A Draw! An Unexpected Entrant

Athena ignored Joseph, cast a faint glance at Leo's blood-soaked corpse, jumped off her mount, and returned to the VIP seating area on the Darkmoon side.

Alice and Chen Rui hurried to meet her. Alice said with a giggle, "I just knew Athena would win! Unlike some guy who was worried to death, terrified that you might fall from the sky."

"Hmph! That was just blind worrying! We Greater Devils have the teleportation skill. Even without it, I'm already a High-tier Demon; I wouldn't be hurt by a fall from that height!" Athena shot a glare at Chen Rui and ignored him further, though a strange, warm feeling welled up in her heart.

Facing Athena's cold shoulder, Chen Rui felt quite innocent. It was just an accidental touch, right? Oh, wait—it was many touches...

However, since Athena had already advanced to a High-tier Demon, this explained why his Analytical Eye had displayed her strength as D during his "retaliation" yesterday.

"You two, why do you seem a bit off? Did you have a fight?"

The sensitive little girl made Chen Rui react instantly. He hurriedly explained, "It's nothing, just that during yesterday's special training... I was clumsy and made Athena unhappy."

At the mention of yesterday's special training, Athena felt her face burning. Just then, Joseph spoke up, and Alice's attention was immediately diverted.

"Leo was too eager for victory and violated the competition rules by using magic; I have already punished him. For this round, we concede! To express my apologies and respect to the Darkmoon Territory, I, Joseph Aldas, will personally compete in the second round!"

As soon as these words were spoken, all eyes were instantly fixed on Joseph.

Joseph had been prepared for the first round to fail. Letting Leo cheat in secret was a gamble, but he hadn't expected Leo's methods to be so obvious. Once discovered, he had no choice but to silence him quickly. According to the opponent's plan, the third participant was definitely the human apprentice, so he had to ensure a win in the second round; otherwise, Chen Rui wouldn't even need to appear, and the Chiyou side would have already lost.

The one expected to compete for Darkmoon in the second round was Kaguli, the Scythe Succubus from Alice's shop. Kaguli was the younger sister of the palace guard captain Kagulon and was currently a Mid-tier Demon with highly advanced Beast Taming Technique. Even Allen might not have a guaranteed victory against her. Joseph originally had three capable assistants, all of whom were High-tier Greater Devils, but aerial competitions weren't about raw strength—they were about beast taming. None of the three were skilled in this, so Joseph had made up his mind to enter the arena himself.

In any case, Athena, having already fought, could not compete again. As for the others, Joseph had absolute confidence in achieving a total victory without exposing his true strength. Everything was still under his control.

"Joseph... is going to compete personally?" In the palace of Darkmoon City, Princess Shea was watching the situation in the arena through a strange crystal ball. This crystal ball was connected to the magic equipment in the arena, transmitting not just images but sound as well—it was essentially an other-worldly version of a live broadcast.

Joseph's strength was a mystery in Darkmoon City. He rarely fought, and any major trouble was usually handled by his three High-tier Greater Devil subordinates. Some believed he only relied on his father's prestige as a Lord and the power of his subordinates, and that his own strength was negligible. Others believed he was powerful but simply kept a low profile.

Now, the eldest son of Lord Chiyou was going to enter the arena himself. Even though he represented the Chiyou side, many spectators were filled with anticipation.

So, who would the Darkmoon side send to meet him?

Amidst the gaze of the crowd, the little princess Alice slowly stood up. Just as everyone thought she was about to announce the participant, Alice suddenly floated up and drifted slowly into the arena.

"This round, I shall compete myself!"

This statement was even more shocking than Joseph's earlier announcement. The surrounding shouts spontaneously quieted down, and old Gauss, who had been sitting in his chair, stood up.

The little princess herself was competing? This competition was no child's play; there was a constant risk of life, and the Servant Demon from earlier had even broken his leg.

"How absurd!" Shea, in front of the crystal ball, gave a low shout, and her entire figure vanished from the spot.

Joseph was greatly surprised and exclaimed, "Princess Alice, you aren't joking, are you?"

"Joseph, how dare you look down on this princess!" Alice shouted indignantly, and with a whoosh, black flames ignited on her body. These flames were different from the red flames Athena used when transforming. If the red flames gave one a feeling of fanaticism and violence, then the black flames represented silence and finality.

Old Gauss's cloudy eyes suddenly widened, flashing with pleasant surprise.

"The Black Flame of the Lucifer Royal Family!" Some members of the Devil Race had already recognized the origin of the black flames and began to cry out in alarm.

"The power of the royal bloodline!"

This was the first time Chen Rui had seen Alice display her strength. Usually, in his Analytical Eye, Alice's overall strength was only F-rank, but at this moment, it had suddenly soared to E-rank! It seemed the little girl wasn't bragging about her bloodline awakening. Of course, what she awakened wasn't that deceptive mind-reading ability, but one of the three great powers that made the Lucifer Royal Family feared throughout the Demon Realm: the Black Flame!

The strength level of ordinary-qualified members of the Devil Race generally didn't change, like Allen; however, mutant devils and the royal family were different. They had one level of strength in their normal state, but could make a massive leap in power during combat—Joseph, Athena, and Alice were all like this.

Thirteen-year-old Alice had actually awakened the Black Flame; even within the Lucifer Royal Family, she could be considered a genius girl.

However, compared to the unfathomable Joseph, even with Alice mastering the Black Flame, there was no possibility of victory.

