The moon hung on the branches.

The lights in **Jade Pass City** gradually dimmed. Forced by the huge temperature difference between day and night in the desert, travelers who still wandered the roads donned heavy cloaks. And if one listened closely, the gasps of men and women could be faintly heard in the dark alleys.

Ye Anping stood in front of the window in his room, looking at the pedestrians on the street with a slightly complicated mood.

Although it was often said that one could emerge from the mud without being stained, he somehow felt that if it stayed in this city for a long time, even a snow lotus would probably be turned into a black rose.

"No matter if we catch her or not, we'll leave tomorrow. It's not good for Lianxue and Feng Yu Die to stay here for too long."

He felt inexplicably worried, like an old father who brought his two daughters to a dark area full of street girls and even wanted to cover the eyes and ears of his little sister and Feng Yu Die.

Ye Anping shook his head and looked to the sky.

The cold wind of the desert night raised sand and dust, and behind the stars scattered across the curtain of the sky, there seemed to be a mass of black clouds, giving off an ominous feeling.

From the news he received from that *Jade Sand Pavilion* master, the ***Demon Clan***'s attack on the city should take place within these days.

"The ***Demon Clan***... the main plot line is getting more and more troublesome, sigh--"

Thinking about the things that might happen in the future, as well as the naughty fox and the ***Demon Clan***, Ye Anping felt a little headache. Finally, putting aside the ***Demon Clan*** issue for the time being, he turned his mind back to Su Waner.

"Let's hope we can catch her."

To be honest, he was confident that Su Waner would not steal their things, but he was not confident in catching her.

After all, Su Waner's *Heavenly Picking Technique* was also a supernatural power, almost on par with Feng Yu Die's *Nine Heavens Sword Technique*, which was quite awesome.

Ye Anping sighed, checked the traps he laid in the house, then lay down on the bed. He closed his eyes and pretended to sleep, waiting for the time to pass.

After who knows how long, the strange noises on the street had disappeared. Suddenly, the sound of two jade bells awakened Ye Anping's half-asleep consciousness.

*Jingle jingle ~ ~ Jingle jingle.*

She's coming!

Ye Anping half-opened his left eye and glanced toward the window.

A short figure dressed in snowy white clothes and wearing a fox mask was already standing at the round table in the middle of the room. She did not look at all like a thief; she was cool as a cucumber and at ease as if this was her home.

Su Waner picked up the teapot on the round table, pulled the mask on her face up a few inches, exposing her soft cherry-like lips, and brought the spout of the teapot to her mouth. Raising her head, she took a big sip.

"Gulp gulp~~ Haa--"

"..."

?

Ye Anping really wanted to applaud her.

This girl had really overturned his ingrained impression of what a "thief" was.

When a thief entered another person's house, he or she was always on tenterhooks, tiptoeing with a stooped body, for fear of making any noise and waking up the owner.

But this girl...

Seeing as she had not been arrested so far, she must be indeed very capable.

Su Waner put down the teapot, put on her mask again, and turned her head to look at Ye Anping, who was lying motionless on the bed, then scanned the corners of the room.

"Well... you're not entirely stupid. At least you know how to put some talismans in the house. It's better than those two girls from the ***Black Star*** Sect. But still, the location of the talismans is too obvious..."

As she spoke, she flicked her fingers, and the talismans that had been affixed to the four corners of the room instantly appeared between her fingers.

Su Waner looked at the talismans. She originally thought they would probably be the '*Diamond Talisman*' or '*Fixing Talisman*' that ordinary cultivators usually had on them when going out.

However, these four talismans were painted with some sort of graffiti, and the words originally written in the center had been changed into:

*You*

*Will*

*Surely*

*Die.*

?!!!

Looking at the words on the four talismans, Su Waner's face under the mask gradually turned pale, and her eyes almost popped out.

Without any hesitation, she performed her evasion technique, and in an instant, she transformed into a white light and scurried out the room window, landing on the roof across the street. She lay there, surreptitiously checking the movements from Ye Anping's window and, at the same time, preparing for a second escape.

However, after staring at the window for a long time, there was no movement in the room.

"..."

By now, she understood that she must have been tricked and was so angry that the corners of her eyes twitched.

"What the hell, are you kidding me? Bluffing with your four fake talismans?"

Su Waner was just thinking that she would definitely strip this 'Liang Fucking Liu' from everything he had, even the clothes on his back, when she suddenly felt that her right hand was clamped by someone.

?

At the same time, a girl's cheery voice came to her ears. "You are the *Immortal Thief*, right? Young Master Ye told me to lie in wait here, saying that you would definitely escape to this roof."

