23: The strongest black iron in a hundred years

Lin Feng did not summon a Facehugger to go forward; instead, he directly communicated with the cold and powerful will deep within his Spirit Beast Space.

“Queen, target: Crystal Eater · Geladun.”

“Requirement: One-hit kill.”

A chilling, violent aura, causing one's heart to palpitate, instantly descended upon the mine!

The air solidified, even Geladun’s roar was caught in its throat, and an emotion called “fear” was revealed in its scarlet compound eyes.

Through the Facehugger larva’s perception, Lin Feng clearly “saw” a shadow, deeper than the mine’s darkness, like a sharp blade tearing through space, silently appearing above Geladun’s massive head!

Immediately after, a powerful feedback from the soul connection instantly surged back… Target, eliminated!

Instant kill!

A true, undisputed instant kill!

The Black Iron Level Tier 9 BOSS, Crystal Eater · Geladun, was killed before the Alien Queen could even make a decent counterattack!

He glanced at the dungeon timer: from entering the mine to killing the final BOSS, the time taken was — 3 minutes and 47 seconds!

This record would definitely be a record-breaker in a Black Iron Level dungeon!

But this was just the beginning.

Lin Feng exited the dungeon settlement without hesitation.

A golden light flashed, and he reappeared in front of the dungeon’s teleportation array.

Ignoring the curious gazes of several Professionals who were preparing to team up for a dungeon, he once again stood on the teleportation array, used his points to exchange for entry permission to the [Abandoned Mine (Easy Difficulty)], and his figure disappeared again.

Five minutes later, the leaderboard on the teleportation array wall, representing the [Abandoned Mine (Easy Difficulty)] clear record, suddenly refreshed!

“First Place: Clear Time: 3 minutes 47 seconds! (Original Record: 4 minutes 32 seconds, Original Clear Team: Shield of Bedrock.)”

“Clear Team: None!”

Several Professionals chatting near the leaderboard stared at the light screen, a wry smile on their faces.

“3 minutes 47 seconds? This record… so much faster than the original record? Which Black Iron Level peak team is trying to make a statement again?”

“Definitely, otherwise why would it be anonymous? But… this speed is too exaggerated!”

Ten minutes later.

“[Abandoned Mine (Normal Difficulty)] Clear Record Refreshed!”

“First Place: Clear Time: 3 minutes 55 seconds! (Original Record: 7 minutes 15 seconds, Original Clear Team: Molten Heart.)”

“Clear Team: None!”

More than a dozen Professionals had gathered in front of the Abandoned Mine teleportation array.

Some were attracted by the new record for Easy Difficulty, while others were teams preparing for a challenge. When they saw that the Normal Difficulty record had also been significantly refreshed, a collective gasp went through the crowd.

“Normal Difficulty broken too?! 3 minutes 55 seconds?! This… I wonder which top team, preparing to advance to Bronze-level, specifically came to crush the record!”

However, before they could process this information, three even more hair-raising events followed one after another.

The first!

“[Abandoned Mine (Hard Difficulty)] Clear Record Refreshed!”

“First Place: Anonymous, Clear Time: 2 minutes 28 seconds! (Original Record: 9 minutes 48 seconds, Original Clear Team: Shield of Bedrock.)”

“Clear Team: None!”

The second!

“[Abandoned Mine (Hard Difficulty)] Clear Record Refreshed!”

“First Place: Anonymous, Clear Time: 2 minutes 19 seconds! (Original Record: 2 minutes 28 seconds, Original Clear Team: None.)”

“Clear Team: None!”

The third!!!

“[Abandoned Mine (Hard Difficulty)] Clear Record Refreshed!”

“First Place: Anonymous, Clear Time: 2 minutes 11 seconds! (Original Record: 2 minutes 19 seconds, Original Clear Team: None.)”

“Clear Team: None!”

Boom!!!

The area in front of the entire Abandoned Mine’s teleportation array completely erupted!

Crowds surged like a tide, surrounding the teleportation array so tightly that not even a drop of water could pass.

Gasps, doubts, and sounds of cold air being drawn in mixed together, almost threatening to blow off the mine’s dome!

“All clear records from Easy to Hard Difficulty have been broken! Which divine team is this? Why are they anonymous?”

“Wait! The ‘Clear Team’ shows ‘None’! Is it possible… it’s just one person?!”

“Impossible! Absolutely impossible!!!”

“If it’s a solo clear! Then the guy who set this terrifying record is definitely the strongest Black Iron Level Professional since the era of universal class changes!”

