Chapter 72

The confrontation between the thieves left no room for hesitation. Fang Yi lunged forward and exchanged a few blows with his opponent, his heart suddenly filled with shock at the speed of the other's movements. The thief on the other side wielded two thin swords, which were more like long daggers, targeting Fang Yi's vital points like a leech. His fighting style was similar to Hop's, but even faster and more ruthless.

Fang Yi did not hold back, using his dagger for defense and short sword for offense, creating a wall of blade light in front of him, forcing the opponent to retreat with an unstoppable momentum. The thief seemed eager to save Carl, who was cornered by Orlando, and launched charge after charge. However, Fang Yi read his intentions and immediately delivered a close-range slash whenever the opponent tried to disengage, leaving a notch on the thief's weapon each time. It was as if the thief was being driven to the brink, almost like a spirit floating away.

Soon, Fang Yi heard a piercing scream from behind, followed by the system notification that the "Thief's Footsteps" mission objective was completed. Fang Yi laughed out loud, feeling no more burdens, and his attacks became even more intense. The two moved so fast that Orlando, who wanted to help, couldn't keep up with their pace and could only watch helplessly from the side.

The two fought for about two minutes, each consuming a health potion, but still, no victor emerged. After Carl's death, the opponent seemed to calm down, and his two thin swords became even more aggressive, often aligning with Fang Yi's thoughts. The collisions between the four weapons grew more frequent, the "clinking" sounds of their strikes and the "sizzling" sounds of the blades rubbing against each other never ceased. Fang Yi grew more excited with each blow, wondering which major studio this skilled thief player belonged to.

Soon, the more powerful members of Fang Yi's group had cleared out the Night Mask's minions, including Jim, and gathered around Orlando. The thief, seeing the situation turn against him, touched his belt with his right hand, pulled out a red bottle, and smashed it on the ground. A large cloud of red smoke rose with a "bang," and Fang Yi immediately saw a large red number "-21" appear on his body.

What the heck? Fang Yi immediately jumped back out of the range of the red smoke. Without a priest present, no one dared to step forward. When the red smoke dissipated, the enemy had already fled. Fang Yi spat on the ground; the smell of the red smoke was truly awful. It was a pity; this thief was an enemy, not a friend. If he could have taken him down here, it would have been perfect. He checked the battle log and noted the thief's name: Wu Gou Bai.

Orlando directed the group to clean up their comrades' bodies, burning the cave to the ground. The clay golem at the entrance became a target for their vented anger, ending up with no remains.

An hour later, Orlando, Jim, and Fang Yi were sitting in a quiet courtyard in Tashir.

"This small building was bought by Jenna's mother, originally intended for Jenna..." Orlando's voice was hoarse and low, his calm expression unable to hide his inner pain.

"Please accept my condolences." Fang Yi bowed his head and took out Jenna's ring. "Then, the ring should be returned to its rightful owner."

Orlando pushed away the ring Fang Yi offered. "Thank you, Fang Yi, for everything you did for my daughter. I understand Jenna's intentions; she always hoped I would reconcile with her mother." Orlando stood up and looked out the window at the drizzling sky. "Keep the ring. If you ever have the chance to meet Jenna's mother, return it to her for me."

Jenna's Ring (Fine Ring) (Bound, Upgradable)

Finger

Equipment Requirements: None

Weight: 1

+1 Zero-Level Scroll Space (3-hour cooldown)

+1 First-Level Scroll Space (3-hour cooldown)

+2 Maximum Mana

"Inside the ring, a line of elegant small characters is engraved: 'To the most beautiful Jenna, forever happy.'"

Note: Higher-level scroll spaces can hold lower-level scrolls, but the quantity remains the same.

Another upgradable piece of equipment, Fang Yi put the ring on his left index finger. The emerald material of the ring glowed faintly, looking quite pleasing to the eye.

However, Fang Yi didn't have time to admire it. He glanced at the silent Jim and Orlando and said, "I have another matter to discuss with you." When both of their gazes turned to him, he continued, "Do you know why the Night Mask is sweeping through Tashir's underground forces? Has this ever happened before?"

"At least I haven't heard of it," Orlando frowned, speaking first. "The risk is very high. Even if the Night Mask has a strong hold in the West Gate, they must still guard against attacks from other forces, even from within. I was caught off guard because I didn't expect a large-scale attack."

Fang Yi turned his gaze to Jim—there was no reason for the largest thieves' guild in the Dragon Coast to imprison a significant merchant, which was already strange. Even more surprising was why the Night Mask, known for its brutality, would spare Jim's life.

Jim's appearance was more like that of a thief leader, his robust build and dark skin always making people think of a warrior or a sailor rather than a merchant.

"I heard that the Night Mask seems interested in some kind of ore," Jim said after a moment of thought.

"Ore?" Fang Yi immediately became excited. Ore! He had heard this term quite often recently, and it seemed that the various forces in Tashir were all connected to ore!

"A while ago, Carl came to me, asking to rent my warehouse for a year. He offered a fair price, so I had no reason to refuse." Jim tried to recall the situation. "They stored mining tools like pickaxes, shovels, and mine carts in the warehouse. Although I found it strange, we never interfere with our partners' actions."

"Until a few days ago, I accidentally discovered that Carl and the Night Mask were using my warehouse as a transit point to sell slaves. They were numerous and powerful, and I was caught when I was careless. They didn't dare to kill me and kept me and Orlando's group imprisoned until now."

Seeing Fang Yi's puzzled expression, Jim smiled. "My family now only does the business of renting warehouses, and I became a knight of the Tashir Church a year ago."

Hearing this, Fang Yi's mind became clear—the Night Mask boldly came to Tashir to seize territory, but their actions were extremely low-key, probably because they discovered that the Tashir Church had a powerful figure, Somanthu, in the city.

Somanthu's presence meant that the elite Temple Knights of the old elf were also here, and the Tashir Knights of the Dragon Coast and the surrounding Fallen Star Sea were all paying attention to this small city. After all, this elf knight was known for his ferocity. If it were me, I would also be cautious, Fang Yi thought with a sense of schadenfreude.

"Mr. Jim, I'm afraid you'll have to come with me to the Tashir Temple."