At last, everyone turned to look at Sabina. Since she hadn't said anything from just now, it seemed that
she had something on her mind. But since she was the main person involved, they had to get her
consent.
Seeing that they were all looking at her with expectant eyes, Sabina just said, "It's up to you," and left.
Everyone knew that although Sabina looked very calm on the outside, she must be feeling under a lot
of pressure. After all, whether this plan was a success or a failure would decide her fate as well as the
fate of the entire Ji Clan.
Rocky narrowed his eyes as he watched Sabina's receding figure. "I'll go and talk to her," he said to the
others before getting up and following her.
After walking out of Lance's study room, Sabina zoomed through the headquarters by leaping onto
roofs and vaulting over walls until she finally arrived at a secret rain flower garden on the south side of
the headquarters.
At that moment, the breeze blew, scattering the white and red petals on the branches into the air. The
petals fluttered around the whole garden and fell slowly, like the rain. Sabina stood in the middle of the
garden, staring off into space with a helpless look on her face. Anyone who saw her now couldn't help
feeling sorry for her, especially because she was such a strong woman who almost never showed her
weak side.
The expression on her face indicated that the pressure she was under now was far from ordinary.
"What are you thinking about?" Rocky asked in a gentle tone as he slowly walked towards her. He had
followed her all the way to this garden, letting her be alone with her thoughts for a while before finally
approaching her.
Sabina turned towards the source of the voice and saw that it was Rocky's. Then, she turned away
again with an unreadable expression. "Why are you here?"
"I'm the reason why the Ji Clan has fallen into such a predicament this time. Now that Alston is trying to
use such a despicable method to deal with the Ji Clan, there's no way I can just sit by and do nothing.
Moreover, you've always supported me. I will never let you have any grievances," Rocky said with a
smile.
"Who has grievances? I'm not as delicate or fragile as you think I am. I just feel that I'm not strong
enough to help. The Ji Clan is in trouble, but there's nothing I can do." Sabina shook her head lightly.
"There is no need for you to carry the burden alone. After all, you are a woman. There will always be
times when you need to rely on others, but you should know how to rely on them," Rocky explained.
"Rely on others? But who can I..."
"I don't want to take advantage of you. But I just want to tell you that I will support you and let you lean
on my shoulder when you need to. So, don't be too hard on yourself," Rocky said softly. Then, he
leaned back and continued in a more serious tone, "You should go back to the Ji Clan first. Talk to your
father as we discussed. If there are no other problems, we'll just follow this plan."
Sabina bit her lip and shook her head. "I know what you have in mind, but it's very dangerous for you.
You can't ..."
But before Sabina could finish her words, Rocky covered her mouth with his palm.
"That's my own business. I know what I'm doing," Rocky said firmly.
Sabina nodded slightly, but her eyes were trembling, as if something had touched her deep in her
heart.
Two days later, Sabina returned to the Ji Clan and immediately told her father, Elvis, about the plan.
Elvis nodded as he listened to the plan. Although it sounded feasible to him, he still had some
misgivings. "This plan might solve our most pressing problem for the time being, but there are several
masters at the peak of the Supernal Stage in the royal family. We can't underestimate their strength.
Even in the Ji Clan, there may not be a master who will be able to fight against those masters at the
peak grade."
"That's still better than directly agreeing to the marriage without a fight. And above all, I trust him!"
Sabina said firmly.
For a moment, Elvis was stunned. "'Him'? Do you mean... Are you really sure about this?" he asked
after some hesitation, and looked at his daughter for confirmation. Sabina nodded solemnly in
response.
"This might be a risky move.
But okay, I'll send someone to spread the news of the competition and officially invite the royal family
and all forces to participate in it." Seeing that Sabina had made up her mind, Elvis had no choice but to
agree to the plan.
The next day, the news of the Ji Clan's open competition for Sabina's hand in marriage spread through
the entire Holy Dragon Empire like wildfire. Just as they had expected, it caused a great sensation, and
the various forces that received the Ji Clan's invitation naturally supported this competition. Everyone
knew that whoever had the golden opportunity of marrying Sabina would immediately shoot to the top
in terms of wealth and status.
On the other hand, the royal family was far from pleased after receiving the invitation to compete for
Sabina's hand in marriage.
"Your Majesty, the Ji Clan is really not easy to deal with. They've even come up with such a plan to get
rid of the arranged marriage. Now, all the clans that have received the invitation will certainly side with
the Ji Clan. If Your Majesty insists on the arranged marriage, the royal family will look like the villains in
the eyes of the whole Holy Dragon Empire," Priest Dean said seriously.
"Humph! A competition for her hand in marriage? So what? Even if a peerless master at the Divine
Stage is not allowed to participate, I'm pretty sure that a Supernal Stage master from our royal family
will defeat all the competitors! Ask Elder Duke to select several masters of the advanced level at the
Supernal Stage and also the top nine-grade masters in person. In addition, ask Jason to go with them.
It's best that they bring the empress back. Go and tell them that nothing should go wrong this time.
Otherwise, don't come back to see me!" Alston ordered coldly.
Priest Dean nodded obediently and left.
Three days passed in the blink of an eye, and the day of the competition that the Ji Clan was holding
arrived.
It was early in the morning, but the Ji Clan's mansion was already overcrowded. It looked even more
lively than the day when Elvis' birthday party had been held.
Many unmarried spirit manipulators at the Heavenly Stage and the Supernal Stage flocked to the Ji
Clan's mansion in order to compete for the chance to win over the unparalleled beauty of the Holy
Dragon Empire. Among them, the spirit manipulators from the other major clans were particularly
confident, because they had absolute advantage in both strength and numbers.
At this moment, a spectacular battle ring that was thirty by thirty meters had been set up on the
southwest side of the Ji Clan's mansion. More than anything, it was to ensure the safety of the
spectators, because if all the competitors were masters at the Supernal Stage, even a casual move
would be able to affect people who were standing over twenty meters away. Therefore, the Ji Clan had
arranged for a battle ring that was big enough to avoid any accidents.
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