Eternal Thief

After a few hours of 'reunion', the sun was also beginning to rise, and Ace had to leave the principal tower just to be careful. After all, he was now the personal disciple of an Imperial Teacher, and it's only been a day, so once the news starts to spread, there will be many eyes on Leroy.

While Eva arranged his black robe with a loving smile and rosy complexion, Ace said, "This is Principal Zack; what is his relation with the Imperial Family? From the rumors, they don't seem to get along too well. Furthermore, since he can even force the emperor to back down to put the marriage aside, it means he's not so simple."

Hearing about Principal Zack, a hint of complicated glint flashed past Eva's eyes, "Teacher… Principal Zack has been very nice to me. He was very sincere when he took me as his disciple. Although he doesn't talk about his past, he told me that I should keep my distance from the imperial clan and focus on cultivating.

"When the emperor invited me to the ceremony, Principal Zack gave me the choice to reject it, and he was very confident that the imperial family couldn't do anything about it. But since my goal was to gauge the imperial clan and also form some connection with them, I chose to go under the pretext of giving Evie's family the honor.

"But even I never imagined that the old sod would directly bestow the marriage with that little fool. The gal of that guy, he didn't even ask for my opinion at all. If I'm not wrong, Evie's father, the Grand Duke, has already received benefits from the Emperor, so he had already agreed to it.

"However, in the end, Principal Zack appeared he directly rejected it on my behalf, and to make matters worse, he even declared that as long as I wanted to marry, not only did the candidate need his and my approval, but he even has to beat me within the same realm and the age difference can't be more than ten years!

"When he declared it, the faces of the imperial courtiers and every member of the imperial family, including the emperor, were a sight to behold. Hehehehe!" Eva laughed with relish as her eyes shimmered with impish glint.

She was really mad and almost went on a rampage when she heard about the marriage, and if Principal Zack hadn't come, she would have rejected it even if she had offended everyone.

Although she was already venereal with Ace and, according to the devil race customs, they were already married, especially with the absolute proof of their love, the Ring of Endearment, she still wanted a grand ceremony like any other girl, and Ace even promised her one.

So, before that, how could she allow such an atrocity to happen? Even if she were pretending, she would never allow another man to touch her, even if it was for the purpose of the greater good, much less marriage.

That's why her impression of the imperial clan was now all-time low while Principal Zack became a man of principles and gallant in her eyes. If before she thinks of Principal Zack as just a tool to reach her goal, now she thinks of him as someone worthy of her respect and feels somewhat bad about tricking the old man.

Now, she started to understand that her dream of becoming a thief was difficult to fulfill, especially when she needed good and honest people like Principal Zack. She even wondered if Ace ever felt like this.

Ace also nodded in satisfaction when he heard about the full event that took place that day, and he also had a good impression of Principal Zack now since he seemed an honorable man with a bottom line.

"Afterward, the emperor could only swallow his words and put the marriage aside with an ugly smile. Then Principal Zack took me back directly, and since I was curious, I asked him about why he took a risk to go against the Emperor for me.

"After all, everyone knows that going against the imperial family means certain death or complete ruin. But he, despite being a member of the Skylar Clan himself, still dares to go against them.

"He then told me that the Imperial Clan were a bunch of foxes using the lion's might, and they all fear those with true power. Although he only used this adverb to hint at something subtly, I'm sure someone is behind the Skylar Clan.

"Then he told me the true reason why the imperial family gave him so much, and it is actually a top secret of the Sky Heart Mortal Empire. He would've never told me if I wasn't his personal disciple, which can also affect my future.

"Principal Zack told me that he was very close to breaking the final boundary of the eighth realm, and once he succeeded, he would be able to ascend, and the imperial family wouldn't be able to stop him because he's the strongest person in the entire Sky Heart Mortal Empire.

"In the history of the imperial family, only 23 people had ascended to the upper heaven, and all of them were Mortal Emperors. Despite not having the Skylar Clan's monarchial bloodline, Principal Zack achieved something not even the current Mortal Emperor could dream of, so how could they not be jealous and wary?

"But this is all they can do since they can't suppress him, nor can they break their own image of a united clan. If anything, it would bring an honor for the entire imperial family. That's why they won't dare to do anything to Principal Zack, and they are now waiting for him to ascend.

"That's also why he told me this: after he ascended, he knew those people would not fear anything and could easily control me. Moreover, there was another reason that Principal Zack was able to reach this point, and that is his terrifying Soul Art that he found from some ancient ruin when he was young.

"But no one knows about this as they all think that he was the one who created it. But he told me the truth and handed me the original jade scroll that contained the soul art.

"According to him, he only managed to comprehend it up to 10%, and he didn't have enough talent to go any further or lifespan. He said that he was content with what he had achieved, and if he managed to ascend successfully, it would be a dream come true for him, and he would spend the rest of his life enjoying the scenery of the upper heaven. He didn't have any more ambition or regret in his life.

"But this soul art is also why everyone would target his inheritor, so he's willing to stop his cultivation despite his limited life. He could guide me, so I'll be strong enough to protect myself once he manages to ascend or perish trying…"

Eva sounded somewhat sad at this moment as she respected Principal Zack, who only wanted to ascend and live the rest of his life peacefully.

But alas, the world of cultivation wasn't someplace where one could enter and leave as they pleased.

To reach the current height of his power and authority, just how many people had Zack crushed or killed, and how many people had he suppressed with his overpowered self?

Now, he wanted to leave and live peacefully; that was really a flowery dream…