Su Yueli nodded and stepped forward to follow.
She was not afraid of the other side harboring any schemes. With the strength of her current Thirteenth Realm Leakless Body, however vast the imperial palace might be, if she wished to leave, no one could keep her.
Following the Golden Armored Guard around several secluded corridors, the two stopped before a side hall.
The guard pushed open the doors and gestured for Su Yueli to enter.
The hall's arrangement was exquisitely meticulous. Its four walls were lined with dark cabinets made of agarwood, holding over a hundred neat little jade drawers. The air was thick with a rich yet non-pungent medicinal fragrance.
At the center of the hall stood an ancient pill furnace, bluish-green all over. A faint glow still lingered beneath it, clearly extinguished only moments ago.
The guard gave a slight bow toward the interior, then pulled the doors shut and withdrew, leaving Su Yueli alone.
In a wooden chair deep within the pill chamber sat an old man who had evidently been waiting for quite some time.
He wore a clean grayish-white Daoist robe. His hair and beard were both white, yet his complexion was ruddy, and a faint scent of fire baleful intent and herbs accumulated through years of pill refinement clung to him.
Su Yueli raised her hands in a fist-and-palm salute and said politely, "Master Yun."
The old man looked Su Yueli over, stroked his long beard, and smiled. "No need for such courtesy. This old man's name is Yun Tianheng. You entered the inner court of the imperial palace alone—quite bold indeed. May I ask what business you have with Yun?"
Su Yueli went straight to the point. "I heard that Master Yun is an eighth-grade alchemist who has once refined eighth-grade peak pills.