Endless Extraction in a Game-Like World

Lena stood at the edge of a ruined building, her eyes blank as she stared at the destruction stretching across the horizon. Fires burned in the distance, and thick smoke curled into the darkened sky while the sounds of battle echoed through the ruined city.

"Where are you, Caelus?" Her voice came out softly, almost like a whisper carried away by the wind.

She clenched her fists at her sides, her nails digging into her palms as her thoughts gradually drifted backward. Memories she had desperately tried to hold onto resurfaced one after another, bringing her back to a time when everything had been different.

Back then, he had been nothing.

Just a boy at school who fetched her snacks, listened to every word she said without question, and followed her around like an obedient dog. He had always been there whenever she wanted him, and she had loved every second of it.

Then, however, he changed.

He grew stronger than anyone she had ever known, eventually reaching a point where even the entire planet seemed incapable of standing against him. Slowly but surely, he slipped beyond her grasp, and the fact that she could no longer control him infuriated her more than anything else in the world.

Her lips gradually curved into a twisted smile.

"I’ll find you," she muttered. "And when I do, you’re coming back to me."

No matter what it took, she would make him her obedient dog again.

Meanwhile, within the grand hall of the Demonic Headquarters, dark energy hummed through the air while crimson symbols crawled across the walls like living veins.

Malazakar sat upon his throne of black stone, his amber eyes calmly scanning the reports laid out before him. After a moment, he looked up with a slow smile spreading across his grey face.

"Caelus Kross still hasn’t shown his face?" His voice carried a calm amusement that made the atmosphere feel heavier. "Is he hiding?"

Mark Twilight stood to his left with his arms crossed over his chest. His expression remained unreadable, although his eyes now carried a dull emptiness that had not existed before.

Beside him stood Silas Vance of the Former Shadow Halberd Guild and Dominic Thorne of Former Crimson Fang Guild. They were now completely humans and had been actively helping the demons improve their influence over Earth.

"That should be the case," The Former Shadow Halberd Guild Leader replied. "No one has seen him or his group for over a month."

Hearing this, Malazakar leaned back against his throne.

"Then let him hide. It won’t be long before the Demon Core completely takes over this planet."

He said it as casually as if he were discussing the weather rather than the end of human civilization.

The reason for his confidence was simple. He had finally established contact with the Demon Realm in the Tier 2 World.

For years, the demonic faction had poured countless resources and sacrifices into creating a stable connection between the two worlds. However, every attempt had ultimately failed.

Until now.

Once the connection finally stabilized, a demon far beyond anything that existed on Earth crossed through the dimensional passage.

The being had arrived here for one purpose and that was Mark’s and Lena’s Abyssal Physique.

It was a remnant of the lower dimension they had crossed over from.

Without hesitation, the demon ripped the Abyssal Physique directly from their bodies.

However, in exchange for those two physiques, the demon granted Malazakar, Mark and Lena something far more valuable.

It granted them power that surpassed the scale of 100 Combat Score of Ace-Rank and many demonic skills from the Tier 2 World.

The Abyssal Physique was something nearly every powerful being in the Tier 2 World desired. It contained secrets that even Malazakar himself did not fully understand.

However, he didn’t care about those secrets.

He wanted only one thing.

The complete domination of this world, glory for his home faction in Tier 1, and finally, a position in the ascension toward the Tier 2 World.

Everything else was secondary.

Back inside the main hall, Lena fidgeted restlessly beside the throne. Her fingers tapped against her thigh in an erratic rhythm while her eyes darted around the room without truly focusing on anything.

Beside her, Mark Twilight remained completely still.

They had searched everywhere.

Every city, every hideout, and every rumored location had been investigated. Lena and Mark had scoured the entire planet for weeks in search of Caelus.

Yet there had been nothing.

Not a single trace.

It was as if he had completely vanished from the face of the Earth.

"He can’t just disappear," Lena muttered under her breath, her voice tight with frustration. "He has to be somewhere."

Mark said nothing and simply continued staring ahead with that same hollow expression.

The loss of his Abyssal Physique had taken something from him.

Something deeper than mere power.

Just then, Malazakar rose from his throne.

Dark energy abruptly erupted from his body like a volcano, his aura expanding outward in a violent wave that shook the very foundations of the building. The pressure intensified with every passing second before he slowly raised one hand toward the sky.

CRACK!

The ceiling shattered.

At the same time, Malazakar’s voice projected across the entire planet.

Every television, phone, and communication device on Earth flickered to life simultaneously. His image appeared in the sky itself, forming a massive projection visible from every corner of the world.

"Hear me, humans."

His voice rolled across continents like thunder.

"This world officially belongs to the Demonic Faction. In the new world that is about to be born, there will be no place for humanity."

