Bian Yixia learned from Xiang Kang that her adoptive father had likely not met with misfortune. Instead, he was still in seclusion and could make a powerful return at any moment...
Bian Yixia’s expression grew uglier. She only gave absentminded, perfunctory replies to the rest of what Xiang Kang had to say.
Before long, Bian Yixia made a random excuse and left Xiang Kang’s residence.
As Xiang Kang stared at Bian Yixia’s retreating figure, his expression flickered between light and shadow, as if he had seen through something...
Dragon Gate Boat Pharmacy.
Zou Feng did not immediately take the head of the Celestial Eye Cloud Pattern Deer to the kitchen for his master, Luo Yong, to handle.
His first order of business was to study the Celestial Eye Deer’s third eye—the "Evil Eye."
Just now, Bian Yixia had spoken with grave seriousness, warning him that he must not, under any circumstances, eat the Evil Eye directly.
She had even mentioned that when the Celestial Essence Sword Sect obtained one, they kept it at a respectful distance, having no way to make use of it.
This was enough to prove just how "evil" this thing truly was.
He just didn’t know if his current number one backer—the Seventh Grade Expert from the Mountain and River Association, Gu Yufan—could handle it...
But even with a backer taking the hit, Zou Feng certainly didn’t dare to try and eat the whole thing in one go.
If this thing was truly too evil and all his backers kicked the bucket before long, then he’d be the one out of luck.
So, Zou Feng’s plan was to first cut off a tiny piece, eat it, and immediately cultivate the Great Universal Hand.
’Something with such an evil nature should be a good match for the Great Universal Hand.’
However, just as Zou Feng was about to slice off a small piece, Xiaolv happened to fly in through the window.
Zou Feng instinctively shielded the "Evil Eye," worried that this Gu Insect, which wanted a bite of everything, was about to try and snatch his food again.
But when Xiaolv saw the object from a distance, it froze. Then, as if it had encountered a natural enemy, it hastily fled back out the window.
Xiaolv was no ordinary venomous creature. Even Zou Feng couldn’t estimate just how poisonous it could be if it unleashed its full power.
Back then, when it had gnawed on the flesh of Su Changqing’s hand, it hadn’t shown the slightest bit of fear.
One had to remember that although Su Changqing was very weak at the time, he was still a Seventh Grade Expert. As the saying goes, a starved camel is still bigger than a horse.
Yet Xiaolv had remained fearless, chomping away as it pleased.
For such a seemingly fearless, Exotic Poison Gu Insect to flee without hesitation upon seeing the Evil Eye...
’Is it really that evil!?’
Zou Feng was stunned for a moment. He then wisely chose to abandon his reckless plan of slicing off a piece to try.
’No, even trying a tiny piece is too risky.’
’I have too few backers on the list right now. Even with a Seventh Grade like Gu Yufan, it’s not a sure thing.’
Thinking of this, Zou Feng, with lingering fear, stopped any further attempts.
After calming down, he knew he shouldn’t have been so careless.
The recent pressure from all sides had simply made him too desperate to stand on his own as quickly as possible...
After some thought, Zou Feng finally decided to use the Evil Eye to make medicinal wine.
First, soaking it in wine would make it easier to preserve for a long time.
Second, he could later try drinking a little of the "Evil Eye Wine" to experience for himself just what kind of evil nature this thing possessed.
This would surely be much safer than eating it directly.
And if he was lucky, the medicinal wine made from this thing might even give his cultivation progress for the Drunken Immortal Moon Gazing Step a huge boost.
Putting his thoughts into action, Zou Feng immediately took out his treasured Spirit Wine.
It was one of the congratulatory gifts that Wang Xingjian and Chen Jingsheng had given him jointly when he publicly advanced to the Eighth Grade.
Unfortunately, although the Spirit Wine was of high quality, it was no longer sufficient for his current Drunken Immortal Moon Gazing Step cultivation needs.
Now, it was perfect for soaking the "Evil Eye."
As the "Evil Eye" was submerged in the wine, the originally clear-as-water Spirit Wine was instantly dyed a blood-red color, which looked quite terrifying.
Of course, Zou Feng wouldn’t try to drink it now. He would have to let it soak for at least a month or two.
After dealing with the Evil Eye, he finally picked up the Celestial Eye Cloud Pattern Deer’s head and went to the kitchen.
He soon found Luo Yong and got straight to the point, explaining his purpose.
By now, Luo Yong had been a chef on the Dragon Gate Boat for some time. Under the guidance of the previous chef, he had actually gained some experience in how to prepare Spirit Fish and Spirit Beasts.
However, Zou Feng showing up with an entire head still gave Luo Yong quite a shock.
In fact, Luo Yong knew that the Black Flood Dragon Gang had hunted a Celestial Eye Cloud Pattern Deer last night.
Some of the gang members who had received a share of the meat had come to him earlier to have it prepared.
"Didn’t they say the deer head went to the Miss?"
Luo Yong was taken aback for a moment, then laughed heartily. "When will I get to drink the wedding wine for you and the Miss?"
Zou Feng quickly shook his head. "Master, how could you believe those rumors..."
"My relationship with the Miss is completely innocent. Anyone who serves the Black Flood Dragon Gang wholeheartedly can earn her appreciation."
Seeing that Zou Feng really didn’t seem to feel that way, Luo Yong said no more. He turned to examine the Celestial Eye Cloud Pattern Deer’s head, quickly contemplating how to prepare it.
Zou Feng waited by the side, ready to help deal with the Demon Beast’s exceptionally hard skull.
"Let’s braise it in a white sauce. We’ll take out the brain, soak it in wine, and steam it."
