Eternal Thief

As the door of riddles vanished, in Ace’s mind, a riddle rang and engraved itself into it.

“[Sixth Riddle of Paradox: I am the vast expanse where stars doth climb, Yet I’m bound by neither reason nor rhyme. Eternal, yet fleeting, I weave, and I twine, A cosmic dance in the grand design.]

“[In me, all beginnings and endings align, A tapestry woven with secrets divine. I am the echo of each ancient chime, A riddle whispered through reality beguile.]

“[What are we, in this celestial prime? A puzzle unsolved, in the fabric sublime.]

Ace felt a profound mystery behind this riddle. He suddenly felt something appearing in his hand, and when he looked astonishingly, he found a translucent tablet with ethereal words that shifted with colorful pules!

Furthermore, Ace was even more shocked when he found that those words engraved on that translucent tablet were in the language of the ancient god, and it read:

“[Poem of Paradoxical Tale [Incomplete]]

“[They whisper tales, these riddles of the mind, Freedom, they say, is life, a treasure to find. But is it not freedom that leads one astray, Lost in the wilds, where shadows hold sway?]

“[Power, they tempt, a gilded, heavenly crown, To bend the world, on a throne of renown. But power unchecked, a poisonous draught, Can twist and corrupt, a promise bereft.]

“[White’s purity, they claim, brings endless delight, A beacon of hope, dispelling the night. Yet darkness, they say, holds a secret untold, A beauty unseen, worth more than pure gold.]

“[These truths collide, a paradox untold, A tapestry woven, where darkness and gold, Life, death, and freedom, forever entwined, Leave reason adrift, a game for the mind.]

“[This is the dance, the never-ending quest, To find meaning’s core, where opposites crest. For in the unknown, the answer may lie, That truth wears no mask, and lives in the eye!]”

Ace instantly felt an arcane aura from those words, as if they held a profound truth about something, but he felt his current comprehension was not enough even to fathom the true meaning of this Poem of Paradoxical Tale.

‘It’s incomplete. Then how should I complete it, and what is its purpose? Could it be that the answer lies within this sixth riddle of Paradox? Furthermore, just who is this Paradox Ancient? It’s pretty clear this door of riddles was designed by this Paradox Ancient, or it has at least something to do with him, not to mention the Beginning and End Era mentioned by that voice…’ Ace felt extremely confused at this moment.

He felt he was being exposed to secrets that were far from his reach of understanding, but all of them were related to Heaven, which irked him profusely.

“System, what is the answer to this sixth riddle, and do you know something about the Poem of Paradoxical Tale?” Ace decided to ask the system.

“[Since the impending problem has been solved, the system can no longer help you. Furthermore, you should never repeat those riddles or show this tablet to anyone if you don’t want others to die. Only someone with Heavenly Qi can withstand these words. The system can reveal that as long as you can comprehend the sixth riddle, you’ll be qualified to start comprehending its mysteries!]”

Ace was solemn and no longer dared take this lightly. He quickly stowed away the translucent tablet in his thief’s space. But to his surprise, the tablet appeared in the living thief’s space, which meant it couldn’t be stowed in any living storage treasures.

So, he quickly placed it in the corner of the living thief’s space and buried it at the very depth of the grass plain, which was startlingly 1000 meters deep, so that no one could find this dangerous tablet, especially that brat Cyrus!

Only then did Ace focus on the white space again, and the door of riddles was now gone, but at this moment, he heard something moving and looked to the left side and was surprised when he saw the colossal red door was now opening!

Realization dawned on Ace at this moment, ‘So, that’s what the system meant when it said as long as I could clear the Door of Riddles, the Door of Ascension will be opened. Then this made this door the Door of Ascension. Didn’t this mean if I had followed that strange feeling and selected the Door of Ascension first, I would be in huge trouble? What a cunning way to make a trap…’

Although Ace knew this was the enemy stronghold, he admired their craftsmanship and the way they had arranged everything. Even if someone managed to sneak into this place, they would never be able to live for long without the Heavenly Qi and Dismantle Qi protection.

Ace stealthily approached the opening door. As the crimson door of ascension slowly swung open, a wave of cool, ethereal Heavenly Qi washed over Ace. Behind the door, there was darkness, and he couldn’t see anything, but despite that, he could feel no danger. When he looked at the fate map, this time, the dark golden compass needle was pointing directly toward this dark passage.

So, Ace didn’t hesitate and stepped inside. Right after stepping through the threshold, his vision suddenly twisted, and he found himself in a vast hall that defied description.

Its ceiling seemed to vanish into an endless expanse of swirling galaxies, dusted with millions of twinkling stars. Pillars of crackling lightning, frozen in time, held the structure aloft, their tips disappearing into the celestial vault. The floor was a polished expanse of obsidian, reflecting the otherworldly scene above in an inky mirror.

Dominating the center of the hall stood a colossal altar carved from a single, monolithic block of jade. Its surface was smooth as glass, and myriad runes were carved on it. An ethereal green light emanated from within, pulsing in rhythm with the distant heartbeat of a sleeping giant.

Flanking the altar on either side, colossal statues stood. Carved from an unknown, moon-white stone, they depicted angelic figures with six wings of shimmering light. Their faces, were wrapped around with a pair of wings, their outstretched hands, palms facing upwards, seemed to cradle the very essence of the heavens.

Ace couldn’t help but recall the similar black statue that he saw in the Vampyre Clan Army Class Trial. That statue had four pairs of wings and didn’t have the holy aura like those angelic statues; it was completely opposite—pure evil!

But Ace didn’t have time to pay attention to those similarities because he saw something even more startling.

At the far end of the hall, a single, imposing throne stood upon a raised dais. Crafted from a white gold material that seemed glowing in celestial light, it radiated an aura of absolute power. Intricate carvings depicting scenes of unknown battles and cosmic creation snaked across its surface.

However, the throne sat empty, a silent monument to an unseen ruler. Yet, even in its vacancy, the throne held an undeniable presence, as if it awaited the arrival of a being worthy to claim its dominion.

Ace felt his heart race because he couldn’t help but think about that throne that granted him the First Authority of the Darkness upon seeing that empty, golden white throne!

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