I run a casino in the immortal realm.

This extremely subtle change in expression did not escape the eyes of Zheng Yifei, who was sitting below observing coldly.

He frowned almost imperceptibly, glanced at the bracelet on Zhao Ling's wrist, and a sense of vigilance rose in his heart.

The elaborate court banquet continued until evening.

The emperor and empress departed for the palace, and the guests gradually dispersed.

Zheng Yifei and the others returned to the villa, while Long Yuan and Zhao Ling returned to the newly built Prince Pingxi's Mansion.

Inside the new house in the back courtyard of the Prince's Mansion.

Red candles burned brightly, filling the air with joy. Long Yuan had just lifted Zhao Ling's veil and hadn't even had a chance to say a few sweet words when there was a sudden knock on the door.

"Yuan'er, it is your mother."

Consort Zheng's voice rang out from outside the door, sounding somewhat hurried.

Long Yuan was taken aback and quickly went to open the door. According to custom, elders should not disturb the wedding night.

Consort Zheng strode into the room, slammed the door shut behind her, and even took out a soundproofing talisman from her sleeve and stuck it on the door.

"Mother, what's wrong?"

Looking at Consort Zheng's pale face, Long Yuan asked in confusion.

Consort Zheng did not answer him. Instead, she walked straight to Zhao Ling, grabbed her wrist, and said urgently, "Ling'er, quickly, take off these bracelets that the Empress gave you!"

Zhao Ling was startled by Consort Zheng's actions, but she still obediently took off the Azure Water Concentration Bracelet from her wrist and handed it to Consort Zheng.

"Mother, is there something wrong with this bracelet?"

Long Yuan's face darkened.

Consort Zheng did not take the bracelet. Instead, she took a deep breath and looked at Zhao Ling, saying, "Ling'er, you are a seventh-level alchemist and are well-versed in pharmacology. Take a close look at these bracelets and heat the inside with your spiritual fire."

Zhao Ling's expression turned solemn.

She took the bracelet, walked to the table, and forced out a wisp of purple spiritual fire from her fingertips, carefully roasting the inside of the bracelet.

A moment later, a layer of extremely tiny, almost transparent droplets seeped out from the inside of the originally emerald green bracelet.

Under the scorching heat of the spiritual fire, the droplet transformed into a wisp of colorless and odorless gas, dissipating into the air.

Zhao Ling leaned closer and took a sniff; her face instantly turned deathly pale.

She immediately took out a silver needle from her storage bag and inserted it into the droplet. The originally bright silver needle instantly turned into an eerie dark purple.

"This...this is a mixture of 'Pulse-Severing Powder' and 'Entangling Silk Poison'!"

Zhao Ling's voice trembled slightly as she turned to look at Long Yuan: "This bracelet is made of special warm jade. The toxins are sealed inside the chalcedony and cannot be seen with the naked eye. However, as long as it is worn on the wrist, the body temperature and spiritual energy will slowly release the toxins, which will seep into the meridians through the pores."

What will be the consequences?

Long Yuan clenched his fists so tightly that his knuckles turned white.

"I didn't feel anything for a short period of time."

Zhao Ling gritted her teeth and said, "But over time, the toxins will penetrate deep into the bone marrow, causing not only your cultivation to stagnate but also to regress."

Even more insidious is that this "entanglement poison" can damage a woman's uterus, rendering her infertile for life.

Moreover, this poison has extremely strong adhesive properties. If you and I... have physical intimacy, the poison will also enter your body through the dual cultivation method, affecting your foundation!

"Bang!"

Long Yuan slammed his fist on the coffee table next to him, smashing the hard rosewood coffee table to pieces.

"A vicious woman! Absolutely a vicious woman!"

Long Yuan's eyes were bloodshot, and his chest heaved violently: "She's trying to cut off my lineage and destroy my cultivation! I'm going to find my father right now. I'm going to smash this bracelet in her face and show him her true colors!"

With that, Long Yuan turned and started to walk out.

"stop!"

Consort Zheng shouted sternly.

Long Yuan stopped and turned around, his eyes reddening. "Mother! They've gone so far as to bully us and threaten to cut off our lineage. Do you expect me to tolerate this?"

"I can't bear it, what can you do?"

Consort Zheng walked up to him, her eyes filled with sorrow yet utterly clear-headedness: "You think you can bring down the Empress by taking these bracelets to see your father, the Emperor? Yuan'er, you're too naive!"

