Hoeing millet when the midday sun is high, sweat drips into the millet soil below.
This is the tilling posture of a mortal like Xiao Ran.
"You're a Golden Core big shot, and you still use a hoe? If you're going to use a hoe, what did I ask you to help out for?"
"No, no, men use hoes, women use spells. This is also a refined tempering of your basic skills."
"How do you cast spells?"
"First, use spells to cut this plot of land on the west side into four columns and eighty rows, for a total of three hundred and twenty vegetable plots. Dig shallow pits in one plot to plant vegetables, dig deep pits right next to it to plant fruit trees, and finally form a staggered, three-dimensional fruit and vegetable garden."
"Alright."
The young woman did not quite understand, but she felt it was impressive. She rose into mid-air, formed hand seals with both hands, and cast a simple Qi Control Art as her slender fingers cut through the ground at flying speed.
Xiao Ran sat on the giant boulder by the West Cliff, pulled out the crisp melon Lin Yunzi had given him, and instructed the young woman's operations while eating.
When the vegetable plots were finished cutting, Xiao Ran spoke again, "Now, we plant the fruit tree saplings, scatter the vegetable seeds into the pits by category, pile soil mixed with fertilizer on top, and then water them a bit..."
The young woman's movements looked dazzling, yet incomparably precise.
This hand speed, this micro-control... absolutely amazing! Xiao Ran stared in a daze.
She truly lived up to being a Golden Core realm big shot, especially her majestic posture of scattering seeds over a wide area, deserving to be called a humanoid walking seed-sowing machine.
Without breaking a sweat, the young woman finished the fruit and vegetable area on the west side.
By this time, the sky had already grown dark.
Chuyan lightly furrowed her fine brows.
"What fruits did you plant?"
"Fengshui Peach, Five Color Apricot, Yellow Winter Date, Iron Watermelon, Withered Strawberry, Crisp Lychee, Black Grape, Purple Pomegranate, White Pear, kumquat, Red Pomelo, fragrant orange..."
Xiao Ran took a glance.
They were all rare treasures.
Lin Yunzi, you are groveling far too much! But in the eyes of a Golden Core big shot, these fruits were completely beneath notice.
"Most of them are unranked vulgar fruits. What is so precious about them?"
"That's where you don't understand. As a mortal, I am tempering my craft and purifying my Dao Heart among worldly things; furthermore, only vulgar fruits can maximize the conversion of spiritual energy into deliciousness rather than spiritual power. With Master's cultivation level, does she still need to supplement with any pills, spirit stones, or spirit fruits? She would rather drink fake wine."
Taking advantage of the young woman's blank expression, Xiao Ran struck while the iron was hot.
"Aren't you the same? It's the apocalypse, yet instead of thinking about accelerating your cultivation, you want to fall in love. You are the exact same kind of person as a Master who indulges in pleasure."
Indulges in pleasure?
The young woman instantly overthought it, pointing at Xiao Ran as she stammered, "You and the Elder have really already, already..."
You understand again?
Vigilantly glancing around, Xiao Ran hurriedly shouted, "What nonsense are you spouting! Master has always disliked men. All the men who pursued her in the past were hacked to pieces, understand?"
"I understand, I understand."
The wind stopped, the night grew dark, and Chuyan felt her opportunity had arrived.
Next.
Xiao Ran instructed Chuyan, and they quickly finished the valley on the south side.
The valley was divided into four sections, planted respectively with: wheat, rice, medicinal flowers, and black rapeseed.
The young woman was still puzzled.
"The Elder has already reached Bigu. You're planting so much grain—are you going to eat it all by yourself?"
Xiao Ran shook his head.
"The wheat is for brewing Malt Wine, the rice for rice wine, the medicinal flowers for medicinal wine, and the black rapeseed is for—"
Wait, why did Lin Yunzi prepare so many black rapeseed seeds? Did he know I was planning to do some barbecue and deep-frying?
Just as Xiao Ran was about to explain, he suddenly heard a proper, soft, milky voice, "I understand, it's for skin lotion."
"..."
Night had completely fallen; the stars were brilliant, and the bright moon hung like a lamp.
The soft light interwoven by stars and moon illuminated that petite, pure, first-love face, which would have been extremely aesthetically pleasing and moving—if she hadn't spoken.
The two of them continued walking toward the east.
The plan for the east side was a leisure area.
By the cliff, behind the lone pine and bizarre rocks.
Xiao Ran had Chuyan dig out a three-zhang-long-and-wide stone slab from the ground, clean it up, and use it as a small sword plaza.
