Eternal Thief

Chapter 9 - First Thievery!

Outer Region of River Flower City in the middle of the night. 

Pill markets in the outer region remained completely open and running like usual because the alchemy pill trade will never stop no matter what the circumstances or time were, especially for the cultivators. 

In a dark valley near Fatty Billy's shop, a pair of dark blue eyes observed the lit shop coldly in the dark. Ace was here watching the shop for an hour now because he thinks that every shop closes at midnight just like in other areas of the city.

Ace thinks that it will be easy for him to invade the shop when it's close, but he didn't imagine that the pill market in the middle of the night was like the day. If he has known this he would've made more adjustments to his plan.

'What to do now?' He was quite depressed by the current situation.

'I only have one day left I have to do it no matter what I have to do it.!!' Ace encourages himself and calms his nerves. He continues to look around for any new ideas but nothing comes to mind.

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In Fatty Billy shop,

Fatty Billy was in an extremely sullen mood because yesterday a 'rich kid' from the inner region (in his opinion) came to his shop and 'promise him' that he would come with his family and purchase his pills.

It was clearly a golden opportunity for him to befriend a family of the inner region. But to his dismay that brat never comes and that made him extremely furious. He even beat his servants for no good reason.

It's already the middle of the night and business was slow so Billy was getting bored and sleepy. He simply decided to take a nap like he always does this time around. Billy didn't even have a shopkeeper because he didn't trust anyone but himself when it's come to money. That's why he manages the shop himself and closes it in the middle of the day some time for rest.

In the valley, Ace was silently waiting for any possible opening or any chance, he was observing Billy's shop and his every move like a hawk. He was there for some time now and saw that Billy was getting lazy and even bobbing some time.

'Just a little bit more!' Ace thought with full of expectation.

Suddenly, he saw Bill closing his eyes and this was the opportunity. This was his only chance and after waiting restlessly for five minutes he finally made his move.

'Now or never!' After taking a deep breath Ace activates his stealth skill. Ace felt a mysterious power or Qi begin to circulate in his whole body and his figure begins to become transparent and slowly faded into the darkness.

After going in stealth Ace begin to active his second-most important skill the silent steps. He felt the Qi making his feet extremely light like feathers. 

Ace darted towards the shop like an arrow, he was extremely cautious of his surroundings. Holding his breath, he reached the shop's entrance and successfully entered it without alerting Billy.

Now that Ace was in the light of the shop if someone saw him with a little bit more focus they will be able to locate him because his stealth was not perfect yet.

As he enters the shop fatty Billy's eyes were closed and one can hear some snorts coming from his mouth. 'This bastard fall asleep good.' Ace thought happily.

Ace directly went to the rear of the shop with his silent steps. He saw there was nothing besides a normal wall, one couldn't even imagine that there was a secret door right here.

Ace stop using his two skills after reaching the wall, one could see beads of sweat on his head. It was extremely tiring to use both skills at the same time when he wasn't even a cultivator. He didn't have time to take a break and directly activates his third skill True and False eyes.

Ace pupils turn golden and suddenly gleaming grey vertical lines on the wall come to his view. By connecting these vertical lines one could vaguely see an outline of a door. Strangely there was a little 'dark hole' between one part of these grey lines. It was right at the middle right corner of the hidden door.

Ace wasn't surprised by this dark hole because he knew this is a flaw in the array. He simply placed his index finger directly on the dark hole position and with a thought activates the skill, Treasure Opening Hands, 'First form of treasure opening 'Finger Key'.

There was a total of five forms in this skill and 'Finger Key' was the first. Ace was barely able to master the second form with extreme difficulty. Maybe he was desperate to save Aline so he didn't notice his unusual speed of learning these skills.

The moment the skill was active, his index finger became metallic, and a mysterious pattern appeared on his whole index finger. The moment those patterns appeared on his finger it began to insert into the dark hole like a key.

