Chapter Summaries

Plot and events

• Yukong receives a report that Marshal Hua may be in Aurum Alley sampling snacks and sharing them with locals. This seems especially suspicious because no official visit was announced.
• The report reminds Yukong of Phantylia’s earlier messages about Jiang Yao cooking on the Luofu. Yukong wonders whether the strange activity signals a hidden threat, and alerts Phantylia before consulting Jing Yuan.
• Jing Yuan and Fu Xuan are already investigating the revelations surrounding Kafka’s escape and the events leading up to the Stellaron crisis. They are baffled by the Marshal report, but its implausibility makes them take it seriously. Fu Xuan activates the Matrix of Prescience.
• In Aurum Alley, Phantylia reads Yukong’s message and begins wondering whether Jiang Yao could actually be Marshal Hua, comparing his appearance with rumors about the Marshal.
• Qingque guides Welt, Stelle, and March 7th to Aurum Alley, enthusiastically describing its food. A flood of messages tells her that Marshal Hua may be there, and people ask her to take a photo. Qingque passes the rumor on to the crew, still unsure whether it is true.

Character developments and interactions

• Yukong shifts from dismissing Jiang Yao’s cooking as harmless oddity to suspecting it may connect to the Marshal’s unexplained appearance.
• Jing Yuan and Fu Xuan respond cautiously, balancing the bizarre report against their ongoing investigation.
• Phantylia becomes increasingly suspicious of Jiang Yao, scrutinizing his looks and physique for clues about his identity.
• Qingque acts as the crew’s guide and comic relief: she relishes the prospect of food, briefly panics at work-related messages, then gets swept up in the Marshal rumor and gossip.
• Stelle teases that March’s low spirits come from meeting someone extraordinary, prompting Qingque’s eager curiosity.
• Welt reacts to the name Hua with comfort and nostalgia, associating it with reassurance amid his lingering trauma.

Themes

• Rumor and uncertainty: An absurd report spreads quickly, and its very strangeness makes characters wonder whether it might be true.
• Hidden identities and appearances: Phantylia’s suspicion of Jiang Yao raises the possibility that the person cooking in Aurum Alley is not who he seems.
• Ordinary pleasures amid crisis: Food, sightseeing, and gossip provide a light contrast to the Luofu’s political tension and ongoing investigation.

Key plot points and events

• Qingque announces that Fu Xuan has invited the group—and Jiang Yao—to a meal at the prestigious Supreme Flavor Garden.
• Qingque expects the restaurant to impress the Astral Express crew, but Welt, March, and Stelle show little enthusiasm. March and Stelle explain that Jiang Yao’s cooking already outshone the restaurant’s food during their previous meal.
• Meanwhile, Jiang Yao prepares to improve several Luofu snacks. He plans to start with Dream Tapir Roll, which needs baking.
• Phantylia confronts Jiang Yao with a strange question: whether he is the Xianzhou marshal. Yukong’s message says Marshal Hua is in Aurum Alley sampling and improving snacks—an oddly close match to Jiang Yao’s activities.
• Unable to explain the coincidence, Jiang Yao and Phantylia trade increasingly uncertain denials, ending with both agreeing that he probably is not the marshal.

Character developments and interactions

• Qingque is delighted by the prospect of another meal at Supreme Flavor Garden and imagines how fortunate her relaxed approach to life has made her. Her pride in the restaurant is shaken when the others dismiss it.
• March 7th and Stelle reveal their strong confidence in Jiang Yao’s cooking; March is eager to eat her fill, while Stelle teases Qingque for missing their conversation the night before.
• Jiang Yao remains casual and somewhat bewildered by the marshal rumor. He is focused on cooking and treats the possibility of the marshal visiting as unremarkable.
• Phantylia is skeptical that Jiang Yao could be the marshal, partly because she considers him too unassuming and even thinks she could manipulate him. Yet Yukong’s message makes her question her assumptions.
• Bailu takes the news lightly and simply hopes the important visitor will try Jiang Yao’s snacks.
• The scene’s humor comes from the contrast between Phantylia’s suspicion and Jiang Yao’s confusion, as well as Qingque’s enthusiasm clashing with the crew’s preference for Jiang Yao’s food.

