Lord of the Sky City

Until that moment, Master Hammerfire finally revealed his true purpose. He wanted Rocky to participate in the Arena competition, not for the prize money which was minuscule for their research, but for the gambling outside the Arena!

This idea was absolutely brilliant!

Because, as Pelaya said, the prize money offered by the Arena might be substantial for the average person, but it was nowhere near enough for their research. However, the gambling was different; the more you bet, the more you could earn, potentially multiplying your investment many times over. The money earned from gambling could indeed support the research for the Rune Armor!

"No, it's still too dangerous."

Unfortunately, after Master Hammerfire had explained all his thoughts, Orton still shook his head like a bobblehead, firmly disagreeing.

And his reason was simple: the Arena was too dangerous.

This reason really left everyone speechless. Everyone had heard of the Arena, and most had seen some Arena competitions, so they understood very well the cruelty and bloodiness of the matches.

The Arena was a dog-eat-dog place where no one cared about your identity or would befriend you. Almost everyone who participated did so with the same goal—to eliminate their opponents and win the desired prize money in this 'simple' manner. Under such straightforward objectives, every match in the Arena was extremely dangerous. To put it bluntly, Rocky participating in these competitions would likely be dead within three matches!

"My lord, let me go!"

Just then, Monte, who had been quietly listening, suddenly stood up. The towering Beastman spoke to Rocky, Orton, and the others: "My lords, masters, let me participate in the Arena! I was once a Demon Hunter, and I have experience fighting Demons. I will have no problem in the Arena!"

Monte, of course, couldn't understand the academic content, but he understood Master Hammerfire's idea perfectly. Being one of Rocky's most trusted aides, Monte also knew how difficult Rocky's current situation was, and he wanted to help but couldn't. So, when he heard that participating in the Arena could make money, he volunteered immediately.

In Monte's view, Master Hammerfire's plan was tailor-made for him. After all, in the entire Thunderhawk City, who could be more suitable to participate in the Arena than a former Demon Hunter like himself?

"You can't."

However, just as Monte had stood up, Master Hammerfire shook his head.

"Master Hammerfire, why!"

Monte was utterly confused as Master Hammerfire rejected him outright without a second thought, but Hammerfire's next words made him fall silent.

"The White Demon Armor isn't designed for you."

Glancing at Monte, Hammerfire turned to Orton and Rocky: "Orton, I know you are worried about the safety of the City Lord's lad, but I never said he should enter the competition wearing his own shoddy armor, did I? My plan is for him to wear the White Demon Armor and participate in the Arena!"

"What?"

"Hammerfire, are you saying..."

As Master Hammerfire finished his sentence, Orton, Pelaya, and Aniye were simultaneously stunned, and the three of them fell into deep thought.

While they were lost in thought, Hammerfire continued: "Gentlemen, the White Demon Armor was developed together by us. You know very well the level of combat capability this armor can achieve. Don't you trust your own research?"

"Once Rocky wears the White Demon Armor, do you still need to worry about his safety? Remember, he's only participating in a seasonal match, not the triennial Sky Combat Grand Tournament, so there will be no problems."

After saying this, Hammerfire fell silent, and soon after, Aniye and Pelaya came back to their senses and nodded to Rocky at the same time.

"If he wears the White Demon Armor, then indeed there would be no problem with his safety."

"Exactly, and moreover, this way, we can also directly collect real combat data of the armor."

When Aniye and Pelaya nodded one after another, agreeing that Master Hammerfire's suggestion was feasible, everyone present simultaneously turned their gaze toward Orton and Rocky.

Finding everyone looking at him, Orton glanced at Rocky, "Kid, what do you think? I can tell you, the Arena is every bit as dangerous as the battlefield, even more so. Your opponents might resort to any means to win, so don't take this lightly."

"However, Master Hammerfire is also right; if you wear the White Demon Armor to the competition, you can be reassured that nothing will go wrong with that armor."

"So, the final decision is still up to you."

Clearly, upon learning that Master Hammerfire planned to have Rocky wear the White Demon Armor to the Arena, Orton, who had initially opposed the idea, was swayed because he had great confidence in the White Demon Armor, which he had helped to design.

Even so, he left the decision entirely up to Rocky.

With that, all eyes were once again on Rocky.

"I have no problem with it."

Contrary to what everyone expected, Rocky showed no hesitation and agreed immediately.

Ever since Master Hammerfire had explained his idea to everyone, Rocky had been considering it. In fact, for him, there wasn't much to consider as his current circumstances left him with few alternatives. Wearing the White Demon Armor or even the Blood Pattern Mark II to the competition was a necessity given his situation! Stay tuned for updates on empire

So Rocky had already decided—why not the Arena? He would go!

"Good!"

Seeing Rocky nod in agreement, Master Hammerfire was the first to jump up and then said to Orton and the others, "Gentlemen, the City Lord's kid has already decided to give his all for this research; we old folks can't let a kid show us up! What are we waiting for? Let's get moving and show the world the prowess of the White Demon!"

Thus, once Rocky decided to participate in the Arena, everyone got busy once more.

Thereafter, Rocky took out the last three hundred thousand gold coins he had, and Master Hammerfire and others used this final sum to create the sixth version of the White Demon Armor over half a month.

This version's development cycle was the longest of all versions, because after countless experiments, this version of the armor had been perfected in every aspect, at least theoretically flawless. Hence, this version was called the Prototype Armor of the White Demon by Master Hammerfire; once all tests on this version were successful, all Rune Armors in the foreseeable future would be designed based on this prototype, hence the name.

However, after creating the Prototype Armor of the White Demon, Rocky did not immediately participate in the Arena; he still had to undergo a series of tests. Partly it was to familiarize himself with the new armor, and partly it was for Orton and others to verify the Armor's practicality. Only once it was confirmed that the armor was indeed suitable for actual combat could Rocky enter the Arena.

...

...

Half a month later, Rocky arrived early at the laboratory with Liliya, Aileen, and Monte and others, only to find Orton and his group who had long been waiting.

"Kid, are you ready?"

In the backyard of the laboratory, upon seeing Rocky, Orton asked.

"I am ready."

To Orton's question, Rocky took a deep breath, then nodded his head.

"Come then, it is yours."

Seeing him nod, Orton and Master Hammerfire smiled slightly and then stepped aside, revealing the White Demon Armor behind them!