The path to immortality through martial arts begins with being forced into marriage!

"speak."

"Cui Yi seemed quite interested in the Cui clan, inquiring in detail about the clan's grand competition, and made it clear that he was not a member of the Cui clan, his tone suggesting a distance."

"My deduction is that he may have a past relationship with the Cui family, or even a grudge!"

"He will likely attend the Cui clan competition two months from now and make some moves."

Yun Yi analyzed the situation clearly and logically.

Upon hearing this, a glint flashed in Xiao Yuli's eyes.

Cui Shiyao?

This is one of the four great families of the Great Yan Dynasty, and their stance has always been delicate.

If Cui Yi really has a grudge against the Cui family, or even goes so far as to disrupt the competition, it might not be a bad thing for her!

It might even be an opportunity!

Coming to her senses, Xiao Yuli quickly thought of the second half of Yun Yi's sentence—

Cui Yi is willing to make the deal.

Even if the cooperation doesn't work out, it's still good to be business partners; at least we're not enemies.

"What kind of deal does he want?"

"Your Highness, Cui Yi's request is for us to escort him back to Da Yan."

"And he must also participate in the Cui clan's grand competition, during which no other forces are allowed to interfere."

"..."

Upon hearing this condition, Xiao Yuli frowned deeply.

Mobilizing forces to secretly escort a cultivator who is on the imperial court's blacklist into the Great Yan is extremely risky!

Once exposed, it will be irrefutable evidence of collusion with the demonic path!

Secondly, interfering in the Cui clan's grand competition means using clandestine forces within the Cui clan's territory to deal with any potential troublemakers.

This is tantamount to a direct confrontation with certain factions within the imperial court, right under the nose of the Cui family!

The operation is extremely difficult; the slightest mistake could expose her hidden power to the light of day!

At that time, her carefully cultivated network of power, built up over many years, could very well be wiped out in one fell swoop!

Is it worth taking such a huge risk for someone whose intention to cooperate is not yet fully confirmed?

Yun Yi did not offer any further advice, but remained silent.

He will carry out all of His Highness's decisions.

After a long while, Yun Yi heard a soft sigh.

"Fine, just say yes."

When Xiao Yuli opened her eyes again, the hesitation in them had disappeared.

Cui Yi dared to confront the Great Yan in public, and now he dares to plot against a behemoth like the Cui family all by himself.

This kind of person is definitely not someone to be underestimated!

His character, courage, and potential are all top-notch.

More importantly, he seemed to have a rift with the Choi family.

The enemy of my enemy, even if we can't be friends, can at least be allies for the time being.

However, in the end, Xiao Yuli was more worried about the child.

She doesn't have much time left.

Once the pregnancy becomes visible, it will be impossible to hide it any longer.

The plan has been in the works for so many years, and continuing to complete it will probably yield very little result.

Since things have come to this, let's take a gamble!

"Cui Yi, I hope you won't let me down."

Xiao Yuli muttered to herself, her eyes filled with complex emotions, "We've all bet a considerable amount on this gamble."

Hopefully, we can both be winners.

......

......

The next day.

Chen Shi (7-9 AM).

The center of Northern City.

The giant plaza in front of the Pill Tower was already packed with people. Not only were there alchemists participating in the alchemy competition, but also many cultivators who came to join in the fun.

Normally it's rare to see even one alchemist, but recently almost everyone present was one.

Many people came here hoping to make the acquaintance of an alchemist.

After all, in the world of cultivation, the saying "having more friends means having more paths" is not just a saying.

Cui Yi rested for the night in a hotel room in the city, and the next day he went to the competition venue with Su Wan.

The square's paving stones are neatly divided into hundreds of individual stone platforms.

Each stone platform is about three zhang in size, and its edges are equipped with a basic soundproofing array, seemingly to prevent such a dense arrangement from affecting the contestants' alchemy process.

This is the venue for the preliminary rounds.

At this moment, most of the contestants had already taken their places on the stone platforms, with various alchemy furnaces placed beside them.

Following the jade tablet's guidance, Cui Yi found his stone platform number 273.

This location is rather far back and not very noticeable.

Seeing that everyone else was taking out their alchemy furnaces to preheat them, Cui Yi felt a tightness in his chest.

He seemed to have never used a furnace when refining elixirs...

But at times like this, not using the alchemy furnace would be too conspicuous.

He simply wanted to enter the Pill Tower to obtain an identity and, incidentally, systematically learn about alchemy; that was all.

As for things like becoming famous throughout the world, he had absolutely no interest in them.

Before one's abilities reach a certain level, any fame can be seen as a form of malicious flattery that could ultimately destroy them.

The tallest tree in the forest will surely be felled by the wind!

If you don't take sides, you'll die quickly; if you do, you'll die even faster!

There are troubles either way, so it's better not to show it to others from the start.

Cui Yi rummaged through the storage space for a while and actually managed to pull out a small cauldron.

It is an old-fashioned three-legged round-bellied censer, with several barely noticeable repair marks on the body, and its spiritual light is dim and almost nonexistent.

If it weren't for the simple fire-gathering array pattern engraved on the furnace mouth, it would be almost indistinguishable from a furnace in an ordinary blacksmith's shop.

This was something he had casually acquired from the Black Wolf Gang; it was a completely substandard alchemy furnace.

In contrast, the alchemy furnaces of the other contestants around them, even if they were not dazzlingly bright, were mostly well-shaped and emitted stable spiritual energy fluctuations.

Even Su Wan, who was struggling financially, used a small and exquisite jade cauldron as her alchemy furnace.

Compared to Cui Yi's broken furnace, it's like comparing heaven and earth.

As soon as Cui Yi's alchemy furnace appeared, several pairs of eyes naturally turned to look at it.

Knowing yourself and your enemy is the key to victory in every battle. Since everyone is in competition with each other, paying attention to the strength and resources of other players is also part of gathering intelligence.

But once everyone saw Cui Yi's dilapidated alchemy furnace, they quickly looked away and lost interest.

"Tsk, where did this bumpkin come from? How dare someone like him make a fool of himself at the Pill Tower Conference?"

"They probably can't even afford a decent alchemy furnace, yet they dare to call themselves alchemists?"

"He probably snuck in from some back alley, trying his luck. He's obviously cannon fodder."

Unlike the disdain of others, Su Wan suddenly felt a pang of sadness.

My senior...

Despite not even having a decent alchemy furnace himself, he generously lent himself low-grade spirit stones.

Although he didn't say it outright, the senior must have been preparing for this Dan Tower conference for a long time!

"quiet!"

A Pill Tower steward, whose aura had reached the late stage of the Core Formation Realm, appeared from the high platform. With the words "Silence" appearing, he announced, "First round of the preliminary selection: each person shall refine three pills of any grade one, within a time limit of two hours."

"Subsequent scoring will be based on the quality of the pills and the actual time taken to consume them!"

"For pills of the same quality, the one that takes the least time to prepare wins!"

"Thirty percent have advanced from the first round!"

"Now, let's begin!"