Yunwei Xuan

In an open clearing on the back mountain of the Second Peak, Tianquan Peak, a familiar scene was playing out.

Fang Siyu, a disciple of Elder Taiyin, was confessing his love to another of Elder Taiyin's disciples, Yu Weitong, for the umpteenth time.

Fang Siyu had specifically changed into a new set of clothes today. His dark hair was tied up, revealing a handsome face.

With his regular features and gentle eyes, he was known for his good looks among the disciples of the Second Peak.

At this moment, he held a spirit flower in his hands. Its petals were crystal clear and emitted a faint halo, clearly a treasure he had carefully cultivated for a long time.

He bent his body slightly toward Yu Weitong in a devout posture.

"Weitong, I have always liked you. Please become my Dao companion."

Standing opposite him, Yu Weitong was equally striking in appearance.

She was tall with bright features and lively almond eyes. Right now, she was looking left and right, clearly trying to come up with a new excuse to reject him.

Both of them had reached the Soul Formation Realm and were considered outstanding among their peers.

Yu Weitong's gaze drifted from left to right, and then from right to left, deliberately avoiding the flower in Fang Siyu's hands.

Just as she was pondering her wording—

"Oh? And what about when you aren't being straight?"

A teasing voice rang out from above a large rock next to them.

The two of them froze simultaneously and looked up together.

They saw Gu Changyuan, who had at some unknown point laid down on his side on that large rock. With one leg propped up and his head resting on his hand, he was the picture of casual relaxation.

His robes were loose, and his hair wasn't properly tied. He looked exactly like someone who had been halfway through sunbathing on the back mountain and casually popped over to watch a spectacle.

Fang Siyu and Yu Weitong were stunned for a moment before they processed what the Sacred Ancestor had just said.

When he wasn't being straight?

What about when he wasn't straight?

Yu Weitong's face instantly flushed red.

"Sacred Ancestor?!" she cried out coquettishly, stomping her foot. "Even you are making jokes!"

As soon as the words left her mouth, she used this as an excuse and flew straight away.

Fang Siyu reached out his hand and opened his mouth, wanting to call out to her, but he didn't know what to say.

He watched Yu Weitong's figure disappear into the woods, his hand slowly dropping as his face filled with disappointment.

Gu Changyuan hopped down from the rock, landed beside him, and patted his shoulder.

"Ah, don't try to hold her back. Can't you see she has no interest in you at all?"

His tone was casual, but it carried a hint of seriousness:

"Sticking to her side and pestering her relentlessly like this, no matter how deep your affection is, it just becomes harassment."

In truth, Gu Changyuan saw it clearly. Although Fang Siyu was single-mindedly chasing after Yu Weitong, acting like an absolute simp.

But Yu Weitong had clearly rejected him every time, never mincing words, never accepting any benefits from Fang Siyu, and certainly never stringing him along intentionally. She had done all she could.

Fang Siyu lowered his eyes, a trace of unconcealable sadness on his face, and said in a low voice:

"But Sacred Ancestor, I truly like her."

"Sigh."

Gu Changyuan sighed and spoke earnestly.

"There are plenty of fish in the sea, why obsess over a single flower?

You just haven't spent time with anyone else, which is why you feel she is unique and irreplaceable.

Once you interact more with other people, you won't be so obsessed."

Fang Siyu looked up, a hint of confusion in his eyes:

"R-really?"

Gu Changyuan nodded heavily, putting on the appearance of an experienced expert, his tone absolute.

"Of course! Besides, why be a simp?

If you're going to be one, be a 'simp wolf.' Interact with more people, simp for many, and eventually, one of them will see your true heart and respond to you."

Even though he had absolutely no experience in this area himself.

But that didn't stop him from imparting life experience to his disciples.

These words, however, sounded like a sudden revelation to Fang Siyu, instantly clearing his mind.

The confusion on his face gradually dissipated, replaced by a look of utmost seriousness:

"I understand, Sacred Ancestor!"

Gu Changyuan nodded in satisfaction, just about to say a few more words of encouragement.

But his nose suddenly twitched. A rich and enticing aroma drifted over on the wind, instantly hooking his attention.

"Oh—"

Gu Changyuan's eyes lit up.

"It seems the new items over at Cloud Flavor Pavilion are ready! I'm going to go have a taste."

As soon as the words fell, his figure vanished completely.

Cloud Flavor Pavilion was a newly added special institution on the Fifth Peak, Kaiyang Peak.

Calling it an institution was a stretch; it was actually just a gourmet workshop.

The reason it existed was that Gu Changyuan wanted to eat delicious food.

Then he discovered that there just so happened to be people in the Holy Land who were good at cooking.

And so, Cloud Flavor Pavilion naturally opened for business.

Its main focus was researching new culinary products.

Of course, these were all based on Gu Changyuan's memories of things he had eaten back on the Blue Planet. He would roughly describe the taste and appearance, and let them research and recreate them.

Firstly, it could increase the external business of the Heavenly Human Holy Land.

Food was something that quite a few cultivators also enjoyed eating, so it could be sold.

Secondly, Gu Changyuan himself wanted to eat it.

Moreover, he didn't eat for free. Every time he went, he would give contribution points and resource rewards. He was very generous, so the disciples of Cloud Flavor Pavilion always looked forward to his visits.

As for why it was opened on the Fifth Peak?

Naturally, it was because there were many disciples there who used fire.

...

In less than a breath's time, Gu Changyuan had turned into a faint shadow and landed steadily in front of Cloud Flavor Pavilion.

Although called a Pavilion, it was actually more like an exquisite courtyard.

The courtyard, paved with blue bricks, was neat and elegant. Strings of crystal-clear spirit jade wind chimes hung from the eaves, emitting clear and melodious sounds whenever the wind blew.

A few stone tables and stools were placed in the yard, covered with light cyan tablecloths, looking clean and simple.

The main room of the courtyard had been transformed into a kitchen. Several large stoves were lined up neatly, with flames dancing inside them, exuding a warm spiritual energy.

Next to them were several rows of wooden shelves, filled with all sorts of bottles and jars.

Seeing Gu Changyuan arrive, two female disciples who were busy at the counter inside the pavilion immediately stopped their work. Joyful smiles appeared on their faces as they hurriedly waved and greeted him:

"Sacred Ancestor! You're here! We just finished making the Dragon's Beard Crisp you mentioned a few days ago. We aren't sure if it looks like what you wanted, would you like to try it first?"

As the two girls spoke, they raised their hands together and presented a gold-traced white jade plate to Gu Changyuan, upon which three layers of white pastries were stacked.

The pastries were made of thousands of strands, as fine as hair, as white as snow, and stacked in layers.

The crisp threads were delicate and even, with a lustrous sheen. Getting closer, one could smell a sweet and refreshing spiritual energy, neither too thick nor too strong, but incredibly soothing to the soul.

Above the pastries, wisps of white vapor drifted upward. This white vapor wasn't ordinary steam, but rather condensed from rich spiritual energy, spiraling and intertwining.

The white vapor drifted up and gradually condensed into tiny dragon shapes. Their forms were agile, and after circling a few times, they gently dispersed, turning into even finer spiritual energy that blended into the air.

A moment later, new white vapor condensed, forming complete white dragon shapes once again in a continuous cycle.

As expected of things from the cultivation world; even simply making a pastry could result in such a wondrous spectacle.