Accident

With a loud bang, Gu Youan was thrown back, surrounded by black smoke. Her hair was sticking out, and she coughed, spitting out mouthfuls of black smoke. Her face was also covered in black soot.

She made poison according to the method in the book, but it exploded.

Gu Youan looked at her hands. Fortunately, they had only knocked her away, not blown her away. The house was blown to pieces.

"Qingyang, where are you?"

The water in the pool was bubbling and steaming when Qingyang emerged with huge panda eyes.

"Girl, I'm here."

Gu Youan quickly stepped forward and helped him up, "How did you get blown into the pool?"

Qingyang sighed, "Miss, this is the tenth explosion in the past two weeks."

She lowered her head guiltily. "So you hid in the pool while I was making the potion?"

She was following the instructions in the book, so why did she keep making mistakes? Gu Youan stared at the shattered bottle, lost in thought.

Qingyang quickly comforted him, "Host, don't be sad. Everyone has their own strengths. You're just not suited to making poison."

"Lord Rumei has not restricted your freedom. This pool leads outside, so why don't you come with me to find some inspiration?"

She's been in the cave for a long time, so perhaps...

She looked up at the sharp cliffs overhead, knowing that as a newcomer, she feared that acting rashly might lead to something unpleasant.

Qingyang smiled slightly and said, "Don't worry, young lady, this is Lord Rumei's territory, we will not encounter any danger."

Gu Youan's heart skipped a beat; she sensed this was not a good sign. "System, we're about to unlock a new character in our youth."

"Don't worry, host. The characters in the book are all NPCs and won't cause you any real harm."

Gu Youan rubbed her forehead. "Isn't that obvious? If ordinary people could hurt me, then what would be the point of my life?"

She smiled slightly. More than half a month had passed, but there was still no progress. Perhaps she really didn't have the talent. She might as well go out and relax.

Gu Youan stared at the pool. After Ru Mei left that day, she locked the door but did not tell him that there was something hidden in the pool. Could it be that the pool water was also the key to making poison?

She recalled the scene in the pool that day. Could it be...? She gently pricked her finger with a needle, letting drops of blood fall into the pool water. Suddenly, tiny, dense insects appeared.

Qingyang watched Gu Youan's actions calmly, "Congratulations, young lady, on figuring out the mystery."

Gu Youan turned to look at him. Qingyang clearly knew the secret, yet he coldly watched her struggles over the past few days. But then she thought, Qingyang had only known her for a few days, so why would he help her?

Her eyes darkened. It seemed that the demon's surveillance was everywhere. She had to find a way to get rid of Qingyang.

Qingyang felt a chill run down his spine. He said in a panic, "Miss, you need to figure out this pool of water yourself. Only after countless failed experiments can you trigger the insects in the pool."

Gu Youan looked down at him for a long time. "Get up, Qingyang. I promised you I wouldn't let you suffer."

Even if Qingyang deliberately delayed her, it was only to save his own life. After drinking the sword that sealed his throat, he would suffer a painful death.

Gu Youan closed her eyes. She had also experimented on small animals and there were many drug test subjects in real life, but when she actually faced Qingyang, she felt a little reluctant.

Qingyang held her hand and said, "Don't worry, young lady, I won't die."

The people who are poisoned are immersed in all kinds of poisons from a young age, and their bodies are immune to all poisons. "As long as the girl can successfully develop the poison, I can survive."

Qingyang grasped Gu Youan's fingers and gently sucked the blood from his hand.

Gu Youan looked at him in surprise. She gently pulled her hand away, but Qingyang gripped it even tighter.

"System, how dare I accept this? Qingyang is acting strangely." Qingyang was adopted by the Emperor and lived in this dark and gloomy place. He was also being used as a human experiment. She suddenly felt a chill down her spine. If she lived in such an environment, she would probably have gone crazy long ago. A person's personality is influenced by their environment. Looking at the person in front of her, she wondered if he was going to become a crazy man in the future.

"Host, don't worry. You are a little angel who can influence others. As long as you become the strongest here, he will be your strongest support."

Gu Youan was speechless. "You've already imposed some of these settings on him, so why make her bear all of this?"

Mingming Qingyang was eventually able to break free from the story's plot and become an ordinary person.

Gu Youan took two steps back. She saw a trace of dependence in Qingyang's eyes, a dependence that chilled her to the bone. She avoided Qingyang's gaze; his eyes were too intense, and that intensity would eventually burn her.

No one can rely on another. If you entrust your life to someone else, it will eventually backfire.

Gu Youan took a small step back. "Don't look at me like that, Qingyang. Don't trust me too much."

She knew her own nature; in a crisis, she would abandon those around her and run away. She wasn't a very responsible person.

