140: Chapter 140 The Crazy Plan, The Legendary Tree of Knowledge

As twilight fell, a piercing cold wind swirled withered leaves across the clearing at the dungeon entrance. Leona's originally exquisite makeup had long been streaked and mottled by tear stains. She stared fixedly at the indifferent man before her as if looking at a madman.

"What... are you going to do?" Her voice trembled in the wind, carrying a faint trace of hope and fear.

Qin Ji casually hung the jiu he long bow back into its slot on his back with a fluid motion, as if they weren't discussing an earth-shattering matter like regicide, but rather what to have for dinner. His violet-gold pupils constricted slightly as his gaze shifted past Leona toward the royal city, which crouched in the night like a giant beast.

"It's simple."

Qin Ji's voice was calm without a single ripple, yet every word was like a blade: "Assist the Demon Den in establishing a regime, lure King Abra out, and then—kill him in public!"

The wind seemed to stand still at that moment.

Leona's hand, which had been clutching Qin Ji's sleeve, suddenly froze. Her pupils constricted violently into pinpricks, and she subconsciously took a half-step back, the gravel crunching beneath her feet. She opened her mouth, letting out a dry swallow as the skepticism she wanted to voice was forcibly choked back by immense horror.

Assist the Demon Den? Establish a regime?

This wasn't just treason; this was pushing the entire Star Kingdom into an abyss of eternal damnation!

"Why... why go to such lengths?" Leona's voice was squeezed out from between her teeth, her body shaking uncontrollably from excessive fear and cold. "That's the Demon Den! They are the mortal enemy of humanity!"

Qin Ji glanced at her, an imperceptible flicker of cold mockery flashing in his eyes.

The reason? Naturally, it was for the Black Robe Leader's quest and that enticing Second Class Advancement Card. But he couldn't explain that to Leona.

"Princess, do you think that with my strength alone, I can storm the palace and take Abra's head while he's guarded by thousands of troops?"

Qin Ji took a step closer, his tall shadow completely enveloping Leona. "Abra is no fool. After Princess's death, he will be more afraid of dying than ever. If he hides within the defensive grand array deep inside the palace, I cannot kill him."

"To lure out a turtle hiding in its shell, ordinary bait isn't enough."

Qin Ji extended a finger and lightly traced it through the air as if cutting some invisible thread of fate. "Only when his royal authority is fundamentally threatened—for example, if a second legitimate regime appears on his land. At that time, if he still dares to cower in the palace, his subjects, his army, and even the nobles behind him will abandon him."

"This is an overt ploy."

Leona bit her lower lip hard until she tasted blood. Although her logic told her this was like bargaining with a tiger, she had to admit that Qin Ji was right.

That father of hers, who had gone mad, would never easily leave his safe turtle shell.

"Fine..." Leona closed her eyes as if she had exhausted all her strength. "I'll listen to you."

...

After seeing Leona off, Qin Ji did not set out immediately.

He found a rock sheltered from the wind to sit down and pulled up his attribute panel. The prerequisite quest scroll for Luolin Muye had been completed, and those one hundred free attribute points had arrived as scheduled.

By now, his total free attribute points had soared to a staggering 2,965.

This was a number sufficient to make any player at the current stage feel despair.

"Use Blessing of the Gods," Qin Ji muttered in his heart.

As the command was issued, a magnificent and ancient golden light fell from the Void Realm, instantly enveloping him. That warm and heavy sensation felt like the embrace of Mother Earth.

"Ding, you have received the Blessing of the Gods..."

"Ding, Empress Houtu is bestowing a blessing upon you..."

Qin Ji's expectant expression instantly froze, and the corner of his mouth twitched slightly.

Empress Houtu again?

His luck was really something else. Although this big shot held a supreme position in the mythological System, he had already received two related blessings; getting another duplicate wouldn't speed up his development progress.

However, the System prompt that popped up in the next second left him stunned.

"Ding, you have obtained a Special Building—[City God Temple]."

A City God Temple?

Qin Ji looked at the extra item in his backpack; it was a miniature model emitting an ancient aura. With blue bricks and black tiles, and upturned eaves, although it was only the size of a palm, it radiated a heart-palpitating solemnity and majesty.

[City God Temple (Special Building)]

Origin: Eastern Mythology Sequence

Usage Requirement: Exclusive to ID 'Snow Emperor'. Cannot be gifted, dropped, stolen, or stripped away in any form.

Effect: Unknown (Requires construction to unlock).

Durability: Indestructible.

