The Glutton (Part 3)

After a session of recuperation and meditation, Shi Yuzhen’s body radiated with condensed spiritual power, glowing brightly under the night sky.

Xu Ya had climbed halfway up the mountain when she saw the summit lit up like a nightclub rave. Panting for breath, she gave a silent thumbs-up in her heart. As expected of our male lead.

Shi Yuzhen was already a cultivator at the late Foundation Establishment stage. The moment Xu Ya crept up the mountain, he sensed her presence.

Ever since regaining his clarity of mind that day, he had become aware of cultivators monitoring him from the shadows, both openly and covertly.

As for the master who was supposed to pass judgment on him, he had not appeared again.

He was quite curious as to why this little girl had gone through all the trouble of sneaking past the guards to find him.

Xu Ya had a hard time reaching the summit. Along the way, she gnawed on several pieces of fried chicken drumsticks to replenish her energy. She had checked her dantian and confirmed that while fried chicken could indeed enhance cultivation, it only worked as a subtle boost on top of an existing foundation.

For someone like her, whose cultivation was an empty bucket, it was just delicious food with no benefit.

Frustrated, Xu Ya hid behind a rock, trying to figure out how to start the conversation.

A strand of spiritual voice transmission entered her mind with perfect accuracy: “Junior Sister, what brings you to see me?”

Damn it. Xu Ya couldn’t respond the same way.

She had no choice but to raise her voice and call out, “I—I came to thank you!”

That didn’t sound sincere at all.

Thank him? For sparing her life? For grabbing her throat and then letting go?

Judging by his voice, Xu Ya figured the male lead was in decent shape. She mustered her courage and stepped out from behind the rock.

Shi Yuzhen had attained a state of detachment, indifferent to all worldly matters. He genuinely didn’t know how to ask the little girl why she had spoken up for him that day.

For once, Shi Yuzhen found himself at a loss.

He looked up and saw Xu Ya flailing her arms in the air in a ridiculous manner.

She was trying to throw him the incomplete manual in the most direct and crude way possible.

The system reminded her bluntly: 【Host, your golden finger is for your use only.】

Immediately, her movements became exaggerated and theatrical, like a mime artist. She tried several times but failed to hand over the manual.

She had no choice but to give up and move a little closer, shouting, “Watch out for Master Xu!”

When Shi Yuzhen didn’t react, she shouted again, “Watch out for Master Xu!!”

“Master ▇▇▇▇!”

“▇▇▇▇ Xu!”

【Warning! Spoilers to characters within the story are strictly prohibited! Your inappropriate statement has been censored! Do not attempt this again! The consequences of narrative collapse are unimaginable!!】

【Warning! Spoilers to characters within the story are strictly prohibited! Your inappropriate statement has been censored! Do not attempt this again! The consequences of narrative collapse are unimaginable!!】

【Warning! Spoilers to characters within the story are strictly prohibited! Your inappropriate statement has been censored! Do not attempt this again! The consequences of narrative collapse are unimaginable!!】

Seriously? This system has way too many ridiculous rules.

After confirming that Shi Yuzhen could only see her acting like a fool, Xu Ya deflated.

Now she just looked like she’d come barging in for no reason.

If she couldn’t do anything, then why had she even come?

Xu Ya touched the pouch tied to her belt and stepped closer to Shi Yuzhen. He looked up slightly and saw the little girl holding out a familiar food box she had taken from her spatial pouch.

It was the Crispy Fried Chicken from that day…

The familiar aroma inexplicably awakened Shi Yuzhen’s taste buds. Before he realized it, he had already reached out and taken the box.

The little girl had vanished from in front of him. Shi Yuzhen sensed her hiding behind a large rock, quietly observing him.

Was this… feeding? What was she trying to do?

The Crispy Fried Chicken in his hands seemed to possess a kind of magic, continuously releasing an enticing fragrance that lured in anyone who smelled it.

Shi Yuzhen had been in seclusion for years, long past the need for food. He had no real desire for it anymore.

And yet, he suddenly reached out.

And began eating slowly.

Most cultivators were extremely cautious about what they consumed—elixirs, food, drink. If they could avoid it, they would. That was why the fasting cultivation method had become so popular. It wasn’t that they had truly transcended the mundane.

Shi Yuzhen, however, felt an inexplicable confidence that the little girl meant him no harm.

He ate with refined grace. Each bite of tender, juicy meat wrapped in crispy skin exploded with flavor the moment it touched his tongue. The taste was exquisite.

