Let's stop chatting for now, goodbye

Or perhaps, it was a subconscious thought from Su Qi’s side?

Liu Yuan stood frozen in place, her expression slightly dazed.

Her clever little brain was momentarily overwhelmed by the sheer volume of information.

After lying dormant for three days, the special equipment card once again made its presence known.

Of course, its presence yesterday hadn’t been weak either.

It had assisted her in joining forces to effortlessly defeat a sixth-tier opponent despite being only fourth-tier herself.

Though, family matters like these were hardly the stuff of legends.

Alternatively, perhaps without the pressure of "meeting after the martial exam," Liu Yuan no longer felt the need to stubbornly wait until midnight for the task updates.

As a result, she only noticed it after waking up in the morning.

【Daily Adventure (Romance Edition): As the saying goes, to win a man’s heart, you must first grasp his... roots—no, wait, grasp his stomach. When he returns home weary from his journey, serve him a bowl of lovingly prepared home-cooked food.】

【Daily Adventure Reward: Temporary access to Special Passive ①. The task target, after tasting his sister’s heartfelt cooking, randomly gains a special buff.】

Hmm...

That actually makes some sense.

Come to think of it... she had never cooked for her brother before, had she?

They had always relied on takeout or frozen meals.

There really was a lack of that "homey" feeling.

Liu Yuan walked to the dining table and looked at the small steamed buns and milk Su Qi had left behind.

Frozen.

Nutrient-deficient.

Her brother must also want to eat... a warm, heartfelt dinner.

Suddenly, those thoughts became crystal clear.

Like a pebble tossed into a lake, ripples spread across the surface of her heart.

Maybe... she should give it a try?

Liu Yuan wasn’t much of a cook.

Her culinary skills were probably on par with Su Qi’s—or maybe even worse?

But now, she felt an unprecedented urge.

After hastily finishing breakfast, she headed to the kitchen, pulled out her phone, and opened her browser to search:

【First steps for cooking beginners】

【Easy-to-learn home-style dishes】

【How to make food with a "homely" flavor】

She suddenly realized...

Her current state was eerily similar to Su Qi’s in the kitchen last night...

Though, whether it was due to her phone screen being too small or the tutorial video not being detailed enough, Liu Yuan found herself utterly confused.

Maybe...

She should borrow Su Qi’s computer to look it up properly and take notes on her phone?

No time like the present.

Liu Yuan had never been one to procrastinate.

Especially when it came to matters involving her brother—her efficiency skyrocketed.

As if psyching herself up, she tiptoed toward Su Qi’s room.

Her heart inexplicably raced, and her palms grew slightly sweaty.

Why did borrowing a computer to look up a recipe feel so much like sneaking around?

Oh, wait... because she was sneaking around.

She suddenly remembered the brand-new... outfit she had "borrowed" from Su Qi’s room yesterday while he wasn’t looking.

Even though Su Qi already knew about it...

Sometimes, people just liked to play dumb.

And her own clothes were still in there...

With Su Qi out of the house, this was the perfect opportunity!

Return the outfit first, then look up the recipe—perfect!

Liu Yuan’s mental calculations were practically audible.

She returned to her room, retrieved the cosplay outfit hanging in her closet, and walked to Su Qi’s door, turning the handle.

The air inside still carried a faint trace of Su Qi’s scent, mixed with the coolness of the morning, making Liu Yuan’s cheeks inexplicably warm.

She shook her head, dismissing the random thoughts, and scanned the room.

From what she remembered last night, Su Qi had placed the paper bag containing the outfit... in the corner by the wall.

Then, she froze.

The corner was empty.

Not a single trace of the paper bag—or even the messy pile of delivery boxes that had been stacked on top—remained.

"......"

Liu Yuan blinked, her brain short-circuiting again.

Had she misremembered?

No way.

She had full confidence in her memory, especially when it involved something as "guilt-inducing" as this.

Unwilling to give up, she walked over and even ran her hand over the cold floor.

Nothing.

Well, no point dwelling on it now—she had more important things to do!

She walked to Su Qi’s desk and pressed the power button on his computer.

The screen lit up, displaying a simple wallpaper—a vast, starry sky.

【Enter Password】

Liu Yuan: "......"

What?

