Only after becoming emperor did he realize he was in a fantasy world of immortal cultivation.

Early the next morning

Sunlight pierced through the thin mist and shone on the official road outside the city.

Lin Ye, dressed in a dragon robe, stood by the official road, looking at Gongsun Yan opposite him.

Behind the two, eight thousand iron cavalry stood in neat formation, their armor gleaming coldly in the morning light, appearing majestic and solemn.

The morning breeze rustled the leaves on both sides of the tree, and the sounds of the forest blended in, yet were still clear to the ear. "Master Gongsun, the journey is long and the medicinal materials are hard to find. I hope you will be careful."

As he spoke, his gaze shifted to one side, revealing a dazzling expanse of silver-white light, like the sharpest blade unsheathed. An ordinary person would likely hesitate and retreat at first glance.

Lin Ye's voice continued, "These eight thousand iron cavalry are all the elite of our Great Qin, and they will surely protect the Daoist Master."

After speaking, Lin Ye's gaze fell back on Gongsun Yan, and he said in a deliberately expectant tone, "Daoist Gongsun, I am waiting for the day when you return with the pill ingredients. I will definitely hold a banquet for you at the Pill Palace then."

When Gongsun Yan heard Lin Ye mention the Pill Palace, a hint of anticipation appeared in his eyes.

However, this expectation is only related to Lin Ye's life.

Thinking of this, Gongsun Yan's smile grew even wider, but what he said was: "On that day, what Your Majesty will celebrate is that the elixir of immortality will be completed, and Your Majesty will live as long as Heaven, just like this humble Taoist."

Upon hearing this, Lin Ye knew perfectly well what Gongsun Yan was thinking. However, it was a matter of who was taking whose life...

Lin Ye suppressed his thoughts and simply smiled, replying, "What you say is absolutely right, Daoist Master."

At this moment, a man leading a carriage stopped beside Gongsun Yan.

"Taoist Master, please." Lin Ye nodded slightly and gestured.

Upon hearing this, Gongsun Yan bowed and slowly boarded the carriage.

A moment later, Lin Ye signaled to the Iron Cavalry Commander to set off.

Eight thousand iron cavalrymen headed north, facing the rising sun.

Destination – Kunlun Mountain.

Sitting in the swaying carriage, Gongsun Yan thought to himself that if he had known that Lin Ye would send him to find these medicinal materials, he would never have said something like, "The 'Rootless Water' formed from the millennia-old ice on the summit of Kunlun Mountain must be collected at midnight on the winter solstice and stored in jade vessels to preserve its purity and clarity."

At the time, he only had the first sentence in mind, but then he felt that it was not difficult enough, so he added the requirement that "it must be collected at midnight on the winter solstice".

The Kunlun Mountains in this illusory realm are also located in the far north, and the length of the four seasons differs from other places.

And now, the winter solstice is only fifteen days away, so the journey... is naturally not very comfortable.

If it weren't for his cultivation level, he would have been shaken out of the car.

Although this trip was not in his plans, since the Pill Palace was not yet completed, he could take advantage of this time to cause more trouble, which would greatly benefit the disruption of the human destiny.

After weighing the pros and cons, Gongsun Yan couldn't help but reveal a smile that was completely out of character for his current attire.

But at that moment, the carriage came to a sudden stop.

Before Gongsun Yan could inquire about the situation, he felt a chilling killing intent spreading from outside the car into the car.

Gongsun Yan merely curled the corners of his mouth slightly upon seeing this.

He wasn't surprised that someone wanted to assassinate him.

After all, he knew very well why everyone now regarded him as a demonic Taoist.

But that's exactly what he wanted.

The more public resentment there is, the more evident the decline of humanitarian fortune becomes.

Immediately afterwards, Gongsun Yan saw someone lift the curtain and enter. If he remembered correctly, it was the coachman who was driving the horse.

The newcomer, wielding a dagger, shouted, "You evil Taoist, prepare to die!"