At the same time, he felt a brief warmth flash through his dantian, fleeting but unmistakable.

It was eerily similar to the signs he usually experienced when his cultivation improved, making him pause to consider.

Shi Yuzhen formed a hand seal. Xu Ya didn’t understand what it meant. She only saw the male lead slowly finish the food box she had handed him. The gray mist that had been lingering around him visibly thinned. Xu Ya finally felt relieved. She smoothed out the wrinkles in her clothes from resting during the climb and quietly descended the mountain.

For the next few nights, Xu Ya continued to sneak up the mountain in silence, leaving behind food boxes filled with golden, crispy fried chicken before running off.

During that time, Shi Yuzhen sent her numerous spiritual messages. But Xu Ya, a useless snack of a person, got overwhelmed by the sheer number of them. With the system forbidding spoilers, she could only give vague, random replies.

Every day she huffed and puffed her way up the mountain just to feed Shi Yuzhen and replenish his spiritual energy. Xu Ya only hoped he’d recover soon and leave the mountain. Otherwise, she felt like she’d eventually burn out as a disposable resource, let alone ever return home.

She really felt like she’d been thoroughly scammed.

A few days later, Yunmeng Immortal Marsh welcomed its annual Grand Assembly. Aside from the imprisoned Shi Yuzhen, the rest of the disciples were assigned tasks directly by their respective Great Senior Brothers. Xu Ya was sent to the old academy of the Immortal Marsh to organize ancient texts—a task that was, without a doubt, both exhausting and tedious.

Carrying her assigned bamboo scroll ledger, Xu Ya pushed open the thick, dusty doors alone.

She had to climb a nearly ten-meter ladder to organize the topmost shelves, working her way down to inventory the entire collection. Had she not unlocked her modern memories, she would’ve been trembling and teary-eyed just trying to climb up.

Now, Xu Ya climbed steadily and quietly, resigned to her fate as she sorted through the data one book at a time.

She was the only one assigned to this place. The towering, empty bookshelves made her seem especially small.

With her weak spiritual power, her efficiency couldn’t compare to others. After several hours, she had only managed to finish one row.

Facing the back of the bookshelf near the door, she rubbed her sore shoulders and neck.

Suddenly, two figures appeared at the entrance. Their footsteps echoed slowly through the empty academy, unusually loud in the silence.

Xu Ya recognized the voices and immediately shut her mouth before she could greet them. She hid behind the bookshelf and perked up her ears.

“Is that true?” Master Xu’s tone was calm and measured, revealing no emotion. “Why has she been acting so strangely lately?”

The next sentence was too muffled to make out.

“How could she be involved with him?” Master Xu paused thoughtfully. “Keep watching. Await my instructions…”

“Yes.”

Xu Ya’s heart pounded like a drum. She did her best to stay hidden between the shelves. Though she couldn’t catch every word, she had a strong sense that she was the one being discussed. Honestly, after reading the incomplete manual, she couldn’t even look Master Xu in the eye anymore.

Was being too close to the male lead going to get her labeled as cannon fodder and killed off? If the two sides clashed and it wasn’t a one-hit kill, wouldn’t she be the first to die as expendable material?

Gritting her teeth, Xu Ya forced herself to finish sorting the items in the old academy. After hiding out there for a few days, she once again snuck up the mountain in the dark to feed the male lead.

After much deliberation, Xu Ya ultimately decided to side with the male lead. Although she had no idea how the latter half of the book unfolded, based on her experience reading at least a few hundred modern novels, she was certain that Master Xu couldn’t possibly be the sole antagonist standing in the way of the male lead becoming the number one figure in the Immortal Realm.

He had appeared far too early. Even though they were from the same sect, most authors would typically introduce a red herring villain early on, only to gradually ramp up the difficulty with increasingly formidable enemies later.

If she backed down now, what hope would she have for the future?

Xu Ya mapped out a new route, one even more discreet than the previous path.

Shi Yuzhen, ever alert, had already caught wind of Xu Ya’s supposedly foolproof plan to ascend the peak. What surprised him was that today, there was also a mysterious guest making the climb.

Before long, Xu Ya was forcibly escorted to the summit by a few cultivators.

She was scared out of her wits. The moment they pinned her shoulders and she couldn’t move, it felt like she was back on the day Shi Yuzhen lost control. The fear jolted through her. Then, the two cultivators lifted her clean off the ground, and in no time, they arrived at the mountaintop.

