-BOOOOOOOOMMMMMM!!!!!!!!!

A massive explosion shook the entire Fifth Layer, its sound echoing through every corner. The walls trembled violently under the shockwave, and though the Ancient Paradox Formation prevented the blast from spreading, the power behind it was still terrifying.

High above the wreckage, Kyle and the Security Head floated in the air with hundreds of guards behind them. The sight before them was enough to drain the color from every face. But none looked more lifeless than Kyle and the Security Head.

That single explosion had decided their fate. It proved the security system had activated, and the treasures sealed within the Vaults had all been destroyed.

As the two stood frozen in silence, a glowing portal appeared below them. The air shimmered, and a young man stepped out of it.

He wore golden glasses and, at first glance, looked like an ordinary person. Yet the moment he appeared, everyone dropped to one knee.

"Chief Advisor!!!" they called out together.

The young man's calm eyes moved across the scene. His voice was soft, smooth, and oddly pleasant to the ear, but each word struck like a blade.

"I arrived as soon as I was notified. Even with all of you here, someone still managed to break through and steal from us. They even entered the Vaults?" His tone carried no anger, only quiet disappointment. "How many were there? What was their strength?"

The calmness in his voice was more frightening than a shout. Kyle and the Security Head felt chills crawling up their backs. Neither dared to speak.

"I do not like repeating myself."

That sentence made their hearts drop. The two men rushed to explain everything, trembling as they spoke. They described everything that happened.

Throughout their words, the Chief Advisor simply listened, adjusting his glasses slightly. His expression did not change even once.

"Interesting," he said finally. "Someone who bypassed the Mana-Sealing and Anti-Teleportation Arrays, and even managed to store everything inside the Vaults, must be hiding something quite special..."

Kyle and the Security Head kept their heads low, their shame burning deeper with each passing second.

The Chief Advisor stood in silence for a while, then turned toward the section where the Vaults were. Both men followed behind quietly, afraid to make a sound.

The man they followed was not just any figure. He was the strategist behind the Black Market's success, the one who ensured that, no matter which continent they operated in, they never got caught. His network of information was unmatched, and it was because of him that the Black Market had never suffered any losses.

Until today.

The Chief Advisor opened the Vaults one by one and examined them. Every door he opened revealed the same sight: broken stone, collapsed walls, and darkness.

After checking the last Vault, he turned toward the two men. A small smile appeared on his lips.

"Why are you both still standing here? Shouldn't you be chasing the thief?"

Both men froze in place. The question alone was enough to make their hearts skip.

"D-Don't tell me, my lord," Kyle stammered, "that the thief actually survived the blast and escaped?"

The Chief Advisor's golden glasses reflected the light as he looked at them. "Your thoughts are clouded by fear of death and the weight of failure," he said. "It seems your decision-making has dulled. Perhaps it is time new staff took your place."

The color drained completely from their faces. Without a moment's hesitation, both vanished, leaving only their panicked words behind.

"We will track the thief to the ends of the world!"

The Chief Advisor stood alone amid the ruins, his gaze fixed on the pile of broken stone where the Vaults had once been.

"To think someone used such a small flaw to steal an entire Vault," he murmured. "This thief is quite interesting."

He crouched and ran his hand lightly across the rubble. The Vaults had been built with a special material that was easy to recognize, yet not even a single piece of it was present.

He thought about the structure of the Ancient Barrier. It was shaped like a half-sphere, its design meant to destroy the Vaults and their contents completely while keeping the blast contained.

For someone to find that weakness in such a short time and use it perfectly to steal the whole vault before it was destroyed, and in 30 seconds no less.

He was beyond impressed.

Or perhaps someone from the upper ranks leaked the information to the thief...

He straightened, his eyes narrowing behind his golden lenses. He was the one who had given the green signal for the Vaults to self-destruct.

Under his command, nothing like this had ever happened before. He would rather destroy everything himself than let anyone else profit from him.

A chuckle escaped his lips. "It has been a long time since things became this interesting..."

***

Meanwhile, the thief in question appeared inside the VIP Room "1".

After escaping the explosion, Ash wanted to retrieve the phone he had left there and disappear immediately. But the moment he arrived, Ash froze.

A tall, muscular man stood at the center of the room, his broad back straight, holding the phone in one hand. His expression was calm but sharp, and his eyes locked onto Ash the instant he appeared.

For a split second, silence filled the room. The air grew heavy, and neither of them moved. Their eyes met, both studying the other, trying to judge who would act first.

Then Ash broke the stillness. His voice carried a hint of mockery, but his gaze was serious.

"Nice muscles you got there, dude. Continue your work...."

