Chapter 37: Grinding Skills in the Sewers!

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The Rite of Revelation, the Sacred Mark.
A catastrophe, inscribing a chapter of death.
These mysterious terms related to the ritual were learned within the Forbidden Bloodline.
Butch understood clearly that the ritual needed to be arranged according to the environment and weather, to conduct a profound sacrifice.
And it required involving a sufficient number of extraordinary beings.
Only in this way... could one initially carve out their own Sacred Mark.
If the sacrifice of that cunning evil spirit went unnoticed, the resulting mark would be faint and insubstantial.
It would soon be washed away by time, shattered by the gears of fate, and vanish without a trace.
However, when enough extraordinary beings were drawn in, even attracting considerable investigation,
the convergence of multiple supernatural powers would resemble a grand ceremony, a merciless whirlpool.
Then that trace of the Sacred Mark would be continuously reinforced.
It would become the nourishment for the cunning evil spirit’s engraved “Sacred Mark,” serving to anchor and stabilize it.
And now,
the power of the catastrophe was growing and gestating in the sewers of Oglan City.
His killing spree with those damned Rat Kings was part of the ritual.
Moreover, it was the climax of the ritual.
When he exterminated all the Rat Kings, devoured and digested them, descended upon the terrified Oglan City, and even leveled the Church of the Holy Sun,
the entire city and all those caught within would become the notes of his deadly symphony!
He would leave a vivid, indelible mark on the canvas of history.
Ascending his throne upon a staircase paved with bones and death.
Yet at present, he lacked sufficient resources to advance to level three.
He needed to ascend quickly, or else he would become the Rat Kings’ feast.
In the darkness, the two exchanged fragmented words.
After a full half hour and agreeing on their next meeting, they finally parted ways.
Before leaving, Butch, the Evil Spirit Knight, looked around.
There was an indescribable feeling here.
It was as if the darkness had thickened, bringing a strange calm to his soul.
“A good place. I like it here!”
He murmured softly before departing.
...
In the depths of darkness,
Zorn, the secret third party, listened in on their conversation in full.
His eyes, deep and piercing, carefully scanned the surrounding shadows.
“Is this Lord Ergunnus’s aggregating trait?”
“It always causes us evil spirits to intersect and clash in unexpected ways.”
“Like a fateful encounter composing a stormy symphony!”
“Fortunately... I am not the ‘Zorn Kolik’ from the previous timeline.”
“My Evil Spirit Witch identity is intact; my sinister spirit will not dissipate.”

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“Plus, I have dual sequences, masked by the Star Mark Brawler.”
“Even if I appear before him, he won’t sense that I’m an Evil Spirit Witch.”
“This spares me much trouble.”
Relying on his former Player identity and the advantage of dual sequences, Zorn now had a remarkably high tolerance for errors.
“A level 2 Evil Spirit Knight, about to ascend to level 3.”
In his thoughts, Zorn gazed toward the sewer where the Evil Spirit Knight had vanished.
That Evil Spirit Knight was inevitably a part he must consume.
If not consumed by him, others would benefit.
If sealed by the Church, that would be a huge problem.
No one outside the Church’s internal chaos could obtain it.
Now, the level 2 Evil Spirit Knight walked alone deep in the sewers.
This... seemed like an opportunity.
If he devoured that opponent,
Zorn could use the flesh and blood remnants to strengthen his evil spirit spells, leverage the Black Mist power, enhance his BOSS template, and more.
In the early stages, devouring a formidable Evil Spirit Knight was no small advantage.
A vague thrill stirred within Zorn.
After a moment, he shook his head.
“That level 2 Evil Spirit Knight excels at both offense and defense at his level.”
“Moreover, this is his home turf; it would be difficult to take him down quickly.”
“If that level 3 Dream Weaver returns to kill, or if those Forbidden Bloodline fanatics arrive, I’d be the one suffering losses.”
“After all, I’m only level 1.”
“The perfect moment requires more patience.”
“However... their conversation did reveal quite a bit of useful information.”
Zorn carefully sifted through the important points.
“Either at the end of this month or the beginning of next,”
“The Evil Spirit Knight and several Rat Kings, bred with the Forbidden Blood of the superiors, will gather for the forbidden ritual.”
“That will also be the outbreak moment of the Rat Plague!”
“Good luck, Butch, Evil Spirit Knight.”
“Don’t get devoured by those rats.”
“The Lower-Rank Rat Kings centered around you will carry the Forbidden Blood, making them rarer and more powerful than the Golden Crown Catastrophe Rat Kings.”
“Also, many hidden places underground require your catastrophe outbreak to appear.”
“Only if you grow increasingly mad, twisted, and fallen within the blood of the superiors can I reap greater rewards!”
As he envisioned the future scenes of these two types of BOSS appearances, Zorn’s mind branched into two distinct paths.
Profiting from disaster was basic Player strategy.
And as a veteran in this regard, burdened with dual sequences, Zorn was no exception.
From the disaster’s onset, he had already begun reaping benefits.
As the two withdrew,
the ritual pit deepened and reconvened.
Soon, grey rats and mutated grey rats were continuously lured and captured by traps.

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The ritual kept prying open more of the Black Mist.
Faintly, Zorn could sense a subtle connection between his nascent source of catastrophe and himself, which was the advantage of leveraging the Black Mist.
Star Mark Brawler (30th Anniversary Limited Edition) (Non-tradable)
Level: 1 (38%)
Talent:
Iron Will and Body (SS Rank): You possess a will and body as unyielding as steel.
Skills:
Basic Skull-Crushing Fist: Level 0 (48%)
...
Studying his status panel, Zorn pondered.
“Currently gaining about 6% to 8% experience daily.”
“By month’s end, I should reach full experience.”
“At that time, the turbulent Rat Plague will be the perfect cover for my ascension to level 2.”
Closing the system panel, Zorn chose a narrow sewer passage and entered.
He intended to hunt and capture some elite mutated grey rats for absorption and digestion.
This would effectively convert some “spiritual essence” and enhance his supernatural skills.
Many extraordinary beings, after gaining their powers, remain unaware that these abilities can evolve further without guidance from a deep-rooted organization.
Most would never realize that upon reaching a certain level, extraordinary powers can be upgraded through rituals and Sacred Marks.
Players with status panels naturally had full insight into this.
Supernatural skills generally have four ranks.
Each rank’s evolution significantly strengthens the skill and can unlock numerous powerful traits.
Players also had corresponding titles for each rank.
Level 0: Novice.
Level 1: Proficient.
Level 2: Expert.
Level 3: Master.
Many devious players would hone their basic techniques to master level within newbie villages before venturing out.
Though Zorn was not that extreme,
he still committed to grinding.
The difference between a master-level and novice-level supernatural spell was like night and day.
Even level 1’s power far exceeded that of level 0.
Every day in the sewers, Zorn practiced his various abilities diligently.
The Brawler’s fists could be practiced at home as morning exercise.
But the Evil Spirit Witch’s arts—life leeching, forbidden weaving, doom curses, and the devastating Scythe of the End—could never be shown casually.
The cataclysmic power surging and abundant mutated grey rats in the depths of the sewers made it the perfect training ground.
Deeper and deeper into the darkness, mutated grey rats began to appear incessantly.
Zorn unleashed his Evil Spirit Witch supernatural sorcery upon them, continually refining his spells and skills.