Description: Separating Yin and Yang, where good and evil receive their due. This is the place that governs the order of Yin and Yang for a region.

"Effect unknown?"

Qin Ji's brows furrowed as his fingers stroked the cold surface of the City God Temple model.

Is this a joke? Something given by the Blessing of the Gods is actually a blind box?

In Eastern mythology, Empress Houtu transformed her body into the Six Paths of Reincarnation and governed the Netherworld. The City God Temple was the Underworld's office in the mortal realm, responsible for apprehending souls and rewarding the good while punishing the evil. Since this thing came from Houtu's hands, it absolutely couldn't be a simple decoration.

Could it be used to collect incense Power Of Will, or... recruit Underworld Soldiers?

Countless possibilities flashed through Qin Ji's mind, but they all ultimately turned into a helpless sigh. Without a territory, this thing was just a showpiece.

"It seems I need to hurry up and get a piece of land."

He flipped his hand to put the City God Temple back into his backpack, stood up, and patted the dust off his clothes. His originally lazy temperament dissipated in an instant, replaced by a sharpness like a drawn blade.

Since he was going to do it, he might as well do it thoroughly.

...

Demon Den, the peripheral encampment of Black Wind City.

The thick black mist never dissipated year-round, and the air was filled with the stench of sulfur mixed with rotting meat. Countless strangely shaped monsters shuttled through the shadows, but the moment they sensed Qin Ji's aura, they scattered in terror to both sides, clearing a path.

This was the deterrence of strength.

Qin Ji arrived at the core command tent with practiced ease. The Black Robe Leader seemed to have been waiting for him for a long time; the eyes hidden under the hood lit up with a ghostly green light the moment they saw Qin Ji.

"Snow Emperor, you've finally come." The Black Robe Leader's voice was hoarse and piercing, like nails scraping across a blackboard.

"I can lead you to besiege the city."

Qin Ji didn't waste words and got straight to the point. "I've already planned the specific tactics. As long as you cooperate, Black Wind City will surely fall within three days."

The Black Robe Leader stood up abruptly, his black robes fluttering without any wind; he was clearly excited to the extreme. "Good! That's wonderful! I'll mobilize the army right now, ready to be deployed at your command!"

"Wait."

Qin Ji raised a hand to interrupt his excitement. "I have a request."

"What request?" The Black Robe Leader was stunned.

"I want that item of yours—the disguise magic robe." Qin Ji stared intently at the cloak on the other man's body.

The smile on the Black Robe Leader's face froze, and the originally fervent atmosphere instantly dropped to freezing point. He slowly sat back in his chair, his fingers lightly tapping the armrest, producing a rhythmic muffled sound.

"This was not in our previous agreement." His voice grew a few degrees colder.

"I cannot expose my identity." Qin Ji's expression remained unchanged. "Your disguise magic robe is the best concealment equipment I know of. After all, I am still a player of the human faction. If I help you besiege the city while carrying the name 'Snow Emperor', how will I continue to get by in the Star Kingdom?"

"Heh."

The Black Robe Leader let out a sneer as if he had heard the world's biggest joke. "Snow Emperor, aren't you being ridiculous? Looking at the entire community of Adventurers, who has damage as outrageous as yours? Who has your freakish range?"

He leaned forward and stared fixedly at Qin Ji. "As long as you take action and that arrow is fired, with or without a disguise magic robe, the whole world will know it's you."

"That's different."

Qin Ji shrugged with an air of indifference. "Knowing is one thing; having evidence is another. It doesn't matter if the high-level officials guess it's me, but for the common people, as long as I don't show my face, they will hold onto a sense of wishful thinking. I'm just giving them a possibility to accept, because after all..."

He paused, the corner of his mouth curving into a playful arc. "I'll need to whitewash my identity later."

The air in the tent seemed to solidify.

The Black Robe Leader's eyes narrowed slightly, a dangerous light flickering in those ghostly green eyes. He seemed to have guessed something, and his voice became sinister:

"Could it be... you want to be enfeoffed as the War God of the Star Kingdom?!"

"Help us establish a regime, get my reward, and then turn around and help the Star Kingdom deal with us? At that time, you'll also collect the Star Kingdom's rewards in full?"

At this point, the Black Robe Leader let out a hair-raising cold laugh. "Snow Emperor, you really have a good scheme. Using the lives of our Demon Den brothers as bargaining chips to play both sides?!"

