After Xiao Feng exclaimed in surprise, Xu Zhu and the others also clutched their stomachs.

The three imperial chefs in charge of judging the competition coughed up blood and collapsed on the stage.

Li Huan was stunned.

Holy crap, no way? How could there be poison in the food?

Who did it?

Xiao Feng and Xu Zhu quickly sat cross-legged and began to circulate their internal energy to resist the deadly poison in their bodies.

The scene was chaotic.

Li Huan glared at Murong Fu: "What exactly happened?"

Murong Fu's expression changed drastically: "I...I don't know...I don't know..."

The thirty people who went on stage to taste the ten dishes have also collapsed.

Fortunately, they were highly skilled in martial arts and did not die on the spot. They all quickly used their internal energy to fight off the poison.

Li Huan thought to himself that since Murong Fu was trying to bribe experts to work for him, he probably wouldn't poison the food to harm them.

Unless, of course, this poison is similar to the "Life and Death Talisman," capable of controlling the target.

Immediately afterwards, the three imperial chefs convulsed and screamed in agony.

"It hurts so much! It hurts so much!"

"Help! Help..."

Thirty-three people were poisoned at the scene. Among them, Xiao Feng and Xu Zhu were the most skilled in martial arts. They frowned and kept circulating their internal energy.

The other twenty-seven people also began to scream and howl in agony, unable to bear the excruciating pain inside their bodies.

The thing Li Huan feared most has finally happened!

Sure enough, someone had put a poison similar to a "life-or-death talisman" in the food, which could cause excruciating pain.

Duan Yu, Wang Yuyan, Li Qinglu, Kumārajīva, and the five renowned chefs did not taste the ten dishes; they remained unharmed.

Duan Yu said in surprise, "Impossible! There is absolutely no poison in the Eight Treasure Duck I cooked!"

Wang Yuyan and Li Qinglu both looked completely innocent.

The other five participating chefs were trembling with fear and hurriedly waved their hands to indicate that they had not secretly poisoned the food.

Li Huan looked at Kumārajīva: "You must have poisoned the food!"

Kumārajīva exclaimed, "I am a monk, compassionate and kind-hearted. How could I possibly poison the food? Besides, I have also tasted the vegetarian dishes I prepared!"

Then, Kumārajīva pointed at Wang Yuyan and said, "It must have been you who secretly poisoned her!"

Wang Yuyan said aggrievedly, "I have no grudge against any of you, why would I poison you?"

Kumārajīva said, "Today's 'Martial Arts Culinary Gathering' is actually a conspiracy by Murong Fu. He intends to harm all the heroes of the world and subdue you!"

Murong Fu angrily retorted, "Don't make false accusations! What benefit have I gained from subduing these heroes?"

Kumārajīva said, "You are a descendant of the Yan Kingdom, and you have always dreamed of restoring the Yan Kingdom, subduing heroes from all walks of life, and forcing them to serve you!"

Murong Fu was furious and retorted sharply: "I invited all the heroes here, treated them with great hospitality, and presented them with gold, silver and jewels and beautiful women. That would have been enough to win them over. Why resort to such despicable means as poisoning?"

Kumārajīva sneered: "Your father, Murong Bo, was a despicable and shameless villain. Like father, like son!"

“You…you…” Murong Fu’s eyes were blazing with anger.

At this moment, Xu Zhu's face turned deathly pale, and he couldn't help but cry out in pain.

Li Huan is the best in the world at martial arts, but he is not good at detoxification.

Moreover, it's unknown what kind of poison Xu Zhu, Xiao Feng, and the others were given.

Without a second thought, Li Huan immediately sat down behind Xu Zhu, pressed his palms against his back, and used his internal energy to try to force out the deadly poison he had been afflicted with.

However, it was all in vain.

Immediately afterwards, Xiao Feng also trembled all over in pain, clenched his fists, gritted his teeth and endured the pain without making a sound.

Azhu's face flushed red with anxiety, and tears streamed down her face.

