Bedtime Reading, Bibi Dong Explodes

This command felt like a slab of lead, slamming into the air until it solidified.

Su Chen lowered his eyes, his gaze pinned firmly onto that charred, unrecognizable object.

The data on the light screen was brutally honest.

[Bibi Dong's current emotions: Shame 98%/Guilt 85%/Nervousness 90%]

[Internal Monologue: Don't look at the plate... absolutely do not look... If he dares to say a single word of refusal, This Seat will shove his head into this wretched plate today!]

Su Chen did not hesitate.

His hands trembled slightly as he lifted the pure silver tray, his ten fingers gripping it so tightly that his fingertips shook like leaves in an autumn gale.

Then, he looked up.

A sickly, burning flush erupted across his pale face, spreading all the way to his earlobes.

His eyes reddened instantly, his Adam's apple bobbed with effort, and his lips quivered several times before he managed to squeeze out a voice so hoarse it was barely audible.

"Is... is this something Your Excellency... made for this subordinate with your own hands?"

That voice was shaking.

It wasn't out of fear; it was a tremor of fanatical, lowly disbelief, blooming from the very dust.

The soul power about to erupt from Bibi Dong's fingertips quietly dissipated.

She had anticipated that Su Chen would show a look of difficulty, or perhaps even vomit on the spot.

Her purple-black soul power had already gathered at her fingertips, ready to pry his mouth open and force it down his throat.

Yet, what she heard was not disgust.

She subconsciously turned her head, her peripheral vision catching sight of Su Chen's hands.

The way he held the silver tray was as if he were cradling some peerless treasure.

Bibi Dong's throat felt as though it were blocked by something.

The words "stop the nonsense" remained stuck, unable to be spat out.

Su Chen gave her no time to think.

He reached out, grabbed the charred meat, closed his eyes, and took a bite!

Crunch.

The bitterness of charcoal and the raw, fishy stench of meat exploded instantly on his taste buds, followed immediately by the cloying, salty sting of coarse salt that shot straight to his crown.

This flavor was practically a biological weapon!

Su Chen kept his expression unchanged, his mind frantically complaining, yet his chewing did not falter for a single second.

His cheeks bulged, his Adam's apple bobbed up and down, and his swallowing was urgent yet solemn, like a prisoner who had gone three days and three nights without food, finally receiving his last meal.

Standing by the window, Bibi Dong caught this scene in her peripheral vision, and her heart gave a violent jolt.

This thing... even she had nearly vomited after tasting a tiny morsel.

How... how could he possibly eat it?

The data on the light screen began to reorganize.

[Bibi Dong's current emotions: Shock 70%/Astonishment 60%/A trace of panic 23%]

Su Chen did not even spare the charred crumbs left on the plate, using his fingertips to pick them up one by one and piously placing them into his mouth.

Bibi Dong's body moved forward half a step, beyond her own control.

"You... slow down!"

Once the words were out, she was stunned by herself.

Su Chen swallowed the final morsel, even using his finger to wipe the grease from the bottom of the plate before licking it clean.

After finishing, his knees went weak, and with a heavy thud, he knelt firmly on the ground, bowing his forehead to the floor.

When he looked up again, a single tear slid from the corner of his eye.

Just one, tracing a wet path along the unhealed bloodstain on his cheekbone, burning like a brand.

"This subordinate has been in Martial Soul Hall for sixteen years, and has never tasted... such a delicacy."

His voice was hoarse, every word trembling.

"For Your Excellency, with your golden body, to wash your hands and prepare soup for this subordinate... this subordinate, even in death, has no regrets!"

Bibi Dong froze completely.

She wanted to scold him for spouting nonsense; this was nothing more than a failed, burnt piece of waste.

But she could not utter a single word.

What churned in her mind was not anger, but images she had locked deep within the recesses of her memory.

The control and exploitation by Qian Xunji.

The cowardice and avoidance of Yu Xiaogang.

The men she had known had brought her nothing but harm and betrayal.

