The villainous young master just wants to live a Buddhist-like life.

　Dak was somewhat uncertain.

　Pandora said in a feigned indifference, "I kicked Galenoris out back then."

　Upon hearing this, Dak couldn't help but rub his temples, sensing the Holy Church's unwavering resolve.

　"It seems this matter won't be resolved anytime soon."

　He said.

　Pandora nodded slightly: "You can actually see that to some extent from this World Cup."

　The Holy Church, with its immense power, couldn't even produce a single "Card of God." They are very likely bound by some kind of destiny-related force.

　Dark nodded and said, "That's why they're in such a hurry."

　Pandora said, "The gods are reviving, life and death are at stake. I really want to see the Holy Church perish."

　She made no secret of her aversion to Christianity.

　Dark smiled and said, "What binds them is very likely the 'divine origin' of the Saint." Pandora said, "Then they must first cross this hurdle." The Holy Church is founded on the belief in the "Saint," to the point that even something like the "divine origin" of the "Saint," which should not exist, has come into being.

　This is beneficial to the faith gathering of the Holy Church.

　Because he gave the faith of the Holy Church something to rely on, a true "core" belonging to the Holy Church.

　However, the birth of the "Origin of Gods" and the existence of its core also gave the Holy Church a "belonging".

　Although the "Origin of Gods" does not have a soul, consciousness, or physical body, it is God in itself, apart from the soul, consciousness, and physical body.

　Since God already exists, the overall structure of the Holy Church is no different from that of the "Kingdom of God".

　In other words, it already possesses the form of a divine kingdom.

　All members of the Holy Church are considered "holy" citizens of the divine kingdom by the rules of the world.

　Those who follow the Holy Church are thus branded with the mark of "holiness," even if that "holiness" is merely the "origin of divinity."

　Therefore, it is very difficult for members of the Holy Church to encounter miracles left by other gods. This is perfectly logical.

　During the conversation, Dak figured out the matter and also felt the urgency of the Holy Church.

　"Speaking of which, the Holy Church is unlucky. It has given birth to a true god of faith, but the two of us are the most compatible with him," Dark said.

　"Then let it suffer," Pandora said with a laugh.

　Dark immediately understood that after this period of reflection, Pandora had made a firm decision to give up this opportunity to become a god.

　It is truly extraordinary for an ordinary person to be able to make the decision to give up the opportunity to become a "God of Light".

　Although she had a grudge against the Holy Church, that grudge was actually insignificant in the face of the opportunity to become a god.

　Her ability to make this decision also reflects her strong self-confidence. This is exactly what Dark admires.

　After a moment's thought, Darke suddenly said, "Actually, it's not entirely without a solution."

　Pandora's heart skipped a beat, and she asked, "How so?"

　Dark pondered for a moment before saying, "The 'Origin of Gods' lacks a divine soul and a physical body. So, wouldn't it be enough to simply create a divine soul and a physical body that are compatible with it?"

　"That's fine," Pandora blinked. Dark knew he had oversimplified things.

　He then continued, "Since the 'Origin of Gods' can transform mortals into gods, its requirements for the soul, consciousness, and body haven't yet reached the level of gods; they only need to be infinitely close to gods. Frankly, this aligns perfectly with my ongoing research and isn't impossible."

　If there is no suitable vessel, then create one. Just as the "original divine nature" was born from nothing, why can't we create a soul, consciousness, and body from nothing?

　The more Dac thought about it, the more feasible it seemed.

　Because that was originally his research objective.

Chapter 1574 Undercurrents Surge, Darkness Approaches (4k)

　However, goals are goals, and the research is just beginning. It remains to be seen when it will advance to a level that satisfies the needs of a vessel for the "divine origin."

　If progress is even slightly slow, the Holy Church might not even reach that point. Dark currently has no intention of engaging in deeper contact with them. Therefore, after considering this, he put the matter aside.

　A little bit.

　Dark and Pandora returned to the restaurant and spent time with the students and professors, chatting happily.

　It wasn't until almost midnight that the crowd dispersed.

　After personally seeing off "Bloody Saintess" Hayley Saint Meredith, Dak returned to his room to rest.

