"Zain, this is not the time to be stubborn. We have to work together to defeat our common enemies
first!" Layla tried to convince Zain. Even she knew that they would have difficulty dealing with the
demoness, Enoch, and the three members of the giant demon race by themselves. If Zain chose to be
stubborn and prideful, he would get nothing in the end. Hence, the princess could only persuade Zain
to cooperate with them to join hands against their common enemies.
At this moment, Zain let out a frown. He had a lot of thoughts in his head. It was clear to him that he
would not be able to accomplish anything on his own, but he was also afraid that there would be no
benefit for him if he worked with Layla and Rocky.
But of course, since he was the son of the current king, he wanted to protect his clan to the best of his
abilities. He did not want the Shura Race to be enslaved by the other races. Moreover, at this point,
Rocky had at least some advantage because he was already there in front of the Purgatorial Tripod,
guarding it. Hence, it would just make sense if Zain chose to side with Rocky and Layla in the
meantime.
"Fine. Let's work together and defeat them first..." Eventually, Zain chose to compromise and pick the
most logical option. However, he still put forth a condition and said, "I will agree to cooperate, but after
we defeat them, we have to fairly compete for Phillip's power!"
"That goes without saying. I am not the kind of person who launches a sneak attack on my allies or
takes advantage of them after I get what I want. Anyway, as long as we can protect Phillip's soul from
them, we can discuss how we can compete for it afterward," Layla responded with a straight face. After
all, she knew that if there was someone who would likely plot something behind someone else's back,
it would definitely be Zain. Hence, even though he already agreed to cooperate, Layla and Rocky could
not just let their guards down.
"All right. We have a deal then," Zain replied flatly.
Layla just nodded and did not say anything more. She just shifted her gaze towards their enemies.
Soon enough, Zain and the two high-level masters under him stood beside Layla and began
confronting Enoch and his men. Now that Zain and Layla joined hands, Enoch felt a greater pressure,
knowing that he had a very slim chance of winning against them. Moreover, he was so frustrated
because he would not be able to help the demoness in any way.
At the same time, three parties were confronting each other before the Purgatorial Tripod—the
demoness, Rocky and Anya, and the three members of the giant demon race.
"Master, those three demons are already close to the God Realm. Although they are slightly weaker
than the demoness, they will still be very difficult to deal with," Anya quickly informed Rocky.
"I am also aware of that. That is why I think we need to convince the demoness to team up with us,"
Rocky said out of nowhere.
"Huh? Why?" Anya was stunned, not expecting that she would hear this come from Rocky.
"If you look at the situation carefully, her physical body is already on the brink of collapsing. Hence, with
the limited time that she still had, she must be very desperate to accomplish her task. But since all
three groups are in a deadlock, she cannot do anything to move forward. Of course, she needs to take
care of either the three demons or us first. But obviously, the three demons are a bigger threat
compared to us, so she will undoubtedly pick the choice that is more favorable for her. Therefore, we
can take that opportunity and team up with her. I don't think she will oppose the idea." Rocky explained
his plan.
"But what if she only pretends to agree, and then she suddenly stabs us in the back and takes the
tripod for herself?" Anya said in a worried tone.
"Don't worry. She will not be that stupid to do that. Cooperating with us is her only chance to
accomplish her goal, so she won't do anything that she will regret," Rocky said with certainty as if he
could clearly see what was on the demoness' mind.
"All right. I trust your decision, master." After careful consideration, Anya thought that what Rocky said
was reasonable. So, she eventually agreed and supported Rocky's plan.
For the time being, Rocky asked Anya to guard the tripod in his place while he went to confront the
demoness.
"What do you think you're doing? Are you willingly accepting your death?" Seeing how Rocky
approached without care, the demoness could not help but become vigilant.
"Don't be too serious. I'm just here to strike a deal with you," Rocky responded indifferently.
"A deal? Why would I do that?" The demoness' eyes narrowed, intrigued at what the young man could
be plotting.
"We both know that the strength of those three demons is already close to the God Realm. Thus, both
of us will definitely have trouble dealing with them. Moreover, they also made it clear that they are after
Phillip's soul. If the two of us continue to fight each other, it will just give those demons the advantage
in the end. Of course, we don't want that to happen. Am I right?" Rocky persuaded, uttering very
convincing words.
"So, are you actually telling me to help you deal with these monsters?" the demoness asked
straightforwardly.
"Yes. At this point, Enoch and his men are not capable enough, so you cannot expect any assistance
from him. Just by your own strength, I highly doubt that you can take care of me and the three demons
at the same time. But of course, there is also the option of you teaming up with those three demons. If
you do that, there is no way for me and Anya to win. However, you can already imagine that those
three demons can easily kill you afterward. Anyway, in order to move forward, you will have to pick a
side to get the Purgatorial Tripod. So, who do you think you should pick so that you will have a greater
chance of winning?" Rocky asked after giving the demoness his analysis.
Upon hearing what Rocky had said, the demoness fell into deep thought and a trace of admiration
flashed through her eyes. Previously, she had dislike Rocky very much since he was the reason why
her plans were ruined. But at this moment, she could not help but admire him. Not only was he capable
of acting calmly and smartly in this kind of situation, but he was also able to do it despite his young age.
Obviously, this was a feat that only extraordinary people could achieve. She thought that it must be the
reason why Rocky could effortlessly use the God-killing Sword. Moreover, she believed that if she
could somehow sway the young man to work for the demonic race, she could easily revive it.
Pondering on these thoughts, the demoness suddenly let out a smile and said, "Since I can see your
sincerity, I think I can cooperate with you. But remember that the tripod is still my first priority. The
moment I see you go for it, I won't show you any mercy. But if you only want a part of the power of
Phillip's soul to inherit the throne, then maybe I can spare you some of it."
"I see. That's exactly what I want," Rocky briefly replied.
Afterward, he nodded to Anya, signaling that the negotiations went well.
As Anya got the message, she immediately shifted her gaze towards the three demons.
However, it turned out that the three demons also figured out that Rocky made an agreement with the
demoness. They exchanged glances with each other, informing each other about the changes of the
situation. Nonetheless, they thought that even if Rocky and the demoness teamed up, it would not
really be a big problem. They had been trapped inside the Demon Sealing Palace for thousands of
years, and their strength was now close to the God Realm. Unless a genuine member of the divine or
the demonic race appeared before them, they needed not to worry.
"Humph! No matter what you do, the Purgatorial Tripod will fall in our hands!" Coen, one of the three
demons roared mightily, spun rapidly, and turned into a shadow that rushed to the Purgatorial Tripod at
an incredible speed.
Cody and Callan followed right after, exhibiting an overwhelming momentum.
"Here's what we will do. Anya and I will take care of Coen. Then, I'll leave the other two to you," Rocky
said decisively. At this point, the demoness' body would not be able to bear more physical damages, so
it might not be a good idea to let her fight the powerful Coen head-on. Hence, Rocky told her that she
could deal with the two weaker ones.
"Yeah. I already know that you will make this arrangement. But is that really all right? Can you defeat
that guy? He's the strongest of the three and he might break through to the God Realm at any time,"
the demoness reminded sternly.
"No problem. Did you forget that I was able to deal with you? Then this one should not be much of a
challenge," Rocky replied confidently, letting out a faint smile.
The demoness could just snort coldly since she knew that Rocky was subtly mocking her. But the truth
was Rocky's strength indeed surpassed her expectations. She did not expect that a mere member of
the Shura Race would cause her so much trouble that he even ruined her plan.
Meanwhile, Anya, who was left guarding the tripod, wore a serious expression and took a defensive
stance as the enemies approached.
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