Chapter 29: The Widow is the Best Teammate I've Ever Met!

The school broadcast echoed throughout the campus.

All of Gaoshan High School fell into a deathly silence.

Though Principal Wang struggled to move through the surging tide of security guards, he still spoke with contemptuous disdain: "Who would listen to you? Do you think they dare to leave?"

At Gaoshan High School, the concept of "dismissal" had never existed.

From the day they entered the school, they were required to study continuously until the National College Entrance Examination.

Because holidays and going home were considered acts of wasting study time.

It was a cage that imprisoned the freedom of young eagles for three years, leaving them unable to fly.

The reason given was to allow them to fly faster in the future.

Wu Wang replied with equal disdain: "You underestimate their courage far too much. As a certain great man once said, students are the sun at eight or nine in the morning; all hope is placed upon them."

"Let the bullets fly for a while."

Just as he finished speaking, Principal Wang saw the doors of the first floor of the Arts Building swing open.

A girl stepped out, her school uniform covered in splashes of paint.

She cast a glance at Principal Wang.

Then, she said calmly: "Classmates, go reclaim what belongs to us. Go and become ourselves."

*Da-da-da—da-da-da—*

A massive crowd of students in school uniforms suddenly surged from behind her, their faces carrying a vitality and passion that the students of the "outside" Gaoshan High School had never possessed.

Hearing the command from Chen Nan, the class monitor, everyone cheered and rushed toward the exit of the Arts Building.

It was as if they were walking toward a new life.

"Charge! School's out!"

"Hahaha! Once we're out, I want to paint!"

"I'm going to write novels! Become an author and earn royalties!"

"Then you'll starve to death."

"..."

Everyone chatted away, completely ignoring Principal Wang standing nearby.

They played and frodded their way around the "Small Black Room," paying no heed to the heavy aura of death within.

Their corpses lay there.

Their pasts lay there.

【I finished school today.】

【I am ready to spread my wings and fly tomorrow.】

【But I already died yesterday.】

【Yet my ideals still lie in the distance.】

【A distance filled with poetry and art.】

The students in the Arts Building who had been kept in the dark began to remember everything the moment they heard the voices of Xiao Pang and Wu Wang over the broadcast.

Or rather, from the moment Wu Wang absorbed the eerie aura of the red vertical pupils.

Even knowing they were already dead, they still sought to bring the vigor of a rising sun to their numbed classmates.

As their figures vanished into the distance toward the dormitory buildings, the entire Gaoshan High School erupted.

It was like a barrel of gunpowder ignited by a tiny spark, sweeping away all the gloom and stagnation.

The students collectively chose to be birds singing at the top of their lungs.

They refused to be lambs dying in silence.

"Principal Wang, do you understand now? Studying is important, of course, but there are some things that can never be buried forever." Wu Wang's voice drifted from the entrance of the Arts Building: "How does that saying go—"

"Some birds are destined not to be caged, because every single one of their feathers is stained with the radiance of freedom!"

Because the source of the ring's power had been absorbed by Wu Wang and then suppressed by the security guards and school doctors, the powerless Principal Wang let out a distorted, hideous laugh.

He cursed the instigator of everything

"Do you know what you're doing! So what if they leave Gaoshan High School? They'll just wander in an even larger cage! They'll suffer even more in the future than they do now! I am the one who is right!" His voice sounded frantic, almost sorrowful.

Wu Wang merely shrugged indifferently.

He spoke: "So? Who cares? I'm just a madman in your eyes."

"Madmen don't need reasons for what they do. If you insist on finding one, it's probably the same reason why Mr. Li Er, whom people respectfully call Laozi, wrote the *Tao Te Ching*."

"Because Laozi felt like it."

In the next second, he also set off toward the distance.

Leaving behind only the stunned Principal Wang.

And Li Yang, who walked out slowly, carrying the two "Xiao Pangs."

Li Yang said helplessly, "Principal Wang, student Chu asked me to deliver a grand gift to you."

"He said—you are about to face your true self."

With that, he released the Xiao Pangs.

The two Xiao Pangs charged toward Principal Wang with aggressive momentum.

Just as Li Yang's humanity merged with the corpse when he returned to the Arts Building, the Xiao Pangs were also going to form the "true" Principal Wang.

The self he had once abandoned.

"No, no, no! I don't need you! Please, stay away from me!" Principal Wang's voice gradually turned into a plea.

But this could not stop the two Xiao Pangs from approaching.

Finally, they merged into one.

Becoming a single corpse lying on the ground, covered in tears.

