257: Chapter 257 Xuan Yangzi's Psychology

Meanwhile, Little Fatty, whose mouth was about to water, had his small eyes wide open and his mouth slightly agape, completely bewildered.

He secretly tugged at Xiao Ruobai's sleeve beside him and asked in a low voice, "Senior Brother? This Senior Ox is...?"

Xiao Ruobai looked at Little Fatty's confused expression, found it amusing, and explained in a low voice, "This is Old Huang, the great demon under Revered Master who is responsible for tending to that spiritual field. His true form is the Azure Sky Python Bull King, and his cultivation is profound."

He paused, a slightly strange smile appearing on his face, and added, "He is diligent in his duties, an excellent hand at managing the spiritual field. However, he occasionally moonlights as an ingredient."

"Moonlights as an ingredient?!"

Wang Xiaopang's small eyes instantly widened, and his gaze turned to Old Huang.

"Moonlights as an ingredient?"

He repeated it to himself, his mind racing, and suddenly all the previous oddities connected. No wonder when celebration was mentioned, this Senior Ox reacted so strongly, scared enough to burrow into the ground.

An indescribable sympathy surged into Wang Xiaopang's heart like a tide.

When he looked at Old Huang's massive body again, his eyes were filled with sighs and pity.

Then he remembered that Senior Ox seemed to have been wronged because Revered Master didn't cut his meat earlier?

"Alas, this old ox is truly too pitiful; even his mind isn't normal anymore."

To be an ox on this Zizhu Peak, what level of mental fortitude must one possess!

Gu Changge took in everyone's reactions, the corner of his mouth curving almost imperceptibly, but he said nothing more.

He lightly flicked his sleeve, and clear spring water poured into a jade basin. The purple flame spiritual rice automatically washed itself, flying into the cauldron like purple fireflies, and boiled together with the rolling meat broth.

Instantly, the unique fragrance of the rice perfectly blended with the rich aroma of the meat broth, filling the air with an alluring, exotic scent.

"Alright, everyone, sit down."

Gu Changge's gaze swept over the Disciples and Senior Brothers gathered around. His fingertips subtly flickered a few times.

Several imperceptible, subtle streams of light silently entered the cauldron, precisely acting upon the portion of food that was about to be served to each person.

That was a subtle refinement performed with Supreme magical power, smoothing out the overly fierce energy impact, ensuring that the essence and spiritual power in the meat were suitable for each Disciple of varying cultivation levels, while perfectly preserving the ultimate flavor and texture.

Wang Xiaopang, who could no longer hold back, immediately squeezed to the table and carefully accepted the bowl handed to him by Revered Master.

The meat chunks in the bowl were translucent, the rice grains plump, and the broth was rich like jade marrow, its aroma directly assailing his nostrils. He couldn't wait to scoop a spoonful into his mouth.

In an instant, an indescribable deliciousness exploded in his mouth!

The richness of venison intertwined with the chewiness of rabbit meat, the spiritual rice was soft, sticky, and sweet, and a gentle yet powerful warm current surged through his limbs and bones, nourishing his Grotto Heaven.

He squinted his small eyes in comfort, mumbling indistinctly, "Mmm... delicious... too delicious..."

He ate quickly, his cheeks puffed out.

However, after only eating less than half a bowl, wisps of pure Spiritual Qi began to emanate from his body, like steam rising from an open steamer. His entire chubby face turned red, and fine beads of sweat even appeared on his forehead.

Clearly, even after Gu Changge's refinement, the essence contained in the Holy King-level great demon's flesh and blood and top-grade spiritual rice was still an enormous burden for his current Cave Heaven Realm cultivation.

But Wang Xiaopang seemed completely oblivious, or rather, simply couldn't stop.

While slightly hiccuping from the Spiritual Qi, he stubbornly continued to stuff meat and rice into his mouth, his small eyes fixed on the remaining deliciousness in his bowl, muttering indistinctly, "No wonder, no wonder even Third Senior Sister was looking forward to it. I'll eat it all even if I burst..."

Gu Changge glanced at him, a helpless smile flashing in his eyes as he watched his Junior Disciple's almost 'self-sacrificing' eating manner. He gently shook his head and spoke in a calm tone, "Little Fatty... Oh, no, it's Yue Chen. Never mind, still Little Fatty."