Significant themes

• Appearances versus reality: Jiang Yao’s humble, food-focused demeanor seems incompatible with the title of marshal, even as circumstances point toward him.
• Food as a source of reputation and connection: Jiang Yao’s cooking has impressed the crew and may be attracting attention across Aurum Alley.
• Irony and comic misunderstanding: Characters interpret the same clues differently, while the possibility of a powerful identity is treated with casual disbelief.

Jiang Yao dismisses rumors that he is the Xianzhou Marshal and turns to his real goal: improving the Luofu snack Dream Tapir Roll. He decides to reinvent it using the feel and style of his favorite dessert, Snow Skin Mochi, while also transforming Hot Floating Mutton Milk into a new drink.
His key ingredient is Soda Bean Juice, which Bailu despises. Jiang Yao carefully measures it against the cooled milk, confident that the precise balance will cancel the drink’s bitterness and odd flavor while preserving its sweetness. Bailu watches eagerly despite her aversion to the ingredient, hoping to taste Jiang Yao’s latest creation.
Guinaifen pushes through the growing crowd and livestreams the cooking. She explains Jiang Yao’s reputation for inventive food, but is stunned when she sees him add Soda Bean Juice. Expecting a likely disaster, she and her viewers react with skepticism—though Guinaifen is also eager to try it, anticipating viral content. Phantylia, still disguised as Tingyun, remains nearby as the crowd gathers.
Character developments and interactions: Jiang Yao’s confidence and meticulous skill contrast with the crowd’s doubts. Bailu’s appetite overcomes her usual disgust long enough to watch expectantly. Guinaifen’s entrepreneurial showmanship turns the cooking into public entertainment, while Phantylia’s presence leaves open the possibility that the Marshal rumor is part of a scheme.
Themes: The chapter plays with appearances versus reality, expertise versus public judgment, and the risks of culinary innovation. Its comic suspense comes from the gap between Jiang Yao’s precise confidence and everyone else’s assumption that the combination will be awful.

Plot and key events

• Guinaifen tries to change the subject while Jiang Yao prepares a drink from Soda Bean Juice and cooled Hot Floating Mutton Milk. She asks whether he is mixing them, and Jiang Yao points out that the pungent smell makes the answer obvious.
• The mixture smells so awful that Guinaifen, Bailu, Phantylia, and the livestream chat all react. Jiang Yao insists the unpleasant preparation is necessary and keeps going.
• He adds several expensive teas—Danding Plain Needle, Scalegorge Spring, Shady Mountain Green, and Morning Dew Sprout—combining them into a new blend he calls Cloud-Stilling Song.
• As the mixture heats, the strange odor and bitterness disappear, replaced by an unusually rich, appealing fragrance. Bailu and Guinaifen are impressed, though the chat accuses Guinaifen of exaggerating or advertising a sponsored product.

Character developments and interactions

• Jiang Yao remains confident and matter-of-fact, treating the foul smell and costly ingredients as ordinary parts of making the drink. His skill is vindicated when the ingredients harmonize.
• Guinaifen shifts from playful curiosity to disgust, then to genuine-seeming delight. Her theatrical enthusiasm clashes with the chat’s suspicion that she is promoting the drink.
• Bailu is initially wary of the smell and distressed by the expensive tea being used, but quickly becomes impressed by the aroma.
• Phantylia briefly joins the others in fanning away the initial stench.
• The livestream audience provides comic commentary, laughing at Guinaifen’s question, objecting to the waste of fine tea, and later doubting her praise.

