Zhao Ji's Gift to Qiu Tu! (Monthly Vote Request)

Having just slain four Eighth Order evil gods single-handedly, the entire battlefield was still steeped in a grim, murderous atmosphere.

Qing Lan and Consort Xi stared at Qiu Tu in shock, while Heavenly King Zhi Yan was more wary than anything else. As for Qiu Tu himself, his hands were still in his pockets as he basked in his own world of showing off.

Then, Zhu Wu's words suddenly shattered the atmosphere across the battlefield.

Everyone snapped out of their thoughts and looked toward Zhu Wu.

Before Qiu Tu could speak, Qing Lan's eyes lit up slightly as she took the initiative to ask, "Qiu Tu and Zhao Ji both rose in the rankings?"

"How much did each of them rise?"

Hearing Qing Lan's question, Zhu Wu looked up at her and said, "Qiu Tu rose seventeen places. He's now ranked eighteenth."

"As for Zhao Ji, she didn't do badly either. She rose six places, jumping straight from fifteenth to ninth. She's entered the top ten."

Upon hearing Zhu Wu's words, everyone present closed their eyes and checked the rankings on the "Heavenly God Trial" leaderboard.

Sure enough, Zhu Wu had not been joking. The "Heavenly God Trial" rankings had undergone considerable changes just now.

The most obvious change was that the total number of people on the leaderboard had gone from eighty-eight to seventy-two—a direct reduction of sixteen.

That meant sixteen people had either died or withdrawn from the "Heavenly God Trial" over the past few days.

Qiu Tu remembered that when he had checked two days ago, there had still been eighty-two people.

He had killed four in one go, which meant another six people had been eliminated over the past two days.

Could Zhao Ji have killed all six of them?

Thinking that, Qiu Tu shook his head inwardly. It probably wasn't that exaggerated.

After all, over two days, the other factions would most likely have clashed with one another as well.

However, taking into account Zhao Ji's sudden surge in rank and the reduced number of Heavenly God Candidates, Qiu Tu guessed that Zhao Ji's strength must have improved by leaps and bounds. There was also a high probability that, like him, she had killed several Heavenly God Candidates.

After all, Qiu Tu had not forgotten the criteria for the "Heavenly God Trial" rankings: the strength of the Heavenly God Candidate, the size of the territory they controlled, the number of living beings within that territory, and the number of Heavenly God Candidates they controlled or killed.

Through his observations over the past two days, Qiu Tu had basically confirmed that combat power was the primary factor in the rankings.

That was also why Zhao Ji, despite only being at the late Seventh Order, had been ranked fifteenth—her actual strength had long since reached the late Eighth Order.

The next thing the "Heavenly God Trial" valued was the amount of territory and population under one's control.

The reason was simple: Qiu Tu, a Calamity Descendant whose true combat power was at most at the Seventh Order Peak, was ranked thirty-fifth.

Other than those three factors, the least important ranking criterion was naturally the number of Heavenly God Candidates one had killed or controlled.

It was precisely because these criteria carried different weights that Qiu Tu had been able to infer the changes in Zhao Ji's strength from the change in her ranking.

After all, nearly everyone in the top fifteen of the "Heavenly God Trial" was an Eighth Order Peak great evil god.

Thus, every single rank within the top fifteen was a threshold.

Yet Zhao Ji had leaped directly from fifteenth to ninth. That clearly meant she now possessed the ability to defeat or kill Eighth Order Peak great evil gods.

Only under such circumstances did Qiu Tu dare guess that Zhao Ji had likely advanced to the Eighth Order as well.

As for killing people to establish authority after advancing, that was merely a bonus.

Qiu Tu's own ranking was also quite reasonable.

Although he had already advanced to the Eighth Order and could theoretically be invincible against those of the same order through the "Order Space"...

...the greater the gap in strength between him and his opponent, the greater the price he had to pay.

He had casually eliminated four Eighth Order great evil gods just now because he was within the "region" under his control. His strength and order had soared to the Eighth Order Peak.

Against enemies whose strength and order were lower than his, the "Order Space" was simply a dimensionality-reduction strike.

