“As always,” Cha Ming said with a wave. He entered the corridor leading to the vault and stopped by the quartermaster’s locked door, knocking three times.
“Who is it?” the quartermaster, Wang Bo asked from inside.
“It’s me,” Cha Ming said, peeking in. “Mind if I look around?”
“Knock yourself out,” Wang Bo said. The level of trust he now showed Cha Ming made him feel a little guilty. The fact that the man had betrayed the North in the first place helped soothe the ache. He approached the lock and pressed his arm inside. The security tattoo was verified by the door, which opened, allowing him through. He proceeded directly toward a corner he often frequented as he looked over certain metals.
Snap. Another picture, another small mountain of spirit stones gone. He had very little time to act, as Wang Bo would definitely be glancing at the monitoring camera every once in a while. Therefore, Cha Ming began unceremoniously dumping whatever he could into the Clear Sky World.
Piles upon piles of rare ores. Rare medicinal herbs. Pills that hadn’t yet been sold. Piles of spirit stones, and even pieces of immortal jade. Not everything was expensive, but he even took cheaper objects, including the nice shelves that held everything for display. After all, if they were able to support the weight of the expensive ores, they had to be worth something.
Only a minute passed, but in that minute, the room had become completely empty. Cha Ming pondered leaving the fake Gold Source Core as a taunt to Zhou Li but ultimately decided against it.
Better safe than sorry, he thought, taking it in as well. The vault was now bare. Having finished his work, he walked out of the vault and proceeded back to Wang Bo’s office. On his way there, he sent a message through the jade Prince Shen had left him. I’ll be coming soon. I won’t have much time.
“You’re back fast,” Wang Bo said as Cha Ming entered.
“There’s a problem,” Cha Ming said, nodding toward the screen.
Wang Bo glanced at it and nearly fainted from shock. “When was the last time you inspected the vault?”
“The vault?” Wang Bo said, his face pale. “Ju-ju-just this morning. How? How is this possible?”
“I suggest you call Director Yong and Tian Zhi as quickly as possible. Together, we might be able to figure out who did this.”
Wang Bo nodded gravely and sent out messages on his core-transmission jade. Then he slumped into his chair, his eyes filled with disbelief as he looked at the monitor once again. “Everything is gone. Even the shelves. Even with a dozen powerful cultivators working together, and several storage devices, it would have taken hours.”
Cha Ming’s Clear Sky World was a possibility he would never consider. Normally, he wouldn’t dare to reveal it, but today was a special day with special circumstances.
“According to what you said, they had hours,” Cha Ming said. “The only question is, how did they break into the vault without physically damaging it?”
“Yes, you’re right,” Wang Bo said, peering intensely at the screen. “I don’t see the slightest bit of damage to the walls.”
“What happened?” a voice suddenly said. The door burst open, revealing Director Yong and Tian Zhi. “You said it was an emergency. You’d better not be lying.”
“How could I possibly be lying?” Wang Bo said, pointing to his monitor. “We’ve been robbed!”
“Robbed?” Tian Zhi said, looking to where Wang Bo pointed. His eyes widened. “Impossible. Your monitor must be malfunctioning.”
“I saw it with my own eyes,” Cha Ming said, shaking his head. “It’s best to see it in person.”
“Let’s go,” Director Yong said, leading the way. They walked over to the vault door where, one after another, they authenticated and entered. Cha Ming soon joined the three men, who were staring around the empty vault in disbelief.
“How could this have happened?” the older man muttered.
“I saw something suspicious here,” Cha Ming said, flying toward the center. The three men followed him to a message—one that he’d scrawled on the floor and hidden weeks prior—and read it out loud. “The Wang family sends its regards.”
“What does it mean?” Tian Zhi wondered out loud.
“I don’t know,” Director Yong said.
Wang Bo was speechless. As they stood there and shook their heads, however, Cha Ming was already activating the formation he’d painstakingly laid within the vault’s floor during prior visits. The runes were hidden beneath the floor tiles, but the moment he poured a mountain of spirit stones into the room, they activated. The room came alight with destructive lightning.
“It was you!” Director Yong yelled, drawing a sword and instantly charging at Cha Ming. He might be a director, a non-combatant of the Wang family, but he was still a peak-core-formation cultivator. He’d seen his fair share of death and slaughter. Tian Zhi joined him with a massive blacksmith’s hammer trailing crimson flames. They attacked Cha Ming, ignoring the lightning that seared them.
Cha Ming immediately summoned the Clear Sky Staff. Though he’d laid down a formation, it was just insurance. Inside this vault, he was invincible. An aura of half-step rune carving and half-step blood awakening surged out of him. His nascent domain surrounded him in a metallic aura—ideal for cutting. His muscles brimmed with power. He swung out with Crushing Chaos, directly using one of his strongest attacks from the outset.
Director Yong cried out in shock, as did Wang Bo. He sheared through both of them, killing them instantly. Tian Zhi, however, was no slouch. He was a body cultivator, and he’d clearly spent a lot of time fighting. The staff blow caught his leg. It sheared through it, cutting off his foot, which instantly grew back due to his peak-marrow-refining cultivation. He swung his hammer and beat Cha Ming in the chest.
Cha Ming coughed out blood but didn’t move an inch. He thrust out his palm, infusing a nascent domain of fire into his palm strike and smashing through the man’s ribs. Tian Zhi responded by smashing into Cha Ming’s head. His bones, though
