God-Tier Extraction Talent: Reincarnated in a Game-like World! Chapter 523: Unexpected Attacker

Gabriel's declaration left Torin momentarily stunned.

He concealed it well enough, yet a tiny hitch in his breath revealed the truth. Whoever could invade this chamber, carve a path of death through the base, and converse with such poise wasn't someone to underestimate.

Torin had grasped that fact long before Gabriel entered the room.

All the assassins dispatched earlier lay dead. The reinforcement squad had crumbled. Barry was nowhere to be found. Johnny's presence had flickered out recently too, and Torin understood the grim implication.

Johnny had perished.

That revelation alone demanded wariness from any rational mind. Johnny wasn't the mightiest in the base, yet his skills and composure were unmatched. For such a figure to fall so swiftly signaled that the intruder facing him was no mere savage wielding crude arms.

Torin's eyelids remained closed a bit longer before a subtle grin curved his mouth.

"Your words carry such assurance," he remarked. "Since death awaits you regardless, sharing a secret won't change much."

Gabriel held his ground unmoving. Torin at last unveiled his eyes completely and gazed upon him directly.

"The man sports a monocle over one eye."

That single clue sufficed for Gabriel. His features barely shifted, yet the revelation hit like a thunderbolt, rendering the rest of the room insignificant for an instant. Just one individual matched that description, and only one possessed both the capability and the drive to manipulate events from the darkness.

The lead developer.

He alone had devised a method to thrust human minds into this world, deceiving all of humanity into believing it merely a virtual game. Beyond that, his links to Sutre fueled Gabriel's loathing more intensely than for most foes.

Gabriel's grip on his sword's handle clenched a fraction tighter.

"It truly is you then."

Torin noted the shift in Gabriel's expression and continued speaking.

"I warned you before. Coming here solo was a grave error."

Those words alerted Gabriel to a figure lurking behind.

It had closed in with masterful stealth. The aura concealed so expertly that lesser senses would detect it only in the embrace of death, but Gabriel's awareness surpassed such tricks. He had sensed the tail the instant he crossed into the corridor.

From the shadows, the silhouette lunged into action.

His visage brimmed with icy killing intent as he aimed for a backstab, plotting to exploit Gabriel's attention on Torin. One more stride and the blow would connect flawlessly.

Yet the attacker abruptly glanced downward.

A faint luminous ring had materialized underfoot. His countenance twisted in shock immediately.

Torin's composure fractured at last.

Such a turn he hadn't foreseen.

"How did you...?" he uttered.

Gabriel ignored the query entirely.

In that fleeting instant, the dojo plunged into utter stillness, save for the soft crackle of wall-mounted torches. Gabriel inhaled deeply and steadily, amplifying Torin's unraveling assurance.

He whirled about to confront the stealthy assailant.

It turned out to be General Aston himself. A flicker of astonishment crossed Gabriel's features, swiftly concealed by his mask.

Torin's eyes meanwhile quivered, fixated on the radiant sigil beneath Aston's soles.

The snare had lain in wait prior to Aston's advance. Thus, Gabriel had been aware. Aware of Aston trailing him, yet he chose not to pivot in defense, baiting the strike instead.

"That's the meaning behind your words," Gabriel stated at length. "Did you mean Aston when you kept insisting I shouldn't descend alone?"

Torin's gaze sharpened fiercely.

"How could you possibly know?"

Gabriel skipped a response, surging ahead instead. The ground splintered beneath his initial stride, propelling his form toward General Aston at horrifying velocity. Simultaneously, the ring beneath Aston blazed fiercer, immobilizing him for that crucial deadly heartbeat.

Aston countered swiftly despite his stature.

His limb shot up to parry instantly, raw power flooding his frame as he readied the block. Even ensnared, his battle reflexes shone elite, the energy cloaking his guard arm potent enough to pulverize inferior foes on touch.

Gabriel's punch barreled past the defense undeterred.

Crack! BOOM!

The impact rivaled a locomotive at peak throttle. Not merely powerful—utterly savage.

Aston's limb failed to halt it. It detonated on collision.

Skeleton fragmented initially. Muscle tore asunder afterward. Crimson erupted in a violent gush while the knuckles breached the shield, shredded the remaining forearm, and plowed onward relentlessly.

Aston's eyes bulged in horror.

"Heavens... what monstrous power is this?"

The onslaught burrowed into his torso's flank, hurling his massive bulk airborne. Like lifeless cargo, his body hurtled across the dojo before crashing into the distant barrier, shattering rock and splintering timber with cataclysmic might.

The entire chamber quivered as dust rained from the ceiling. Torches swayed fiercely for an instant from the shockwave, leaving Torin, the onlooker, frozen in disbelief.

General Aston slumped gradually down the wall.

His destroyed arm dangled in a twisted wreck. Blood gushed along his flank and pooled over the floorboards under him. His breaths grew harsh instantly, and for the first time since Gabriel stepped into this lair, the mighty general of the Valerian Kingdom appeared wretched and unnerved.

Torin had lost his poise as well. His pupils contracted sharply, and the swagger from just before evaporated. Seeing Aston demolished in one swift strike had shattered his remaining confidence completely.

Gabriel eased his fist downward. Blood trickled from his knuckles onto the ground. His expression stayed composed, but murderous aura now seeped from his very being.

No man in the dojo misread the scene any longer.

The figure who had entered Black Star's innermost chamber was no victim, but the predator itself.