BOOM BOOM...

ROAR ROAR...

HISS HISS HISS...

RUMBLE...

Amidst a violent cacophony of booms and tremors.

Holy Power, sinister auras, Nether Souls, towering idols, the forbidden gray mist...

A multitude of forces were now completely intertwined, clashing together.

The thick gray mist of the Gray Mist World Layer churned violently, like boiling water.

The grim-faced Dark Department Bishop, Leonard, was desperately unleashing the power of the Forbidden Sealed Object, the Clockwork Knight, to fend off the attack from the outside.

But even so, this only served to delay his death.

Just moments ago, a few people had appeared out of nowhere and launched a ferocious assault against him.

One Level Eight, two Level Sevens.

Four Level Sixes, and one Level Five.

An all-out assault by eight people.

He had nearly been killed on the spot in the very first moments.

Even though he managed to hold on by using the power of the Clockwork Knight, it was only a temporary reprieve.

At this moment, twisted, lightning-like cracks covered Leonard’s body.

The aura of the Holy Fierce Sun bloomed from deep within him, continuously leaking out. The signs of him losing control were becoming more and more apparent.

In the midst of the fierce battle.

HISS...

A massive silhouette resembling a Demon’s head quickly materialized above Leonard’s own.

GURGLE...

Countless strands of faint blue lines, like threads of hair, were pulled from his body and drawn into the Demon head’s mouth.

After a brutal, intense fight.

The soul of the Level 7 Sun Divine Mage could no longer hold on; it was being continuously extracted.

Seeing this, Zorn quickly unleashed a series of Destruction Magic Balls before immediately retreating a considerable distance.

Leonard was already at the end of his rope.

And now, the "Demon Divine Secret Technique" cast by Marquis Albert was already extracting his soul.

His death was certain.

’I need to get some distance, just in case he tries a last-ditch attack before he dies.’

As expected.

As his soul was being drained, Leonard’s body rapidly swelled.

Realizing his death was inevitable, he decisively pushed his own Sequence’s forbidden and aberrant powers to their limit, intending to self-destruct in a final, cataclysmic blast and contaminate everyone else.

RUMBLE...

Amidst a violent explosion,

a small Sun slowly rose into the air.

Even from a distance,

Zorn’s exposed skin still sizzled from the searing heat, wisps of smoke rising from it.

Some parts of his body even bore bright marks from the Sun’s burn.

Many people brought out their own methods to resist the hidden, aberrant contamination.

The rising miniature Sun pierced through all the gray mist of the sixth layer.

All the Transcendents, whether near or far, witnessed the brilliant spectacle of a Level 7 expert’s fall.

It wasn’t just Zorn who had retreated.

The other few Transcendents had all pulled back as well.

Even Marquis Albert.

At this moment, the many Transcendents watched the rising miniature Sun.

While marveling at the terrifying power unleashed by the deathly aberration of the Sun Church’s Divine Mage...

...some of their gazes also fell upon Zorn, who stood in a corner of the crowd.

’This guy is actually a Caster.’

This was the exact same thought on everyone’s mind at that moment.

Although Zorn had only used the "Destruction Magic Ball" technique during the siege,

...everyone else could guess that Zorn Corick’s repertoire as a Caster was clearly not limited to just that.

Judging from the permeating evil aura, he had to be at least a Demon Mage or something from a similar unique Sequence, or possess similar "Demon" powers.

Combined with the information previously disclosed by the Undead Assassin Tutor, Rosian,

...they were now certain that Zorn had gained control of this type of power after digesting the Evil Spirit Remains of Egunus.

Zorn the Fighting Master was already extraordinary.

He possessed an unfathomable depth of Extraordinary Knowledge.

They had originally felt it was a shame that "Zorn Corick" wasn’t a Caster, letting all that Extraordinary Knowledge go to waste.

But now that the Fighting Master had revealed his abilities as a Caster,

...it actually felt right, as if this was how things were meant to be.

"Zorn, your skills as a Caster seem quite exquisite,"

Count Albert remarked with a smile after observing Zorn for a moment.

"I’m still a bit rusty," Zorn replied. "After all, digesting the Caster-related remains wasn’t a quick process."

After this brief observation, the group refocused their attention.

Zorn possessing the power of a Caster was certainly novel.

But the urgent matter at hand was to win this battle.

RUMBLE...

The surging Power of the Sun rolled out in waves, one after another, like the tide.

The fall of a Level 7 Sun Divine Mage sent a shiver through the hearts of the many Level Six Transcendents who were rushing over from all directions.

Amidst the ascension of Leonard’s death Sun,

Marquis Albert’s vast and chilling voice boomed, echoing throughout the entire Gray Mist World.

"This Ancient Ruins World has been completely sealed."

"We can move through it freely, but you are all doomed to be trapped here until you die."

"The execution of Leonard, the traitor of Ogrande City, was to show you that we have the power to eliminate you all."

