Chapter 146: Chapter 118: White Fox Claims the Heaven-Reliant Sword

Yan Qing couldn’t quite remember and turned slightly towards Shang Xinlei, asking in a low voice, "The leftover points they had from last time were..."

"White Fox 7 points, Black Wolf 25 points," Shang Xinlei covered her mouth to answer, a tone full of schadenfreude: "This will be interesting to watch."

In other words, Black Wolf gained 55 thief points from this mission, while White Fox obtained 79 points—weren’t they working together? How is there a 24-point gap?

Pharmacist’s Wish clenched her fists tightly. The Fierce Tiger Arm Armor that Yan Qing had just given her glimmered with blue light, manifesting the appearance of Fierce Tiger Beast Swallowing. Shang Xinlei had secretly introduced the arm armor to him on the way there, mentioning that it had three powers, but the most crucial was the ’Fierce Tiger Blessing,’ which could enhance the next attack with the force of a tiger’s claw strike, without consuming spiritual power. However, the messenger needed to release sufficient power with both hands to draw out the tiger soul within the arm armor.

Even among third-turn messengers, many warriors struggled to unleash the power of the Fierce Tiger Arm Armor, which is why this three-turned rare token had been sealed in the underground secret vault. Yet, Pharmacist’s Wish could easily meet the requirements of the arm armor just by sitting and clenching her fists, showing how suitable this token was for her, how abundant her qi blood was, and how furious her rage was!

"White Fox."

Pharmacist’s Wish took a deep breath but still couldn’t suppress her emotions, gritting her teeth and said, "I need an explanation. If you and I received the same points, I could understand, but I clearly contributed the most, so why did you get so many more points than me?"

Ying Rushi raised three fingers.

"First, the ambush location was arranged by me, which was a decisive factor in our battle against Shang Xuanwen, even more important than the battle itself, that’s ten points."

"Second, it was my crucial sword strike that disarmed Shang Xuanwen’s Heaven-Swaying Sword, that’s ten points. My combat contribution was not as much as yours, canceling each other out, but with additional merits like the Snake Pattern Rope, it adds up to nine points more than you."

"And the other five?" Pharmacist’s Wish asked eagerly, "There’s no other place, how exactly did you outperform me!?"

Ying Rushi didn’t respond, just glanced slightly in Yan Qing and Shang Xinlei’s direction from under the White Fox Mask.

Pharmacist’s Wish was taken aback, "Could it be..."

"Exactly," Ying Rushi nodded, unable to resist a smile, "Thief’s House recognized my idea and awarded me five thief points."

In Ying Rushi’s settlement list, the bottommost evaluation stated:

"Leadership Presence: You persuaded teammates to assist other teammates, 5 points."

While it wasn’t for this reward, seeing Thief’s House recognize the idea of teamwork gave Ying Rushi a slight sense of joy. More importantly, it was precisely this five-point difference that secured her victory in the battle for the Heaven-Swaying Sword.

Pharmacist’s Wish fell silent, sitting quietly on a chair, her head lowered, staring at the stone table like a silent statue. Yet, this made her even more terrifying than before, like a quiet volcano, ready to erupt with devastation and unyielding conflict.

Yan Qing swallowed hard, unsure if Thief’s House could resolve disputes, nor did he want them to find out through action, so he changed the topic, "I have swiped a lot of tokens; if you see something suitable, you can offer a price to take it."

"Exactly," Shang Xinlei no longer dared to watch from the sidelines, "I am from the Jiangnan Region, and it’s hard to offload this stolen loot; you need to help me out."

When Yan Qing mentioned this, it wasn’t merely to appease Pharmacist’s Wish. Dealing with this batch of stolen goods was indeed troublesome. Although he had a Treasure Hunting Order, he hadn’t viewed the system information for these stolen items, making it impossible to put them up for sale. However, there was a way—by creating another account in the Jiangnan Region and transferring the loot to Shang Xinlei, who would then pass it to the new account, allowing entry to the system warehouse.

But if Thief’s House could fence the items, it would save a lot of trouble. As far as he could see, Black Wolf and White Fox seemed to be wealthy, whereas he was probably the only one truly needing to work to make a living.

Ying Rushi didn’t speak, understanding Pharmacist’s Wish’s feelings. Pharmacist’s Wish had been so confident and arrogant earlier, only to face such swift and brutal disillusionment, and her resentment towards Ying Rushi was only natural. Although Thief’s House valued Ying Rushi’s contributions more, Ying Rushi knew in her heart she wasn’t better than Pharmacist’s Wish. It was merely luck.

