Eternal Thief

Chapter 1710: Cold feet (2)

Ace remained standing in the underground chamber, his brows deeply furrowed as the cryptic system notification continued to linger in his mind.

’What ancient covenant? What Silent Watcher? And most importantly...what exactly is the "Mark above"?’ He couldn’t make heads or tails of it

Ace had already considered countless possibilities, but every single one led nowhere. The only thing he was certain of was that the system was hiding something from him again.

’That damn system...’ Ace’s expression darkened.

Yet before he could continue questioning it, something strange happened. The pressure that had been blanketing the entire Undead Cradle suddenly began to weaken.

Ace’s expression changed as he also noticed it instantly, "Hm?"

He immediately raised his head, and the incomparably pure and terrifying pressure that had descended from the heavens only moments ago felt like it was disappearing.

Ace narrowed his eyes as he thought, ’What’s happening now?’

He naturally couldn’t ’see’ through the countless layers of earth and space above him with just the passive Spirit Sense of the Primordial Law Thief Sense perception, but the pressure itself had been so profound that he could sense its every fluctuation.

However, now suddenly, it was getting weaker, but Ace didn’t immediately relax; instead, his expression became more solemn.

’Is this the calm before the storm?’

Although he had never witnessed an Abyssal King’s Ordeal before, according to Eva, an Abyssal Ordeal was fundamentally different from the Heavenly Tribulation he was familiar with.

The Heavenly Tribulation of the heavens followed its own established principles, and while the intensity could vary depending on the cultivator, its nature was relatively understandable.

But Abyssal Ordeals were different, as they were random, and no one could know beforehand what kind of ordeal the Abyss would descend upon an existence attempting to cross major milestones of the Abyssal Cultivation System, not to mention into the Abyssal King Realm!

Some were relatively ordinary, and some were terrifying, while some could even become calamities capable of dragging countless innocent beings into their judgment.

This was also the first time Ace had ever witnessed an Abyssal Ordeal, and naturally, he was curious. But more than curiosity, there was caution.

After all, the person undergoing the ordeal was the Corpse Governor. An existence who had already stood at the peak of the Half-Abyssal King Realm for countless years.

If someone like him could trigger such a terrifying phenomenon, then the power of the resulting ordeal was naturally something Ace couldn’t underestimate. Especially since Ace was currently inside the same secret realm.

If the ordeal became too powerful, he didn’t know whether even his Primordial Foundation could remain completely unaffected.

’Let’s see what exactly is happening.’

Ace’s eyes narrowed, and the next instant, the profound aura of his Law Thief Sense silently spread throughout his body as he had activated the Primordial Law Sense!

His perception instantly transcended physical space, and the countless layers of earth beneath him ceased to exist before the underground chamber disappeared. The spatial formations Eva had arranged no longer obstructed his senses.

His perception climbed upward through the endless layers of the Undead Cradle until he finally ’saw’ the heavens, and the instant his Primordial Law Sense reached the sky.

Ace froze as his pupils contracted, "What? Are those Moons?!"

His expression changed completely as above the Undead Cradle, two enormous celestial bodies hung within the heavens.

One was pure white, and the other was crimson. They were so enormous that their existence alone seemed capable of replacing the sky itself.

The white moon radiated an indescribable purity, while the crimson moon carried an ancient and terrifying judgment.

Around them, endless pale flames flowed downward like waterfalls, and scarlet bolts of infernal fire continuously crawled through the heavens.

Even though Ace was hundreds of meters beneath the surface, his Primordial Law Sense could clearly perceive the terrifying authority contained within them.

His breathing unconsciously slowed, ’Is...this the Abyssal Ordeal?’

Ace had never seen anything like it. It wasn’t Heavenly Tribulation, nor did it resemble any Heavenly Punishment he had experienced. There was no familiar lightning tribulation, no overwhelming killing intent directed toward a single target. Instead, the entire world seemed to have become the target.

Ace’s expression gradually became grim, ’So this is an Abyssal King’s Ordeal...’

He watched silently as the two Sacred Moons continued their descent.

The white moon spread its purifying flames. The crimson moon unleashed terrifying infernal power. Everywhere the flames touched, corpse Qi disappeared, and Death Qi dissolved. Even ancient resentments accumulated for countless years were erased without leaving behind the slightest trace.

Ace’s heart became increasingly heavy, ’If this thing descended all the way here, I might actually have trouble.’

Although his Primordial Foundation was powerful, and Primordial Spirit Qi was profound, his body had already undergone countless transformations through the Heavenly Punishment, and he had even cultivated the First Grade Universal Ascension Black Physique.

But that didn’t mean he would recklessly underestimate an unknown power that could purify an entire secret realm. Especially one capable of making even Half-Abyssal Kings panic.

Ace continued watching, and then something impossible happened. The Sacred Moons stopped, and his eyes narrowed. The terrifying pressure that had been spreading throughout the Undead Cradle suddenly fluctuated.

Thereafter, it weakened, the pale flames slowed, the scarlet infernal bolts froze, and the entire manifestation seemed to hesitate.

Ace’s expression became strange.

’What?’

He stared at the scene through his Primordial Law Sense as the white Sacred Moon trembled, and then it moved backward.

Ace’s eyes widened, ’It’s retreating?’

For a moment, he wondered if his perception had malfunctioned. But no, as the white moon had undeniably moved away, and then the crimson moon followed as it also began retreating.

Ace stared blankly at the impossible scene. The two Sacred Moons, which had descended with overwhelming authority, were actually becoming smaller, and the pressure covering the Undead Cradle rapidly weakened.

The Corpse Clan’s suppression disappeared, and the terrifying purification flames began fading. Even the Abyssal Ordeal itself seemed to be withdrawing from the secret realm.

Ace’s jaw nearly dropped.

’What the hell?’ He immediately thought of the most obvious possibility, ’Did the Corpse Governor die?’

That should’ve been the only explanation. Perhaps the Corpse Governor had failed his breakthrough. Perhaps his King’s Horizon had collapsed. Perhaps his undead soul had been annihilated before the true ordeal could descend.

If any of that happened, naturally, the Abyssal Ordeal would disappear.

But Ace quickly rejected the thought as his Primordial Law Sense swept across the Corpse Governor.

The man’s King’s Might was still rising, and his aura hadn’t collapsed while his cultivation wasn’t showing the slightest sign of failure.

Ace’s expression became increasingly confused, ’Then why is the ordeal retreating?’

He continued watching as the Sacred Moons kept shrinking, and the heavens became increasingly quiet before the pressure continued disappearing. It was almost as though something had forced the Abyss itself to back away.

Ace’s heart suddenly skipped a beat. ’Something forced the Abyss...to retreat?’

The thought was so absurd that even he found it ridiculous. What could possibly make the Abyss retreat? Wasn’t the Abyss itself one of the highest authorities within this world?

Not to mention, this didn’t seem to be merely an ordinary Abyssal Ordeal. Yet now it was retreating.

Ace’s Primordial Law Sense instinctively followed the retreating manifestation, and then he saw something.

Far above the two disappearing Sacred Moons, something that had been hidden because of the Abyssal Ordeal’s manifestation, within the highest reaches of the Undead Cradle’s heavens, suddenly became visible again.

It was a gigantic devilish owl, its wings spread across the sky, and its pitch-black body seemed to swallow all surrounding light while its devilish horns curved upward.

Upon its colossal body, two words silently remained.

"SKY STEALER!"