Because five hundred years ago, that was originally the Sword Plaza of Sword-Wielding Mountain.
Over five hundred years, the sword plaza hadn't even kept a footprint; it had accumulated dust, grown grass, rotted, and laid covered in a messy mess, soon buried beneath rotting soil.
Behind the sword plaza.
Xiao Ran had Chuyan dig a deep pool.
The deep pool was only three mu in size, yet she dug it a full hundred zhang deep until she unblocked the spring eye of the underground cold water, then stood aside to wait for the water to fill the entire pool.
Around the deep pool.
Half the circle was built with wooden-stepped pavilions containing stone stools and long tables inside, where one could catch the breeze, go fishing, drink heartily, or play the zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting.
The other half of the circle was placed with bizarre rocks lining the banks, and behind the rocks, large patches of green pine, purple bamboo, yellow maple, and red cherry were transplanted.
At this time, the pool water had already overflowed the banks.
Xiao Ran placed various kinds of fish fry into the water.
Then he guided a stream from the east, letting it flow into the bizarre rocks by the cliff to form a small waterfall. When the breeze blew, moisture lingered, sprinkling over the lone pine.
The feeling of a fairyland instantly emerged.
To a Golden Core realm cultivator, these operations were as simple as building with blocks.
Chuyan didn't feel much while building, as if the clouds were deep and unknown, leaving her lost within these mountains.
After building it all and taking a look, heaven was round and earth square, and the Great Dao was achieved through simplicity.
Its dimensions, proportions, and detailed designs—if even a single place had not followed Xiao Ran's instructions, it would have completely lost its charm.
Chuyan felt a trace of secret admiration in her heart, simply thinking, "Even the imperial gardens don't understand enjoyment as well as you do."
Xiao Ran smiled.
"There's even more enjoyment."
Coming to the north side.
This place was currently very barren; the plan was a health and wellness area featuring a bamboo forest and hot springs.
Under Xiao Ran's command, Chuyan quickly planted a hundred stalks of sword bamboo.
Each stalk was over ten zhang tall, resembling inverted sharp swords thrusting straight into the night sky.
Chuyan also planted some shade-loving flowers and plants within the sword bamboo forest, carving out a few pebble paths that extended all the way to the steep cliff edge.
The northernmost cliff, gazing far into the distance toward Hundred Herbs Peak, was the spot to excavate the hot spring.
"This is where several veins of Earthfire intersect. If we dig a pool here and channel hot water over, it will be a pool of hot spring water."
This guy could even sense Earthfire veins? Chuyan was skeptical. She quickly dug out the pool.
A two-zhang-wide semi-circular water pool, backed by the bamboo forest and bizarre rocks, facing the sea of clouds at the cliff edge, had its bottom paved with cobblestones and soft water weeds.
Warm water bubbled up from the bottom of the pool, and the water surface leveled with the cliff face, forming a flowing waterfall that maintained a dynamic balance to ensure optimal water quality.
Then she placed some warm-water fish and flower petals and medicinal herbs used for bathing into the pool.
A breathtaking hot spring was thus completed.
Chuyan couldn't believe her own hands...
Staring blankly at the pool water for a long time, she suddenly asked Xiao Ran, "Should we put a stone stool in the pool?"
"?"
Xiao Ran was stunned for a moment before he slowly came to a realization.
She truly lived up to being a big shot raised in the palace; though small, she had seen grand scenes.
Everything settled, he made a tour of the peak.
The planting area, fruit and vegetable area, leisure area, and wellness area all had initial forms; next, all they needed to do was quietly wait for the crops, grain, and plants to grow...
What would normally have taken a week to accomplish was resolved in a single shichen with Chuyan's help.
This guy was far too capable; she had to be made to stay!
"When will the Elder return?"
Chuyan followed behind Xiao Ran and asked directly.
"Hard to say."
Xiao Ran felt the timing was ripe, so he said, "Regarding the Red Spotted Tiger, I am very sorry. I'll return the corpse to you later; find a suitable place to bury it."
Under the melting moonlight, Chuyan fought back her tears, staring resentfully at Xiao Ran.
Though this man was a mortal, he certainly had a few tricks up his sleeve. His physique was good, his appearance handsome, and he knew how to take care of people with all sorts of clever tricks—no wonder the Elder liked him.
Of course, she herself was already a Golden Core big shot of over a hundred years old; she was no ignorant maiden and could not possibly lose her heart to a young man.
