Eternal Thief

The wind howled a lonely tune across the majestic mountain peaks, and colossal birds flew high above these mountain peaks.

Below, shrouded in mist, lay a vast valley. Nestled within its embrace, a majestic complex shimmered of a grand City known as the Sect Alliance City!

The Sect Alliance City was around a hundred thousand years old, and despite the traces of time in this old city, it still stands strong to this day like a fortress.

Deep within the heart of the valley, however, the scene was far less glorious. Here, in the bowels of the earth, a young man named Kai swung his pickaxe with practiced ease, the rhythmic clang echoing through the damp, oppressive air. Sweat beaded on his brow, reflecting the dim glow of the glowing stones embedded in the cavern walls.

Kai was a Miner, the lowest rung on the Sect Alliance City's ladder. His days were spent hacking away at the earth, extracting the very lifeblood of the Sect Alliance City—Spirit Stones!

The air hung heavy with the scent of dust and desperation. Each swing of the pickaxe was a monotonous beat in the symphony of drudgery that was Kai's life. Yet, a spark of hope flickered within him.

Every chipped fragment of spirit stone brought him closer to the qualifying exam, his only chance to escape this subterranean prison and ascend to the rank of an Outer City Disciple of the Sect Alliance City!

Suddenly, a tremor shook the cavern. Dust rained down, momentarily obscuring Kai's vision. He braced himself, fearing a cave-in, a common hazard in these volatile mines.

But as the dust settled, a new sight greeted him. A jagged crack had snaked its way across the cavern wall, revealing a hidden passage veiled in shadow.

Curiosity gnawed at Kai, momentarily eclipsing his fear, and even a hint of deep anticipation grew in his wildly beating heart.

'Could it be there is a hidden treasure here or a heaven-defying opportunity?! Is my luck finally turning for good, and has my chance of rising finally come?! ' He thought, ignoring the gnawing ache in his back; he approached the fissure with ambitious burning in his eyes.

A faint, ethereal glow emanated from within, beckoning him closer. With a deep breath, he squeezed through the narrow opening, his heart pounding a frantic rhythm against his ribs.

The passage opened into a hidden chamber, untouched by time. In the center, bathed in the otherworldly glow, stood an ornate altar.

As the brilliant light of the altar waned, atop it lay a figure shrouded in a tattered black robe. Unconsciousness painted the figure's face with an ethereal serenity.

As Kai cautiously drew closer, he gasped. The figure appeared to be no ordinary man; etched upon his forehead, pulsing with an otherworldly dark light, was a runic mark that seemed like a pentagon, and there seemed to be some kind of mystery hidden within.

As Kai edged closer to the altar, a surge of energy suddenly pulsed outwards, washing over him.

At this moment, the unconscious figure on the altar stirred, a gasp escaping his lips before his eyes fluttered open, and the decagram on his forehead vanished under his skin.

Kai froze, momentarily blinded by the sheer dark brilliance that radiated from the figure the moment he opened his eyes before it vanished without a trace. But that momentary aura released from this man made him shudder in fear as if he were in the presence of some ancient being.

The man has otherworldly handsomeness with unearthly perfection and appears to be in his early twenties. The man's skin seemed to shimmer with an inner light as if crafted from moonlight and stardust.

His long, inky hair, previously straight, now flowed with a life of its own, cascading down his back in ethereal waves that seemed to defy gravity.

His captivating dark blue eyes were like swirling galaxies, flecked with stardust and harboring the secrets of the cosmos. His face's chiseled perfection seemed to have been elevated after he regained consciousness, each line imbued with an otherworldly grace.

But this otherworldly man was marred by a stark contrast. A faint, swirling darkness emanated from beneath his skin, a counterpoint to the celestial light. It pulsed with a chaotic energy.

This darkness wasn't malevolent, not entirely. It held a strange allure filled with immense power, yet it felt alien, unsettling even.

The tattered robes barely concealed the imposing physique beneath—a lean, muscular build with hidden latent power. This man in tatter robes was Ace, who was finally awake from his strange state!

"Where am I?" Ace muttered as he looked up at the stone ceiling and sat up.

His gaze swept across the cavern with a newfound awareness. His eyes, the celestial galaxies, seemed to lock onto Kai at this moment, and for a fleeting moment, Kai, who was awestruck by Ace's appearance, felt as if his very soul was laid bare.

At this moment, Kai realized that this might not be some heaven-defying opportunity, but he might've awakened a being of immense power from its slumber, and his life was no longer in his control!

Ace's eyes narrowed when he saw Kai standing frozen there with his breath caught in his throat. Ace's sudden awakening and his early awe-inspiring aura had momentarily paralyzed him.

As Ace's brilliance faded after he regained consciousness, Kai's vision adjusted while Ace observed him.

Kai's appearance wasn't much to look at by conventional standards. Years spent hunched over a pickaxe, he had etched lines on his face, a map of toil and hardship. Sweat still clung to his brow, reflecting the faint, ethereal glow that persisted around them.

His clothes, a dull brown uniform of the Miners, hung loosely on his wiry frame. Dust and grime coated him.

Yet, despite the outward appearance of a common laborer, there was a spark in Kai's eyes. A spark of curiosity, perhaps even defiance that flickered amidst the swirling vortex of fear and awe he felt in Ace's presence.

It was a look that spoke of a man who, despite his lowly position, hadn't surrendered his spirit to the drudgery of the mines.

Ace's first reaction was to use Soul Probe on him to get the information; however, when he tried to use his Qi, he was startled because he felt as if his Qi were extremely heavy to move and seemed blocked.

Since he didn't have time to figure it out, he spoke again while the wariness in his eyes grew dangerously, "Who are you, and where is this place?"

Although he just awakened from that nightmare, and it was hard to tell if this was an illusion or reality, he had a feeling that this was the reality!