Wang Xiaopang was wrestling with a tender piece of rabbit leg meat when he heard the voice and looked up blankly, a few shiny grains of rice still clinging to the corner of his mouth.

The Spiritual Qi around him steamed even more intensely, his small face flushed red, looking like a freshly steamed, hot human-shaped bun.

He indistinctly replied, "Mmm? Mas-Revered Master... you called me?"

Gu Changge looked at him in this state and said calmly, "You have just entered the Cave Heaven Realm, and your Foundation is not yet stable. The essence of this food needs to be absorbed according to your capacity; greed will only cause it to accumulate in your body, which is detrimental to your cultivation. Exercise moderation."

Wang Xiaopang's small eyes blinked, seemingly just understanding Revered Master's words. He looked down at the rabbit leg in his hand, then at the spiritual rice that haunted his dreams in the bowl, and an extremely conflicted expression instantly appeared on his face. On one side was Revered Master's warning, on the other was Supreme deliciousness; this choice was too painful.

He finally swallowed the food in his mouth with great difficulty, and with immense reluctance, he said softly, "Disciple... Disciple understands..."

Seeing Revered Master's gaze move away, as if no longer paying attention to him, Wang Xiaopang's heart stirred.

Like a thief, he secretly formed a hand seal under the table with his greasy hands. After a subtle, imperceptible fluctuation of magical power, the leftover food on the table instantly vanished, stealthily moved into his Storage Ring.

Having done all this, he immediately straightened his back, wiped his mouth, and put on a docile and obedient appearance. However, his puffed-out cheeks and the hint of 'successful' glee in his eyes completely betrayed him.

This scene naturally did not escape the corner of Gu Changge's eye. He watched his Junior Disciple's 'burying his head in the sand' antics, a knowing smile flashing in his eyes, but he did not expose him, merely turning his gaze elsewhere as if nothing had happened.

Just then, Xuan Yangzi swallowed the food in his mouth, looked at Gu Changge, and asked with concern in his tone, "Junior Brother, now that Yue Chen has also joined the sect, what arrangements do you have for these Disciples under you? Will you let them cultivate quietly within the peak, or...?"

Gu Changge's gaze swept over Xiao Ruobai, Fang Hanyu, and Ling Xi in turn, finally pausing slightly on Wang Xiaopang, who was emanating Spiritual Qi all over his body, and said softly:

"For now, they will all stay on Zizhu Peak. The previous battles require time to digest, and Little Fatty also needs to build a solid Foundation. They have been traveling for a long time; it's time to calm down and settle."

Hearing Gu Changge's words about them all staying on Zizhu Peak, Xuan Yangzi inexplicably let out a long sigh of relief, not even fully realizing where this sense of relief came from, only instinctively feeling as if a great weight had been lifted from his heart.

He couldn't help but mutter to himself, "All good, all good! It's safest when they're all at home!"

As this thought arose, fragments of recent memories uncontrollably surfaced in his mind.

The first time these youngsters went out for training, Demon Heaven Sect and Blood Soul Sect were gone!

The second time they went out, it was on a larger scale and more deeply involved. Glazed Holy Land was gone, and an ancient Supreme from a forbidden zone of life was also dragged into it... Although there was always a sufficient reason each time, and the Disciples didn't actively cause trouble, this trend of 'wherever they go, big trouble happens' truly made Sect Master Xuan Yangzi feel a little uneasy.

Now that Junior Brother decided to keep them all on the peak for a period, Xuan Yangzi almost wanted to clap his hands in celebration.

He quickly picked up his bowl and took a big gulp of soup to hide the relaxed expression that might have shown on his face, silently chanting, "Settle down, settle down! It's best if they settle down on the peak for another three to five years! Let the outside world 'settle down' too!"

"However, the Great Emperor's Tomb that trapped the Third Old Ancestor... calculating the time, about a month from now will be the weakest opening. At that time, Xiao Ruobai and the others can go and have some fun."

Gu Changge thought for a moment and added.

"Pfft—"

Xuan Yangzi almost choked on the meat broth he had just swallowed, nearly spitting it out through his nose.

He abruptly looked up, disregarding his image, his eyes wide as copper bells, his voice rising several pitches, with an incredulous tone:

"What?! Go in a month?! Junior Brother! You... you just finished saying you wanted them to settle down, and now you're going to let them out?!"