If he truly went outside, he would most likely be similar to the previous Zhao Ji: he could easily instantly kill early Eighth Order enemies; he could directly kill mid Eighth Order enemies, but would have to pay a considerable price; he could kill late Eighth Order enemies instantly, but would be left near death afterward due to the immense cost, or might even perish together with them. However, he would be no match at all for an Eighth Order Peak opponent.

After all, whether from the words of close companions like Qing Lan or the conversations of enemies like Guang Chan, Qiu Tu had discovered that the Eighth Order Peak was a very special realm.

Though they were both Eighth Order, the Eighth Order Peak had clearly undergone a qualitative transformation.

Under such circumstances, Qiu Tu might very well be killed in a single move by an Eighth Order Peak expert before he could even act.

With such strength, coupled with the "Northwest Region" under Qiu Tu's control and his record of killing four Heavenly God Candidates, being slightly inferior to the previous Zhao Ji and ranked eighteenth was perfectly reasonable.

After all, given Zhao Ji's habit of keeping a low profile, who knew how many trump cards she had hidden up her sleeve?

With that thought, Qiu Tu finished sorting through the rankings of himself and Zhao Ji, then opened his eyes.

If he was not mistaken, given how quickly information spread among Heavenly God Candidates, it would not be long before everyone learned of the changes in his and Zhao Ji's rankings.

When that happened... the changing situation in the "Northwest Region" would likely draw the attention of every faction.

Among them, the Mist Veil Society would definitely have the strongest reaction.

After all, how could one allow another to sleep peacefully beside one's bed?

The Mist Veil Society clearly had the same target as Qiu Tu and Zhao Ji: the "Northwest Region." With both Qiu Tu and Zhao Ji suddenly erupting in strength, the Mist Veil Society would certainly feel uneasy.

And when he thought of the powerful Mist Veil Society—Tian Qi, ranked fourth; White Robe, ranked fifth; and Jin Ni, ranked twenty-first—their lineup was absurdly luxurious. They were a true galactic battleship.

Even Qiu Tu and Zhao Ji after their explosive growth would be completely outmatched if they encountered the Mist Veil Society.

So... the real crisis has only just begun.

Thinking this, Qiu Tu could not help but seem to recall something. He looked at Heavenly King Zhi Yan not far away and asked, "By the way, Sister Zhi Yan, has the Mist Veil Society sent reinforcements?"

Previously, Qiu Tu had only called Heavenly King Zhi Yan "sister" in private. Now that he suddenly called her that in public, Heavenly King Zhi Yan immediately blushed.

Especially when Qing Lan and Zhu Wu looked over with gossip written all over their faces at Qiu Tu's form of address, her face reddened even more. She felt a peculiar shame, like being caught keeping a pretty boy.

Of course, having risen to such a high position, her skin had long become as thick as a city wall. Though she felt embarrassed inside, she still forced herself to remain composed and said seriously, "The Mist Veil Society sent reinforcements."

Qiu Tu asked, "Who?"

Zhi Yan replied, "White Robe."

After saying that, she explained the entire process of seeking reinforcements this time.

When he heard that Jin Ni had fiercely opposed it at first, only to back down in the end due to White Robe's insistence, Qiu Tu's eyes filled with thought.

And when he heard that White Robe had been holding the fort in the Sangma Area all along, Qiu Tu could not help but furrow his brow.

Although Qiu Tu had been advancing these past two days, for safety's sake, he had always kept a sliver of his attention in the Sangma Area, watching Every Move throughout the entire area.

Therefore, whether it was Qing Lan fighting while crying, Zhu Wu and Consort Xi refusing to leave his side, or Zhi Yan personally joining the battle, he had seen it all.

But throughout that time, he had never seen White Robe.

Though from his perspective, he had seen Zhi Yan talking and asking questions, he had merely assumed at the time that she was using some kind of communication-type Cataclysmic Treasure.

But Zhi Yan had told him that she had been talking to White Robe? And that White Robe had been by her side the entire time?

That immediately sent a chill down Qiu Tu's spine.

