What Prince Enoch just said actually made a lot of sense, and thus many people present started
discussing with each other.
"Uncle Enoch, are you implying that I deliberately did all of this? Do you think I would intentionally
withdraw the soldiers from our defense line so that the human army can have a chance to invade our
territory?" Zain asked, raising his eyebrows. He was the one who really wanted to suppress the entire
human race, so he was offended when Enoch insinuated that he might be the one who helped them.
"Well, I did not say any of that. I was just stating a fact. You cannot refute that your actions were the
reason why the army of the Shura Race stationed in our territories was not able to fend off the human
army," Enoch responded, not backing down.
"Stop arguing. It won't do us any good. Besides, I am partly at fault since I allowed Zain to summon our
army to the front line. None of us expected that those humans would dare attack our stronghold by
taking advantage of the weakened defense line. However, although our defense line was slightly
thinned, I am still confused as to how this human army became so powerful. How the hell could they
easily take down one of the major fiefs and occupy their capital? Is there anyone who has a piece of
information about the enemy commander?" the king asked with furrowed brows.
Most of the fief leaders and royal members also exchanged looks upon hearing this question. In fact,
they were also wondering about this. However, none of them could answer since they did not know
who the enemy leader was.
"Your Majesty, hasn't the Ghost Fief successfully retaken the Blood Fief from the human army? Then,
Leader Gilbert must have encountered the enemy commander!" Zain quickly answered, shooting a
piercing gaze at Gilbert at once.
"That is right. I have a bit of information about the commander of the human army," Gilbert calmly
confirmed.
"Then, share it with us," the king instantly ordered.
"Based on the information that we have obtained, the name of the human army's commander in chief is
Basil. He is the same person who won first place during the previous Spiritual Emperor Contest. It is
also said that his army successfully eliminated the spearhead the was sent by Prince Zain," Gilbert
informed, stating some facts that would not have an effect even if the Shura Race knew.
"Then, do you know what kind of background this Basil has? How is this guy so powerful?" the king
asked promptly.
"Your Majesty, I learned from Israel that this Basil actually came from the alien world," Zain replied
without further ado.
"The alien world?!" Everyone present, including the king, was shocked when Zain revealed this piece of
information. They never expected that someone from the alien world would dare act so boldly and take
a stand against the Shura Race.
"By the way, Leader Gilbert, I remember that a few years ago, you were tasked by the royal family to
invade a world called Supernal Continent. Am I right? You went through the door and captured a large
number of spirit warriors that were taken back to our world. Isn't it highly possible that this Basil was
one of them?" Zain uttered slowly and clearly as if he was trying to pass and shift the responsibility to
Gilbert. If they learned that this Basil guy was actually from the Supernal Continent, it would mean that
Gilbert was at fault for letting him escape from the Shura Race.
"What do you think, Gilbert? Is he one of them?" the king asked as he glanced at Gilbert with a serious
expression.
"Your Majesty, you know that since ancient times, the Shura Race has been capturing countless spirit
warriors from various alien worlds. Even if Basil was indeed from one of those alien worlds, we don't
have any proof that he was from the world called the Supernal Continent. This is just mere speculation,
and honestly, I think it is too far-fetched to come up with such a conclusion," Gilbert retorted, firmly
standing his ground against Zain's baseless accusations.
At the same time, the other leaders and royal members were still discussing with each other. Since no
one knew what exactly happened, they really could not just pin the responsibility on Gilbert.
"Your Majesty, I think that Leader Gilbert is actually on the clear regarding this matter. There is no way
that Basil is one of the captured spirit warriors from several years ago." At this time, Layla stepped
forward and seemed like she had enough basis to defend Gilbert.
"What makes you so sure then?" the king asked, demanding a concrete reason.
"Think about it. It is a common feat that the gap in strength between the spirit warriors from other
worlds and the Shura Race is unimaginably huge. In fact, the strongest ones have only reached the
primary grade of the Emperor Realm. If this Basil was captured from the most recent invasion that was
led by Leader Gilbert, I don't think that he could reach the Shura Realm in just a few years," Layla
pointed out, finding a major loophole in Zain's accusations.
"Hmm, I agree. That totally makes sense." The king nodded repeatedly. In his entire life, he had never
heard of anyone from the alien worlds who could become as powerful as the members of the Shura
Race.