　Despite the many things happening today and the emergence of various doubts, his main focus remains unchanged, still centered on the World Cup Duel Challenge.

　If you want to perform well in the World Cup and leave no regrets, it is very important to get plenty of rest and be in good spirits.

　So after practicing the "Netherworld God Technique" for half an hour, he prepared to sleep until dawn.

　However, just as he got into bed, he heard a soft knock at the door. He frowned slightly, sensed Laura's presence, and unlocked the door with his magical hand.

　With a soft click, Laura stepped into the room.

　Dak sat on the bed and looked up to see a thick stack of documents in her hand.

　"It's urgent," Dark asked.

　Laura locked the door from the inside and said quickly, "There's been some progress on the Thompson case."

　"Thompson" Dark frowned and perked up.

　Thompson is the holder of the God Card "Infernal," and is currently sleeping in a secret base.

　The matter related to him is naturally the special origin of his God Card. Someone implanted a "black eyeball" into his body, granting him the ability to use the God Card "Fire Hell Demon," and gave him the mission of winning the World Cup.

　Dark once impersonated Thompson in an attempt to find "that person's" trail, but to no avail.

　But Laura's late-night visit suggests she's finally found a clue to "that person."

　After a moment's thought, Dak took the documents from his hands and said as he flipped through them, "Tell me in detail."

　Laura then explained in detail the intelligence gathered by the "Scorpio Palace" intelligence organization.

　With Laura's account and the documents, Dark quickly figured out what was going on.

　The breakthrough in this matter stemmed from the investigation task Dark gave to the maids during the competition—to conduct a follow-up investigation on Stilwell Matt!

　Stilwell Matt is a former professional duelist with a glorious past. He was once a superstar in the professional dueling world. But at the peak of his popularity, he was suddenly defeated by a newcomer duelist, and fell from grace, never to recover, and soon announced his retirement.

　But after several years, he suddenly returned to the field and achieved excellent results in the World Cup, successfully advancing to the top 32, which is the third round of the qualifiers.

　In today's match, Stilwell Matt faced "Archbishop" Harpagon Molière and unexpectedly abandoned his previous deck system, using a dark-type deck that he had never used before.

　Moreover, the core of this dark deck is a sixth-tier dark attribute demon card - "Demon of the Blades"!

　Although Stilwell Matt was ultimately defeated by Archbishop Molière, his God Card "Demon of the Blade" attracted the attention of many.

　Dac is one of them.

　Unlike most people, Dark wasn't paying attention to the God Card because of its power, but because he had doubts about the existence of the "Blade Demon".

　He sensed a similar aura from the "Blade Demon" to Thompson's "Fire Demon".

　Following Dark's instructions, the maids launched an investigation into Stilwell Matt.

　Furthermore, based on Dark's concerns, an investigation was also conducted into another professional duelist who had also entered the qualifiers.

　The professional duelist's name was Dijul, and he also used the Dark-type Demon God Card, "Demon Jester," during the match.

　The God Cards of Thompson, Judil, and Stilwell share some commonalities.

　If you look at the three God Cards separately, you can't really see much, but if you put them together, it becomes more obvious.

　Dark and the maids of "Scorpio Palace" already knew of "that person's" existence. They already had preconceived notions, so when they followed the clues, they unexpectedly found something.

　However, the maids did not make direct contact with Judil and Stilwell, but instead deduced their intentions through investigations of their past, so as not to alert them.

　“Well done,” Dark praised.

　Judil and Stilwell were far stronger than Thompson. Both were already top-tier professional duelists and seasoned mages. Therefore, they were far more skilled in using the "God Cards" and did not reveal any obvious weaknesses.

　However, their behavior before and after arriving in the Free City showed significant differences.

　These can be analyzed from details such as their behavior, speech, and demeanor.

　This change bears some resemblance to that of Thompson.

　Based on this, the maids conducted a deeper investigation and discovered that their "God Card" and many accompanying magic cards appeared out of thin air and could not be traced back to their origin. If it were just a "God Card" whose origin was difficult to trace, it wouldn't be surprising.