Xu Ya was short and, without spirit stones to buy supplements, she was visibly undernourished—sallow and skinny, light as a weasel. The two cultivators easily flung her to the ground.

Xu Ya knew she was in the wrong. She had climbed the mountain without Master Xu’s written permission…

Just then, a pair of exquisitely embroidered Suzhou-style shoes came into view.

Master Xu bent slightly and helped Xu Ya to her feet. Though he was smiling, Xu Ya could hear the displeasure in his tone. “Xiao Ya, why is it you? What are you doing here?”

“Master Uncle, she came to find me,” came a voice in her mind.

But Master Xu ignored the sound transmission. He stared straight into Xu Ya’s eyes, as if trying to see through her thoughts…

What now, what now…

Xu Ya mustered her courage and said, “I… I came to thank Senior Brother… I’m sorry, Master. I… I didn’t want to trouble you…”

“Oh? To thank him?”

“Senior Brother saved me before. I escaped death. I made some food to bring to him…”

Master Xu’s smile vanished. He stared at Xu Ya, as if trying to verify the truth of her words. He, more than anyone, knew what kind of cultivators had already entered the fasting stage. “Food?”

Xu Ya knew Master Xu’s temperament well. Beneath his kindly and gentle appearance was a powerful need for control. He couldn’t tolerate anything that slipped beyond his grasp.

Having read the incomplete manuscript, Xu Ya understood this all too well. She obediently opened her treasure pouch, took out a food box filled with steaming hot fried chicken, and offered it up with both hands.

Master Xu’s brows relaxed ever so slightly. He reached out and lifted the lid.

The moment the lid came off, a rich, crispy aroma burst forth. Unlike the bland soups cultivators typically consumed, the fried chicken was piping hot, and the heat radiated continuously from the food box. Its golden, glistening appearance left everyone present stunned.

It really did smell amazing.

Xu Ya noticed Master Xu’s otherwise flawless features twitch for a split second—she almost thought she was seeing things. Then she saw his Adam’s apple move.

“I had no idea my little Ya had such talent,” he said, unable to resist tearing off a bit of crispy skin and bringing it to his mouth.

Just then, Shi Yuzhen, who had been standing quietly behind the crowd, suddenly stepped forward half a pace, his expression darkening.

As the fried chicken entered Master Xu’s mouth, a faint, nearly imperceptible energy flowed into his dantian.

He took a few more bites, then confirmed that the strange sensation in his dantian wasn’t his imagination.

“Xiao Ya, I had no idea you had the talent of a Culinary Cultivator. Do you realize that a single bite of this chicken can enhance one’s cultivation? Your future is limitless.”

Xu Ya gave a modest laugh. “Perhaps I was simply too grateful for Senior Brother’s help. I spent a few days developing the recipe. The creature that attacked me that day was about the same size as this chicken. I was so furious I turned my grief into motivation!”

Who would believe that if she said it out loud… Save me…

“Oh? If you have such skills just from being grateful to your Senior Brother, then that’s quite a waste of talent.”

He believed it…

Well, it made sense. In the Yunmeng Immortal Marsh, Xu Ya was practically invisible. Who would care about the whereabouts of someone so insignificant? Most probably thought even sparing her a glance was a waste of effort. Who would’ve thought a cannon fodder character could have such unexpected fortune? It gave Xu Ya a bit of room to maneuver!

Xu Ya quickly bowed and added flatteringly, “I’m also grateful to Master.”

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Master Xu tuck the entire food box into his own pouch and walk toward her.

Like a kindly teacher, Master Xu draped an arm around her shoulders and, without giving her a chance to refuse, began leading her down the mountain. He didn’t spare a single glance at Shi Yuzhen, who was nearly too stunned to stand. With a soft chuckle, he ran a finger lightly across Xu Ya’s nose and said, “I wonder if Xiao Ya might be interested in furthering your studies with the Culinary Cultivators?”

— Translator’s Notes —

– Yunmeng Immortal Marsh: The name of the cultivation sect or location where the story takes place, combining ‘Yunmeng’ (cloud dream) with ‘Immortal Marsh,’ suggesting a mystical wetland setting.

– Suzhou-style shoes: Traditional Chinese shoes known for delicate embroidery and refined craftsmanship, originating from Suzhou, a city famous for silk and embroidery.

– Culinary Cultivator: A specialized type of cultivator who advances their spiritual power through cooking and creating food that enhances cultivation.