The sky was bright and the cool breeze was refreshing.
In the gentle spring breeze, Notting City, located on the border between two nations, was as busy as ever.
This was one of the major transit hubs for trade between the two great Empires, bustling with traffic and human noise, creating a vibrant and lively scene.
On both sides of a narrow street away from the main thoroughfare, cloth stalls, fish markets, and various snack shops were crammed together, and the flow of pedestrians was so dense it was almost suffocating.
Amidst the surging crowd, the still small Zhao Liuyun walked unhurriedly, holding a string of candy.
Although his height only reached an adult's waist, his black clothing with purple patterns subtly exuded an air of nobility, making him look at first glance like a young master from some aristocratic family.
In reality... listening to the hawkers' cries and the noise of bargaining, smelling the sweat and dust, Zhao Liuyun's dark eyes shone brightly as he scoped out suitable targets.
That's right, he was a petty Thief.
As an abandoned infant, Zhao Liuyun was found and raised by an old man who was skilled in thievery.
When he was three, the old man insisted on passing down this ancestral skill and forced him to learn how to steal.
At the age of five, he completed his apprenticeship, became a Thief, and developed a pair of skillful hands.
He had already completed dozens of successful thefts.
Of course, as a transmigrator sent to the Douluo Continent by the Great Fortune Heavenly Venerate, the values cultivated in his previous life still deeply influenced him.
Zhao Liuyun had three things he wouldn't steal.
First, he wouldn't steal from the shabbily dressed.
Why should the poor make things difficult for the poor?
A flat wallet was heartbreaking just to look at; that meager saving might be someone's hard-earned money accumulated over a month.
Second, he wouldn't steal from familiar people.
Countless people traveled across the border between the two nations, and stealing from residents who lived permanently in the city for a tiny profit was definitely not a good strategy, as it would put him in danger.
Furthermore, he wouldn't steal from the powerful and influential.
Power and influence represented Spirit Masters and strength. If he didn't want to be unable to survive in the city later, or even be casually crushed to death, he had to be extremely cautious.
His usual targets were small merchants who had a bit of money but couldn't afford Spirit Master guards.
"You're the one!"
After observing subtly for a moment, a faint glimmer flashed across Zhao Liuyun's eyes.
He saw a Fatty dressed in silk, accompanied by a mighty and robust middle-aged man whose eyes were bright and muscles bulging, clearly possessing considerable martial strength.
But the mental perception ability, which was superhuman due to his transmigration, convinced Zhao Liuyun that—
This person was not a Spirit Master, and he was distracted!
It was like being in class—the body was present, but the mind had flown off somewhere else.
"He's gotten complacent because nothing has happened for a long time? This is my chance!" Zhao Liuyun rejoiced inwardly, slightly quickening his pace as he made his guess.
The moment they brushed past each other, his hand reached out lightly, and the razor blade he had prepared silently slid to his fingertip.
In a flash of lightning, his finger darted out like a spitting snake tongue, lightly slicing, hooking, and lifting—the heavy silk purse dropped steadily into his palm.
The purse was soft and thick, pressing heavily against the web of his hand, emitting the reassuring scent of money.
"Success!"
The two silent words passed through his throat, a sense of satisfaction flashed through his mind, and Zhao Liuyun's lips curved slightly, a flicker of delight in his eyes.
He tilted his head back, glancing at the wealthy Fatty and his guard.
The two men's gazes happened to fall upon him.
They hadn't noticed anything unusual yet, but they would soon realize what had happened.
Zhao Liuyun gave a faint smile, slipped into the crowd like a swimming fish, and disappeared silently among the streets and alleys after a few turns.
The Fatty smiled back, bewildered, but as soon as the child's figure vanished, he suddenly felt a chill and instinctively pressed his hand to his waist.
His money pouch was gone!
"Catch the Thief! Someone stole something!"
The shrill cry pierced the sky, causing pedestrians everywhere to clutch their wallets and throwing the Fatty's guard into a panic.
