Rebirth of the Prime Dragon Master
Chapter 227 An Unexpected Favor

"Unfortunately, Commander Marin could not be present at this time. Something has gone amiss outon the front line. So she asked me to come here, in her stead, in the name of the northeast militarycamp,” Rocky replied.

"She asked you to represent the entire northeast military camp?" Isis looked him over mistrustfully.There were two Deputy Commanders in the northeast military camp, and as protocol dictated, oneof them was meant to have been sent over. Rocky was neither, and hence she wondered why Marinwould have sent him.

"I see..." Isis sighed, unsure of the situation. "Well, you can come with me later. In the meantime,please wait for me outside.” After a moment's deliberation, Isis still remained unconvinced. Shedecided to head to the Isis Pavilion

Rocky, realizing that he had no real choice in the matter, went outside to wait for her. He didn't haveto be patient for long, as Isis presently returned in roughly fifteen minutes’ time. Emerging from theIsis Pavilion, she was a resplendent sight adorned in her brilliant, burnished copper armor. Isis stoodas a figure radiating of bravery and charisma, of a heroic spirit that did not lose its gentleness. It wasas though she drew even more strength from her femininity. For a moment, she took Rocky's breathaway.

As Isis moved towards him, Rocky carefully rose to his feet, out of both surprise and respect. "Ididn't expect you to don your armor,” he said. After all, the last time that he had met her in theSpiritual Fairyland, her clothing was casual. This was the first time, as far as he could remember, thathe had seen her wearing her armor.

"Ordinarily, I wouldn't wear it," Isis admitted coldly before brushing past his shoulder.

“She's embarrassed, ' Rocky noted to himself, flashing a skittish smile. Apparently, the secretbetween them had changed things, and she wasn't quite as amenable to talk to him. He jogged toIsis to catch up. As he did, the squad of female guards who watched over her joined them in theirwalk.

"Well," Isis began after an awkward pause, "I asked Marin to send you a message. Did you receiveit?" Her eyes seemed shifty, clearly still unsure of what to make of him.

"l got the message," Rocky replied, a little more at ease now that he knew what her problem was."And...do you understand?" Isis continued, every word weighted with meaning as she stared at him.Now, Rocky knew where this was going. He was certain that Isis had planned some trickery one wayor another, and so he feigned ignorance. "I'm sorry, Deputy Commander in Chief, but I'm afraid Idon't understand precisely what you mean. Your words are a little obtuse. Unfortunately, I'm merelya feeder, and nowhere near as erudite as you. I don't have the wisdom to interpret what you'retrying to say.”

"Oh..just forget it, then. Don't worry about it," Isis quipped placidly peacefully while keeping hereyes on Rocky, who felt himself grow a bit more relaxed. It would appear that his response wasexactly what she was hoping for.

The fact of the matter was that Rocky knew he would not be able to outmaneuver whatever Isis hadin store for him. As Sheridan himself had told him, Isis was extremely smart. And between Marin'swords and Isis* own probe, it was obvious that Isis had arranged everything in advance. Should hemake a single mistake, the game would be up as Isis would know right away. And the only reasonshe could have orchestrated all of this was to confirm that Rocky had obtained the Heaven DivineLotus Seeds.

“She is even tougher to deal with than Marin. I'd better make sure to steer clear of her, * Rockythought grimly to himself.

Before long, the group arrived at a cliff just northwest of the base. Looking down at the drop-offbelow, he saw a sprawling scene that appeared to be a simulated battlefield. It had everythingneeded to train troops in all kinds of terrain: Forest, flatland, valley, hills, and other variations ofnatural topography were found in this single area.

"What you see here is the training ground for combat exercises. Live ammunition is typically usedwhen training here. To be honest, only men with ranks higher than the Frontline Commanders areallowed to enter it. But since you represent the northeast military camp, I can bend protocol a littlefor you," Isis told him importantly as she turned back to look at Rocky. This statement was a subtlenod to her own clout, as Rocky realized he was being gifted a Frontline Commander's treatment.

"I didn’t expect such an magnanimous honor,” Rocky cynically replied under his breath. Isis onlygave him a smug look in response.

Then she led Rocky to a platform positioned at the end of the cliff, from which they could have adramatic, panoramic view of the training ground.

There were already many people gathered upon it. Most of them were spirit manipulators dressedin Commanders’ garb. And all their powers were of a level far superior to Rocky's, with a few ofthem even beyond the Heavenly Stage. Some of the observers were dressed in the robes of the civilofficials. These were the spirit manipulators at their Mortal Stage. Standing with ranks equivalent tothat of the Frontline Commanders, they specialized in managing the daily affairs of the CrimsonDragon Group.

Upon Isis" arrival, they stood up in unison and saluted to her. "Deputy Commander in Chief!"

Isis nodded calmly to the crowd, her regal demeanor creating a dramatic effect as she arrived.

It wasn't long before they noticed a young man that accompanied her imposing figure. Surprised atthe unexpected presence, they wondered what he was doing there as her escort, and what businesshe could possibly have here. It was a puzzling situation.

Ordinarily, only Lance, the Commander in Chief of the Crimson Dragon Group could walk alongsideIsis. Even the Elite Commanders who were ranked just below the Deputy Commander in Chief wouldonly be permitted to walk behind her. It was not a surprise, then, that all the assembled would stareand wonder as to what the relationship between Isis and Rocky could be, if they could walkalongside each other.

Isis, noting the crowd's growing unease and confusion, finally spoke. "Commander Marin of thenortheast military camp has to deal with some very pressing affairs, and therefore could not comepersonally. She has sent a representative in her stead, and he is accompanying me today."

Upon hearing her words, the crowd was surprised, murmuring among themselves as they took inthis information. All but one of them was satisfied, and that one man was someone who was alreadyfamiliar with who Rocky was. Bitterly, he looked up and down at Rocky in his now vaunted positionand wondered, "Why him? Why did they choose him to represent the northeast military camp? Thisanimal almost maimed my son. If it wasn't for the Deputy Commander in Chief, he would have beendoomed!

Frontline Commander Flank was this man who held a fierce grudge in his heart. But because of Isisand her presence, he was compelled against his will to give respect to Rocky, the man who hadtaught his son a lesson that wouldn't soon be forgotten.

Rocky felt that vindictive gaze on him, and lifted his eyes to meet Flank's. He allowed his lip to curlinto a sneer at such thinly-veiled hostility coming from him.

A fierce staredown commenced between the two of them.

"As you come here on behalf of Commander Marin, what exactly are your duties as a civil official inthe northeast military camp?” one of the Elite Commanders asked thoughtlessly. After all, he knewboth of the two Deputy Commanders of the northeast military camp. Rocky did not have the sameauthoritative air, and he rightfully assumed that he was merely a civil official. It also seemed asthough Rocky was far too young to merit any other rank at the moment.

"I'm the assigned breeder for the northeast military camp,” Rocky answered coolly, without so muchas batting an eye.

At that, the crowd was dumbstruck, astonished.