Unhealthy Tendencies

"Ding!~"

A clear, melodious chime rang out from the mountain gate plaza. Zhang Nian had specifically ordered it: from now on, this time each day would be when everyone gathered to eat. Though people at his level could already choose not to eat, this was preparation for what was to come.

"Everyone, gather in the plaza." He sent his voice up the mountain with Dou Qi. The plaza wasn't far from the lounge above, and before long three figures came down in an orderly fashion. Queen Medusa carried Little Zi Yan in her arms, while Yun Yun beat her wings. When they saw Zhang Nian standing in the plaza, the three bowed and greeted him. "Good day, Master~"

"Mm." Standing with his hands behind his back, he looked at the three disciples before him and nodded slightly. Ya Fei still hadn't finished absorbing the pill's energy. The difference between a Ninth-Grade Treasure Pill and a Ninth-Grade Profound Pill was certainly becoming clear. When Medusa had absorbed the energy of a Ninth-Grade Profound Pill, it had taken her only about a day and a night. Perhaps that was due in part to the compatibility of their bloodlines, since the pill had originally been a system reward when he took Medusa as his disciple.

By comparison, ten days had already passed, and Ya Fei still showed no signs of improvement. Judging from the energy fluctuations inside the protective barrier, she would need at least another month to digest and absorb it. Whether the energy conversion would strengthen Ya Fei's constitution or increase her Dou Qi had nothing to do with Zhang Nian; they hadn't formally established a master-disciple relationship yet. Of course, he wasn't bothered. Even if they had, the returned reward wouldn't be very high.

Going by the starting values for favorability, Yun Yun was at fifty, while Zi Yan and Medusa started at sixty. Ya Fei was probably somewhere between the two. If the multiplier wasn't high, the returned reward wouldn't bring about any earth-shattering changes.

"From now on, we'll have a meal together at this time each day. It'll also give me a chance to check on your cultivation." Without another word, Zhang Nian led the way into the "dining hall." It was a room they'd hastily cleaned up, and fortunately they'd left a few spare rooms when they'd first cleared the place out, so it wasn't awkward now. The three followed him inside. Each had her own thoughts about her master's gesture.

Little Zi Yan watched Master Zhang Nian's back, her small, soft hands clenched into fists. She swore to herself, At the table, I'm definitely going to ask Master for some tasty pills. Hmph! Everyone else has some, so why don't I? My little pouch is almost empty! That's what I'll do!

Yun Yun was a little surprised. She hadn't expected that someone of Zhang Nian's cultivation would still have such an appetite. Or perhaps it was that, back when she was in the Misty Cloud Sect, she'd never once eaten with her former master, Yun Shan. The experience made her feel a faint sense of anticipation and longing.

A glint passed through Cailin's beautiful eyes. She'd already considered the deeper meaning behind Zhang Nian's actions, and smiled faintly. Taking Little Zi Yan by the hand, she turned to Yun Yun, who was still standing there in a daze. "Come on. Don't keep Master waiting."

"Ah... all right." Yun Yun came to her senses and hurried after Cailin, realizing she'd been rude.

The cooks and ingredients carefully selected by the Mittel Family were certainly first-rate. They'd smelled the food as soon as they came outside. The four took their places around the table, with Zhang Nian at the head. Cailin had moved ahead of Yun Yun and claimed the two seats closest to Master for herself and Zi Yan. Since they'd joined earlier, it was only fair. Zhang Nian didn't object.

"Wow, this smells amazing~" Zi Yan stared at the table piled high with delicacies, drooling nonstop. All the ingredients were the freshest magical beast meat, carefully selected by the Mittel Family. Eating it could even improve one's Dou Qi a little. It wasn't much, but every little bit helped.

"All right, don't just sit there. Dig in." Zhang Nian picked up his chopsticks. Cailin and Yun Yun only began to eat heartily after seeing their master start, while Zi Yan had never bothered waiting in the first place. She'd already started eating, and promptly forgot all about what had been bothering her.

While they ate,

Zhang Nian suddenly remembered something and turned to the others. "From this day on, there is no longer a Queen Medusa of the Jia Ma Empire here at the mountain gate. From now on, you're all to call her Senior Sister Cailin. Understood?"

"Understood," Yun Yun replied timidly. Then she turned to Cailin and greeted her warmly. "Senior Sister Cailin."

"Mm." Cailin replied blandly, her cool tone giving off an air that kept people at a distance.

Perhaps the two still felt some resentment over the earlier dispute about the rooms. Zhang Nian said nothing; with time, things would naturally improve. He turned to Zi Yan and used spatial power to retrieve three fifth-grade medicinal ingredients from the system's stockpile, handing them to her.

"Here. This should be enough to keep you going for a while."

"Mm!?" Zi Yan's mouth was full of food, but the excitement and gratitude in her watery eyes were plain to see. She immediately stood up and mumbled, "Thangk you, Mathter."

Uh... Why did that sound like she was saying it with her dying breath?

Outside the room,

the disciples' maids were chatting quietly in the kitchen.

"Oh, our young lady is such a handful... She goes into the woods every day, and no one can stop her. If this goes on, the Saint will forget about her..." Mingyue, one of Zi Yan's maids, pushed her rice around her bowl, feeling utterly dejected. So many others worked hard at cultivation and had already received gifts from the Saint. Compared to them, her own young lady was seriously lagging behind.

"Manager Ya Fei taught the two of us this." At that, Cailin's maid Xiao Qing perked up. She began sharing her experience with the other two. "Listen, you can't wait for the young ladies to figure these things out on their own. You have to help them. Xiao Hong and I often bring up how wonderful the Saint is, intentionally or not. That way, our young lady Cailin can understand what he really means even better."

Xiao Qing spoke so persuasively that Baojuan, Yun Yun's maid, anxiously asked, "But what if we say the wrong thing and upset our young ladies? Won't we be the ones who suffer?"

"Well, what else can we maids do? But if it works, there'll be rewards too. Just look at Xiao Hong and me. We've already made some progress, and I'm sure it won't be long before our young lady rewards us."

Xiao Qing's smug demeanor made the other four quite envious. They began plotting how to subtly bring it up with their own young ladies. In the end, they all had the same goal: to curry favor with the Saint.

Cuiguo and Baojuan, Yun Yun's two maids, were especially inspired. After all, their young lady had both beauty and talent, and she certainly wouldn't lose to Cailin by much.

Zhang Nian had no idea that, somewhere beyond his sight, an unhealthy trend had begun to sweep through the mountain gate...

It wasn't until many years later that he finally realized it...