Pharmacist’s Wish wasn’t wrong either; her pride was derived from her strength and contributions. If it were Ying Rushi in her position, Ying Rushi too would feel this was a great humiliation, and anyone experiencing such disgrace must cleanse it with blood. Such is the value of dignity.

If it were any other legendary token, Ying Rushi might have conceded to her, for a harmonious team is far more crucial than temporary gains. But the Heaven-Swaying Sword was too important to her; she wouldn’t give it up. She could only remain silent, as anything she said would only add fuel to the fire.

At that moment, a glowing disc opened on the ceiling of the Thief’s House, descending four items, capturing everyone’s attention.

"Based on the completion of the thieves’ task, Thief’s House has selected four items from the treasury as additional rewards."

"Comprehension Pill"

"Quantity: Seven pieces"

"Effect: Increases comprehension by 30 points for seven days."

"Evaluation: After eating one, you’ll want another."

/

"Red Furnace Fire Essence"

"Usage Condition: Only for Legendary Tokens"

"Effect: Increases the tier of tokens up to Legendary Tier by one turn, but permanently decreases the token’s durability. The higher the Legendary Tier, the more durability is reduced."

"Evaluation: True gold fears no red furnace fire, and the red furnace fire fears no true gold."

/

"Random Secret Technique Manual"

"Usage Condition: Must master at least one advanced skill"

"Effect: Depending on your skills, immediately comprehend a secret technique you have yet to master."

"Evaluation: What suits you may be the best, but what’s suitable is not necessarily the strongest."

/

"Life-Saving Pill" 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

"Usage Condition: None"

"Effect: When you suffer a fatal injury, it allows you to retain one absolute life point, unaffected by continuous damage like bleeding, and can only be damaged by direct attacks. The effect lasts until triggered, rendering any similar pill effects void until then."

"Evaluation: A byproduct of the Celestial Court’s Elixir of Immortality, far from a true Elixir of Immortality."

There were unexpectedly four items, one more than last time, and with a qualitative enhancement!

The Comprehension Pill could be overlooked for now, while the Red Furnace Fire Essence and Random Secret Technique Manual were exactly what Yan Qing needed most at the moment. The former to upgrade Bingzi Pepper Forest and the latter, along with the Secret Technique Book: Left Curve and Right Return, could quickly allow Yan Qing to master two secret techniques, clearing the path for a third career change!

The final Life-Saving Pill was also hard to give up. Its effect lasted until triggered, essentially granting another life. Coupled with a Return Order, even if Yan Qing encountered a Foundation Establishment Messenger while on a mission, he’d at least have the slimmest chance of survival!

Each item was supremely useful and urgently needed, and once again, Yan Qing regretted running around with Shang Xinlei for now, making it unlikely for him to win the Heaven-Swaying Sword or probably more than one of these four items!

"The following are the rewards for this mission: Heaven-Swaying Sword, Comprehension Pill (seven pieces), Red Furnace Fire Essence, Random Secret Technique Manual, Life-Saving Pill."

"Now is the auction phase, where you can use thief points to bid on items, with a minimum bid of 10 points and an increment of at least 5 points each time. Thieves who successfully bid on an item have priority in the next round of bidding."

"The first item is the Heaven-Swaying Sword; please place your bids."

Unlike last time, after the Thief’s House announcement, the hall fell silent.

Ying Rushi said nothing, only looking quietly at Pharmacist’s Wish. They said nothing, and as outsiders, Yan Qing and Shang Xinlei naturally didn’t break the silence.

After a long pause, Pharmacist’s Wish slowly exhaled.

"This time, I admit defeat," she stated solemnly, "but next time, I definitely won’t lose again."

"I’ll be waiting," Ying Rushi smiled.

"I bid 80 points," Pharmacist’s Wish said.

"I bid 85 points!" Ying Rushi immediately followed suit.

"White Fox bids 85 points for the Heaven-Swaying Sword"

"No one present bids over 85 thief points, the Heaven-Swaying Sword belongs to White Fox"

Amid the envious gazes of the crowd, the Heaven-Swaying Sword floated into Ying Rushi’s hands from above the stone table. She drew it halfway out, letting everyone admire its gleam before slowly sheathing it and fastening it at her waist, then raised both hands beside the chair, indicating she wouldn’t partake in further competition.

The remaining three turned their attention back to the stone table, gazing at the four floating rewards, knowing that the upcoming thief auction would surely be a bloody and fierce competition!