As soon as the words left his lips, he gave a casual wave and vanished into thin air.

The man's calm face twisted in rage.

"STOP RIGHT THERE—"

-BOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMMMM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

A thunderous explosion tore through the area, shaking the walls violently. The floor split under the pressure, and the lights flickered before bursting. The shockwave threw the muscular man off balance, slamming him against the wall.

He couldn't even complete his sentence, let alone activate his domain. The explosion came too fast, and Ash's appearance and disappearance were too quick for him to react. By the time shaking cleared and he stretched his senses in every direction, there was nothing. Not even a trace of the intruder's presence remained.

"FIND THAT BASTARD!!!!!!!!!!"

His furious roar echoed across the entire building. At once, all ten of his subordinates who had been following him vanished into motion, spreading in all directions to hunt for the thief.

---

"Damn, who was that bodybuilder? Did someone already suspect me?"

Ash muttered under his breath as he appeared inside a small, dark cave deep within a mountain range. The air was cool and slightly damp, carrying the earthy scent of moss and rock. The cave was hidden behind a dense wall of trees, its entrance blocked by a massive boulder. He had stayed here once before during his travels across the Neutral Continent, so it was familiar ground—a safe spot where no one would find him easily.

He took a deep breath, calming himself. The exhaustion soon caught up to him. His mana was far lower than he had expected.

"Storing those Vaults took a lot more mana than I thought..." he muttered with a frown. Normally, the mana used to store items was so small that it replenished automatically through the passive absorption of his Primordial Core. But storing all twenty Vaults had drained him heavily, leaving a faint ringing in his head.

Without wasting time, he reached into his storage space and brought out ten bottles filled with a faint blue glow. The liquid inside shimmered like liquid stars. He popped them open one after another and drank them down quickly, feeling the cool rush of mana flowing back into his body.

With this, I won't have to worry about Absolute Concealment dropping due to lack of mana...

He exhaled softly, rolling his shoulders as the fatigue began to fade. Then he changed his clothes to something simpler, a plain dark shirt and pants that made him look like an ordinary traveler.

After adjusting his sleeves, he rubbed his hands together and smiled faintly, his eyes gleaming with anticipation.

"Now, let's see my treasures, hehehe..."

Closing his eyes, Ash sank his consciousness inward.

The next moment, his surroundings shifted, and he appeared inside his Soul vault.

Almost everyone had already passed through the portal. The faint hum of its remaining energy filled the air, while only a few hundred beasts and demons still remained, trapped in their cages.

They looked restless, their glowing eyes reflecting confusion and a faint trace of fear.

Beside the portal, Serena sat calmly on a wooden chair, reading a book. The portal's fading light illuminated her face, making her appear almost serene.

Sensing his gaze, she looked up from her book and smiled softly.

"You're here."

"I hope everything went smoothly?" Ash asked as he flashed a small smile.

"Yes, nothing to worry about," Serena replied casually.

Her gaze lingered on him for a moment longer, and then she spoke again. "You've changed a little."

Ash raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

Serena's cheeks flushed faintly as she said, "Before, you were always cold and detached, like nothing in this world could move you. But now... You seem more relaxed, even a bit cheerful. It suits you."

Ash blinked in surprise, her words catching him off guard. For a moment, he didn't know how to respond. Then a quiet laugh escaped his lips.

"Haha... really?"

Serena smiled lightly, closing her book. "Really."

They talked for a while longer, their conversation flowing easily. The tension that usually surrounded Ash seemed to fade during those moments. But soon, Serena looked back at the portal, which had started flickering weakly, its light becoming unstable.

"I should get going," she said softly. "The portal won't hold for much longer. It's draining the energy of the Great Mother even more quickly now."

Ash gave a short nod. "Alright. Be careful."

With one last smile, Serena stepped into the portal. The light swallowed her figure, and then the entire portal collapsed in on itself. The faint hum disappeared, leaving behind only silence and a few drifting particles of light that faded into the air.

Ash stood there quietly, watching the space where the portal had been. His thoughts wandered to his earlier discussions with the World Tree and the Saints. Most of the slaves would be returned to their respective domains, while the dwarves would stay with the elves.

He didn't have to worry about their safety anymore; everything had been arranged.

He let out a slow breath and raised his hand slightly.

"Records."

In an instant, the air shimmered, and a large, old-looking book appeared before him. The cover was dark and made of an unknown material, and faint golden runes glowed across its surface.

This was the "Record," a magical ledger that held the complete list of every item he had in his Soul Vault.

Ash's eyes gleamed slightly as he reached out to open it. Now that everything else was settled, it was time to take a proper look at his spoils.

***

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