Chapter 941: Care from the Tree Ancestor

The Laurel Immortal Palace acted with caution, refusing to consume the demon rabbit under the mere guise of dissection.

At the very least, they had to determine whether the demon rabbit's meat was toxic before dining.

Observing the disciples of the Immortal Palace eagerly volunteering for the task of dissecting the demon rabbit, washing pots, chopping vegetables, and boiling water with immense proficiency, it was clear this was not their first time engaging in such activities.

"Do you require a chef?" The Immortal Fairy felt it was time to display her own skills, coming forward to volunteer and revive the culinary artistry of an immortal.

Allowing the Immortal Fairy to cook was out of the question; that barbecue on the moon during the ancient era had poisoned and knocked out all four immortals, who were then carried home by the fairy, leaving the immortal fire stranded on the moon. The disciples of the Immortal Palace possessed mere mortal bodies and would surely perish under such divine toxicity.

A direct refusal was impossible. Lu Yang, meticulous and swift-minded, quickly devised a proper response. As the saying goes, channeling is better than blocking; rejecting the Immortal Fairy's proposal outright might trigger her contrarian nature, so the optimal solution was to find a chef who satisfied her completely.

And that chef could be none other than himself.

"Your Majesty is of noble and delicate birth, how could you perform such tasks? Allow this humble concub—this subject to do it." Lu Yang had recently been reading novels from the Immortal Palace's library during his spare time, particularly tales of imperial harem intrigue, and for a moment his tongue slipped, nearly uttering the wrong word.

"Very well." The Immortal Fairy found Lu Yang's words reasonable; she was the emperor, and doing everything herself would lower her status, so it was fine to leave it to little Yangzi.

"Can I handle the barbecue later?" Lu Yang secretly transmitted his voice to Lan Ting.

Lan Ting had witnessed Lu Yang's culinary skills back in Yanjiang County; they were beyond reproach, a matchless flavor.

Now that Lu Yang had advanced to the Soul Formation stage, his mastery over fire control and meat texture had surely reached the realm of microscopic precision, promising an even better flavor than before.

Moreover, she herself had not tasted Lu Yang's barbecue in quite some time.

"I will speak to the senior sister in charge of the ladle."

"Then let him try, I would like to see what capabilities he possesses!" The head ladle senior sister expressed her displeasure upon hearing the request.

Having secured the culinary opportunity for Lu Yang, Lan Ting joyfully reported the good news to him.

"The head ladle senior sister agreed to let you try, she mentioned she precisely wanted to witness your capabilities, Senior Brother."

"Did Senior Sister truly say that?" Lu Yang looked at Lan Ting suspiciously; though he lacked the habit of eavesdropping, the head ladle senior sister's expression had seemed rather grim when Lan Ting went to speak with her earlier.

"It was close enough to that meaning."

"That is well then." Lu Yang had thought his actions had offended the head ladle senior sister.

The efficiency of the Immortal Palace was exceptionally high; during the time it took to wash the pots, they had already deduced why the demon rabbit had suddenly grown so large.

"It is a reaction between the Face-Nourishing Pill and the osmanthus flowers," Qin Nan concluded.

"The Face-Nourishing Pill inherently possesses a growth effect, and for some reason, the freshly plucked osmanthus flowers share this trait. The combination of both factors caused the demon rabbit's volume to skyrocket."

"And it also caused the demon rabbit to go berserk," a certain junior sister added, which was a crucial point.

"Ah, yes, it also caused the demon rabbit to go berserk."

"However, the good news is that the demon rabbit has fully digested the medicinal properties; it is edible, non-toxic, harmless, and the meat is healthy."

That the demon rabbit was edible was excellent news, allowing him to fully display his talents, yet Lu Yang still had a question: "Why does a Face-Nourishing Pill possess a growth effect?"

Did female cultivators not take Face-Nourishing Pills to make themselves look beautiful?

Asking such a question revealed Lu Yang's lack of expertise; all disciples of the Immortal Palace knew the answer.

Qin Nan explained, "It is like this: there are two types of pills frequently consumed by female cultivators, the Face-Preserving Pill and the Face-Nourishing Pill. The Face-Preserving Pill fixes one's appearance, while the Face-Nourishing Pill alters it."

