"I wasn't wrong. Taste this wine as well." The Yin Matriarch told her First Elder.

The Elder extended a hand covered in tree bark and poked the surface of the wine in the cup, then placed the finger into her mouth.

"It's a Dao Lecture, meant for people under Golden Realm. But not only the insights, but also the energy required to ascend. The opposite of an Ascension Pill, but with the same results." the old Alchemist mused in a thoughtful voice.

"Why do you say opposite? I am not a good Alchemist, but I know the basics. You gather materials that contain hevenly energy, refine and combine them until you get a working pill. This is only a liquid pill." The Matriarch countered with a mild voice.

"That is Alchemy. This wine...is like taking the recipe for an Alchemy pill on paper, then dissolving the paper in water and drinking it. With the same results." the First Elder said in a sad voice.

"So you cannot copy the process?" The Matriarch asked, just to make sure.

"You saw the Array Wizard bow to the Divine Cook, right? Do you think it was a farce? The man gained a Star at the Steel Realm! And that idiot Beasthunter too." the First Elder spoke with a tired voice, then leaned back into her wooden throne and merged into it, falling into a deep sleep and becoming wood.

"She didn't say it was toxic or trapped, so it's not. Just a wedding gift. I might have given the boy a poisoned gift instead. Oh well..." the Yin Matriarch mused in a low voice, then walked away from the Sleeping Elders room.

Hopefully the root of the bramble will counter the worse effects of the poisoned seed. The Life Goddess might have saved the boy's life, with her own poisoned gift. Some people did have all the luck.

-------------------------------------

While renewing his marriage relations with his wives, Pef continued to work inside his inner world, with Icefire's cooling flames in hand.

'Too cold. And draw the heat inward, slowly...' Pef whispered while dissolving a thin slice of Bramble root to extract its essence.

As he was working, a pulse of Preservation burst inside his Dantian, as the Tree Seed settled down. His inner Selves activated in emergency.

'Toxins detected. Deploying containment Formations. Analyze.' the response team of inner selves yelled as they struggled to preserve Pef's life.

"The Seed? Really?" Pef asked out loud, jumping out of the bed where Lia and Lin were indulging his dual cultivation fantesies.

Lia held her hand out, and her Tao Seal deployed to examine Pef's stomach. "Yin based poison. Only works on men. Not sure if it is a test or just the wrong gift for a man."

Pef cursed silently. A Tier 12 Eminence making a basic mistake like that? Unlikely.

'Eat this slice of Bramble now. If you advance your Body Cultivation, you will withstand..." Icefire advised him with some urgency.

'Yeah, I get it. The Life Goddess gave me a cure, disguised as a poisoned gift. Damn cultivators!' Pef muttered in dismay, and ate the partially cooked slice.

In a few moments, the pulses of Yin poison relented, as the root slice dispersed some kind of base chemicals and Yang energy directly into his Dantian. At the same time, his Devouring Seed came to life and began devouring the remaining poison, restoring balance inside his Dantian.

His inner screen noted both Devour and Preservation ticking over to 100% at the same time.

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

The Sword Soul seed awoke again, and loked around the Dantian in surprise. "Sit down and cultivate, young one. This is a rare occasion."

Pef listened to the wiser seed and began to cyle his qi, to take advantage of this opportunity. After a few hours, his cultivation climbed into the 8th Star, where it slowed down to a minute crawl.

Then he opened his eyes, finding both the Taotie and the Bee Queen staring at him, far too close. "What?"

"You didn't die. Very curious. I bet on you dying. The big insect insisted you'll be fine. So we waited to see." the Taotie explained in a casual voice.

"Why would you bet on me dying?" Pef asked a bit confused, then noted hundreds of wooden spikes flaking off his skin. Long spiky thorns, still dripping blood.

"Humans don't usually survive if they turn into a thorn bush. On the other hand, you are a monster who just obtained a Bronze Body of Laws. And a new Star. So..." the Taotie commented with a light voice.

Pef took out another partially cooked slice of Bronze root. "Want some?"

The Taotie measured him for a minute, then grabbed the root slice and ate it. "This will hurt a lot, I can bet on that."

"I am fine, Master. But I would like a slice of that too, for my honey. It might work." the Bee Queen said in a calm voice, so Pef gave her a slice of root as well.

Pef then stepped back, as thousands of spikes grew out of the Taotie, making him look a lot like a hedgehog. "It looks worse than it is. I'll be fine..." the Taotie muttered in a pained voice.

"He's fine. And I need some food and a bath." Pef commented in a lighter voice, then walked to his kitchen and started preparing himself some food.

The Bee Queen waited patiently until he finished eating, then swimming into the Blue Sea nearby.

"Do you want my advice, Master?" the Old Queen asked as he dressed back.

"I am getting the advice anyway, right?" Pef quipped with a smirk.

"You will die if you keep meeting Steel Realm cultivators. They play a different game, and poking you full of holes is only a way to throw barbs at each other. Your talent is Cooking, so cook. Let the Legion wage war, you just give them the strength to fight. Perhaps finish that Twelve Element method as well?" the Bee Queen spoke in a grave voice.

Pef nodded a bit sheepishly. Of course the ancient beast was right. He had a lot of Chaosbeast bodies stored away, and an entire Legion to bulk up with extra levels.

A thusand Avatars spilt off and began setting cooking tables and slices of meat, with his Cooking Self acting as the Head Chef.

He lay down on the warm sand, and just thought about the next cultivation method. He already had most of the pieces, might as well do some honest work.

After a few days, the Taotie shedded the thorns and came to lay down on the beach beside him. "I'm fine, by the way." the beast muttered and fell asleep.

Pef just snorted lightly. If a baseline human like himself could survive, a monster like the Taotie wouldn't have a problem either.

As Tribulations fell on him for another success in his Dao, Pef rolled over and hugged the Taotie to his chest. "The Heavens love me, see?" he whispered in a low voice.

"If you say so, Master." the Taotie answered in a sleepy voice, ignoring the lightning that fell on both of them. This wasn't even painful anymore.