“I am not your master. Once we leave this place, we are both people of the Emperor’s crew. Qingyang, you came here as a child and it’s easy for you to see others as your only support. But I hope you remember that no one can be your only support.”

Gu Youan withdrew her hand and turned around to continue her experiment. Too many items in the cave had been damaged, and she needed to hurry.

Although Ru Mei had been missing for several days, Gu Youan knew that she must know what had happened here.

Qingyang watched Gu Youan's movements and silently cut his wrist. "Miss, my blood is also a medicinal herb."

He stared blankly into her eyes, swallowing the words that were about to come out.

Drops of blood fell into the petri dish in front of him. Gu Youan looked at him in surprise; his eyes were already unfocused.

Gu Youan suddenly grabbed his hand, "What did you do?"

Qingyang opened his mouth slightly, "Miss, I am a medicine man, I am the best poison. When you discovered the difference in the pool water, I knew you would be the best alchemist on the Emperor's ship. Miss Xuanji, there are mysteries everywhere here. I just used my charm, but you comforted me and felt sorry for me. I am very fortunate to have a master like you."

A "One-Sword-to-the-Throat" plant grew in the petri dish. Gu Youan gently touched it, and suddenly "the juice of the 'One-Sword-to-the-Throat' plant fell onto her fingertips and dissolved in them."

She rubbed her fingers together, a moment of panic washing over her. Qingyang took her hand and said, "Don't worry, girl, I won't hurt you."

Gu Youan frowned. "System, what does he mean by that?"

"Host, you are too vigilant. The medicine man has no consciousness of his own. After you become an alchemist, he will lose his consciousness. Right now, he just wants to remember what you look like."

Gu Youan lowered her eyes, her attention focused on her hands. "System, remember, I don't need a romance storyline. I need to find the Emperor's Sword and return as soon as possible."

Follow the main storyline to find the Emperor's Sword.

Gu Youan will not forget her mission, nor will she forget where her home is; she does not need to get involved in things outside the plot.

"Host, he can protect you."

Gu Youan put down the "One Sword to the Throat" sword in his hand. "System, you must remember that no one can sacrifice themselves for others."

The life of a medicine man is also a life. If it weren't for the famine that year, Qingyang would have stayed with his parents, passed the imperial examinations, and had a stable life, instead of facing death at such a young age.

Gu Youan sighed. She looked up at the steep stone wall. A small insect flew out. He should have gone crazy long ago after being locked up in such a confined space. Only people who love experiments can live in a closed space for a long time.

Qingyang's eyes became cloudy. Gu Youan held his wrist. So this was the drug test. In the future, the toxins in her body would be transferred to Qingyang's body until he was poisoned.

She was silent for a moment. There was such a way. One person's suffering was borne by another. She suddenly remembered what Ru Mei had said.

Does the fact that Ru Mei knows his true identity prove that she has other uses for him?

Gu Youan closed her eyes slightly as she recalled the plot of the original book, in which the Emperor's Clan was the organization that ultimately fought against the male protagonist.

Ye Qingchen's father and brothers had all passed away, and he himself had become the eldest princess's lover. He seduced Gu Youan to get close to Xie Daoqing because he valued the Xie family's background and the ability to clear the Ye family's name. The power of the Emperor's Regime was intricate and complex. Such an assassin organization could survive in the Dayong Dynasty for a hundred years, which was not only due to its own strength. The Emperor's Regime might have royal backing.

Gu Sheng's seemingly casual probing on the day he left... could it be...?

Gu Youan fell into deep thought. She was not anyone's pawn, nor was she being used by anyone. Gu Youan was Gu Sheng's only biological daughter. Could it be that Gu Sheng was also investigating the owner behind the "Emperor"?

Gu Youan looked at Qingyang, whose face had turned deathly pale. The vines extending from "One Sword to the Throat" were sucking his blood.

She covered the wound on Qingyang's throat with a black cloth. Qingyang's face gradually regained its color. Gu Youan sighed and looked around. She suddenly felt that this place was like a huge furnace. In Qingyang's eyes, she would be the best alchemist. In Rumei's eyes, she would become one of the twelve envoys. But what about herself? Her original idea was to become the strongest in this world. The "Emperor" eventually became the male protagonist's biggest threat. The best martial arts manuals were also hidden here.

A sudden thought crossed her mind: "Host, it's not that the Emperor's Ship has become the male lead's greatest enemy, but rather that the owner of the Emperor's Ship has become the male lead's greatest enemy. If you accept the Emperor's Ship in the future and become the male lead's enemy, you will also become the male lead's greatest enemy. Don't use the result to deduce the direction, but rather the direction caused the result."

Gu Youan closed her eyes, trying not to think about the system's words, and instead cleared her mind.

What happens in the future is another matter; the most important thing right now is to get through the first hurdle.