Chapter 379: Clearing Up The Stronghold and Two Unique Cards

[Ding! You’ve obtained a Unique Card with the following effect:]

[Level: You will now gain levels from your enemies. Depending on how much more powerful they are, you will gain a portion of their levels.]

[Ding! You’ve obtained a Unique Card with the following effect:]

[Store: You can store anything obtained from enemies directly in your inventory.]

"What now, hubby?" Sylvia asked as she cleaned the blood from her hands.

Caelus turned his gaze toward the direction of Vanswara Stronghold, his eyes cold and calculating as a plan gradually formed in his mind.

"We are naturally going to return to Vanswara Stronghold."

Sylvia raised an eyebrow after hearing his answer. She glanced in the direction of the stronghold before looking back at him.

"Back to the stronghold? They’ll try to kill us again."

"That’s exactly why we’re going."

Caelus had already made his decision.

The nobles who had repeatedly targeted them were no longer worth tolerating. These people treated players like garbage, hunting them for sport and even mounting their heads on spears.

He wasn’t going to allow this to continue any longer.

He would end this farce once and for all and make way for the future players who would eventually come to this world.

"Let’s go."

Immediately after making his decision, the two of them began walking back toward Vanswara Stronghold. Caelus entered the stronghold through the main portal, while Sylvia calmly followed beside him.

He walked through the streets without the slightest trace of fear, his footsteps echoing across the stone pavement. Citizens stopped and stared as he passed, while whispers quickly spread through the crowds like wildfire.

"Isn’t that the player who killed Lord Aquila?"

"He came back? Is he insane?"

"The nobles will destroy him."

Caelus ignored them all as he continued walking with Sylvia at his side. Neither of them hurried nor slowed down because their destination was already clear.

The noble district.

.....

In a grand mansion on the eastern side of the stronghold, Lord Theron of the Phoenix Clan received urgent news.

"My Lord! The player has returned!"

Lord Theron laughed dismissively after hearing this. He shook his head with an amused expression as though he had just heard something ridiculous.

"Returned after killing Aquila? The fool has a death wish."

"Should we mobilize our forces?"

"No need." Lord Theron waved his hand dismissively. "Duke Harlan and the hunting party will deal with him. They left with over three hundred warriors."

"My Lord... the hunting party hasn’t returned."

Hearing this, Lord Theron’s smile slowly faded.

"What do you mean?"

"There’s been no contact from them for an entire day."

Before Lord Theron could respond, a massive explosion suddenly shook the mansion.

BOOM!

Caelus stood at the gates of the Phoenix Clan residence as smoke and dust filled the surrounding area. The ornate doors had been reduced to countless splinters by a single Chaos Bolt.

Just then, guards rushed out of the mansion and immediately surrounded him.

"Intruder! Kill him!"

[Skill Activated: Star King’s Sword Vault!]

Golden swords materialized above Caelus’s head before descending without mercy.

The guards didn’t even have time to scream before their bodies were pierced by the countless swords. Immediately after, Caelus stepped over their corpses and calmly entered the courtyard.

Lord Theron burst out of the main building alongside his elite warriors, his expression filled with rage.

"You dare attack my home?!"

Caelus looked at him with an indifferent expression.

"You nobles need to die. It’s that simple."

"I’ll burn you alive!"

[Skill Activated: Phoenix Inferno!]

Flames erupted from Lord Theron’s body and surged toward Caelus with terrifying force.

[Skill Activated: Chaos Barrier!]

The flames parted around Caelus like water flowing around a stone. He continued walking through the raging inferno without suffering even the slightest burn.

Hearing this and seeing Caelus emerge unharmed, Lord Theron’s face immediately turned pale.

"Impossible!"

Caelus abruptly disappeared from his position.

[Skill Activated: Decay Touch!]

He appeared directly in front of Lord Theron and grabbed the man’s face.

The decay spread instantly.

"AAAARGH!"

Within seconds, the head of the Phoenix Clan crumbled into dust. Immediately after killing him, Caelus swiftly crouched down beside the remains and activated Extraction.

[Ding! You’ve obtained the skill: Phoenix Inferno (Epic, 5-Star)!]

[Ding! Unique Card in Effect!]

[You’ve gained +6 Ace-Rank Levels!]

Caelus slowly stood up before turning toward the remaining warriors.

"Anyone else?"

Hearing his question, the warriors immediately shuddered in fear. Then, without even looking back, they turned around and fled.

