A few hundred miles away, Ace was going into the depths of the forbidden region of the Spirit Inferno Domain. He knew his way around since it was his second time in this place.
Although he didn't know why this place was called the forbidden region and protected by the AIG sect, there was no information about this in the sect at all. Everyone only knew that as long as the AIG sect existed, this region has always been a forbidden region, and only the higher-ups of the sect might know the truth behind this place,
Nevertheless, for Ace, this was a perfect place to flee and hide from the prying eyes, and now that he had stolen the Crimson Platinum, this was perfect to lie low for a while.
'Oh, he's here!' Ace's eyes flashed coldly when he sensed the spirit Qi around him suddenly turn restless. He could feel the vague undulations of laws coming from the same direction as the Crimson Platinum Mountain.
Ace knew Emil was probably called by Mountain Tyrant here after the dumb beast failed to find him and lost its reasons. But Ace knew Emil wouldn't be amiable after he saw the Crimson Platinum was gone, and the first target of his anger would be none other than the Mountain Tyrant.
Furthermore, Ace wasn't worried about being discovered as long as his thief symbol summoning abilities were still active. By the time Emil was done with the Mountain Tyrant and started searching for the thief, Ace would be far away.
Ace can also just use the Soul Body Sweep again and summon himself back to his avatar's truth soul, which would make it much easier. But by doing so, he won't have a way out of the Sect if he falls into some dangerous situation.
Furthermore, even if he went back, he would have to send the Avatar out again, which was even more dangerous because of all the eyes on him, so he didn't want to take this risk and resolve it by his thievish means.
As time passed, Ace headed deeper and deeper into the forbidden region, and his invisibility finally ran out. But there was no trace of Emil, which could only mean he had successfully escaped.
But Ace still didn't stop and continued to go deeper until his other summoning abilities ran out of time. When Ace descended, he was in the middle of nowhere, and not far away from his position, rivers of lavas spread through the volcanic landscape.
The temperature was extremely high, and the Spirit Qi was extremely thin. For some reason, it felt a little suffocating, and Ace started to wonder if this was why this place was a forbidden region.
After all, last time, Ace didn't come so far away. Still, he didn't care much since it wasn't a big deal as he started setting up all kinds of formations before he opened the door to the thief's house and directly entered his House Leader Chamber, which was unaffected by the outside environment.
The moment Ace entered the House Leader Chamber, a warm smile appeared on his face. He felt cozy looking at the dark castle surrounded by a beautiful landscape and fields of lush trees and flowers. This was the handy work of his women, especially Eva, who told him that this was their home, so it needed to look like one.
She even secretly named this Castle Everlasting Endearment Palace, and Ace had no say in this despite his embarrassment. He even had to take the responsibility of making sure Alina would accept it and that this name was his idea.
Thinking about all of this, Ace felt somewhat complicated since he had always been on adventures, and the concept of home was rather blurry to him. So, this place brought some good changes to his mentality.
Still, Ace felt it was somewhat empty, and he knew why he was feeling this way because this place had no meaning without his loved ones. He thought for a moment and sent a house call while walking towards the entrance of the Castle.
Almost instantly, the call was accepted, and a seductive yet indignant voice rang, "Hmph, you finally remembered me, huh? Could it be you got dumped by some Harlot, and it finally occurred to you that you have a wife?"
Ace was momentarily stumped by this ridiculous accusation and felt wrong, but he still remembered that he had told Eva that he would call her every month or two. He was so busy with the AIG sect that he almost forgot.
"Ahem, I swear there is no feminine involvement here, and I was stuck with the matters of Artifact Inferno Guardian Sect, so I wasn't able to contact you. So, it was my fault, and I would like to apologize to my lady in person if you can grant me the honor to make amends?" Ace smiled as he entered the castle and headed towards the bedroom. He had a hint of anticipation in his eyes, waiting for Eva's reply.
"Heh, why do I feel you're up to no good?" Eva playfully asked, but she no longer sounded aggrieved.
"How could I? I just want to make amends. I swear by the Heavens!" Ace righteously snickered.
"Hahahah..." A peal of laughter suddenly rang, "I would believe you if you've sworn by the Abysses, but swearing in the name of your enemy, who're you kidding, Mister Heaven's Stealer?"
Ace merely shrugged his shoulders. "Well, it was worth trying. Who knows, my sin would be enough to drag down my enemy?"
"You're really something, huh?" Eva giggled, "But I liked it. However, I can't come there at the moment. I'm a little bit occupied."
Ace raised his eyebrow. Knowing Eva's personality, he knew she wouldn't miss this chance to be with him. He dropped the act as he asked, with worry, "What are you doing? Is it dangerous? Have I interrupted you at a bad time?"
"Who do you think I am?" Eva clearly sounded unhappy for being underestimated, but a hint of joy was clear in her voice since Ace was worried about her as she tenderly replied, "You see, I got this mission from the Thief House, and I've been working on it for months now. I finally found a clue with the help of my capable maids. But this clue is rather troublesome and hard to get a hold of."
"However, I set a trap, and I think it's about to be triggered, so I can't leave right now, or all my efforts will be wasted, and I won't get any reward. Tsk, I'm telling you the Abyss is really a barren place compared to the lively heaven."
Ace narrowed his eyes and felt bad, as he could sense the loneliness in Eva's voice, "You don't have to do any of this, you know that, right? Just come back. Your presence is more than enough help for me, "he solemnly stated.
"I know, but it still wants to do this. You don't need to blame yourself. I chose this on my own, and after I entered the Abyss, I felt it was fate because I was thriving here. So, don't worry. I'm fine; you should just focus on yourself. Besides, if I fall into any danger, I'll make sure to give you a chance to save me." Eva lovingly said as her voice was filled with love and soothing tenderness.
Ace could only sigh helplessly. He knew Eva was doing all of this for him, and he blamed himself for dragging her into all of this. Yet he was also proud of her and gratified to have her in his life.
With undying determination, he declared, "Don't worry, I'll save you even if I have to come to the abyss myself!"