Infinite Fighting

Although Taren was a member of the Thieves' Guild, he always believed in the principle of "you reap what you sow."

Yes, he reaps the rewards of others' labor.

Mokel asked him to help find some gold jar, which he wouldn't normally do.

But after a quick investigation, he discovered that things were not so simple.

There might be a magical artifact involved!
Ordinary people naturally don't know the secrets of the world, but for him, who is in the Thieves' Guild, obtaining some information is relatively easy.

The artifacts are the most mysterious creations in the world, and they all come from the great and all-powerful God Apache.

Legend has it that Apache created the world, but he also died as a result. His power was broken down and spread throughout the world, attaching itself to different objects, thus giving them corresponding special effects.

Those functions, if used well, can easily change the world.

The guild leader of the Thieves' Guild, "Reggie," whose only name is mentioned, is said to be a beneficiary of a powerful artifact, which is why he became a legend.

Taren also possesses a powerful artifact.

He once stole a creation that defied the laws of nature from a nobleman.

A flute that can continuously play music is an antique from the ancient Mingqi tribe.

It can play music continuously without any power source and cannot be damaged.

A sorcerer friend helped him transform the flute into the hilt of a short sword. Normally, the power of the music is stored and stored, but when used, it is released in full, creating a piercing sound and shockwave.

It's just that the flute's sound was too soft; otherwise, it could have been transformed into an even more terrifying weapon.

It was this ordinary artifact that propelled him to become one of the ace guild members, and he even managed to exchange blows with an epic-level expert and escape unscathed.

If he could obtain an even more powerful artifact, the power and wealth he could possess would be immeasurable.

Based on the limited information Taren gathered, it is speculated that the so-called "golden pot" is most likely a magical artifact capable of continuously producing gold.

Mokel was ultimately just a brainless guy who only thought about getting gold from that artifact.

But in Taren's view, as long as the jar outputs enough gold, with a little modification, it could become another creation with infinite possibilities.

Just like the [Sonic Blast] short sword in his hand.

Even a flute that can play music can kill an epic-level expert, let alone a jar that can continuously produce gold.

He concealed his identity and followed Kenzie's team nearby, changing his identity several times and exchanging a few words with the team members without arousing their suspicion.

Even the most vigilant Yes was the same.

Among the Hall of Fame level, Taren is quite outstanding, and he is also a master of concealment and disguise techniques. It is unlikely that he would be discovered by a second-tier elite adventurer.

However, Taren was more puzzled by the extra person in Kenzie's team.

He seemed out of place in the team and wasn't a member, but everyone in the team treated him with a certain respect.

It doesn't seem like they're an employer either.

In Taren's view, they were more like friends traveling together.

But it doesn't seem like the way you treat a friend.

In short, it's very contradictory.

Another noteworthy point is that every time he changed his identity, the person looked at him with the same expression, as if they had seen through his disguise.

Taren suspected that the other person had discovered something, but the person did not tell Kenzie's team.

It's just weird anyway.

Normally, if he encountered someone whose background he couldn't figure out, he would definitely run away immediately.

But this time it's different.

The allure of the artifact was undeniable, and as long as his identity wasn't explicitly revealed, he was willing to continue gambling.

After traveling for more than two days, the group stopped in a small town. There were still hundreds of kilometers to go, and they would have to rely on other means of transportation.

The Darliru Mountains have not been under the rule of the Niels Empire for very long. The area was previously inhabited by mountain barbarians, who had been civilized for no more than five years.

Of course, five years is enough time for a lot to change.

At least here it's no longer like before, where people lived like animals eating raw meat.

The group ordered food at a restaurant here.

It wasn't expensive, and the food was plentiful; the only problem was that it wasn't very tasty.

"Just add some seasonings, boil it briefly, tear it apart, and it's ready to serve. People even eat it with their hands. It doesn't seem to change much," Mels said.

“Out of humanitarian considerations, the Empire will not interfere with their own way of life,” Gaia said.

"It feels like I've returned to my hometown."

Gray grabbed the food and started eating, not bothered by his greasy hands.

In his hometown, eating with one's hands is normal, but he found the various tableware and pre-meal etiquette quite unfamiliar.

This is perfect; everything has returned to its original state.

"Never mind, I'll still ask for a set of cutlery."

Kenji shook his head and asked the shopkeeper for a few sets of tableware.

Zhang Ji also took a couple of bites, then stopped eating; the taste really wasn't very good.

He took out the newly purchased book on the basic theory of fighting spirit and began to study it, trying to explore its deeper mysteries.

The fighting spirit in this world is also a type of energy used in biological evolution.