Significant themes

• Transformation through craft: Careful preparation turns an unpleasant mixture into something unexpectedly appealing.
• Appearance versus outcome: The drink’s smell and ingredients seem disastrous at first, but the finished aroma overturns those expectations.
• Performance and skepticism: Guinaifen’s streamer persona—and the audience’s suspicion of sponsored enthusiasm—complicates whether her praise is sincere.

Key plot points and events

• Jiang Yao prepares a new version of Hot Floating Mutton Milk at Auntie Gao’s stall. Though the earlier ingredients put onlookers off, an irresistible aroma soon draws a large crowd and a long queue.
• Yan Cui returns with a small Shatang bird and finds the alley packed. After initially assuming the crowd is gathered for Marshal Hua, she discovers Jiang Yao—not the marshal—is attracting everyone’s attention by making snacks.
• Yan Cui’s confusion turns into suspicion about Jiang Yao’s identity and gender, but she abandons her theories when she smells the food. She cautiously asks whether he is the marshal.
• When Jiang Yao replies, “I… could be,” the crowd, livestream chat, and nearby companions are left stunned.
• Jing Yuan and Fu Xuan are watching Guinaifen’s livestream as they head to Aurum Alley. They know the marshal rumors are false, but Fu Xuan’s divination warned that events surrounding Jiang Yao might affect the Luofu. Jiang Yao’s ambiguous remark makes them worry that people may take the claim seriously.

Character developments and interactions

• Jiang Yao remains casual and enigmatic, focused on improving food. His jokingly ambiguous answer unexpectedly gives new life to the marshal rumor.
• Yan Cui moves from bafflement to fanciful speculation about Jiang Yao’s identity, then sets it aside to focus on the enticing food. She approaches him awkwardly and asks if he is the marshal.
• Auntie Gao watches and learns from Jiang Yao, enjoying the aroma even while recognizing that his extravagant ingredients would be impractical for ordinary sellers.
• Guinaifen films the scene with Jiang Yao’s permission, unintentionally amplifying the confusion through her livestream.
• Jing Yuan and Fu Xuan react with growing concern: they came to investigate a rumor, but Jiang Yao’s remark could make it harder to contain.

Significant themes

• Rumor and misinformation: A casual joke can rapidly become “truth” when crowds and livestreams spread it.
• Appearance versus reality: Characters repeatedly misread who Jiang Yao is and why the crowd has gathered.
• Food and spectacle: The powerful aroma turns skepticism into curiosity and draws people together, transforming an ordinary cooking demonstration into a public event.
• Uncertainty and consequences: Fu Xuan’s ominous divination frames Jiang Yao’s seemingly harmless actions as potentially significant for the Luofu.

Key plot points and events

• Qingque leads March 7th, Stelle, and Welt through an unusually crowded Aurum Alley to find Jiang Yao. She assumes the crowd is there to see Marshal Hua, but the others suspect Jiang Yao may be involved.
• At Delicious Supreme, Jiang Yao casually answers “I can be!” when asked if he is the Marshal. Welt realizes the rumors about the Marshal sampling food and improving street cuisine are really about Jiang Yao, and fears the Astral Express crew may be caught in another political misunderstanding.
• March and Stelle rush toward Jiang Yao, but the crowd initially objects to them cutting the queue. Once people realize they are the master’s friends, they make way.
• Jiang Yao recruits March to freeze his hot mutton milk to zero degrees, speeding up the creation of Iced Floating Mutton Milk. He is delighted that this will let him begin making clothed Snow Skin Mochi.
• As Jiang Yao concentrates on cooking, Jing Yuan and Fu Xuan arrive at the stall, leaving Welt shaken and Qingque suddenly nervous.

