Let them offer their loyalty!
Chapter 994 - 481: Promoted to Peak Fourth Rank! (10,000 Characters for Monthly Ticket!)

Hearing Qiu Tu's words, which seemed to explain the reason but also felt borderline flirtatious, Zhao Ji's eyes flickered slightly as she prepared to snap.

However, at this moment, Qiu Tu quickly switched his tone, saying, "Of course! Sis, I know you wouldn't be interested in things like this."

"But... you know what kind of person your sister is. Once she's interested in something, I can't stop her at all."

"Look at me—I've been so stressed lately that I've practically lost weight."

Whether Qiu Tu had really slimmed down, Zhao Ji didn't know, because she had never paid him much attention before.

Now, seeing how Qiu Tu couldn't stop mentioning Larilo and kept pushing all the problems onto her, Zhao Ji's gaze turned even colder.

She'd realized a long time ago that her sister had become the greatest hurdle of her life.

As a child, Zhao Ji had thought having a younger sister was a blessing, someone to share life's hardships with.

But growing up, she discovered... her sister was actually her greatest trial.

Take the allocation of the "Boundless Heart Sea Region" this time, for example.

Since each Fifth Rank Catastrophic Creature could only possess nine territories, Zhao Ji had left the remaining ones for Larilo.

And yet... Larilo, being as gullible as someone caught up in a love affair, had been sweet-talked by Qiu Tu and had casually given him three regions, keeping only one for herself.

Larilo was even now hesitating about whether to grant Qiu Tu a few more regions.

This made Zhao Ji both exasperated and disappointed.

Honestly speaking, Zhao Ji didn't even dare to give Larilo any resources now because... she feared it would end up fattening Qiu Tu instead.

That was precisely why she had stormed into the State Council today, intending to slaughter Qiu Tu.

—Her sister, she could fight and kill herself, but seeing others bully her was still utterly infuriating.

At this moment, possibly sensing the shift in Zhao Ji's mood, Qiu Tu quickly realized he couldn't keep mentioning Larilo and further provoke Zhao Ji.

He cleared his throat and said, "Sis, this situation is indeed my fault."

"But I promise this time, give me seven more days. Within seven days, I'll absolutely uncover the secret of 'Mountain Root' for you."

Unlike Larilo, Zhao Ji wasn't so easy to fool.

Her gaze turned icy as she said, "Rather than waiting, I feel it would be easier to kill you and head straight to the 'Boundless Heart Sea - Core Region' to advance to the Sixth Rank."

Qiu Tu glanced at the upper-left corner and, seeing no Crisis Countdown alert appear, felt a bit relieved internally.

He said, "Your Highness, with your unparalleled talent, would you truly be satisfied by merely advancing step by step in a conventional manner?"

Zhao Ji, expressionless, countered, "What other choice is there?"

Qiu Tu slowly replied, "The path to extraordinary power has never been fixed."

"Blindly following the paths of those who came before will only limit your own potential."

"After all... if predecessors had blindly trusted their predecessors' paths, how would they have discovered new methods of advancement or uncovered new realms?"

At this point, Qiu Tu paused. "Surely, starting from the Era of Disaster, the World Origin didn't outright inform all beings of how many ranks there are for Cataclysmics or how to increase their strength."

Hearing this, Zhao Ji's eyes flickered slightly, as though pondering the idea.

Seizing the moment, Qiu Tu added, "Even though I'm not a Sixth Rank Cataclysmic Creature and don't know what exactly lies in the 'Boundless Heart Sea - Core Region'...

"...from the fact that one can enter the 'Core Region' but not return, it's clear the 'Core Region' and the constraints beyond the Sixth Rank have to be quite substantial."

"This could very well restrict your development path after advancing to the Sixth Rank."

Seeing Zhao Ji's expression soften further, Qiu Tu quickly tacked on, "Besides, Your Highness, you've already waited so many days. What's two more days at this point?"

Zhao Ji: …..

It had to be said, phrases like "You've already come this far" and "What's two more days" did carry a massive persuasive impact.

Even for an Evil God, hearing such words left her silent for a long time. Eventually, her pupils slowly returned to their normal state.

After deactivating her battle stance, Zhao Ji's stunningly beautiful face shot a cold glare at Qiu Tu as she spoke, "Seven days. If within seven days you haven't advanced to the Fifth Rank or provided intel on 'Mountain Root'...

"...then don't blame me for being merciless."

Seeing the crisis finally abate, Qiu Tu let out a sigh of relief, smiling as he said, "Sis, don't worry. I promise it'll be fine."

Zhao Ji didn't even bother acknowledging Qiu Tu further. After he agreed, she promptly reversed the world and departed back to a realm beyond the real world.

Once she was gone, the previously submissive Qiu Tu slowly straightened his body, resuming the demeanor of a senior frontier official and governor of a state.

Lighting a cigarette, he took a drag while silently brooding.

In fact... he had been the first to know about Dongye State's recent adjustments.

Before the changes, Elder Tang had specifically called him to discuss the particulars.

As it turned out, the reason Elder Tang and Old Rao had switched Huang Shangzong's and Qiu Tu's "administered territories" was... mainly because of Zhao Ji.

As a Peak Fifth Rank Great Evil God, capable of obliterating entire regions in a single strike and killing Muye, Zhao Ji's deterrence was overwhelming.

Of the nine territories Zhao Ji owned, eight were in Dongye State.

Her sister Larilo held one territory in Dongye State.

Qiu Tu also had one (according to the Sanctuary's records) in Dongye State.

With Qiu Tu able to influence ten of the Dongye 16 Cities, it was clearly unsuitable to have Huang Shangzong manage Dongye State anymore.

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