Chapter 85: Astronomical Extraction Fees

"What did you just say? That wastrel Baek Ji-Hong is a regular at that brat’s shop?!"

Jin Do-Jun exclaimed, his face darkening as he listened to the briefing regarding his latest scheme—sending hired thugs to cause a scene outside Origins VR Cafe.

"It gets worse, Young Master," the attendant reported, bowing nervously. "Reports confirm that Young Miss Baek Si-Yeon was also seen visiting the shop previously. And today... Great Guardian Mareum himself was spotted accompanying Young Master Baek Ji-Hong."

Do-Jun fell silent, his fingers tapping rhythmically on his desk as he digested the news.

He wasn’t inherently terrified of a direct conflict between the Jin and Baek families. Given the Baek Family’s recent internal troubles, he was confident the Jin Family could push back if a war broke out.

However, a wounded lion was still an apex predator—a sentiment his father, Patriarch Jin, repeatedly hammered into him.

If Do-Jun continued recklessly targeting Origins VR Cafe and got dragged into a public feud with a pampered heir like Ji-Hong, his father wouldn’t spare him. A man of his standing and generation getting caught brawling with the younger generation over a small cafe would be an embarrassing disgrace.

He needed a smarter, more authoritative angle if he wanted to deal with Donape without inviting the wrath of Patriarch Jin—or triggering an all-out war with the Baek Family.

"For now, pull back the enforcers and cancel these petty street gigs," Do-Jun ordered after a long silence, rubbing his temples. "It’s a waste of resources if it brings zero fruit."

With Donape now indirectly shielded by the Baek Family’s presence, Do-Jun needed a concrete, airtight plan to repay the humiliation he had suffered. Confrontation was out for now—but a grudge like his would only fester and grow over time.

The following morning, enthusiasm around Origins VR Cafe hit an all-time high. A crowd of twenty-one regulars was already gathered outside before the front doors even opened.

Unlike their usual routine of ordering Obsidian Roast Coffee to kick off the day, the moment Donape unlocked the entrance, the patrons didn’t stop to chat or linger.

Instead, they sprinted straight toward the pod bay, diving into their designated VR Capsules like starved wolves.

"What the hell? They didn’t even bother saying good morning?" Donape grumbled, clicking his tongue in mild annoyance as he wiped down the counter. "Tsk. Is Item Materialization really that much more exciting than trying a new game?"

Even Donape himself hadn’t gotten the chance to test the newly materialized extraction box yet. His gaze drifted up to the long digital menu screen hovering above the counter:

[AVAILABLE PRODUCTS & SERVICES]

- VR Capsule Activation: FREE

- In-Game Item Materialization: Free service (Manifestation fee paid via in-game currency; costs vary per item)

- Hourly Playtime: 20 BC

[VR GAMES]

- The Path of the Heavenly Martial Arts 1: 80 BC

- Counter-Injustice: Global Retaliation: 120 BC

- The Path of the Heavenly Martial Arts 2: 125 BC *(Requires main story completion of Part 1)*

- Magic Academy: First Semester: 200 BC

[FOOD & BEVERAGES] *(Strictly No Takeaway!)*

- Origins Fountain Water: 15 BC (Limit: 1 per day)

- Celestial Sparkle Sprite: 16 BC (Limit: 1 per day)

- Crispy Salted Chips: 15 BC (Limit: 1 per day)

- Ethereal Mana Sandwich: 23 BC (Limit: 1 per day)

- Spirit-Infused Noodles: 30 BC (Limit: 1 per day)

- Spicy Meat Buns: 35 BC (Limit: 2 per day)

- Obsidian Roast Coffee: 50 BC (Limit: 1 per day)

- Spirit-Clearing Dew: 75 BC (Limit: 1 per day)

Donape shook his head softly. Even without testing the extraction system himself, he knew the in-game materialization costs were going to be brutally steep.

In Counter-Injustice, for instance, standard weapon skins or tactical gear averaged around 1,000 to 5,000 in-game credits—and racking up that kind of currency required grinding nearly a hundred victories in ranked matches.

The Path of the Heavenly Martial Arts was slightly more straightforward since its base currency was gold, silver, and copper. However, an outer sect disciple rarely carried gold; standard sect allowances barely provided two silver coins a month.

Pooling funds was possible within the same game world—Ji-Hong’s nine bodyguards could easily farm silver in Heavenly Martial Arts and trade their earnings directly to Ji-Hong through multiplayer mechanics.

The real catch, however, was that real-world cash could not buy in-game currency through the System. The VR Capsule didn’t feature a cash-to-gold top-up function.

If a rich player wanted more in-game gold, they couldn’t simply swipe a credit card at the shop terminal.

Instead, the economic loop relied entirely on player-to-player commerce. If a low-level player farmed five silver coins in The Path of the Heavenly Martial Arts, a wealthy noble like Ji-Hong could pay that player real-world fiat cash—or transfer bank funds outside the game—in exchange for receiving those five silver coins in-game via multiplayer trading.

The System only governed the extraction fee. What the patrons did with their private bank accounts to buy in-game gold from one another was entirely up to their own social transactions.

