The next day.
These days, Chen Ye had been staying up late to cultivate, and today he finally had a good sleep.
When he woke up,
his arm felt warm and soft.
The little girl had hugged his arm sometime unknowingly, sleeping soundly.
"Little brat...last night she wouldn’t let me near her, nor let me look at her. Now she’s hugging me on her own, can’t blame me..."
Despite what Chen Ye said,
he felt secretly proud inside.
It’s said that sleeping is when a person’s subconscious is most revealed.
Since this girl hugged him on her own, does it mean...in her heart, she already relies on him as her master?
He hadn’t been proud for long.
Chen Ye suddenly felt pain in his arm.
"Mm... chomp chomp."
The little girl opened her small mouth and bit hard on his arm.
Repeatedly biting, but couldn’t bite through Chen Ye’s firm muscles, she frowned softly in disdain.
She turned over and shrank back into the quilt to continue sleeping.
Leaving only her fluffy back of the head.
"Little brat!"
...
The sky was just light.
Chen Ye got up early and went to the courtyard.
The snow had stopped, the air was fresh, carrying the unique sweetness after snow.
He took a deep breath, feeling refreshed.
With his cultivation at the Qi Cultivation Sixth Layer, his five senses became sharper, and he could even clearly perceive the faint sounds of people in the distant market.
Chen Ye first stretched his limbs, feeling the sense of strength brought by the Heavy Body Technique Perfection.
Now, every move he made carried a sense of steady force.
The spiritual power within him was ample, making him a completely different person from the once sickly self.
"Panel!" Chen Ye opened the long-absent panel.
[Name: Chen Ye]
[Lifespan: 40/122]
[Spiritual Root: Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, Earth]
[Realm: Qi Cultivation Sixth Layer]
[Cultivation Technique: Evergreen Technique Master: 30/1600; Heavy Body Technique Perfection: 56/400]
[Skills: Bone-Scraping Whip Great Success: 3/200; Culinary Skill Great Success: 199/200; Disease Removal Saber Technique Perfection: 320/400; Fostering Technique Perfection: 78/400; Cloud Rain Technique Perfection: 89/400; Geng Metal Technique Limit Break: 131/800; Minor Achievement in Water Element Shield: 1/100; Qi Concealment Technique Great Success: 5/200]
"Hiss...this 1600 proficiency will take forever to achieve."
Chen Ye was most concerned about the Evergreen Technique.
The cultivation technique is the foundation of cultivation.
But after reaching the master level, breaking through further requires a full 1600 proficiency, which is indeed high.
After all, mastering a brand-new cultivation technique from entry-level to master only requires 1500 proficiency.
Moreover, the Evergreen Technique is, after all, a Wood Series technique.
After breaking through, his Wood Element Spiritual Power will be full of vitality, indeed giving the Spirit Plant Technique a boost.
But these gains are hard to stack on other elemental magic techniques.
"However, the culinary skill is almost perfect?"
Chen Ye’s gaze fell on his culinary skill. Although this skill wasn’t much of use in daily life since he often let Qing Jun cook while he focused on cultivation.
But leveling up in such endeavors can become addictive.
Seeing it’s just a hairbreadth away from perfection, Chen Ye suddenly felt itchy to do something.
Once culinary skill reaches perfection, it’s equivalent to being a top chef among mortals.
Perhaps...after breaking through, it could even add benefits to the dishes?
Suddenly,
noises were coming from outside.
Faintly, there were cries of demon beasts and the sound of rolling wheels.
Chen Ye’s expression froze, and he quickly walked out of the courtyard.
He saw quite a few Loose Cultivators on Shunshui Street, looking out, their faces showing relieved smiles.
The terrifying cold disaster triggered by the Nascent Soul Celestial Tribulation had finally passed its most intense phase.
Although the air still had a biting chill when breathed in, the blizzard that had raged for nearly a month had stopped.
The sky looked a bit higher than usual, and the heavy lead clouds cracked with gaps, allowing a few thin but warm rays of sunlight to pierce through.
The vitality long suppressed across Yunxi District was visibly recovering with the naked eye.
"It’s Lingyin Sect! The Outer Disciples of Lingyin Sect have arrived! These should be the Outer Disciples from Peach Mountain District, right?"
"Not only that, look at those flags, they belong to Xu Family and Purple Hong Business Alliance’s caravans!"
"The Purple Hong Business Alliance’s Unihorn Rhinoceros is truly magnificent!"
Neighbors pointed toward the direction of the market entrance, chatting away excitedly.
Following their gaze, Chen Ye saw the tall bluestone city gate of the market slowly opening.
Rows of carriage teams steadily entered the city.
The first thing seen were several large flags fluttering in the wind, with the words "Purple Hong Business Alliance" and "Xu Family" written in flashy, swirling script, representing some of the notable caravans in Yan Kingdom.
The ones pulling the carriages were not ordinary horses, but rather several robust Unihorn Rhinoceros beasts covered in blue scales.
Each step they took caused the ground to tremble slightly.
Apart from the caravans, the most striking presence on the street were the Outer Disciples of Lingyin Sect, all dressed in uniform sky-blue Taoist robes.
Their numbers were noticeably more than usual, each showing spirited enthusiasm and anticipation.
Some hurried towards the mission hall at the center of the market, seemingly taking or delivering tasks;
while others gathered in groups of three or five in front of the bulletin board, carefully reading the newly posted notices, occasionally exchanging low comments.
