Chapter 6: Your Life Is Like a Candle in the Wind
This was the first time Gong Yiling had strolled through the imperial palace.
She suppressed her curiosity, trying to maintain the image of a reclusive expert.
But… this was the imperial palace!
As a 21st-century youth, her greatest interest was watching historical dramas, always harboring a fascination for ancient palaces.
Now, walking through one, it felt like a dream come true.
Fortunately, the guards treated her as an important figure and didn’t dare look directly at her, failing to notice her gawking at everything around her like a country bumpkin.
Ah, the lights, the water, the gold and silver threaded cloud patterns, the Armstrong—no, there was no such thing.
Anyway, despite knowing this place was fictional, the grandeur of the palace satisfied a small part of her.
Finally, she arrived at the back garden and saw the current ruler of the Heartflame Empire, Shangguan Long.
Well… she didn’t have high expectations for this emperor.
According to the timeline, he was currently poisoned by a secret drug from the Myriad Demons Palace. Ordinary physicians couldn’t detect it, and if left untreated, he would become bedridden in three months.
When he appeared in the novel, he was already a dying old man, and his death marked the beginning of the palace arc.
But now, he seemed healthy and possessed the aura of an emperor.
As she was observing him, a clueless eunuch suddenly scolded, “Who are you? Why aren’t you bowing before His Majesty?”
Gong Yiling thought inwardly,
Was the Emperor of the Heartflame Empire more important than the Sect Master of the Great One Engineering Sect?
If she bowed rashly, wouldn’t it make her seem weak and insignificant?
Her current inaction, however, intrigued Shangguan Long.
If she were an imposter… she wouldn’t be so calm and silent.
This person was the real deal.
“There’s no need for such formalities, Immortal Master,” the Emperor rebuked his eunuch. “It is I, this sickly emperor, who should apologize for my appearance.”
It seemed her act was perfect.
Arrogance was the way to go.
“Sickly?” Gong Yiling chuckled. “If Your Majesty still believes it’s just a cold or a deviation during cultivation, you’ll be bedridden in three months and preparing for your funeral in eight.”
Her words shocked everyone present.
Did she mean—it was poison…!?
The eunuchs and guards immediately retorted, “Insolent! How dare you speak such nonsense about His Majesty! He is in perfect health! How dare you claim he only has eight months to live!”
Gong Yiling raised her eyebrows. “You should ask yourself that, Head Eunuch Gao.”
Her words shifted Shangguan Long and the Grand Elder’s attention to the eunuch. They remained silent, waiting to see what else this Immortal Master would reveal.
“You’re slandering me!” Head Eunuch Gao denied vehemently. “I’ve served His Majesty for decades! How could I possibly harm him!?”
“You did it unintentionally, or perhaps you were deceived.”
Gong Yiling walked towards him and snatched the bowl of honey water from his hand.
“This honey water contains a rare poison, Serpent’s Hundred Herbs Incense. It’s colorless, odorless, and non-toxic on its own, but combined with another undetectable poison, it forms the deadly Serpent Scorpion Three Hundred.”
“Consuming small doses of either poison daily for two hundred and forty days will cause the internal organs of any cultivator below Immortal Mansion realm to rot, leading to death.”
“His Majesty’s current condition suggests he has been poisoned. Only a highly skilled poisoner or a physician specializing in toxicology would be able to detect it.”
Of course, besides this condition, she also had her knowledge of the plot. She could even pinpoint the culprit directly, but that would be too suspicious.
“What!?”
Head Eunuch Gao, terrified by her detailed explanation, immediately knelt down.
“I truly didn’t know! Why would there be poison in the honey water? I prepared it myself…”
“Serpent’s Hundred Herbs Incense can be disguised as a spice.” Gong Yiling said, “Think carefully, Head Eunuch Gao. Did you add any spices to the honey water? Where did you get them?”
“Spices!?”
Her words jogged his memory.
“I remember now! Little Li gave me a bottle of spices from the Baiyao Dynasty a while ago, claiming it was extremely rare and expensive. It smelled wonderful, and we tested it, and there were no signs of poison, so I…”
He looked at another eunuch standing nearby. “It was you! It was you all along!?”
Little Li’s expression changed drastically.
However…
Before anyone could react, Little Li struck his own chest, coughed up a mouthful of blood, and collapsed.
A guard checked his body and reported, “His heart has been pierced. He’s dead.”
Hearing this, Head Eunuch Gao, now undeniably implicated, trembled and kowtowed repeatedly.
“Your Majesty, spare me! Please!”
“Although I was foolish, please consider my decades of loyal service and spare my life!”
“Take him away and imprison him.” The Emperor’s voice was devoid of emotion. “We’ll decide his punishment after investigating this matter thoroughly.”
“Yes!”
The guards dragged the wailing eunuch away.
The remaining two, the Emperor and the Grand Elder, were now deeply intrigued by Gong Yiling.
“You saw through the poison at a glance. I knew no one would dare impersonate the Great One Engineering Sect. You truly are an Immortal Master.”
The Grand Elder was even more direct.
To confirm she wasn’t the poisoner herself, he suddenly attacked her with a palm strike infused with wind and thunder energy.
But by the time Miss Gong realized what was happening, the elder’s palm had already stopped inches from her face.
What the fuck! That was scary!
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