In her eyes, there was only the god-like Elder Lingzhou! She also understood Xiao Ran's meaning: returning Xiao Hong's corpse to her so she could present it to the Sword-Wielding Elder in her own name.
"Xiao Hong was something I bought to raise until the Qi Refining stage to give to the Elder in the first place. Now, stumbling upon this outcome, it is also its destiny."
Xiao Ran smiled without a reply, concentrating as he opened the system shop.
Max Level Cooking Skill: Can cook any ingredient by any method, losslessly extracting the spiritual energy of raw materials while achieving a peak level of perfection in taste and deliciousness... Price: 10 Filial Piety Points. Does the host wish to confirm purchase?
So expensive?
For the sake of filial piety, do it! "Purchase!"
Congratulations to the host for acquiring: Max Level Cooking Skill! (Consumed 10 Filial Piety Points, remaining 20 Filial Piety Points)
Xiao Ran's brain buzzed, instantly sublimating.
In just a split second, his Sea of Consciousness became as clear as a starry sky.
Soon, various cooking techniques appeared in his mind—
Stir-frying, quick-frying, deep-frying, pan-frying, searing, braising, stewing, simmering, steaming, boiling, roasting, tossing, marinating, gelatin-freezing, scalding, tossing in sauce, curing, smoking, rolling, sliding, patching...
His invincible skills had increased again! Xiao Ran came right onto the sword plaza.
With Chuyan's help, he used a few giant boulders to prop up a row of tough sword bamboo poles, forming a simple barbecue station.
"Master cannot drink alcohol without meat; I am going to roast a whole tiger here. If you are uncomfortable with it, you can step aside first."
If I step aside, won't all the credit be yours?
Chuyan gritted her teeth and said, "I can take it."
Xiao Ran thereupon retrieved the corpse of the Red Spotted Tiger.
Because he had happened to encounter a river on the way back, he had bled the Red Spotted Tiger in advance to store it, skinned it, and cleared out all the internal organs...
Xiao Ran stared in a daze.
"You—you already cleaned Xiao Hong up, and just now you still said you wanted to return it to me so I could bury it properly?"
"Free in life, fulfilling its purpose in death, clean and unburdened."
Xiao Ran feigned profundity and then waved his hand.
"Trouble you to help lift it."
Chuyan:
"..."
The bare white giant tiger was placed up onto the bamboo frame.
Four sharpened long bamboo poles skewered the depilated and viscera-cleaved tiger body, resting it on the simple barbecue stand.
The smooth tiger body had cracks sliced into it by Xiao Ran with a sword, sprinkled with massive amounts of chopped green onions, minced garlic, chili oil, cumin powder, salt, Sichuan peppercorn flakes, star anise flakes...
Beneath the grill, firewood crackled, and open flames burned the weeds cut down during tilling.
Under Xiao Ran's precise fire control and the dead-angle-free permeation of over a hundred seasoning fruits, a meat aroma that pierced straight to the spleen erupted like a volcano.
The roasted meat sizzled; a bead of hot oil slowly slid down the plump meat grain, its color charred-yellow and oily-bright, carrying a spicy kick amidst a fresh fragrance that was neither greasy nor gamey, intoxicating the mind.
As the mountain breeze blew, the heaven-defying aroma of tiger meat could be smelled ten li against the wind.
The small face illuminated by the firelight suddenly paused.
The aroma of the meat permeated her spleen, instantly spreading to every cell in her entire body.
Body and skin, internal organs, meridians and bones, and even every single cell throughout her entire body shuddered together in unison, as if emitting joyful howls.
A warm current rose from her Dantian Qi Sea, stirring up a ripple of deliciousness.
"My Xiao Hong..."
She was on the verge of tears.
At this moment, a female voice fell from the sky.
"Which mountain peak is this?"
Listening closely, it seemed to carry a hint of drunkenness.
The drunkenness quickly turned into a stern reprimand!
"A quiet place for immortal cultivation, what is the meaning of roasting meat in the middle of the night? The beau... disgusting smell has spread all over the mountain. Inner sect disciples are already complaining. Leave the evidence behind and go to the Discipline Hall to surrender yourself!"
Xiao Ran's entire forehead was covered in black lines. Without raising his head, he continued roasting the meat as he said, "Master, this is Sword-Wielding Mountain."
In the intoxicated night sky, Lingzhou Yue slightly furrowed her sword brows.
Sword-Wielding Mountain looked like this? Good fellow, it really was Sword-Wielding Mountain!
"Then never mind."
Before you continue