This meant high-tier players and wealthy patrons were about to turn the cafe into a roaring, real-world player-trading market.

Meanwhile, Donape shifted his eyes away from the menu board toward the newly materialized structure occupying the floor.

Positioned neatly in the gap between the main counter and Donape’s personal quarters stood a massive, two-meter cube of metallic brass and dark polished wood. Built to match the aesthetic of the shop’s refreshment dispensers, the imposing structure fit comfortably inside the Level 3 interior without cluttering the main walkway.

Inside their respective capsules, twenty-one pre-login welcome screens flickered to life simultaneously as the regulars hovered their cursors over the glowing red tab waiting for them: [Item Extraction Protocol].

Meanwhile, inside the pod bay, the patrons who had rushed into their capsules immediately pulled up the new feature without even considering launching a game first.

"I want this rifle skin brought out into reality," Zerke muttered excitedly, navigating the pre-login UI with rapid taps.

He selected his favorite high-tier Vandal custom model—a weapon design inspired by advanced, hostile alien conquerors.

It featured a sinister metallic finish with a deep black chassis accented by striking, luminescent highlights that gave it a menacing profile.

Mechanical outer plates and interlocking scales shifted and flexed during draw and inspection animations, making the weapon feel as if it were literally breathing in the user’s hands.

A weapon like that, complete with heavy, futuristic firing sound effects and custom reloading mechanics, was already a massive flex inside Counter-Injustice. Bringing it into the real world would make him look like a god.

{System UI: Pre-Login Character Selection}

- Active Profile: Selected {Z-God}

- Feature: In-Game Item Materialization {Vandal: Black Tyrant Skin - 105,000 Credits}

"Holy f*ck?!" Zerke blurted out, staring at the five-figure fee in sheer disbelief. "How the hell am I supposed to grind that many credits?! Is this feature a damn scam?!"

A chorus of curses echoed through the pod bay as the other regulars ran into the same wall.

{Red Goddess}

{Cotton Jade Fan - 330 Gold Coins}

"Goddamn it! How in the world am I supposed to get that much gold just to pull out a fan?!" Irene cursed inside her VR Capsule, completely dropping her polite demeanor. "The shopkeeper is scummy! This is a total trap!"

Her jaw twitched in frustration. The elaborate lake house she had painstakingly built at the foot of the mountain in The Path of the Heavenly Martial Arts 1 had only cost 8 Gold Coins in total. The extraction fee for a single high-grade fan was over forty times the price of real estate!

Over in another capsule, Jae-Woong was equally infuriated.

{Lazy Woong}

{Cold-Iron Practice Sword - 270 Gold Coins}

"Son of a bitch!" Jae-Woong yelled, clutching his head. "Two hundred and seventy gold coins for a basic practice sword?! Are you out of your mind?!"

"Hey, turn off the External Share protocol in your capsule settings!" Donape called out toward the pod bay, shouting over the counter. "The feature was upgraded so you could broadcast or mute your audio, not so you could scream your complaints all the way out here!"

Normally, patrons played in absolute silence unless it was their very first time stepping into virtual reality. But right now, nearly every pod in the shop was vibrating with furious, loud complaints from players staring at their astronomical extraction fees.

Chime—

Before Donape could yell again, the main entrance doors slid open.

Four figures stepped across the threshold: Mislaine, flanked by Morgan, Kassandra, and Viktor.

Donape welcomed them with a subtle, unbothered smile.

However, as his cultivation level increased, his sensitivity also increased. As a result, those four faint bloodlusts could be detected by his senses, despite not enhancing it with his Qi.

Of course, that was just a faint smell, not a lingering one. The closer they got, the more those feelings dissipated.

"Oh my... your shop is already so lively, even though you just opened," Mislaine purred, her voice dripping with calculated, flirtatious charm as she approached the counter.

Donape remained completely unfazed. His mental fortitude wasn’t something a mere mortal woman could shake.

"They’re just excited," Donape replied casually, resting his hands on the counter. "Starting today, players can bring authentic in-game items into the real world. One-hundred percent functional, with the same capabilities as their digital counterparts."

Mislaine’s smooth expression twitched slightly in confusion before her pragmatic, corporate logic took over. "You mean... 3D printing prop replicas directly from game files? Oh, that’s a visionary marketing gimmick, though its actual commercial value seems rather questionable."

Beside her, Morgan, Kassandra, and Viktor were completely incapable of chiming in. Their sharp mercenary instincts were currently screaming as the shop’s spatial expansion effect warped their sense of distance and depth, leaving them visibly disoriented.

Donape didn’t bother correcting Mislaine’s misunderstanding.

Instead, a sudden, heavy metallic hum resonated from the corner of the room.

The massive, two-meter cube of brass trim and dark polished wood flickered with brilliant blue runes. The gears inside groaned with a deep, authoritative click as light particles began swirling within the central glass chamber.

The sudden spatial vibration instantly caught Mislaine’s attention, snapping Morgan, Kassandra, and Viktor out of their stupor as their eyes locked onto the glowing structure.

Donape wiped down a glass and offered a casual, dry remark.

"Well, looks like someone actually managed to pay the fee."