Chapter 51: Nightfall Sanctuary

Arthur and Sebas left the shelter together and began moving toward another direction. Herian City possessed a total of ten shelters, each occupying an enormous area and containing countless monsters, resources, and opportunities. Arthur had already captured the largest shelter in the city, and now his target was the second-largest one.

The shelter occupied nearly five thousand acres of land and, unlike Arthur’s current shelter, didn’t possess any floor system. The entire territory was one enormous continuous area filled with monsters. According to the information Arthur had gathered, approximately one hundred thousand monsters lived inside, including five thousand Bosses and a single Legendary Boss.

Arthur had already planned what he would do with all ten shelters. He intended to capture every shelter in Herian City before anyone else could claim them, then sell one to the government while leasing the remaining shelters to powerful factions. Those factions could manage the shelters and develop their resources, while Arthur would receive fifty percent of their earnings as his share.

It was another long-term investment for Arthur. Once the shelters began producing a steady stream of resources and wealth, he wouldn’t need to personally manage every single one of them. He only needed to establish control over the territories and allow the major factions to handle the rest while continuously paying him a portion of their profits.

As they continued traveling, Sebas became increasingly astonished by Arthur’s prowess. Every monster that appeared along their path was instantly obliterated before it could even approach them. Arthur didn’t need to draw his weapon or use any powerful technique. A casual flick of his finger was enough to release an invisible force that completely destroyed anything standing in their way.

Sebas silently watched from behind, his heart filled with awe. Even after becoming a Legendary-grade Earth Magus and obtaining the powerful Earth Sovereign class, he still couldn’t understand how enormous the gap between himself and his Young Master had become. Arthur’s strength seemed to have reached a realm that ordinary players could no longer comprehend.

After running for nearly two hours, they finally arrived at their designated location. A gigantic structure stood before them, surrounded by an enormous barrier that stretched across the five-thousand-acre territory. The ancient gate was covered with mysterious patterns, and even from a distance, Arthur could sense the tremendous amount of energy contained within it.

Arthur stopped before the gate and turned toward Sebas. "Sebas, stay outside and guard the entrance. No players are allowed to enter this shelter while I’m inside." His tone was calm, but there was an unquestionable authority behind his words.

"Understood, Young Master," Sebas replied immediately. He moved toward the entrance and positioned himself directly before the gate. Arthur then walked forward alone, reaching out his hand until his palm touched the ancient surface of the enormous gate.

[Ding! You have discovered the "Nightfall Sanctuary."]

Arthur’s eyes flashed with interest as the system notification appeared. He placed both hands against the enormous gate and pushed it open. The moment the entrance was opened, countless terrifying roars erupted from within the sanctuary, shaking the surrounding land as hundreds of thousands of monsters sensed the presence of an intruder.

"Roar!"

"Roar!"

"Roar!"

The deafening roars echoed throughout the wilderness as countless monsters began charging toward the entrance. Arthur calmly looked at the approaching horde before quietly muttering, "I need to restrain my strength, or they’ll be vaporized before I can extract anything from their corpses."

Arthur immediately deactivated Atomic Body Control. With his current physical strength, he could control his power to an extremely precise degree, but he deliberately relaxed that control now. He wanted to kill the monsters while preserving their corpses, allowing him to use Extraction afterward.

A dagger appeared in Arthur’s hand as he casually examined it. With fifty thousand Strength and the fifteenfold amplification provided by his dagger, his physical damage had already reached approximately three million points. If his terrifying Agility was also taken into consideration, the actual destructive power of his attacks would become even more ridiculous.

Arthur looked at the enormous horde rushing toward him and silently calculated his options. After a moment, he put the dagger away and clenched his fist instead. "There’s no need to use a weapon against these ants. My fists are more than enough."

The next instant, Arthur disappeared from his original position. A terrifying shockwave exploded across the battlefield as he appeared among the monsters. His fist struck a massive creature, sending it flying while carefully controlling the force so that its body remained intact.

Arthur continued moving through the monster horde like a phantom. Every punch, kick, and casual strike instantly killed another monster, while his incredible speed prevented any creature from even touching him. Despite his overwhelming strength, he deliberately controlled his attacks so that the corpses wouldn’t be completely destroyed.

One thousand monsters fell.

Then ten thousand.

Then fifty thousand.

The enormous Nightfall Sanctuary gradually transformed into a battlefield, but Arthur remained completely calm throughout the entire process. He didn’t use any complicated techniques, nor did he need to rely on his class abilities. His overwhelming physical attributes alone were enough to crush everything within the shelter.

One hour later, absolute silence descended upon Nightfall Sanctuary. Not a single monster remained alive within the vast territory. Arthur stood among countless corpses, his expression completely calm as he looked across the battlefield.

The five thousand Bosses had dropped an enormous amount of loot. After collecting everything, Arthur discovered that they had provided ten thousand Legendary-grade items and one thousand Low-grade Epic items. However, the reward that caught his attention wasn’t among the ordinary loot.

The Legendary Boss had dropped a single special item.

[Key of the Crystal Civilization Ruin.]

Arthur’s eyes immediately lit up when he saw the name.

Genesis Realm contained countless ancient ruins scattered throughout the world, each containing different levels of danger and opportunity. The grade of the key determined the grade of the ruin, which in turn determined the potential rewards that could be discovered inside.

Arthur still remembered his previous life clearly. The God-tier item that had completely changed his destiny had also been obtained from an ancient ruin. However, that ruin had been Mythical-grade, meaning the dangers and opportunities inside had been far beyond what ordinary players could imagine.

This time, the key was Epic-grade, but Arthur wasn’t disappointed in the slightest. A brilliant smile slowly appeared on his face as he thought about his talent.

"With Infinite Multiplication, anything I obtain from the ruin might evolve into something completely different. Who knows? Perhaps I’ll find something extremely valuable inside."

Arthur carefully stored the Key of the Crystal Civilization Ruin before looking toward the entrance. His next objective was obvious. He needed to make Sebas the master of this shelter.

A player could only register one shelter under their own name, which meant Arthur couldn’t personally claim all ten shelters. Fortunately, he had enough trusted subordinates to solve that problem. He could simply have his people register the remaining shelters under their names while keeping everything under his control.

Arthur slowly walked toward the entrance, but the moment he stepped outside, his expression changed. Something was wrong. Sebas was standing several meters away from the gate, and blood was dripping from the corner of his mouth while several wounds could be seen across his body.

A group of players stood opposite him. They weren’t in particularly good condition either, as several of them were injured and some were struggling to remain standing. Judging from their condition, Sebas had clearly given them a fierce fight before Arthur came out.

"Old man, step aside. You’re strong, and we don’t want to kill you, but we want to enter that shelter," the leader said coldly while staring at Sebas. "I’m certain this is a shelter, and we need this one. Don’t make things difficult for everyone."

The man stepped forward with a confident expression. "I’m Python, the leader of the Black Serpent Gang. Don’t become an enemy of our gang over something like this. I’m willing to give you one Divine Gold if you simply step aside and let us enter."

Sebas wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and looked at Python without saying anything. His expression remained calm despite his injuries, but there was a trace of coldness in his eyes. He had no intention of allowing anyone to enter the shelter while his Young Master was inside.

At that moment, Arthur finally walked out through the gate. His gaze swept across the injured players before settling on Python. The atmosphere instantly became tense, and several members of the Black Serpent Gang instinctively took a step backward when they felt Arthur’s presence.

Arthur glanced at Sebas’s injuries before looking back at the group. His expression remained calm, but a faint coldness appeared in his eyes. "The Black Serpent Gang?"