Then let them offer their loyalty!

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"What's that sound?" Shu Xia and the reinforcements exchanged glances.

After a moment, one of the reinforcements whispered, "It looks like... they're playing chess."

"Playing chess?" Shu Xia frowned slightly, then looked at the faintly bright sky and muttered softly, "It's already past midnight, why is my sister-in-law playing chess instead of sleeping?"

'Could it be... that she knew I was coming and was waiting for me?'

Thinking this, Shu Xia's eyes suddenly became more intense.

Even so, he did not let his guard down. He led his reinforcements and stealthily crept over, following the sound.

Soon, they arrived at the study on the second floor.

Upon arriving at the study door, the group exchanged glances before preparing to eavesdrop by pressing their ear against the door.

Just then, with a creak, the study door slowly opened by itself.

The bright light suddenly shone from the study into the corridor, causing Shuxia and the others to be suddenly blinded by the white light.

Just then, a man's voice rang in their ears, "Madam. It seems I've won this round..."

The eyes of an eighth-order great evil god are very powerful, so even though the light dazzled her, Shuxia's eyes still saw the scene inside the study through the bright light.

As a result, the first thing that caught his eye was a familiar figure!

In that instant, his pupils contracted slightly, filled with disbelief.

'Qiu....Qiu Tu?!'

Chapter 656 Madam, You're So Sweet (Seeking Monthly Tickets)

The moment Shu Xia saw Qiu Tu, she felt as if she had fallen into an ice cellar.

It wasn't because Qiu Tu was so strong that he was so afraid of him.

How could a mid-stage eighth-tier evil god like him possibly be afraid of Qiu Tu, a mere early-stage eighth-tier cataclysmic being?

What he found unbelievable and chilling was: why was Qiu Tu here?

Despite being extremely cautious and keeping a close eye on Qiu Tu's movements, he still managed to run into Qiu Tu in the end!

You should know that just minutes before he entered the villa, he had specifically communicated with the "Dizhou" to monitor Qiu Tu's reinforcements and confirmed that it was indeed Qiu Tu's real body there!

It's impossible for Qiu Tu to have traveled thousands of kilometers from "Dizhou" to Dongcheng City in just two minutes, right?

So, what exactly happened?

Thinking this, Shuxia couldn't help but look at the situation inside the room again.

After a moment, he became even more certain of his guess.

Judging from the way Qiu Tu and Man Huang were playing chess, Qiu Tu definitely didn't arrive in those few minutes.

Because Qiu Tu was not only incredibly relaxed and carefree, but he even had a cup of hot tea beside him.

More importantly, the black and white pieces already filled most of the board. Clearly, this game hadn't just begun, but had been going on for at least half an hour to an hour.

'Where exactly did things go wrong?'

Shuxia was a little confused.

At this moment, as the eyes slowly adjust to the light, the lighting in the corridor and study gradually becomes uniform.

Shuxia didn't make a move that would alert the enemy, but quietly observed the situation inside the house.

In the study, Qiu Tu seemed unconcerned about Shu Xia outside and the reinforcements from "Siyuan Pavilion".

As he casually picked up the chess pieces, he said to the Manhuang opposite him, "Sect Master, if you're willing to gamble, you have to accept the consequences."

"I trust your gambling principles, there shouldn't be any problem, right?"

Upon hearing Qiu Tu's words, Man Huang's exotic face tilted as she looked at Shu Xia standing outside the house, her gaze somewhat complicated.

She possessed the alluring appearance of the tree spirit race, yet her expression was aloof and noble.

After a moment, she nodded slightly and said, "Of course. We tree spirits value promises the most."

Seeing that the Emperor had agreed, Qiu Tu couldn't help but smile.

Then he looked at Shuxia outside the house, waved his hand as if dismissing a beggar, and said, "Young Master Shuxia, you can leave now."

Upon hearing Qiu Tu's words, Shu Xia's gaze sharpened slightly. He looked at Qiu Tu, his expression unchanged, but his heart was filled with hesitation.

Can I leave by myself?

Why did I... leave?

Shu Xia felt a little confused. After all, he was a mid-stage eighth-tier Great Evil God, while Qiu Tu was just a Cataclysmic Being who had just entered the eighth tier.

Even though Qiu Tu recently achieved a brilliant victory, don't forget that he did so after reaching the peak of the eighth rank in a short period of time within the "controlled area".

But here, in the real world, Qiu Tu's strength couldn't be enhanced; he was just an ordinary Cataclysmic being who had just entered the eighth rank.

How could he possibly be my match!

Thinking this, Shu Xia couldn't help but hesitate: Could Qiu Tu have other tricks up his sleeve?

Thinking of this, Shu Xia frowned slightly and swept her mental energy across the area.

Although he had secretly checked the surroundings before entering the villa, this check confirmed once again that Zhao Ji was not around.

Compared to Qiu Tu, Shu Xia was more wary of Zhao Ji, the mysterious "reincarnation of a god".

After all, the power of a "reincarnated god" is inherently stronger than that of an ordinary deity, and Zhao Ji's battle record is exceptionally formidable.

If Zhao Ji is lying in ambush nearby, then he is indeed very likely no match for Qiu Tu.

But... Zehime isn't here!

For a moment, Shu Xia was a little confused about what Qiu Tu was doing.

He stared at Qiu Tu silently, his mind racing, trying to figure out what Qiu Tu was thinking.

He pondered quietly for two minutes. Suddenly, a bold guess formed in his mind!

