It turns out, they were the main characters.

Apart from these rare and precious natural treasures, other rare medicinal materials are relatively easy to obtain. Although they are difficult to find, the Azure Emperor's resources allow him to produce them.

This elixir has only one effect: to refine emptiness and comprehend the Dao.

Mu Zhian still has a long way to go before reaching the Enlightenment Realm, but the Azure Emperor is already preparing this pill, which shows just how much she trusts her Daoist partner's talent.

"If the Medicine King finds this difficult, then just pretend I never brought it up," Yao Meng said.

Luo Tan's eyes flickered, and she chuckled softly: "I have always admired Mu's talent. If he weren't the husband of the Azure Emperor, I would have even considered taking him as my disciple."

"Moreover, the relationship between the Azure Emperor and young friend Mu is also touching... Therefore, I can refine the Nine Cauldrons Refining Pill on your behalf."

Yao Meng gave Luo Tan a meaningful look, her blue eyes revealing a hint of allure, and smiled, "That's good. At first, I was thinking that if the Medicine Emperor refused, I could ask other alchemists to help with this... but in terms of completion, I'm afraid it would be far inferior to the Medicine Emperor."

She paused for a moment, then continued, "However, besides the matter of alchemy, I have another request."

Upon hearing this, Luo Tan's elegant smile faded slightly. He picked up his teacup, slowly brewed tea, and said calmly, "Your Majesty, please speak frankly."

If asked to help refine the pill, she might do so out of respect for the Azure Emperor, since the person who needed the pill was Mu Zhi'an.

But the Green Emperor keeps making demands. Does he think this place is his own backyard?

Yao Meng leisurely played with a strand of hair and said softly, "Next, for that pill, I need to go to the Southern Wilderness to find the God of Space to fulfill her promise. She previously promised to give me the Black Flame True Leaf."

She paused deliberately, her voice crisp and melodious: "This trip will last at least three days, and at most ten days. During this time, I cannot rest easy leaving my husband alone at the Liangyi Sect, so..."

Luo Tan's fingertips, which were holding the teacup, trembled slightly. He suddenly opened his eyes wide, as if he had realized something.

Yao Meng turned her head to look at him, her voice calm, but in Luo Tan's heart it was like a boulder thrown into a lake, creating countless ripples.

"Therefore, I would like to ask the Medicine King to take care of my husband for a few days. What do you think?"

Chapter 490 He really... I'm crying my eyes out 5K

For Luo Tan, helping and taking care of others is not something she is good at.

She was the Empress of Yuzhou. In the past, besides dealing with the affairs of the Celestial Dynasty, she spent most of her time cultivating and studying alchemy.

To ask her to personally take care of someone, especially a boy... at least to her, Mu Zhian was indeed a boy in terms of lifespan.

In short, taking care of others is not her forte.

This time, however, Luo Tan did not directly refuse.

Because she suddenly realized that she couldn't quite figure out what the Azure Emperor was thinking.

“I know this might be a bit difficult for the Medicine King, but I don’t have anyone I can trust in Dongzhou, so after careful consideration, it seems that only Yuzhou can allow my husband to cultivate in peace for a while.”

Yao Meng held the teacup, gazing at the calm pool in the distance. Her voice had a cool quality and a gentle tone unique to fairies.

"of course."

Yao Meng paused, a faint smile appearing on her beautiful face as she admired the layout and scenery of the hall, and continued, "If it is not convenient for the Medicine Emperor, I will not force him."

"I'll still ask someone else to help me with this when the time comes—"

Before she could finish speaking, Luo Tan suddenly said casually, "I hit it off with the Azure Emperor at first sight. Since he is your husband, it is only right that I help take care of him for a few days. The Azure Emperor doesn't need to be so formal."

Yao Meng smiled: "That would be wonderful."

She withdrew her gaze, her beautiful eyes looking at Mu Zhian, her voice soft: "With the Medicine King taking care of things, my husband should be able to rest assured while I'm away for a few days, right?"

...I always felt that Yao Meng was being sarcastic and unsettling.

Mu Zhian realized another layer of meaning in Yao Meng's words, and even when he gazed into those emerald green eyes, he could see a trace of resentment in the eyes of this Azure Emperor sister.

Clearly, Yao Meng's claim of asking the Medicine Emperor for a few days' care was a pretense; her true intention was to temporarily entrust her husband to him.

As for what will happen during this period... that depends on what kind of thoughts the Medicine King has towards Mu Zhian.

