F-class thief? Sorry, I can steal anything.

Jiangcheng City, Chaofan Education Bureau.

Data monitoring center.

This is the extraordinary educational nerve center of the entire city.

At this moment, however, it was as silent as a tomb.

Everyone held their breath, waiting for the final data feed back from the practical training courses for freshmen at various universities.

suddenly!

Beep—!

Beep—!

Two blood-red alarms, not from any conventional contingency plan, pierced everyone's eardrums like two red-hot steel needles!

How tragic!

sharp!

It was a blood-red lament that had been silent for a full decade, almost forgotten by everyone, representing the highest authority for disaster relief.

"Warning! Highest level alert!!"

A young technician responsible for monitoring the newbie area suddenly sprang up from his chair as if his spine had been removed, and the sound he made was no longer human.

The screen in front of him had turned into a shocking blood red.

Both alerts originated from the newbie dungeon he was monitoring... No. 7!

"Starter Dungeon #7: Goblin Mine..."

The technician's lips trembled, and strange gurgling sounds came from his throat. Finally, with all his might, he roared out two words that were enough to drive anyone insane.

"Morality rate...47.3%!"

"and……"

"SSS-rank completion rating!!!"

In an instant, all the air in the entire monitoring hall was sucked out.

Everyone turned their heads in unison, looking at the colleague who had screamed incoherently with the same eyes one would give a mental patient.

SSS rating?

How could a near 50% mortality rate occur simultaneously in a beginner dungeon?

What kind of hellish joke is this?!

"You're mistaken! It's definitely a system bug!"

The department head rushed over in one stride.

He stared intently at the three seemingly burning golden letters on the screen, and the glaring scarlet number next to them.

The next second, his breathing stopped.

it is true.

The seasoned manager's legs went weak, and he began to tremble uncontrollably.

He knew that the sky had fallen over Jiangcheng!

"Report! Quickly! Report to the director immediately using the highest level of encryption!!"

……

Meanwhile, at Jiangcheng No.1 Middle School, in the principal's office.

The atmosphere was as oppressive as lead.

Principal Zhou Dehai sat upright, his fingers unconsciously tapping repeatedly on the table.

Hey.

Hey.

Hey.

Each tap was like a heavy hammer blow to the dean's heart, making him afraid to even breathe.

Cold sweat had already soaked through the back of my shirt.

"Did you find it?"

The principal finally spoke, his voice eerily calm.

"Principal... Principal..."

The head of the teaching department's voice trembled.

"The backend data is still being urgently restored... but... the medical team has repeatedly confirmed Chen Yifan's level, it's... it's Lv.15..."

Lv.15.

An F-class thief?

Zhou Dehai's fingers, which were tapping the table, paused slightly.

Just then, the red encrypted communicator on his desk emitted a piercing beep.

The name that popped up on the screen made the head of the teaching department's legs go weak instantly.

【Zhao Lixin】.

The highest-ranking official of Jiangcheng Chaofan Education Bureau.

That legendary powerhouse who personally participated in the final battle of the "Bloody Twenty Years".

The storm is coming.

Zhou Dehai connected the communication.

Zhao Lixin's gloomy face appeared on the screen. Without uttering a single word, a document was projected directly onto the screen.

The document contained only two lines of text.

Two lines of blood-red text were enough to turn the entire city of Jiangcheng upside down.

[Clearance Rating: SSS]

[Dungeon Death Rate: 47.3%]

The head of the teaching department only glanced at it before his vision went black and he collapsed to the ground.

Finished!

The bureau chief found out too!

The news spread faster than he had imagined.

What to do!

He quickly looked at the principal.

However, Zhou Dehai's reaction was beyond his expectations.

The principal showed no shock, no roaring, and no collapse.

He just stared at those two lines of text for a full ten seconds.

Ten seconds later, Zhou Dehai slowly raised his head and looked at Zhao Lixin on the screen. His voice was hoarse, but he was unusually calm.

"Who received the evaluation?"

"It shows that it belongs to someone named Chen Yifan."

Zhao Lixin's voice was devoid of any emotion.

really.

The last glimmer of hope in Zhou Dehai's heart vanished.

Heaven and hell perfectly overlap within the same person.

"Zhou Dehai." Zhao Lixin stared at him, enunciating each word clearly, "I suggest you go to your window and take a look."

Zhou Dehai silently got up and walked to the huge floor-to-ceiling window.

With just one glance, even with his thirty years of experience, his heart couldn't help but clench.

The school's magnificent gate, a symbol of glory and knowledge, was now completely blocked by countless grieving parents.

Cries, curses, and questions...

The sound surged forth, almost breaking through the soundproof glass and overturning the entire administration building.

The flashing police lights illuminated the pale faces filled with grief and indignation.

The hovering broadcast trucks of major media outlets circled above the school like vultures smelling blood.

The current predicament of Jiangcheng No.1 Middle School was transmitted in real time to every corner of the country.

This once-star university has now become the center of scandal for the entire nation.

"Did you see that? Zhou Dehai!"

Zhao Lixin's roar came through the communicator.

"An SSS-level rating! And two hundred and seventeen corpses that will never return!"

"Tell me, how am I supposed to explain this to my superiors?! How am I supposed to explain this to the people of the whole city?!"

Zhou Dehai did not turn around.

He stared silently at the hellish scene below, then suddenly spoke, his voice eerily calm.

"Director Zhao, we can't just look at the mortality rate in this matter."

On the other end of the phone, Zhao Lixin's breath hitched.

"An SSS-level rating breaks the Dragon Kingdom's fifteen-year record. There must be a huge change behind this that we don't know about, one that could overturn our entire understanding of dungeons."

"And Chen Yifan, an F-level thief, not only survived, but also leveled up to level 15."

Zhou Dehai slowly turned around, his eyes behind his glasses flashing with an almost insane, desperate glint.

"He is not a jinx."

"He is the only key to uncovering the truth behind this disaster!"

On the other end of the phone, Zhao Lixin remained silent.

That old fox!

He immediately understood what Zhou Dehai meant.

They shifted the blame from the unbearable "management negligence" to the unpredictable "unknown natural disaster"!

And Chen Yifan is the only witness!

It's also the only hope!

"I see."

A slight fluctuation finally appeared in Zhao Lixin's voice.

"Zhou Dehai, I don't care what methods you use! I'll use every resource in the city!"

"Let him live!"

"Make him speak!"

"He is now... our only lifeline!"

The communication was abruptly cut off.

The office fell silent once again.

Zhou Dehai sat back down in his chair, took out a clean velvet cloth, and began to slowly and meticulously wipe his glasses, seemingly oblivious to his surroundings.

It was as if everything that had just happened had nothing to do with him.

Looking at the principal, who was completely different from before, the head of the teaching department felt a chill run from his tailbone straight to the top of his head.

"Pass the word down."

Zhou Dehai put on his gleaming glasses, and his voice regained its usual authority and coldness.

"Move the best nutritionists, the best guards, and the best medical team to isolation ward number 01."

"From this moment forward, the safety of Chen Yifan is the highest priority at Jiangcheng No. 1 High School!"

He paused, then added the last sentence in a completely emotionless tone.

"If he makes even the slightest mistake..."

"You'll go and be buried with him."