"Even the great Archbishop Andre himself cannot escape this encirclement."

"Now..."

Albert’s voice boomed like thunder.

"Those willing to surrender will be given a chance to live."

"Those who dare to resist will all be slain!"

"Especially our Level 6 friends from the Church... your relatives, your families, and even your own assets are all in Ogrande City."

"If you dare to resist further, your families and clans will only meet with extermination."

"If you turn on those Harvesters from Saintisman and kill them, we can be lenient."

For the past two days, the many Transcendents on this sixth layer had been unable to find an exit, no matter how hard they searched.

They were already growing panicked.

Furthermore, the loyalty of those from the Church wasn’t necessarily that high to begin with.

Now, the fall of the Level Seven Bishop Leonard...

...was like a death knell ringing deep in their souls.

The enemy had two Level Sevens and one Level Eight expert.

On their side, there was only one Level Seven expert left. Although they still had fifteen Level Six Transcendents,

...it would only delay the inevitable.

"To our friends from Saintisman, surrender, and you may yet save your own lives."

"Dare to resist, and Bishop Leonard’s fate will be yours."

The chilling voice was like the Grim Reaper’s horn, sounding across the entire World.

"Albert! You always did enjoy capturing men’s hearts with that vicious, demonic mind of yours!"

A gloomy voice called out from the distance.

"Hmph!"

With a cold snort, Albert had already retrieved the Clockwork Knight.

"Bassman, after all these years, you still haven’t improved."

"Since you’re unwilling to surrender, then you will die here today!"

Albert naturally knew that these Harvesters from Saintisman couldn’t be persuaded to surrender with just a few words.

But his goal of using words to weaken the Church members’ will to resist had already been achieved.

What followed would be a one-sided battle of annihilation.

Right now, they held the overwhelming advantage.

"This way!"

At that moment, Zorn, who was standing to the side, had already pinpointed the locations of several enemies.

The enemy still had a considerable number of people. Teaming up to take them down one by one was the best strategy.

As Zorn pointed the way,

the group immediately took action.

A terrifying battle royale had begun on the sixth layer of the Gray Mist World.

However, while everyone else concealed their auras and hid within the gray mist...

...one person had a wallhack for the entire field.

By using the resonance from the source of the Tree of the Magic Ring, Zorn could sense the others.

But the others couldn’t sense Zorn and his group.

Soon, a group of five Harvesters who were clustered together ran headlong into Zorn and his companions.

Given the power gap between the two sides,

the outcome was predictable.

In a single clash, two of them were killed.

Two more were killed as they tried to flee.

A single Transcendent with the "Traveler" Ability fled frantically into the distance.

After that, the group once again concealed their auras and began the next round of the hunt under Zorn’s guidance.

Two consecutive ambushes left the Harvesters with heavy losses.

The Level 7 Harvester also noticed something was amiss.

As a Level 7 Harvester and a Dark Assassin, he was anxious to gather everyone together, but it was something that couldn’t be done in a short amount of time.

Even if he managed it, it would only delay their deaths.

The moment the Harvesters and Church members were trapped here by Zorn’s ritual, they were already dead.

They were just now being buried.

On a dune shrouded in gray mist, Zorn used a Magic Ball to blast a heavily wounded, dying Level Six Charge Knight.

Within a pool of water, Madam Mable’s shadow, like weeds, entangled the Traveler who had escaped earlier, strangling him to death.

In the Ritual Altar area of the gray mist, a few resisting Harvesters had their souls devoured by the Evil Spirits herded by Marquis Albert, becoming a delicious dinner.

Of course, there were also Church members who surrendered.

To these surrendering Church members, Marquis Albert first had them stop resisting and accept being controlled.

Then, when their guards were down, he killed them outright!

Marquis Albert was truly ruthless.

Surrender?

There was no surrender today.

Today, no one would be left alive!

So many Transcendents from Ogrande City had died in this war. All of these invaders had to die!

One after another, the Level Six Transcendents were annihilated.

In the area near the sixth Gray Mist Gate,

the two sides came to a confrontation that seemed to follow a long-written script.

A script for the burial of the Harvesters.

The Level 7 Dark Assassin, along with four of the stronger Level 6 Harvesters, had set up a ritual here. They were hiding, hoping to defend themselves and resist, or perhaps to escape through the Gray Mist Gate.

But their hopes were easily crushed.

Zorn easily pinpointed their coordinates.

After tearing through the curtain of the Ritual Altar,

the two sides immediately began to fight.

By now, Marquis Albert had obtained the Middle Rank Forbidden Sealed Object, the Clockwork Knight, and his power had increased dramatically.

He alone was enough to beat the Level 7 Dark Assassin so badly that he couldn’t even fight back.

Meanwhile, Zorn and the others were on the sidelines, providing support and harvesting the lives of the stubbornly resisting Level Six Transcendents.

’This is the perfect time to ride his coattails!’