In his mind information about this array structure begun to appear. Ace wasn't fazed by it in the slightest because he already knew it would going to happen and after getting the information about this array he subconsciously begins to move his finger mysteriously.

'click'

With a mild voice, the door formed in front of Ace.

'So that how this skill feels when it works, it simply mysterious!' Ace's forehead was filled with tiny beads of sweat but there was clear excitement on his pale face as he thinks.

Since the 'illusion array' was already disabled, it didn't take long before he opens the 'lock array' with 'Finger Key' as well.

Ace hurriedly grabbed the door handle and slowly open it without making any sound. The door crack opened and the crack he peeks inside.

Inside the hidden room, Ace saw those two worries were sleeping in corner of the room like logs. 'They're also sleeping looks like luck is on my side.'

Sleeping at this time was typical for those two guards because no one dares to steal from fatty Billy. The biggest reason for that was no one knows where his treasury was, and even if someone knows they have to deal with this illusion and lock array first because the moment someone touches it the alarm would go off and everyone would become alert. That's why those two were sleeping without even caring for the security of this room.

Ace was special though, he has skills from the system. No one can imagine that with his true and false eyes he can see flaws in the array and even he sees them no one would've believed that he has a skill like Treasure Opening Hands too. He was a perfect thief with these skills.

Ace slowly enters the room and saw those two muscle brains sleeping without even care about their surroundings. He coolly passed them and active his true and false eyes again. After scanning the entire room, he finally caught sight of what he was looking for.

'Oh, so that's where the treasury was hidden'. Ace saw in the down right corner there was a little jagged wall there and hurriedly goes there.

Ace reached the irregular wall with extreme caution and squatted there, after confirming again that those two idiots are still snoring he places his two fingers on the empty uneven corner of the wall.

Just like before he saw grey lines forming a little door of a treasury but this time there were two dark holes between grey lines. Ace places his two fingers on two dark holes, 'Treasure Opening Hands second form 'Two Fingers Keys.'

As soon as he activates the skill his index and mid fingers become metallic and begin to enter in dark holes like before. However, this time a new type of pattern was form on them. Just like last time he felt information about this lock array was flowing into his brain.

Ace mysteriously moves his fingers, each of his fingers was doing different kinds of movements. This was quite the scene to behold, and one could see mysteries of Treasure Opening Hands' second form.

After 4 seconds pass,

'tinggg'

A sharp noise resounded in the deathly silent room.

Ace was in a deep trance-like state when he heard this sound it wasn't that loud but in silence, it was quite loud. His complexion was ashen and had a near heart attack, he quickly looks towards those two sleeping guards but they were still sleeping.

'It seems like they didn't hear anything. Sigh' Ace has sight of relief.

Acee swiftly shifts his attention towards the open little door of the treasury. He lightly opens it without making any sounds. He saw inside of the treasury was fill with shining red color Ruby coins.

Ace had never seen this much money before in his entire life. There were more than 2000 Ruby Coins there. Because Billy believed that today he would meet with 'rich inner region family' so he quickly shifted his assets here to shows off his wealth and even bribe them to take him in the inner region. However, that gives benefits to little Ace instead, there were more than 4000 Ruby coins inside the treasury.

Ace grabs the string bag from his back after opening its string, he smoothly begun to collects ruby coins excitedly. After two minutes of 'hard work' he collected every single coin, he's not going to leave even a single coin for that swindler.

Now that he collect all coins in this little treasury there were only two red bottles left. Ace didn't think much of them because they also seemed like all those other pill bottles inside this room. But little did he know that these two Pill Bottles were more valuable than fatty Billy's entire wealth.

After cleaning the treasury Ace felt he was dreaming, he never imagined that one day he would steal from someone and steal this big of wealth at that it was all like an impossible fantasy.

Ace didn't dwell on it for long since the mission was not complete yet and begin to moves towards the shelves. He gradually filled his bag with all the pill bottles inside the room and it became quite heavy.

It was packed with pills and coins Ace think that he was in an illusion, 'I'm rich!' he thought frantically.

