Exclusive Chef · Advanced Version

Pope Palace, bedchamber.

Bibi Dong's finger bones cracked as she clenched them, her phoenix eyes nailed to the two gold-leaf characters on the light screen—[Bathe Together].

"Bang!"

The sandalwood armrest shattered into powder at the sound. Just as she prepared to flip the tea table before her, the system's cold, mechanical voice rang out once more.

This damn system, who exactly does it take This Seat for?!

[Ding! "Daily Intimacy Task Pool" is merely a feature preview. The currently active task is: Exclusive Cook · Advanced Edition.]

[One meal per day, difficulty increasing. Today's task: Clear-stewed Deep Sea Silver Fish with slices of Top-Grade Mountain Ginseng. Requirement: Refined knife skills.]

[Failure penalty: Soul-Devouring Pain doubled.]

Bibi Dong's nerves, stretched to the point of snapping, eased by a fraction.

But looking at the words "refined knife skills," the corners of her eyes still twitched violently.

To her, these four words were harder than taking on three Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts single-handedly.

Library Pavilion, third floor.

Su Chen lay on a bamboo chair, the light screen of the Eye of Omniscience glowing faintly in the darkness.

He watched the "Advanced Cook Task" prompt pop up on the system interface, the curve of his lips slowly spreading.

This damn system really knows how to push buttons.

Su Chen laughed silently.

First, use a "Bathe Together" task to push one's psychological threshold to the limit, then toss out a "cooking" task with a sudden drop in difficulty—a classic case of boiling a frog in warm water. No matter how much Bibi Dong resisted, when forced to choose between two evils, she would have to grit her teeth and accept it.

He casually pulled the thin blanket covering him higher, adjusted into a more frail and curled-up sleeping posture, and quietly waited for the arrival of deep night.

Deep night, Pope Palace underground secret chamber.

Bibi Dong, dressed in that moon-white robe, stood before a newly replaced steel cutting board.

Before her lay a top-tier Deep Sea Silver Fish that had been processed into a miserable state, along with several stalks of Top-Grade Mountain Ginseng.

In her hand, she gripped the Asura Bone-Carving Dagger, a blade that had once severed the tendons of two Titled Douluo.

At this moment, the look in her eyes as she held the blade was even more ruthless than when she suppressed the spies from the Worship Hall during the day.

She stared fixedly at the fish on the board, exerting force from her wrist.

"Duang!"

The blade came down, not like cutting fish, but like chopping firewood; fish scales mixed with shredded meat flew everywhere on impact.

The steel cutting board was gouged with a three-inch-deep scar, the entire fish was violently severed, and its innards spilled all over the floor.

Bibi Dong's chest heaved; this was more exhausting than stripping away an External Soul Bone.

Outside the thick stone door of the secret chamber, Angela and two Red-Robed Guards stood ramrod straight.

Listening to the continuous "Duang! Duang!" chopping sounds from inside, along with the occasional, irrepressible roar of purple-black Rakshasa soul power leaking out, Angela's brain completely crashed.

Cold sweat instantly soaked her red-robed inner lining.

It's over! The Pope is inside using an extremely cruel method to secretly dismember some traitor, even chopping up the bones! They can't even let out a scream, clearly their five senses have been sealed!

Angela didn't even dare to breathe too hard, fearing she might disturb the god of slaughter inside.

Inside the secret chamber, the battle was fierce.

Bibi Dong tossed aside the mangled fish and picked up a piece of old ginger, preparing to slice it.

The Asura Dagger was far too sharp, and as the ginger surface was uneven, the blade slipped.

The sharp edge mercilessly sliced across her left index finger, and fresh blood instantly welled up.

Bibi Dong didn't even frown; she instinctively channeled her soul power, preparing to let the flesh wound heal instantly.

[Warning!] The system's red light flashed abruptly, [You must retain the real wound; soul power healing is prohibited to judge the sincerity of your "refined knife skills"!]

Her soul power was forcibly suppressed, and Bibi Dong took a deep breath, her chest heaving violently.

Gritting her teeth, she tore a strip of white silk from the hem of her moon-white robe and, with extremely clumsy movements, wrapped her bleeding index finger, finally using her teeth to tie an incredibly ugly knot.

On the light screen, her emotion panel glowed blindingly.

[Bibi Dong's current emotions: Unwillingness 99% / Grievance 15% / Frustration 40%]

At the same time, Su Chen in the Library Pavilion took in this scene through the Eye of Omniscience.

He watched the Pope on the screen—who was decisive in slaughter during the day and had crushed an Elder Token under her foot—now holding a finger wrapped in bandages, struggling against a piece of old ginger.

Her eyes were filled with nothing but unwillingness, and even a hint of grievance.

Su Chen stared at that smear of bright red blood for two seconds.

He had lived cautiously for sixteen years, accustomed to the coldness of the world at the bottom, his heart long since hardened like iron. But at this moment, the tip of his heart softened abruptly.

The sight of such a high and mighty deity descending into the mortal realm for a task, clumsy and stained with blood, was truly devastating in its impact.

At noon the following day.

Sunlight fell upon the cordon surrounding the Library Pavilion, where sixteen Temple Knights stood ramrod straight.

Bibi Dong walked through the sunlight, dressed in her standard papal robes, her stride cold and steady.