The words struck the people of Earth like a physical blow.

In Queens, New York, Chad stood in the middle of a ruined street with the remaining members of the Golden Sword Guild surrounding him. They had been fighting demons for days without rest, their armor cracked and bloodied from the continuous battles.

The moment Malazakar’s face appeared in the sky, every single one of them froze.

Chad’s grip tightened around his weapon as the demon’s words gradually sank in.

"No place for humanity?" one of his guild members whispered, his voice trembling.

Chad said nothing, but his jaw clenched so tightly that it began to hurt.

At the same time, in Washington D.C., Dickenson swung his massive fist through a demon’s skull before abruptly looking up at the projection.

Commander Valeria stood beside him, her silver armor dented and scratched after hours of continuous combat. The Golden Light Guild’s forces were spread thin across the eastern seaboard, barely managing to hold the line against the endless waves of demons.

"That pressure," Valeria muttered as she felt the weight of Malazakar’s aura pressing down from the sky. "It’s approaching Emperor-Rank."

Hearing this, Dickenson’s expression paled.

"There’s no one on this planet who can match that."

Far away in Rome, Lunari pressed her hands together in prayer as holy energy swirled around her battered body.

Marcus stood beside her, his sword planted into the ground to support his exhausted body. The Church’s remaining forces had established a defensive line around the ruins of the Vatican, desperately fighting against wave after wave of demonic creatures.

When Malazakar’s announcement echoed across the sky, the holy light around Lunari’s hands gradually faded.

She looked upward with wide eyes.

"God help us," she breathed.

Meanwhile, in Manhattan, Selena gripped the edge of a broken window frame as she stared at the massive face hanging above the city.

Her vampiric senses screamed in warning.

Every instinct within her told her the same thing.

The being projecting itself across the world was something she could never hope to fight.

"Sylvia," she whispered. "Where are you, my daughter?"

Across the world, the reaction was the same.

Soldiers dropped their weapons. Players fell to their knees. Civilians screamed and attempted to flee, even though there was nowhere left for them to run.

The courage that had kept humanity fighting was gradually beginning to crumble beneath the overwhelming pressure.

This power was simply too immense.

Too absolute.

There was no one on the entire planet capable of dealing with something approaching Emperor-Rank. No faction, guild, or army possessed the power necessary to stand against Malazakar and the demons behind him.

As the realization gradually spread, hope itself began to die.

However, just as despair started to take hold of humanity, something suddenly changed.

A deep vibration spread through the atmosphere.

FWOOOOOM!

An immense blue aura erupted across one half of the world.

The energy descended from the heavens like a waterfall of sapphire light, spreading across entire continents in an instant. The pressure behind it was staggering, so heavy that even the clouds scattered beneath its presence.

Almost immediately after, another aura erupted from the opposite side of the planet.

Crimson energy exploded outward like a tidal wave, flooding the horizon with an endless sea of blood-red light. Within seconds, the two enormous auras divided the entire sky perfectly in half.

Blue on one side.

Red on the other.

BOOM!

The entire world shuddered beneath the combined pressure.

Buildings rattled violently on their foundations while the oceans churned and mountains cracked. Across the planet, countless people were forced to stop what they were doing as two overwhelming forces descended upon the world.

Even Malazakar’s massive projection flickered.

For the first time since beginning his invasion, the confident expression on his face disappeared.

Everyone felt it.

In Queens, Chad stumbled backward as the two overwhelming auras crashed across the city. His guild members struggled to remain standing, grabbing onto one another while staring toward the sky in complete disbelief.

In Washington, Dickenson and Valeria both raised their heads, their eyes reflecting the impossible sight of the split sky.

In Rome, Lunari suddenly gasped as tears welled in her eyes.

Meanwhile, in Manhattan, Selena’s trembling gradually stopped.

The familiar pressure surrounding her made her eyes widen.

Just as the entire world struggled to understand what was happening, a voice suddenly rang out.

It traveled across the entire planet.

Every person heard it.

Every mind received it with absolute clarity.

"And who allowed you to do all this on Earth, buddy?"

The voice sounded calm and casual.

However, the pressure hidden behind those words was anything but casual.

The moment the voice spread across the world, every demon flinched.

At the same time, something stirred within the hearts of humanity.

In Queens, Chad stood frozen in the middle of the ruined street.

The immense blue aura pressed down from the sky like a mountain made of light, and the familiar energy seemed to seep directly into his bones.

His weapon slipped from his fingers and clattered against the ground.

Slowly, he raised his head and stared at the sky that had been divided into blue and crimson.

His eyes slowly widened as he spoke.

"Is that..."

"Caelus?"

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