Character developments and interactions

• Qingque remains unambitious and self-aware, but her confidence falters when she realizes the crowd and the Marshal may be connected to Jiang Yao.
• Welt grows increasingly anxious about the crew being mistaken for disrespecting the Xianzhou Marshal. He is also concerned that Dan Heng has been absent since the group arrived on the Luofu.
• March 7th and Stelle are ecstatic to reunite with Jiang Yao and eagerly anticipate his food. March is especially excited to help with her ice powers.
• Bailu sees Qingque as a serious rival for Jiang Yao’s food and worries that the newcomers will take her share.
• Jiang Yao stays focused on cooking and treats March’s arrival as a convenient solution to his preparation problem, unaware that Jing Yuan and Fu Xuan are approaching.

Significant themes

• Food as a bond and source of excitement: Jiang Yao’s cooking draws crowds and reunites friends.
• Comic misunderstandings and dramatic irony: The crowd mistakes Jiang Yao’s role, while Welt recognizes the danger before Jiang Yao does.
• Clashing priorities: The others worry about status and consequences, while Jiang Yao and his friends focus mainly on getting good food.

Key plot points and events

• Qingque is startled when Fu Xuan and Jing Yuan arrive, briefly panicking that she has been caught slacking—then remembers she is on an assignment and relaxes.
• Welt assumes the officials have come because of rumors about Jiang Yao. Jing Yuan reassures him that the rumors are minor; Fu Xuan’s divination is what prompted their visit.
• Fu Xuan declares that Jiang Yao may be the key to resolving the Luofu’s predicament. Welt and Qingque are both baffled, since they see him as a chef rather than a pivotal figure.
• Meanwhile, unaware of the discussion, Jiang Yao prepares Snow Skin Mochi rolls using ingredients supplied or gathered by his companions. March 7th’s chilled mutton milk helps with the recipe, and he adds fruit bought earlier with Bailu and Phantylia.
• The cooking draws the eager attention of Bailu, March 7th, Stelle, and the diners. To Jing Yuan, Fu Xuan, Welt, and Qingque, however, the cozy scene only makes Fu Xuan’s prediction seem more absurd.

Character developments and interactions

• Qingque shifts from nervous fear of punishment to confidence once she remembers she is working. She remains astonished by Fu Xuan’s claim about Jiang Yao.
• Welt is cautious and protective of Jiang Yao, initially fearing the Luofu has come to hold him responsible for the rumors. He struggles to reconcile Fu Xuan’s grand assessment with Jiang Yao’s ordinary-looking work as a cook.
• Jing Yuan handles Welt’s concerns diplomatically and downplays the rumors, while privately treating them as inconsequential.
• Fu Xuan is convinced her divination points to Jiang Yao, though the narration reveals the reading actually concerns Phantylia—an error neither she nor Jing Yuan recognizes.
• Jiang Yao remains absorbed in cooking and appreciates March 7th’s help, unaware that the Luofu’s leaders are discussing his importance. His companions and diners gather around to watch.

Significant themes

• Comic dramatic irony: The officials interpret Jiang Yao as a figure of enormous significance, while he is simply focused on making dessert. The reader also knows Fu Xuan’s divination has identified the wrong person.
• The gap between appearances and significance: Jiang Yao looks like an unassuming chef, yet Fu Xuan’s prediction suggests he may affect the Luofu’s fate.
• Everyday warmth amid political tension: Cooking and shared anticipation contrast with the serious concerns of Jing Yuan, Fu Xuan, and Welt.

Summary

Key plot points and events

• Fu Xuan remains baffled by the idea that Jiang Yao could help resolve the Luofu’s crisis. Jing Yuan urges her not to dismiss unconventional solutions, while acknowledging that the Stellaron outbreak may be only the beginning of greater trouble.
• Jiang Yao continues experimenting with Xianzhou snacks. With Stelle’s help—using her Flame Lance to provide heat—he prepares an elaborate new version of the Tapir Film Roll, which he names Entwined Fate.
• Jiang Yao has already revamped three of the Luofu’s four famous snacks; only Singing Lotus Root Cake remains. He gives pulled-sugar Qiongshi Bird Skewers to Stelle, March 7th, and Welt, who enjoy playing with the sugar.
• Jing Yuan formally meets Jiang Yao, who accidentally introduces himself as the head chef of the “Astral Diner” rather than the Astral Express. The crew hears the slip but doesn’t mind.
• Jiang Yao privately plans to transform the Express into a traveling diner, both to support its trailblazing and to consume the power of the Path of Trailblaze.
• Tempted by the skewers, Jing Yuan asks for one. Fu Xuan and Qingque soon ask for them as well.