Although Yao Meng always held the idea that "as long as I don't feel like I'm being cheated on, then I'm the one cheating on others," the act of personally handing over her lover to another woman for a few days—a self-inflicted act of cheating—ultimately made Yao Meng a little jealous.

The look of reproach and jealousy in her eyes, so captivatingly beautiful, was enough to make Mu Zhi'an's heart flutter.

With others watching, Mu Zhian had no choice but to force himself to look away and immediately said, "It's fine if Sister Qingdi makes the decision... Actually, I'm quite interested in alchemy, so it would be good if I could take this opportunity to learn a thing or two."

This wasn't exactly a lie. Mu Zhian did have some interest in alchemy. In the past, when he refined a second-grade Lesser Rejuvenation Pill, he infused it with Heavenly Court spiritual energy, allowing female cultivators who took the pill to refine Heavenly Court spiritual energy... However, that pill wasn't as effective for those at the Returning to Void Realm.

If more Heavenly Court spiritual energy could be infused into the pill, and if this pill were to circulate outside, it would probably be wildly sought after by female cultivators in the Void Returning Realm.

Mu Zhian was quite interested in alchemy and wanted to learn a thing or two from Luo Tan.

Yao Meng smiled brightly, as if making the surrounding light and scenery pale in comparison.

"Then you should cultivate here for now. I will come to find you after I return from the Southern Wilderness in a few days."

As she finished speaking, she turned her gaze to Luo Tan and smiled, "My husband will be in need of the Medicine Emperor's help these next few days."

Luo Tan's slender hands, resting on her lap, unconsciously gripped her gorgeous white dress.

For this Medicine King, even when she first attained Dao, her Dao heart had never been so stirred as it is today.

When she wrote to Mu Zhian, she had thought about what to do if the Azure Emperor and Mu Zhian came to Yuzhou together...

However, unexpectedly, the Azure Emperor planned to go to the Southern Wilderness first in order to refine the Nine Cauldrons into the Void Pill.

Moreover... she even personally delivered her husband to her.

Noticing Yao Meng's gentle gaze, Luo Tan smiled faintly as well: "It's alright~"

Yao Meng put down her teacup, stood up, and walked to Mu Zhi'an. Her slender hand gently traced the blue lotus ring on his finger, then she raised her beautiful eyes and said with a smile, "You must cultivate diligently while I'm gone, don't disappoint me~"

As soon as she finished speaking, she transformed into a wisp of blue figure, and in the next moment, she seemed to drift away with the wind.

"He really left..."

Even as the woman left, Luo Tan seemed to still find it hard to believe, and couldn't help but whisper something under his breath.

She and the Azure Emperor were just casual acquaintances, so why did he trust her so much?

That makes sense, though. She is a powerful being in the Dao Integration Realm and holds a high status in the Nine Provinces. No matter how hard anyone tries, they probably wouldn't think she would have any connection with this young man.

Moreover... he already has a Daoist partner, one of whom is even the Azure Emperor of the Jade Pool Holy Land.

If people were to find out about her relationship with Mu Zhian... once this matter gets out, even the reputation of the Medicine King would be damaged.

Luo Tan quickly collected her thoughts, turned around and smiled: "Come with me for a walk to clear your head."

"It started right after Yao Meng left...?" Mu Zhian nodded slightly: "Okay!"

……

Luo Tan dismissed the guards and maids, and walked side by side with Mu Zhian from the back door of the main hall to the lakeside.

“I thought you would go to Yuzhou alone, but I didn’t expect that the Azure Emperor would send you here. She really values ​​you very much.”

Luo Tan wore snow-white jade boots, and her gorgeous white dress, inlaid with gold and silver threads, made her temperament even more elegant and noble.

Many women appear vulgar after wearing gold and silver, but this near-immortal alchemy empress does not appear vulgar at all; instead, she exudes an air of nobility.

A string of ruby ​​pendants adorned her fair neck, perfectly concealed by her full, firm breasts, making them seem unfathomable.

"Sister Qingdi has indeed treated me very well. In fact, she was planning to go to the Southern Wilderness this time, but she was worried about leaving me alone in the Eastern Continent. Later, she learned that His Majesty valued talent, so she thought of you here." Mu Zhian glanced at Luo Tan and saw that she seemed to have some doubts, so he explained the whole story in great detail.

"Given the Azure Emperor's connections in the Eastern Continent, he shouldn't have entrusted me with such a 'troublesome' matter..." Luo Tan's tone remained elegant as she admired the scenery along the lake, but she still had some doubts about the matter.

Mu Zhian sighed softly: "Your Majesty may not know this, but although the Azure Emperor has a wide network of connections in the Eastern Continent, you should have heard that she and I were not originally Daoist partners."

