Let them offer their loyalty!
Chapter 1117 - 522: Zhao Ji: Am I One of Qiu Tu's Own People? (10,000 characters for Monthly Ticket!)

After finishing, Zhao Ji was silent for a few seconds once more.

She looked at the exceptionally precious "Mountain Root" in her hand, then sat back by the small river, expressionless as she asked, "Why did it take so long to discover Muye after handing him over to you?"

Hearing Zhao Ji's words, Qiu Tu naturally thick-skinned sat next to her, smiling as he explained, "Ah, it was all a fortunate coincidence."

"Muye is somewhat capable. Even under severe interrogation, he managed to use some cunning."

"He replaced the 'Mountain Root' with an 'earth vein flower' and managed to deceive me, hiding the 'Mountain Root'."

"I was originally fooled."

"But..... you probably know I caught Yingfei yesterday, right?"

Hearing Qiu Tu's words, Zhao Ji nodded coldly.

Qiu Tu smiled and said, "It was Yingfei who exposed his secret."

And with that, Qiu Tu explained in detail the matter between Yingfei and Muye to Zhao Ji.

Zhao Ji listened while silently observing Qiu Tu's expression. Under her "Absolute Perception," she could detect that Qiu Tu was telling the truth.

Thinking this, Zhao Ji looked at the birds flitting through the reeds, gazing quietly....

Until Qiu Tu finished, Zhao Ji didn't comment on a single word.

She just picked up the "Mountain Root" placed beside her that wasn't yet packed up and asked again, "You're also a Fifth Order."

"With your progress speed, you will soon ascend to Peak Fifth Rank."

"We walk different paths. You shouldn't be accumulating resources but leveling up quickly."

"You... don't want to keep this 'Mountain Root' for yourself?"

Upon hearing this, Qiu Tu shook his head with a smile, without the slightest hesitation, "No, I don't want to."

As Qiu Tu spoke, Zhao Ji stared intently at Qiu Tu.

She planned that if she found the slightest flaw in Qiu Tu, she would execute the original plan to kill him tonight.

But..... there was really no flaw at all: Qiu Tu was utterly open.

Zhao Ji found it hard to believe, "Why?"

Qiu Tu put his hands behind his head, mimicking Zhao Ji's posture, looking out at the fifty-mile expanse of reeds, and asked, "Which 'why' are you referring to?"

Zhao Ji, "Why don't you want to keep the 'Mountain Root' for yourself?"

With her strength, there's no one who can contradict her rough words, "That's unlike your character. You're someone who would even pick up a couple of apples from a fruit stand while passing by."

Qiu Tu: ??

"Slander! Slander!"

Qiu Tu was completely surprised that his impression in Zhao Ji's mind was so poor. With a serious face, he said, "I calculate everything against my enemies."

"With my own people, I'm always generous."

"If you don't believe me, think of the women beside me, and those colleagues and subordinates. Don't they all praise me?"

Hearing Qiu Tu's words, Zhao Ji looked at the pair of birds playing in the water at a distance, and her mind reeled with Qiu Tu's intel.

Indeed, as Qiu Tu said: he is exceedingly generous towards his own people.

Whether it's money, power, or position, nearly everything is directly maxed out for his own people.

This kind of generosity is precisely why, whether in Xinjie City or Dongye State, he has a large following, with many forces and figures wanting to ally with him.

So in this aspect, Qiu Tu wasn't lying.

The only thing Zhao Ji couldn't understand was... is she considered one of Qiu Tu's people?

When did that happen? How come she didn't know?

Though she couldn't comprehend this conduct, nor understand why Qiu Tu, who clearly could keep the 'Mountain Root', would honestly hand it to her.

Yet, from Zhao Ji's observation, Qiu Tu's gaze was clear and his heart was open, genuinely intent on giving the 'Mountain Root' to her.

This left her momentarily hesitant.

Tonight, should she still kill Qiu Tu?

Meanwhile,

Qiu Tu looked at Zhao Ji's expressionless face, then glanced at the "Crisis Countdown" still ticking at the upper right of his vision, pursing his lips.

Indeed, trying to freeload is truly difficult!

One misstep could result in capsizing in the gutter!

He hadn't told any lies at all, yet it merely made Zhao Ji hesitate; if there had been even a hint of deceit, he'd likely have been sentenced to death outright.

That's right... every word Qiu Tu just said was true, heartfelt.

In fact, after obtaining the 'Mountain Root' last night, Qiu Tu was pondering how to allocate this precious treasure.

His first reaction was, of course, to keep it for himself.

But.... as he thought last night: items only have value when used; if left unused, they're worthless. (Chapter 518)

He's still some time away from using the 'Mountain Root' to advance to the Sixth Tier. Keeping it with him would be too wasteful.

Why not..... use it to win over Zhao Ji!

After all, after these days of interaction, Qiu Tu discovered Zhao Ji's strength and potential are indeed terrifying.

Though unsure if she can challenge a Sixth Tier with her Peak Fifth Rank strength!

But.... Qiu Tu believes, once Zhao Ji breaks into the Sixth Tier, dealing with the Yaksha would certainly be easy for her.

Furthermore, why is the 'Mountain Root' important?

Because the 'Mountain Root' allows a Sixth Tier Evil God to remain in an 'Edge Region', directly making that area invincible, control the area, and collect resources.

So the question arises..... it doesn't matter if Qiu Tu ascends to the Sixth Tier, or Zhao Ji ascends to the Sixth Tier, right?

As long as Qiu Tu can hold sway over her, then leveraging Zhao Ji's strength to sweep through the Northwest Region and gather resources, isn't that just as good?