Character developments

• Fu Xuan remains skeptical and argumentative, but her distrust is shaped by personal pain and her difficulty accepting that the future can’t be controlled with certainty.
• Jing Yuan is curious about Jiang Yao and open to the possibility that he may be important to the Luofu’s future. His relaxed humor helps ease the tension.
• Jiang Yao shows both culinary skill and bold ambition: he treats cooking as experimentation and intends to reshape the Astral Express into a diner.
• Stelle, March 7th, and Welt respond warmly to Jiang Yao’s food, reinforcing their easygoing camaraderie. Bailu struggles to resist the snacks.

Significant themes

• Unconventional solutions: Jing Yuan suggests that an unexpected approach may break a seemingly hopeless deadlock.
• Fate and choice: Fu Xuan’s argument reflects her anxiety that foreknowledge cannot prevent disastrous decisions.
• Creativity and transformation: Jiang Yao’s playful cooking turns traditional snacks into new creations.
• Humor and ambition: The chapter’s absurd food-centered antics contrast with the looming threat of future crises, while Jiang Yao’s diner plan links nourishment to trailblazing.

Character interactions

• Jing Yuan gently teases Fu Xuan while encouraging her to consider possibilities beyond orthodox thinking.
• Jiang Yao directs Stelle’s Flame Lance as kitchen equipment, and the Express crew enjoys the finished snacks together.
• Jing Yuan approaches Jiang Yao courteously, then joins the others in asking for food; Fu Xuan and Qingque follow suit.

Plot points and events

• Jing Yuan and Fu Xuan watch the others devour Jiang Yao’s Pulled-Sugar Qiongshi Bird Skewers and grow eager to try them. Jiang Yao claims they’re sold out despite still holding several, then offers them Iced Floating Mutton Milk and his improved Dream Tapir Rolls, renamed Entwined Fates.
• Jiang Yao sends Auntie Gao to sell the milk tea at his stall, keeping most of the proceeds because he supplied the ingredients and paid the rental fee. He has made only a limited batch of rolls, reserving most for friends and companions.
• The crowd relocates to Yan Cui’s restaurant to make room for customers. Auntie Gao, Yan Cui, and Guinaifen stay behind, intimidated by the presence of the General and Diviner.
• The group samples the Entwined Fates. Bailu eagerly savors hers, and the others—including Jing Yuan, Fu Xuan, Qingque, and Phantylia—join in.
• As everyone enjoys the food, Jiang Yao feels his Path power advance for the first time. His understanding of ingredients deepens: he realizes he can now bring out exceptional results even from ordinary ingredients, while special ingredients should yield even greater effects.

Character developments and interactions

• Jiang Yao is generous in feeding his companions and customers, but also protective of his own food and careful about money. The new insight into his cooking marks a major step toward genuinely developing his Path.
• Jing Yuan is amused by Jiang Yao’s obvious lie about the skewers, but accepts the alternative. The food and lively gathering briefly revive a sense of ease he has not felt for centuries, despite his fatigue and fears of succumbing to mara.
• Fu Xuan tries to maintain her pride, but the aroma of the sweet milk tea gets the better of her.
• Bailu is intensely enthusiastic and learns to slow down so she can properly enjoy the food.
• March 7th admires the rolls’ appearance and likes Stelle’s teasing suggestion that they resemble “March Rolls,” though Jiang Yao insists on their real name.
• The gathering brings the Astral Express crew together with the Xianzhou group, while the staff and vendors remain apart because they feel intimidated by the high-ranking guests.

