Let them offer their loyalty!
Chapter 1015 - 488: Shocks from All Sides (10,000 Words for Monthly Tickets!)

The first to know this news, of course, were the Security Bureau, the Investigation Bureau, and the military, all possessing independent intelligence systems.

Dongye State, Parliament Building.

Rain Butterfly, dressed in the blue-gray uniform of the Security Bureau, stood by the window, holding a cup of coffee. With her back to her confidant, she listened to the report being given.

Upon hearing that Qiu Tu had successfully emerged from the "Bright Moon Area," and sensing the overwhelming momentum surrounding him that significantly surpassed the peak of the Fourth Order, the corners of her lips involuntarily lifted slightly.

As Qiu Tu's comrade-in-arms, and one who shared a common secret with him,

Rain Butterfly had witnessed Qiu Tu's rise every step of the way.

She knew just how difficult his path had been, and she was aware of the hardships he had endured.

Therefore, seeing Qiu Tu achieve what he had today brought her genuine happiness.

However... amidst all the applause and accolades surrounding Qiu Tu, she couldn't help but also feel a deep sense of worry in her heart...

Not long ago, she had participated in the Sanctuary's "Pioneer Plan," emerging victorious after rigorous trials and fierce competition.

This allowed her to become part of the "Iron-Blood Faction" and one of the Sanctuary's direct line members, giving her access to intelligence she had never encountered before.

Regarding Qiu Tu's meteoric rise, many high-ranking members across various factions, including the Iron-Blood Faction, harbored a cautious attitude.

After all, Qiu Tu's experiences over the past two years had been too legendary—so unbelievable that most people found it hard not to question him.

How could an ordinary civilian from a Disaster Zone rise so quickly in such a short time?

Granted... throughout history, most prominent figures achieve prominence within just a span of three to five years or so.

They rise when they rise, and they fall just as suddenly.

But Qiu Tu's ascent felt too fast, too exaggerated. Even the rapid growth in his strength seemed outlandish.

This inevitably led to suspicions that there might be deeper issues surrounding him.

As a result... not only ordinary upper-echelon members of the Sanctuary but even the heads of various factions were all incredibly cautious in their dealings with Qiu Tu.

This wariness also surfaced during the meeting to discuss Qiu Tu's promotion to State Speaker. Opposition came from figures like the Academic Faction's Old Qi, the Free Democracy Faction's Elder Feng, and the Local Armed Alliance's Elder Lei.

Even Elder Wang of the "Reformist Faction," who had always been supportive of Qiu Tu in the past, abstained from voting this time.

If not for Elder Tang and Old Rao, the Sanctuary's first and second-ranking leaders, jointly championing Qiu Tu's case,

his promotion would most likely have been doomed.

Even so, after Qiu Tu's promotion, Old Rao made a point to summon Rain Butterfly for a private conversation.

During their discussion, Old Rao specifically inquired about her evaluation of Qiu Tu's transformation and probed whether Qiu Tu was hiding any real secrets or problems.

To be honest, standing before this monumental figure—the man who had single-handedly established the Eighth Sanctuary and whose name was destined to go down in history—Rain Butterfly's palms were drenched in sweat.

Because... she thought of the mysterious soul residing within Qiu Tu's body, a secret whose origin even she did not know...

Perhaps noticing that Rain Butterfly knew something, Old Rao laid out numerous conditions as incentives.

For instance... a promise to elevate Rain Butterfly into the high-ranking echelon of the Sanctuary, or, when the time was right, appoint her as a Senior Frontier Official.

He also promised resources to assist Rain Butterfly in advancing to the Fifth-Order Calamity Being.

And, he pledged... to help resolve longstanding issues concerning her family.

Frankly, in that moment, faced with Old Rao's enticing offers, Rain Butterfly was indeed tempted—if only for an instant.

But then she thought of all her shared experiences with Qiu Tu, the bonds they had formed through mutual adversity.

She recalled their shared struggles within the depths of despair, offering each other solace against all odds.

She remembered that shared glass of red wine, those nights of passion, and the time when Qiu Tu took immense risks to save her.

In the end... she chose to remain steadfastly by Qiu Tu's side.

Of course, after enduring her share of trials, she knew that remaining completely silent would only place Qiu Tu in even greater danger.

So, she decided to fabricate "issues" about Qiu Tu.

She claimed that she suspected Qiu Tu might have connections to an Evil God.

Furthermore... she insinuated that the Evil God was likely the "Life Reproduction" pathway's Evil God, Larilo.

She mentioned that in her interactions with Qiu Tu, she had observed something unusual. It was almost as if he carried a certain toxicity—any woman who came into contact with him seemed to slowly become infatuated with him.

And, as the number of women tied to Qiu Tu increased, his strength appeared to grow at a proportional rate.

This explained why, aside from his duties, Qiu Tu was often seen reveling every night, surrounded by countless mistresses.

And this, she argued, might very well be due to Larilo's influence supporting Qiu Tu.

It was even possible that Qiu Tu's own Cataclysm Path was tied to this.

The reason Rain Butterfly chose to highlight this particular "issue" was because, to others, it would serve as a significant blemish!

To have ties, or even connections, with an Evil God would signify political instability in the eyes of the Sanctuary's upper echelon—grounds to disqualify someone from future trust or promotions.

But... Qiu Tu—or rather, the Qiu Tu of today—was no longer the same.

Had it been the old Qiu Tu, even the slightest implication of ties to an Evil God could have spelled disaster.

But... Qiu Tu had now proposed the political strategy of "controlling Evil Gods with Evil Gods," a strategy endorsed by the Sanctuary itself.

This essentially meant that the Sanctuary had tacitly approved his interactions with Evil Gods, urging any means necessary to manipulate and leverage them for their ends.

As such, this "blemish" didn't count as a significant issue when applied to Qiu Tu.

Moreover, during this period, although Qiu Tu had been engaging with Evil Gods and utilizing them, everything he did was ultimately in service of benefiting the Human Camp—obtaining intelligence and securing advantages.

Thus, the impact was further mitigated.

Sure enough, after listening to Rain Butterfly's report, Old Rao remained deep in thought for a long time, his expression growing somewhat graver, yet he refrained from pressing further on the matter.