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He seemed to raise an eyebrow, a hint of provocation in his expression. Although he was speaking to Ning Ning, his gaze remained fixed on Rong Ci: "Master is about to take us to the guest rooms for the night. If you don't come now, you'll miss out."

Rong Ci narrowed his eyes and smiled, responding to his gaze without a word.

"Oh! I'm coming!"

After saying this, Ning Ning glanced at Rong Ci. The moment she turned her head to look at him, he switched back to that harmless, innocent smile from before. She whispered softly, "Then I'll be going first! Let's continue our chat next time."

She paused for a moment. "Though, the next time we meet, it should be inside the secret realm."

"Indeed." The red-clad cultivator's tone was indifferent, carrying a faint, lingering sense of anticipation. "By then, we will be rivals."

Liuming Mountain lived up to its reputation as a major sect of the immortals; even the guest rooms were built with exquisite beauty, and each room was equipped with an Alchemy Furnace.

The moment she saw the furnace, Ning Ning recalled a rather unpleasant memory and couldn't help but feel a pang of heartache—

But how could a successor of the new generation be defeated by such a minor setback? One must climb back up from wherever they fall. She refused to believe that she couldn't master a mere furnace.

"What? Use an Alchemy Furnace to cook?"

He Zhizhou was stunned for a moment, but soon grinned in agreement: "That works! This Alchemy Furnace is essentially a cultivation-world version of a microwave. Not only can it control the heat automatically, but the food made in it also comes infused with spiritual energy. If we use it to cook, we might actually create something truly earth-shattering."

Cooking with an Alchemy Furnace actually had no technical or theoretical obstacles.

It was just that, from the perspective of cultivators, a furnace was always meant for refining precious pills; using it to boil ingredients was simply too much of a waste of talent.

But Ning Ning didn't think that way at all.

In her previous world, she often made little desserts herself. Since coming here, she rarely had the chance to visit a kitchen, and tasks like starting a fire or washing pots were truly troublesome. If she could turn an Alchemy Furnace into a portable little oven to keep in her storage bag—

Then she could successfully have a cultivation-world version of mung bean cakes, osmanthus cakes, egg yolk pastries, and even sushi!

The two of them got straight to work. Due to the current lack of ingredients—having only the syrup, starch, and cooking oil from Ning Ning's storage bag, along with the apples, bananas, and pears on the guest room table—they decided after some discussion that their goal for today would be candied bananas.

Qin Shu, who was sharing the room with Ning Ning, held her sword and watched them bustle about: "What is a candied banana?"

"A delicacy of the mortal realm! Junior Sister, you're in for a treat tonight!"

He Zhizhou gave a thumbs up: "Once the syrup solidifies and coats the sliced bananas, you take a bite while it's still hot. The sugar shell is piping hot and incredibly crispy, while the banana inside is soft and tender, radiating a sweet, steaming warmth from the inside out—it's absolute perfection!"

Qin Shu said "Oh," then added, "Then why did Fellow Daoist Lin Xun turn pale and run straight into his room the moment he saw me?"

Ning Ning replied, "My Junior Brother is shy and is most afraid of being around strangers. I've already bought him a mannequin so he can practice conversation in his room to see if it helps improve things."

The first banana, coated in oil and starch, was placed into the furnace. Ning Ning coughed lightly from the smoke, nearly losing her grip on the chopsticks in her hand.

Just at that moment, she suddenly noticed a dark shadow flash before her eyes, blocking all the smoke behind it.

It turned out to be Pei Ji, who had raised his left hand to shield her from the thick white smoke with his sleeve, while his other hand took the chopsticks from her grasp without a word. "I'll do it."

The contact between their hands lasted only for a fleeting moment.

Pei Ji's palms were as cold as black iron, yet the back of her hand was incredibly soft and warm. The sudden touch made Ning Ning blink in surprise, chilled by the contact.

That's right, he was born with a cold constitution and his health wasn't very good.

Pei Ji was clever; he understood the process of making candied bananas after seeing it just once. His slender fingers moved with practiced ease, twisting and turning, and in no time, all the sliced bananas were placed into the pill furnace.

He Zhizhou was not like Ning Ning, who only caused trouble when the system issued a mission; he generally got along well with Pei Ji.

As a former acting student who once dreamed of winning an Oscar, he maintained his villainous persona with great professionalism, letting out a cold huff: "I never would have guessed. Your swordsmanship might be lacking, kid, but your cooking skills aren't bad."

Well, of course.

Ning Ning thought to herself that Pei Ji's mother had never cared for him; if he hadn't learned to cook for himself, he probably would have starved to death long ago.

With all the bananas in the furnace, they now faced a very important question.

Ning Ning scratched her head, looking completely serious. "So... how long should we wait before taking them out?"

"...Spying on the enemy?"

Evening, Liuming Mountain guest quarters.

A young girl in plain clothes sat at a wooden table. Although she was speaking to the person beside her, her gaze was cast downward, focused intently on the Taiqing Sword Nine Forms in her hands.

She was none other than the direct disciple of the Wanjian Sect, Su Qinghan.

"Exactly! With the Xiaochong Mountain Secret Realm opening tomorrow, we're just sitting around anyway. We might as well go see what kind of people the disciples from other sects are."

The youth at her side said, "Senior Sister, the Xiaochong Mountain Secret Realm only opens once every many years. Many Golden Core Realm cultivators treat it as a trial and a place for competition. As the saying goes, know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated. Why don't we—"

"Xu Ye, as a Sword Cultivator, how can you harbor thoughts of such crooked paths?"

Su Qinghan's voice was very faint, devoid of any fluctuation in tone. "No matter who they are, as long as they are under our blades, there is no difference."

The implication was that when mowing the grass, every blade of grass was the same.

This young lady was arrogant enough.

The youth called Xu Ye was rebuffed and had no choice but to say goodbye and leave the room. However, just because Su Qinghan had refused without hesitation didn't mean he would give up halfway.

Senior Sister always said he had too many tricks up his sleeve and didn't act like a Sword Cultivator. But Xu Ye felt that these weren't just tricks; they were strategies and tactics.

He had been looked after by his Senior Sister for so long; tomorrow, he would definitely make her look at his pre-battle preparations with newfound respect.