"Hmm... This is quite a nice haul!"
Using the Arsonist's skeletal fire in the fireplace, Zorn took stock of his recent gains.
First and foremost was the smuggling evidence—enough to put Viscount Brin behind bars for life—along with proof of his collaboration with an Evil God Organization.
But this Viscount Brin was an existence that even a Level Two Arsonist feared, a Transcendent of immense power.
If he weren't apprehended by a sufficiently powerful force, Viscount Brin would certainly escape.
Without a doubt, he was an extremely difficult man to deal with.
Zorn, in his current state, was no match for such a formidable foe.
The Bay Area Pier was a hub where countless interests intertwined. The waters there ran very, very deep.
Zorn knew this better than anyone.
Therefore, Zorn planned to hand this evidence over to his friend at the police station.
From there... the police station would take the baton.
Zorn trusted that Ansel Hall, a Law Enforcer with a strong sense of justice and responsibility, could bring the villainous Viscount Brin to justice.
Although the process would be fraught with resistance and danger.
But if one wanted to attain greater honor, grasp stronger power, or even wield authority over the order of the police station, a price always had to be paid, didn't it?
There were many enemies in Ogrande City.
It was impossible for Zorn to deal with every single one of them personally.
The friends Zorn made could also play a huge role.
If Ansel Hall handled it well, by leveraging the power of the Municipal Police Station and the Church, he could absolutely crush that Viscount Brin to dust.
Besides the evidence...
...there was also a large amount of cash, mostly in denominations of 1, 2, and 5 gold pounds.
A total of 1,646 gold pounds.
This fortune was enough to cover the dividends the Coric Clan had been cheated out of for the past six months, with even some to spare.
And this was just the interest.
The real main event was in the warehouse at the pier.
After carefully stowing these items away, Zorn glanced at the Arsonist currently burning in the fireplace.
He began to organize all the information and results from today's Dual Sequence experiment.
During the day, when he had guided Miss Joliya and had her do things, Zorn had already sniffed out some clues.
He needed more samples to confirm his results.
Earlier in the tavern, he had taken control of two Mafia grunts and compelled them to follow his orders.
And now, he had taken command of the Arsonist and made him divulge important classified information.
After repeated tests on multiple targets, Zorn had arrived at a precise conclusion.
An Evil Spirit Wizard, using the power of their Evil Spirit Authority to control enemies, cannot obtain Essence.
A Fighting Master, however, can obtain Essence when using an Ability that is judged as "combat."
Now, the two great Sequences had converged.
It had become a situation where the Evil Spirit Wizard Sequence used its Evil Spirit Authority to gain Believers and command them.
This ability was then judged by the Fighting Master Sequence as "combat."
And so, Zorn obtained a continuous stream of Fighting Essence.
This Fighting Essence was then absorbed by the Dual Order, becoming nourishment for the overall Sequence.
Both Sequences benefited from it.
Through this strange bug, the system began to operate with high efficiency.
WHOOSH... HISS...
Zorn took a long, deep breath, suppressing his agitated thoughts.
Now that this result was confirmed, the room for manipulation was immense.
Zorn's mind raced with possibilities.
'I can use a Steam Factory, recruit workers to work for me, and use that to conceal the power of an Evil God. At the same time... I can use the power of my Authority to influence the workers' loyalty and Faith in the Steam Factory enterprise.'
'This way, my Evil Spirit Authority will be passively triggered. On the Fighting Master level, it will be like I'm in "combat" with a large number of ordinary people, bringing in a continuous harvest.'
'This is far more effective than the Evil Spirit Wizard's methods of enslavement, exploitation, and imprisonment.'
'And it doesn't interfere with the expression of the Evil Spirit Wizard's own characteristics.'
'Combining these two aspects, it's absolutely one part effort for five or six parts reward—maybe even seven or eight.'
'While those workers earn higher wages from my factory, they'll only have to pay a small price: the price of having Faith in me.'
'It will be a fair trade!'
What's that? You say this Faith in the Steam Factory is the bewitchment of an Evil God?
I'm sorry, sir, but this is our company's unique corporate culture!
'So...'
Zorn stretched his torso slightly.
'I need to create a Spiritual Statue. That way, I can better exert the power of my Authority.'
'Although a Spiritual Statue doesn't require a massive amount of materials like a Miracle Statue does, it still needs a considerable amount.'
'I hope the upcoming Transcendent exchange meeting will have some of the things I need.'
Slowly pulling his mind back from conceptualizing his future blueprint, Zorn looked at the completely carbonized corpse of the Arsonist.
He opened his palm, and a hazy, pale, and somewhat twisted Wandering Soul was slowly drawn out from the corpse.