　After all, "God Cards" are often obtained through serendipitous encounters.

　However, the magic cards that come with them cannot be traced back to their origin, which is absolutely unreasonable.

　By this point in the investigation, the maids had basically determined that Judil and Stilwell had experienced the same thing as Thompson.

　They also most likely have "black eyeballs" implanted in their bodies.

　However, so far, it's still just a deduction. To prove this deduction, the two people must be captured. "That's indeed the case."

　Dark rubbed his temples, feeling a slight headache. The Free City was abuzz with undercurrents, and this incident was just one aspect. But currently, it seemed to be the matter in which the Duke's mansion was most deeply involved. Their investigation wasn't just to prevent anyone from plotting evil behind the scenes; naturally, they also considered profiting from it.

　After all, that's the special ability that allows others to use the "God Cards" by implanting them in the eyeballs. If it could be deciphered, it would definitely be of great help in enhancing the organization's strength.

　Furthermore, the opponent's ability to mass-produce "God Cards" is also a cause for concern.

　Laura clearly also considered this matter very important, which is why she came at this time to discuss it with him.

　"Tomorrow."

　After careful consideration, Dak spoke.

　While the day before the main draw is very important, some things are better done sooner rather than later.

　If he didn't want to inform the Magic Alliance about this, he would have to handle it himself.

　After confirming his participation tomorrow, Dak instructed, "As for tonight, continue to monitor and observe for any unusual developments. This incident is closely related to the World Cup, and the person behind it will certainly not act without reason. If he wants to do something during the World Cup, Easter the day after tomorrow is a crucial time to watch. The probability of him acting tonight is probably low."

　Most importantly, he really needed to rest tonight. Laura nodded slightly and quickly left.

　Unlike Dak, who could fall asleep immediately, she had to give orders and prepare for tomorrow's operation.

　Dak didn't suffer from insomnia due to this unexpected disturbance. He fell asleep quickly and slept soundly after Laura left.

　April 17th, 7:00 AM.

　Dak had finished washing up and left the room.

　He entered the base silently, first going to the room where Thompson was being held captive, and then observing his situation.

　Thompson is still asleep and looks well. Tests show that his vital signs are good... He can sleep for a few more days and nights.

　After confirming that there was nothing unusual about Thompson, Dark left the room, took out the "Orb of Truth," opened it, and glanced at the "Black Eye," confirming that it was also normal.

　The "black eyeball" implanted in Thompson's body has been sucked out by "Shami," which basically confirms that he has lost contact with "that person."

　The two people we need to pay the most attention to right now are Dujur and Stilwell.

　However, according to intelligence reports...

　The two people stayed in their respective rented rooms all night without any unusual behavior.

　But the absence of any abnormality is itself abnormal.

　Leaving aside Dujul, Stilwell was a contestant who made it to the third round of the qualifiers, a member of the top 32 in the World Cup. Even if he didn't make it to the main draw and become the "King of Duels," he was only one step away.

　His performance is enough to make up for the reputational damage caused by his past failures and make him a rising star in the professional dueling world again.

　Even though this circle is nearing its end because no one made it into the top 16, it is not dead yet.

　Stilwell was just one step away from becoming the "King of Duels" and was also the holder of the "God Cards".

　If he has ambition, he only needs to raise his arm and call to arms to become the king of the professional dueling world, gather the hopes of everyone in the industry, regroup, and make a run for the next World Cup.

　For someone who has experienced a fall from the peak to the valley in the past, this is something he cannot let go of.

　But Stilwell did not do that.

　After the game last night, he declined all visitors and locked himself in his room.

　Similar to Dijon.

　Such unusual behavior makes it hard not to suspect that they are plotting something.

　“If they make a move, I can pretend to be Thompson and get involved. But if they all lock themselves in their rooms and don’t move, that’s going to be difficult.” Dak ate the lovingly prepared breakfast by Ms. Joliet and casually browsed the Liberty Times.

　He was relaxed and not agitated by the various questions. The "Liberty Daily" was a newspaper published in the Liberty City, and it carried extensive information about yesterday's preliminary duel.