The corpse was no longer wearing an expensive suit, nor did it hold exquisite gems in its hands.

There was only a school uniform covered in paint.

A brilliant patch of red on the uniform was exceptionally piercing.

Because that was where it had been stained by blood.

Meanwhile, near the teaching building, Wu Wang suddenly felt a lightness on his body.

He flipped open his bulletproof vest and found that the school uniform underneath had vanished at some unknown point.

He smiled.

That was originally the remnant left by the "humanity" Xiao Pang—no, it should have been the relic left by Wang Zhiyong when he originally escaped the school.

Now, it had returned to its rightful owner.

"Yo, good evening, Brother Baili. Why are you lying here? Get up, sleeping isn't allowed here."

Seeing Baili Dao covered in blood on the ground, Wu Wang spoke teasingly.

The other man gave a helpless, bitter smile.

Confused, he asked, "Little Brother Wu, what exactly do you plan to do?"

To his surprise, Wu Wang put on a look of astonishment and countered, "Aren't we supposed to catch the school escapers? Why be so obsessed with catching them one by one?"

He then pointed toward the massive crowd of students at the school gate and chuckled: "Look, I've orchestrated a school-wide 'truancy incident.' Now we can catch them however we want. Do you need me to help you up?"

Baili Dao: "..."

He had to admit, this was a direction he had never considered.

But it didn't seem to be wrong.

If they went to catch students now, they could indeed push the dungeon rewards to an unimaginable height in a very short time.

Unfortunately, he could no longer do it.

"Cough, cough! Little Brother Wu, I don't think I'll make it. You go ahead; this is what you deserve," Baili Dao said with a relieved smile.

His injuries were too severe.

At this point, even standing up was a luxury, let alone catching students to farm rewards.

On the other side, the poor He Qing, without a school doctor to look after him, had likely already died and exited the dungeon.

Wu Wang was about to become the sole player in this dungeon.

"Tsk tsk, saying you're done when you're so young? Your future wife is really going to be unlucky." Wu Wang cracked a dirty joke as usual. "Well, I'm off to do some real work then."

He stood up, preparing to leave.

But Baili Dao called out to him, saying seriously, "Brother Wu, to be honest, although your behavior and spirit are a bit erratic, you are indeed the best teammate I've encountered in a dungeon. So, I must give you a warning—"

"After the dungeon is cleared, watch out for those three Free Players."

"You are only a Level 1 player. Once you return to reality, you will be nothing more than a lamb to the slaughter in their eyes."

Wu Wang raised an eyebrow, wearing a look of sudden realization.

Those three guys wanted to play dirty in reality!

How could such a good thing happen to him?

Doesn't that mean as long as he claims "self-defense"—and if he's not careful, "excessive self-defense" and takes them out—he can just pick their pockets with tears in his eyes?

Having figured this out, Wu Wang patted Baili Dao's shoulder to comfort him: "Thanks for telling me this good news. Don't worry, I'll make sure to perform a proper ritual for you. I've got a self-made Taoist certificate."

Baili Dao: "?"

*Big brother, this is a non-death dungeon! I'm going back to reality in a bit! What the hell are you, a fake Taoist, going to perform a ritual for!*

Forget it, he should understand what he meant.

Baili Dao took a deep breath.

He slowly vanished from the grass, exiting the dungeon world upon death.

Wu Wang continued to stand up and walk toward the school gate.

But he did not make a move to catch any of the students.

Instead, he blended into the crowd and slowly left the school.

His silhouette was just like all the other students.

Unremarkable, yet independent and autonomous.

【Teleporting out of the dungeon...】

【Congratulations, Player Widow, on clearing the Reality-Targeted Team Dungeon: The Great Truancy.】

【Game Rating: α】

【Main Quest Completed】

【Side Quests 1 and 2 Completed】

【Hidden Reward Condition Achieved: Purge Contamination】

【You have successfully led the entire student body to escape. The cumulative dungeon rewards have reached their peak!】

【Please check your rewards promptly.】

【Dungeon Summary: You are extremely lacking in teamwork and are essentially incapable of empathizing with any student. You felt none of the pressure of studying or the authority of the school leadership, yet you easily achieved a perfect score on the proxy exam. You are practically a tumor... However, none of that matters. You have purged the contamination of Gaoshan High School and liberated the entire school. Oh, my friend, you are the true hero!】

Wu Wang: "?"

It felt like he had been insulted by the system, but there was no substantial evidence.

Whatever, let's see what the rewards are.

Then he'll go out and be a "lamb to the slaughter."

He couldn't wait to practice some "self-defense"!

(End of Chapter)