Similar to Yuan Qi, it possesses many attributes and functions. It includes a jumble of light, dark, lightning, and wind attributes of battle qi, and new attributes are constantly being discovered.

Currently, there are 325 officially recognized types of fighting spirit.

Each one has a slightly different effect.

But in Zhang Ji's view, in the final analysis, battle qi actually only has one attribute, which is "adaptive".

The changes occur depending on the different interfering substances.

The practice of Qigong requires external assistance.

The properties of external objects will affect them, causing them to have corresponding changes in effect.

There is no such thing as high or low level here, only what is suitable or unsuitable.

Some forms of fighting spirit can even harm the user.

Alternatively, one can cultivate various types of battle qi, possessing multiple attributes, but this requires maintaining balance. Otherwise, conflicts in battle qi will cause energy to run rampant within the body like a wild horse, resulting in a rather artistic death.

“I bought a copy before, but I didn’t really understand it,” Mels suddenly leaned over and said.

“The formal language and the author’s intention to hide key information make it normal for most people to not understand,” Zhang Ji said. “Applied knowledge is never about telling you the principles, but about telling you directly how to do it. Once you do it and succeed, you will know the result. So practice is the most important thing.”

"Brother, did you understand it?" Gray asked curiously.

He had always wanted to practice a qigong technique, but because the process of refining battle qi was tedious and boring, it was far less easy than practicing strength by swinging an axe, so he gave up.

"No matter how things change, the underlying principles remain the same; many of these principles are interconnected," Zhang Ji said.

As he spoke, he showed off his work.

A ball of fighting spirit appeared in his palm, filled with a dazzling array of colors, but it did not explode, maintaining a delicate balance.

Kenzie's attention was also drawn to it.

Others might not know what this meant, but he knew it very well.

This represents superb control, something only an epic being of at least the fourth tier could achieve.

"Mr. Zhang, have you practiced Qigong before?" Kenzie asked.

"No, this is our first time meeting today," Zhang Ji replied truthfully.

Among the crowd, apart from Yes, who was certain that Zhang Ji was an incarnation of a god, the others did not really believe it.

Not far away, another diner glanced at the scene without leaving a trace. When he saw the colorful battle qi in Zhang Ji's palm, his pupils contracted for a moment before he looked away.

Taren is also capable of precise control, but three types of battle aura are difficult enough to control. Each additional type increases the difficulty exponentially. Moreover, they tend to avoid trying to do too much at once, even if they have extra energy.

Zhang Ji's palm strike, roughly estimated, contained more than thirty different types of fighting spirit.

Aside from the relatively small quantity, maintaining such a balance is truly remarkable.

One of his colleagues, who was very skilled at acrobatics, could only control eleven different types of fighting spirit to maintain balance.

"All that fancy stuff, and he's dead in one sword strike," Taren thought to himself.

He was a little sour.

If I had that kind of self-control, I probably could have made it into management.

Don't be fooled by your current status as a top thief. If you can stay indoors, basking in the sun and enjoying the cool breeze while being massaged by animal-eared girls, who would want to go out and run quests?
Suddenly, Zhang Ji turned his head and looked over.

Taren continued eating as if nothing had happened, seemingly only glancing at the food out of curiosity, without showing any unusual behavior.

Fortunately, Zhang Ji didn't keep looking at it and quickly looked away.

Even so, Taren broke out in a cold sweat.

He was certain he had been discovered, but it seemed Zhang Ji had no intention of telling the rest of the team.

It was fortunate amidst misfortune.

We can't observe this closely anymore; we need to keep a distance.

With that one glance, he felt as if the other person was observing animals in a zoo.

It's a superior, all-encompassing, bystander perspective.

Does he seem to find it amusing?

"One sword and I'm done for, it's alright!" Taren reassured himself.

His sword is a divine weapon; even an epic-level expert would die if stabbed by it, so he's completely unafraid.

Soon, the group finished their meal, rested for a bit, and then continued their journey.

This time we'll need to take a horse-drawn carriage, and there's still a distance we might have to walk.

"Why did Gaia's father keep the family treasure so far away?" Gray asked.

“Because he said that thing would bring us danger,” Gaia replied.

"A clay pot?" Gray asked, puzzled.

"There must be something dangerous inside the pottery jar," Rona speculated.

“I heard that Yorick University has a bio-virus that leaked and infected millions of people, turning them all into zombies. Could the thing in the terracotta pot be something similar?” Mels speculated.

“That’s fabricated news. The truth is that it was just some allergic reactions. A few people died, but only a few hundred, not tens of thousands. Besides, there’s already legislation prohibiting similar bacterial research, so it won’t be out in the open anymore,” Gaia said.

"He studied journalism!" Myers retorted. (End of Chapter)