Yet, in her hands, she carried a pure silver tray.

As she drew near, the captain of the guard standing watch caught a glimpse out of the corner of his eye and nearly popped his eyeballs right out of his helmet.

What had he just seen?

On the left hand the Pope used to steady the tray, that slender, fair index finger was wrapped in a glaring white bandage, with a spot of dark red seeping through the center!

To the sixteen Temple Knights, it felt as if a nuclear bomb had detonated in their hearts.

His Holiness the Pope... was injured?

Who could possibly have harmed her?

Everyone could only slam their heads down toward their chests, suffocated by the shock, not even daring to take a deep breath.

Bibi Dong pushed open the wooden door with a cold face, then shut it behind her, cutting off all prying eyes.

She set a bowl of fish soup that smelled slightly burnt onto the tea table with a loud "bang," her movements so forceful that two droplets splashed out.

She kept her head turned to look at the crooked old locust tree outside the window, her voice stiff: "Drink."

Su Chen climbed down from the bamboo chair with extreme decorum, knelt straight, and respectfully lifted the bowl of fish soup with both hands.

The fish meat had been stewed into mush and the broth was dark, yet he did not hesitate in the slightest, swallowing it down in large gulps.

Just as he swallowed the third mouthful, Su Chen's teeth slammed into something hard.

A slice of old ginger, cut as thick as tree bark.

An intensely spicy flavor mixed with a raw, fishy stench rushed straight into his nasal cavity.

Su Chen could not control it at all, and he began to cough violently.

"Cough! Cough, cough, cough!"

His face flushed to the color of a liver in an instant, his eye sockets turned blood-red, and physiological tears spilled out uncontrollably, rolling down his cheeks and splashing onto his collar.

Hearing this heart-wrenching coughing, Bibi Dong panicked instantly.

She whipped her head around, subconsciously taking half a step forward, her fingers gripping her skirt tightly.

"Is it that bad?!" Her voice changed pitch, carrying an undisguised urgency, "Spit it out! Spit it out right now!"

Su Chen did not spit it out.

His Adam's apple bobbed violently as he forced himself to swallow that thick, bark-like slice of old ginger, his entire esophagus burning with pain.

He looked up, tears still hanging on his trembling eyelashes, the corners of his eyes red, looking exceptionally pitiful.

But his gaze did not fall on the bowl; instead, it landed with pinpoint accuracy on the bandaged index finger of Bibi Dong's left hand.

"For Your Holiness to spare time to cook for this subordinate... this soup is exquisite beyond measure. How could this subordinate possibly deserve..." Su Chen's voice was hoarse, permeated with a near-maniacal devotion and heartache.

He paused, staring fixedly at that circle of white gauze, and tears welled up in his eyes once more: "Was Your Holiness's injury... sustained for this subordinate's sake?"

"This subordinate... would die ten thousand deaths and still not be able to repay you!"

With the final four words, he choked out a sob and slammed his forehead heavily against the wooden floor.

Bibi Dong froze in place.

This sentence was like a thunderbolt, shattering all of her psychological defenses.

For so many years, no one had cared about what she sacrificed, and no one had cared if she was hurt.

Qian Xunji only cared about the Angelic inheritance, and Yu Xiaogang only cared about his theories.

Yet now, a lowly servant had forced himself to swallow inedible ginger just to avoid failing her "intentions," and was even weeping over her trivial wound.

A surge of intense heat erupted from Bibi Dong's chest, rushing straight to her head.

Her earlobes burned to a blood-red color at a visible rate, spreading all the way to her neck.

She was at a loss, not even knowing where to cast her gaze.

"Mad... madman!"

She threw out these words with a trembling tail-end, turned, and bolted out the door, her footsteps chaotic and devoid of rhythm—she was practically fleeing in a panic.

The guards outside watched the Pope's flustered retreating figure, their hearts skipping a beat in shock.

When had they ever seen the high and mighty Pope in such a state?

Bibi Dong's aura vanished completely.

The Library Pavilion returned to a deathly silence.

Su Chen sat up from the floor and set down the empty bowl.

He wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes with a casual motion, and the humility and panic that had clung to his tear-stained face vanished in an instant, leaving behind only a bottomless, tranquil calm.

In his mind, golden light erupted with a roar.

[Ding! Detected that Binder No. 001 has completed an advanced interaction with the cook! Favorability has increased significantly! Lord of Creation's hundredfold critical return triggered!]

[Reward obtained: Detection precision of the Eye of Omniscience increased! Detection range expanded geometrically!]

The moment the system prompt faded, the light screen in Su Chen's mind flickered violently, his field of vision seemingly elevated infinitely, crossing the walls of Martial Soul City and spanning endless mountains and rivers.

Immediately following, a blinding golden notification popped up in the center of the screen:

[Range expansion complete.]

[Detected a second, extreme fluctuation of homologous "Great Fortune" outside the territory of Martial Soul Hall, in the direction of the Heaven Dou Empire...]

Su Chen slowly leaned back into his bamboo chair.

He did not look at the empty bowl on the table, but instead raised his head, his deep gaze piercing through the dilapidated window lattice to stare straight toward the distant Heaven Dou City.

If he remembered correctly, Qian Renxue should be over there.