Murong Fu said, "Alliance Leader Li, I swear to God that I did not secretly poison anyone. If there is even half a lie, Alliance Leader Li may kill me with one palm!"

Li Huan's mind raced.

Which dish contains the deadly poison?

First, we can rule out Duan Yu, Wang Yuyan, and Li Qinglu, as none of them could have poisoned her.

The other five renowned chefs, all eager to win the martial arts manual "Yi Jin Jing" and 100,000 taels of silver, were legitimate contestants and would never poison anyone.

The prime suspect is Kumārajīva.

In order to help the Tibetan prince become the son-in-law of the Western Xia Kingdom, he killed Duan Yu and Murong Fu, but as a result, he became a "frog in a well" and almost starved to death in the dry well.

Therefore, after being rescued, Kumārajīva was determined to take revenge.

He traveled a long way to Suzhou, and while participating in the "Martial Arts Culinary Competition," he secretly poisoned the dishes to vent his personal grievances.

Thinking of this, Li Huan's gaze shot towards Kumārajīva like an arrow.

"What are you looking at, little monk?" Kumārajīva exclaimed.

Li Huan pointed at Kumārajīva and angrily rebuked him.

"Stop pretending! You must have poisoned them, plotted against all the heroes, and tried to subdue and control them!"

Kumārajīva said, "If I were to use poison, I would kill Alliance Leader Li, Young Master Duan, and Murong Fu. Why go to such lengths to subdue these people?"

Li Huan raised his palm: "Kumārajīva! If you still don't admit it, I'll plant a 'Life and Death Talisman' on you and let you taste the bitterness of being caught between life and death!"

Instantly, Kumārajīva instinctively took a few steps back, his face showing fear.

"Alliance Leader Li, you're being a bit unreasonable. This humble monk didn't poison anyone at all. How can I admit it?"

Li Huan used his internal energy to grab a wine cup from a distance and poured the wine into his palm.

Seeing this, Kumārajīva took a few steps back and reached out to grab Xuzhu's neck tightly.

"Li Huan! If you dare to plant the Life and Death Talisman on me, I'll kill Xu Zhu!"

Kumārajīva's voice suddenly became sharp and turned into a woman's voice!

Li Huan was shocked, feeling that the woman's voice was somewhat familiar.

"Azi!" Azhu shouted from below the stage.

Li Huan suddenly realized the truth.

The person standing before him, Kumārajīva, was not him at all, but rather Azi in disguise!

Li Huan cursed angrily: "Damn it! You're Azi! You son of a bitch, how dare you play me like that!"

Azi raised her left hand and quickly peeled off the human skin mask from her face, revealing her true appearance with fair skin and delicate eyebrows.

"Hahaha, you've all been fooled! You've fallen for my trick!"

Ah Zi laughed triumphantly, her right hand never leaving Xu Zhu's throat.

Li Huan knew that Ruan Xingzhu was skilled in disguise, and that A Zhu and A Zi were also proficient in this art.

Azi not only cleverly impersonated Kumārajīva's appearance and physique, but also imitated his voice and tone of voice, making it difficult to distinguish the real from the fake.

Li Huan questioned, "Azi, how do you know that Kumārajīva is trapped in the dry well?"

Azi laughed and said, "I heard from my sister that Kumārajīva was trapped in a dry well outside the city, so I rushed to the city, moved the stone at the well opening, and rescued Kumārajīva!"

"That old bald monk, after starving for six days and six nights, ate only one frog and drank a bellyful of dirty water. Hahaha, he was about to die, but when he saw me, he acted like he had seen a Bodhisattva!"

Upon hearing this, Li Huan looked at A Zhu.

“I…I did tell Azi…” Azhu looked regretful. “I was wrong. I shouldn’t have revealed Kumārajīva’s whereabouts…”

Clearly, when A'Zhu visited Ruan Xingzhu in the bamboo grove by Xiaojing Lake, they chatted about "Kumārajīva being trapped in a dry well".

Unexpectedly, after learning about this, Azi actually went to rescue Kumārajīva.

Li Huan glared at A Zi and asked, "Why did you save Kumārajīva?"