As it turned out, supported by numerous up-and-coming nobles and capitalists, the Union developed much faster than Lu Yan had anticipated.

In just over half a month, more than eighty thousand workers joined the Union.

In the past factories, it was considered quite conscientious for factory heads to pay salaries on time and not to deliberately delay payments.

But with the arrival of the Union, factory heads began to improve working conditions, reduce worker exploitation, and even offer compensation for workers injured on the job, an unimaginable dream life for the workers.

Moreover, workers who joined the Union were safeguarded from further exploitation by other gangs.

Within the industrial district, more than a dozen gangs were nearly eradicated in just half a month, leaving only those backed by noble connections or protected by Transcendents.

Thus, the entire industrial district was purged in a short span.

The fundamental reason behind the rapid development of the Union was not just Lu Yan striking deals with the nobles and capitalists, but more importantly, the turmoil at the Welton Clan's mines.

Through Lu Yan's deliberate planning, Sain led the newly formed Union into the mine upheaval, personally killing the Welton Clan's Eighth Rank Transcendent Kleio and several guards, and hung them on street lamps.

This act significantly bolstered the Union's reputation, and afterward, the noble council deliberately suppressed the incident to prevent Church intervention, further increasing the Union and Sain's fame.

Alongside Lu Yan's deals with the nobles and capitalists, which improved workers' treatment, the Union achieved rapid progress.

Half a month later, the Union, with eighty thousand members, had become a formidable force in the industrial district.

However, things reached a point where the Union's growth began to slow.

This was because the factories under the control of the nobles and capitalists who traded with Lu Yan had already joined the Union, and their employees became part of the Union.

Yet the industrial district of Oranck is the largest in the Victoria Kingdom, and the new nobles and capitalists from Violet Manor gathering only occupy a small portion.

Many workers still belong to ordinary factory owners or are governed by major nobles.

Ordinary factory owners were relatively easier to approach; with the Union's vast strength and the support of Sain, a Seventh Rank Transcendent, ordinary factory owners were straightforward to handle, gradually expanding the Union's influence through negotiations.

But those major nobles who controlled numerous factories were entities the Union could not confront at present.

Without needing direct action, major nobles could simply push through council legislation to mobilize Oranck's governmental power against the Union.

However, the Extraordinary gathering at Violet Manor was not exactly a secret, and most major nobles were aware the Union had the backing of a Saint.

As long as the Union didn't infringe on the vital interests of the major nobles, a semblance of peace could be maintained between both parties.

After all, not every generation of the longstanding major noble families has a Saint overseeing them.

Lu Yan knew this and wasn't in a hurry to act.

The Union was merely beginning to take shape, workers banded together for better benefits but had yet to clearly recognize their potential role in this transformation.

Lu Yan was patiently waiting, waiting for an opportunity.

Waiting for those who hadn't joined the Union to realize the brutal exploitation they were enduring.

Waiting for Union members to comprehend the significance of the Union through comparing their lives with ordinary workers.

Only by making them recognize the issues themselves could the Union's potential be truly mobilized.

Of course, during this half month, Lu Yan hadn't stayed idle.

Since collecting abundant knowledge about the Extraordinary Path that day, Lu Yan's ideas about the Underworld Extraordinary Sequence grew more mature.

Next, all he needed was a turning point.

...

The Black Light Clinic was located deep in a gloomy alley in Oranck East District, adjacent to the nearby industrial zone, where layers of soot and smoke gave the surrounding buildings a dilapidated and old appearance.

The clinic's wooden sign swayed in the cold wind, the room inside was dim, with only a few lamps barely illuminating the space.

Such a decrepit clinic, aside from the lowest-tier workers, even the most ordinary citizens of Oranck City wouldn't choose to enter this clinic for treatment.

Anna, thin and frail, her hair dull, clad in the worn-out uniform of a textile factory, slowly approached the Black Light Clinic.

She had been dismissed from the textile factory for several months, still wearing the factory uniform because it was the best clothing she could find.

Everyone entering the textile factory was required to wear uniforms, and this low-quality uniform cost the textile factory workers three days' wages.

Yet the desire to enter the textile factory was relentless.

After Anna was dismissed from the textile factory due to severe illness without severance pay, her family's life rapidly deteriorated.

Anna's trembling hand tightly gripped a kitchen knife hidden under her sleeve.

Despite the illness leaving her face pale, her eyes burned with an uncontrollable fire of hatred.

Months ago, Anna began coughing uncontrollably and had a persistent high fever while working, only to be heartlessly thrown out of the factory gates by the foreman.

Little Wood was forced to ask factory owner George for an advance on wages, George initially refused, but upon hearing Anna was seriously ill, he unexpectedly agreed to Little Wood's request for an advance and personally brought them to this Black Light Clinic.

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