Eternal Thief

On top of the once active volcano, 

Ace looked around with astonishment, he saw the bottom of the volcano was filled with small charred craters and piles of rocks. 

"So, the entire golem army was annihilated by heavenly punishment." Ace click his tongue in wonder as he looked toward the clear sky. 

The emerald dome, as well as emerald mist, was also gone, only barren wasteland remained with no trace of life. Perhaps after many years this would be turned into a forest or those kingdoms would ingurgitate it, no one knows, but the once most dangerous place of middle lands was no more! 

Ace didn't linger for long and left, he still doesn't know if his pursuers were caught in heavenly punishment or not, he didn't was to take any unnecessary risks. 

--- 

Currently, many people were swarming the once barren earthen mist forest. 

All because the infamous dreadful emerald mist mysteriously vanished a few hours ago, and all the strange monsters seemed to vanish with the mist as well.

This news was quickly spread because there were many people outside the forest because of the thief hunt. 

Since the emerald mist and monsters vanished, many people decided to try their luck to find some nature treasures because the earthen mist forest was quite old and no one saw what was deep inside. 

As for those rulers and nightmare ghosts' personals staying right outside the inner circle boundary, they naturally didn't stay put, and after making sure the mist wasn't coming back, they enter the inner region and see what cause all this. 

Since the danger was also non-exist, everyone scattered to search for the thief and river core cultivators who enter inside before them. But it was all just an excuse because they all wanted to search for treasures alone. 

However, there was nothing in the earthen mist forest because the emerald mist was toxin and something made by the elemental orb, so it was impossible for the orb would let anything born that could jeopardize its safety. 

A person, clad in black while his face was hidden behind a black mask, was at the edge of the inner circle and about to reach the boundary between mysterious and inner circles. 

"Oh, you must be from Nightmare Ghosts organization, right?" 

The assassin was startled by this nonchalant voice, but before he could react, he felt a powerful strike right behind his neck and his eyes rolled upward as he loses consciousness. 

Ace's hooded figure appeared and catch the falling assassin. 

'Now let's see if I could probe your memories with my 1st stage heavenly sea realm cultivation despite you're a Qi flowing river cultivator.'

Ace wanted the information about nightmare ghosts' hideouts because they were the only ones hidden from public eyes and hindrance in his mission. 

That's why when he felt the stealth skill this guy was using, he decided to test his prowess on him. To his astonishment, this assassin didn't even notice him, even when he was one foot away from it. 

This made Ace elated and more assure that the system didn't lie to him about being ten-time powerful than a Qi river cultivator with nine slate foundations (Extraordinary Qi River). He easily subdued this flowing river assassin with six foundation slates (Medium Qi River) after startling him. 

However, he still didn't know if this rule applied with his soul cultivation as well, his soul probing should only work on empty river cultivators, but now things were different though. 

'Soul probing.' The moment he activated the ability, 'Oh, it's working! Hahaha, this means my soul is more powerful than a flowing river cultivator!' 

Ace was thrilled as he kept receiving the assassin memories in mass. 

However, his expression changed as he looked through the memories of this purple assassin. 

The more he saw, the more his eyes turned cold, toward the end, Ace was emitting killing intent! 

He saw how these assassins were trained. First, they were kidnapped at a very young age and forced to sign the loyalty (slave) contracts. Then they trained in the art of shadow killing. Their first kill always was a fellow member in their training camp and at the end of their training, they had to kill their friends. 

But this wasn't the end of this cruel training, when they pass the training camp their first mission always be to kill their families, so they could become exempt from emotions!   

'These animals!' Ace's eyes were icy cold as he saw all the history of this purple assassin. He could even feel the emotions this person had when he killed his mother and father under the forcefulness of the loyalty contract. 

He suddenly had an urge to eradicate the entire Nightmare Ghosts Organization, but he knew it was a pipe dream because their roots were too deep, and he had to kill their leader in high-level lands who was a Qi soul level expert. 

Ace take a deep breath to calm himself, and he took off the person's mask and said, "System scan his face."

The white memory gem emerged on Ryan's face the moment Ace gave the command, 

=====

[Face 5, has been successfully recorded in memory gem.]"

=====

"This put you out of your misery." Ace's eyes turned cold as he looked at the unconscious assassin, "Soul bullet!" 

The purple assassin's body trembled slightly before his steady breath stopped as he died! 

In Ace's eyes, this person was nothing but an empty husk of a killer, and killing him was giving him the mercy he deserved long ago. 

As for nightmare ghosts, he had a horrendous impression of them now. 

Dark lightning flash through Ace's hand as it covered the dead assassin's entire body, and the next moment it started to incinerate under the power of dark despair lightning. 

Ace didn't have the skill to control lightning, so he was using it so crudely. 

"Who are you and what are you doing?" A cold yet melodious voice sounded when the corpse was completely incinerated and only a charred body impression was left on the group. 

Ace coolly turned around and saw an extremely gorgeous woman in a light blue dress, even though the dress wasn't too revealing, her curvaceous figure was displayed! 

Her snowy face was impassive yet perfect, and her light-blue intelligent eyes were filled with coldness as she looked at Ace's hidden face behind a long hood that looked like a dark abyss. 

This woman was none other than the most beautiful woman of the entire middle-level lands, the Lavender Queen!

Ace nonchalantly looked at this cold beauty which was a piece of art, but he was unmoved and said, "Where are your manners? Shouldn't you introduce yourself before asking my name?" 

Lavender Queen eyes turn murderous, no one dares to speak with her like this in entire middle-level lands, she was the Queen of the second rank kingdom, not some random woman. 

Yet, this unknown deviant dare to talk with her like this, she was instantly enraged!

"You have no right to know my name!" 

"Oh, I also don't want to know either, don't worry." Ace shrug his shoulder and continued, "You see I let you this close to me because you should've possessed a lot of influence with your peak stage Qi river cultivation base so made an announcement… Sky Stealer is coming for three giants' treasuries if they had guts, don't hide them from their original places!" 

Finished his words, Ace dissolved in the darkness of night like a phantom, leaving a dumbfounded Lavender Queen behind. 

After Ace's sudden departure, the Lavender Queen quickly snapped out of her stupor and mumbled in incredulity, "H-he was that… thief!" 

She used her senses but didn't find any trace of Ace like he never existed and this sent chills to her spine, "I should leave this place and alert everyone that he's still alive!" 

She quickly left to find the others, especially the missing Qi river core cultivators because after encountering the thief himself she finally understood she won't be able to catch him nor did she have any confidence because she can't even sense him if he wanted to sneak attack her!

Lavender Queen was only a little bit relaxed because Ace didn't show any killing intent toward her, and he wanted her to announce his preposterous audacious claim!   

'Hmph…a mere thief dared to talk so boldly in front of me. I'll remember it!' Lavender Queen thought in resentment, but there was a hint of fear in her beautiful eyes. 

Ace appeared hundreds of meters away from Lavender Queen and sneered, "She might not announce it now, but she will once the mayhem will begin." 

Ace knew once he raid the three giants' treasures they will suppress the news to save themselves from humiliation and this would greatly affect this thief's fame, which he won't be going to let happen. 

That's why he let this newcomer so close to him and told her, his valiant claim, and he wasn't just done with only one, though!