The nascent Wandering Soul was weak, dazed, and fearful of Zorn.
Regardless of what it was in life, in death, it was merely "food" for an Evil Spirit Wizard.
The abundant Spirituality within the Wandering Soul seemed to whet Zorn's appetite.
But Zorn managed to control his greed for "Spirituality."
He manipulated the Wandering Soul, injecting it into the fiery-red Sequence Crystal Core on the Arsonist's corpse.
Soon, a Spiritual Sequence Crystal Core was born.
And this was one of the materials for the Spiritual Statue.
After stowing everything away and making some preparations, Zorn put on a raincoat and stepped out into the depths of the rainy night.
Accompanied by the roar of thunder, Zorn soon arrived at the pier warehouse where the smuggled Blood Pattern Coral was hidden.
Four Mafia members on the night shift were dozing off out of boredom.
They didn't even notice Zorn approaching through the curtain of rain.
There were quite a few people stationed here. Plus, it wasn't far from the Sweetheart Cabbage Tavern. If anything happened, reinforcements could arrive quickly.
A pity!
They were facing Zorn—Zorn Corick, the Evil Spirit Wizard who could bewitch minds and control souls.
Using his Evil Spirit Authority, Zorn successfully captured four devout Believers.
After opening the warehouse doors and entering, Zorn began to set up the sacrificial ritual.
The quantity of smuggled Blood Pattern Coral in this shipment was substantial, filling at least seven or eight crates.
It was impossible for Zorn to take it all by himself.
Even if he could, he wouldn't. It would only bring him trouble.
But by sacrificing it directly through a ritual, it would become untraceable.
'Some damned Evil Spirit stole the smuggled goods. What's that got to do with me, Zorn?'
Under the cover of the Fighting Master, the traces left by the Evil Spirit Wizard were just those of a faint "Evil Spirit."
Besides, Zorn was far from the only Evil Spirit of the same origin active in Ogrande City.
'Want to investigate? Go ahead, take your sweet time.'
'Besides, Viscount Brin will soon be in a crisis of his own. He won't have the time or energy to investigate.'
The four Mafia members pried open the crates and continuously brought over piece after piece of Blood Pattern Coral.
Zorn, in turn, performed sacrifice after sacrifice, offering all these items rich in Spiritual Essence to his anchored "Hidden Source Land."
Of course, Zorn could also have sacrificed these offerings to his birthplace, the "Calamity Origin Land."
However, Zorn had not yet constructed his own "Spiritual Realm" in the Calamity Origin Land.
If he sacrificed them there and other Evil Spirits noticed, all his efforts would have been for nothing.
As these resources were continuously consumed in the sacrifices, the abundant Spirituality gathered together, like a vast ocean of Spiritual Essence.
Such plentiful resources made Zorn's mind stir. This was truly a massive windfall.
'Resources worth at least thirty thousand, maybe even forty thousand gold pounds.'
'This many offerings, if I digest them carefully, is enough for my Dual Sequence to advance to Level Two, with some to spare.'
'Soon... Ogrande City will welcome its own tide of Extraordinary Power, and a terrifying storm of Calamity.'
'Numerous Transcendents will take the stage.'
'The Evil Spirits are also stirring restlessly.'
'After advancing to Level Two, I'll be better able to resist this terrible storm and tide, and even draw nourishment from it.'
'And this sacrificial ritual will also be a declaration to the other Evil Spirits!'
'It is also the beginning of me carving my first Sacred Mark upon Ogrande City!'
As the second half of the night approached, Zorn completed the final ritual.
And the offerings for the final ritual were the four Mafia members.
They knelt piously before the small table-altar, offering their lives and their souls.
Whether Zorn spared them or not, their deaths were already sealed.
It was better to dispose of them cleanly than to leave traces for the enemy to investigate.
CRACKLE...
RUMBLE... RUMBLE...
A streak of purple lightning split the sky, illuminating the indifferent face hidden beneath a woven hat and a raincoat.
Immediately after, the peal of thunder reverberated through the depths of the vast, driving rain.
As Zorn walked, he activated the power of the Forbidden Weave, interfering with any traces that could be investigated.
Previously, Zorn hadn't dared to act so recklessly, mainly because the Fighting Master Sequence lacked good methods for evading detection.
But for the Evil Spirit Wizard, a being on the level of a World-level boss, its very existence was a natural source of contamination and interference, making it extremely difficult to detect.
Using the power of the Forbidden Weaving to erase his tracks on top of that would result in a perfect cleansing.
As the curtain of rain washed away the last traces, Zorn vanished into the depths of a dark, rain-soaked alley.