"It seems yesterday’s wave of the beast tide was the final aftershock... After this calamity, Yunxi District is heavily damaged, and Lingyin Sect has also begun to rebuild Yunxi District."
Chen Ye looked at the bustling crowd on the street, his mind already made up.
With the market reopening, it’s the perfect time to sell loot and exchange for training resources.
Back at the small courtyard, his two apprentices had already started to wake up one after another.
"Master, morning!"
Qing Jun rubbed her sleepy eyes and yawned as she walked out of the house.
She was still wearing that rabbit fur coat, her face rosy, like a freshly baked white bun.
Looking at her still slightly sleepy and adorable look, Chen Ye smiled and said, "Morning, Qing Jun. Did you sleep well last night?"
"Hmm!"
Qing Jun nodded vigorously, then puffed out her small chest and volunteered,
"Master, today, Qing Jun will make breakfast! I’ve learned a lot from Elder Sister recently!"
With that, she trotted towards the kitchen with her short legs.
Zhiwei also emerged from the house at this time. She simply tied her black hair at the back, silently saluted Chen Ye as if greeting him, and then followed her to the kitchen to help Qing Jun.
Seeing this, Chen Ye was taken aback.
Zhiwei usually had her bangs covering her eyes, making her look sullen.
But this time, she revealed her complete face,
That cold little face already had a slightly pointed charm.
The older girl was half a year older than Qing Jun, and recently her body had developed, making her half a head taller than Qing Jun.
In the past, Zhiwei could only be described as cute.
Now she could already be called beautiful.
"A daughter grown up in my household..."
For some reason, Chen Ye felt a sense of crisis.
In the kitchen, the little girl was struggling to move a bench.
Stepping on the bench, she was on her toes, trying hard to reach the piece of yesterday’s leftover iron-backed pig meat hanging on the wall.
Unlike Zhiwei, Qing Jun’s height... seemed to have never changed?
Chen Ye was starting to feel anxious for Qing Jun.
"Qing Jun, this iron-backed pig meat is tough. You’re not strong enough, let me do it."
Saying this, Chen Ye naturally took over the kitchen knife.
Qing Jun "oh"ed and obediently stepped aside, her big eyes gleaming with anticipation.
Master is personally cooking!
Chen Ye took a deep breath, his gaze falling on the pork on the cutting board.
With his Heavy Body Technique achieving Perfection, his control of strength was now far superior to before.
Chen Ye deliberately showed off some skills, making the kitchen knife fly crisply in his hand.
The tough demon beast meat turned into gentle tofu in his hands, with the bone separating cleanly from the flesh, and every cut was just right.
Both little girls watched with wide eyes in wonder.
"Master... amazing!" Qing Jun wiped her drool away, nearly dumbstruck.
Chen Ye maintained a serious expression, "Just so-so."
[Culinary Skill Perfection: 1/400]
Almost at the moment the last cut fell, Chen Ye felt a sudden clarity in his mind!
Countless insights about the characteristics of ingredients, control of heat, and the ratio of seasoning flooded his mind.
"So that’s how it is..." A confident smile appeared on Chen Ye’s lips.
He glanced at the ingredients available in the kitchen: tenderloin and leg meat of the iron-backed pig, a bag of spirit grain rice, a few demon bird eggs sent by Granny Li, and some ordinary vegetables and wild mushrooms.
In an instant, he had several ingenious combinations in mind.
First, he sliced the tenderloin into paper-thin pieces, marinating them with a bit of seasoned sauce.
He chopped the leg meat into minced meat, mixing in the chopped mushrooms and bird eggs, and blended it well.
The spirit grain rice was soaked in warm water and then simmered with a few red dates over low heat.
Soon, the kitchen was filled with a rich aroma of meat and the sweet scent of rice porridge.
Qing Jun frequently peeked in from the doorway, her small nose twitching continuously.
Chen Ye continued his work without pause, smooth and fluid.
The marinated meat slices quickly sizzled in hot oil, turning golden and enticingly fragrant.
The minced meat with mushroom egg mixture was made into golden yellow omelets, soft and fragrant.
In less than half a two-hour period, breakfast was ready.
When Chen Ye brought the two dishes and one porridge to the stone table in the yard, his two little apprentices stared with wide eyes.
The spirit grain red date porridge was simmered to a golden, thick consistency;
The stir-fried demon beast meat slices were golden and tender, each piece evenly coated with sauce.
The mushroom and minced meat omelets were pan-fried to a golden brown on both sides, with crispy edges and a soft, delicious inside.
"Wow! It smells so good!"
Qing Jun couldn’t resist, grabbing an omelet and stuffing it into her mouth, blowing on it as she ate, unable to bear to spit it out, her cheeks puffed like a little hamster.
"Mmm... it’s so delicious! Master! This is the best omelet Qing Jun has ever had!"
She praised in a muffled voice, her eyes curving into crescents.
Zhiwei carefully picked up an omelet and took a small bite.
The fresh, soft texture and the unique flavor of the mixed mushrooms and minced meat.
Instantly stunned the older girl, leaving her in a daze for a long time.
What... what is this taste?
She possessed the Purity Glaze Body, and since its initial awakening, she had gradually lost her perception of the outside world.
Yet her master’s culinary mastery had awakened her long-dormant sense of taste.
"Oh no!"
The older girl suddenly felt something urgent was wrong.
She seemed... unable to leave her master’s skillful cooking?