Chapter 765: Warming Up
Ba Quanming and the other team leader's attitudes drastically changed when compared to how they had treated Ling Zhan.
One was willing to cover half the entry fee, and the other was ready to pay for it entirely.
You had to understand, the price of an epic-level dungeon wasn't cheap—it cost a whopping 800,000 credits.
Converted to sacred crystals, it was an astronomical amount.
"Wow, they sure are generous when it comes to pretty girls."
"The main reason is that these two beauties happen to be exactly the classes these teams need, and they're young too, which proves they're quite talented. Covering the ticket cost is understandable."
"Plus, these two teams have been recruiting for half a month without finding suitable candidates..."
The crowd murmured among themselves.
Meanwhile, Ba Quanming and the other team leader stood there confidently, certain that Avril and Ansely wouldn't reject their offers.
However,
to everyone's surprise...
Faced with these warm invitations, Avril and Ansely didn't agree. Instead, they both shook their heads and rejected the teams outright!
"Sorry, but I'll have to decline. I'm not interested in joining your team," Ansely said bluntly.
If she hadn't encountered Ling Zhan here, she might have joined a decently strong team with Avril.
But now that she had met Ling Zhan...
All other plans were scrapped—her decision to stick with him was firm.
She had already witnessed Ling Zhan's strength during the Radiant Secret Realm.
Besides, Ansely had a strong fondness for Ling Zhan.
If Ling Zhan ever showed interest in dating, she would be the first to confess.
There was no way she would leave him behind to join another team!
The key point was...
From the chatter around her, she learned that these two teams had been mocking Ling Zhan before her arrival.
That made it even more impossible for her to join them.
What a joke!
The man she admired had been ridiculed by them, and now they wanted her to join their team?
Keep dreaming!
Avril also firmly shook her head.
She wasn't overthinking it. She simply found the two teams unreliable. Since she understood Ling Zhan's strength, she naturally preferred to team up with him rather than with people who had mocked him.
Their firm rejection left the onlookers visibly shocked.
"What? They turned down such good offers?"
"These two must be wealthy enough not to care about the ticket cost."
"Maybe they think Ba Quanming and his crew are too ugly, haha..."
"Clearly, they don't think these teams are strong enough."
"..."
Hearing the crowd's playful remarks, Ba Quanming and the other team members' faces darkened.
They clearly hadn't expected to be rejected under such circumstances.
The two team leaders' faces turned sour.
"Hmph! If they won't join, we'll find someone else!"
"Yeah! So what if they're talented? They're way too arrogant!"
"It's fine. They'll regret it later."
The team members immediately chimed in to defend their leaders.
But Avril and Ansely couldn't care less about their sarcastic remarks.
They turned and walked toward Ling Zhan, standing on either side of him.
With a sweet smile, Ansely spoke softly, her voice brimming with admiration that even a blind person could see. "Ling Zhan, are you heading to the epic-level dungeon? If it's convenient, let's team up."
Avril also smiled and nodded. "Yeah, as you can see, we two poor girls were rejected by them."
The crowd was both surprised and speechless.
Speechless because it was obvious that Avril and Ansely had rejected Ba Quanming, yet they made it sound like they were the ones rejected.
Surprised because they hadn't expected these two high-level beauties to willingly team up with a level 130 non-specialist!
And to make it even more shocking, the girls were the ones who extended the invitation!
"What the...?"
"Are they out of their minds? They're going into an epic-level dungeon with a non-specialist? I don't understand what's so strong about someone who hasn't even chosen a class..."
"Guess they're just following their hearts instead of logic. This guy's good looks must've won them over."
The crowd's comments were filled with envy.
Ba Quanming and his team sneered.
"Hmph! Let's see if they can clear the dungeon as a team. We're ready to watch them fail!"
"Don't be surprised if they die in there!"
"Just sit back and enjoy the show..."
To them, Avril and Ansely had made a foolish decision.
They believed the two girls had abandoned strong teams for a handsome but useless non-specialist.
However,
Avril and Ansely ignored the mocking remarks.
The crowd probably hadn't heard about the incredible rumors spreading outside about Ling Zhan.
He had killed the 160-level Radiant Dragon King while only at level 105.
He had also single-handedly wiped out the teams from Demon Dragon Palace, Ten Thousand Beasts Alliance, Sacred Sword Guild, and Radiant Guild.
Not to mention, Zhang Mingruo and Ding Haoji had activated their pure Demon Bloodlines and undergone massive power boosts, yet they still crumbled before Ling Zhan.
Anyone who had heard these stories couldn't help but feel astonished.
Given the overwhelming evidence, no one could dismiss it as mere rumor.
Back then, numerous witnesses had been present.
If only one person had shared the story, people might have thought it was an exaggeration.
But when ten, a hundred, or even a thousand people all shared the same account, it was hard to dispute its truth.
However, the people in Blue Sea City hadn't yet heard these stories about Ling Zhan.
When they saw his non-specialist status, their initial reaction was surprise.
Their second reaction was to think he was just trying to show off.
Choosing not to specialize seemed like an attention-seeking gimmick.
As for Ling Zhan,
he remained indifferent to their opinions.
But Avril and Ansely's invitation was something he could accept.
The reason was simple...
The Serpent Abyss dungeon required at least two people to enter.
It was an epic-level dungeon with strict team requirements.
Since he didn't have any better teammates in mind, accepting their offer made sense.
To break the record for the Atlantis Ruins dungeon, even Ling Zhan needed to adapt to underwater combat.
The Serpent Abyss dungeon would be his training ground.