Chapter 35: The Altar—Origin of Calamity

Faced with the sudden ambush, Zorn, who possessed the [Brawler] sequence, reacted with lightning speed. He leaned backward, twisting his upper body at an impossible angle. While evading the attack, his right hand lashed out, striking a fierce palm toward the gaping, bloodthirsty maw of the horrific monster.

The bloodthirsty creature showed no fear of Zorn’s strike; instead, it snapped its jaws shut directly onto his hand.

"Rip!"

It sounded as if flesh had been torn away. Zorn and the hazy afterimage brushed past each other. He retreated rapidly by several steps. The terrifying monster let out a hiss, circling him twice in the darkness.

Only then did Zorn clearly see the hideous, malformed monster that had ambushed him. It possessed thick, powerful hind limbs that supported its body in a semi-upright, hunched posture. Its upper limbs were slender, ending in razor-sharp claws that scraped against the sewer walls with a shrill, metallic sound. Gray, coarse fur covered its entire body, and a thick tail whipped back and forth in the darkness. Its head was undeniably that of a giant rat, resembling a human skull.

It was a "Night-Doom Ratman" that had already reached its initial stage of development.

Zorn narrowed his eyes, studying this peculiar species born from the catastrophe.

"To have a Night-Doom Ratman emerge so early in the rat plague—it seems the [Forbidden Blood Source] hasn't spared any expense in the depths beneath this city."

"Even from the way the cataclysmic energy writhes here, one can tell that this rat-plague disaster will be more turbulent than any in the past."

"Furthermore, this creature possesses a rudimentary intelligence and knows some simple blood-sacrifice rituals; it can barely be classified as an 'extraordinary species'."

As the [Forbidden Blood Source], a secret cult of evil gods, utilized rituals and offered sacrifices to channel a portion of the [Twin-Ringed Serpent's] blood-source power, the sewers of Ogran City had become a "hotbed" and "incubator" for catastrophe and horrific creatures. The "Night-Doom Ratman" born in such an environment was quite tricky and troublesome.

If Ogran City failed to extinguish the [Rat Plague] in time, it would only escalate. In extreme cases, it could lead to the entire city being corrupted. Plagues of mutations, limb deformities, blood-source contamination, and spiritual distortion would radiate outward. In time, Ogran City would become a genuine, terrifying "Source of Calamity." The entire city, and every person within it, would have to be—purified!

Fortunately, the Ogran City Hall had already noticed the rat infestation and taken action. The disaster would not deteriorate to such an extent.

In the dark, silent sewers, the newborn Night-Doom Ratman stared at Zorn with its scarlet eyes, its sharp gaze filled with greed, bloodlust, and madness. Held in its mouth was one of Zorn’s fingers. The ambush had succeeded in tearing off his middle finger.

The Night-Doom Ratman lifted its head, its slender tongue curling around Zorn’s finger.

"Gulp!"

It swallowed the finger whole. Immediately after, the creature shook its fur and retreated cautiously, its body fading into the air as if being erased by a rubber.

Stepping back into invisibility. The Night-Doom Ratman was preparing for its next attack.

"Hiss!"

The shrill hiss had only just begun before it was cut short. Suddenly, the Night-Doom Ratman plummeted from above, crashing to the ground.

"Urgh... urgh..."

It rolled frantically on the ground, its throat appearing to be blocked, emitting painful, stifled wails. Blood spewed from its mouth, eyes, and ears, splattering everywhere as it thrashed. Within moments, this extraordinary species, capable of easily killing an adult man, fell silent.

Its abdomen continued to heave and squirm. Shortly after, the satiated Twin-Ringed Serpent slowly crawled out from its mouth. Zorn had intentionally let the creature take his finger; a small trap, and the Night-Doom Ratman had fallen for it perfectly. Zorn didn't even need to strike himself.

A moment later, a gray, thumb-sized "Doom-Rat Core" was extracted from the corpse. Zorn opened his palm and made a light grabbing motion.

"Squeak..."

Accompanied by a fearful, spiritual shriek, the malformed soul of the Night-Doom Ratman was easily plucked out by Zorn. As fierce as it had been during the ambush, it was now equally terrified when facing Zorn in death.