Gongsun Yan remained motionless, his expression serene. With a mere flick of his sleeve, the newcomer flew out of the carriage.

"Protect the Taoist priest!"

The commander of the armored army immediately waved to the group of armored cavalry.

Upon seeing this, the man quickly got up and tried to approach the carriage again, but the carriage was already surrounded by armored cavalry, and this was clearly his only chance.

But the thought that the sorcerer was only a hundred paces away from him filled him with resentment.

"Pah—" The man's beard was stained with some of the blood he spat out due to his movements, mixed with dust, making him look both comical and filthy.

The man spat out a mouthful of blood, seemingly throwing his life or death into the water.

He then charged toward the armored army, which was known to the world as invincible, with a dagger in hand.

However, the result was obvious. Without needing to send more than ten people, the man was already repeatedly defeated.

One of the armored soldiers wielded a silver spear with lightning speed, aiming to pierce the man's chest. Upon seeing this, the man knew that his life was likely to end here today.

He slowly closed his eyes, unwilling to see Gongsun Yan sitting in the car.

He had no fear of death.

But he was unwilling to die in front of a sorcerer like Gongsun Yan!

A tear silently slid down his cheek, landing on his full beard, making him look even more disheveled and...

Just as the armored soldier's silver spear was about to strike, a man dressed in black with a veil covering his face descended from the sky.

With a wave of his hand, the silver spear shattered into pieces of silver.

The armored soldiers, seasoned by countless battles, naturally realized that the force of this palm strike was likely still somewhat restrained.

Under the commander's gestures, more and more armored soldiers marched forward in an orderly fashion.

But as the two sides confronted each other, the man in black simply lifted the bearded man with one hand and vanished from everyone's sight in a blur.

"Cough cough..." The bearded man was carried high in the air and sped forward. He could only feel the wind whistling in his ears and the scenery rushing past him. It felt as if his heart and lungs no longer belonged to him.

Finally, after an unknown amount of time, he felt his feet touching the ground.

Then I looked around and saw that it was a dense forest.

Just as he was about to turn around to thank his savior, he suddenly felt a churning in his stomach.

He hurriedly ran to a tree and vomited.

It took him a moment to tidy himself up.

At the same time, he forcefully ripped off the beard covered in all sorts of things.

A large clump of beard stuck to his mouth instantly left his face.

This was a disguise he made to assassinate Gongsun Yan; after all, it wasn't his own beard, and it was really uncomfortable to have it stuck to his face.

Now that he has failed in his assassination attempt, there is no need for him to keep this beard.

"Is the Vice Minister of War still well?" A question came from behind him.

The Vice Minister of War, Mu Cheng, had no heart to answer the questions, for the voice was...

"The Duke of Wu?" Mu Cheng turned around with delight.

Wu Qing's face after removing the veil was the best answer.

"How could the Duke of Wu..." Mu Cheng couldn't help but wonder.

Then, as if suddenly realizing something, he said, "Could it be the Duke of Wu whom the Prime Minister sent someone to inform us after our discussion last night?"

"Alas, what a pity! If we had known the Duke would come, we should have acted together."

"With the Duke of Wu's help, that evil Taoist will surely be either killed or seriously injured," Mu Cheng said with great distress.

But then he realized something was wrong. The Prime Minister had clearly said that the Duke of Wu had already left the capital and headed to Wuyashan.

And the information he gathered this morning was also the same.

If he hadn't returned by His Majesty's decree, how could the Duke of Wu have...?

"Your Majesty?" Mu Cheng's muddled mind seemed to clear up.

At this moment, Wu Qing said in a rough voice, "His Majesty wants you to go with us to Wuyashan to deploy defensive forces. Let's go."

For some reason, when Mu Cheng heard about Wuyashan again, he no longer had the same passionate emotions as the night before.

Perhaps it's because... His Majesty knew he was going to assassinate the sorcerer, but instead sent someone to save him.

"Yes," he finally replied.