Zhao Ji Your Highness, Let Us Help You Take Down Dusk Night

Hearing La Riluo's utterly upside-down words, Zhao Ji stood there silently, saying nothing for a moment.

She looked at La Riluo, simply watching her in silence.

Yet La Riluo seemed to be deliberately picking a fight with Zhao Ji, her stunning face filled with complete indifference.

The next second!

Bang!

La Riluo was suddenly struck as though hit by a dump truck speeding at two hundred kilometers per hour, sent flying backward at lightning speed!

"Gah!" She crashed headfirst into a sand dune, clutching her chest as she violently spat out a mouthful of blood.

After vomiting blood, her face visibly turned paler.

Clutching her chest, she looked up at Zhao Ji in the distance with scarlet eyes full of resentment. "Zhao Ji, is that all you've got?"

"If you can, kill me!"

Hearing La Riluo's words, Zhao Ji slowly stepped forward.

Her strides were clearly short, yet with a single step, she crossed directly to La Riluo's side.

Then, the next second, she kicked straight upward, forming a standing split!

La Riluo had no time to dodge and was kicked directly into the air!

Her scarlet eyes were nearly kicked out by that blow! Her entire body curled like a boiled shrimp, and then she spat out another mouthful of blood mixed with fragments of organs!

Zhao Ji's face was cold as she raised a hand. The air froze the next second, transforming into an Ice Umbrella above her head!

Blood and organ fragments rained down, yet not a single drop touched her clothes.

Bang! La Riluo crashed to the ground beside her like a rag doll.

Though she was a Fourth Order Peak Evil God and one of the Eighth Shelter's strongest, before a Great Evil God like Zhao Ji, she was like a child, utterly unable to fight back.

The might of a Great Evil God was terrifying indeed.

Just two moves—two simple moves—and La Riluo was already lying motionless on the sand dune.

Holding her umbrella, Zhao Ji walked over with a cold expression, looking down at her. "Ninety pounds of you, and eighty-nine pounds are rebellion."

"How many times have I yielded to you since we were children? How many times have I helped you?"

"Do you really think I don't dare kill you?"

After suffering two heavy blows, La Riluo's face was as pale as paper. Yet upon hearing Zhao Ji's words, she still let out a sinister chuckle. "Then kill me!"

"Let's see whether our life-and-death contract actually works!"

Zhao Ji's expression froze at La Riluo's words. Her face darkened further.

But at that moment, La Riluo seemed addicted to courting death. Spitting blood, she continued, "Actually... cough... I didn't just refine your Area and ruin your plans."

"I also emptied out your treasure vault. I ate all your Fifth Order Boundless God Crystals. Hahahaha!"

Zhao Ji's expression shifted slightly. She then took a deep breath, and her pupils began to spin, turning into rings upon rings of tree growth lines.

The next second, La Riluo suddenly spat out another mouthful of blood! Then, as if suffering a devastating blow, her body rose into the air!

Yet as she endured her Elder Sister's relentless torment and her consciousness began to fade, the corner of La Riluo's lips curved faintly upward, as though she had thought of something.

She had done all of this on purpose.

She knew exactly how intelligent her Elder Sister was.

If she followed the usual course, answered her Elder Sister's questions, apologized, or tried to curry favor with her—

She would never be able to fool her Elder Sister.

With Zhao Ji's intelligence, a few probing questions would be enough for her to discover, or at least guess, the role Qiu Tu had played in this entire matter.

And based on La Riluo's understanding of Zhao Ji, unless she had been enraged to the extreme, Zhao Ji would not have projected herself to East City to find her.

So... once Zhao Ji discovered Qiu Tu, only death awaited him.

Therefore... she could only deliberately court death and provoke Zhao Ji, making Zhao Ji believe that she had acted recklessly and ruined her plans.

That way, without needing to explain or lie, Zhao Ji would not discover Qiu Tu.

And after venting her anger on La Riluo, even if Zhao Ji eventually discovered the truth, she should not erase Qiu Tu after calming down.

Thinking that, La Riluo could not help admiring her own intelligence.

I'm so smart.

But this really hurts.

"Gah." Spitting out another mouthful of blood, La Riluo had her limbs brutally broken by Zhao Ji before being tossed into the air again.

Qiu Tu arrived roughly half an hour later.

By then, La Riluo had been tortured until she was barely recognizable.

Seeing La Riluo lying in a pool of blood, Qiu Tu's pupils contracted slightly.

He hurried over to her and scooped her into his arms.

At that moment, all four of La Riluo's limbs were broken. Her once stunning face was swollen like a pig's head, and her delicate oval face had nearly become round and puffy.