Significant themes

• Food as connection and delight: Sharing Jiang Yao’s cooking creates a warm social gathering and lifts Jing Yuan’s spirits.
• Growth through mastery: Jiang Yao’s breakthrough comes from developing his own understanding rather than relying solely on rare ingredients.
• Generosity balanced with self-interest: Jiang Yao wants to satisfy others, but insists on enjoying his own food and receiving a fair share of the business.

Key plot points and events

• Jiang Yao’s improved Dream Tapir Roll, renamed Entwined Fate, captivates everyone who tries it. The food brings vivid pleasure and briefly draws eaters into comforting or nostalgic states.
• Welt is transported back to the happiness of his youth, while Stelle, March 7th, Bailu, Qingque, and Fu Xuan all enjoy the snack. Jing Yuan initially tries to connect its improvement to broader political reforms, then decides to stop thinking and simply savor it.
• Jing Yuan realizes the food has slightly eased his mara-struck condition by softening painful memories and strengthening happy ones. Alarmed by its potential importance to the long-lived Xianzhou, he nearly orders Aurum Alley sealed off, but quickly covers his reaction and decides the discovery must remain private.
• Jiang Yao senses Jing Yuan’s response and discovers that the positive effects of his functional food feed back into his own Path, giving him a breakthrough from “zero to one.” He becomes determined to develop more beneficial foods and turn the Astral Express into a traveling dining car.

Character developments and interactions

• Jing Yuan shifts from relaxed enjoyment to intense excitement after recognizing the snack’s possible medical value. He conceals the discovery, while Fu Xuan notices his strange behavior and worries for him.
• Fu Xuan is briefly concerned by Jing Yuan’s unsettling intensity, then scolds him for making her worry before returning to the food. Jing Yuan silently admires her for having guided Jiang Yao to the Luofu.
• Jiang Yao learns that helping others through his cooking can advance his Path, giving him new ambition and confidence.
• Phantylia watches Jing Yuan suspiciously, correctly sensing that his reaction is about more than the snack’s taste.
• The others’ shared enjoyment creates a brief pause in the meal, which the narration frames as making their next bites even more satisfying.

Significant themes

• Food as healing and connection: Entwined Fate offers pleasure, comfort, and a measure of relief from mara-struck suffering.
• Personal growth through helping others: Jiang Yao’s Path advances because his creation has a positive effect on those who eat it.
• Duty versus respite: Jing Yuan momentarily sets aside the burdens of leadership, only to recognize a discovery that could affect the entire Xianzhou.
• Comic exaggeration: The chapter pairs a potentially life-changing medical breakthrough with playful jokes about Jiang Yao’s grand plans for increasingly powerful functional foods.

Jiang Yao planned how to use specially tailored dishes to grow stronger on the Path of Voracity and eventually attack Qlipoth’s wall through Pom-Pom. He left the Snack Stall’s angry customers waiting while he developed his plan, then wondered whether he had forgotten something important.

• Customers crowded Delicious Supreme and complained that Jiang Yao had put only ten Entwined Fates up for sale.
• Gao Tang and Yukong watched the livestream and grew frustrated that they could not get Jiang Yao’s food.
• Jiang Yao decided to feed Pom-Pom an Aeon-level dish that would send Pom-Pom charging into Qlipoth’s wall.
• Jiang Yao planned to use ingredients linked to Yaoshi, Nanook, Lan, and the True Sting to prepare Pom-Pom for the attack.
• Jiang Yao theorized that specially targeted food could earn positive feedback from people with great weight in the universe, then wondered whether he had forgotten his main-account password.

Jiang Yao realized tea had made Entwined Fate alleviate Jing Yuan’s mara-struck condition and planned a large-scale food therapy trial. After buying a giant Shataan Bird, he asked Jing Yuan to get Himeko’s help providing enough firepower to roast it, leaving the Astral Express crew wary of her coffee.