Now that thievery was finished it was time to escape, Ace slowly left the hidden room while those two idiots were still sleeping.

'I wonder what would that Swindler do with them when he finds out about this foray.' Ace couldn't help but wonder. He closes the treasury door like before with 'ting' the illusion and lock array active again.

Now was only the main door left between him and riches.

Ace's face was pale as a ghost and his breathing was rough, sweat was dripping from his face and his clothes were almost drenched in it. This entire thievery put quite a strain on his little body and if not for his willpower he would've fallen right here and now.

Ace grit his teeth and active his stealth again with his current condition he can only use this skill and even that was like a flickering candle. He moves towards the main entrance as mildly as possible, now that his bag was full he got slower and his energy was almost used up. If any misshape happens now he was doomed.

Fatty Billy was still sleeping soundly and was having a dream of the inner region when he heard his shop door was open just now. He thought that it was just a customer so he lazily opens his eyes. With his hazy eyes, he saw there was no customer there at all.

What he saw was a fully black clothes-wearing person even his face was fully black. Fatty was still in a sleepy state so rub his eyes to see more clearly. But the black clothes person was the same and he was now running for some reason.

Fatty Billy face turn pale with fright and screams on top of his lungs "GHOSTTTTTTTTTTTT!!!!!!!"

His voice was so loud that nearby shop owners also got frightened and quickly comes out of the shops to see what has happened when they also saw a black clothing person running in the direction of the inner region.

Their faces were the same as Billy and someone yells in horror, "S-someone quickly go and find a shaman and asks for his help there is a loose ghost loitering around here go quickly!!!"

The whole outer region pill market was thrown into turmoil.

Fatty Billy was the most frightened of the bunch because he saw the ghost exiting his shop. He quickly goes towards his hidden room to get his guards here for his own protection. He hurriedly waved his key card on the hidden door and enter that hidden room. When he saw those two sleeping like idiots his face turns dark as charcoal and became extremely angry.

"You two lazy bastards get up quick there is gho…" Billy was just about to say 'ghost' when his vision abruptly fell on the extremely empty. Yes, it was empty!

Fatty Billy felt the world was spinning around him and his vision turns dark, he drops on the floor with a 'thud'.

The two guards open their drowsy eyes when they saw Billy on the floor and his fat face was pale without any trace of blood and they quickly go to him and ask hurriedly "Boss what happened?"

"Look around and tell me what did you see?" Billy said in a hoarse voice. He was hoping for a miracle and thought that he was so afraid of the ghost that his eyes were playing tricks on him. That's why he asked them for confirmation.

When those two guards heard his question, they were very puzzled as they turn around to look but they also think it was very empty here. Yes empty! Their face also became pale and their knees turn into jelly, they also drop to the floor like Billy.

"Bo-boss did y-y-you move pills away?" The tall one asks fatty with a trembling voice.

"I'll fucking move your mom now I'll move your sister with her as well I'll fucking move your entire family!" Fatty bark and started cursing like a dog that was on the verge of going berserk.

Suddenly Billy thought of something and his heart skip a beat. He stopped kicking those two idiots and run towards the corner of the room. He quickly took out a red key card with a pattern on it. He waves the key card to the uneven wall and opens the little treasury and just like he thought it was also empty!

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAA GONE ALL GONE EVERYTHING IS GONE!?!" Billy laughs like a lunatic as the fat on his body tremble up and down. His entire wealth has been gone in smoke just like that.

"H-how the hell this happens you two were fucking with each other's when someone completely empties the entire room??! Just w-who in the hell did it damn it…." Fatty howls like a madman at those two idiots when he remembers that black ghost.

"Q-quickly go now and find that black-clothed person for me. He's definitely the one who stole my wealth go quick. I-if you two return empty hand I'll fucking chop you in million pieces, goooooooooooooooo!!!" Billy shrills angrily as his eyes were bloodshot.. He nearly choked to death in anger.