Chapter 106: The Worm in the Wine

Downstairs in the parking lot.

Fu Yang cautiously and stealthily searched for Tang Li’s Land Rover, as if sneaking off to a secret rendezvous.

He circled around but found nothing.

“Could President Tang really be standing me up?” he muttered softly to himself.

Suddenly, a voice came from a nearby red Ferrari: “I don’t have time for this. Get in!”

Fu Yang jumped in surprise.

Looking closely, he saw Tang Li sitting inside the bright red Ferrari, wearing sunglasses and watching him.

Fu Yang opened the car door and got in, scratching his head awkwardly. “President Tang, aren’t you driving the Land Rover anymore?”

“We’re going to a banquet. Do you expect me to show up in a tank? Besides, I have seven cars and like to switch them around.”

Seven luxury cars? She truly was a female tycoon!

The red Ferrari sped away like a streak of fire…

Tang Li first took Fu Yang to a luxury boutique to buy him a high-end suit. The price tag would have scared Fu Yang out of his wits a few months ago!

But now, it only made him marvel quietly.

Fu Yang already had a good figure—long legs and muscle tone. Since awakening his spiritual path, his body seemed to be moving toward perfect proportions…

Plus, after cultivating, his entire aura had changed. His once ordinary eyes now carried a hint of mystery and rebelliousness. Staring into them for too long, one could easily become entranced.

Tang Li was now exactly like that.

Looking at Fu Yang clad in a sharp Armani suit, the beautiful and formidable businesswoman momentarily lost herself.

“President Tang? How does this one look?”

Fu Yang asked with a wry smile, feeling like a Barbie doll in a girl’s hands, dressed and redressed at whim.

Tang Li snapped back to reality and resumed her usual cool demeanor, nodding. “Let’s go with this one.”

The banquet was held at the most luxurious Marriott Hotel in Jiangcheng City. It was said to be hosted by Wan Tiancheng, a local entertainment mogul, to introduce the newly appointed CEO of his group and make some connections.

Wan Tiancheng?

Fu Yang thought he had heard the name before. He once gave a speech at Jiangcheng University, and Fu Yang had envied such a successful figure back then.

The red Ferrari pulled up at the hotel entrance.

A valet promptly came over to open the door and park the car.

“Come on, don’t be nervous. Just follow my lead,” Tang Li said, unexpectedly linking her arm through Fu Yang’s.

“Damn… this isn’t right. Do assistants normally get their arms linked? What’s going on here?” Fu Yang wondered, feeling like he might be falling into some new trap.

Tang Li was dressed in a sea-blue backless gown and crystal high heels that accentuated her graceful figure like a powerful queen straight out of a romantic drama. Her black hair cascaded over her fair shoulders, and she seemed like a black hole drawing every gaze.

With her arm linked through his, Fu Yang felt as if countless sniper rifles were silently targeting him.

A burly, obviously nouveau riche middle-aged man approached. “President Tang, may I have the honor of a dance tonight?”

“Sorry, I brought a partner,” Tang Li replied, casting a polite business smile at Fu Yang.

The nouveau riche man glanced at the handsome Fu Yang beside her, a flicker of hatred flashing in his eyes, but he forced a laugh and walked away.

More “successful” men came up afterward, inviting Tang Li, only to be politely rejected.

By now, if Fu Yang still didn’t understand his role tonight, he truly was a fool…

“So I’m President Tang’s human shield! This woman’s charm is really something,” he thought, both amused and helpless. After all, she was his boss.

Many of the high-ranking political and business elites present probably assumed Fu Yang was Tang Li’s “kept man.”

“All right, I’m off to chat with a few girlfriends. Fu Yang, wander around on your own. Find me when it’s time to eat,” Tang Li said, releasing his arm and walking toward a few other attractive women.

Phew.

Finally, some breathing room!

Fu Yang exhaled and strolled about. It was his first time in such an upscale venue, with free-flowing fine wine and delicacies everywhere.

“Not eating or drinking would be a disgrace to my role as a human shield tonight!” he muttered, reverting to his carefree self whenever unobserved. He grabbed some French macarons from the table, popping two into his mouth, then a plate of chilled smoked duck breast, and poured himself a glass of champagne…

Just as he was about to drink—

Wait!

There was something in the drink!

As a cultivator of decent rank, Fu Yang had developed a rudimentary spiritual awareness and could sense weak malevolent forces.

His intuition told him this glass was tainted.

Looking around to ensure no one was watching, he turned both palms upward and pressed them over his eyes, sweeping them side to side.

“Spiritual Art: Evil Vision!”

His eyes flashed with light, and sure enough, he saw numerous tiny red worms wriggling inside the champagne, tangled like fine strands of hair. They were disgusting, parasitic creatures radiating an evil aura.

“This feeling… must be a hex!”

Though he didn’t know exactly what it was or its purpose, the aura told him it was a Southern Asian dark magic—specifically, a hex.

“Why would such witchcraft appear at a business banquet? Is this some plot targeting someone?”

Fu Yang frowned.

He quickly checked a nearby table’s unopened bottle of champagne. Shaking it slightly, he saw the same writhing red threads inside.

Every bottle contained these things!

The situation was clear: this banquet was a conspiracy!

Though Fu Yang felt these strange, repulsive worms posed little threat to someone with magical power—at worst, causing stomach upset—no one could predict what would happen if an ordinary person drank the wine.

They would be hexed!

“This is bad! I hope President Tang hasn’t drunk any yet.”

Alarmed, Fu Yang rushed toward Tang Li.

She was holding a glass, chatting with her girlfriends—yet even then, her smile remained faintly distant.

“Li Li, is that handsome guy you came with really your boyfriend?” a fashionable woman teased.

“Yeah, he’s quite good-looking! And his aura is nice too, just a bit young. I think he’s six or seven years younger than you,” another chimed in.

“Oh, what does that matter? Our Li Li is top-notch in ability, family background, looks, and figure! Her skin is even more delicate than a teenage girl’s. How can she be accused of ‘dating younger men’?”

“Hehe, haha!”

The girlfriends giggled and teased Tang Li playfully.