The Grand Inn of the city was empty after the commotion Dulce made and all the customers including the owner of the Inn was now standing outside. They didn’t know what was happening but they didn’t dare to utter a single word because they saw just how this young girl was ordering around the city lord like a servant.

Ace was moving while his stealth was active. Even in the light, one could only see a blur moving around the floor. These were ‘silent steps’ in perfection mastery. He was as fast as peak level Qi foundation building realm.

Ace saw few guards were heading towards his way he stopped moving and hide his presence with stealth.

A moment after five armored guards come to his view. Ace moved similar to lightning.

Dark aura started to surge into his swords, he slashes with lightning speed, and a dark horizontal beam carrying vigorous and tyrannical darkness power hacks towards the five armored guards’ necks simultaneously.

This sudden fierce attack left those guards simply no time to dodge. That black beam simply passed throughs their necks like a hot knife into butter.

First, they didn’t know what was transparent with them and wanted to alert others about Ace’s position, but after a second Blood spilled from their necks, and the next moment five heads with wide-open eyes were rolling on the floor dye it red with blood.

“[You have killed 5 cultivators in 5nd Gate of Qi Gates realm. You have earned 500 EXP.]”

[EXP: 500/50,000]

“Just so-so!” Ace faintly said as saw those five heads rolling on the floor coldly. He finally understands just how powerful he has become after opening the four hidden gates of darkness, and his HD-Qi 1was more powerful than Heavenly Qi.

Ace didn’t stay here for long because there five were only the fragment of the large force that was currently inside the Inn.

More guards were coming towards him and this time with them Ace sense many strong presences, ‘Qi Foundation Experts.’ He thought as he faded inside an empty dark room.

——

“Look! Five corpses of our brothers!” A loud alarming voice of a guard rang inside the hallway.

Everyone saw five headless corpses were lying there on the bloody floor. Everyone’s face turns pale including Rylan, Sumyan, and Asher, and a chill runs down their spine.

They wanted to kill Ace the most because according to them he was the main reason that they were in this situation. But after seeing five headless corpses of 5th gate realm elite guards they finally understand just how powerful Ace truly was. Now there was dread in their eyes.

Mathies was relatively calm after seeing that bloody scene. From the start, he didn’t want to capture Ace for some reason.

“Those five didn’t die too long ago probably only two or three minutes have passed. He should be here somewhere! Search every single room! Don’t engage in a fight with him he’s too strong for you all. If you saw him just shout out your position. We have the numbers advantage.” Said Baldy in a grave voice.

Even he a Qi Foundation realm expert was feeling some pressure after seeing those five clean-cut heads.

Everyone swallows their dry saliva and starts searching extremely carefully.

But no matter how much they search they can’t find Ace. What they find now and then were new corpses of guards!

Ace didn’t go after the Qi Foundation realm experts he was going after those Qi Gates realms, elite guards. It was like Ace was chipping away their weak forces first.

Quentin’s heart was bleeding after seeing all those guards’ corpses. These Elite Guards were personally nurtured by him and they were supposed to show their worth in the ‘Special Test’ of New Moon City promotion but now almost half of them were gone! How could he not be furious after seeing this?

“Little bastard shows your face if you have guts!” Quentin howl angrily in the hallway.

Now everyone was sticking together, only twenty-seven out of fifty guards were remain after ten minutes and they didn’t dare to vent alone in these dark rooms any further.

In their mind, that guy was supposed to be a petty thief but he was more like a professional assassin.

——-

Ace was listening to Quentin’s angry roar and sneer after he hears that old bastard’s shameless words. He was alone and that old geezer wanted him to expose himself in front of all those experts, ‘NO Thank You Very Much’.

He has killed quite some guards, and he noticed that everyone was sticking together now, and hunting them one by one was almost impossible. But those idiots were so scared they didn’t dare to leave this floor alone now even those Qi Foundation realm experts were sticking together.

He was quite confident to kill that old guy who was barking just now and was the strongest of them all. But with all those guards and Qi Foundation realm experts together he would be seeking death by going out in the open.

He was just thinking about what to do next when he saw the door of the room open a person enters the room and he was alone. His eyes turn cold and he was just about to attack him when that person spoke in a low voice, “If you’re here please hear this old man out I’m not your enemy!’

Ace didn’t believe that old man first but he could feel that this old man didn’t have any killing intent or bad intention towards him.

He hesitates a little but when he saw the face of that old man he becomes astonished because it is the former city lord of the River-Flower City Mathies Layton!

Mathies sighted as he thought it was another failure and he was about to leave when a chill run down his spine and froze on the spot because from behind a sharp blade edge was place on his throat.

“What do you want with me? You have ten seconds.” Ace whispered.

Cold sweat was dripping from Mathies’s forehead, he didn’t expect Ace to be this skilled, he can even sneak up on a Qi Foundation realm expert like himself.

Mathies inhaled deeply and said in a faint voice, “I know your father ‘Owen White’. As for how did I figure out who you are that is because your face is almost identical to what your father show me that time and you resemble him as well, especially your dark blue eyes I can never forget them they were the same as your mother’s ‘Stella White.”

Mathies felt the sword on his throat quiver a little when he said those names and finally, that sword edge was removed and a young man comes in front of him it was Ace.

Ace has a look of nostalgia and confusion on his face, two vague faces appear in his mind they were the faces of his parents.

It has been too long since the last time he saw them and heard these names. He was only four years old when he heard the news about their death in wastelands.

But why did this city lord know about their names? Even he didn’t know much about them he only remembers that they were low-level cultivators and his grandparents didn’t tell him about their past either.

Mathies see Ace’s troubled face and guess what he was thinking and said, “I know you have too many questions like how I know your parents and why didn’t I help you when you were alone and many more. But I can’t tell you anything because even I didn’t know much about your parents. I meet them Nine years ago in wastelands. They were wounded quite badly at that time and were hunted around by their enemies.

“It was only a coincidence and I wanted to help them but their enemies were far too strong for me to handle. I think they can see through my nature especially your mother with her dark blue eyes. After they make sure I’m not an evildoer they only tell me their names and asked me to look after their son. Your father used some kind of mysterious skill to show me your appearance in my head and after that, he mysteriously sends me far away from that place to save my life.

“If he wants he could’ve just let me die there it was after all my fault for being at the wrong place at the wrong time. But he didn’t do that, he even entrusts his son to me and used his last bit of power to send me away. This kindness I’ll never forget.

“After returning to the city I try searching for you in the inner region for quite some time but failed. At that time, I think that they would’ve been escaped from their enemies with their prowess and take you away with them, and stopped my search. But who would’ve thought that you were inside the city all this time and you even become this powerful by relying solely on yourself!

“I was quite shocked when I saw your portrait after you robbed that old goat and his son-in-law. I was quite ashamed of myself at that time after thinking about, you should really go through extreme hardship that it even forced you to become a thief.” He laments as he finished his story.

(NOTE: It was actually [Heavenly Darkness Qi] but it was too long so I simplify it into HD-Qi)