Apocalypse Arrives: I Become a Powerhouse by Scavenging

Looking at the people ranked ahead of Moira Lynch, almost all were the presidents and vice presidents of Major Guilds.

Moira Lynch was the only one who had neither a dazzling title nor came from a guild.

At that moment, some of the quicker players soon realized who Moira Lynch was.

But even if they did, it was useless. After all, you couldn’t learn anything from that ranking board.

Meanwhile, Moira Lynch had already found a solution: find some small guilds—several of them—and make multiple small exchanges.

But she couldn’t overdo it. As long as she handled it with the right amount of discretion, she probably wouldn’t be discovered.

Just as Moira Lynch was filtering through potential guilds, she suddenly noticed a familiar name.

"The Cathayan Guild."

Seeing the name, Moira Lynch slapped her forehead. ’How could I have forgotten my own people?’

So she found Redlight and easily exchanged the Game Coins she was holding.

The Cathayan Guild was currently in a growth phase and was short on funds, so Moira Lynch’s timing was perfect. She helped them solve their pressing financial problem.

After taking care of everything, Moira Lynch first returned to Serenia. She saw that the people who had been lying in wait outside were gone.

Still, she didn’t dare to approach openly.

So she only glanced at it, and after confirming there were no issues inside the territory, she logged out of the game.

She likely wouldn’t be logging into the game for a while.

「Meanwhile...」

In a secret military base, the Annihilation Arrow was placed on a red velvet-lined tray and presented to a woman.

The woman was over two meters tall, clad in a black bodysuit. Black armor protected her arms, legs, chest, and other vital areas. She wore impossibly high heels, accentuating her long, straight legs.

She had a neat, short haircut, and her stern cheeks bore three black, lightning-bolt-like marks. Her sharp eyes stared at the Annihilation Arrow as it was presented.

"So this is the Annihilation Arrow."

As she spoke, the woman reached for it, but a subordinate stopped her.

"General, be careful! The Annihilation Arrow is treacherous. Anyone who touches it will have their Life Energy continuously drained."

At his words, Jeanette Norris withdrew her hand. She looked at the subordinate and asked, "You’ve already tested it?"

The man shook his head. "We only completed half the test."

Jeanette Norris frowned. "What do you mean, you only completed half?"

Seeing his general was getting angry, the man quickly explained, "It’s just that the item is too powerful. The test subjects couldn’t wield it at all. In fact, they nearly died because of it. We tried several times, and the result was always the same."

After listening to the man, Jeanette Norris looked at the Annihilation Arrow before her, her interest piqued.

’So that’s how it is. It seems the auction house’s description of the item was accurate.’

’An item that can only be activated by absorbing the user’s Life Energy... If this were just a game item, it would undoubtedly be the ultimate trump card. But in the real world... it’s the same. It just requires even more caution to use.’

"It would be great if we could find this item’s creator," Jeanette mused. "But now that it’s gone from a virtual game item to a real one, I wonder if the Annihilation Arrow would even recognize its maker."

Finished speaking, Jeanette Norris suddenly looked at her subordinate. "You just said you tested it several times. What happened to the test subjects?"

’She had originally assumed they were dead. After all, the Annihilation Arrow absorbs Life Energy.’

’She was just about to order her subordinate to arrange for their proper burial and to issue compensation to their families.’

However, the next moment, she heard the subordinate say, "They’re fine. They just need to rest for a while before they can return to work. But the test took a huge toll on them. The Healing Mage in charge of their treatment recommended they take an extended period of rest."

"You mean they’re still alive." The shock in Jeanette Norris’s eyes was unconcealed.

The subordinate realized his general had misunderstood and quickly explained, "That’s right. Although the Annihilation Arrow absorbs the wielder’s life, it doesn’t drain it completely. It only absorbs about eighty to ninety percent—not enough to kill the user outright."

"Once it senses that most of the wielder’s Life Energy has been absorbed, the Annihilation Arrow automatically detaches. The researchers are calling it a self-preservation mechanism."

"Furthermore, the researchers speculate that once the energy within the Annihilation Arrow reaches a certain threshold, it will stop absorbing Life Energy. It won’t start absorbing again until its stored energy is depleted."

After hearing her subordinate’s explanation, Jeanette Norris picked up the Annihilation Arrow from the tray, much to everyone’s shock.

Even through her gloves, the instant she touched the Annihilation Arrow, she could feel something inside her being continuously drained away.

’This must be the Life Energy.’

As a Level 6 powerhouse in The Federation, just one step shy of Level 7, her Life Energy was naturally on a completely different level from others.

Anyone else would have buckled under such intensity long ago, but Jeanette Norris still appeared completely at ease.

After about an hour, Jeanette Norris gradually began to feel the strain. However, mindful of her authority as a general, she didn’t show it. She merely looked at the Annihilation Arrow in her hand, her expression growing somber.

She could clearly feel the Annihilation Arrow’s rate of absorption slowing. ’It must be nearly full.’

Sure enough, after another ten minutes or so, the Annihilation Arrow finally stopped its absorption. The once pitch-black shaft was now gradually coated in a silvery-white layer.

Holding the Annihilation Arrow, Jeanette Norris now received more information about it.

After reviewing the information, even someone as proud as Jeanette Norris had to admit that the arrow’s creator was a genius.

She was now eager to test the Annihilation Arrow’s power.

With that in mind, she started walking outside.

Outside the base, a group of people stood in formation, on high alert. In the distance, a meteor was hurtling toward them at light speed. At its current velocity, it would impact their base in less than two minutes.

However, this sort of thing happened often, so they were well-practiced in handling it. They were already prepared to respond, not even needing an order from Jeanette Norris.

This time, however, Jeanette Norris had them halt their actions. Watching the rapidly approaching meteor, she slowly raised her right hand.