Last time she used it, there hadn’t been a password!

Was he seriously locking his little sister out?

Just as she was about to shut it down, the special equipment card made its presence known yet again.

【Promotion Adventure (Self-Sabotage Edition): Since you’ve already gone this far, why not boldly prove your worth?】

【Task Requirement: As the saying goes, a woman dresses to please her admirer. Why not explore Su Qi’s room to uncover his preferences?】

【Task Reward: Card promoted to fifth-tier.】

【Bonus Computer Password: xbllzj】

What kind of abbreviation was that?

"Xian Bu Liao Le Zai Jian"? (Let’s not talk for now, goodbye?)

What even...

Setting aside the task and her confusion, Liu Yuan opened the browser and searched:

【Absolute beginner cooking tutorials】

【Quick and easy ways to prepare a heartfelt dinner】

Countless tutorial videos popped up, leaving her dazzled and unsure where to start.

Braised pork?

Too complicated—caramelizing sugar and all that. No way she could pull that off.

Sweet and sour ribs?

Deep-frying involved. Would she end up blowing up the kitchen?

Tomato and egg stir-fry?

Too basic. Didn’t feel like it carried enough "heartfelt" weight.

As she scrolled, her eyes lingered on the tempting dish names and images.

And then... she got hungry.

She had just eaten steamed buns—why did she feel famished again?

Or maybe it was because Su Qi loved steamed buns, while she wasn’t particularly fond of them?

Then, her eyes lit up.

【Zero to Hero: Steamed Perch for Absolute Beginners】

This one seemed... relatively simple?

No complicated seasoning, no risk of oil splatters.

Just clean the fish, add ginger and scallions, drizzle some soy sauce for steaming, and steam it.

Perfect!

Liu Yuan carefully studied each step, jotting down the ingredients in her phone’s notes:

One perch, ginger, scallions, soy sauce for steaming, cooking wine, salt...

As she planned, her mind raced.

Mission accomplished!

With the main dish settled, she started considering side dishes.

Just fish seemed a bit plain—maybe a soup?

Or a stir-fried vegetable?

【Quick and easy homemade soups】

【Vegetable stir-fry collection】

......

Meanwhile, Su Qi took a taxi to the address Guardian Jiang had sent him.

It was an old industrial district, its red-brick factories bearing the marks of a bygone era.

There was no eye-catching sign at the entrance, just a rusted iron gate with a "No Trespassing" sign hanging on it and a security booth.

The taxi driver stopped at the gate and gave Su Qi a skeptical look. "Kid, you sure this is the place? Doesn’t look like any proper establishment to me."

Su Qi stepped out of the car. "It’s fine, sir. I’m here to see someone."

He walked up to the security booth and knocked on the window.

An elderly guard in a faded blue uniform, his hair streaked with gray, looked up. "Who’re you here for?"

"Guardian Jiang sent me."

The old man’s cloudy eyes sized him up before he picked up the walkie-talkie on the desk and muttered a few words in thickly accented dialect.

A moment later, a response crackled through the device.

The guard set it down and pointed inside. "Go ahead. Straight to the end, then the building on your left. Third floor."

"Thanks, sir."

Su Qi pushed open the creaky iron gate and stepped through.

The compound was far larger than it appeared from the outside, its walls still bearing the remnants of peeling, faded slogans.

Is this really the official base for handling Descendant incidents?

It looks way too… unassuming.

Honestly, if someone told him this was a cult hideout, Su Qi would’ve believed it.

Following the old guard’s directions, he reached the end of the compound and spotted a relatively isolated three-story building.

The exterior walls looked just as worn as the rest.

Su Qi pushed through the glass door on the first floor and entered.

The wooden stairs beneath his feet creaked with age as he climbed.

Finally, he reached the room on the third floor.

Su Qi pushed the door open.

Inside, the space was sparse, save for a single figure draped in a long coat, seated in an office chair with their back turned to him.

The moment Su Qi stepped inside, the chair eerily swiveled around on its own.

The person inside rested their elbows on the desk, fingers interlaced just below their nose.

They tilted their head slightly, studying Su Qi with a knowing tone. "I knew you’d come."

Su Qi: "…"

He didn’t hold back, leading with a sharp curse.

"Dipshit, you’re the one who called me here."