?

Su Waner turned her head, and seeing that, out of nowhere, a silver-haired girl appeared next to her, her head was full of questions.

---When did she sneak up on me?

---Why didn't I see anyone on this roof when I escaped here?

---No, it must be because I was focused on that window just now, so I was temporarily negligent and didn't realize that this girl was hiding on the roof...

---But she said she's been waiting here all along?

"Hiss--"

Su Waner took a deep breath, having a bad feeling, and immediately prepared to use her technique to escape again, but seeing that this white-haired girl had a death grip on her wrist, she froze again.

"You..."

Feng Yu Die grinned. "Young Master Ye said your escape skills are very good, and if I hold your hand, you can't run away. Although your escape technique is fast and far, you can't take someone with you, right?"

The almond-shaped eyes under Su Waner's mask widened in disbelief. "How did you..."

However, the next moment...

*Boom---*

A muffled sound resounded from the roof.

Feng Yu Die maintained her grip on Su Waner's wrist with her right hand and threw a punch with her left toward Su Waner's abdomen without leaving any room to dodge.

Although it was a small fist like a beanbag, the gust of wind it brought out, directly blew away all the surrounding tiles on the roof.

Su Waner was shocked. She never expected a cultivator in the middle stage of *Foundation Building* to be able to pack such a vicious punch. Still, since her right hand was tightly grasped, she had no way to dodge. She could only protect her body with her energy and rely on her *Core Formation* refined body to absorb the force of this punch.

She thought that after this girl sent her flying, she could grab the opportunity to use her technique and escape immediately.

However, she didn't expect that when Feng Yu Die punched with her left hand, she also violently pulled her toward her with her right hand.

*Bang---*

This punch hit her chest directly, making her already poor breasts even more overwhelmed. The force spread over Su Waner's ribs, and the thunder-like energy traveled throughout her body along the bones and meridians and then spurt out through the back.

The almond-shaped eyes seen through the holes of the mask instantly turned bloodshot.

"Cough--"

This punch was the only one she had received in decades, so it was also the hardest one.

Su Waner knew her own worth. Since she entered the Immortal Path, all her energy had been focused on the *Escape Technique* and the *Heavenly Picking Technique*. Even the *Core Formation* stage was achieved by relying on the heavenly materials and earthly treasures 'collected' from various sects' treasuries.

If she met a cultivator of the same level and fought head-on, she would have no chance of winning.

Even if there were cultivators with a lower level than hers, as long as they were very powerful, she would not be able to face them head-on.

And judging from this punch, the silver-haired girl in front of her was definitely the best of the best among the *Foundation Building* cultivators.

Su Waner frowned slightly, raised her sword finger with her free left hand, and performed the *Escape Technique* with Feng Yu Die included.

In an instant, the two figures turned into a white light and crashed directly into the second-floor wall of the inn across the street.

*Boom---*

A large hole was left in the wall, and the two of them collapsed into the room with Su Waner on top of Feng Yu Die.

The feeling of her back hitting the ground was really not pleasant, and Feng Yu Die exhaled sharply, but her hand was still firmly gripping the other girl's wrist.

"Cough--"

"Let go!!"

"No way!!" Feng Yu Die frowned and shouted, then turned to look at Ye Anping who had just gotten out of bed. "Young Master Ye!! Help..."

"Ye...?"

Hearing this, Su Waner glanced sideways at Ye Anping, who had just gotten out of bed, and wondered, *Isn't this Liang Xiao Liu?*

Ye Anping looked at the two people who had crashed through the wall and sighed slightly. Then, he took out a sword from his storage bag, and in one step reached Su Waner's side, pointing the sword toward her.

"Heh..."

Seeing that he had pulled out his sword, Su Waner's face under the mask could not help but smile, then raised her free left hand and made a sword finger.

*Swish---*

There was silence in the room, and the next moment, the sword Ye Anping held appeared directly in Su Waner's hand.

Feng Yu Die, who was underneath Su Waner, saw Ye Anping giving her a sword, and her eyes instantly widened.

"Eh?!"

Ye Anping calmly reminded her. "Protect your body."

Under normal circumstances, when someone's sword suddenly disappeared in the process of swinging it, that person would be shocked.

Therefore, Su Waner ignored Ye Anping as a matter of course and raised the sword, holding it in her left hand like a dagger. She pointed the tip at Feng Yu Die, then stabbed toward her, trying to force her to let go.

But just as she was thrusting the sword downward, a dazzling flame suddenly lit up on the sword's surface.

*Boom---*

The talisman that Ye Anping affixed to his sword in advance exploded.