• Jiang Yao connected Entwined Fate’s effect on Jing Yuan’s mara-struck condition to the tea inspired by Yaoshi’s ears of wheat and decided to test food therapy on a larger scale.
• Yan Cui delivered the enormous Shataan Bird, and Jiang Yao paid her extra and promised everyone a free share.
• Jiang Yao decided to roast the bird at Delicious Supreme and asked Jing Yuan to help secure Himeko’s firepower.
• Welt, Stelle, and March 7th grew wary at Himeko’s name, while Jing Yuan readily agreed to help.

Jiang Yao asked Jing Yuan to let Himeko use her Orbital Weapon to roast the Shataan Bird, and Jing Yuan agreed despite Fu Xuan's objections. The chapter ended with Jiang Yao planning a broad range of upgrades for the bird.

• Jiang Yao secured Jing Yuan's promise to help with his request.
• Fu Xuan questioned whether Jiang Yao's request would require the Luofu's assistance, and Jiang Yao said he needed the general's help.
• Jiang Yao revealed that he planned to give Himeko coordinates so she could fire her Orbital Weapon at the Shataan Bird.
• Fu Xuan rejected the plan, but Jing Yuan agreed to supervise the risky operation after his mara eased again from drinking Jiang Yao's milk tea.
• Jiang Yao began considering many possible upgrades for the Shataan Bird, including greater strength and speed and resistance to mara.

Jiang Yao prepared an enormous Shataan Bird for roasting, using massages and carefully blended teas to remove its odor and enhance its effects. He then directed March 7th to freeze parts of the bird as he began preparing it for cooking.

• Jiang Yao took Stelle and March 7th to Yan Cui's kitchen after Jing Yuan approved the preparations, while Welt stayed outside to keep order.
• Jiang Yao massaged the Shataan Bird and removed its heart and lungs, while March 7th questioned his claim that it was his first time giving a massage.
• Jiang Yao blended four teas into a treatment and applied it to the Shataan Bird's skin to reduce its strong odor.
• Jiang Yao decided to focus the roast's benefits on the Shataan Bird's strengths because he lacked ingredients for a balanced boost.
• Jiang Yao told March 7th where to freeze the Shataan Bird, and she followed his directions despite being puzzled.

Jiang Yao prepared a Shataan Bird with unusual ingredients while Stelle and March 7th watched and helped. Outside Delicious Supreme, Jing Yuan deployed the Cloud Knights to manage the growing crowd, convinced Jiang Yao was hiding a deeper purpose, while Jiang Yao only wanted to make powerful food; Phantylia sent a message urging someone to stir up trouble.

• Jiang Yao froze and massaged the Shataan Bird, then seasoned it with Blazing Strong Tea, One-person Jiahe, Jueyun Chili, and crushed Wind Spinner gravel.
• Jiang Yao added Scalegorge Asparagus, herbal extracts, seeds, and other ingredients, then asked Stelle to crush Dragon-Scale Coral.
• Jing Yuan summoned the Cloud Knights and arranged tables, chairs, and stools to keep order outside Delicious Supreme, despite Fu Xuan's objections.
• Jing Yuan reasoned that Jiang Yao knew his food could ease mara-struck and suspected he was an Emanator with hidden plans to protect himself and the Astral Express.
• Jiang Yao privately thought Jing Yuan had overinterpreted his intentions, since he simply wanted to follow his Path, feed the universe, and make more powerful food.
• Phantylia sent a message urging someone to stir up trouble.

Jing Yuan baited the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus into acting while testing a theory with semi-retired Cloud Knights, and Phantylia took the bait for her own plan to seize the Ambrosial Arbor. Meanwhile, Jiang Yao asked Himeko to use Heavenfall Fire to roast a Shataan Bird, and Himeko decided to come to the Luofu after Pom-Pom drank her coffee and became dizzy.