Consort Zheng pointed at the pair of bracelets: "The Empress has been in charge of the inner palace for decades, and her power is deeply entrenched. If you take the bracelets to file a complaint, she has a hundred ways to get away with it. She can say that it was an oversight during the procurement by the Imperial Household Department, or that some palace maids and eunuchs were bribed to secretly poison her. She can even directly put forward a few scapegoats to take the blame."

In the end, she will only be guilty of negligence, while you will not only fail to bring her down, but will also make your father think you are narrow-minded and framed your stepmother on your wedding night!

Long Yuan froze, his clenched fists trembling slightly, but he could no longer take that step.

"Yuan'er, remember this."

Consort Zheng reached out and stroked Long Yuan's cheek, her voice soft yet icy: "In the royal family, accusations without evidence are considered framing. The reason the Empress dared to openly bestow this bracelet upon Ling'er is because she was certain we wouldn't dare to cause trouble, nor would we be able to achieve anything."

"So we just have to swallow this insult?"

Long Yuan gritted his teeth.

"Of course not."

A fierce glint flashed in Consort Zheng's eyes: "But the way to retaliate is not to cry and complain to your father. If you want revenge, you must cut off their hopes at the root."

Consort Zheng turned around, looked at Long Yuan and Zhao Ling, and her tone became more serious than ever before: "The reason why the Empress is so wary of you is because you have made meritorious contributions, been granted the title of King, and threatened the position of the Third Prince."

She wants to ruin you with this despicable means. All you need to do is go along with it, put the bracelet away, and pretend you know nothing.

"Three days later, you will go to the Western Frontier. Although it is dangerous there, it is also your chance to escape the quagmire of the capital and truly seize power."

Consort Zheng stared into Long Yuan's eyes: "Your father gave you the imperial sword, the power to act first and report later. You must firmly grasp the three prefectures of the Western Frontier and build an army that obeys only your orders!"

"Only when you have enough leverage, only when you have made unparalleled contributions in the Western Frontier, can you truly help the Crown Prince."

Once your eldest brother successfully ascends the throne and becomes the new emperor of this Heavenly Dragon Dynasty, the empress and the third prince will be nothing more than fish on a chopping block, completely at your mercy! Then, you can settle all your old and new scores with them slowly!

Long Yuan took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and forcibly suppressed the rage in his eyes.

When he opened his eyes again, there was no longer any impulse in them, only an unfathomable coldness and determination.

"Mother, I understand."

Long Yuan bowed deeply to Consort Zheng: "I will remember this debt. I will definitely carve out a new world for myself in the Western Frontier."

Consort Zheng nodded with satisfaction and turned to Zhao Ling: "Ling'er, I'm sorry to have troubled you. Find a jade box to seal this bracelet away and only wear it when you meet the Empress. As long as you stay in the Imperial Workshop and don't go out, the Empress's people can't do anything to you."

"Don't worry, Mother, Ling'er knows what's important."

Zhao Ling nodded obediently.

Three days passed in the blink of an eye.

During these three days, Long Yuan acted as if nothing was amiss, taking Zhao Ling to various social events and even going to the Empress's palace to express his gratitude, as if he knew nothing about the bracelets.

On the morning of the third day, at the west gate of Kyoto.

The cold wind was biting, whipping the banners on the city walls.

Long Yuan, dressed in black armor with the Shangfang sword at his waist, stood on a luxurious flying boat.

Behind him were three thousand elite imperial guards specially assigned to him by the emperor as the personal guard of the Prince of Pingxi.

There was also a Grand Eunuch named Zhou Cang, who was in charge of Longyuan's safety.

Zheng Yifei, also in military uniform, stood shoulder to shoulder with Long Yuan. Su Wanqing, Zhao Wenyuan, Zhang Biao, and others followed behind.

Zhao Ling and Zheng Ermei stood at the city gate, looking at them with slightly red eyes.

"Go back and stay at the Tiangong Academy. Wait for me to come back."

Long Yuan smiled at Zhao Ling.

"Brother Yifei, Brother Jiu, you must stay safe."

Zhao Ling waved her hand.

Long Yuan turned around and looked at Zheng Yifei, his eyes filled with a murderous aura: "Yifei, the situation in the Western Frontier is worse than we imagined. The Ministry of War gave me a briefing yesterday that the Qizhou front suffered a defeat just half a month ago, losing two counties."

Zheng Yifei touched the hilt of the sword at his waist, a cold smile playing on his lips: "It's easier to clean up a mess, Your Highness. Our brothers are already waiting in Qizhou. Once we get there, whoever dares to block our way will be cut through with the Imperial Sword in your hand."

"Set off!"

Longyuan drew his longsword and pointed it westward.

The flying boat sped westward like a shooting star.