Luo Tan nodded slightly: "I've heard a little about it. She did something inappropriate in this matter."

The Azure Emperor was not Mu Zhi'an's first Daoist partner, but rather someone who entered the picture midway through their journey. Luo Tan had naturally investigated this matter thoroughly.

"However, there is no such thing as fairness in love. Although it is inappropriate, it is human nature and understandable." Thinking about what she would have to do for the child beside her, Luo Tan quickly added another sentence.

She slowed her pace slightly, looked at him with a slight smile, her rosy lips moved, and said, "Since you are interested in alchemy, then let's get ready today. After the morning court session tomorrow, you can wait for me in my bedchamber, and I will personally teach you the art of alchemy."

Why go to the imperial bedchamber to refine pills... Mu Zhian nodded slightly, and casually glanced at the tall empress twice.

Unlike the women Mu Zhian had known before, this empress seemed to be the epitome of nobility and elegance. Although you knew her status and position in Yuzhou, you couldn't help but want to tease and suppress her, and then watch her fall from her high and mighty position to the mortal world, revealing an embarrassed and shy expression.

"What's wrong? Is there something on my face?" Luo Tan knew what Mu Zhi'an was thinking, but instead of revealing it, she asked deliberately.

Mu Zhian calmly withdrew his gaze and said, "Speaking of which, does Your Majesty still remember the alchemy competition held by the Liangyi Sect a few days ago?"

Luo Tan nodded slightly: "I invited you after that, so of course I remember it."

“I’ve been thinking lately that although the pills I refine contain Heavenly Court spiritual energy, the amount of Heavenly Court spiritual energy injected into the pills is limited, and the help to the Void Returning Realm is not as great as I imagined… But if I inject more Heavenly Court spiritual energy into the pills, the pills will explode.”

Mu Zhian paused for a moment: "Does Your Majesty have any way to combine the two?"

"By perfectly fusing the Heavenly Court's spiritual energy with elixirs, even cultivators at the Returning Void Realm can refine the Heavenly Court's spiritual energy through these elixirs and thus benefit...?"

Upon hearing this, Luo Tan's beautiful eyes flickered, and she fell into deep thought.

This was a realm she had never ventured into before. After all, even those who had attained the Dao could not touch the Heavenly Court, let alone its spiritual energy.

She then chuckled softly, "That's quite an interesting question. I'll think about it when I get back today and give you an answer in a couple of days."

"Do you still have any Grade Two Lesser Rejuvenation Pills infused with Heavenly Court spiritual energy?" Luo Tan asked.

Mu Zhian took out a jade bottle from his storage ring and handed it to Luo Tan.

Luo Tan's expression became somewhat intoxicated after just a slight sniff of the fragrance emanating from the jade bottle.

After a moment, she slowly opened her beautiful eyes and said softly, "Actually, even if you didn't have a natural furnace, I would still invite you to Yuzhou for a while."

"Alchemy is different from cultivation. While basic skills are important, the flexible application of alchemy techniques is equally important. It is not necessary to rigidly follow the prescription to add medicinal materials in order to make pills."

"And your past innovations in alchemy are also the reason I invited you."

Mu Zhian smiled and said, "It's a pity I grew up in Dongzhou. If I had been born in Yuzhou, I would have tried my best to serve His Majesty, even if it meant being a slave."

Luo Tan glanced at him with a slight smile: "If you're willing, it's not too late now."

Her words were sincere; clearly, the empress had genuinely extended an olive branch.

I just don't know whether they're more interested in using the official vehicle for personal purposes or genuinely care about the talent.

Of course, although she extended the invitation, she didn't think Mu Zhian would agree from the start, and besides, the Azure Emperor would never allow Mu Zhian to stay for long.

“By the way, when I was in Tianxuan City, I was often taken care of by a guest elder in my clan. If it weren’t for him, I probably wouldn’t be where I am today. And the only thing he was interested in in his life was alchemy. I wonder if Your Majesty could…” Mu Zhian suddenly remembered this matter.

Luo Tan readily accepted: "That's fine. I'll write a letter of recommendation for him to go to Zunyun Academy. There are many elders there who are dedicated to studying alchemy. I think it will greatly improve his alchemy skills in the future."

Mu Zhian raised his hand in a bow: "Then I, Mu, will thank Your Majesty on behalf of the elders of my clan."

Luo Tan glanced back casually at the incredibly sincere young man, took a half step forward, and said with a smile, "Actually, your politeness makes people feel distant."