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

The meal lasted from dawn till dusk. Only then did Lin Ye pretend to be reluctant to stop his long conversation with Gongsun Yan and tell Gongsun Yan to make sure he got a good rest.

While Lin Ye saw Gongsun Yan off, he didn't forget to continue poisoning Zhou Ru.

Therefore, after resting for a while, they went to Fanghua Palace.

"Greetings, Your Majesty." Zhou Ru was still beautifully made up today, but the joy in her eyes seemed to leap off her brows.

Seeing this, Lin Ye gestured for Zhou Ru to stand up and deliberately asked, "My beloved concubine seems to be in a very good mood today?"

"This morning I heard that Master Gongsun had gathered all the ingredients for Your Majesty's elixir and brought them back to the palace. Now that Your Majesty's alchemy palace is nearing completion and the ingredients are ready, the elixir of immortality is just around the corner. Naturally, I can't help but feel happy for Your Majesty."

Zhou Ru immediately spoke with deep emotion.

Upon hearing this, Lin Ye once again displayed the same smile he had at the banquet, his expression seemingly excited as he said, "My beloved consort is indeed delighted."

Lin Ye put his arm around Zhou Ru and walked inside. "Speaking of which, if it weren't for my beloved concubine, I wouldn't have met Master Gongsun and had this opportunity to achieve immortality."

"My beloved consort is truly my lucky star." Lin Ye pulled Zhou Ru to sit down at the table.

Immediately afterwards, Lin Ye summoned a maid and instructed her, "Bring up the fine wine and liquor prepared for today."

The maid acknowledged the order and withdrew, then returned shortly with a beautiful wine pot.

"This wine is a special brew from the palace, called 'Jade Nectar.' It is made from the finest glutinous rice and spring water, and has a mellow taste with an endless aftertaste."

As the maidservant bent down to pour wine for Zhou Ru, Lin Ye slowly explained.

"This is a fine wine that I specially prepared to welcome the Taoist priest back. My beloved concubine is my lucky star, so she should enjoy it with me."

After saying this, Lin Ye picked up his wine cup: "My beloved concubine, please."

Zhou Ru smiled broadly, her eyes sparkling, and she raised her wine cup to clink with Lin Ye's.

After taking a small sip, Zhou Ru showered the drink with compliments as if they were free.

But clearly, "the Imperial Concubine's intention was not in the wine," and she then said, "Your Majesty has heard that His Majesty will be hosting a banquet for Daoist Gongsun at the Dan Palace the day after tomorrow..."

Zhou Ru paused meaningfully at this point.

Lin Ye knew exactly what Zhou Ruyi was up to, but deliberately kept her in suspense, saying, "My dear consort, who told you that? How come I don't know?"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Ru's lips immediately stiffened. Of course, she heard it from her master, but how could she possibly tell the truth?

"Your Majesty?" Zhou Ru deliberately turned her body away in a huff, and said coquettishly, "What do you mean by that, Your Majesty?"

Lin Ye chuckled and pulled Zhou Ru's soft body into his arms, saying, "My beloved consort, don't be angry. I was just joking."

"With such an important event as the banquet at the Imperial Palace, how could I forget to bring my lucky star?"

Upon hearing Lin Ye's words, Zhou Ru's expression brightened, and she said sweetly, "Your Majesty?"

Then, as if remembering something, her tone shifted: "Your Majesty, how could I dare to be angry with you?"

"I only intended to perform a dance for Your Majesty at the banquet to express my congratulations on Your Majesty's impending immortality," Zhou Ru said, gently nudging Lin Ye with a hint of grievance. "But Your Majesty..."

Taking advantage of Zhou Ru's back being turned to him, Lin Ye quickly dropped the deadly powder into her wine cup, then turned Zhou Ru in his arms to face him, his eyes filled with a hint of "doting" as he said, "So my beloved consort has such a heart."

"My beloved concubine's dance is so beautiful it rivals that of a celestial maiden. Although the Pill Palace is not a celestial palace, if it could become a place where my beloved concubine resides, it might very well be comparable to the celestial palace."

"I offer this wine to my beloved consort to express my gratitude. I await your performance at the Danyan banquet." With that, Lin Ye smiled and handed the wine cup on the table to Zhou Ru.

Zhou Ru was already extremely pleased to hear Lin Ye's words. However, as she accepted the wine cup, she took the opportunity to bring up her other purpose, feigning some distress as she said, "Your Majesty, the preparations for the dance I am about to perform are quite complex. I wonder if I could bring a personal maid with me to help me when I enter the Dan Palace?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Ye knew what was going on with this so-called personal maid, and immediately nodded in agreement.

Seeing this, Zhou Ru said no more, and with the smile still on her lips, she drank the wine in her cup.

"Your Majesty, how can I be the only one drinking? Let me pour you a cup."

As he spoke, his eyes darted around, and he put down the wine cup in his hand and slowly picked up the wine pot.

Since that day when she "cultivated together" with Lin Ye, Zhou Ru has never used any other method to escape when she had to serve him in bed.

But now that her injuries have been healed by the influence of the forest's human destiny, she should naturally return to her previous state.

As Zhou Ru thought this, she handed the wine laced with a bewitching drug to Lin Ye, saying in a charmingly coquettish voice, "Your Majesty⁓".

After this period of maneuvering, Lin Ye was fully aware of the expression on Zhou Ru's face when she "invited" him to drink the "poisoned" wine.

Clearly, this glass of wine is not the original.

But Lin Ye did not refuse as before. After all, at this point, Zhou Wanwan and Zhou Ru were very likely to have some plans. If he could find out a little bit, wouldn't that increase his chances of winning?

After thinking it over, Lin Ye readily took the wine from Zhou Ru's hand and slowly drank it under Zhou Ru's watchful gaze.

Zhou Ru hadn't expected Lin Ye to drink the wine so quickly. Watching Lin Ye's increasingly weak figure, for some reason, images of their recent intimate moments surfaced in Zhou Ru's mind...

A feeling of melancholy and loss suddenly welled up in my heart.

Before she could sort out her chaotic thoughts, she saw her master slowly approaching from outside.

"Master," Zhou Ru called out as she stood up.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Wanwan first waved her hand, sending Lin Ye, who was lying on the table, onto the bed, before walking over and slowly sitting down in the spot where Lin Ye had been.

"Master, Lin Ye has already agreed to let me bring one person in for the banquet the day after tomorrow," Zhou Ru said as she poured Zhou Wanwan a cup of tea.

Zhou Wanwan leisurely took the teacup, took a small sip, and then heard Zhou Ru say with slight doubt, "But Master, since we are already preparing to take action, why not bring Zhou Yan along?"

Given Lin Ye's "obsession" with her, it wouldn't be difficult for her to bring one more person if she asked.

This is a crucial moment, so we should conserve as much magic power as possible.

So since the master didn't ask her to mention anyone else, it must mean he wasn't planning to bring Zhou Yan along.

Can......

Upon hearing this, Zhou Wanwan paused for a moment, her hand holding the teacup pausing as if she had thought of something. A sharp glint flashed in her eyes, and then she said, "Zhou Yan... it seems he has already lost his life."

Gongsun Yan has been back for a day, but Zhou Yan has not yet shown up, which is obviously not right.

"Dead?" Zhou Ru asked with a hint of surprise.

He was merely following Gongsun Yan; who could possibly harm him?

Wait, Gongsun Yan?