An [Evil Spirit Warlock] was the destined end for many spirits and souls. Clutching the restless soul of the Night-Doom Ratman, Zorn thought for a moment before fusing it into the Doom-Rat Core. This Night-Doom Ratman had possessed the ability of invisibility. If he collected enough "Spiritual Ratman Cores" from those with such abilities, he could find an [Alchemist] or [Artisan] in the extraordinary sequences to help forge extraordinary equipment like an "Invisibility Cloak."

When everyone’s sequence level was still low, such an item would be incredibly effective for killing, looting, escaping, or eavesdropping. He knew that [Players] would each have one of these.

Carefully stowing the "Doom-Rat Core" into a small iron box, Zorn headed deeper into the darkness. Using the gloom as a veil of concealment, he moved silently through the depths of the sewers, resonating with the catastrophe and dancing with death.

About a quarter of an hour later, Zorn arrived at his target area. It was a relatively wide underground corridor, damp and cold, with small patches of blue fluorescent moss. The number of gray rats living here was significant—an excellent location for a secret "Trap Altar."

In the corner, Zorn began to set up the ritual. In the center stood a three-branched candelabra; once the three black candles were lit, the flames burned with an eerily dim, unnatural light. On the left sat the dried eyeball of a witch, still retaining a trace of its magical power. On the right lay a twisted, rugged goat’s horn. The final sacrifice was the "Spiritual Ratman Core" he had just crafted by hand.

Originally, Zorn had intended to kill a few more elite mutant rats to serve as substitutes, but considering this was a trap altar designed to leverage the "Black Fog" and accelerate his own growth, he decided to invest a bit more. Besides, with the [Rat Plague] already upon them, there would be no shortage of Ratman Cores.

The ritual was set. As the mist released by the black candles dispersed the darkness and revealed the specific environment of the ritual stage, Zorn began to chant and pray silently in the ancient secret language of Saint Maya.

In terms of ritual manipulation, the ancient language of Saint Maya was superior to the ancient language of Taeus. If one were communicating with a great and unspeakable entity, however, the Taeus tongue would be better.

As Zorn prayed repeatedly, a response silently arrived from his place of origin, the "Source of Calamity." A thin "Calamity Black Fog" slowly descended and then silently dissipated into the surroundings. As time passed, the black fog grew denser, nearly enveloping Zorn, the altar, and the eerie black candlelight.

Suddenly!

*Woooo...*

A sound like low, mournful sobbing erupted. Immediately after...

"Ur... Gu... Nu... S..."

"Ur... Gu... Nu... S..."

A heavy, melodic, and strange whispering sound approached from afar. The horrific ancient evil god seemed to sense the writhing catastrophe calling out to it.

*Woooo...*

Violent, uncanny winds surged, as if they would tear the darkness itself to shreds. Zorn, caught in the wind, swayed from side to side. The three black flames seemed to open their own terrifying eyes simultaneously.

In that instant, everything was swallowed by darkness and firelight.

Then, the surroundings grew silent. Zorn looked ahead. The altar, the sacrifices, and all the eerie phenomena from moments ago had vanished, as if they were nothing more than a dream, making reality itself feel strangely unreal.

Where the altar had stood, only a thin, swirling black mist remained.

"Black Fog Trap, complete!"

Zorn reached out his palm and touched the swirling mist.

"Squeak..."

At the same time, a gray rat darting out from a corner seemed to sense something. It scurried over quickly. As it reached the vicinity of the swirling black fog, a tentacle of dark shadow emerged silently. With a quick lash of the shadow, the rat was dragged directly into the depths of the swirling mist.

"Squeak..."

After two faint, wailing cries, the black fog swallowed it whole. As it rapidly digested the rat, the mist seemed to grow slightly stronger.

At the same time, Zorn felt that by using the "cataclysmic power" of Ogran City’s sewers, he had begun to leverage the power of the "Black Fog" from the "Source of Calamity." This also signaled that Zorn had begun to utilize the [Catastrophe] to pry open even greater power.

This would be the beginning of the Evil Spirit Warlock’s journey into terror and dread!