It Was Time to Win Madam Shen Over

Thief.

A character worth 100 Paradise Coins!

He'd originally unlocked it just to test the Iron Leg Sect. After that, Mu Ye had been so absorbed in grinding Martial Arts that he hadn't used it once.

Now that he'd reached Second Rank, he could finally relax a little and use other characters to explore more.

The Thief Character's abilities were actually very strong.

[You often roam the streets and alleyways, honing your Wall-Walking Lightness Skill. Whether it's a grand mansion or a humble home, you come and go as you please. Other people's treasures are as easy to take as if you were reaching into a bag...]

This was the only character in the game who started with Lightness Skill+, as well as the special skills Pick Lock and Stealing.

To be honest, when it came to exploration, the Thief's abilities were maxed out.

Abilities one was born with were often very powerful.

Martial Arts learned by Game Characters could be shared with the player, but these special abilities could only be obtained by opening character chests.

"Tonight's the perfect time to try it."

Mu Ye looked at the Night-Walking Suit he was wearing. This was also the Thief's starting outfit.

Unlike the Demon Sealer's conical hat and black clothes, the Night-Walking Suit was pitch-black from head to toe. With the Black Face Mask on, walking around in the dark made him feel like a ghost.

It was already night. Controlling the character, he soon arrived at the Iron Leg Sect.

"Tsk, this character feels great to play... He runs like a gust of wind..."

Especially when leaping across rooftops. That Wall-Walking Lightness Skill let him tap a beam with his toes and float away, then pull himself along with his arms before swinging off again. His body and surroundings moved in perfect harmony. It was a little like modern parkour, yet also had the feel of an ancient Jianghu Assassin slipping through the night.

After circling the Iron Leg Sect briefly, he found a place where he could sneak in, somewhere in the rear courtyard.

[Sneak In (Lightness Skill requirement met)]

A character with Lightness Skill built in was strong.

Opening his Divine Apertures had enhanced the strength of both his arms, but when the Divine Apertures opened, his whole body was affected. It was just that the main enhancement was focused in his arms.

Otherwise, a Second-Rank Martial Warrior couldn't possibly have transcendent arms while the rest of his body remained just like an ordinary person's—or even weaker.

After slipping in with ease, he went unnoticed by the Iron Leg Sect disciples on patrol.

Next, he explored the layout of the Iron Leg Sect. A few things went wrong along the way, and he was spotted twice when he lost control of the character. Mu Ye reloaded and tried again both times.

Once he'd gotten familiar with the layout, the place was practically unguarded.

He even took advantage of a gap in the patrols to pick the lock on Tie Longgang's main room and found a specially made chest inside.

The lock on the chest seemed to be made of some kind of metal and looked incredibly sturdy. Mu Ye didn't recognize its design.

But...

[Dragon Ring Lock (Can Be Picked)]

If it said he could pick it, why hesitate?

He went straight to work and opened the chest.

It didn't take long. Tie Longgang wasn't there, after all. It only took about as long as it took an incense stick to burn.

With a click.

[You obtained the Divine Aperture Secret Martial Art Map "Vajra Leg"]

[You obtained "A Piece of Meat That Gives Off a Strange Fragrance"]

[You obtained the recipe for "Black Jade Ointment"]

Mu Ye smiled slightly.

Just as expected of a Thief.

As he was leaving, a choice appeared.

[1. Carve "The Great Thief Bai Zhanfeng Was Here" into the chest.]

[2. Leave immediately.]

Haha.

If this were real life, Mu Ye wouldn't dare leave behind some stupid clue.

But in a game, of course he had to show off a little.

After choosing 1, Mu Ye left the main room.

"I'll explore some other places..."

Mu Ye explored the other parts of the Iron Leg Sect one by one. Interestingly, one location showed that it contained a special mechanism.

He needed a certain level of Mechanism Craftsmanship to unlock it.

"So the Iron Leg Sect has a secret passage?"

Besides that, Mu Ye found quite a lot of gold and treasure in the other areas.

Adding it all up, it was worth at least several hundred thousand coins.

"Too bad I don't have a Storage Bag, or I could take it all..."

At least it was gold and jewelry, so it wasn't too heavy. If it had been copper coins or the like, Mu Ye wouldn't have been able to carry it away at all.

"Damn, stealing money is way too easy. I don't even feel guilty about robbing the Iron Leg Sect..."

Mu Ye was having a blast.

If he had a Storage Bag, he'd steal every last thing they had.

That damn Iron Leg Sect was filthy rich. They'd probably cheated people out of it.

What he'd found felt like only a small portion of their wealth.

As he was about to leave the Iron Leg Sect, Mu Ye noticed a side room at the very back. It was the most heavily guarded of all. Not only were Iron Leg Sect disciples stationed there, but there were also many strange warriors wearing Black Ghost Mask Armor.

Mu Ye's heart stirred. He crept closer and climbed onto a roof beam. Faint voices drifted up to him:

"You really are useless... You still haven't dealt with one martial arts school..."

"Demon Sealer Mu Xinghe... Don't worry. The Shen Family behind him won't be around much longer..."

"My Lord will be back soon..."