At the same time, a person lit by the talisman's fire flew out through the wall on the second floor of the inn and landed heavily in the middle of the street, leaving a large crater in the sandstone ground.

Lying in the center of the pit, Su Waner only felt her head buzzing. Although her body hurt, she could feel that her injuries were not serious.

After all, it was only a few talismans and a full-strength punch from a mid-stage *Foundation Building* cultivator. Still, she was also an early-stage *Core Formation* cultivator, so taking these hits was no problem.

However, she had a lot of questions in her heart. What on earth was the deal with all these *Foundation Building* cultivators?!

She had robbed more *Foundation Building* cultivators than she could count.

Most of them didn't even realize they were robbed until a few days later.

Even if those few who were a bit more resourceful caught her on the spot, they definitely couldn't defend themselves against her *Heavenly Picking Technique* or catch up with her *Escaping Technique*.

Just like that Young Lady of the ***Black Star*** Sect before, she could only look helplessly and not do anything to her.

But those two people just now...

One of them knew that when using her *Escaping Technique* she couldn't take people away with her.

The other one seemed to have predicted in advance that she would use the *Heavenly Picking Technique* to snatch away his sword, and he put a talisman on it in advance.

...

It was as if... they came here just for her, and especially set this trap for her.

"Anyway, let's run away first and think about it later..."

Saying this, Su Waner stood up crookedly with her body in pain and mobilized her spiritual energy to prepare her escape from the **Jade Pass City**.

However...

*Ta-ta---*

Light footsteps, accompanied by a piercing chill, came from behind her.

Startled, Su Waner saw bursts of snow and mist rising on the street that was originally covered with yellow sand.

The sand froze?? In an instant?!

She stared wide-eyed before shouting out helplessly, "Oh shit~~ What now?!"

Slightly depressed, she slowly turned her head to look behind her.

Under a house's eaves twenty feet away from her, a girl in a blue dress was staring at her, holding a spiritual sword made of black ice.

"..."

When she tried to escape, she found that her feet had been stuck to the ground by a layer of ice. Then, she checked the distance to the girl's position.

Within twenty feet, she would be within her *Heavenly Picking Technique*'s reach, and she could directly take away the sword in that girl's hand.

However, twenty feet away...

"Hey, you?! Come here!!"

Pei Lianxue shook her head and replied in a loud voice, "Brother said to stay twenty feet away from you, so you won't be able to take away my things."

"..."

Su Waner was exasperated, her entire face twitching under the mask. After hesitating for a moment, she knelt down, raising her hands high in the air. "I'm sorry, two sisters! I'm sorry, big brother! I was wrong! I repent! I'll tie my hands! I promise not to run away!!!"

At this time, Ye Anping and Feng Yu Die also jumped down from the room on the second floor of the inn.

Ye Anping had shielded his body in time, but Feng Yu Die's reaction was half a beat slower, and now her face was burnt black by the fire talisman, and her long silver hair seemed even whiter.

Feng Yu Die narrowed her eyes at Ye Anping with a resentful look. "Why didn't you tell me you were going to blow it up?"

"How was I to know you'll be flying back inside?" Ye Anping sighed. "I adapted to the circumstances. I really didn't expect that she would use her escaping skills to bring you back with her."

"..."

Ye Anping ignored Feng Yu Die's resentful eyes and took the initiative to step within twenty feet of Su Waner. "Miss *Immortal Thief*, I don't want to capture you and take you to the ***Sword Gate*** Sect to receive the reward. I just want you to do something for me. Of course, you will be paid..."

"Oh, so it's business. Why are you so aggressive when talking about business? You tell that little girl to retract her spiritual energy. Let's sit somewhere and talk leisurely."

Ye Anping replied with a smile, "We can talk like this too. By the way, if you don't agree, my sister will kill you."

?

Feng Yu Die, who was beside Ye Anping, shrank back and asked in a small voice, "Ah, is Sister Pei so ruthless?"

"..."

Ye Anping glanced at her and said nothing.

And just as he was about to continue to persuade Su Waner, suddenly three flying sword lights came from the distance and hovered above their heads.

A man's voice carrying the pressure of a *Core Formation* late-stage cultivator sounded from above. "Who is stirring trouble here?"

Ye Anping frowned and looked up. When he saw the flying swords and the golden uniforms of the three people, he understood their identities.

---Disciples from the *Justice Division*.

Feeling somehow resigned, he took three steps back, took out his ***Black Star*** Sect disciple's identity tag, and cupped his hands. "I am Liang Xiao Liu, an inner disciple of the ***Black Star*** Sect. Greetings, Seniors."