Having his thoughts exposed, Qin Ji didn't panic in the slightest; instead, he helplessly rubbed his nose. "Am I really that despicable in your heart?"

"Yes."

The Black Robe Leader answered decisively, without a moment's hesitation.

Qin Ji was somewhat stuck between laughter and tears. He was clearly a law-abiding citizen, so why did he seem even more like a villain than the actual villains in the eyes of these NPCs?

"The Star Kingdom is just my starting point." Qin Ji reined in his smile and cast his gaze toward the pitch-black night sky outside the tent. "There's an even more vast and boundless world beyond. I won't waste too much energy in this Newbie Village. As long as the benefits are right, I am the most honest partner."

"Honest?" The Black Robe Leader snorted coldly. "But I know that a person like you would sell his own father for profit."

"How about this."

The Black Robe Leader seemed to have reached a decision and pulled out a parchment scroll emitting a black aura from his robes. "As long as you are willing to add one more clause to the quest contract, I will trust you unconditionally, and the disguise magic robe can also be lent to you."

Qin Ji's brows furrowed slightly. "Black Robe, aren't you pushing your luck a bit?"

"It's not that I'm pushing my luck, it's just that you, Snow Emperor, are truly someone who is hard to fully trust."

"Speak, what condition do you want to add?" Qin Ji asked with some impatience.

The Black Robe Leader stared fixedly into Qin Ji's eyes and said word by word:

"Kill the King—Abra!"

Qin Ji's heart skipped a beat.

Isn't this my core mission? This old monster actually delivered it to my door?

Although he was overjoyed inside, Qin Ji's expression changed drastically on the surface. He slammed his hand onto the table, causing the map on it to jump.

"You're dreaming!!"

Qin Ji's eyes widened in anger as if he had suffered a great insult. "Kill King Abra? Who do you think Abra is? He is the sovereign of a nation! He is surrounded by experts and has a national protection array! Are you trying to send me to my death?!"

Seeing Qin Ji's agitated reaction, the Black Robe Leader actually smiled. This reaction was normal; if Qin Ji had agreed immediately, he would have suspected a trap instead.

"Other than this, it's really hard for me to believe your sincerity." The Black Robe Leader spread his hands. "This is your certificate of loyalty."

Qin Ji took several deep breaths, seemingly trying hard to calm his emotions. He paced back and forth inside the tent, his brows tightly knit as if he were undergoing an intense internal struggle.

After a full two minutes, Qin Ji finally stopped, turned around, and showed a gnashing expression.

"It's not impossible, however..."

"However what?"

"I need more money!!" Qin Ji said fiercely. "This is a job where I could lose my head!"

"Hahaha! Good!"

The Black Robe Leader laughed heartily. "As long as you're willing to do it, money is no problem! For a quest of the caliber of killing Abra, the reward will naturally satisfy you!"

As he spoke, he flipped his hand, and a golden leaf appeared in his palm.

That leaf had a translucent golden texture throughout, with what seemed like liquid radiance flowing through its veins. As soon as it appeared, the entire dark and damp tent was instantly filled with a holy and vast aura, even pushing back the surrounding black mist by several feet.

Qin Ji's pupils constricted abruptly. "What is this?"

Even with the experience from his past life, he had never seen such a miraculous item.

"A leaf from the tree of knowledge of gods."

The Black Robe Leader's voice contained a trace of pride that was hard to conceal.

Boom!

These words exploded in Qin Ji's mind like a clap of thunder.

The tree of knowledge of gods?!

Wasn't that a divine object from the legends that existed in the Divine Realm? It was said that every single leaf recorded a lost ancient secret technique or a Divine-Grade skill!

"Isn't that a thing of legend?" For the first time, a ripple appeared in Qin Ji's voice.

"Indeed, it is a legend." The Black Robe Leader lightly held the golden leaf between his fingers, his gaze becoming somewhat distant. "The entire Star Kingdom doesn't possess such a treasure. And this leaf of mine... was brought out from the Holy Land of the Vast Empire."

The Vast Empire!

Qin Ji's heart jolted. He suddenly looked up at the Black Robe Leader. "Are you from the Haomiao Wuji Palace?"

The Black Robe Leader did not answer, simply tossing the golden leaf lightly.

The golden leaf traced a graceful arc in the air, slowly drifting toward Qin Ji. The afterglow of the setting sun filtered through the gaps in the tent, shining precisely on the floating golden leaf. The reflected light shone into Qin Ji's violet-gold pupils, like flames of greed and ambition intertwined, burning fiercely in the darkness.