Ace didn't dare to believe what he just felt so he hurriedly circulate his HD-Qi with the help of Dark Void to confirm what had just happened.
But to his disappointment, the Dark Void was tranquil and he didn't have any kind of strange feeling like before. It was like that feeling was just an illusion.
However, Ace's senses were never wrong before especially after he formed the Yellow Soul Core of the black wind soul. Therefore, the feeling he felt before was definitely real. But the question was just what happened and why isn't the Dark Void reacting anymore?
Ace finally made up his mind as he saw that gloomy grey trees forest. He's going for hook or crook this time.
Since there weren't any leaves on those grey trees the gaps between them seem like dark roads or mazes. No one knows where these roads lead to because there was not a single record about this kind of tree in the books that Ace possessed. But Ace was about to find out soon.
He rests for a while because using Soul Qi is more taxing than using HD-Qi because his body was still at the Heavenly Gates realm while his soul was equal to a Qi foundation realm. His body took quite a toll because of soul qi.
After resting for two hours he was finally at his peak state and ready for any danger that he would encounter in that forest.
This time Ace didn't use his heavenly sense because if he used it in the start he would be exhausted to face any danger. He was going to depend on his innate soul sense.
This core region of the moon forest was completely dark and because of the dark Ace's stealth here was very potent.
By only using silent steps and stealth he enters the forest of grey trees. He was extremely careful and was making sure not to touch those trees accidentally. He was only moving between them with extreme caution.
As he goes deeper and deeper the gloomy feeling begun to become stronger. If not for the Dark Void that was absorbing Heavenly Qi even in this kind of environment and providing him HD-Qi he would be long run out of Qi.
Ace was feeling cold all over his body as he goes deeper into the forest and couldn't help but think if there was some kind of ice lake here. But after walking for an hour he didn't find anything but these trees around him.
He even stops using his skills because he was only wasting his Qi and he didn't find any tangible danger here only his soul sense was giving him warnings continuously.
Another hour past but he was still between these trees and they were just no end to them. Suddenly Ace saw a strange marking on the dirt like an arrow and was shocked by it because this marking was left behind by him so he could come back if he gets lost.
However, now seeing that marking in front of him he guesses that he was already lost in this maze of grey trees. These damn trees were so weird that he can't even tell what was different between these trees because they all seem the same. It was like he was in a huge illusion maze.
Ace wasn't worried about his ration though, since he has killed so many demonic beasts and with huge thief's space and all those storage rings, he has stored plenty of meat to sustain himself for two to three years if he eats two times a day as for water he has found a small bottle in Dulce's storage ring that can only store tons of water.
He was quite astonished by this storage bottle and couldn't help but marvel at the strange things that he was coming in contact with because he has become a thief. Because if he wanted this kind of treasures he has to be a rich person and most importantly he has to have connections in empires to get these kinds of treasures.
This was the biggest advantage of being a thief you just have to steal from a rich prince or princess of any big power and you'll get everything you need for survival in this world of cultivation.
Presently, It has been a week since Ace was stuck in this dark maze of trees. He can't find a way forward and he can't find a way backward either.
Ace didn't lose his calmness even in this situation and didn't panic. He tries different methods like using his true and false eyes, try cutting those trees…
But his basic skills were ineffective here and when he tries cutting those grey trees he found out the instant he touched them they turned into grey ashes and scatter in wind. It was like they were made of ashes.
Ace even becomes numb to that gloomy feeling and cold. He finally understands why didn't anyone has ever come back from this place in years it was mostly because of this tree maze.
Since nothing was working he was simply sat there and watch those trees quietly.
'Is this some kind of formation like Dulcie's?' He couldn't help but think like this because he was trap here for a week and no matter what he tries he can't find a way out.
It was like a formation in his mind because he has read Dulce's books and there was a single book on formation as well. It didn't tell you how to make it, but it gave the basic introduction of what a formation was capable of and some legendary formations can even create illusions like reality and can trap someone for their lifetime.
Ace smile bitterly as he shook his head. How can someone create a formation of this magnitude in this place it was just in his head.
Since he was already trapped here he decided to stay calm and something might come up like that feeling that he once had with his dark void. But now even he began to think that it was an illusion shown by his mind to lessen his desperation of gaining power.
Ace takes out a black palm-sized pouch from his thief's space. This was the same pouch that Alina has left for him with ten ruby coins in it on her departure.
He always carries this pouch with him and sometimes takes it out and remembered that little beauty nostalgically.
Ace saw the black pouch and smiled, "I wonder what Lil Sis is doing right now. Maybe she's still a brat that likes to play pranks on me a lot, she would be doing the same with her parents now right?" Ace murmured to himself.
Ace store the black pouch inside his thief's space and take out a compass. It was golden colored and there was only a single point on it that was currently spinning on the glass-like metal of the compass.
"Even this thing didn't work, so much for the top treasure of Kelby family." Snorted Ace.
This was the exact compass that Rylan wants to find him with.
Ace finds out about it in a record book of the Kelby family that he steals with all these treasures since he has more free time in his hands.
Considering nothing was working he decided to practice cultivation again.
Before that he practices his skills one by one, it has become his habit.
Finally, in the end, Ace raised his finger, yellow threads begin to gush out from his finger like water in the fountain they were a total of ten threads these threads were soul threads.
Ace didn't practice this skill much since it has no use in wildness but today he wanted to see just how many threads can he make after his breakthrough.
Ace nodded in satisfaction and was about to retract them.
"Hmm?" When he notices something extremely unusual.
Normally these soul threads were made from soul Qi and aren't corporeal. They exist between reality and space. So, without Ace control, they were lifeless and the wind can't blow them, but strangely right now they were wavering like normal threads in the presence of wind.
Moreover, they all were flickering in the same direction not randomly!
Ace was astonished by this sudden development, He never would've dreamed that there was something that can move his soul threads without his will.
It was like he detects a bright light in dark and he quickly begins to follow the direction that these soul threads were flickering towards.
As he followed soul threads direction he found that the grey trees were growing in numbers like they were forming a wall to prevent him from going in that specific direction.
But Ace was determined to get out of here. If he stayed and remain cautious he would be trapped here forever and die eventually. He will fight his way out here no matter what.
Since these trees were only paper tigers Ace simply ignore them and pass through them as they turn into ashes right after. Finally, after walking for twenty minutes the number of these annoying trees started to decrease.
In the end, Ace finally crosses that maze and comes into a huge clear field.
He saw in the center of the field was a grey tree but they were thousands of leaves on it and they were glowing in white color and thousands of white glowing strings were attached to those glowing leaves.
Each leaf has a single white string attached with it and those strings scatter through the entire sky like a net, dyed the dark sky with a white glow.
That grey tree was like some central point of a spider nest with thousands of webs attached to it.
It was a shocking yet magnificent spectacle.