Chapter 119: A Woman Like Ice and Snow

The porridge and buns that had been knocked to the ground were no longer fit for Zi Lian to eat. I decided to head back to the kitchen to fetch a fresh portion, so I stooped to pick up the fallen dishes and hurried after Fengshi Liuying.

"Wait! Senior sister, wait for me!"

I held the plates aloft and waved at her retreating back with a bright smile. After a long while, watching her figure disappear around a corner, I lowered my hand, feeling dejected. She didn't seem to have any interest in acknowledging me.

Still, seeing to Zi Lian’s breakfast was the priority; whether or not she cared to talk to me would have to wait for another time. When I arrived at the kitchen, I scanned the room, but Fengshi Liuying was nowhere to be seen. I approached the stove and asked the immortal chef, who turned to glare at me with a ferocious expression, barking, "What is it? You want fish now? Come back tonight!"

I jumped, startled. His face, flushed a deep crimson by the billowing heat, looked remarkably like the legendary Guan Yu from the tales of the mortal realm. Recalling the dramas I had read about, I couldn't help but steal a few more glances at him.

The immortal chef appeared to be around fifty. Seeing me staring, his heat-reddened face grew even brighter. He roared, "What are you looking at? I don't fancy men, so don't you go getting any ideas!"

"Getting ideas about you?"

Hearing this, I couldn't help but gasp.

My gaze involuntarily swept over his burly frame. A physique like that was hardly a match for a small fry like me—it would certainly take a sturdy woman to handle him!

I bowed slightly and said with a smile, "The immortal chef is joking. I am but a newcomer to this immortal land, and it is a rare honor to meet you today. I was simply captivated by your imposing and magnificent presence, and I couldn't help but look a few more times. If that was rude, I hope you will forgive me."

He was stunned for a moment, then set down his cooking utensil, rubbed his nose, and laughed heartily. "You’ve got a silver tongue, kid. Tell me, what dish are you here to get me to cook for you today?"

This immortal chef had a truly magnanimous personality; he was quite amusing to talk to. I had only been on Lingyun Mountain for a few days; I hardly had the nerve to ask for a private meal.

I asked him, "Might you have seen a senior sister here, dressed in white, holding a jade sword, with some porridge splattered on her left sleeve?"

"Are you talking about Fengshi Liuying?"

As soon as I mentioned her, the chef’s brow furrowed into a knot.

"Yes! That’s the one."

"Hmph!" The chef grabbed his cooking utensil and grumbled irritably, "Don't mention that ungrateful wretch in front of me."

His previously cheerful expression had vanished, replaced by an inexplicable flare of anger.

He brandished his tool and shouted, "If she didn't like my cooking, she could have just said so! To dare dump it all over herself—what does that make me, the immortal chef? I don't know why Third Great-Uncle insists on keeping such an ungrateful woman on Lingyun Mountain instead of casting her out."

Hearing about the spilled porridge, I felt a pang of guilt. It seemed the chef had misunderstood Fengshi Liuying; it was I who had spilled the porridge on her. But seeing the chef’s fearsome temper, I dared not tell him the truth.

Feeling indebted to her, I did my best to put in a good word.

"Please, don't be angry, Immortal Chef," I said, forcing a smile. "Third Great-Uncle keeps her here to atone for the sins of her master, Fengqiao Yexue. The fact that she didn't flee when her master fell into the demonic path, but instead stayed behind to make amends, is a righteous act. I don't think she spilled the porridge on herself. It’s the height of summer; no one would be foolish enough to pour boiling porridge over their own clothes. I suspect you may have misunderstood her."

"Is that so?"

He widened his eyes at me. "I suppose you’re right, kid. Fengshi Liuying is cold by nature and difficult to get along with, so most of the disciples on Lingyun Mountain don't care for her. But because of her master, Fengqiao Yexue, some disciples—relying on their own noble immortal lineage—often bully her."

He sighed, a look of sorrow crossing his face. "She is a pitiable soul. Despite her peerless beauty, she refuses to curry favor with the powerful. Three years ago, the young immortal Meng took a fancy to her and intended to bring her into his palace as a bride, but she chose to resist with her life, forcing him to give up. Everyone in the sect knows she is strong-willed, and many disciples, jealous that they cannot possess her, harbor deep resentment. Her remaining on Lingyun Mountain only leads to her being bullied."

So that was it. Hearing his words, I felt a twinge of sadness, but also a newfound respect for Fengshi Liuying.

"I saw her heading this way earlier, but I didn't see her here. Do you happen to know where she went?"

"She didn't come here. She must have gone to the other kitchen," he said, pointing toward a purple bamboo building across the stream. At a glance, I noticed the architectural style was remarkably similar to that of the Azure Phoenix Palace where Zi Lian resided.