Never had there been a single person who felt gratitude toward her for even the most trivial of deeds.

Not even for a plate of burnt meat.

Bibi Dong's fingers gripped her skirt tightly.

She said nothing.

On the light screen, two numbers jumped simultaneously.

[Affection: 12→17]

[Dependency: 31%]

The system's mechanical voice rang in her mind.

[Ding—First meal bond mission completed perfectly! Host's mental power slightly increased.]

A cool sensation surged into her sea of consciousness, smoothing away the last trace of restlessness.

Bibi Dong took a deep breath, a stifling, indescribable bitterness pressing against her chest.

She forced a stern expression and tossed out four words.

"Come back tomorrow morning."

She turned and left, her pace so hurried it was as if she were fleeing.

The moment the wooden door closed, Su Chen caught the faint, lingering crimson on the tips of her ears.

The door clicked shut.

In Su Chen's mind, golden light exploded.

[Ding! Interaction with Binder No. 001 detected, Lord of Creation hundredfold critical return triggered!]

[Reward obtained: God-Level Culinary Arts!]

A vast ocean of information flooded his mind instantly.

Heat control, knife skills, seasoning, the refinement of spirit meals... countless mysteries of the culinary path were fully mastered in a single second.

Su Chen let out a long breath.

He wiped away the drop of eye drops—no, tears—he had just squeezed out, and looked down at the empty silver platter.

The taste of charcoal mixed with raw meat still lingered in his mouth.

He had almost ruined the performance.

Emotional value, when given to the right person, was more effective than a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bone.

The next seven days were a veritable devil's training camp.

Bibi Dong clocked in for all three meals on time.

Day one, charred meat. Su Chen: "I am grateful!"

Day two, burnt porridge with burnt vegetables. Su Chen: "Your Excellency, I suggest more water and lower heat."

Day three, the porridge wasn't burnt, but the vegetables were still charcoal. Su Chen: "Your Excellency's porridge is the best in the world." Bibi Dong turned to look out the window for a long time.

Day four, the vegetables were only burnt at the edges.

Day five, the meat slices finally had a normal color.

Day six, a bowl of hot noodle soup with a... uniquely shaped fried egg. Su Chen drank every drop of the soup, and his affection jumped to 23.

The evening of the seventh day.

Bibi Dong took away the empty bowl, the corners of her mouth relaxing for an imperceptible moment. Seven days of perfect attendance; the mission was complete.

Su Chen watched her leave as the light screen flashed with golden characters.

[Seven-day perfect attendance achieved! Bonus reward: Rakshasa God Trial 8th Stage Pass x1—Injected into Binder No. 001, Bibi Dong.]

[Lord of Creation hundredfold critical return triggered! Reward obtained: Source Soul Power surge! Soul Power Level: 30→40 Ancestor!]

Boom!

A hot current exploded from his dantian; the roots of the World Tree within him dug deeper, and its branches thickened.

Su Chen closed his eyes to feel the power, but before the smile could fade from his lips, the light screen before him turned blood-red!

A bold warning exploded in both his and Bibi Dong's minds simultaneously.

[Ding! Advanced interaction mission triggered—Bedtime Reading.]

[Host is requested to go to the Library Pavilion tonight, hold the Lord of Creation in your arms, embrace closely, and read a bedtime story for one hour.]

[Reward: Rakshasa God Trial 8th Stage difficulty reduced by 50%.]

[Failure penalty: Soul-Devouring Pain (Ultimate Version), lasting for two hundred and eighty-eight hours.]

Su Chen stared at the words "hold in your arms" and "embrace closely," and fell silent.

System, you aren't acting right.

He silently switched to Bibi Dong's emotional panel.

[Bibi Dong's current emotion: Shame level—off the charts, unable to display]

[Internal monologue: ...??!!!]

The monologue column was completely blank, containing only a string of question marks and exclamation points.

Clearly.

His Holiness the Pope's brain had already crashed.