In the early stages—Level Three, Level Four, and Level Five—when most combat is still direct and physical, Fighting Masters who excel at head-on clashes appear quite powerful.

After entering the Middle Tier, however,

when Transcendents gradually master uncanny abilities, powerful Magic, and forbidden forces,

[Fighting Master]s get utterly dominated by many powerful mid-to-late-game Sequences.

"The night before last, Christopher, the talented Transcendent and [Shadow Wizard] whom Ogrande City had been grooming, died."

Madam Mable stated, her voice calm.

Upon hearing this, Zorn’s brow twitched.

Zorn didn’t know which specific Transcendents Ogrande City was cultivating.

But Zorn knew that Ogrande City had always been secretly grooming Transcendents.

In different "versions" of the world, a few Transcendent geniuses with extremely high Talent would always emerge.

Some of these geniuses with extremely high Talent would even go on to become powerful Legendary figures in the future.

Clearly, this [Shadow Wizard]’s power and Talent had been quite impressive.

"How did he die?"

Zorn asked, his voice low.

"He lost control. A Shadow Demon mutated and was born from within his body, corrupting his Shadow Sequence. A colossal shadow silhouette filled the room, dragged his remains around to slaughter every last servant in the manor, and then waited for us to come and clean up the mess."

"Someone must have induced the mutation in his Shadow Sequence."

Zorn concluded decisively.

"And to achieve something like this, they would have to be at least at the Middle Rank Level."

"What’s more, the perpetrator must be an extremely powerful master of Shadow."

"Yes."

Lady Mable nodded slightly.

"Was it... the work of the [Harvester] Sequence?"

Zorn asked tentatively.

"We’re not certain yet, but it’s highly likely."

"But regardless, it seems the enemy is now making a move against us."

Mable’s voice carried a hint of simmering anger.

"At the same time, over the last two days, several Transcendents in Ogrande City who serve as mentors have been hunted to varying degrees."

"Rosian, the Assassin mentor you sparred with, was ambushed in the Steam Grey Mist. A mysterious Level Six master and two Level 5 masters besieged him."

"Fortunately, he had already advanced to Level Six before I did, so he managed to escape safely."

Hearing this, Zorn couldn’t help but feel a growing sense of dread.

If the Holy Fierce Sun Church was truly cooperating with the [Harvester]s, then his current situation was far from optimistic.

"And you... how are things on your end?"

Madam Mable gradually suppressed her simmering anger and looked at Zorn, asking in a gentler tone.

"I’m being watched. They even made a few probing attempts, but they realized they couldn’t get past my countermeasures and didn’t try to force their way in."

"Then... do you want to hide in the underground Ancient Ruins for a while?"

Madam Mable asked.

"Yes."

Without a moment’s hesitation, Zorn nodded decisively in agreement.

Although Zorn had recovered one chance at Resurrection, bringing him to 3/5,

even if he were at full strength with 5/5 charges for Resurrection,

there was no need to stay outside and risk his life just to be resurrected.

After all, neither the [Harvester]s nor the Holy Fierce Sun Church were to be trifled with.

Considering how Zorn had previously humiliated Duke Mu Huo and made the Lord Bishop waste a trip,

they would absolutely dare to dispatch a Level Six master to hunt him down.

Taking refuge in the Treasure Land was the obvious choice.

Besides,

the Intermediate treasure mission on the sixth level was nearly complete, and the seventh level was currently under development.

If he spent a little more time in there, Zorn could obtain the [Ancient God Curse], something only available to those at the Lower Rank Level.

A great blizzard howled, surging in the frigid wind.

As everyone waited,

WHOO... WHOO...

The low, piercing, yet elegant sound of a steam whistle grew closer.

CLANG... CLANG... CLANG...

The rhythmic clatter of machinery and the shriek of the whistle intertwined, creating one of the most vivid images of this new era.

Amidst the constantly billowing Steam Grey Mist,

an eerie steam train, far larger than any ordinary one, flickered in and out of sight as it appeared on the tracks crossing the plain.

The [Torlask Steam Train] had arrived.

Instantly, the faces of the many people on the hill tensed. They stared, unblinking, at the rapidly approaching [Torlask Steam Train] and the terrible, corrupting power it carried.

They paid no mind to the snowflakes landing on their cheeks.

The [Torlask Steam Train] seemed like a nexus point for the entire World.

WHOO... WHOO...

The whistle blared as the Steam Grey Mist billowed.

As everyone watched,

the [Torlask Steam Train] flickered indistinctly several times before rapidly approaching the diversion point.

Then,

the [Torlask Steam Train] seemed to possess some kind of magical sensory power.

It continued along the original, straight trajectory of the railway, speeding onward.

It stayed on this path even though the original rails had been dismantled and the track bed buried.

The [Torlask Steam Train] moved forward as if it were traveling along the tracks of history itself.

In an instant, a mixture of disappointment, regret, and sighs filled the air.

"So it didn’t work after all?"

"How... How can it run without tracks?"

"That’s a corrupted steam train. They say any ordinary person or Transcendent who boards it dies. Of course it wouldn’t operate according to common sense."

"It seems the diversion plan failed. Sigh..."

"Now, a great corruption is coming to Ogrande City. This will be even worse than before."

Murmurs of discussion rose and fell, and many people began to cast their gazes toward Zorn.

The young nobleman’s proposal had failed to change the trajectory of the [Torlask Steam Train] and had not saved Ogrande City.

Despite their earlier hopes, their disappointment was greater in the end.

WHOO... WHOO... WHOO...

The [Torlask Steam Train] let out a heavy whistle as it receded into the distance.

Suddenly, as if glitching back in time, the [Torlask Steam Train] reappeared at the fateful fork in the tracks.

Then, the [Torlask Steam Train] began to follow the diverted track.

It headed in the direction Zorn had planned, moving slowly but steadily.

This sudden turn of events was as if the very strings of fate had been plucked.

It left the many observers stunned.

Many even rubbed their eyes, afraid they were seeing things.

"What... What’s happening?"

"It came back?"

"It’s... taking the diversion?"

"Didn’t it already leave?"

"It can do that?"

"You really can’t judge this [Torlask Steam Train] by common sense."

The previously dejected crowd now looked on with excitement at the distant [Torlask Steam Train] as it followed the new route.

Astonishment, surprise, and even a few cheers erupted from the small hill.

In a corner of the crowd,

Zorn stood quietly.

He felt the crowd’s gazes converging on him but paid them no mind.

Zorn simply thought to himself, ’Well... the plan succeeded again, just like that!’

In his hands, a part of Ogrande City’s destiny had once again been silently rewritten.

Compared to the previous times he had altered its course,

this "brand-new version" of events would be extremely beneficial to him.