Damn This Curiosity

Jiang Yao did not care what Phantylia was thinking.

He could not even be bothered to deal with her.

As long as that wretched nuisance left him alone, she could do whatever she wanted. It was all destined to happen anyway.

But if you mess with me?

How should I put this?

I'd swallow even Nanook whole.

Of course, Jiang Yao believed he had never offended Phantylia. He was so kind to everyone. How could he possibly stir up trouble?

You're the problem, Phantylia. Why are you following me? Go cause trouble somewhere else. You're just getting in my way!

I only want to eat in peace and be a carefree foodie!

Phantylia had something to say about that too.

What normal person eats an entire street's worth of food in one sitting?

Phantylia was practically grinding her teeth in frustration.

What kind of freak has Yukong saddled Tingyun with?

Actually, Phantylia knew perfectly well that this was her own handiwork.

She had every detail on the Xianzhou Luofu arranged.

Chaos had arrived!

And right at that moment, the Astral Express arrived.

Although the Nameless were renowned throughout the cosmos for their righteousness, this time was different.

Whether they were friends or foes remained unknown.

Especially after making contact, when they said another companion would soon arrive solely to purchase ingredients from the Luofu...

That excuse...

There were no words.

So it was only reasonable to assign someone to keep watch.

But from what she had seen so far...

This bastard really did seem to be here to buy ingredients!

What kind of freaks are the Nameless aboard the Astral Express?

Phantylia was genuinely at a loss for words.

And that was not even the most aggravating part.

What she found most incomprehensible was this.

How could anyone spend an entire night picking out ingredients?

Oh, right.

After speaking with Asta, Jiang Yao first sent Welt and the others a message.

He told them he was in Aurum Alley and had a few things to take care of, so they need not worry.

Then he eagerly waited for the pictures and videos from Asta's Exploration Team.

It had to be said that Asta had spared no expense for Jiang Yao.

Communicating over such vast distances was undoubtedly an incredibly expensive endeavor.

Especially between different galaxies.

Normally, even interastral communication could not support real-time conversations across an entire galaxy.

Asta had actually managed to solve that problem by setting up a relay.

The price was a constant stream of Credits going up in smoke.

But Asta believed it was all worthwhile!

Still, even with her faith in Jiang Yao...

After seeing the ingredients he had selected...

Asta could not help wondering—

Were the ingredients Jiang Yao picked actually edible?

Wake up in the morning.

Embrace the sun.

Although Jiang Yao had not slept all night, he was full of energy.

Just thinking of all the ingredients the wonderfully dependable Asta would soon bring him...

Made him want to throw back his head and howl with excitement.

In terms of sheer quantity, there really was not much.

The equipment this Exploration Team carried had limited room for ingredients.

The main issue was Jiang Yao having to teach them, step by step, how to preserve the ingredients' freshness as much as possible.

That was the real challenge.

So Jiang Yao carefully selected some ingredients that would keep well. As for the others, they could discuss those later!

They were not going anywhere, anyway~

Whenever Jiang Yao was in a good mood, his appetite became phenomenal.

But before breakfast, he needed to take care of business.

He found Mincey and sent Welt and the others a package.

Naturally, it was the Light Cone storing food for Firefly.

Welt had given him the address the night before.

Once all those miscellaneous chores were done...

Jiang Yao got ready to begin today's clean sweep.

He had eaten most of the dishes yesterday. Today, he would simply finish off the rest!

Operation Aurum Alley clean sweep, begin!

Phantylia looked utterly dead inside.

It suited her role as Tingyun perfectly.

She was certain now.

Buying ingredients?

Bullshit!

This guy was purely here to fill his stomach!

But there was nothing she could do. Yukong had sent a message that morning, essentially telling her to stop monitoring Jiang Yao.

Instead, she was to serve as his actual host.

Fine. She still had to follow Jiang Yao around today.

Jiang Yao made a circuit of the alley and felt a little disappointed.

After his sweep the previous night...

There were not many foods left to choose from that morning.

Jiang Yao had no interest in eating mediocre food a second time.

He had gone through untold hardships to climb over Qlipoth's wall.

If he kept putting up with things, would he not have climbed that wall for nothing?

As a result, he had nearly toured all of Aurum Alley without eating much, and his previously sunny mood had turned cloudy.

With no other choice, he headed back to Delicious Supreme.

When he arrived, however, Delicious Supreme was closed. Meanwhile, someone seemed to be causing trouble at the Snack Stall next door.

Jiang Yao recognized the stall owner. Her surname was Gao.

She sold authentic local Luofu snacks.

The only thing he had missed the previous night was the Qiongshi Bird Skewer, and he had been planning to make up for that this morning.

Then he heard a male Foxian complain:

"The fruit has completely lost its original texture. Even boiling it down and blending it with sugar is just blindly sticking to a method that no longer works..."

"Forget it, forget it. I can't believe I'm still seriously recalling how this snack tasted. Any more of this and I'll throw up. Absolutely ridiculous."

"What a joke. This is all Aurum Alley has to offer? I actually thought the new product might be a pleasant surprise, so I came all the way here first thing in the morning to try it!"

Jiang Yao was immediately amused.

Someone had tested the waters for him. How could he not go over and enjoy the show?

After eating his way around the alley the previous night and that morning, Jiang Yao had reached a conclusion.

If he really wanted good food, he would have to cook it himself!

Jiang Yao brought Tingyun over with him.

After listening for a moment, he understood what had happened.

Apparently, Aurum Alley's economy was struggling, and Auntie Gao's Snack Stall wanted to try something different, so she had introduced a brand-new version of the Qiongshi Bird Skewer.

This male Foxian, named Gao Tang, had come after hearing about it.

Only, this new Qiongshi Bird Skewer...

To put it nicely, it was a bold experiment.

To put it bluntly: blech, it tasted awful!

So Gao Tang was not in a particularly good mood after eating it.

Jiang Yao understood completely.

You lined up for food first thing in the morning, brimming with anticipation.

Then it not only failed to meet your expectations, it tasted terrible.

Who would not be angry?

It was like pulling on banners in his previous life and having to hit the full 180-pull hard pity every single time.

Who would not be angry?

Still, Jiang Yao figured it was only a snack. Just eat it for fun and leave it at that.

Was there really any need to stand there disrupting someone else's business?

After thinking it over, Jiang Yao walked up.

He was going to offer a fair word. (He was taking the other side.)

"Hey, man, you've said your piece. No need to interfere with her business, right?"

Jiang Yao offered a word of advice.

Actually, it was not really advice. Mostly, this guy was holding up his breakfast.

He also wanted to discuss making it himself with Auntie Gao.

"Hm? Who are you? Are you here to try the snacks?"

"Take my advice. Don't put yourself through this. If you're hungry, find somewhere else. Don't subject yourself to suffering here."

Gao Tang complained again.

Jiang Yao tried persuading him. "Come on, we're just having a snack. No need to set the bar so high."

"A high bar? Perhaps. I've lost count of how many times terrible food in Starskiff Haven has left me miserable and furious. But it's instinctive—a physiological revulsion."

Gao Tang poured out his grievances.

Jiang Yao scratched his head. What was wrong with this guy? Had life never knocked him around?

He refused to believe anything in this world could be harder to swallow than a Stellaron or Himeko's coffee.

"Um, Auntie Gao, give me one of those Qiongshi Bird Skewers, the same kind he had. Let me see what all the fuss is about."

Jiang Yao refused to believe it could be that bad. He had originally planned to ask Auntie Gao about making it himself.

Now? He suddenly wanted to try it. Damn this curiosity.