Just what was White Robe? What identity did he possess? What was his objective? What exactly did he want to do?

With that thought, Qiu Tu once again swept across the entire Sangma Area with the Area Master's ability.

There were still no Traces of White Robe.

Had he already left?

Though countless doubts filled his heart, there were too few clues. Qiu Tu could only temporarily suppress everything deep inside.

After casually chatting with the four women for a few moments, Qiu Tu took them out of the Sangma Area and had people investigate Zhao Ji's whereabouts.

Qiu Tu was now the undisputed king of the Northwest Region! There was no second contender! His informants and intelligence network Spread Throughout nearly the entire Northwest.

Thus, before long, Qiu Tu received intelligence concerning Zhao Ji's movements over the past two days.

According to the intelligence report, Zhao Ji had quietly carried out the tasks Qiu Tu assigned her these past few days.

She refined the areas one after another and accepted every resource offered to her.

As a result, her strength began rising at an astonishing pace.

Since she had already reached the late Seventh Order and was only one step away from the Seventh Order Peak, with the massive resources of the Northwest Region supporting her, she soon reached the threshold for advancing to the Eighth Order.

However, unlike Qiu Tu, who had people protecting him, Zhao Ji had no helpers at all. Moreover, many Heavenly God Trial Takers were eyeing her covetously.

So, she made a bold decision: she would advance while moving.

Normally, all Calamity Creatures needed to remain in a fixed location when advancing.

There were two reasons for this.

1. Advancing consumed a massive amount of Calamity Power, and Calamity Power took time to gather. If one kept running around, the concentration of Calamity Power nearby would be insufficient, making advancement impossible or causing it to fail.

2. When advancing, a Calamity Creature needed to gather its entire mind to communicate with the World Origin. After a successful advancement, it also needed to wholeheartedly comprehend the new realm.

If one ran around recklessly during advancement, not only might one fail to establish a connection with the World Origin, but after succeeding, distraction could also lead to insufficient comprehension of the new realm, affecting one's strength and future advancements.

But none of that was a problem for Zhao Ji.

The reason was simple: she was a Heavenly God Reincarnation, inherently favored by the World Origin. Her connection to the World Origin was more stable than anyone else's.

Moreover, she had advanced to the Eighth Order long ago and had even completed the entire Eighth Order path. She did not need to comprehend a new realm at all.

As for the shortage of Calamity Power, she came up with an unorthodox solution.

Since there was not enough Calamity Power, she would simply wait. She would trade time for space. If she stayed in one fixed place, advancing would take around two days; now that she was no longer staying in one place, she could endure five or six days and accumulate it gradually.

And she was not simply waiting in silence the entire time. To speed up her advancement, she crazily slaughtered evil gods in the Cataclysm Zone, turning them into Boundless God Crystals; or she directly crushed the Calamity Materials sent by the humans to increase the concentration of Calamity Power around her.

More importantly, do not forget that during her first few advancements in this life, she had advanced while fleeing from enemies and moving about. She had abundant experience. (Extra)

Furthermore, advancing while moving could numb the enemy's nerves, preventing them from accurately judging her strength and adjusting their plans accordingly.

Thus, relying on this unorthodox and audacious method, Zhao Ji truly carved out a grand path for herself amid layer upon layer of pursuit and encirclement! She successfully advanced to the Eighth Order while moving, then counter-killed her pursuers.

It was said that, under Qiu Tu's guidance, the situation on her side had been far more perilous than Qiu Tu's over the past two days.

At the time, three factions participating in the Heavenly God Trial had been hunting her down.

There were forces like Siyuan Pavilion and Taisui Gate, which had developed or gathered within the Northwest Region, as well as a sneak attack from Wolf Fang Manor, which had developed in the Northeast Region.

Among those pursuers were not only two late Eighth Order experts, but also one Eighth Order Peak expert.

Therefore, Zhao Ji had been no match for them. She could only keep fleeing, engaging in guerrilla tactics, and refining space.

Yet under such circumstances, she actually managed to reach the Eighth Order.

And once Zhao Ji advanced to the Eighth Order while on the move, offense and defense immediately switched places.

