The Rock Tribe is not a profit-oriented race, it is a race full of blood and spirit.
This race has a mindset where the strong are respected, but it values tradition, reverence, and loyalty even more.
Therefore, when Rock Demon abandoned his fellow tribesmen to flee, and even escaped with only his main fleet, he had already lost the legitimacy of the Rock King.
If it were not for Solon and Hai Gang’s fleets quickly surrounding Thunder Archipelago, the surviving island lords and elders would already have begun to move to depose Rock Demon.
Well, perhaps the word “impeach” is a bit too sophisticated.
In short, without the enemy at the gates, Rock Demon’s throne would never have been stable.
Precisely because of the enemy’s presence, the surviving Rock Pirates and Rock people continued to unite around Rock Demon, preparing to fight the enemy to the death.
Neither the Rock people nor the Rock Pirates have ever feared death. They have never been afraid of battle.
But in the end, Solon did not attack. He only imposed a blockade and siege.
So the Rock people and Rock Pirates would not be killed in battle, but starved to death instead.
This is the most humiliating and most powerless way to die in the world. Although they do not plant a single grain of food, the Rock people have never died of starvation. Even elderly Rock people always have more meat than they can eat, only lacking the teeth to chew it.
To die of starvation, to have nothing to eat, is seen as incompetence.
After that, Solon distributed leaflets repeatedly, exposing Rock Demon’s disgraceful act of abandoning his tribe to escape, and declared that only Rock Demon would be punished, while the rest of the Rock Pirates and Rock people had committed no crime and could still return under the Rock Queen’s rule.
In the past, when choosing between Rock Demon and the Rock Queen, the Rock Pirates would side with Rock Demon.
Although the Rock people also deeply respected the Rock Queen, especially since she sacrificed herself to the sea god for the future of the race.
Still, they were more willing to serve Rock Demon. Not only was he the new king, he was also more brave and warlike, and this race naturally admired strength.
But now, Rock Demon had abandoned his people and fled alone. He was no longer fit to be king.
So among the Rock tribe, who could inherit the throne?
Rock Demon’s younger sister, Rock Xue’er, and the former Rock Queen, Rock Zhuo’er.
The Rock Queen had originally transferred the throne to Rock Demon as part of her self-sacrifice to the sea god. Yet she had not died, and Rock Demon had now committed such disgraceful acts. Returning the throne to the Rock Queen seemed natural.
Almost all Rock people thought this way. However, with a powerful enemy at the gates, no one could act. If they removed Rock Demon at this critical moment, they would be accused of betraying the Rock tribe and flattering the enemy.
As a result of Rock Demon’s paranoia, he killed his own trusted guard, which triggered the escalation of internal conflict within the Rock tribe.
The father of that trusted guard, Black Reef Island Lord Black Yang, immediately led his forces to the Rock King’s palace to demand justice from Rock Demon.
Normally, trespassing into the royal palace was a capital crime, yet along the way the fortifications were ignored by the Rock pirates, and even the guards of the palace pretended not to see anything, allowing Black Reef Island Lord to enter with his men.
Rock Demon’s unjust killing of his trusted guard deeply chilled the hearts of the other Rock Pirates.
…
At this moment, Rock Demon was sound asleep while holding Hai Die’er.
Just earlier, he had drunk several jin of alcohol, then indulged wildly on Hai Die’er’s beautiful body, before falling into a deep, satisfied sleep.
In the past, if someone entered the palace, his spiritual perception would detect it immediately. But now, Black Reef Island Lord and his men had already entered within a hundred steps of him, and he was still fast asleep. This showed just how mentally dulled he had become.
He had considered the consequences of abandoning his fellow tribesmen on the battlefield, but he had never expected them to be so severe. He was now completely isolated, and even his most loyal guards no longer looked at him with respect.
Originally, he had planned to keep the green hills so that there would always be firewood.
After losing the battle, as long as he led the surviving Rock Pirates to hide in Thunder Archipelago for one or two months, then when Chu Li’s 800,000-strong army attacked Tian Shui City, Solon would be forced to withdraw, and the siege would naturally be lifted.
Once the siege was lifted, Rock Demon could raid again and easily sustain 50,000 Rock tribesmen.
Of course, if Solon defeated Chu Li in the next great war, then Rock Demon would face total destruction.
Therefore, after plundering enough supplies, Rock Demon’s first step would be to lead the Rock Pirate fleet to submit to the Flame Empire. He would transform into a fleet of the Flame Empire. In that case, even if Solon had a hundred times the courage, he would not dare attack him again.
Not only that, he would also go to meet the Emperor of the Flame Empire and report the matters of gunpowder and cannons to the ruler of the strongest empire in the world. Then he would have the Flame Emperor pressure the Divine Dragon Temple, classifying gunpowder and cannons as forces opposing the divine order, forcing Solon to hand over the secrets of gunpowder and cannons, or completely destroy all production bases.