Caelus didn’t bother chasing after them. Instead, he simply walked toward the next noble residence while Sylvia followed beside him.

News of the attack spread throughout the stronghold like a plague.

Players gathered in the streets and watched in disbelief as the information continued to spread. At the same time, the chat exploded with countless messages.

[NotEasyToShock1: What the hell is happening?!]

[Witness42: Is Caelus attacking the nobles?!]

[PanickedGuy: Someone stop him!]

[NewsBot: BREAKING! The Phoenix Clan has been destroyed. Lord Theron is confirmed dead.]

[Observer99: He already destroyed three families!]

[TerrorStruck: Where is the strongest noble?!]

[RunningAway: He’s heading toward the central district!]

The Obsidian Noble Clan was the fourth to fall.

Their patriarch tried to negotiate the moment Caelus entered the residence. He immediately raised his hands in surrender, his face filled with fear.

"Wait! We can discuss this!" he pleaded. "I’ll give you anything you want! Money! Resources! Territory!"

Caelus looked at him with empty eyes.

"Before I came here, I checked your status."

The patriarch’s body froze.

"You had players executed for entertainment."

Caelus raised his hand.

"Now it’s your turn."

[Skill Activated: Chaos Bolt!]

The patriarch was instantly vaporized.

At the same time, Sylvia dealt with the remaining guards using her blood constructs. Once everyone inside the residence had been eliminated, the two of them immediately moved toward the next noble residence.

The Storm Clan tried to use their status to intimidate him.

"Do you know who we are?!" the clan elder screamed. "We have connections to the other strongholds! If you kill us, you’ll be hunted across this entire world!"

Caelus tilted his head slightly after hearing the threat.

"Then they can come find me."

[Skill Activated: Star King’s Domain!]

Golden light immediately expanded throughout the residence, freezing everyone in place.

[Skill Activated: Star King’s Sword Vault!]

Immediately after, countless golden swords descended from the sky.

The entire clan was erased.

However, during that time, a clan known as the Hornet Clan attempted to ambush them.

Assassins suddenly attacked from every direction, surrounding Caelus and Sylvia.

Sylvia merely smiled when she saw them.

[Skill Activated: Crimson Eclipse!]

A massive dome of darkness immediately expanded and consumed every assassin.

Their life force began draining at a terrifying speed, and within seconds, every one of them collapsed to the ground.

The difference in their combat scores was simply too fundamental.

Seeing the destruction of the Hornet Clan, the Iron Gate Clan immediately tried to barricade themselves inside their fortress.

Caelus walked toward the massive fortress walls and placed his palm against them.

[Skill Activated: Decay Touch!]

WHRMM!

The entire wall immediately began to crumble.

Within moments, the massive structure had been reduced to dust.

Caelus showed no mercy.

The moment the wall collapsed, he immediately began another killing spree.

By the time the sun began to set, seven noble families had been completely destroyed.

However, Caelus had deliberately spared the noble families that had never mistreated or hunted players. He had specifically investigated every family before coming here, and those who had remained peaceful toward players were allowed to live.

He had now ensured that there would no longer be any discrimination against players in this world.

.....

Caelus stood in the central plaza of the noble district.

His gaze swept across the devastated surroundings before he suddenly spotted a man cowering behind a broken pillar.

The man was a native of Vanswara, and his expensive robes marked him as someone of considerable status.

Caelus immediately began walking toward him.

Seeing Caelus approach, the man scrambled backward in terror.

"Please! I wasn’t involved! I never hurt any players!"

"Take out your recording Window," Caelus ordered as he stepped in front of him.

The man stared at him with wide eyes.

"W-what?"

"I said open your system screen and open the recording window." Caelus repeated while rolling his eyes.

Hearing his tone, the man’s hands began trembling as he opened his system screen.

Then, he activated the recording device.

He had no intention of losing his life over something like this.

Immediately after activating the device, the man began a live broadcast that could be seen across every stronghold.

It wasn’t just Vanswara.

Caelus looked directly toward the recording screen floating above the terrified man.

Behind him, the destroyed noble residences burned against the darkening sky, while smoke and flames painted a picture of absolute destruction.

His expression was calm.

Perhaps even a little bored.

"From today onward, I am the ruler of this world."

His gaze remained fixed on the recording screen.

"Like I said a day ago."

Then, a faint smile appeared on his face.

"I managed to keep my promise, it seems."

He held the gaze of everyone watching through the recording for a moment longer.

Then, he waited for their reaction.