God-Tier Extraction Talent: Reincarnated in a Game-like World!

Chapter 469: Learning the Blood Manipulation Skill

A blood red scroll appeared above Dominic’s corpse and dropped neatly into Gabriel’s hand. The moment his fingers closed around it, a brief description flashed across his vision.

[Blood Manipulation]

[Rarity: Legendary]

[Description: Allows the user to control blood and shape it into weapons or any form. Blood under direct control gains improved hardness and precision.]

(AN: it’s legendary and not Advanced.. apologize for error)

Gabriel read the lines once and gave a small nod. Since his class advancement had already increased the number of skill slots he could hold, there was no reason to keep the scroll unused.

Seraphina noticed the look in his eyes. "You are learning it now?"

"Yes."

He crushed the scroll lightly in his hand.

The blood red parchment broke apart at once and turned into tiny red sparkles. They floated up for a second before rushing straight into his body. Gabriel’s eyes narrowed slightly as the knowledge entered him. The process did not last long. In just a few breaths the skill had already settled inside him as if it had always been there.

The moment it ended, his gaze shifted on instinct toward a dark smear of blood that had dried on Henry’s face from the earlier battle.

Without saying a word, he raised a finger.

The blood trembled.

Anna’s eyes widened slightly as the dried smear loosened from the dead man’s skin and floated into the air. It stretched into a thin line, then sharpened into a blood needle. Gabriel moved his finger again and the needle split into three smaller needles. After that the shape changed again into a thin thread, then a short blade, then a spinning ring no larger than a bracelet.

Seraphina stared at the moving blood for a second, then looked at him, impressed. "Fast."

He did not answer immediately. His hand moved again and the blood thread shot forward, then curved in the air before stopping. He made it coil like a rope, then flattened it into a thin sheet before compressing it back into a narrow spike.

Even Anna could tell he was not simply moving it. He was controlling it with precision.

Seraphina crossed her arms. "Most people would need more time."

Gabriel finally spoke with a shrug and a smug expression on his face. "The skill is clear enough. Anyone who cannot grasp it on the first try is a dullard."

She smiled faintly. "Show off."

The blood shifted again. This time he made it branch into several thin strands that hovered in front of him like tiny red wires. He held the shape for a few seconds, then merged them back together and formed a longer rope. The rope twisted once in the air before stopping beside him.

Anna watched carefully but said nothing.

After testing it for a little longer, Gabriel lowered his hand. The blood rope lost form and dropped back down. He dismissed the skill completely and the small mass of blood fell lifelessly onto the stone floor.

Then he rose to his feet and stepped toward the final corpse.

Henry.

Unlike Dominic, Henry had not impressed Gabriel much. The man had relied too heavily on his status, his armour, and his subordinates. Even the fact that he was worth extracting had more to do with his level than with anything special he had shown in battle.

Gabriel knelt and placed his palm on Henry’s chest.

The system reacted immediately.

[Do you wish to extract the level 101 corpse? Cost: 55 EP]

"Yes."

The screen flickered and three options appeared.

[Mystery Key]

[Golden Guard Aura]

[Refined Vitality Potion]

His eyes moved over them once.

Golden Guard Aura was clearly a defensive skill from the name, though Gabriel already possessed several defensive skills and treasures. It might be useful, but to him it seemed ordinary. The Refined Vitality Potion could probably restore health and remove fatigue. Also useful, but nothing special.

His gaze stopped on the first option.

Mystery Key.

Seeing the key, Gabriel could not help but remember what someone important to him had once told him.

"As a rule, if the system offers a key, you take the key," he repeated.

Seraphina, who overheard him, did not ask unnecessary questions. She only intertwined her hands and glanced at the other options once before looking back at him.

"Because they lead to better rewards."

"Yes."

Henry was not like Dominic. There was no real dilemma here. The other two options were not bad, but both were average. The skill was something Gabriel could replace later with another extraction. The potion was even less tempting. Compared to those, a key was on another level because it usually opened the way to something much more valuable.

He made his choice quickly.

He selected Mystery Key.

At once a small object materialized in his palm.

It was an old looking key made of dark metal with faint patterns along its body. The design looked simple at first, but the moment he held it, new text appeared before his eyes.

[1/3 Soul Keys Collected]

Gabriel frowned.

Soul Keys.

The name stirred something faint in his memory. Not from this life, but from before. It had come up once or twice in passing when players talked about hidden content, but at the time he had never paid much attention to it.

Back then he had been focused on surviving, getting stronger, and dealing with more immediate problems. Strange names thrown around on forums had not mattered to him unless they affected him directly.

Now one was in his hand.

Seraphina looked at the key, then at his face. "You know something."

"Not much," Gabriel said. "Only the name."

He turned the key once between his fingers. One out of three. Which meant there were at least two more somewhere. Whether they were tied to Henry, the camp, a dungeon, or something else entirely, he could not tell yet.

Gabriel stored the thought away. He would research it later and check what the forums knew. Someone somewhere had to have mentioned Soul Keys before, even if only as a rumor.

For now that was enough.

He closed his hand around the key and looked back down at Henry’s corpse just as the body began to break apart. The flesh and bone collapsed first, then the remains crumbled fully into gray ash. When it was over, only Henry’s armour remained on the floor.

The same armour that had boosted his strength tremendously.