Chapter 58: The Saint of Thieves

The black steel beast charged through the flying snow.

In the only passenger car, eight law enforcers sat in their respective seats, perfectly recreating the scene from when they first boarded.

"We’re almost at Winter Harbor," Number 8 looked out the window and said calmly. "The first phase of the plan is complete. Next is the most critical part..."

This Fire-Tamperer, Number 8, who had replaced Jiang Qin, seemed to be the leader of the eight. As soon as he spoke, the group chatting and cracking seeds fell silent.

Chen Ling, who had been pretending to doze off, slowly opened his eyes.

"At Winter Harbor, we will rendezvous with the rookie law enforcers from other districts and the three escorting law officers from Aurora City. According to intelligence, among these three officers, one is a Five-Striped and two are Four-Striped.

The gap in strength between us and them is too large; we absolutely must not confront them head-on. We must hide our identities well. Before coming here, I distributed a brief introduction of the personality and background of the roles you are replacing to everyone. You must disguise yourselves according to those, don't cause trouble, understand?"

"And what if other law enforcers take the initiative to provoke us?"

Chen Ling asked suddenly.

"...Then you must endure it," Number 8 paused for a moment. "This mission is crucial; there can be no mistakes."

Hearing this, the other Fire-Tamperers were clearly unhappy, but they nodded in the end...

"Number 8, do we need to be this careful?" Zhong Yaoguang asked, puzzled. "Didn't they say a Saint of Thieves would come to escort us?

The Saint of Thieves is a super-powerful individual at the Seventh Stage; there are only five in the entire Fire-Tamperer organization... With him here, what are those few law officers?"

Chen Ling’s heart sank.

Saint of Thieves? Seventh Stage?

Although Chen Ling didn't know what the title "Saint of Thieves" represented, he understood the term "Seventh Stage"... People say the path to divinity has ten stages, so this so-called "Saint of Thieves" was only three steps away from a divine position?

The strongest Divine Path user Chen Ling had met so far was Han Meng, and he was only at the fourth stage.

"Saint of Thieves?? Really?!" Another Fire-Tamperer’s eyes lit up. "Red, Yellow, Blue, White, Black—which one is coming?"

"[White]," Number 8 replied calmly. "The Saint of Thieves, Bai Ye."

Chen Ling could clearly feel the group’s breathing grow heavy. Upon hearing that name, their eyes began to glow!

Chen Ling didn't understand, but he immediately followed suit, a look of longing appearing in his eyes.

"With him here! What the hell are we afraid of! Why don't we just wreak havoc in the Ancient Armory of the Martial Path??" someone in the group said.

"Wreak havoc in the Ancient Armory? What do you think the Martial God Path is?" Number 8 glanced at him. "Among the fourteen Divine Paths in the world, the Ancient Armory represents the ultimate slaughter. Do you think you can break in just by relying on a Saint of Thieves?"

The group fell silent.

"No one in the world can force their way into the Ancient Armory of the Martial Path. If you want the foundation fragments of the Martial God Path, you can only exploit the loopholes in the Divine Path trials... Otherwise, what do you think we are here for?

Once something goes wrong before entering the Ancient Armory, such as the three lead law officers having an accident, Aurora City will immediately close the Ancient Armory, and none of us will be able to get in!

So, before entering the Armory, keep your tails tucked."

"...Understood."

"Tamper with the heavens, seize the universe, in the name of the End-Time Thieving God, [The Silver King]... May this journey go smoothly," Number 8 stood in the center of the carriage, his right fingertip touching his brow, and said piously.

At this moment, everyone’s expression became serious, as if completing a ritual of faith, and they all touched their right hands to their brows.

"In the name of the End-Time Thieving God, [The Silver King]... May this journey go smoothly."

End-Time Thieving God, [The Silver King]?

Chen Ling imitated the others while memorizing the name in his heart.

This sounded like the deity the Path of the Thieving God pointed to, and also the faith of the Fire-Tamperers.

Chen Ling sat in his seat, looking out the window at the approaching harbor, lost in thought...

Between the Aurora City law officers and the Fire-Tamperer Saint of Thieves,

I wonder if the member the Dusk Society sent to meet me is reliable?

……

The train stopped slowly in the wilderness, more than ten kilometers away from Winter Harbor.

This train wasn't on record, so it definitely couldn't stop at the station. Number 8 found an abandoned factory warehouse to hide it, and then they walked the rest of the way.

As they got closer to Winter Harbor, the surrounding shops and pedestrians became more numerous, and the road finally had some signs of life.

"Hot fried dough sticks, tea eggs, roasted sweet potatoes~"

"Tofu pudding, fresh tofu pudding!"

"Extra! Extra! Latest news from the 'Aurora Daily': The Fifth and Sixth Districts suffered heavy damage after the disaster. It’s possible the two districts will merge, and the seven major districts of Aurora will become six?

Also, top scandal! The third young master of the Aurora City Star Chamber of Commerce marries a famous courtesan, only to discover after sleeping with her that she is his long-lost aunt!"

"Little brother, give me a copy of that newspaper about the third young master sleeping with his aunt."

"Coming right up!"

“……”

The boy’s clear voice echoed on the street, immediately attracting a large group of passersby to buy newspapers. Chen Ling noticed the other Fire-Tamperers’ ears perking up; they seemed unable to resist wanting to buy a copy too.

"Don't cause trouble," Number 8 glanced at them.

The group shrugged, their interest waning.

"Newspapers, magazines, toys, poker—care for a look?" A lazy voice came from the side.

Chen Ling turned to look and saw a woman sitting lazily in a dilapidated grocery kiosk, calling out while idly playing with a deck of cards.

On the cover of the box, a [Heart 6] was clearly visible.

Chen Ling’s heart skipped a beat. He looked at the group huddled together walking toward the harbor, didn't stop, but lightly shifted his gaze and followed them forward.

The eight of them crossed the street and went straight to the harbor, where many figures in law enforcer uniforms had already gathered, surrounding three law officers in trench coats in the center.

Just as Number 8 said, on the hems of their trench coats, one Five-Striped and two Four-Striped insignias were clearly visible.

"Hello, I am Jiang Qin, the lead law enforcer from the Third District."

Number 8 stepped forward and spoke respectfully to the three law officers, handing over several documents. "The law enforcers from the Third, Fifth, and Sixth Districts participating in the Martial Path trial, totaling 8 people, have all arrived."

A Four-Striped law officer scanned the group, picked up the documents, and began checking them one by one.

When they joined the law enforcers, they all left images at headquarters. Now, the law officer was comparing them to the photos, questioning and verifying them one by one, his sharp gaze scraping across their faces like a knife.

Finally, he nodded slightly and checked off their names on the list.

"By the way, how did you get here? The people from the Fourth District haven't arrived by train yet; how did you get here first?" the law officer asked suddenly.

"We came on yesterday’s train," Number 8 smiled slightly. "They said they hadn't been to Winter Harbor before, so we came a day early to take a look. We didn't expect to run into friends from the Fifth and Sixth Districts on the way."

"Yes, it was a coincidence," another law enforcer from the Fifth District nodded.

"Alright, then just move around simply in the vicinity for now. Once the people from the Fourth District arrive, we can board the ship... Don't go too far, just stay within two hundred meters."

"Understood."

Hearing this, the other Fire-Tamperers exchanged glances and asked cautiously:

"Officer Jiang Qin, can we... go buy newspapers now?"

"...Go ahead."

The group turned and left.

Chen Ling walked with his hands in his pockets, silently following behind them.