The black gown clinging to her body had long since been torn to shreds, revealing jade-white skin covered in bruises.

Before Qiu Tu, La Riluo had always maintained the bearing of an Evil God. Even at her most miserable, she had retained some of an Evil God's pride. When had she ever looked so wretched?

For a moment, Qiu Tu almost failed to recognize her.

Seeing Qiu Tu, La Riluo struggled to open her swollen-shut eyes into a slit. Her lips parted as if she wanted to say something, but only one or two muffled syllables escaped her throat. "It... hurts..."

Qiu Tu could not understand what La Riluo was trying to say. He could only hold her tightly and softly reassure her, "It's okay. It's okay. I'm here. I'm here."

As he spoke, Qiu Tu ignored Zhao Ji standing nearby and directly unfolded his Order Space, enveloping La Riluo within it before setting the rule: "Injuries shall fully recover."

The power of Order Space was indeed immensely formidable.

Even though La Riluo was already a Fourth Order Peak Evil God, her injuries still recovered rapidly within Order Space.

In the blink of an eye, her bones reconnected, her organs returned to their proper positions, the swelling in her muscles subsided, and her skin became fair again.

However, perhaps Zhao Ji had truly been enraged this time and injured her too severely. Though the pain was gone and her wounds had healed, La Riluo gradually fell asleep in Qiu Tu's arms.

Although all the injuries across her body had healed, her exquisite oval face was still filled with exhaustion.

Moreover, perhaps due to a stress reaction, her body occasionally trembled faintly.

Qiu Tu did not have particularly deep feelings for La Riluo, but seeing a woman suffer such terrible injuries for his sake still made his heart tremble slightly.

He looked up at Zhao Ji beside him.

This was the first time he had seen Zhao Ji. She bore a faint resemblance to La Riluo.

Both were peerless beauties, both with skin as white as jade.

But compared with La Riluo, Zhao Ji was like a noble Empress, radiating dignity, majesty, and icy authority.

It felt as though no living being in the world was worthy of standing beside her. She was the loneliest one in this world!

Looking up at Zhao Ji, Qiu Tu's gaze sharpened. "She's your younger sister. Don't you think you were too cruel?"

Hearing Qiu Tu's words, Zhao Ji looked down at him like an iceberg, her eyes dark and cold, her voice devoid of warmth.

"She ruined my plans. What is wrong with disciplining her?"

But Qiu Tu said, "She didn't ruin your plans. She was helping you!"

"She refined the East City Area to help you! She stole your treasures to help you! She made your advancement fail to help you too!"

Perhaps just as La Riluo had expected, after venting some of her anger, Zhao Ji's temper had clearly softened.

So even after hearing Qiu Tu's utterly absurd words, Zhao Ji's expression did not change, nor did she attack.

She merely looked at Qiu Tu coldly, watching him in silence.

After silently watching him for three or four seconds, she slowly asked, "How did she help me?"

Qiu Tu stood while carrying La Riluo in his arms, then began recounting the explanation he had prepared during the few hours La Riluo had bought him.

He said, "Actually, Your Highness did all this because we discovered one of Dusk Night's schemes."

"And through that scheme, we uncovered a great secret."

Zhao Ji's eyes, as cold as ice, fixed upon Qiu Tu. "What secret?"

Qiu Tu did not answer immediately.

Carrying La Riluo, he walked toward a nearby oasis. Activating his Mental Power, he created a flat patch of ground for her, then gently laid her down.

Zhao Ji watched Qiu Tu's every movement coldly. She neither spoke nor stopped him.

Only after settling La Riluo down did Qiu Tu rise, walk out of the oasis, return to Zhao Ji's side, and continue, "Dusk Night has been wandering through East Industry State and the Cataclysm Zone these past years, quietly accumulating power."

"He even secretly controlled eight Areas and advanced to Fifth Order Peak!"

"The reason he did all this was because he discovered a special Calamity Material in East Industry State."

Zhao Ji's cool brows furrowed slightly. "What Calamity Material?"

Qiu Tu shook his head. "I don't know. La Riluo Your Highness doesn't know either."

"But we know what this Calamity Material can do."

"As long as one obtains it, an ordinary person can directly advance to Third Order, a Third Order can advance to Fourth Order Peak, and a Fourth Order can advance to Fifth Order."

"As for a Fifth Order Peak..."

Qiu Tu paused, deliberately whetting Zhao Ji's appetite before slowly saying, "They can directly advance to Sixth Order without entering the Boundless Mind Sea - Core Area!"

Hearing this, Zhao Ji seemed to think of something, and her pupils contracted slightly.

