SSS-Tier Extraction: From Outcast to Overgod!-Chapter 69: The Iron Wolves’ Challenge

The next few days in Sector Gamma were strangely peaceful. For the first time since they had all woken up in their strange pods, people felt like they could breathe.

Outpost #7 was at the center of this new calm. It had transformed from a scared, struggling little town into the bustling capital of the whole sector.

The Sector Exchange, Ryan’s new trading system, was a huge success. The central plaza was filled with people from different Outposts, carefully inspecting wares and making deals.

A tough-looking woman from Outpost #4 traded a pile of monster hides to a quiet man from Outpost #9 for a basket of rare, glowing mushrooms. The trade happened instantly and safely through their god Interfaces, and everyone walked away happy.

The whole sector was starting to feel less like a dangerous jungle and more like a real neighborhood.

Ryan’s friends were also thriving. With the extra resources and the bonus to god Point gain, they had all grown much stronger. Scarlett, Emma, and Jennifer had all reached the impressive rank of Level 7.

Scarlett was now the acting commander of Sector Gamma’s new, unofficial defense force. She could be seen drilling teams of volunteers from different Outposts, her voice quiet but firm as she taught them how to work together.

Emma had teamed up with Zara Khan from Outpost #3. The two super-smart women had built a huge research lab and were trying to figure out how all the mysterious Precursor technology worked. freewebnσvel.cѳm

They argued a lot, but they were making amazing discoveries.

And Chris "Boulder" Magnus, the big guy with the even bigger shield, had found his true calling. He was now the head of training for all the new arrivals in Outpost #7.

"Alright, rookies, listen up!" he would bellow, standing in front of a group of nervous-looking newcomers. "Lesson one: The shield is your best friend. It will never ask to borrow money or eat the last slice of pizza. Protect it, and it will protect you!" He would then demonstrate by having a training robot punch his shield, which made a very loud and satisfying CLANG. The rookies were always very impressed.

Life was good. It was productive. It was peaceful.

And of course, it couldn’t last.

One afternoon, a screeching alert blasted through every CommNet in the entire Sector. All chatter stopped. A new message appeared on every screen, overriding everything else. It was a live broadcast.

The face that appeared was a woman’s. She had sharp, cruel features and hair the color of steel, cut short and severe. A jagged scar ran from her hairline down across one eye, which was a cold, piercing grey.

Her other eye was a glowing red cybernetic replacement. She wore the heavy, dark armor of the Iron Wolves, and she looked like she chewed nails for breakfast and spit out screws.

"People of Sector Gamma," she began, her voice like gravel grinding together. "I am Ilsa Varkov. They call me Steelheart. Viktor Ironjaw was my commander. He was a true wolf. Strong. Proud. This... Sector Lord Stone... is not a wolf. He is a snake who hides behind tricks and machines."

Her cold eyes seemed to stare out from the screen, making everyone who watched feel a chill.

"Viktor’s honor was stolen. The Iron Wolves do not forget. The Iron Wolves do not forgive," she snarled. "We do not care about your markets or your peaceful little towns. Power is not given; it is taken by the strong. And we are the strong."

She leaned closer to the camera, a cruel smile twisting her lips.

"So, Ryan Stone, you snake in a governor’s chair. I, Ilsa Steelheart, leader of the Iron Wolves of Outpost #21, officially challenge you to a Unification Challenge.

Let us see if your tricks can save you when you face the pure, honest strength of iron and steel. We will break you. We will break your Outpost. And we will take back what is ours. Avenge Viktor!"

The broadcast ended, leaving a stunned silence across the Sector.

The god Warden immediately followed up with an official announcement, making the challenge real.

[UNIFICATION CHALLENGE ISSUED]

[Challenger: Iron Wolves (Outpost #21)]

[Defender: Sector Lord Ryan Stone (Outpost #7)]

[Stakes: The losing Outpost will become a vassal to the winner for 7 cycles, contributing 20% of all resource gains.]

[Competition Type: Artifact Recovery]

[Objective: Each faction must enter the ’Precursor Testing Ground,’ a newly discovered high-security zone. The first faction to retrieve three specific Precursor Artifacts and return them to a neutral extraction point wins. The artifacts are guarded by advanced security systems and powerful ’War Golems’ (Level 8-10 Constructs).]

The three artifacts were listed: The Chronal Regulator, The Spatial Harmonizer, and The Energy Matrix Core.

The people of Outpost #7, who had been enjoying their peaceful afternoon, read the announcement. But this time, there was no panic. They had faced a challenge before and won. They had seen what Ryan could do.

In the CommNet, the mood was firm.

Player__Handy_Dan: Another one? Don’t these people ever learn?

Ace Striker: How dare she! Insulting our great Sector Lord! He will teach this ’Steelheart’ a lesson in proper leadership and respect!

Chris "Boulder" Magnus: Iron Wolves? More like Tin Puppies! Ryan’s gonna flatten ’em!

Ryan, who was in the middle of discussing crop rotation schedules with a farmer from Outpost #9, read the challenge on his interface and sighed.

So much for peace and quiet. He sent a polite message to the farmer saying they would have to finish their conversation later, then opened the Sector-wide CommNet.

His reply was short and to the point.

Ryan Stone (Sector Lord, Outpost #7): Challenge accepted.

The entire Sector held its breath. The final message from the Warden appeared.

[A 30-MINUTE PREPARATION COUNTDOWN HAS BEGUN. ALL PARTICIPANTS, PREPARE FOR BATTLE.]

Ryan immediately teleported back to the Core Chamber. This was serious. Ilsa Varkov was not Tom Kane. Kane was a tactician who played to win. Ilsa was a berserker who played to destroy. Her strategy would be simple: run forward and smash everything in her path until she got what she wanted.

His team gathered around him in the plaza of Outpost #7. Scarlett, Emma, Jennifer, and Chris stood ready, their faces serious.

"The Iron Wolves are all about brute force," Ryan said, looking at each of them. "They will try to overwhelm us, break us down with sheer power. We can’t match them punch for punch. We have to be faster, quieter, and a whole lot smarter."

He looked at his inventory. He had so many new treasures. The Stormheart Crystal from the Alpha Titan still pulsed with power. His Weaver’s Gauntlet was amazing, but maybe... maybe it could be even better. He had thirty minutes. Perhaps it was time for a little pre-game crafting.

He pulled up the schematics for the Precursor Testing Ground, a location his Neural Map had only shown him as a dark, dangerous void until now.

The information flowed into his mind, data from the Weaver filling in the gaps. He saw complex hallways, deadly traps, and the patrol routes of giant, powerful War Golems. The place was a deathtrap. It was a maze designed to kill anyone who entered.

"This is going to be complicated," Emma said, looking at the data over his shoulder.

Ryan grinned. "Good. We’re good at complicated."

The countdown clock ticked away the final seconds. The five of them stood together, a small team against a horde of raging wolves.

But they were a team that had faced impossible odds before. They were ready.

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