The Sixth Old One

"Sect Master, I'll take my leave first."

At this moment, Li Zhōujūn said to Mu Taiyu.

"Take care, Mountain Lord Li," Mu Taiyu said with a smile.

Afterward, Li Zhōujūn took Sū Nán aboard the Ao Xue Flying Sword and flew toward Cloud Dwelling Mountain beneath the wistful gazes of the other mountain lords.

Amid the clouds.

Having flown high in the sky for the first time, Sū Nán got over her brief fright and looked down at the Dao Tian Sect's incomparably beautiful scenery below. She could not help asking Li Zhōujūn, who stood behind her in fluttering blue robes with his hands clasped behind his back, "Master, when will I be able to fly on a sword?"

Li Zhōujūn smiled. "Once your cultivation reaches Qi Refining Layer Six, it will be enough to support brief sword flight."

"Alright!" The girl's eyes brimmed with longing.

In the blink of an eye, Li Zhōujūn guided the Ao Xue Flying Sword down into the courtyard of Yunju Palace atop Cloud Dwelling Mountain.

"Wow, Master, did you live in such a huge palace all by yourself before?" Sū Nán asked curiously, her little face turned toward the vast and majestic Yunju Palace.

"Yes, but from now on, there will be one more person," Li Zhōujūn nodded.

"Master, then where will I sleep tonight?" Sū Nán blinked her bright, watery eyes.

"Hahaha, sleep wherever you fancy."

Sū Nán's adorable appearance made Li Zhōujūn laugh.

"Wonderful!"

Sū Nán also broke into an innocently charming smile.

"Rest well today. Your master will go make a meal, and I'll begin teaching you cultivation tomorrow," Li Zhōujūn said.

Sū Nán's eyes widened. "Master, does a powerful expert like you know how to cook too? Why don't I do it instead? I can let Master taste my cooking!"

Li Zhōujūn chuckled. "It's rare for you to be so thoughtful. Fine, go ahead."

Sū Nán's little face froze.

No way, this master was not playing by the usual script at all...

An hour later.

In a side hall of Yunju Palace.

At the dining table.

Li Zhōujūn stared at the pitch-black "delicacies" spread across the table before him and fell into deep thought.

Sū Nán stood off to the side, her little face flushed red.

"Are you sure this thing is edible?" Li Zhōujūn's mouth twitched. "You've only been up the mountain for one day, and you're already trying to murder your master..."

"What do you mean? It may be my first time cooking, but I put my heart into it!" Upon hearing this, Sū Nán seemed a little angry. She picked up her chopsticks and tasted one of the dishes she had made.

The next moment, Sū Nán's entire expression changed. Her face went dark.

"Is it good?" Li Zhōujūn asked curiously.

"Mhm..."

Sū Nán nodded with difficulty, then immediately turned her head and vomited.

Li Zhōujūn: "..."

"Master, why don't you try it? It's actually really not bad... blegh..."

As Sū Nán spoke, she turned her head aside again and started vomiting.

Li Zhōujūn wore an expression that plainly said, You think I'd believe that nonsense? He rose and walked out of the side hall.

Then, with a single swift stride, Li Zhōujūn entered the forest of Cloud Dwelling Mountain.

After weaving through the woods for a while, Li Zhōujūn found an old hen beneath a tree, clucking, "Cluck cluck... cluck cluck..."

"Cluck cluck, you useless mountain lord, have you come lusting after this old lady's body again?" The old hen's chicken face was immediately filled with mockery when she saw Li Zhōujūn.

Li Zhōujūn's face instantly darkened.

Forty years. This old hen had truly lived far too arrogantly for forty years.

This thing had originally been caught by his master from the foot of the mountain before anything happened to him, meant to nourish Li Zhōujūn's body. Who would have thought that his master would later perish in a great battle?

The old hen had also broken free of the straw tied around her feet and hidden in the forest of Cloud Dwelling Mountain, where spiritual medicine carpeted the ground.

