Chapter 1183 Stronger Than Before

"Will you attend?" Sabina asked as she looked at Rocky.

"Mmm, no. The invitation says that they want me to attend a contest of some sort. That I'm not interested in." Rocky shook his head in negative.

"Oh. But do you know what the messenger said when he brought the invitation? According to him, Erica claimed that if you didn't attend, she would come out to the Holy Dragon Empire in person to get you," Lucilla reminded him.

"Oh, really? So she hasn't given up yet," Rocky said thoughtfully. He was already aware of the fact that the thought of him defeating and humiliating Erica haunted her to this day. It was obvious why she wanted an opportunity to get her revenge.

"Yes, and that's not all," Sabina grumbled and then continued hesitatingly, "Basil, don't you know? The Magic Phoenix Empire holds this martial arts contest but its name is a farce. The real purpose behind it is not the display of martial arts." Lucilla blushed a little when she noticed that Rocky knew next to nothing about the contest.

"Then what is it?" Rocky asked in a curious tone.

"To pick men." Sabina completed the sentence, raising her eyebrow.

On the face of it, the martial arts contest was held by the Magic Phoenix Empire for martial arts exchange. What was kept on the down low was the fact that it was actually an excuse for the empire to select outstanding male spirit manipulators.

The way it went, a rather sexist tradition had been going behind the masks of this contest for a long time now. There were two reasons as to how the female spirit manipulators of the Magic Phoenix Empire had a place in such a men-dominated profession. The first was that they had the support of the high-class Phoenix Master Clan. More importantly, they had always followed the principle that women should be self-reliant. This had been rooted into their minds ever since the foundation of the Magic Phoenix Empire had been laid. From those very days, they had been cultivating all kinds of excellent female spirit manipulators vigorously. Naturally, these spirit manipulators had to carry their profession forward, and also needed to increase their number.

So behind the masks of this contest, the mission of these women of the Magic Phoenix Empire was to give birth to more outstanding spirit manipulators. For this reason, they would have a one

be. Although it was going to cost a lot to hold a martial arts contest, it was still a good deal for them because talented spirit manipulators were beyond a price.

The easiest example would be Erica, who, as a talented spirit manipulator would be most definitely priceless.

After leading Rocky and the three women to the chamber, the maid left.

Two hours later, a proud figure walked gracefully into the chamber. Rocky and his companions were stunned when they saw her.

It was Erica, but that was not the surprising part. What really fascinated them was that about a year ago, Erica had only been at the preliminary level of the Supernal Stage, but now she was close to the Divine Stage. It was highly likely that she had gone on a few adventures in the past year. Otherwise, it would be impossible for her to reach such a high level so fast.

As for Erica, when she glanced at the three women, she was also surprised. She could sense the aura of the Divine Stage from them. Sabina and Lucilla had been on par with her the last time they had met. And now they were on the Divine Stage. Then, her eyes fell on Rocky. Although she could not tell his current strength, she was sure that he must be much stronger than before. Her eyes flashed with a complex look.

"Prince Crimson, our queen and the imperial preceptor want to see you. Please follow me," she told Rocky after quickly recovering from her initial surprise.

Rocky's eyes narrowed. Then along with the three women, he followed Erica out of the chamber and towards the queen's palace.