Eternal Thief

“Alright, you can retract your pressure,” Ace ordered after the boy nodded in understanding, and Cyrus quickly complied.

After the pressure vanished, the boy could finally breathe with ease, but he knew it was far from over. With a dreadful look on his face, he asked, “W-who are you, and what do you want my help with?”

“I like sensible kids like you.” Ace nodded in satisfaction as he sat in front of the boy and asked, “What’s your name, and what’s with the fiasco outside? You should know because of this ‘grand display,’ you have become my target. You shouldn’t flaunt your wealth like this, or you get targeted by someone like me who is less amiable.” The boy blushed with frustration as he didn’t expect this showcase of his status would come to bite him like this, ‘Didn’t honorable master say the more you show your power and status, the more it’ll deter others from taking action against us, or he didn’t know about who I am?’ He started to doubt his dear master’s words and also suspected that Ace wasn’t ignorant about his status.

He was hailed as a genius, and his point of view of the world was quite different from others of his age. So, he didn’t behave like a scared kid and adapted to his dangerous situation. Nonetheless, he answered Ace truthfully in a respectful tone, “I-I’m Pascal, and youngest disciple under Overseer Perry of the Grand Myriad Law Sect! I was going to visit my village.”

Ace was astounded. He wasn’t expecting to catch such a huge fish in this place, and he also realized why those people were paying their respects. Pascal’s status was simply too huge, even more than that of an Inner City Disciple; he was like a young city lord of Sect Alliance City.

“So, you’re one of those geniuses who caught the eye of an overseer from one of the five grand sects, huh? You must be quite talented since your master didn’t seem to mistreat you,” Ace asked curiously. He wanted to know more about these grand sects, and Kai’s information was thoroughly lacking.

Pascal’s face flashed a little when he heard Ace’s praise, and he replied sheepishly, “T-thank you for your kind words; my master really treated me well, and if it weren’t for him recognizing my worth, I wouldn’t have all these things. I’m very grateful to him.” His eyes were shining with reverence and respect when he mentioned his master, and he seemed very appreciative.

Ace could also see Pascal’s intelligence, and for some reason, he didn’t react like a kid his age. Nonetheless, it didn’t matter to him as long as he got what he wanted.

“You’re a good disciple, Pascal, and have a good future ahead of you.” Ace nodded before his voice turned somewhat cold, “So, let’s keep it that way. Since you said you’re going to visit your village, this means that you’re leaving this city, right?”

Pascal gulped dryly, seeing Ace’s stern expression, and quickly nodded, “Yes! My village is not too far away from the Sect Alliance City.”

“Good, then act like you always did. Once we leave the city, I’ll be out of here, and you can have a good stay in your village. In the meantime, answer some of my simple questions just to make our journey together less awkward. Do we have an understanding?” Ace asked while directly staring Pascal in the eyes, wanting to see his reaction.

“Yes, senior!” Pascal quickly agreed since he wasn’t expecting Ace to have this kind of demand. He thought that Ace was after something else and far more troublesome, but if he only wanted a rid outside, then it was very simple.

‘But why didn’t he leave himself if he’s so powerful? Why needs my help? Or is there something more to it?’ He was suspicious nevertheless but didn’t dare to ask out loud.

Ace finally dropped his stern expression, seeing Pascal agreeing, and he relaxed slightly. He then asked curiously, “So, tell me, the Grand Myriad Law Sect where your master belonged, how far is it from Sect Alliance City, or what kind of status does the Grand Myriad Law Sect have among the other grand sects? Oh, and what are you doing here if you’re recognized by him? Shouldn’t you be in the sect instead if you are talented?”

Pascal was confused about these questions but still replied, “I don’t know how far the Grand Myriad Law Sect is from here, but my master once told me that we could easily enter the Grand Myriad Sect territory with the Grand Teleportation Formation in the inner-city hall. This formation is connected with all the sects, but to use it, they need a huge amount of resources akin to the 100 years’ worth they mined from the Spirit Stone Mines.

“That’s why no one used it, and it’s for only emergencies. Other than that, they used the Spirit Ships to travel normally, and I don’t know how much time it takes to travel between the city and sects.

“As for the Grand Myriad Law Sect’s position among the other sects, according to my master, other than the Grand Unity Sect, it is stronger than the remaining three grand sects. “And I’m still here because I don’t want to leave my father alone, and my master respects my wishes and lets me stay here until I turn sixteen before I have to take part in the entrance exams of the Grand Myriad Law Sect.” Pascal described his situation with a hint of pride and gratefulness.

He didn’t tell Ace how good his master was to him because he had heard that the other overseers didn’t care about the mortal families of their disciples and forced them to abandon them so they could focus on their cultivation by sending them away.

Afterward, some of them would never meet their families or simply forget about them and stop caring about their mortal lives. But he got the chance to prepare himself and even permission to meet his father from time to time to say their goodbyes properly. This showed just how kind Perry was to Pascal.

But Ace didn’t know that and wouldn’t care even if he knew since he was focused on the new information, especially about the Spirit Ships, which should be the ships that he saw earlier today.

‘If what he said is true and those teleportation formations need so many resources, then the situation is far more serious than I had anticipated. If they were forced to call for reinforcements, then it would be safe to assume that ‘Heaven’s Advocate’ isn’t a pushover. I have a very bad feeling about this…’

Ace’s expression turned slightly grim as he ordered Pascal, “Tell your driver to move at full speed, or we might not be able to leave this place.”

Pascal was alarmed by Ace’s sudden words, and he could tell something was wrong, but he didn’t have the courage to ask and do as he was told. Their journey was without a hitch until… When the carriage was approaching the colossal city gates, a huge shockwave suddenly appeared, violently shaking the entire carriage and almost turning it upside down. With this shockwave came a vague aura that made everyone’s heart tremble.

But Ace was more bewildered than just shocked because he felt some familiarity with this aura, and he thought with disbelief, ‘Aura of Heavenly Punishment and Heavenly Qi, and why is it so different and strong?!’