Chapter 398 — Fragile Balance

Considering their strength, the two sides immediately discovered one another.

No matter how far away the two parties were, there was nothing blocking their vision.

As such, just as Liora noticed the Commander and his subordinates, the opponents also noticed their group approaching.

The Commander didn’t rush to take action, though.

He remained silent with a stern expression etched across his face, while motioning his subordinates to be careful.

The three women instantly captured their actions.

However, since Liora had already reached an agreement with Assira, none of them showed any hesitation.

Their footsteps quickened, and they approached the majestic golden palace. Soon, they arrived not far away from the Commander and turned to face him.

The two sides sized each other up without speaking a word, causing a bizarre silence to shroud the clearing.

Fortunately, the Commander finally decided to break this silence.

He didn’t try to hide his thoughts, but rather voiced them out loud.

"It seems that you have already discovered the mystery of this maze."

"Did some other organization discover the Universe Chamber of Commerce’s recent actions and sent you here to interfere?", he questioned, but he shook his head before any of the three women could reply.

"It doesn’t matter."

"You should have already obtained the inheritance tokens. Since you’re already here, you are bound to enter the inheritance palace.", he said calmly, obviously having already guessed their purpose.

Liora exchanged a glance with Assira.

She was surprised by the Commander’s attitude and had to wonder whether he was trying to set them up.

However, after she thought of the current situation, she was soon relieved.

In fact, Liora and Assira had already been prepared to break off with the Universe Chamber of Commerce.

However, they never expected that they would be able to kill their opponents.

Even if one ignored the Devil Contract, the Commander was a True Spirit Greater Devil and was accompanied by several other Greater Devils.

Since the Universe Chamber of Commerce dared to send them here, they were bound to have some kind of powerful trump card.

The two women originally planned to display sufficient strength so that the other party would not dare to obstruct them from obtaining the inheritance.

Now, although the Commander’s attitude was strange, it suited their needs.

At least, they didn’t need to fight.

"The Commander is worthy of being entrusted to lead this mission. If it were someone like the Plague Devil, he would have immediately chosen to take action."

"Even if I, Assira, and Alpha are three True Spirit Greater Devils, he would never choose to retreat without a fight.", Liora thought, and she became even more wary of this person.

Although many thoughts went through their respective minds, not much time had passed in reality.

Liora and Assira only exchanged a brief glance without the need to communicate before the latter spoke up.

"Hehehe.", she chuckled cheerfully.

"There’s no reason for the Commander to act like this. After all, we are all allies. Our goal from the beginning has been to slay the Zerg Queen."

Saying this, she changed the conversation.

"I’ve heard that the inheritance palace contains various treasures, with some of them precious enough to significantly enhance our strength."

"If we can improve our combat power, we will have a higher chance of dealing with the Zerg Queen, and we can ensure that no accident will occur."

"Don’t forget. It was the Zerg Queen who teleported us here. Although she hadn’t appeared yet, she must be hiding behind the scenes. This person is perhaps the biggest threat in the maze."

Assira’s words sounded ordinary, but she displayed the abilities that an Astral Pavilion employee ought to have.

In just a couple of sentences, she had changed the tone of their conversation.

From them fighting over the inheritance palace and the treasures inside, it had now turned into an opportunity to enhance their strength to deal with a common enemy.

In just a moment, they had turned from potential enemies to close allies.

This not only made their cause more "just", but also gave the Commander enough face.

He wasn’t forced to retreat! He was just helping them improve their strength out of necessity!

Liora had met several businessmen in the past. Some flattered the powerful while others preferred to bully the weak.

However, it was the first time she witnessed someone acting like this.

After glancing at the Commander and confirming that Assira’s words had worked and his stern expression had faintly relaxed, Liora suddenly coughed to attract everyone’s attention.

Then, turning to the palace in the distance, she couldn’t help but ask the question in her mind.

"This palace must house several treasures, enough for several Archdevils to be born. Have you tried to dismantle it and loot the things inside?"

The Commander didn’t sneer at her straightforward way of thinking, but instead paused for a few seconds before shaking his head.

"I won’t hide it from you. We’ve already tried it. However, the palace is protected by formations. Because the methods used are different from Devil Runes, we can’t decipher them."

"Moreover...", he paused and pointed at the statues beside the entrance.

"These statues are actually puppets. If someone shows any intention to break the rules, they will immediately besiege them."

"A True Spirit Greater Devil was sacrificed to obtain this information.", the Commander spoke with slight heartache.

Liora had already expected this answer and was not surprised by his words.

After all, she was not the only one with the idea to tear this place down.

Liora could be certain that everyone else had that thought, and they were bound to have tried.

This was normal. Devils were not lawful creatures.

When a Devil encountered such an inheritance, their first thought was not to obey the rules, but instead to directly destroy it and rob the things hidden inside.

Since these people were now faithfully going through the trials, it was obvious that they had failed.

"Maybe a powerful Archdevil can bypass the restrictions. However, such a person might not be willing to take the risk.", Liora realized.

She was not the only one with doubts.

Following her question, Assira also took the opportunity to ask.

The Commander showed surprising patience and answered their doubts.

Once he had finished solving their doubts, he finally spoke of his purpose.

"So far, all the members of our organization have failed at the second trial."

"I believe that you three have a high chance of passing the second trial, and perhaps may succeed in the third.", he said.

"I wish that once you come out, you will consider selling the items you obtain to the Universe Chamber of Commerce if they don’t suit your needs."

"You don’t have to worry. We will purchase them based on the market price."

His request was not difficult. Trading treasures was a common occurrence.

No one could be certain that the opportunities they obtain would suit their needs.

For example, if Assira were to obtain a Body Tempering Technique, she wouldn’t necessarily choose to practice it since she mainly focused on illusions and soul attacks.

At that time, trading them with the Universe Chamber of Commerce would naturally not harm her.

With that in mind, neither Liora nor Assira argued. Faced with the Commander’s request, the two women nodded and promised to do so.

Then, after they had reached an agreement, everyone’s focus shifted back to their goal. Or to be more accurate, to the majestic golden palace.