“Three consecutive attempts at Hard Difficulty! Each time breaking his own record?! 2 minutes 11 seconds?! Is this guy a monster?!”

“Quick! Record it! Post it on the forum! This is definitely a city-wide sensation!”

The news, like a hurricane, instantly swept across the entire Professional Association forum and communication channels.

The title, “The Black Iron Level’s most difficult Abandoned Mine dungeon record broken five times in one day, with Hard Difficulty even breaking into two and a half minutes!”, instantly ignited all social platforms.

Countless people flocked to the entrance of the Abandoned Mine dungeon, hoping to catch a glimpse of this “divine person.”

Weiyang City, Professional Association Headquarters, Strategic Intelligence Monitoring Center.

On the huge circular light screen, key data streams from dungeons in various districts under Weiyang City’s jurisdiction were scrolling in real-time.

Suddenly, several data nodes representing Weiyang City’s northern district simultaneously lit up with dazzling red alarms, accompanied by urgent buzzing sounds.

“Report! Abnormal data fluctuations detected in the Weibei District Novice Training Ground! The clear records for the Level 5 Black Iron Level dungeon - Abandoned Mine (Easy, Normal, Hard) were continuously refreshed five times in a very short period! The new records are 3 minutes 47 seconds, 3 minutes 55 seconds, 2 minutes 28 seconds, 2 minutes 19 seconds, and 2 minutes 11 seconds respectively! The Hard Difficulty record exceeded the original record by… over 50%!”

A monitor’s voice trembled with disbelief.

The previously slightly noisy center instantly fell silent, and everyone’s gaze focused on those striking new record lines.

“What?!”

Sitting behind the main console, an elderly man with white hair and sharp, eagle-like eyes suddenly stood up. He was Qin Zhenyue, the president of the Weiyang City Professional Association.

“These times… confirm the data is correct? Rule out system malfunction or cheating possibilities?”

“System self-check shows no abnormalities! Data source is real and reliable! Based on energy fluctuations and dungeon feedback analysis, the clearer could even be… one person!”

The technical director quickly pulled up the backend data stream, his voice filled with even greater shock.

“President, this efficiency… it’s terrifying! Especially for Hard Difficulty, three refreshes, each faster than the last, finally reaching 2 minutes 11 seconds… This has already far exceeded the theoretical maximum speed for a Black Iron Level Professional, and even… a Silver-level powerhouse might not be able to achieve such a clean sweep!”

Qin Zhenyue stared at the dazzling “2 minutes 11 seconds” on the light screen, his brows furrowed, his fingers unconsciously tapping the control panel, making soft clicking sounds.

The entire monitoring center was so quiet you could hear a pin drop, with only the hum of equipment running.

“Immediately activate the ‘Latent Dragon’ contingency plan!” Qin Zhenyue’s voice was decisive, breaking the silence.

“First, use the highest authority to attempt to track the anonymous person’s true identity, but be sure to be careful to avoid alerting them!”

“Second, retrieve all surveillance records from the dungeon entrance and surrounding areas, analyze the anonymous person’s entry and exit times, and physical characteristics, even if it’s just a back view!”

“Third, notify the Weibei District branch to seal off news from the scene, control public opinion, and avoid causing large-scale commotion. At the same time, dispatch the most capable ‘Special Operations Team’ to enter the Abandoned Mine dungeon under the guise of investigating abnormal data, to conduct deep scans and analysis! I want to know how he did it!”

“Yes!”

The orders were quickly relayed.

“President, do you think this is…”

A middle-aged staff officer wearing glasses next to him asked in a low voice.

Qin Zhenyue took a deep breath, his eyes gleaming: “No matter who this divine figure is, to be able to display such overwhelming dominance in a Black Iron Level dungeon, their potential… is unfathomable! Either a subversive dungeon mechanism has been discovered, or… they possess an unimaginable talent or power, at least of strategic level! Find him! At all costs! Before he truly stirs up trouble, we must seize the initiative! SS-level confidentiality, effective immediately!”

The atmosphere in the entire monitoring center instantly became solemn and tense.

Encrypted commands were issued one after another from Weiyang Headquarters.

A storm, stirred by dungeon clear records, had quietly spread from the Novice Training Ground in Weiyang City’s northern district to the highest echelons of power in the entire Weiyang City.

And at this moment, Lin Feng, who had just finished settling his fifth dungeon reward and gained a large amount of experience and crystal coins, stood calmly in front of the dungeon teleportation array’s leaderboard, ignoring the surging crowds and countless probing gazes around him, quietly turning away…