Oh, my dear host, calm down

Chu Yu's brow creased almost imperceptibly, then smoothed out again in an instant.

"Heroine, what are you doing?" He put on a vacant expression.

Su Ying felt awkward. If she said she was sniffing his scent, would he think she was a pervert?

No, no-

She changed the subject. "Why aren't you eating?"

Chu Yu looked at the pastry in his hand uncertainly, then watched her finish one piece and pick up another.

Was it really that good?

Su Ying swallowed a piece of pastry and narrowed her eyes in satisfaction. It really did taste wonderful. "Go on, eat. Don't you like pastries?"

Chu Yu reluctantly took a bite, and his eyes lit up.

What heavenly delicacy was this!

It was actually far more delicious than even the finest spiritual roots!

Noticing the subtle change in his expression, Su Ying asked proudly, "Well? Delicious, right?"

"Delicious!" Chu Yu finished the piece and narrowed his purple eyes at the now-empty pedestal plate.

Grrr, grrr. His stomach chose that moment to rumble.

Chu Yu was speechless.

He had eaten nothing since waking up and breaking through, yet he had not felt hungry. He was used to grain avoidance.

But the moment he tasted delicious food, his stomach began protesting.

Then Chu Yu heard Su Ying's thoughts again.

[Aaaah, he's so cute! His tummy protests when he's hungry! Isn't that much more interesting than those old slabs of dried meat in the Cultivation Sect? How could someone this cute be allowed to go hungry? No, I have to save him.]

The system was speechless, and even its manner of speaking grew strange. [Oh, my dear host, please calm down.]

Ignoring the system, Su Ying put on a loving expression and gently stroked the boy's head. "Hungry?"

"Yes!" Chu Yu nodded. He wanted more of those pastries, the only food from the mortal realm he had ever found decent. "I'm still a disciple from the mortal realm. I haven't freed myself from the desire for food yet. I'm not as accomplished as you, heroine."

"Then shall I make you something to eat?" Su Ying's loving smile turned into a doting auntie's grin.

It was not her fault she was swooning. This fresh young thing was simply too delectable.

[Host, mind your image, or the mission will fail again.] The system had the odd impression that Su Ying's characterization was straying further and further from the original novel.

[Shut up. Out of all the characters in this book, he's the only one I like, so stay out of it. When I'm around those key characters, I promise I won't slip up.]

Chu Yu snorted inwardly.

This woman really did want to get her hands on him!

In her dreams!

Although he could not distinguish women's faces, this woman's looks surely were not worthy of him!

With that thought, Chu Yu smiled in delighted surprise. "Really? More of those pastries?"

"No." Su Ying shook her head and took a pot out of her Spatial Ring.

"What's this?" Chu Yu looked at the pot in confusion.

Su Ying set the pot over the barrier, and its pale blue flames slowly brought the contents to a boil.

Chu Yu watched her take all kinds of ingredients from her Spatial Ring, placing some on the table and pouring others into the pot.

He, Feng Moyuan, had lived for over a thousand years, yet there were many things here he had never seen. He could not help wondering whether the mortal realm had undergone earth-shaking changes over the years.

The flames devoured the firewood, burning vigorously. White steam rose from the pot, carrying wafts of food's fragrance.

The pastries earlier had smelled only faintly sweet, but the contents of this pot gave off a much richer array of aromas.

There were so many that he could not distinguish them all. Chu Yu swallowed. It should taste good, right?

He thought that if he could quickly restore his cultivation later, perhaps he could keep this woman by his side.

Of course, that was because her cooking was good.

Su Ying had no idea that the person before her was a great demon lord, much less what he was thinking. She eagerly took out a chair and beckoned him over. "Come, sit down. Time to eat."

Chu Yu obediently sat in the chair and found a pair of chopsticks and a delicate porcelain bowl pressed into his hands. He was a little dazed. How was he supposed to eat this?

He put on an embarrassed, innocent look. "Heroine, I've never eaten this before."

"Oh, I overlooked that." Su Ying slapped her forehead. She had forgotten that hot pot came from the modern world. Even if the lower realm had it, its flavors could not be as rich as hers.

Cultivation sects had always led austere lives. He surely had never encountered anything like this.

"Here, watch closely. In a moment, just copy me and put in whatever meat you like." Although Su Ying was already full, the spicy, numbing hot pot had stirred her appetite again, so she added a plate of beef.

Once the beef was cooked, she picked up two slices and placed them in his bowl. "It's ready. Try it!"

Chu Yu looked at the beef. After his experience with the pastries, he did not hesitate. He picked up a slice and put it into his mouth.

Instantly, a burst of heat caught in his throat. He turned his face aside and coughed violently.

"Oh dear, oh dear!" Su Ying exclaimed hastily. She had forgotten again that these people could not handle much spice.

"Are you all right?" She set down her bowl and chopsticks, went over, and gently patted his back.

Chu Yu's face gradually reddened. After a couple of coughs, other flavors emerged in his mouth.

Delicious!

Absolutely delicious!

"Heroine, I'm fine," Chu Yu said.

"This is rather spicy. Don't rush when you eat it. Savor it slowly. It tastes wonderful, doesn't it?" Su Ying took a jug of hawthorn water from her Spatial Ring. She had made it during her last mission and had kept it chilled with millennium mystic ice inside the ring ever since, without drinking it.

"If the spice gets unbearable, drink this. It helps." She was truly giving selflessly to this handsome young thing.

Had it been Xiao Muchen, she certainly would not have shared.

Chu Yu accepted it and took a sip, his eyes shining. "Big sister, what is this? It's so good!"

"Hawthorn water. Only I know how to make it," Su Ying declared proudly. "Aren't I amazing?"

"Yes, you're amazing!" Chu Yu praised her sincerely.

Mm, if there were other spiritual roots he could use to increase his cultivation, he would not eat her.

He would let her stay as his personal cook!

Su Ying had no idea that her cooking had conquered the proud, bloodthirsty demon lord.

At least she now had a fifty-fifty chance of surviving!

Su Ying seized the opportunity. "Then would you like to stay by my side?"

According to the original plot, the Disciple Selection three days later had nothing to do with her.

Although new disciples needed senior brothers and sisters to guide them, Su Ying's character was devoted only to Xiao Muchen and cultivation.

So, during her previous four attempts, she had followed the plot and never taken a single new disciple under her wing!

"May I?" Chu Yu's purple eyes flickered with an alluring gleam.

Busy cooking the meat, Su Ying nodded. "If my master picks you, I can guide you. How about we make a deal? If my master appreciates your talent, you choose to come with me. I'm very accomplished!"

"All right!" Chu Yu said with a smile as another slice of meat appeared in his bowl. "But, heroine, what if I'm not chosen?"

"If you're not chosen..." Su Ying gazed at the white steam, deep in thought.

[Could I hide my beauty in a golden house? It's not as if Xiao Muchen or the other disciples ever visit my place anyway.]

[Host...]

The moment Su Ying heard that tone, she understood, and immediately rebelled!

[I've done this lousy mission five times already. Whatever happens, you have to let me have a handsome young guy this time! He won't affect the main plot anyway. I don't care. That's settled!]