Eternal Thief

Ace couldn't help but stare at the jade scroll and then Pen, who had vanished towards the central continent. 

'That was too easy…' He thought with a hint of disbelief as he never thought someone as strong as Pen could be tricked so easily, or it was just him who didn't know how scared Pen had been and how badly he wanted to find a way towards the ascension. 

Now Ace not only got his hands on this jade scroll that was allegedly a glittering silver-level opportunity, but he even sent Pen to wreak havoc in the central continent. Everyone knew who the strongest person in the central continent was, the Union Lord and that guy was too mysterious. 

'If that dumb sea king can really kill the Union Leader, then the entire new power structure will be disrupted again. Even if he can't, he would at least cause a huge commotion. 

'Whichever ends up happening, it'll be in my favor. And by the time that dumb sea king realized what had happened, I would be long gone. He might start wreaking havoc in other continents because of it, which is also good.' Ace smiled coldly as this entire scenario he had created was in his favor. The chaos there was, the easier it was for him to reap benefits from it. 

'I need to get the hell out of this place just in case that guy's brain works earlier.' Ace thought as he stowed away the jade scroll for now and headed toward the depth of the island where the heavenly thunder struck Pen. 

Ace didn't forget about the treasure that Pen was guarding, and he probably didn't have the guts to demand it after he fell for Ace's lies. 

The island has a thick forest, which was now almost burned to the ground, and many charred creators were here and there. It was the aftermath of the destruction that the heavenly thunder caused, and Ace knew all the living beings in this place had been killed. 

At this moment, Ace finally spotted a massive creator with the thickest aura of heavenly thunder on the entire island except for the place where he had killed the HTM. 

Ace frowned slightly as he didn't spot anything, and he opened the live fate map as this place now entered his thief sense range. 

But before he could lay his eyes on the map, Moira's startled voice with a hint of ecstasy rang, "Sir Ace! I think I sense the material needed for my completion!" 

Ace was pleasantly surprised by Moira's alarming revelation. The Enteral Thief Fate Compass was the strongest and most helpful treasure he had. In Ace's eyes, it was almost on the level of the system. 

After his recent breakthrough, the Enteral Thief Fate Compass was now a grade-6 treasure, and as Ace's thief sense grew, its range was also growing. 

The last time Moira found two materials for the completion scheme in the regal fiend tower, the black broken mirror. However, Ace had to use it to wake Eva and also to awaken a trace of Void Abyss Devil bloodline in her. 

Ace felt sorry for Moira, but he knew his priorities. Today, Moira found another material, and this time, he wasn't planning on using it for another purpose. 

Ace knew how rare those materials were, and now he understood why Pen risked going against the heavenly punishment to guard it. 

"What material is it?" Ace asked with ecstasy as he moved toward the creator because he could now see the silver area in the live fate map. 

"It's the ten thousand years old Illusion Grass! It's hidden deep underground, and I think it's essential is not complete." Moira stated with uncertainty. 

Ace frowned, "That sea king might have absorbed the missing essential. Is it still sufficient?" 

"Yes, we need the roots of ten thousand years old Illusion Grass. If anything, this also played in our favor because its essential is running thin. It's unable to protect itself. Or if it was still healthy, I don't think Sir Ace could escape the illusion it creates as a natural protection barrier to avoid predators." Moira conveyed.

Ace raised an eyebrow. He hadn't expected that even with his current power, that herb could affect his mind. This means Pen helped him again this time. 

"If it's that amazing, then we should be thankful to Pen." Ace chuckled as he finally appeared in the center of the creator and finally saw a deep hole. 

"Indeed. But you should also know that ten thousand years old Illusion Grass won't be easy to retrieve. If you made a single mistake, the entire plant will die, and I think that's the reason that sea beast didn't take it but instead decided to absorb it directly." Moira revealed with concern. 

Ace was about to jump in the hole when he stopped and frowned, "This is a big problem then. Even that guy wasn't able to retrieve it. How am I supposed to do it?" 

He didn't think of this kind of problem to arise as he overlooked this important fact in his excitement. If a sea king like Pen wasn't able to take this ten thousand years old Illusion Grass, then was he capable?

"I-I'm sorry, I don't know what to do either." Moira's apologetic, childish voice sounded. 

"It's not your fault. You were very helpful in providing me with this information. Let me ask the expert as well." Ace consoled Moira before he questioned the system. 

"Hey, system, since you are the one who draws that completion scheme, you should also know how to handle those materials, right?" 

"[As long as Host touched any material mentioned in the completion scheme and pay 10 Million TP, system can directly absorb it into the Eternal Thief Fate Compass.]"

The system didn't beat around the bush and directly revealed its demands. 

Ace pursed his lips, "You really are a black-hearted businessman." 

Still, he was happy about this development as now he no longer needed to worry about damaging anything. 

"See? Problem solve just like that." Ace said with a chuckle. 

Moira sheepishly said, "T-thank you." 

"What, thank you? I should be the one thanking you. Without you, I don't think I will ever be able to reach this point safely." Ace solemnly declared. He was really grateful to Moira for all the help and directions the compass has provided in his journey. He didn't think of Moira as a mere treasure spirit but a person and his friend. 

Without hesitation, Ace jumped into the hole, and as he did deeper and deeper, he felt powerful martial Qi rising like a stream and a refreshing scent filled the air, and Ace felt his mind become clear just by breathing. 

After dropping for around 1900 feet, Ace finally spotted the end, and he used the sky steps to halt his free fall. He jumped down and landed on the floor, which was covered with a layer of crystal yellowish liquid. 

Just by standing here, Ace found his EXP was rising by 3 points per second. Furthermore, the scent was so intoxicating Ace wanted to stay there forever. 

"Sir Ace!" Moira's loud yell jolted Ace from his daydream. 

Ace felt his heart turn cold when he found out what had happened, "I almost got affected, didn't I?" 

"Yes. I didn't think the ten thousand years old Illusion Grass would still be this strong." Moira said gloomily.

"Thank you again." Ace wore a grave expression with a hint of fear because if Moira hadn't used her voice, he might've really fallen into some illusion. 

At this moment, he finally spotted the origin of this powerful martial Qi and that scent. 

It was golden grass with seven grass blades, and they were 3 meters tall, and faint yellow patterns like runes were engraved on the grass blades. 

Ace's eyes shone with a hint of elation, "Ten Thousand Years Old Illusion Grass!"