Without gunpowder and cannons, Solon would be like a toothless poisonous snake, completely powerless.
However, upon returning to Thunder Archipelago, everyone looked at him as if he were a criminal. Not only ordinary Rock people, but even the Rock Pirates from his own main fleet.
Rock Demon felt deep hatred. I saved your lives, you are my men, you should be loyal to me, understand me. Keeping the green hills means there will always be firewood. Why do you not understand, instead treating me with such coldness?
Deeply struck, Rock Demon became somewhat listless and depressed.
Little did he know that the Rock tribe had already shown great restraint. At this point, they had not killed their king or betrayed him, and had endured without removing him from power.
…
Bang.
A loud crash sounded as the door to Rock Demon’s room was smashed open. Black Reef Island Lord led several hundred men in.
Only then did Rock Demon wake with a start, sitting up and shouting angrily, “What are you doing? Are you rebelling?”
“Guards, guards,” Rock Demon roared.
But no guards from the Rock King’s palace appeared.
“No one is coming anymore,” Black Reef Island Lord said. “Rock Demon, you abandoned your tribe and fled. You are no longer fit to be King of the Rock tribe. Today, we will depose you.”
Rock Demon realized he was truly surrounded and abandoned. No one came to help him, not even his trusted guards.
With drunken eyes, he finally recognized the leader, Black Reef Island Lord Black Yang, his most steadfast ally. In every raid before, Black Yang’s ships had always been on his left flank.
“Black… why?” Rock Demon shouted sharply. “Why is it you?”
Black Reef Island Lord Black Yang roared, “Why? You abandoned your tribe and fled, already a grave crime. We did not remove you because the enemy was at the gates. We needed unity. But you went mad and killed my son, Black Stone. He was your loyal guard. What crime did he commit? Why did you kill him?”
Rock Demon said, “I only sensed in a dream that someone was trying to assassinate me. Black Stone happened to appear behind me. I could not distinguish dream from reality, so I struck him. He was my servant. Even if I killed him by mistake, so what?”
Black Reef Island Lord roared, “So what? You must be deposed, imprisoned, and executed before the new King!”
“New King?” That word touched Rock Demon’s most sensitive nerve. He erupted in fury. “What new King? Who is your new King?”
Black Reef Island Lord said, “The former Queen, your mother. She sacrificed herself to the sea god for the Rock tribe, and passed the throne to you. Now that she is alive and you have betrayed the tribe, the throne must return to her.”
“Hahaha…” Rock Demon laughed wildly. “My mother? Rock Zhuo’er? She has already become Solon’s woman, and Solon’s army is right ahead, besieging Thunder Archipelago. You are all going to surrender to the enemy, and even behead your king to present to them. What shame!”
Black Reef Island Lord turned red with anger. “Fine. We will not hand you to the new King. We will depose you and execute you at the council of elders. Then we will fight Solon to the death.”
“Depose me?” Rock Demon said coldly. “And if I refuse?”
“Then don’t blame us,” Black Reef Island Lord Black Yang drew his curved blade.
“You dare rebel by force?” Rock Demon laughed.
At this moment, Hai Die’er behind him said, “So many of you, surrounding my husband alone. Do you have no shame?”
Those words enraged them, and Black Reef Island Lord said, “Fine. I will go first.”
Rock Demon gently patted his wife’s back and said, “Even if you all come together, so what? Watch your husband kill them.”
Hai Die’er stood up wrapped in a bedsheet and poured a cup of deep red wine, saying, “Then please drink this wine before you go to battle.”
Rock Demon took the cup, then placed it back, saying, “I will drink it after I return.”
Then Rock Demon stepped out of bed completely naked, holding his blade. “You want to depose me? Who will come?”
“I will,” Black Reef Island Lord Black Yang shouted, swinging his blade down like thunder.
Rock Demon remained relaxed and unfazed.
As the blade came down, Rock Demon struck.
One strike.
Black Reef Island Lord Black Yang was split cleanly in two from head to waist.
Blood erupted wildly.
Before long, he was dead.
“Who else?” Rock Demon said coldly.
One figure rushed forward like lightning, a black dagger stabbing toward his neck.
Rock Demon casually thrust his blade forward.
The attacker’s heart was pierced instantly.
“Who else?”
One after another, island lords and chiefs attacked, but none survived a single strike.
Soon, more than ten bodies lay on the ground.
“Who else?” Rock Demon roared.
Then the remaining Rock warriors charged.
Rock Demon stood in place, dual blades in hand, slaughtering them all.
Blood filled the hall. Corpses piled up.
In the end, over three hundred men were dead.
“Who else?” he shouted again.
Silence.
At last, he drank the wine.
Then he clutched his throat, his face twisting in agony.
“You… you poisoned the wine?”