one

The reason the Great Sage Equaling Heaven, the Wine Immortal, became an immortal was because he possessed the ability to drink a thousand cups without getting drunk. No, saying he could drink a thousand cups is an understatement. An ordinary person might not even be able to beat him in drinking water.

True friends are hard to find in the heavens. The Great Sage Equaling Heaven waited three hundred years before finally meeting his current friend, Yuan Mi Jun.

Yuanmi-jun loved wine and would often bring some wine from who-knows-where to enjoy with the Great Sage Equaling Heaven. The two would often sit under the green pine tree in the Seventh Heaven, drinking a couple of cups while reminiscing about the strange and interesting tales they had gathered from various places.

At that time, Yuanmi-kun brought a strange story.

Before I ascended to immortality, I heard that you, Great Sage Equal to Heaven, were able to become an immortal because of your ability to drink a thousand cups without getting drunk.

Yuanmi slowly swallowed the wine in his mouth, stealing glances at the Great Sage Equal to Heaven.

Upon hearing this, the Great Sage Equaling Heaven shook his folding fan and said, "No, no. The reason I became an immortal is because I was devoted to the Dao, and after that, I moved Heaven and Earth, which is why I was granted this opportunity to become an immortal."

Yuanmi Jun laughed: The strange thing I'm about to tell you has some similarities to yours.

The Monkey King closed his folding fan and fixed his gaze on Yuan Mijun's face.

Yuanmi-jun deliberately kept everyone in suspense, shaking his head and swaying his body before slowly saying: "I've heard of a woman in the mortal realm, a truly extraordinary woman. It's said she drinks wine like water, yet she's never been drunk."

After speaking, he leaned closer to the Great Sage Equaling Heaven with a mischievous grin and said, "If she ascends to immortality because of this, wouldn't there be a male and a female wine immortal in the heavenly realm? Oh, Great Sage Equaling Heaven, you are truly blessed with good fortune."

The Monkey King snorted coldly and said, "Don't drag me into these messy things. A female wine fairy? Hmph, she can't outdrink me?"

Yuan Mijun, however, pretended to be profound, drank a cup of wine, and his cheeks were flushed with a blush. Before half an incense stick had burned, he was so drunk that he fell asleep on the stone table.

The Monkey King, however, remained perfectly clear-headed. He waved his folding fan, gazing at the distant Jade Forest and Jade Pool, his brows slowly furrowing. The Wine Immortal couldn't keep things bottled up; once he had an idea, he was going to do it.

He got up and glanced at Yuan Mijun, who was fast asleep and unlikely to wake up anytime soon. A smile crept onto his lips, and the Wine Immortal, fanning himself with his folding fan, said: "You wait here, I'll go see just how that woman is so good at drinking without getting drunk!"

two

The mortal realm was not unfamiliar to him; in fact, it was a place even more familiar to the Great Sage Equaling Heaven than the Heavenly Realm. As a wine immortal, the Great Sage Equaling Heaven frequently descended to the mortal realm to find ingredients for brewing wine. Although the Heavenly Realm was overflowing with celestial herbs and spiritual grains, the significance of wine lay in its ability to evoke a myriad of emotions. While the grains of the Heavenly Realm were of high quality, they lacked the worldly charm and flavor found in mortal wine.

The Great Sage Equaling Heaven, who knew everything about the mortal world, found the woman in less than half a day.

The Monkey King concealed his divine aura and transformed into an ordinary prince or nobleman in the mortal realm. He waved a folding fan among the crowd, listening to the discussions of the mortals around him, and couldn't help but find it amusing.

It was quite a rare thing for a woman to be unmarried past twenty. The Great Sage Equaling Heaven overheard the conversations around him and learned that this woman came from a family of winemakers. Her exceptional skill in brewing wine had allowed her parents to refuse several arranged marriages. Now, however, her parents could no longer wait and had no choice but to hold a contest to find her a suitable son-in-law.

The first round is a wine tasting. Regardless of wealth or social status, whoever brews a wine that wins the woman's approval can advance to the finals. The finals are a wine-drinking contest. Whoever can get the woman drunk, even a beggar, can win her heart.

A beauty? The Monkey King laughed. If there was a beauty, then the dashing and debonair Wine Immortal must be among them. He closed his folding fan, tapped the pocket at his waist, and casually chanted a spell. The pocket instantly bulged, and he reached in and pulled out a flask of wine. Without further thought, the Monkey King flipped and leaped onto the arena.

At this moment, there were already more than a dozen men of all shapes and sizes on the arena, old and young, fat and thin. The Monkey King stood among them, looking particularly dashing and handsome.

The wine was served one by one into the beaded curtain behind the arena. The Great Sage Equaling Heaven looked up for a moment, but could only see shadowy figures behind the curtain, making it impossible to make out the woman's figure.

Finally, it was the Monkey King's turn. He poured himself a cup of wine and said to the maid who brought it, "This wine is called 'Yi Dan' (meaning 'light taste'). Miss, after tasting it, you will naturally understand its meaning."

Yi Dan is the masterpiece of the Wine Immortal, and the celestial wine used for the Queen Mother's birthday celebration is Yi Dan. At first taste, this wine is as bland as water, but as the liquid rolls from the tip of the tongue to the back, a gradual sweetness emerges. And when this sweetness falls into the throat and then flows into the chest, a gentle warmth fills the entire body.

This is the essence of understated elegance; though the initial impression may seem calm and breezy, the aftereffects are powerful and intense.

Not long after the wine was served, the beaded curtain was lifted by a pair of hands, and a woman walked out from it.

This must be the extraordinary woman that Yuanmi-jun mentioned, who can drink a thousand cups without getting drunk.

The Monkey King's lips curled into a smile, and he began to slowly wave his folding fan again. The woman in his eyes walked towards him with graceful movements. Although her head was lowered and her face was obscured, her gait suggested she was a beauty.

The beautiful woman walked up to him and slowly raised her head. Her eyes were round and bright, extremely clever and clear. It was March, and the sunlight falling on her eyes was a crystal-clear hue. Even the wind seemed to have a shape, carrying peach blossoms that had drifted from who-knows-where, creating a radiant scene.

The Monkey King was taken aback at first, but before he could recover, the beauty in front of him smiled wickedly, rolled up her sleeves, shoved the Monkey King, and raised her voice: "Your wine is quite good, I, Ye He, am convinced! This hero, you can move on to the next round."

A sudden roar erupted around them, and the Monkey King snapped out of his daze. He stared wide-eyed, opened his mouth, but couldn't utter a single word.

This chapter is not finished, please click the next page to continue reading!