"Altering the appearance is divided into two directions: expanding or reducing."

"Some female cultivators possess exceptional talent and cultivate rapidly, reaching the Face-Preserving realm during their maiden years, causing their appearance to cease changing."

"This leads to a dilemma where the body has not yet fully developed, and that is when the Face-Nourishing Pill is required."

Lu Yang was struck by sudden realization; it was a domain he had never encountered, and indeed contained many intricate principles.

"Consuming pills is nothing but unorthodox paths!" The Immortal Fairy looked upon such deplorable behavior with disdain.

As the foremost beauty of the ancient era, she was entitled to make such a declaration.

Regrettably, her statement as the foremost ancient beauty failed to attract Lu Yang's attention, as he was humbly absorbing knowledge regarding Face-Nourishing Pills.

Though it might not necessarily prove useful, learning a bit more could never do any harm.

Looking at the demon rabbit, which had been bled and fully butchered, Lu Yang began preparing the marinade base.

To save time, Lu Yang opted for rapid-curing, which would allow the flavors to penetrate the meat swiftly.

"By the way, have any of you tried using the laurel tree as firewood for a barbecue?" Lu Yang inquired while grinding the base ingredients, noting that the Immortal Fairy's method of barbecuing did have its merits.

"Using the laurel tree as firewood?" Lan Ting froze for a moment, a notion that had never crossed her mind.

"Wait a moment, I shall ask the Tree Ancestor; it will be fine if it agrees."

"The Laurel Tree Ancestor possesses consciousness?" Lu Yang was thoroughly astonished; he had assumed the Laurel Tree Ancestor was merely exceptionally tall.

"It possesses consciousness, though I have never witnessed it speak. I heard from Master that the Tree Ancestor is our Immortal Palace's most vital hidden trump card."

Seeing Lu Yang's interest, Lan Ting led him once more into the depths of the laurel forest, coming before the Tree Ancestor that reached into the very heavens.

Lan Ting bowed three times to the Laurel Tree Ancestor, completed an entire sequence of complex rituals, and respectfully requested, "Your disciple wishes to fell a laurel tree to use as fuel, and hopes the Tree Ancestor will grant this fulfillment."

Rustle, rustle, rustle.

The massive branches moved of their own accord without any wind, producing a rustling sound.

Upon seeing this, Lan Ting raised her head in excitement, "The Tree Ancestor has agreed!"

Lu Yang had not expected the Tree Ancestor to be so accommodating, and he too bowed three times to the ancestor.

Having received the ancestor's nod of approval, the two began searching for a suitable laurel tree. Since a laurel tree needed to be felled in a single strike, choosing one too thick would inevitably lead to embarrassment, while choosing one too thin would insufficient for firewood.

"This one should suffice." Lu Yang patted a nearby laurel tree, which was about the thickness of a single clasp of the arms.

"Could it be too thick?" Lan Ting knew she herself could never sever a laurel tree of this thickness.

"We shall know once we try." Lu Yang drew his Azure Peak Sword and tapped the laurel tree; he had never felled a laurel tree before, making it a completely fresh experience.

Within the Azure Peak Sword, ten thousand swords converged into one. Lu Yang's gaze intensified as he aligned his waist and stance, stamped his right foot against the earth, twisted his body to transfer his full strength into the Azure Peak Sword, and let out a great shout!

"Sever!"

Crack!

With a single strike, the Azure Peak Sword sank halfway into the tree trunk.

It did not break.

Lu Yang scratched his head, having wished to look impressive in front of Lan Ting, only to fail.

Just as he was about to say something to defuse the awkwardness, Lan Ting pointed in astonishment at the half-severed laurel tree.

"The laurel tree is not healing!"

This was an unprecedented occurrence!

Seeing this, Lu Yang delivered another strike!

Crack—Rumble—

The laurel tree crashed to the ground.

"Strange, did I strike so fast that the laurel tree had no time to heal?" Lu Yang muttered in confusion, hoisting the laurel tree onto his shoulder.

The Immortal Fairy rolled her eyes; what do you mean no time to heal? It was clearly the Laurel Tree Ancestor deliberately controlling this specific tree to prevent it from healing.

"It certainly shows quite a bit of care for little Yangzi."