"As for the antlers, we’ll grind them into powder, roast it, and you can take it back to slowly mix with water and consume."
Zou Feng naturally agreed, and the two immediately got to work.
It had been a long time since he had cooked with Luo Yong; Zou Feng had almost forgotten that he was, in fact, a chef himself.
In truth, when it came to culinary skills, the only area where Zou Feng fell short of Luo Yong was experience.
In other aspects, like knife skills, wok tossing, and seasoning precision, he was already on par with a professional chef like Luo Yong.
To this day, Zou Feng had never felt that the culinary skills he learned from Luo Yong were now completely useless.
After all, even if he truly set foot on the path of Immortal Cultivation in the future, culinary skills would still be useful.
After all, cooking was one of the Hundred Skills of Immortal Cultivation.
The master and disciple pair worked for the entire afternoon before they finally finished processing the Celestial Eye Cloud Pattern Deer’s head into its various parts.
While preparing the food, although there’s a saying that "if a chef doesn’t sneak a taste, the harvest will be meager," Luo Yong, as an ordinary person, truly didn’t dare to sample the Demon Beast Meat.
If it were meat from a domesticated Spirit Beast, eating a little would be fine. But with wild Demon Beast Meat, even Entering Grade Martial Artists were best advised not to eat too much at once.
It was rumored that a Ninth Grade Incense Master from the Black Flood Dragon Gang had once carelessly eaten too much of a certain Demon Beast’s meat. When he woke up, he had turned feral, biting anyone he saw and becoming a monster.
And even though Zou Feng was in great need of replenishment, he only ate the steamed brain before feeling like he couldn’t eat any more for the time being.
In any case, once the deer head meat was cooked, it would last longer. So, there was no rush; he would wait until the brain was digested.
Back in his room, Zou Feng felt increasingly drowsy, the kind of sleepiness that comes after eating too much.
With his current, already superhuman physique, the fact that eating just one brain could make him feel this way showed just how nourishing the stuff was.
’Excellent. Once I finish digesting this deer head, I should have enough nourishment for the promotion to Seventh Grade.’
For the following period, Zou Feng simply announced he was entering seclusion again, planning to focus all his efforts on breaking through.
Advancing to the Seventh Grade was different from advancing to the Ninth or Eighth Grade.
It wasn’t a matter of getting a feeling and then—POP!—a successful breakthrough.
The Inner Qi of a Seventh Grade Martial Artist required an "incubation" process.
During this incubation, one’s entire Inner Qi would be "purified," leading to a qualitative change in its power.
The most distinct characteristic of a Seventh Grade Martial Artist was Inner Qi Release, where its power did not diminish over a certain distance.
Although Zou Feng was an Abnormal Eighth Grade and had long been capable of Inner Qi Release...
...even with his Black Tortoise Sea-Suppressing Power at the Refined Skill level, the range of his Inner Qi Release was only about thirty feet.
This was a world away from those Seventh Grade Sword Dao experts of the Celestial Essence Sword Sect, who could casually unleash undiminished Sword Qi from over a hundred feet away.
After announcing his seclusion, Zou Feng hardly left his room except to use the latrine.
He either sat in meditation, circulating his Inner Qi, or practiced all of his current cultivation skills on the spot.
Practicing the Five Poison Fire Lotus Skill, which was at the Peak Realm, was especially draining, even if he only went through the motions.
Therefore, reaching the Peak Realm in a cultivation skill was truly not something an Eighth Grade Martial Artist could handle.
For an Eighth Grade Martial Artist to use such a skill was equivalent to wielding a power that was taboo at their current stage, and it would inevitably come at an unbearable cost.
But precisely because he had mastered a power he shouldn’t have at his level, Zou Feng got high just thinking about the benefits that would come once he successfully advanced to Seventh Grade.
The braised deer head meat was kept in his room. As soon as he had mostly digested his previous meal, Zou Feng would immediately grab it and start gnawing.
So engrossed was he in his secluded cultivation that Zou Feng lost track of time, not even bothering to notice whether it was day or night outside.
Therefore, he had no idea that Bian Yixia had come looking for him again to spar early the next morning.
After learning from Zhao Tianhu that Zou Feng was in seclusion, Bian Yixia instinctively assumed he was truly trying to advance his Tribulation-Indestructible Body to the Refined Realm, so she didn’t disturb him.
Another day passed like this. The duel with Sun Kai—a battle to determine not just victory, but life and death—was set for noon today.
Bian Yixia was completely unfazed by this. In her eyes, it wasn’t a deathmatch, but rather Sun Kai on a suicide mission to challenge her.
But even as she went to deal with Sun Kai, she was not arrogant enough to go to the appointment alone.
She brought a group of capable subordinates, including the Third and Fourth Brothers, who were originally stationed with the Fishing Team.
Only then did the large, imposing group prepare to leave the Dragon Gate Boat.
Meanwhile, Xiang Kang remained on the Dragon Gate Boat to guard against a sneak attack on their base.
As she passed near the pharmacy, Bian Yixia couldn’t help but turn her head to glance in that direction.
There was no movement from the pharmacy. Clearly, Zou Feng was still in seclusion.
A subordinate beside her seemed to read her mind and immediately said, "Miss, should I... go and inform Hall Master Zou..."
"No need!"
With that, she turned and walked away.
In truth, Zou Feng had originally planned to witness the deathmatch between Bian Yixia and Sun Kai, partly to guard against any tricks the Mountain and River Association might pull.
But at this moment, he was still completely immersed in his cultivation to advance to the Seventh Grade, having completely forgotten the time.