Eternal Thief

Ace’s heart raced with numerous moments the moment he saw the black fate point suddenly entering the map’s vicinity.

Although it was still far away and might not have been discovered yet, it was still a problem since it would be hazardous for him.

Yet after coming so close, Ace didn’t want to retreat like that as he withdrew the Sin Law’s tendril smoothly, leaving the ash-glyph as a slow heartbeat on the door.

He had not opened the gate. He had not even pulled the latch. But the seal seemed to have acknowledged him. That small, terrible fact altered the calculus.

After glancing at the fate map, he calmed his mind and sat back on his heels, and let his mind run through the consequences.

’If the Sin Law could converse with the runes, then there might be a way to open it without a key, like a sequence of correspondences, an emotional resonance, or an offering of a particular vice or virtue that would unbind the pattern. That also explained why the Law of Sin permeated the place; the door demanded understanding as much as force. It’s a test, or a ransom…’ Ace’s mind raced as he looked at the door profoundly.

However, the time was thin. The black fate point seemed to be moving around, which meant it might soon trace the disturbance back to this location.

At this moment, a single thought came to his mind, the simpler option— Pixy’s rank-drop, or his thief symbol summoning. However, they would now also be riskier, as any sudden attempt would be visible against that black fate point.

Ace closed his eyes and exhaled as he made a plan in three parts, ordered by risk and preference.

The first was to probe deeper with Sin Law. He might be able to figure it out or learn the mechanism of this strange door, which has a connection with the Sin Law.

The second was to prepare contingencies. He would contact Pixy to ask how much a rank suppression would cost and whether she could perform it discreetly. If the price were worth it, he’d buy an opening that avoided a messy trace.

The last was naturally the Thief Symbol. If both options failed or the black fate point closed the corridor, he’d summon the thief symbol to slip past the seal and figure out a way to exit afterward.

At that moment, he opened his eyes; the corridor was a dark pressure around him. The ash glyph glowed faintly and patiently on the door.

Ace smiled without mirth and muttered with a resolute tone, “All right!”

Thereafter, he drew another ribbon of Law of Sin, this time more precise, from the Law of Sin, not just from one of its components. Then Ace moved it; he wasn’t probing many runes at once, but tuning one to the next, like connecting a puzzle.

On the fate map, the black fate point is currently tightening on the outer lanes, increasing pressure.

Although Ace felt it, he did not flinch. He had started the process, and he would finish it on his terms, as he could feel the Sin Law’s strong reasoning with the door.

At that moment, the door pulsed again under the Sin Law’s touch as if awakening or…considering.

Suddenly, when the ribbon of Sin Law connected with all the eerie runic symbols, a single new rune flared white, then collapsed into a pattern!

Ace’s eyes widened with a hint of ecstasy as he seemed to recognize this pattern after he comprehended those runes of the Sin Law and merged them with it. It was very strange but magical!

’It’s a subtle lock-phrase that hinted at a ritual sequence! The shaping of a sin and its contrapositive. It really didn’t have any key and only someone with Sin Law can open it!’

Furthermore, this pattern was profound, as he felt his understanding of the Sin Law had increased again, and with it, the Law of Sin seemed to become slightly more powerful.

Suddenly, Ace converted his primordial spirit Qi into pure law of Sin and started to draw upon that pattern with precise control, like filling a drawing with color. He instantly felt the intense and profound law power oozing from the door, far stronger than before, as if it were awakening from slumber.

’It’s indeed like this!’ Ace was excited, but more cautious, as he kept an eye on the Live Fate Map.

He wasn’t just worried about that black fate point but also about any danger that lay behind that door.

Ace’s breathing slowed as he steadied his hand, his primordial spirit Qi flowing like liquid obsidian as he carefully completed the last stroke of the pattern. Every line he drew seemed to resonate with the glyphs, each one trembling as if chains were loosening around them.

At this moment, the final stroke connected.

In that instant, a detonation of vile abyssal Qi erupted outward. It wasn’t simply Qi—it was a torrent of madness, laced with pure, corrosive Sin Law. It poured out like a shattered dam, drowning the entire corridor in crimson-black mists!

The pressure was so immense that Ace’s robes fluttered violently, and his Law defenses instinctively flared. Even so, his skin prickled with both frost and heat, a terrifying mental corruption!

However, the Law of Sin seemed to block that corruption, and instead it seemed to be becoming stronger!

With difficulty, Ace glanced at the Live Fate Map and the black fate point, which had been circling in the outer lanes, and suddenly veered sharply. Now it was moving directly toward him with terrifying speed.

Ace’s heart sank, his expression turning grim. ’Damn it… I’ve drawn too much attention!’

He cast his gaze back to the door, anxiety flickering in his eyes. The enormous structure, once cold and silent, was now glowing a dark, bloody crimson. The throne-glyphs pulsated like malignant hearts.

A shiver ran down his spine as suddenly, his Law Thief Sense screamed a warning as if something was terribly wrong.

However, before Ace could react, before he could summon his thief summon, or even consider fleeing, an unimaginable suction force erupted from the door.

It wasn’t merely physical; it was soul-deep. His body froze in place as if shackled by invisible chains, and then his entire being wrenched forward.

“—Tch!” Ace barely had time to curse before he was dragged in, utterly helpless!

However, Ace didn’t use his avatar of Holy Twilight’s reverse-summing ability because he wanted to see what was behind that door, as the fate map still didn’t reveal any danger behind it!

After making this decision, there was no time to resist, no time to trigger the Thief Symbol. The suction swallowed him whole, and his figure blurred—then vanished.

However, it wasn’t just Ace who had vanished, so too did the door!

The colossal, abyssal Grade-9 sealing gate that had loomed before him, the source of suffocating majesty—it was gone, erased as though it had never existed.

Only the scarlet mist lingering in the tunnel hinted that something monumental had just occurred.

For a breath, silence reigned before suddenly…

“ROOOOOAAAAARRRR!!!”

A ghastly roar shattered the silence, echoing like thunder through the mines. It was the cry of something ancient, furious, and boundless. The walls trembled violently, rubble cascading down.

But that was only the beginning, as from every direction, deeper in the labyrinthine tunnels, more terrifying roars answered back.

One after another. Dozens. Hundreds. The entire mine quaked as if a hive of Abyssal Lords and even Grade Lords had been struck with a brand of fury.

The corrupted abyssal beasts had gone mad.

That day, the infamous Black Hermit Mines—once the beating heart of the city’s prosperity—turned into a pit of hell.

Abyssal beasts rampaged, roaring with frenzied wrath. The very ground quaked as they tore at everything in their path.

The Black Hermit City above, proud and indifferent in its cruelty, was thrown into chaos. Merchants and cultivators alike stared in shock as the ground trembled and beastly roars rolled like thunder from beneath.

None yet knew the truth. That a single thief had vanished into a crimson abyssal maw, dragging with him the seal that had bound the depths for countless ages…

But all would soon learn that the Black Hermit Mines had awakened, and with it, disaster beyond comprehension!