"Well, it doesn't matter what his background is anymore. The mere fact that this Basil is causing huge
trouble for the Shura Race means that we should do something right away to deal with him. I think we
should send out a powerful warrior to hunt him down as soon as possible!" As of now, Zain had come
to hate Rocky to his core. The young man was becoming a thorn in his flesh that he could not afford to
let Rocky roam freely anymore.
"I also want to do the same thing, but we don't have any clue where this guy is right now." Aside from
Zain, the king was also pretty concerned about Rocky. He was worried that if the young man was not
dealt with immediately, he might cause even bigger trouble for them.
"Don't worry. I'll send people to search for him right away. This guy needs to be found even if we have
to search every corner of this world!" Zain declared with burning conviction.
"All right. I will leave this matter for you to handle. Before I dismiss all of you, I still have another
important thing to discuss. This is also one of the reasons why I summoned everyone here today," the
king announced.
Hearing this, everyone was surprised. They could not help but guess what the king had to say.
Then, the king paused for a moment before continuing, "It's actually about the throne's successor. You
know that according to our practice, the current ruler just needs to appoint the next ruler. However, to
be honest, I haven't found the most satisfactory candidate yet. Hence, I decided to make the aspiring
candidates enter the Ghostly Demon Land and accept the challenges there. The one who will
overcome all the challenges shall be crowned as my successor, the next ruler of the entire Shura
Race."
"The Ghostly Demon Land?" It turned out that everyone present was shocked upon hearing this
sudden announcement.
Accepting the challenges in the Ghostly Demon Land was like extreme training. It was specifically used
by the Shura Race's ancestors to choose their ruler back in ancient times. However, this practice had
been abandoned for hundreds of years now since the challenges would be extremely difficult for
candidates to deal with. In fact, only a few candidates were able to survive the challenges, and they
viewed that the lost lives of the other promising candidates were a big waste.
Therefore, the selection method was changed, and the current ruler just needed to appoint the
successor. That was why everyone could not believe it when the king said that he wanted to relive this
cruel method again.
"Moreover, aside from the existing candidates, I decided to expand the scope of the selection. I will
also allow the leaders of the fiefs and their Godly Geniuses to participate if they want. Needless to say,
the Godly Geniuses of the royal family are eligible to be a part of it."
Just as everyone thought that the matter about reopening the challenges in the Ghostly Demon Land
was the most inconceivable thing that they would hear, the king dropped another massive revelation.
It meant that this time, the successor could be from outside the current royal family.
"But Your Majesty, this has never happened before! Why are we suddenly implementing a drastic
change?" One of the royal members immediately expressed his objection
"I have the capacity to do what I want in order to select the most deserving candidate. Therefore, ten
days later, the Ghostly Demon Land will be opened. Those who are willing to participate, gather there
and I will meet up with you." The king dismissed any objection, making it clear that he had already
made up his mind.
In fact, even before others could express their thoughts, the king already stood up and left.
"What is happening? Has the king become so old that he is coming up with stupid decisions?"
"What is he trying to achieve by doing this kind of thing?"
"Because of this, there is a huge chance that the royal bloodline will be cut off!"
For a while, the leaders of the fiefs and the royal members had engaged in serious conversations about
what they just learned.
Meanwhile, after the king left, he eventually entered another hall. At the center of this place, a delicate
figure covered by a luminous veil was floating in the air and was waiting for him.
"Madam, I already explained to them that the range of candidates for the successor this time will be
expanded. I informed everything according to your instructions," the king respectfully said as he bowed
towards the figure.
"I see. Thank you."
"But even I don't understand. Why do we need to do this?" the king asked in confusion. It seemed that
the king was only told to announce the new method, and even he did not know the exact reason.
"I was disappointed that Zain failed to conquer the human race this time, and he was supposed to be
the strongest candidate to become the next ruler! Therefore, I don't think we should limit the selection
to just three candidates. I want to pick the most capable one to become the next ruler of the Shura
Race even if he or she will come from outside the current royal family."
"I understand..." the king replied nervously.
"Remember that all of this is for the Shura Race and the whole continent. I hope that your personal
opinion won't hinder what is best for everyone," the figure said, directing a warning towards the king.
"Yes, of course." After the king responded, the hall suddenly became quiet. Then, when he raised his
head, the delicate figure had already disappeared.
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