Endless Extraction in a Game-Like World

Since this was a starting area of the Origin Expanse, most of the people gathered around the node were Emperor-Rank.

However, Caelus suddenly sensed someone significantly stronger among them. He briefly became cautious, but quickly calmed down. His own Combat Score was already at 79.12.

Glaciana had warned them not to attract unnecessary attention. But Caelus felt she was simply being overly cautious because she didn’t know what he and his group were truly capable of.

He turned toward the others.

"Everyone, we’re going to take them."

No one objected.

He quickly divided the group accordingly. The weaker members would handle the ordinary guards and players surrounding the node. Caelus and Sylvia would deal with the strongest individuals.

"Move on my signal."

Inside the enemy encampment, a man sat calmly with his arms crossed.

His name was Ethan Cross.

This was only his fourth day in the Origin Expanse. Unlike Caelus and the others, Ethan was a native of the Tier 2 world. He had already managed to conquer this Origin Energy Node through considerable effort.

He knew there was no time to waste.

Once a node was discovered, enemies could come from anywhere. He had ordered his guards to constantly hunt nearby beasts and collect their Essences while his faction extracted Origin Energy from the node.

His goal was simple.

Grow stronger as quickly as possible before another faction arrived.

Unfortunately for him, another faction had already arrived.

WHOOSH!

Caelus and Sylvia launched their attack without warning.

Caelus immediately raised his hand and unleashed his Star Magic.

"Supernova."

BOOOOOOM!

A gigantic sphere of stellar energy erupted over the encampment.

It hung in the air for a single heartbeat before detonating like a miniature nuclear explosion. Blinding white light consumed everything. The shockwave tore through tents and structures, scattering debris in every direction.

Overwhelming destructive energy engulfed the entire region.

Even Caelus’s own companions were left speechless.

Gorn’s jaw dropped.

"What the hell was that?!"

Lucian stumbled backward.

"He just wiped out half of them with one attack!"

The attack alone eliminated a massive portion of Ethan’s faction. Guards were thrown through the air like ragdolls. Structures collapsed into rubble. The ground itself cracked and smoldered from the intense heat.

"WHAT THE HELL?!"

Ethan emerged from the destruction, completely enraged and bewildered.

His robes were torn and singed. Blood dripped from a cut on his forehead. He looked toward the source of the attack and found Caelus floating calmly in the air.

"Who the hell are you?!" Ethan roared. "Why did you come here?! This node was only discovered recently! There shouldn’t be anyone else who knows about it!"

Caelus descended slowly, his expression casual.

"I have some backing behind me."

He landed on the scorched ground and looked toward Ethan.

"Are you going to yield, or are you going to die fighting me?"

Ethan looked around at the devastation surrounding him.

His faction was in ruins. More than half of his people were either dead or incapacitated. The remaining survivors were being systematically overwhelmed by Caelus’s companions.

He immediately understood the difference in strength.

There was no winning this fight.

"I’ll yield! I’ll yield!"

Caelus became speechless.

That was unexpectedly easy.

"Alright then." He shrugged. "Move along. This place belongs to us now."

Ethan nodded frantically and began gathering what remained of his people. He prepared to leave as quickly as possible.

But then his gaze landed on Sylvia.

His expression froze.

"Huh..."

He squinted at her face, tilting his head slightly.

"Why do I feel like I’ve seen you somewhere before?"

Sylvia looked at him calmly.

"You probably have the wrong person. I’m new here."

"No, no." Ethan shook his head insistently. "I really feel like I’ve seen you somewhere."

Ethan’s eyes suddenly widened.

"Wait..." His voice dropped to a whisper. "Aren’t you the person who killed Jerome of the Norse Faction?"

Sylvia’s expression changed.

"What?"

Ethan explained quickly, his words tumbling over each other.

"Jerome was an important figure within the Norse Faction! They placed a massive bounty on the person responsible for his death! I was personally present when it happened!"

He pointed at Sylvia.

"That’s how I remember your appearance! You killed him in cold blood right in front of everyone!"

Caelus immediately tried to dismiss it.

"You probably got it wrong."

Ethan shook his head vigorously.

"How could I get it wrong? I can’t be mistaken about something like this! My memory is perfectly fine!"

However, Ethan’s brow then furrowed.

"Actually..."

He looked at Sylvia more closely.

"The girl I saw had paler skin than this miss here."

He glanced between Sylvia and the memory in his mind.

"Are you perhaps twins?"

Caelus immediately developed a bad feeling at his words.

He turned toward Sylvia, who was equally confused. Her crimson eyes showed genuine bewilderment.

Could this be the current generation’s Ender of Death?

But if that were the case, why would there seemingly be two people who looked so similar?

It made no sense.

Unless...

Caelus moved closer to Sylvia and spoke quietly so only she could hear.

"This might be connected to the Ender of Death. The one who tried to contact your mother."

Sylvia’s eyes narrowed thoughtfully.

"It’s possible."

Caelus nodded.

"Don’t worry. We’ll investigate it properly. I can use Prime Mind Manipulation to determine whether he’s telling the truth."

Sylvia agreed.

Caelus turned back to Ethan.

"You. Come here."

Ethan approached nervously, clearly afraid of what might happen next.

Caelus placed his hand on Ethan’s forehead and activated Prime Mind Manipulation. He dove into the man’s memories, searching for the specific moment he had described.

What he found made his expression darken.

The memory was real.

A woman who looked almost identical to Sylvia had indeed killed someone named Jerome. The resemblance was uncanny, almost like looking at Sylvia’s reflection.

But there were subtle differences.

The woman in the memory had paler skin, colder eyes, and an aura that felt fundamentally different. Where Sylvia radiated warmth despite her vampiric nature, this woman radiated pure death.

Caelus withdrew from Ethan’s mind.

"He’s telling the truth."

Sylvia’s expression became complicated.

"Then there really is someone who looks like me running around killing people."

"It seems so."

Caelus released Ethan and waved him away.

"You can go now. Forget you ever saw us."

Ethan didn’t need to be told twice. He gathered his remaining people and fled the area as fast as possible.

Once the matter was settled, Caelus and the others approached the massive Origin Energy pillar at the center of the territory.

This was their first Origin Energy Node.

The pillar towered above them, pulsing with brilliant light. Streams of pure energy leaked from its surface, spreading throughout the surrounding area like invisible rivers.

Caelus could feel the power radiating from it.

This single node could provide enough Origin Energy to significantly strengthen their entire faction.

As he stepped toward the pillar, a system notification suddenly appeared before him.

[Origin Energy Node Detected.]

[Would you like to extract?]

[Y/N]

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