Eternal Thief

Ace's heart raced when he heard Moira and quickly asked, "So, this Astral Stele is a doorway towards the heart of this temple?"

"Yes!" Moira stated, "You see, the golden stars arranged on this stele are a puzzle, and by rearranging them into a certain sequence, you can enter the heart of this temple!"

Ace frowned at this moment as he asked, "How should I rearrange them?"

"You need to imbue it with your heavenly Qi, and then you'll be able to access the star map and then follow my instructions," Moira replied.

'But I need to stop using the Dismantle Qi to use my heavenly Qi!' Ace grimaced when he considered the actual problem here.

He didn't want to stop using the Dismantle Qi, especially after experiencing the might of the white silhouette and the eye. But now he had to decide since this seemed to be the only way ahead.

'Should I try using the Dismantle Qi instead? After all, that door also opened by using the dismantled Qi since it is driven from the heavenly Qi as well…'

Ace then tested this theory since it was a much safer option. He placed his hand on the icy cold stele and released the Dismantle Qi in it.

The next moment, the Astral Stele suddenly pulsed, and Ace felt his vision suddenly blur; Ace's body vanished from the upper level of the temple. Thereafter, Ace found himself afloat in a starry sea filled with profound mysteries.

Furthermore, in this starry sea, there were 99 golden stars glowing brilliantly. The other stars looked pale in comparison, and for some reason, Ace felt attracted to them.

"You've succeeded in entering the star map!" Moira's elated voice rang in his mind.

Ace was awake from his daze, and his eyes shimmered with ecstasy, "Now, what should I do next?"

"It's simple. You just need to focus on those golden stars, and you'll be able to move them at will. Then arrange them in this pattern…"

Moira quickly started instructing while Ace followed her lead. Just as she said, he could easily move those stars as long as he focused on them. It was very magical as if he were the ruler of this place.

Following Moira's discrete instruction, Ace rearranges the 99 golden stars in different parts of the starry sea.

'I'm afraid if not for Moira's instruction, I would've been absolutely helpless in this place unless I was able to find this pattern on my own. What a ridiculous security measure. I don't think even my Dismantle Qi was enough to break past this lock…' Ace thought gravely as he got the taste of the security measure that Heaven was capable of.

However, what he didn't know was that the Astral Stele outside was the answer to this riddle as long as he could comprehend it. But to do that, he needed a deep understanding of astral space, space law, and celestial bodies. Yet this type of knowledge simply didn't exist within the Mortal Sky Heaven, as if it had been purposely erased from the annals of history.

Furthermore, the Ethereal Thief Fate Compass's treasure spirit was the key here, and using it, the system was able to pave the way for Ace, or he had to waste a very long time at this checkpoint while the danger he would've been in would also increase.

After the 99 golden stars were arranged in a unique pattern, which actually appeared like a Balance Scale, the next moment, Ace suddenly felt a mysterious, powerful oozing from those golden stars, and he found himself pulling towards the center of this Balance Scale.

Thereupon, Ace vanished from the starry sea, and he reappeared in a golden void. Flanking in the center of this void stand two colossal doors, seemingly gateways to unknown dimensions.

One doorway, crafted from swirling obsidian that seems to absorb light, pulses with a crimson glow. Strange symbols resembling writhing serpents adorn its surface. Another, carved from luminous jade, shimmers with a cool, emerald light. Symbols resembling swirling galaxies adorn its surface.

Ace was mesmerized by those two colossal doors, especially the one with the crimson glow. He felt his heart race with longing and wanted to approach it at all costs.

But his rationality didn't let him, and he didn't dare to open any one of them since he didn't know where they were leading. So, he remained calm and asked Moira, "Where should I go next?"

"Actually, this is the heart of the temple. No information about this section is recorded within the Astral Stele. I'm sorry, I didn't know there was such a thing here." Moira apologized sheepishly as she was also surprised.

Ace frowned slightly, but he didn't blame her, "No, you leading me here is already big enough help."

"I think you should follow the fate!" Moira suddenly hinted at him at something.

Ace's eyes flashed with understanding as his lips curled up, "See? You're still helping me."

He then quickly opened the fate map and saw that the dark golden compass point was now pointing in the direction of a door. He no longer dared ignore it; after all, it wasn't visible until Moira assimilated the Astral Stele, and she was clearly hinting at him about this right now.

But to Ace's surprise, this compass pointer was not pointing towards the obsidian door with a crimson glow, which he found himself getting compelled to do. Instead, it was pointing towards the luminous door with swirling galaxies.

After thinking about it for a moment, Ace decided to trust the fate map, for it had never let him down before, and he also trusted Moira's judgment rather than that unknown feeling.

He then approached the luminous door and felt profoundly oppressed by it, like an unapproachable holy existence, which made Ace even more determined to seek what was behind it.

Once he was in front of the door, Ace used the Heavenly Qi to touch it again to see if it would open.

The moment the Dismantle Qi touched the door, a starry light suddenly enveloped him, and an imposing ethereal voice rang, "[I have no form, yet I can bind, A weightless burden on the mind. I yearn for open skies and light, But fear can keep me locked in the night.]

"[I cannot be bought, nor can I be sold, Earned with courage, stories untold. Though whispers may tempt with gilded cage, My truest voice sings on a boundless stage.]

"[What am I?]

"[You have 90 seconds to answer before you'll be deported to Heavenly Void Prison!]"