"The Northern Border Region... is about to see a major upheaval!"

The meeting had just concluded in a conference room on the second layer of the Purgatory Mage’s world.

Whether it was Zorn, the other nobles, or the Witches who had already tied their fate to Ogrande City’s war chariot, everyone’s minds were a turbulent tide of thoughts, difficult to calm.

The contents of this meeting had been exceedingly intricate and complex.

It had touched upon many different aspects.

Anyone able to attend this meeting was clearly considered part of Ogrande City’s inner circle—one of their own.

The general contents of the meeting were as follows.

The Saintisman Empire had already begun to mobilize its forces and was marching toward the Northern Border Region.

The Autanston Republic and the Saint Grelle Empire had already dispatched their various corps of Transcendents to resist the Saintisman invasion with all their might.

At the same time, with the backing of the Reconstruction Faction, which was supported by the Sun Church, numerous powers were gradually uniting.

The goal was simple: to fight back against the coming Saintisman invasion.

A united front had already taken shape.

And the undisputed leading forces in this alliance were the Sun Church and the Reconstruction Faction led by Otan Grelle.

Under the leadership of these two powerful forces, the "Steam Empire" of the Northern Border Region was faintly beginning to take shape.

The decades of peace in the Northern Border Region were about to be consumed by the flames of war.

And a new nation would be born, bathed in those very flames.

When the meeting ended, Zorn stood up to leave and noticed many eyes falling upon him.

This was mainly because, during the meeting, Marquis Albert, Grand Duke Amalante, and Count Hills had repeatedly asked for Zorn’s opinions and suggestions.

As Ogrande City’s rising star among Transcendents and a homegrown noble of impeccable standing, it was clear that Zorn was being groomed for a key position.

Although Ogrande City currently enjoyed considerable renown across the entire continent, many powerful Transcendents had also emerged in Autanston City.

And in the even more powerful Saint Grelle Empire, talent was also abundant.

Ogrande City clearly wanted to cultivate its own powerhouse Transcendent to take the lead.

There had been a few before.

Even Duke Mu Huo had been a highly watched figure.

But with the rise of Zorn Corick, all the other Transcendents paled in comparison.

Zorn, however, paid no mind to the scattered gazes.

He had more urgent matters to attend to.

Tomorrow, the Crying Blood Sun would rise.

He needed to complete his ritual at the peak of the epic scroll’s "Tidal Chapter" and had to act quickly.

...

「The third layer of the Gray Mist World.」

After passing through the Magic Ring Gate, Zorn glanced thoughtfully toward the fifth layer.

As he had passed through the gate, he had faintly sensed some strange and terrifying fluctuations from the fifth layer.

It seemed Bishop Andre of the Holy Fierce Sun Church, who was trapped on the fifth layer of the Gray Mist World, had been making numerous preparations there.

Apparently, he had some contact with the outside world and must have sensed that a high-intensity ritual confrontation was coming, so he was getting his defenses ready.

This scene felt familiar to Zorn.

In the original timeline, a cornered Zorn Corick had done the exact same thing.

’Trying to put up a desperate last stand there?’

Zorn gently shook his head.

When the Crying Blood Sun rose over the Northern Border Region, the Holy Fierce Sun would be pierced by the power of the Sun Goddess.

These Believers of his would melt away like snow.

If they fled the Northern Border Region, they might have a slim chance of survival.

But if they were trapped here... then death was all but certain.

’A divine war!’

’There’s no defending against it.’

Landing deep within the dense gray mist, Zorn picked up the Steam Treasure Chest and began to search.

Before long, Zorn stopped in a relatively remote spot.

"This should be the place."

He then began preparing the gate-opening ritual.

There were several Secret Lands in this third layer of the Gray Mist World.

One had to complete a series of tasks—exploration, puzzle-solving, excavation, and resource investment—to obtain the method for the opening ritual.

Performing a powerful ritual like the Evil Spirit Calamity in one of these Secret Lands would be extremely safe.

A short while later, Zorn used a black candle to open one such Secret Land.

Zorn set down the Steam Treasure Chest, and it quickly transformed into a simple Forest Cottage made of gray wooden planks.

"WHOOOO... WHOOOO..."

Following the roaring blast of its steam whistle, the surrounding gray mist gradually dispersed.

The golden silhouette of a Golden Magic Ring hung within arm’s reach.

Beneath his feet was a tree trunk with golden veins of Energy flowing through it.

A golden curtain separated this small, hidden area from the world outside.

This place... was located on the trunk of the towering Golden Magic Ring Tree.

This time!

Zorn would combine the Spiritual Realm, the Golden Magic Ring Tree, and a small amount of the Divine Power of the Divine Kingdom.

He would give Ogrande City a perfect, grand finale to the tide of this era!

And this... would help him obtain the immensely powerful Immortal Calamity Sacred Mark.

Amidst the intense and hurried preparations, time flew by.

Zorn raised his hand. The golden silhouette of his Golden Arm and the golden silhouette of the Tree of the Magic Ring overhead reflected each other brilliantly.

He slowly guided it into a small Ritual Platform he had just set up.

After doing all this, Zorn began to meticulously inspect his arrangements.

’Guiding the power of the Tree of the Magic Ring.’

’Guiding the Divine Power of the Divine Kingdom... hmm... there’s a bit too little of it, but that’s not important. As long as there’s some, it’s enough.’