Rebirth of the Prime Dragon Master
Chapter 270 The New Emergency

The last time Rocky dealt with two Dark Heaven Insects at the same time was comparatively harder. His power was weaker the last time. This time he went against a four-star Dark Heaven Insect Queen at the third grade. Though he was already extremely exhausted for his present encounter, Uriah and little Rubygon were both more powerful so he had nothing to worry about.

Little Rubygon in particular had the potential to be a three-star spirit-manipulated beast at the first grade, an equivalent of a spirit manipulator at the Earthly Stage. Without Uriah and little Rubygon, it was impossible for Rocky to subdue the Dark Heaven Insect Queen.

The Dark Heaven Insect Queen was at a disadvantage when one of its hind legs was injured. It tried to use its fierce spiked scorpion tail but to no avail. Rocky retaliated with a surprise attack that hit the Dark Heaven Insect Queen. The Dark Heaven Insect Queen's most effective attack was disabled. Its movement was impaired and this made it easier to deal with.

But a head-on confrontation with the Black Heaven Insect Queen was still dangerous. So Rocky decided to approach it with a well-planned strategy.

Uriah, little Rubygon and Rocky all contributed to the victory. Rocky just recently improved from the second grade of the Earthly Stage to the sixth grade of the Earthly Stage. Most spirit manipulators spent several years to a decade in order to achieve a similar amount of improvement. But Rocky achieved that much improvement in a matter of a few months; an achievement that most spirit manipulators considered impossible. Rocky's current power level was a major contributor to the Dark Heaven Insect Queen's defeat.

A Dark Heaven Insect Queen laid eggs that hatched into larvae of Dark Heaven Insects. Similar to three-star Dark Heaven Insects at the third grade, the Dark Heaven Insect Queen bred Dark Heaven Eggs at the premium stage, and these were highly valued for their ability to assist in the cultivation of spirit manipulators at the Heavenly Stage. With the assistance of the Dark Heaven Eggs, the improvement of spirit manipulators beyond the Heavenly Stage produced was close to twice the effect with only half the effort. This was why many spirit manipulators at the Supernal Stage preferred the Dark Heaven Eggs.

Capturing the Dark Heaven Insect Queen was like catching golden coins dropped from heaven. Although it required great effort to capture one, the benefits of a successful capture greatly outweighed the cost and risks.

"We're done here,” Rocky declared to Uriah and little Rubygon. His problem was how to transport the Dark Heaven Insect Queen back. The last time he captured two Dark Heaven Insects, he was fortunate to loot two lumber wagons. He then used the wagons to transport the two Dark Heaven Insects back with him. Without any means of transport, Rocky had no choice but to use an old transport method. Uriah made use of magical saliva and ran in front of the Dark Heaven Insect Queen to lead it back as the queen chased after Uriah.

Rocky was about to put his plan into action, when a thunder light rushed towards him from one side.

"Who is there?" Rocky exclaimed as he quickly moved away from the path of the thunder light. A figure with an aura of the Heavenly Stage appeared before Rocky.

"Are you a spirit manipulator from the Timber Deity Empire?" Rocky asked as he studied the figure before him. The appearance of a timber spirit manipulator from the Timber Deity Empire was unexpected, especially not one with the power of the spiritual race that matched a royal spirit manipulator of the Holy Dragon Empire.

The only thought in Rocky's mind was that he was in big trouble.

The newcomer was surprised when he saw a subdued Dark Heaven Insect Queen. The aura that he sensed from Rocky was very weak; he couldn't possibly have defeated the Dark Heaven Insect Queen.

The presence of Uriah and little Rubygon that stood at the ready on both sides of Rocky surprised him further. He assumed that the two were the spirit-manipulated beasts of Rocky. Under normal circumstances, a spirit manipulator only had one spirit-manipulated beast at any given time. He had never seen nor heard of a spirit manipulator who controlled two spirit-manipulated beasts at the same time. This realization brought him more awe than surprise.

"Who are you?" the timber spirit manipulator asked casually.

"Me?" Rocky replied smiling. It was folly to tell the timber spirit manipulator his true identity for his spiritual power was almost completely depleted. He was no match for him at this state. At his best, Rocky had a good chance to beat the timber spirit manipulator before him. He wisely decided not to confront him at his current state.

A quick recollection of the items that he had with him gave Rocky an idea. He quickly brought out a small token with a flame-shaped sign and flashed it before the timber spirit manipulator. He found the token together with three other treasures when he encountered the mummy. "I'm from the Roaring Flame Empire,” Rocky said while showing the marked token.

"You're from the Roaring Flame Empire?" the timber spirit manipulator asked skeptically. He hesitated as he looked at Rocky one more time. Rocky's appearance did not fit a typical spirit manipulator from the Roaring Flame Empire. Moreover, he was also perplexed with the token in Rocky's hand. In addition to representing a citizen of the Roaring Flame Empire, the token also embodied the status of its bearer. The token that Rocky had with him told the timber spirit manipulator that Rocky was a citizen of the Roaring Flame Empire who was held in great honor. The Roaring Flame Empire and the Timber Deity Empire had a secret alliance. The timber spirit manipulator hesitated at the sight of Rocky's token. He was unsure if it was a good idea to reveal his true intent. At length, he greeted Rocky and said, "I see. We are allies. What brought you here? What happened to that Dark Heaven Insect?"

'Allies!? The Roaring Flame Empire and the Timber Deity Empire are allied with one another!?' Rocky voiced within himself in overwhelming surprise. He replied back in a neutral tone, "I'm a collector that specializes in gathering valuable materials from different spirit-manipulated beasts.”

"A collector?” The timber spirit manipulator was shocked for he had never heard of anyone who was a collector.

"Were you the one who subdued the Dark Heaven Insect?" the timber spirit manipulator asked. He stared at the Dark Heaven Insect Queen lying on its stomach, with greed in his eyes. His initial assessment told him that it was a three-star Dark Heaven Insect at the third grade, but he didn't know that it was a rare Dark Heaven Insect Queen

"Yes and no," Rocky replied playfully.

"What do you mean?" the timber spirit manipulator asked puzzled. He failed to realize that Rocky played with him.

"I found it in a weakened state. I believe it was dying. I took advantage of the situation and shot a few arrows to weaken it further. Now I am going to gather anything valuable that it has,” Rocky replied calmly.

"Really?" The timber spirit manipulator was suspicious of Rocky's response. Avarice blazed in his eyes.

A brief observation quickly revealed that the timber spirit manipulator was a merciless and wicked man. He merely waited for the slightest flaw in Rocky's statements and he would kill Rocky without hesitation. The token that Rocky possessed granted Rocky a slight defense from the timber spirit manipulator’s vigilance. He could not completely dismiss Rocky's words for the token signified that Rocky was a person of great honor.

The presence of the timber spirit manipulator complicated things for Rocky, however. Transporting the Dark Heaven Insect Queen back was impossible while the timber spirit manipulator was in the vicinity.