Within her own Controlled Area, she had faced eight enemies alone. Not only had she killed that Eighth Order Peak Great Evil God, but she had also killed or imprisoned five Eighth Order Great Evil Gods.

After learning about Zhao Ji's situation over the past few days, Qiu Tu turned back, his heart filled with emotion.

As expected of Zhao Ji. Her strength is truly unfathomable.

At the early Eighth Order, she killed an Eighth Order Peak.

And according to the intelligence, after she advanced, those Eighth Order Great Evil Gods sensed the danger and fled one after another to the Real World.

So she fought all the way from the Controlled Area into the Real World, only stopping after she had hunted down and killed every pursuer she could.

Never mind whether that would provoke public outrage. Zhao Ji's strength alone...

Being able to kill an Eighth Order Peak in the Real World proves that Zhao Ji has obtained the true entry ticket for this Heavenly God Trial.

As long as she plans things carefully, she should have a good chance of obtaining the Heavenly God Level.

Just as Qiu Tu was thinking this...

He and the women finally arrived at the battlefield where Zhao Ji had fought the gods—Lianshui City.

Originally, Qiu Tu had wanted to check on Zhao Ji, to see whether she was injured and whether there was anything he could help with.

But the moment he landed, a soft sack suddenly crashed down beside his feet.

Before he could react, Zhao Ji's cool voice sounded beside his ear. "A gift for you."

"Consider it repayment for helping me during this time."

Hearing Zhao Ji's words, Qiu Tu instinctively followed the sound and looked over.

Then he saw the center of the gods' battlefield, where the ground had been scorched black. Zhao Ji, dressed in white, sat at the edge recovering. Her left leg seemed to have been broken halfway through, half her body was charred black, and her clothes were in tatters.

This was the first time Qiu Tu had ever seen Zhao Ji in such a miserable state, and it gave him a fright.

He did not care what was in the sack. He hurried to Zhao Ji's side and asked with concern, "Are you alright?"

Hearing Qiu Tu's question, Zhao Ji raised her head and gave him an indifferent look. Then she asked unconcernedly, "Do I look like I'm not alright?"

Qiu Tu:

Honestly, among all the injuries Qiu Tu had seen lately, only Consort Xi's injuries today had been worse than Zhao Ji's—she had been sliced directly into pieces.

As for everyone else, Qiu Tu had truly never seen injuries this severe.

But Qiu Tu also knew that when dealing with Zhao Ji, the most important thing was to provide emotional validation. Being a good flatterer was more useful than ten thousand expressions of concern.

Thinking that, he quickly shook his head and lied through his teeth. "Sister Zhao Ji, you really do look fine, but that doesn't affect the fact that I care about you."

"After all, even normally, I worry about whether you're eating well and whether you're dressed warmly enough."

Listening to Qiu Tu's shamelessly cheesy words, Zhao Ji's expression remained completely unchanged, but the corner of her lips lifted ever so slightly.

Then she glanced at Qiu Tu and said flatly, "Smooth talker."

Yet after saying that, she still pointed at the sack in the distance and said coolly, "Take a look at the gift I gave you."

Seeing Zhao Ji mention the gift repeatedly, Qiu Tu immediately grew curious.

Seeing that Zhao Ji was temporarily alright, he walked over to the sack, crouched down, and began undoing it.

But the instant he opened the sack and peeked inside, Qiu Tu immediately went swish! and clenched it shut again.

He looked at Zhao Ji in disbelief and asked, "This is...?"

Hearing Qiu Tu's question, Zhao Ji said calmly, "Yes. It's exactly what you think it is."

Perhaps it was an illusion, but Qiu Tu felt as if there was even a trace of amusement in Zhao Ji's eyes when she said that.

Yet when he examined her closely, he saw nothing at all, as though it had truly been an illusion.

Still, whether Zhao Ji was joking or not, Qiu Tu could not casually accept this gift.

So he looked up at Zhao Ji and said, "What if I told you I've quit?"

Zhao Ji gave him an indifferent look. "You think I'd believe you?"