Mu Ye was about to listen longer. It sounded like it had something to do with the Shen Mansion.

Just then, a chill suddenly ran down his back. Before he could react—

"Die."

The screen went dark.

"There's a powerful opponent..."

Mu Ye thought that he couldn't go into that room—not with the Thief's abilities, at least.

He switched back to the Ranger and studied the Vajra Leg Divine Aperture Diagram.

[Learned Divine Aperture Secret Martial Art: Vajra Leg]

A satisfied smile appeared on Mu Ye's face.

The task was complete. That was enough for today.

After he turned in the task tomorrow, he could go meet Madam Shen first.

He'd been training for so long. It was time to enjoy himself a little.

After logging off, Mu Ye closed his eyes, content.

The next day, he spent the morning mining. In the afternoon, he asked Steward Xu for leave and went to take a look at the plot of land he'd bought for the Spirit Field.

It wasn't far, only a few kilometers from the Qinghe Mine.

Qinghe Mountain Ridge was where the Spirit Fields lay at the foot of the opposite side of Qinghe Mountain. Once he crossed the mountain, he saw them.

Neatly arranged Spirit Fields and tiny wooden huts like black dots formed a simple scene.

Following the location on the land deed, Mu Ye soon found his Spirit Field.

"It really is more overgrown than most..."

It was covered in Stone Stem Grass.

This grass was hard as rock, and grew in dense, countless clumps.

He needed to learn the Geng Metal Grass-Cutting Sword to cut down the weeds, then burn them to ash and mix them with Sweet Spring Water to irrigate the Spirit Field. Only then could it regain the fertility it once had.

"I know the Geng Metal Grass-Cutting Sword, but I've only used it once or twice... I'm nowhere near as proficient with it as I am with the Golden Blade Art..."

Now that he had to farm, he naturally needed to practice it.

He recited the incantation, formed a sword sign, and flicked his hand forward. Pale golden Sword Light burst from his fingertip, forming a short, thin blade that sliced through several stalks of Stone Stem Grass. Its power was decent, but the efficiency was too low.

It only cut down a few stalks at a time.

Seeing that, Mu Ye furrowed his brow slightly.

"At this rate, it might take months to clear everything?"

After thinking it over, Mu Ye clenched both hands into fists and opened the Divine Apertures in his arms wide. Flames surged as he grabbed a handful of Stone Stem Grass and yanked it out.

When it hit the ground, it slowly began to burn.

"This is efficient enough." Mu Ye nodded in satisfaction.

At this rate, he should be able to clear the field in half a month at most.

"Wait..."

After clearing some of the field, Mu Ye instinctively used his Mind Eye to sense his surroundings. He noticed a pale golden aura constantly leaking out of the Spirit Field. "Huh? A demon insect!"

"This aura... It's a Golden Hawthorn Locust!"

And there seemed to be quite a few of them.

Mu Ye glanced at the other Spirit Fields nearby. It was time to sow seedlings, but there didn't seem to be many people out in the fields. Each plot was quite far from the next, and he could only make out a few scattered figures at the edge of his vision.

"Is there a pest infestation?"

No wonder the Spirit Field had been so cheap to rent.

The Golden Hawthorn Locust was a special kind of locust. It couldn't fly and lived underground all year round, feeding exclusively on the Spiritual Power of various spirit plants.

Because it hid underground, had a hard shell and strong defenses, and was difficult to detect, it was extremely hard to deal with.

A few were manageable, but once their numbers grew, they could easily become a disaster.

Without a powerful Cultivator to set up an Insect Repellent Array, Qi Refining Realm disciples could handle a few, but not too many.

"Catching bugs is fun..."

Mu Ye grinned. With his Mind Eye, sensing the demon insects' locations was as easy as breathing.

Only Foundation Establishment Realm Cultivators with Divine Sense could manage that with any ease.

He pinpointed a spot and struck the ground with a Crimson Flame Fist, blasting open a terrifying crater.

At the bottom of the hole, several Golden Hawthorn Locusts flipped around helplessly on their backs.

Their shells were gold-plated, and their heads looked a little like amber. The little demon insects clearly hadn't realized what kind of predicament they were in.

Mu Ye scooped them up in one hand.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk... I hear these demon insects are delicious stir-fried. Even late Qi Refining Realm Cultivators can't resist them."

That was because they were so difficult to catch.

There was a benefit to it, too. Although these demon insects weren't first-tier demon beasts, they fed on the Spiritual Power of spirit plants, so their meat was incredibly succulent. Since they belonged to the Metal Element, they could also help Cultivators who practiced Gold Element Cultivation Methods.

"If I want to practice Vajra Leg, eating these Golden Hawthorn Locusts later will help me more than practicing Crimson Flame Fist in the mine..."

That meant Vajra Leg might be even faster to train.

With that thought, Mu Ye eagerly began his bug-catching and weed-clearing expedition. Whenever he got tired, he moved his fingers and practiced the Geng Metal Grass-Cutting Sword.

The afternoon passed in the blink of an eye.

That night, once everything was ready, Mu Ye eagerly entered the game.

It was time to start winning Madam Shen over.

He might keep updating at night for a while.