The God-Level Scavenger: Infinite Evolution System

Chapter 8: Picking the Bones of Gods

The sky above Sector 7 wasn’t purple anymore. It was screaming.

A colossal shockwave tore through the air, shattering the windows of every ruin within three miles. Lucian slammed his obsidian dirk into a concrete pillar to anchor himself as the wind threatened to peel his new armor right off his body.

BOOM!

In the distance, the "Calamity-Class" World Boss stood—a mountain of shifting, translucent flesh and jagged bone known as the Abyssal Behemoth. Every time it roared, the ground liquefied.

And fighting it was the "Ice Queen," Elena Vance.

She looked like a tiny blue star dancing around a nightmare. Every swing of her rapier created glaciers that climbed the Behemoth’s legs, only to be crushed seconds later.

[Warning: Ambient mana pressure is exceeding Host's tolerance.] [Initiating 'Void Shield' (Passive)... 100% Load.]

"I'm not here to fight that thing," Lucian gritted his teeth, his eyes scanning the periphery of the battle through his Eye of the Scavenger. "I'm here for the leftovers."

To a normal Hunter, the area around a World Boss was a death zone. To Lucian, it was a rain of S-Rank materials.

Thud.

A massive, severed tentacle—the size of a city bus—hit the ground five hundred meters away. It was dripping with glowing, iridescent ichor.

[Detected: 1x Fragment of the Abyssal Behemoth (Rank S - Fresh).] [Status: Dead/Discarded.]

"Target locked," Lucian whispered.

He didn't run; he blurred. With his Agility now at 68, enhanced by the Vestments of the Silent Sovereign, he moved like a streak of ink across the gray ruins.

He reached the tentacle just as a group of Rank-B Vanguard Guild members arrived to secure the "loot."

"Don't touch it!" the lead Vanguard Knight shouted. "It’s still radiating corruption! Wait for the containment unit!"

Lucian, hidden by his Scavenger’s Cloak, stood only ten feet away from them. To the Rank-B Knights, he was invisible—a ghost in the purple fog.

"You're too slow," Lucian murmured.

He reached out and touched the pulsating flesh.

[Would you like to 'Recycle' the Behemoth’s Fragment? (Y/N)] [Warning: Recycling S-Rank material at Host's current level carries a 40% risk of Mana Backflow.]

"Do it. Use the 'Void Anvil' to stabilize the process!"

[Recycling Initiated...]

The tentacle didn't just dissolve; it was devoured. A vortex of black light erupted from Lucian’s palm, swirling with such force that the Vanguard Knights were blown back.

"What the—?! The loot is disappearing!"

"Is there a thief?! Scan the area!"

By the time their mana sensors flared, the bus-sized tentacle was gone. Only a faint indentation in the asphalt remained.

[Recycle Successful!] [Gained: 50,000x High-Grade Mana Shards!] [Gained: 1x Divine Flesh Essence (Rank S).] [Gained: Skill 'Abyssal Regeneration' (Rank B - Passive).]

[Level Up! Level 24 -> Level 28]

Lucian felt a surge of power so violent it nearly cracked his ribs. His vision turned red for a second as the Divine Essence fused with his core. His muscles hardened, his senses expanded. He could now "see" the mana flow of everyone in the Sector.

"Two more pieces," Lucian hissed, ignoring the shouting Knights. "I need two more fragments to trigger the next Evolution."

He looked back at the main battle. Elena Vance was flagging. Her ice armor was cracked, and her movements were slowing. The Behemoth raised a gargantuan claw, wreathed in black lightning, ready to crush the 'Ice Queen' into the dirt.

"Captain Elena! Look out!"

The Vanguard Knights rushed forward, but they were too far.

Lucian watched. He could stay hidden. He could wait for her to die and then recycle her S-Rank gear and her Rank-A soul. The logic of a Scavenger told him that her death was his greatest profit.

But then, he saw the 'Abyssal Behemoth's' core—a pulsing, sun-like orb deep within its chest.

[Scan Result: Abyssal Core.] [Potential: Can upgrade 'Marketplace of the Abyss' to Level 2.]

"If she dies now, that core will explode and destroy everything in Sector 7," Lucian calculated. "Including my loot."

He wasn't saving her. He was protecting his investment.

Lucian drew The Harvester’s Fang. The obsidian blade shivered with excitement, sensing the S-Rank prey.

"System, activate 'Soul Devour' using the souls of the Black Vipers I just killed. 60 seconds of 50% stat boost. Now!"

[Soul Devour Active!] [Current Agility: 102. Current Strength: 82.]

Lucian vanished.

Elena Vance closed her eyes, bracing for the impact of the black lightning. She had failed. The Sector would fall, and her guild would be disgraced.

CRACK-BOOM!

The expected death didn't come. Instead, a deafening metallic screech echoed through the ruins.

Elena opened her eyes. Standing in front of her was a figure in a tattered, shadowy cloak. He was holding back the Behemoth’s massive claw with a single, glowing black dagger.

"You..." Elena gasped. "The Scavenger?"

"Don't just stand there, Queenie," Lucian growled, his boots sinking into the asphalt from the sheer pressure. "Hit the core while I’m holding the door open!"

"But your Rank... you're only C—"

"I said HIT IT!"

Lucian’s aura exploded. The Scavenger’s Domain expanded to its limit, turning the ground around the Behemoth into a literal whirlpool of extraction. He wasn't just blocking the claw; he was recycling the kinetic energy of the blow.

[Extracting Kinetic Force... Converting to Attack Power...]

Lucian’s dagger began to glow with a blinding, incandescent white light.

"Recycle... the world!"

Lucian swung. A crescent wave of pure, recycled destruction tore through the Behemoth’s arm, severing the limb entirely.

GROAAAAR!

The mountain of flesh recoiled.

Elena Vance didn't miss her chance. She channeled every drop of her remaining mana into a single, world-freezing lance of ice.

SHATTER!

The lance pierced the Behemoth’s core. The monster froze, then began to crumble into gargantuan chunks of obsidian and flesh.

Lucian didn't wait for the thank you. He didn't wait for the rewards from the Association.

As the Behemoth began to dissolve into 'waste,' Lucian’s eyes turned into hungry gold coins.

"System," Lucian whispered, his voice trembling with greed as billions of Mana Shards began to float in the air. "Recycle the entire Boss."

[Warning: Massive loot intake detected.] [Would you like to initiate 'The Great Harvest'? (Y/N)]

"YES!"

Before Elena or the Vanguard Guild could even realize what was happening, the remains of the World Boss—the most valuable resource on the planet—began to vanish into the pockets of a single, hooded man.