With a headache, Qiu Tu opened the sack again.

That was right. Inside the sack was a naked woman.

The woman had delicate, beautiful features and grass-green hair like vines. Her body was slender, yet her figure was exceptionally seductive.

Especially the soft fullness on her chest—shaped like stalactites and heavily laden, both generous in size and substantial in weight.

More importantly, even though the woman was unconscious, a faint aura still radiated from her body.

Qiu Tu had just fought several Eighth Order opponents, so he was extremely familiar with that aura.

It was clearly the pressure unique to the late Eighth Order.

So... Zhao Ji gave me a female captive with a noble status, terrifying strength, a great body, and a beautiful face?

Is this a test? Or a trial?

The problem is...

What man could withstand a test like this?!

Thinking this, Qiu Tu could not help glancing at Zhao Ji.

Perhaps sensing the shift in Qiu Tu's thoughts, Zhao Ji said calmly, "Don't worry. There's no trap."

"It's simply my thanks for helping me advance to Rank Eight."

At that, Zhao Ji paused and casually explained the identity of the naked woman in the sack.

She said, "This woman is named Man Huang. She is the deputy master of Siyuan Pavilion."

"She is also the daughter-in-law of Siyuan Pavilion's master. Her status is extraordinary."

"She is quite strong. Despite her young age, she has already reached the late Rank Eight realm. More importantly, her talent is decent as well."

Apparently guessing Qiu Tu's question, Zhao Ji said blandly, "Sixty-seven points."

The score Zhao Ji mentioned was clearly based on her own standards. Qiu Tu had already seen how absurd Zhao Ji's ninety-nine points were. And today, he had also witnessed the power and seductive allure of Qing Lan's ninety points.

Sixty-seven points might seem somewhat low, but that was only compared with Zhao Ji and Qing Lan.

Whether among all Cataclysm Creatures or among Rank Eight experts, that score should not be considered low at all.

Thinking this, Qiu Tu considered it briefly before asking, "What about Siyuan Pavilion's master?"

Zhao Ji lifted her charred left arm and said, "Killed him."

Qiu Tu asked, "And Man Huang's husband?"

Zhao Ji gave Qiu Tu a deep look. "Killed him too."

Qiu Tu's eyes brightened slightly.

No wonder Zhao Ji had kept Man Huang alive and given her to him as a gift.

With such strength and no remaining ties, once she was subdued, his side would immediately gain a powerful combatant.

As for Zhao Ji...

Mm. Sure enough, capable women never put men in a difficult position. Instead, they made sure men had women on both sides.

Meanwhile, as Qiu Tu accepted Zhao Ji's gift—

In the Cataclysm Zone outside the Eighth Shelter in the northwestern region.

White Robe and Jin Ni stood on the main road as well, seemingly waiting for something.

As they waited, the two chatted.

Jin Ni's expression was exceedingly grave. He said, "White Robe, I feel like we may have raised a tiger only to invite disaster."

"News just came in: Qiu Tu and Zhao Ji have both advanced to Rank Eight."

"And the moment they advanced, they displayed incredibly powerful combat strength."

"The master and son ranked thirteenth and twenty-ninth in Siyuan Pavilion were directly killed."

"Man Huang, ranked twenty-sixth, was captured."

"Wolf Fang Manor and Taisui Gate did not fare well either. Both suffered defeat."

At that, Jin Ni said with a headache, "I don't even know how to explain this to the president anymore."

Hearing Jin Ni's words, White Robe smiled until his eyes narrowed into slits. "Don't worry. With the president and me here, there's nothing to fear."

As White Robe said this, Jin Ni could not help raising his head, about to say something.

But just then, White Robe looked into the distance and said with a smile, "The president is here."

Tian Qi—the fourth-ranked overall in the Heavenly God Trial, the strongest person below the Heavenly God in the West Kingdom, and president of the Mist Veil Society—had arrived in the northwestern region!—

From January 8 to January 16, voting monthly tickets could enter you into a supplementary draw for a game worth 268 or a Three Squirrels gift package worth 60! Please vote with your monthly tickets~