Qiu Tu sharply noticed Zhao Ji's reaction and took the initiative to ask, "Does Zhao Ji Your Highness know what Calamity Material this is?"

Zhao Ji gave him a cold glance and replied succinctly, "Mountain Root."

"A special Calamity Material produced in the Boundless Mind Sea - Core Area."

"It is the essence of a great mountain. It is equivalent to a living, ownerless Area Center that can merge with a living being."

"Eating it is equivalent to refining an Area into one's own body. It greatly increases one's power and can indeed help a living being advance to Sixth Order."

After saying that, Zhao Ji paused before adding, "However, I have heard that this once-in-a-lifetime Calamity Material is not easy to encounter or discover."

"After gaining sentience, it transforms into the first living being it encounters and possesses part of that creature's memories."

"Whether one uses Mental Power or various other methods of appraisal, it is difficult to detect anything unusual about it."

"Sometimes... because its memories are unclear, even Mountain Root itself forgets its own identity."

After introducing this special Calamity Material, Zhao Ji looked at Qiu Tu and asked, "So you mean that Dusk Night discovered such a precious Calamity Material?"

Qiu Tu nodded slightly and admitted, "That's right."

"Not only does he know about this Calamity Material, he has also offered five Boundless God Crystals formed from complete Fourth Order God Corpses, one Boundless God Crystal formed from a complete Fifth Order God Corpse, and countless Calamity Materials as a reward for it!"

"This information is practically public. If Your Highness does not believe me, you can investigate it yourself."

After hearing Qiu Tu's words, a thoughtful look appeared on Zhao Ji's frosty face.

"So... after La Riluo learned this, she deliberately caused my advancement to fail?"

Qiu Tu nodded. "Yes."

"Because Your Highness knows the dangers of the Boundless Mind Sea - Core Area, and also knows that once one advances to Sixth Order there, one can no longer return to East Industry State."

"That is why she deliberately ruined your advancement and brought you back to East Industry State."

Qiu Tu's tongue was as smooth as silk. "She calculated everything carefully at the time."

"Although the Edge Area has fewer resources, its overall strength is also weaker."

"Once Your Highness truly becomes a Sixth Order deity in the Edge Area, you will inevitably become the ruler of the entire Edge Area!"

"By then, both your speed of gathering resources and your speed of advancement will far surpass what they would be in the Core Area."

"And you will not have to separate from La Riluo Your Highness."

"Why not do it?"

"That is why La Riluo Your Highness deliberately ruined your advancement and brought you back to East Industry State."

At that point, Qiu Tu said, "So... this was entirely her good intention."

A trace of thought flickered through Zhao Ji's eyes.

After a moment, she said uncertainly, "So you mean La Riluo was doing this for my sake?"

"Is that also why, when I called her back with a bad attitude earlier, she demanded that I apologize?"

"Because she felt that her good intentions had been betrayed?"

Hearing Zhao Ji's words, Qiu Tu was speechless.

Qiu Tu knew La Riluo was reckless, but he truly had not expected her to be this reckless!

After making such a massive mess with him, she had actually dared to demand an apology from Zhao Ji?

No wonder she had been beaten into this state!

While complaining inwardly, Qiu Tu nodded in agreement. "Yes. That should be what Your Highness thought."

Zhao Ji glanced at La Riluo, who lay in the oasis not far away.

Seeing that Zhao Ji was truly beginning to waver, Qiu Tu finally revealed his real purpose.

Looking at Zhao Ji, he slowly said, "Therefore, Zhao Ji Your Highness, let us help you take down Dusk Night."

"Then we can find the Mountain Root he hid away and help you advance to Sixth Order in the Edge Area!"

Hearing Qiu Tu's words, Zhao Ji closed her eyes and silently considered it for a moment.

Then she opened her eyes, her icy gaze falling on Qiu Tu as she slowly said, "I feel that you are lying to me."

Qiu Tu looked sincerely at Zhao Ji. "I can let Your Highness stay by my side and accompany me to the State Council or one of East City's three major institutions to verify whether my words are true."

"If there is even the slightest lie, Your Highness may deal with me however you please."

"I have only one request. Once you verify the truth, please apologize to La Riluo Your Highness."

Qiu Tu paused.

"Or... perhaps Your Highness simply does not believe me. That is fine."

"I am no match for you at all. You may kill me whenever you wish."

"I only hope that after killing me, you will bury me a little farther away. Otherwise, I worry that La Riluo Your Highness will be saddened if she sees me."

Two chapters, Ten Thousand Characters. Please vote with your monthly tickets! The second monthly-ticket lottery runs from September 8 to September 14, with an estimated fifty boxes of mooncakes and four to six copies of Black Myth.