"I am not sure. It depends on how fast they can find the teleportation point," Rocky replied, shaking his
head.
"Then, should we make some preparations before they arrive?" Gilbert asked, wondering what they
could do next.
"It will be best if you can dispatch some powerful warriors to guard the Blood Fief. I'm pretty sure that
Prince Zain and Prince Enoch have already set their eyes on it," Rocky suggested after thinking for a
while.
"You're right. I'll also send a message to Flora to ask if she can lend some of her powerful warriors to
help us. I should eventually ask her to come here to the Ghost Capital to discuss these things. I am
certain that the Shura Race is about to undergo drastic changes." It was pretty obvious that Gilbert was
worried, so he wanted to make sure that they were prepared in case something unexpected suddenly
happened.
"Sir, I have more things to report to you. Actually, this one is very confidential, so I am asking you to
prepare yourself mentally. After all, you might get into trouble because of this," Rocky said in a serious
tone.
"You mean that this is more surprising than Prince Enoch colluding with the demonic race?" Gilbert's
eyes instantly narrowed when he heard that Rocky still had more serious matters to discuss.
"I told you earlier that we obtained Phillip's soul power. However, the whole truth is that we also took
out the Purgatorial Tripod where Phillip's soul is being sealed," Rocky finally revealed
"What?! You have the Purgatorial Tripod with you?" Gilbert's jaw almost dropped, shocked to his core.
"Yes, you heard that right. The main goal of the demonic race is to take the Purgatorial Tripod and
release Phillip's soul. Hence, in order not to let it happen, we have no choice but to bring it back from
the Ghostly Demon Land," Rocky explained calmly.
"But does the king know about what you did?" Gilbert immediately probed. After all, this would definitely
be a huge trouble if not handled properly.
"We decided not to tell him yet. We thought that if the king knew about it, he will surely ask us to hand
the tripod over to him. But looking at the current situation, it would be very dangerous to let it stay in the
hands of the king. We don't know who to trust among the people surrounding him in the royal family. If
someone he trusts happened to be working for Prince Enoch, the tripod might get stolen, making the
matter even worse," Rocky said, justifying his actions.
"How about Prince Zain and his men? Do they know that you have the Purgatorial Tripod?" Gilbert
continued to ask, trying to get a grasp of the entire situation.
"Yes, sir. Everyone who entered the Demon Sealing Palace knows," Rocky answered.
"If that is the case, then we cannot hide this information from the king for long." Gilbert deemed that
they were not in a favorable position. Then, he continued, "Your concern makes total sense. Since
Prince Enoch has already been exposed, he might get even more aggressive to achieve his goal.
Since the demonic race is involved in this, I'm afraid that even the royal family might not be able to
protect the tripod!"
"That is also our concern. So, we took the liberty of acting on our own."
"But I do think that we should still tell the king about it. Otherwise, once Prince Zain and the others
come back and they made up stories against you, the king might not hear our side!" Despite knowing
the danger it entailed, Gilbert believed that it would be a better idea to report the matter to the king to
avoid more trouble.
"I'm sorry but I don't intend to hand the tripod over no matter what. So, Prince Zain and the others
could make up any story or lie, but it won't matter. However, I'm afraid that you will also take the heat
for my actions." Rocky expressed his thoughts.
"What did Princess Layla say about this idea?" Gilbert heaved a sigh before he asked.
"I believe she trusts my judgment. Otherwise, she would have already told the king about it when we
talked to him. She has confidence that I can handle this well, so that is also what I am asking of you,
sir."
"I see. If the princess believes in you, then there is no need for me to object." As a supporter of the
princess, Gilbert naturally respected her decisions.
"That is all I have to report for now. Please excuse me." After saying that, Rocky eventually left.
However, he did not return to the Ghost Palace just yet. Instead, upon leaving the leader's mansion, he
headed for the border of the Shura Race to meet with his independent army.
Although Rocky had stayed in the Ghostly Demon Land for almost a month, the independent army had
been functioning well on its own. They followed Rocky's instructions and kept on harassing the army of
the Shura Race at the border whenever they had the chance. At the same time, they also collected
necessary information while exploring the terrain. In fact, in just a short time, they gained a lot of useful
intel.