"Little Princess, are you serious?" Joseph looked at Alice with a strange expression. "Although my eyesight isn't very good, I can tell that your Black Flame awakening time is too short, and your power is not yet enough. But we are competing in beast taming today. Do you have that much confidence in your beast? To be honest, I don't want to see you get hurt at all."

"This princess doesn't want to hurt others either, including you, the son of a Lord," Alice said with a smile as the black flames on her body vanished instantly. "I am the little princess of Darkmoon, and also a member of the Lucifer Royal Family, representing the most noble bloodline of the empire. You are the eldest son of Lord Chiyou and the treasurer of Darkmoon. In order not to affect the Chiyou Territory's loyalty to my Lucifer Royal Family and bear the infamy of treason; in order not to affect your loyalty as treasurer to the Darkmoon Territory; and for the sake of the friendship between the Darkmoon Territory and the Chiyou Territory, I have decided that this round shall be declared a draw. I wonder if you are willing to continue your loyalty to the Lucifer Royal Family and continue to serve my Darkmoon Territory?"

A sharp glint flashed in Joseph's eyes as he finally sorted out the twists and turns in Alice's words.

Alice's meaning was clear: no matter how powerful the Chiyou Territory was, it was still loyal to the Lucifer Royal Family. You, Joseph, are also the "loyal" treasurer of the Darkmoon Territory. If you really dare to compete against me, it would be a sign of contempt for the Lucifer Royal Family and Darkmoon City, while also intentionally damaging the friendship between Darkmoon and Chiyou.

Alice had offered a draw that was logically impossible to refuse. On the surface, it showed royal grace, but once Joseph agreed, even if Allen killed Chen Rui in the end, it would only result in a draw. But Alice's last sentence was venomous; if he said he wasn't willing, it would be a betrayal of the Lucifer Royal Family and a refusal to continue serving as treasurer in Darkmoon City. Even if that suspicious Regent Heiyao didn't take such "contempt" to heart, Joseph was unwilling to give up the painstaking efforts he had built in Darkmoon over the years.

Every sentence was practically a trap. When did this little princess become so formidable! Alice's appearance was a surprise move; the originally certain victory had slipped out of his control.

Although this was frustrating, now was not the time to tear off the mask... Just as Joseph was weighing his options, he suddenly felt something and looked toward the distance of the arena. He met two icy, blade-like gazes that seemed to have no distance restriction, causing his eyes to sting suddenly and his heart to shake violently.

Joseph's resolve had already wavered, and without further hesitation, he immediately said, "The loyalty of the Chiyou Territory to the Lucifer Royal Family and the Fallen Angel Empire is comparable to the Twin Moons of the Demon Realm. Chiyou and Darkmoon are eternal friends, and I will continue to serve the development of Darkmoon with the most precious friendship. Therefore, I accept Princess Alice's draw!"

Now Darkmoon had one win and one draw, placing them in an invincible position. Even if Chen Rui conceded, it would end in a draw, at least not damaging Darkmoon's reputation.

Seeing that Joseph had indeed agreed to the draw, Alice was overjoyed. She returned to the VIP area triumphantly to show off to Chen Rui and Athena, when suddenly she heard Joseph shout loudly, "In the first round, because I mistakenly trusted a despicable subordinate, that match, which should have been fair, was stained with filth. For this, I express my deepest apologies. In the second round, Princess Alice's grace has left me in awe. But a competition is a competition, and I believe that everyone present hopes to see a truly exciting, fair battle, not cowardice and conspiracy, right!"

These words were highly inflammatory, and the devils in the arena responded loudly, the atmosphere becoming heated.

Alice, Athena, and Aldas, hearing Joseph deliberately stir up such sentiment to force Chen Rui to compete, all felt an ominous premonition at the same time.

Joseph took the opportunity to say, "As a witness to the friendship between Darkmoon and Chiyou, I have a special request for the third round: to change the flying magic beast of the competition to a Wyvern! Everyone will see the most powerful magic beast with their own eyes! The most intense aerial competition!"

A Wyvern! Alice was startled, and Athena stood up abruptly, her sharp eyes fixed tightly on Joseph. Joseph happened to look over, and facing the murderous Athena, he revealed his habitual smile without a care.

In Chen Rui's eyes, the murderous intent in this smile was ten times more intense than what Athena had displayed!

Wyverns generally lived in swamps or wetlands filled with deadly toxins. They possessed sturdy scales and extremely aggressive, sharp claws and teeth. Not only were their claws and teeth highly toxic, but even their breath could emit a certain level of poison. They were among the most powerful aerial magic beasts, second only to dragons.

Dragons had always looked down on these "pseudo-dragons" that lacked sufficient power (relative to the Dragon Race) and lacked wisdom and cultural heritage, yet they had to be wary of the power of these pack-dwelling creatures. Even an adult dragon would not easily provoke a group of Wyverns.

An adult Wyvern had combat power equivalent to a High-tier Demon. Not only was it extremely difficult to capture and tame, but it would often invite the retaliation of the entire Wyvern group. The entire Darkmoon Territory did not possess a single tamed Wyvern.

A four-wheeled cart carrying a large iron cage was pushed into the arena. Inside the cage were two green-brown-skinned creatures with long wings. It seemed Joseph had made up his mind to intimidate Darkmoon today; he had actually brought two Wyverns all the way from the Chiyou Territory!

PS: Apologies, the chapter was posted incorrectly. I stayed up until three last night, and my head is heavy at work today. But what is even more speechless is the writer's area system; I spent several hours editing it, but it kept showing the old, incorrect chapter. In the writer's system, the content was corrected, but it never reflected on the outside. It might be because of the new version, or maybe I just have bad luck. I apologize to everyone again!