Chapter Twenty: The Unexpected

None of the students took part in the ensuing events; everyone obediently stayed atop the city wall, watching the spectacle unfold.

The teachers’ group had already set out. Each of the four classes had a homeroom teacher, and together with an assistant instructor, eight elite professionals, all above level thirty, formed a small squad. However, they didn’t act immediately but instead found a place to hide and observe.

On the main street, after a heated exchange of words between the Pirate King and the garrison commander, the Pirate King gave the order to attack. Their subordinates clashed in a chaotic melee. Once the majority of the Pirate King’s followers had been sent out, the teachers made their move.

Two of the teachers were spellcasters. They each cast a high-level Counterspell and a Greater Dispel Magic, shattering the Pirate King’s magical defenses in an instant. Three melee combat teachers then blinked to the Pirate King’s side, following up with a Storm Hammer, a Kidney Strike, and a Judgement Hammer in quick succession, locking the Pirate King down for a full six seconds.

During this crucial window, the other teachers unleashed their ultimate attacks, reducing the Pirate King’s health to less than half in a single explosive round. In truth, their combined burst was far greater, but as a mage, the Pirate King had numerous life-saving techniques that triggered one after another, absorbing thousands of points of damage and eventually freeing him from the control effects.

But the teachers had fought this Pirate King countless times before; they knew his every tactic by heart. The moment he so much as lifted a hand, they could anticipate his intent, responding calmly and countering his every move with precision.

Though the teachers handled the situation with ease, Chu Cheng, seeing spells with power ratings of five or six hundred being thrown around, was drenched in cold sweat and couldn’t help but mutter, “Is the Pirate King really this formidable? If it were us, we wouldn’t stand a chance, would we?”

Beside him, Wang Weilong laughed. “Of course not. Did you really think a final boss in a dungeon like this is something we could beat at our level?”

“This dungeon is designed for teams of five, all above level twenty, with proper composition. We’re nowhere near ready.”

“Yeah, you’re right,” Chu Cheng conceded.

The battle proceeded without surprises. The Pirate King exhausted all his tricks, but could do nothing against the eight teachers. It wasn’t that his spells lacked power, nor that every teacher could easily handle him alone; rather, they were simply too well-versed in his repertoire, and had a counter for every spell. Direct damage spells were weathered with shields, crowd-control and debuffs were dispelled by their mages or with various items and scrolls, and anything they couldn’t counter they could endure thanks to their superior health.

Chu Cheng watched everything from the city wall—the final boss, insurmountable for him at his current level, was completely overwhelmed and slain in the street by the coordinated efforts of the teachers.

The moment the Black Sails Pirate King fell, Chu Cheng received a message from his homeroom teacher: “The Pirate King is dead. You’re free to act. If you have the ability, try to hunt down and surround the fleeing bosses.”

Turning off the communicator and seeing Wang Weilong and the others looking at him expectantly, Chu Cheng raised his head and said, “Let’s go.”

Whether or not they could snatch a boss was another matter. For now, it was best to follow the main group and earn some experience.

When their group of five descended, they saw over twenty from Class One already charging out of the castle, flooding into the main street. They hurried after them, plunging into the crowd.

With the Pirate King dead, the pirate forces had completely collapsed and were fleeing in panic toward the warships docked at the harbor, desperate to seize a vessel and escape.

Morale among the pirates had plummeted; none dared to fight back. It was the perfect time to strike at the defeated.

Soon, they caught up to some of the fleeing pirates. Chu Cheng pointed to seven elite pirates ducking into an alley on the right and called out, “Let’s get these ones!”

He noticed out of the corner of his eye that the class one students were ignoring another group of pirates who’d escaped into a nearby alley, focusing instead on chasing down a higher-level pirate leader further ahead.

Wang Weilong noticed too, sneering slightly. “They’re greedy, going after the pirate leader like that—aren’t they afraid of getting wiped out?”

With that, he charged into the alley.

Zhang Chunlei notched an arrow and let fly, shooting into the alley. “Let them do as they please. If they’re not afraid of the risk, that’s their choice. I, for one, don’t want to take that gamble.”

A crash of thunder split the air; a surge of violent energy blasted out, stunning all the pirates within six meters. Two blades flashed in quick succession, stabbing the stunned elite pirates in the eyes, blood spurting everywhere.

By then, Cheng Mingyue had caught up, delivering a heavy cleave that felled one of the bleeding pirates, then giving a low shout as she spun rapidly.

The Berserker’s signature technique: Whirlwind Slash.

Spinning swiftly, she swung her blade in wide arcs, dealing continuous damage to all nearby enemies—a rare area-of-effect move for melee combatants.

Meanwhile, Zhang Qing finally finished channeling his spell, unleashing a massive fireball that exploded among the pirates. The combined magical damage and previous attacks instantly dropped two elite pirates.

All these elite pirates had been wounded to varying degrees in the earlier fighting—they weren’t at full strength, making them easier to finish off.

After they killed two pirates, the remaining five, completely demoralized, split up and ran in different directions.

Chu Cheng didn’t hesitate, pursuing the trio who fled together. His extraordinary agility allowed him to catch up to one quickly, crossing his twin blades at the pirate’s neck and slashing, a tremendous damage number flashing up.

Five against three unmotivated pirates was almost laughably easy. They dispatched them in short order.

Unfortunately, there was no loot.

They didn’t bother chasing the other two who’d scattered, instead doubling back to the main street to continue the pursuit.

But as soon as they emerged from the alley, they saw a commotion up ahead—a crowd of students had gathered in front of a three-story building, with several teachers present as well.

Puzzled, they approached, peering through the onlookers to see an open space where two severed bodies lay on the ground.

Chu Cheng’s heart lurched—it was a student.

“Someone’s dead?”

The five pressed together, all traces of laughter gone from their faces, replaced by grave concern.

Zhang Chunlei, who had managed to squeeze to the front and return, whispered, “It was someone from Class One. They tried to surround and kill a pirate leader, but got counterattacked. The level 33 elite boss used a wide-area control skill to stun seven of them, then unleashed a powerful finishing move, dealing over four hundred damage and a total of more than five hundred—instantly killing one of them.”

“Luckily, a teacher was nearby. Otherwise, there might have been another casualty.”

Everyone’s faces were grim. Chu Cheng asked quietly, “Can he… be revived?”

Wang Weilong shook his head. “Hard to say. It depends if Class One has extra resources for a lesser resurrection scroll, or if his family can buy one.”

“But even with a resurrection, his level will drop to ten; nearly a year’s progress, gone. He won’t be able to stay in the elite class, and his university entrance prospects will be severely affected—it’s doubtful he’ll get into a top school.”

Chu Cheng fell silent...