Eternal Thief

Others found it almost impossible to climb the mountain staircase and reach the temple portal, but for Ace, it was another test of his will and strength, which he had accumulated in his cultivation journey.

Although the pressure was bone-shattering, Ace was now at the peak of the eighth realm, and his laws were mostly at the peak. He also has the sword law, which has surpassed the mortal sky heaven's limit.

Furthermore, he noticed that the Dismantle Qi around him seemed to reflect the pressure to some extent, which was another surprise for Ace, so he didn't waste any time and climbed without stopping.

Once activated, the Talisman of Heaven's Approval has a 24-hour time limit, while the ascension altar is located in another passage. So, Ace can't afford to waste any time, and he also needs to play his part well once he enters that portal.

After all, he was 99% sure that once someone used that portal, the Heavenly Will would be alerted, so he was ready for such a scenario.

The mountain staircase has 99 staircases, and each step closer to the temple portal meant more pressure from this staircase.

It took Ace around an hour to finally climb all the way to the 99th staircase. He was now standing right in front of the golden vortex, giving off profound, majestic pressure.

'This is the final hurdle between me and the ascension temple!' Ace's eyes shimmered with determination and a hint of anxiety.

After making sure that everything was in place, he stepped into the temple portal. The moment he vanished into it, the staircase and the portal started to turn into the golden mist like an illusion that was never there to begin with.

The golden mountain again turned ethereal, and peace returned to the place. However, at this moment, right above the sky of the ethereal mountain, a colossal eye suddenly formed in the sky!

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In the immensity of golden-white space gilded with an ethereal light, a colossal temple drifted. It was not a cold, sterile white but a luminous one, imbued with the warmth of spun gold. Its form was unlike any temple, a fantastical fusion of architectural styles, each whispering of a different realm.

The base stretches out like a luminous lotus, its petals vast enough to be landing platforms for celestial ships. From this foundation rises a central ziggurat, its steps spiraling upwards like a pathway to the heavens. Babylonian influences meld with the soaring Gothic spires that pierce the golden expanse, their filigreed tracery catching the light like celestial lace.

Towers reminiscent of minarets pierce the sky, their tips adorned with crescent moons that glow with an inner light. But these are not for the call to prayer; they hum with an otherworldly energy. Massive statues of forgotten titans flank the ziggurat's ascent, their forms hinting at the power that resides within the temple.

The most striking feature was the absence of a roof. The temple seemed to bask in golden luminescence, its highest spires reaching out to grasp the unknown beyond. This was the most holy and mysterious place of the Mortal Sky Heaven, the Mortal Sky Ascension Temple!

At this moment, within one of the vast lotus petals, in a vast hall with a floor polished to a mirror sheen that reflects the golden light, a golden portal subtly opened among the center of the massive pillars.

Each pillar, carved from a different kind of otherworldly crystal, rises from the floor to support the unseen ceiling. Strange, bioluminescent flora lines the walls, its petals pulsating softly in time with the unseen hum of laws.

The walls are adorned with murals that depict stories from countless worlds and races, each rendered in a style that reflects the culture it represents. Here, an arcane hieroglyphic frieze mingles with a delicate brushstroke landscape.

The craftsmanship was breathtaking. Polished metals that shimmer with an unnatural sheen mingle with pearlescent stone and what appears to be petrified wood that glows faintly from within.

Scattered throughout the vast hall were doorways, each crafted from a different material and adorned with strange symbols that pulse with a faint inner light. These seem to be the entrances to unknown chambers, each holding its own secrets.

From the golden portal, Antonio's figure appeared and fell on the crystalline floor without moving, and the golden portal behind him vanished!

After just a few seconds, right in front of Antonio's unmoving body, a giant white silhouette made with light appeared. Just with its presence, the space around the hall twisted, threatening to fall apart. This silhouette gave off the aura of laws and heavenly Qi.

At this moment, an invisible force suddenly released from it, enveloped Antonio's figure, and lifted him from the floor. Antonio floats in front of this white silhouette without any breath of life. A pendant shimmers around his neck, and his hand clenches a jade token.

"Despite successfully climbing the stairways of heaven's path, you still ended up dying. You were the first one to reach this place, so I shall commend you for your spunk and forgive you for tainting it. O' pitiful mortal, I shall personally send you back into the embrace of Heaven!" An ethereal voice overlapping between a man and woman rang in the entire hall as if it were law itself.

The next moment, Antonio's body started to turn into a white stream of smoke and vanished into the void, leaving behind only the pendant and the token.

"Return to whence you came!" Another emotionless command rang from the white silhouette before the pendant, and the token vanished.

Thereafter, the white silhouette also fades away, just like it appeared, and the otherworldly hall is again returned to its peaceful state.

But what this white silhouette failed to notice was that behind one of the crystal pillars, an invisible figure stood there holding his breath. Only after confirming that the white figure was gone did he relax slightly.

Ace had used Antonio as a scapegoat to trick the white silhouette into thinking that Antonio had entered but died in the end, and it worked like a charm.

However, Ace was slightly shaken because he had felt the powerful undulation of that silhouette, and it was simply terrifying. Furthermore, Ace was astounded by the language that silhouette spoke—it was the language of the Ancient Gods!