Several years later, when Li Zhōujūn encountered the old hen again, he had wanted to catch it and stew it into soup. Who would have thought that the old hen had actually reached Qi Refining Layer Three?

There was no need to imagine what happened next. Li Zhōujūn, still an ordinary mortal at the time, was chased through the mountains by the old hen, fleeing with his head in his hands like a rat.

What was even more infuriating was this.

From then on, whenever the old hen was bullied by other demons in the mountains, she would run to Li Zhōujūn to vent her anger. She had thoroughly turned Li Zhōujūn into a punching bag and scapegoat!

Even more unexpectedly, by now the old hen's cultivation had broken through to the Foundation Establishment Realm, and she could speak human language!

Li Zhōujūn knew in his heart that if the old hen had not been wary of his status as the Cloud Dwelling Mountain Lord, she would have long since killed him, a mere mortal.

Though if a mountain lord were killed by a Chicken Demon, the Dao Tian Sect would certainly find it humiliating, they still would not let the old hen off.

Obviously, the old hen knew that too, so at most it bullied and robbed Li Zhōujūn.

[ Ding: The system has discovered a tyrannical old hen and issued a mission. Bring the old hen to justice, and the host will be rewarded with one portion of Aoliang Roast Chicken seasoning! ]

Hearing the system's words, Li Zhōujūn's eyes lit up as he stared at the old hen. Aoliang Roast Chicken!

That was a flavor from a long, long time ago...

At the same time, the old hen flew into a rage under Li Zhōujūn's gaze. "You piece of trash, what kind of look are you giving me?!"

"Are you looking to die?!"

By the end of its words, every one of the old hen's feathers had stood on end.

"Look, a multicolored rooster!"

Li Zhōujūn suddenly pointed behind the old hen.

The old hen's eyes immediately lit up, and it sharply turned to look where Li Zhōujūn was pointing.

With a dull thud, the old hen felt a heavy blow strike the back of its neck.

When it turned back, it found Li Zhōujūn holding a wooden stick high in his hand, a triumphant smile on his face.

"You sneaky bastard..."

The old hen struggled to finish its sentence, then its vision went black. With a thump, it fell to the ground.

[ Ding: How embarrassing, Host. You've got Nascent Soul cultivation now, yet you still love playing dirty tricks? How far did you even read in the The Self-Cultivation of a Master this system gave you? ]

"You wouldn't understand the joy of being sneaky, hehe." Li Zhōujūn chuckled as he tossed aside the wooden stick, grabbed the old hen by one leg, and said, "System, where's my seasoning?"

[ Ding: The system is issuing the reward: one portion of "Aoliang Roast Chicken Seasoning." ]

[ Aoliang Roast Chicken Seasoning ]: Something super delicious. The host may retrieve it at any time.

[ Ding: Although the host used to be an ordinary person and could not use Storage Magic Treasures, the host now has cultivation. This system suggests that the host get a storage treasure, so future system rewards can be issued directly into its storage space. ]

"Isn't that easy?" Li Zhōujūn immediately pulled five Storage Rings from his robes, refined them all, then put one Storage Ring set with a blue gemstone on his right hand.

Then Li Zhōujūn turned his gaze toward the unconscious old hen, revealing a reluctant expression. "Even though you bullied this mountain lord for forty years, we've grown attached to each other. How about I add an extra bundle of firewood later?"

If the old hen had been awake and heard Li Zhōujūn say that, who knew whether it would have jumped up and sung, "Listen to me, thank you..."

Half an hour later.

Li Zhōujūn appeared in the side hall, carrying an Aoliang Roast Chicken skewered on a wooden branch.

The moment he entered, someone threw herself into his arms.

"You little girl, what are you doing?" Li Zhōujūn looked at the little girl in his arms in surprise.

"Wuwuwu, I thought Master got angry because of the food I made and was ignoring me..." The little girl wept like rain on pear blossoms.

Li Zhōujūn's mouth twitched. "Though the dark cuisine you make really is terrifying, your master isn't that kind of person. At most, I'd bring out food I made and mock you to your face. How could I possibly abandon you?"

Sū Nán: "..."