• Jing Yuan sent large groups of semi-retired Cloud Knights to Aurum Alley to lure out the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus and test his theory.
• Phantylia contacted Dan Shu and planned to seize the Ambrosial Arbor amid the coming chaos.
• Jiang Yao finished coating the Shataan Bird and called Himeko to ask her to fire Heavenfall Fire at its location.
• Himeko agreed to help Jiang Yao, then insisted on coming to the Luofu to eat the Shataan Bird herself.
• Pom-Pom drank Himeko's coffee, became dazed, and gave Himeko permission to leave.

Kafka received Elio’s urgent order to run and fled the Luofu with Blade, while Jiang Yao began roasting the Shataan Bird with Himeko’s space-based weapon. The bird was struck by fire from the heavens, and its nonexistent phoenix bloodline stirred as it was reborn in the flames.

• Elio warned Kafka, Blade, and Silver Wolf to run, and Kafka left with Blade despite wondering what danger awaited them.
• Jiang Yao told March 7th and Stelle that Himeko was coming with more coffee, prompting them to ask Himeko to go back.
• Jiang Yao, March 7th, and Stelle carried the medicinally prepared Shataan Bird outside as Jing Yuan and Fu Xuan prepared for the roasting.
• Jiang Yao directed Himeko to fire her space-based weapon at the Shataan Bird, and a beam of fire struck it precisely.
• The Shataan Bird’s nonexistent phoenix bloodline stirred as it was reborn in the flames.

Jiang Yao roasted a Shataan Bird with help from Himeko and served up a fragrant meal that stirred everyone’s appetite. After tasting it, he found its special effects fell short of his expectations, though the dish still granted diners attack and defense bonuses.

• Jiang Yao seasoned and roasted the Shataan Bird while Himeko supplied the fire, and the aroma made the diners and Cloud Knights eager to eat.
• March 7th and Stelle argued over who was drooling, while Bailu admitted she had been drooling and joked about being a dragon.
• Jing Yuan and the others asked Jiang Yao when they could eat, with Jing Yuan especially hoping the dish would ease the Mara-Struck condition.
• Jiang Yao tested the Shataan Bird with his chopsticks, then tasted a piece and realized its effects were weaker than he had expected.
• Jiang Yao assessed the Shataan Bird as a low-grade relic that granted attack and defense bonuses, and wondered how much it would benefit him.

Jiang Yao served roasted Shataan Bird, whose flavor delighted the Astral Express Crew and unexpectedly boosted Stelle’s strength. He discovered that the meal’s effect on himself was negligible, while the crowd waited to taste it.

• Jiang Yao told Jing Yuan the roasted bird’s effect was 0.2 short of what he expected, and Jing Yuan reacted with disbelief before Fu Xuan struck him.
• Jiang Yao carved the Shataan Bird as the crowd gathered, and Jing Yuan organized the Cloud Knights to form a queue.
• Welt, Stelle, and March 7th tasted the roast meat and were overwhelmed by its flavor.
• Stelle felt her strength increase, and Jiang Yao sensed that her defense had risen by 4.32 percent.
• Jiang Yao found that eating the bird had increased his own defense only slightly, leaving him barely stronger.

Jiang Yao served roasted Shataan Bird to Jing Yuan, whose mara-struck condition eased, though the effect was disappointingly small. As the dish drew a growing crowd, Fu Xuan finally tasted it and was won over.

• Jiang Yao gave Jing Yuan a piece of roasted Shataan Bird, and Jing Yuan eagerly ate it.
• Jing Yuan felt refreshed as his mara-struck condition eased, then asked Jiang Yao how he had done it.
• Jiang Yao realized Jing Yuan’s improvement was only slight and gloomily ate an upper wing himself.
• The diners and Cloud Knights tasted the bird while Guinaifen’s livestream drew an ever-growing line.
• Fu Xuan tried a piece, was stunned by its flavor, and denied losing her composure when Jing Yuan teased her.