The guard tried to search through the crowd, but with the dense flow of people and streets branching in all directions, where could he look?
The two men exchanged glances, realizing with dismay that they couldn't even clearly recall the child's face... Meanwhile, Zhao Liuyun, having successfully stolen the item, quickly changed his clothes, navigated the winding, crisscrossing alleys, and entered an inconspicuous small house on the edge of the city.
Tossing the money pouch in his hand, he glanced at the faint golden shimmer mixed in with the silver, and a smile involuntarily appeared on his lips.
It wasn't just the money; what truly excited Zhao Liuyun was the prompt that appeared in his mind.
[You are performing a theft. Years of training have made the entire process seamless. Professional Experience for [Thief] +1]
[You are performing a theft. Years of training have made the entire process seamless. Professional Experience for [Thief] +1]
...Skipping a series of repeatedly acquired Professional Experience notifications, his attention focused on the last beautiful line of text.
[Required experience for the [Thief] class has been met. Initiate Class Change?]
"Class Change!"
Zhao Liuyun roared inwardly.
This was his Cheat, the "Class Panel," and one of the reasons he never gave up thieving.
Taking on a class grants Class Traits and corresponding Class Skills, which are a strong guarantee once one enters a Spirit Master Academy.
He was turning six and needed to go awaken his Spirit, so he didn't have time to seek out a brand new class!
The Class Change occurred without any unusual phenomena, and Zhao Liuyun looked expectantly at the changes on the Panel.
[Class Panel]
[Host: Zhao Liuyun]
[Age: 6 years old]
[Spirit: ???]
[spirit power: ???]
[physique: 4 (Standard physique for a normal adult male is 10)]
[soul: 17 (Standard soul strength for a normal adult male is 10)]
[Classes: Hypnotist Lv1 (Locked), Thief Lv1 (1/10000)]
[Class Traits: Mind Like Still Water (Hypnotist), Agility (Thief)]
[Class Skills: Hypnosis (Hypnotist), Extreme Reflexes (Thief)]
He first looked at the first class, [Hypnotist].
The trait was [Mind Like Still Water (A Hypnotist needs to hypnotize people calmly; your rationality is always online, allowing you to remain calm at all times)].
The Class Skill, as the name suggested, was [Hypnosis].
It is activated by consuming mental force. Activation shows no unusual phenomena or signs, and its intensity and effect are linked to Zhao Liuyun's mental force.
Of course, unlike what most people imagine, this skill is not omnipotent like in Hentai; it cannot turn someone into a defenseless Sex Slave just by looking at them.
It can only stir up a person's emotions and perform the most superficial type of Hypnosis.
But it was already powerful enough.
When Zhao Liuyun carried out a theft, he would use Hypnosis to lower the target's guard and blur their immediate memory of his appearance.
With his formidable mental force, against ordinary people with typical mental force, he was unstoppable and had never failed.
The only regrettable thing was that this class originated from his previous life, and for some unknown reason, it was locked in this life and could not be upgraded.
However—
"Phew~ Heaven never seals off all exits. I'll always find another way."
Letting out a soft breath, the slight regret in Zhao Liuyun's heart dissipated, and his gaze returned to the Panel.
This Class Change added the new class [Thief Lv1], the new trait [Agility], and the new skill [Extreme Reflexes].
There was no need to elaborate on the Class Change process; in short, it involved setting a class objective and working towards it.
The Class Change to [Thief] proved that one must undergo arduous effort to gain the Panel's recognition.
Other classes were no exception.
Perhaps exceptions existed, such as Zhao Liuyun trying multiple times but failing to set [Student] as a goal.
As for the trait... "Agility?"
Zhao Liuyun raised his hand somewhat blankly, feeling as if his body was slightly out of his control.
His nimble fingers fluttered lightly like flying birds, as if they were about to break free and soar freely into the sky the next moment.