As soon as Rocky appeared in the secret camp of the independent army, the four ladies—Eunice,
Carla, Lilith, and Michelle—quickly rushed over to meet him. The other Spiritual Emperors soon
followed and came to see him.
"Ha! You finally showed up. I thought you already abandoned us here!" Michelle was the first to speak
out, expressing her frustrations as if she was a spoiled kid.
"What happened here while I was gone? Is everything fine?" Rocky asked while letting out a smile.
"Just like you told us, we attacked several small strongholds on the border and gave the army of the
Shura Race a hard time," Eunice immediately reported in a proud tone.
"I see. How about the number of casualties?" Depending on this information, he would decide if he
should somehow change strategies.
"About five hundred people were injured or killed in battle," Eunice replied honestly.
"That's good. It seems that the independent army can act effectively even without me personally
commanding it," Rocky replied in satisfaction.
"Well, we have learned from a brilliant commander-in-chief. That is to be expected!" Eunice said,
flattering Rocky.
"By the way, how was your trip to the Ghostly Demon Land? Was everything okay?" Carla asked out of
concern and curiosity.
"I almost died in there. But at least, everything still worked out in the end." Rocky then shook his head
and let out a bitter smile.
"You almost died? Then, that place is really dangerous!" A trace of anxiousness built upon Lilith's face
after she heard Rocky's response.
"The dangers of the land are actually tolerable. However, the major threat that I experienced was
brought by the appearance of a member of the demonic race. She was the reason why many lives
were lost or put in danger," Rocky said flatly.
"A member of the demonic race?" The four girls and the other Spiritual Emperors furrowed their brows
since it was their first time hearing about the demonic race.
"It's a long story, so I'll just tell it some other time. Right now, I have an important matter to discuss.
Eunice, Carla, Lilith, and Michelle, come with me for a while." After calling the four girls, Rocky led
them into the tent in the center of the campsite.
Of course, the four did not know what it was about, so they could just exchange glances while they
followed Rocky into the tent.
Because of Prince Enoch's collusion with the demonic race, it meant that a civil war among the royal
family of the Shura Race might become inevitable. Therefore, Rocky deemed that it was the best
opportunity for the human race to make its move.
Once the internal strife within the royal family turned into an all-out war, the overall strength of the
entire Shura Race would only be focused inside their territory and would be divided into several
factions. At the same time, Rocky was thinking of using this chance to further disintegrate the power of
the royal family.
Therefore, Rocky wanted the independent army to stand by and be ready. He would time the attack of
the independent army when the civil war broke out. With this, the internal conflict inside the royal family
would intensify even more.
Now, the four women had already established their reputation within the independent army. Moreover,
they were more powerful and capable of leading than the rest of the army. Therefore, Rocky would like
to focus on further training the four women so that they could better handle things on their own when
the time came.
Rocky then made a new arrangement in the independent army and divided it into four smaller teams.
Obviously, the four women would be the leaders of each team. Upon Rocky's signal, these four teams
would invade the territory of the Shura Race to take his plan to the next phase.
"This time, be sure to follow the arrangement that I made so that we can also speed up the training
process. Soon enough, you will have a chance to display your skills to a full extent," Rocky said, trying
to hype them up.
Apparently, the four girls were also very eager to exhibit their skills and potential. Hearing this, all of
them let out an excited expression.
After finishing his business with the independent army, Rocky went back to the Ghost Capital to wait for
Valeria and Vivian to come back together with Layla's team.
Then, three days later, a Spiritual Emperor rushed into the Ghost Palace and reported to Rocky. "Godly
Genius, they are back."
Rocky wasted no time and left the Ghost Palace at once. He then rushed to the meeting hall in the
leader's mansion and saw the tired faces of Valeria and Vivian. It seemed that they traveled back to the
Ghost Capital without resting.
"Vivian? Why did you come back with Miss Valeria and the others?" Gilbert instantly asked in
confusion. Just a few days ago, Vivian suddenly disappeared from the mansion, but Gilbert did not
really mind since it happened oftentimes. However, he did not expect that she had been with Valeria
and the others.
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