yet, they stood firm, continuing their attack despite the swirling storm.

Lin Moyu watched calmly after casting the curse, knowing that the boss’s struggle was in vain. Its fate was sealed. Even with its 50% Physical Damage Reduction trait and high health as a boss, it couldn’t escape the inevitable.

Sure enough, after a dozen seconds, the Water God (projection) collapsed, full of unwillingness. Its once-perfect armor was completely shattered, with not a single part intact.

"What a pity." Lin Moyu sighed softly.

The armor that adorned the boss was a true work of art, but it wasn’t real—it had merely been a construct of the water element. The hell rank boss, considered an immense challenge for most class users, had been effortlessly defeated by Lin Moyu.

[Killed Water God (projection), EXP +4,100,000]

[Obtained Water Crystal Fragment x2]

[Water Crystal Fragment: collect five Water Crystal Fragments to fuse into a Water Crystal.]

Lin Moyu glanced at his spoils and checked his EXP—it has increased by merely over 2%, not even 3%. He still needed another 53% to level up. Even if he opted for hell rank difficulty from the start, where the monster count and EXP gain were higher, he estimated the EXP increase would only be about double that of nightmare rank. At best, he could gain 5% per run, meaning he’d have to clear the dungeon a dozen more times to level up.

"The efficiency isn’t great." He mused, "But at least it’s easy, the scenery is nice, and the air is fresh."

After a moment of consideration, Lin Moyu decided to continue raiding the Water God’s Courtyard. While the EXP gain was lacking, he still needed Water Crystals. With two fragments per run, he’d need three runs to obtain a full Water Crystal. He required two crystals to fuse with his two Elemental Divine Stones. Any extras could be kept for later use.

"Too bad I didn’t get a water elemental gem." He muttered, slightly disappointed by the poor haul. The dungeon's only benefit was its beautiful scenery.

Just as he was about to leave, something caught his eye—the trident, still lying on the ground. The boss’s body had long since vanished, but the trident remained, completely intact. The gem embedded in it sparkled, radiating the aura of the water element.

“A gem?” Suspicion flickered in Lin Moyu’s mind as he bent down and picked it up.

To his surprise, the trident felt incredibly light, almost weightless. As soon as it rested in his hand, the trident began to shrink. In the blink of an eye, it had reduced to the size of his palm, and the gem embedded in it popped out, gleaming brightly.

[Water God's Key; a key that can open the true Water God's Palace]

[Water Gem]

[Water Gem: permanently reduces water elemental damage by 50% and may grant a water elemental skill. Effective only upon first use.]

Lin Moyu’s eyes brightened with joy, "I knew it… I almost missed this since it wasn't dropped directly by the boss. Now I have the key, but there's still one more thing needed—something that can awaken the Water God."

From past experiences, Lin Moyu felt certain he had overlooked something. He scanned the palace carefully, until he finally spotted an object embedded in one of the stone pillars—a flute-like instrument.

The flute was small and rather ordinary in appearance. If he hadn’t been searching intently, he likely would have missed it entirely. A skeleton retrieved the flute and handed it to Lin Moyu.

[Water God's Flute: can be used to awaken the Water God.]

"The four items from the elemental dungeons are finally accounted for. Fire, water, and light are complete—only wind and lightning remain." Lin Moyu thought, feeling a surge of anticipation. He was confident that he would clear all five elemental dungeons soon and wondered what miraculous changes might occur once he completed them all.

It felt as though a layer of mystery was slowly being peeled away, and Lin Moyu’s curiosity was piqued. Without hesitation, he activated the Water Gem, and a soft blue light enveloped him.

...

Back at the Dungeon Hall, the bell rang again—a sound that had grown familiar to those present. Unlike before, there was no rush to see what had happened. The people inside knew exactly what it meant.

"Godly General Lin set another new record."

"I wonder what his time was this time."n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

"There's no need to check; this won't be his best score anyway."

Dongfang Yao overheard the conversation and felt a sense of curiosity. She turned to the students nearby and asked, "Excuse me, what do you mean by that?"

One of the students, clearly infatuated with her beauty and barely able to contain his excitement, responded eagerly, "Well, you see, every time Godly General Lin sets a new dungeon record, his first attempt is good—better than anyone else’s for sure—but it’s never his personal best. His second or third attempts are when things get really crazy!"

Just then, Lin Moyu’s score was displayed above the dungeon entrance. Since the dungeon had been upgraded, all previous records had been erased. So regardless of what Lin Moyu’s time was, he automatically ranked first.

[48 minutes, 22 seconds]

Dongfang Yao was taken aback. Achieving such a score in a hell rank dungeon wasn't just impressive—it was almost inconceivable. Yet to others, this first attempt wasn’t even considered noteworthy. What kind of score would actually impress them? Dongfang Yao couldn't wrap her head around it.

"I think this score is already quite good. It would be hard for anyone to beat it." She remarked, still puzzled.

The student chuckled, "For anyone else, yes. But not for Godly General Lin. You’ll see for yourself soon. When he goes for his second run, you’ll be shocked."

"Really?" Dongfang Yao was skeptical.

Just as she spoke, the space near the dungeon entrance shimmered, and Lin Moyu appeared once again. Without missing a beat, he re-entered the dungeon for another run.

Outside the Dungeon Hall, shouts erupted.

"Godly General Lin has started his second run. The betting is officially open His first run took 48 minutes. The benchmark is set at 24 minutes. Place your bets on whether he’ll finish in under or over 24 minutes. 1,000 points per bet. The odds are 2 to 1 for under 24 minutes, 1 to 1 for over. Don’t miss out on this rare opportunity—who knows when Godly General Lin will raid a dungeon again!"

Dongfang Yao was dumbfounded. People were gambling on this? Her curiosity piqued, she walked toward the crowd, where the excitement was palpable. Dozens of people were placing bets, shouting their guesses. For the first time in a long while, Dongfang Yao found herself swept up in the excitement.

As the empire’s princess and the daughter of a god-level expert, she felt it beneath her to place a modest 1,000-point bet like the rest. Instead, she wagered the maximum allowed—10,000 points. She was convinced that completing the dungeon in under 24 minutes was impossible, even for Lin Moyu.

Even a fully staffed party of twelve high-level class users couldn’t hope to achieve such a feat.

After placing her bet, Dongfang Yao's attention was fully on the dungeon. She had completely forgotten she had come here to grind and level up herself.