He ignored Qiu Tu and looked at Man Huang, then asked, "Sister-in-law, has Qiu Tu been with you all night?"

Although she didn't know why Shuxia asked this, Manhuang nodded slightly and gave an affirmative answer, "Yes."

After she finished speaking, she added, "He finished dinner and came here around 9 o'clock."

Upon hearing Manhuang's confirmation, Shuxia's eyes lit up slightly, feeling that her guess had been initially verified.

Then, he looked at Qiu Tu and asked, "Lord Qiu, are you so confident that you can control me because Her Majesty Zhao Ji is nearby?"

Upon hearing Shu Xia's words, Qiu Tu was slightly taken aback, then a smile of interest appeared on his face.

He looked at Shuxia, but instead of answering directly, he deliberately said ambiguously, "So what if I am here, so what if I am not?"

"I let you leave only because I promised Pavilion Master Manhuang that I would let you go."

Upon hearing Qiu Tu's ambiguous answer, Shu Xia immediately showed a knowing expression.

He felt he had finally seen through Qiu Tu.

Qiu Tu's "true identity" was confirmed by him multiple times, and he was in "Dizhou" all day.

Qiu Tu, however, had been staying with his sister-in-law since tonight.

When Qiu Tu saw him, he didn't threaten to kill him, but instead took the initiative to let him leave.

Furthermore, when he inquired about Zhao Ji's situation, Qiu Tu neither confirmed nor denied her presence.

There are only two possibilities that can satisfy so many strange conditions at the same time.

1. Qiu Tu can appear in two places simultaneously. Both Qiu Tu locations are his true form.

2. That is... the Qiu Tu in the prefecture is real, but the Qiu Tu in front of us is actually fake, a clone.

The reason Qiu Tu said he would let me go was not because he really wanted to let me go, but because he was using a ruse to trick me into leaving!

As for the promises made to the Emperor, these were all just excuses.

Compared to the first possibility, the second possibility is obviously easier to achieve.

Thinking this way, Shuxia suddenly felt more confident.

He just stared at Qiu Tu quietly, then deliberately probed, "Qiu Tu, I'm definitely taking your sister-in-law away tonight."

"No one can stop me."

"If Zhao Ji were here, I might have to give her some leeway, but you..."

He paused for a moment, and although he didn't speak, his attitude was clear.

Upon hearing this, Qiu Tu couldn't help but chuckle. He looked at Shu Xia and asked, "Do you think... I'm no match for you?"

Of course, Shuxia wouldn't plant such a flag before things had succeeded.

So he simply looked at Qiu Tu and said calmly, "I'm just betting that the you I see now isn't your true self."

After saying this, he gestured to the reinforcements behind him, then stepped into the study, grabbed the Empress's wrist, and said, "Sister-in-law, let's go."

As he spoke, his body tensed, preparing to react.

Just then, he heard Qiu Tu clapping.

"Clap clap clap." Qiu Tu clapped his hands lightly a few times, then said, "Madam, you lost the bet again."

"You owe me twice now."

Upon hearing Qiu Tu's words, Shu Xia's mind went blank for a moment, and then an ominous premonition arose in her heart!

Sure enough, the next second!

With a loud "boom!", he felt a sharp pain in his abdomen and was sent flying backward!

With a loud "Bang!", he crashed heavily into the wall!

The eighth-level expert's body was too strong, so the wall was smashed through! Then he tumbled and fell into the next room!

"Ugh!" Shu Xia clutched her stomach and gagged, then looked up at Qiu Tu with an incredulous expression.

Although his condition was so poor, mainly due to Qiu Tu's sneak attack, it must be said that in just one exchange, Shu Xia confirmed Qiu Tu's identity!

The real body!

This is actually Qiu Tu's true form!

How on earth did that?!

Before Shu Xia could react, Qiu Tu attacked again.

He leaped into the air and then stomped hard down towards the tree!

One wrong step leads to another. Shu Xia had no time to react and could only roll over to dodge the attack!

After dodging the attack, his first reaction was to use his Cataclysmic Power! He wanted to retaliate!

His cataclysmic power is called "Tree Realm." It is an extremely powerful cataclysmic ability.

Once activated, 50% of his cataclysmic power will transform into 500 "cataclysmic seedlings"! These seedlings will then take root directly in the "Boundless Heart Sea" and begin to grow wildly!

These trees will increase his strength by 5% every 10 seconds. And as the trees' strength increases, it will also boost his "Cataclysmic Power".

Therefore, after 200 seconds, the tree will grow to the first stage, and the 50% of power he lost will be completely recovered.

After that, the tree's growth will enter its second stage. Every minute, its strength will increase again by 5%.

This continues until it doubles again.

In addition, all plants in the "Tree Realm" will be stimulated by the power of the cataclysm and begin to grow wildly.

And while it grows, it continuously replenishes the tree with the power of catastrophe.

In other words, once Shuxia's ability is activated, as long as he can survive the first two minutes, his strength will increase dramatically.

Moreover... because the "Tree Realm" ability can replenish Cataclysmic Power, Tree Summer is not afraid of consuming too much Cataclysmic Power, thereby affecting the "Trial of the Gods".

As for whether he can hold out for the first two minutes?

He wasn't worried at all.

Putting aside Qiu Tu's two moves just now, although they made him look bad, they didn't cause him much actual damage.

Take himself for example... he doesn't only have this one cataclysmic ability!