Chapter 135 Flaky Pastry

Translated by Gumihou

Edited by Gumihou

 

The boss bustled off, leaving Shiyu to study the bowl of Lotus Root Powder.

The content of the bowl was a crystal clear, burnish gold liquid flecked with Osmanthus flowers. Well, it was technically a liquid, but its consistency was closer to thick glue. When Shiyu dug her spoon in, she had some trouble trying to pull the ‘glue’ out of the bowl. The Lotus Root Powder was like some kind of slime monster that was trying to eat Shiyu’s spoon… In the end, Shiyu admitted defeat and lowered her mouth to the lip of the bowl and sucked the golden gel into her mouth.

Contrary to its weird consistency, the sweet, fragrant and slightly sticky gel melted smoothly on her tongue. The gentle flavour seemed to dispel the early spring cold from her body and warmed her from within.

Shiyu switched her attention to the pastry next to her bowl.

The other dessert was some kind of oiled pastry with layers upon layers of pastry leaves that stacked on top of each other like the floors of a pagoda. When she bit down on the topmost layer, the crisp, flaky crunch was clearly audible to the ear. The scent of honey and chestnuts enveloped her senses. The sweetness of the dessert was strictly controlled, creating a perfect balance of taste, fragrance and texture.

It was so irresistibly delicious that Shiyu quickly reached for a second piece.

The desserts were enough to half-fill Shiyu’s stomach. Instead of ordering more, Shiyu lowered her chopsticks thoughtfully. Different provinces have their own signature flavours. From these two desserts alone, Shiyu [1] thought she could understand the kinds of flavours enjoyed by the locals. The people of Xuan Chu likely enjoyed sweeter kinds of flavours…

Tsk, considering his sweet tooth, Qing Chen would probably love this place.

These were all idle thoughts that floated vaguely through her mind. After a short while, Shiyu called the boss over to settle the bill. While she was sorting out her money, Shiyu casually asked, “By the way, are there sect clans with the surname Qi around here?”

The boss said, “Are you talking about the Qi Clan of Wushan? That’s our Xuan Chu’s greatest clan, ah. Little miss, are you planning to visit them?”

“Oh? Are they that famous?” Shiyu was a little surprised. However, considering Mister Qi’s ability to control a Fire Spirit, if the rest of the family were even half or quarter as talented as him, their family should be quite prominent. Moreover, they have more than 300 years to establish their presence. A little belatedly, she cleared her throat and said, “Yes, I’m here to pay them a visit.”

After obtaining a little more details from the shopkeeper, Shiyu finally left the stall.

When Shiyu left, a girl seated at a nearby table turned to stare at Shiyu’s disappearing back. She was wearing a soft goose yellow dress and had a frown on her face.

“Hong Yu, follow that person.” One of her maids stood up and followed Shiyu out.

The girl continued to frown. That foreigner girl claimed to be visiting the Qi Clan, but her story was full of holes, there is something suspicious about her.

 

The Wushan area where the Qi Clan resided was over a thousand miles away from the border city. Since Shiyu had already reached Xuan Chu, she decided to take a break and spend some time looking around the place and shop for local souvenirs.

This part of Xuan Chu has many lakes and pools, therefore the Lotus Root Powder sold here should be of the best quality. Not only that, other lotus related products such as lotus seed and lotus seed tea were good too. Moreover, thanks to the moist and fresh climate, the quality of tea here is also quite good. However, Shiyu did not bother to buy any dried tea from vendors. [2] Instead, she made her way to the local market and bought several tea bushes from botanical vendors. She would transplant these later in her space. For now, most of her purchases went into space rings as she explored the rest of the market leisurely before setting off for Wushan, perfectly satisfied with her shopping spree.

As for the little tail she picked up. She had noticed it as soon as she entered the city. Shiyu was fairly sure that tail must have followed her since the tea stall where she had inquired about the Qi Clan. She had no idea whether the person following her was a friend or foe, but Shiyu could not be bothered about such trivialities. After passing the city gates, Shiyu suddenly increased her speed.

 

After losing her target, the maid returned to the girl in goose yellow dress, “Miss, the person disappeared.”

“Disappeared?” the girl frowned. Hong Yu is not just an ordinary maid, but a Core Transformation Stage personal attendant. For the little girl to shake her maid off, could this mean that little girl has a higher Cultivation than herself? But, just how old is that girl, ah?

Too weird, something is not right.

“Did she leave in the direction of Wushan?”

“Yes,”

“Good, it’s time for us to return.”

 

That’s right, the people tracking Shiyu down were actually people from the Qi Clan. Shiyu had no idea who she had just missed as she sped along the road towards Wushan via Chasing Clouds & Moon technique. Less than a day later, she reached the foot of Wushan.

The influence of the Qi Clan was so large that stepping within the range of Wushan area was like stepping into the Qi Clan’s sphere of influence. [3] It was kind of like the Feng Clan of Feng City where the influence of Grand Elder Feng was so strong that the family could implement a unique flower growing practice with the people for the sake of their single Wood Attribute descendent.

 

The Qi girl in goose yellow dress arrived a day later. As soon as she got there, she began to question tea stall owners along the road about a young girl in a blue dress with a miniature person sitting on her shoulder. Those who saw her must immediately send word, those who had not seen this person must keep their eyes open.

It did not take long for the Qi girl [4] to find out that Shiyu had already entered the city proper, so she rushed in after her target.

The fact that she was able to easily obtain such information meant that every inn, tea stall and restaurant within the Wushan were the eyes and ears of the Qi Clan. Shiyu could not have imagined that the Qi Clan’s security would be so tight.

As they were trawling along the road in search of their target, Hong Yu asked her mistress, “Miss, even if her Cultivation is high, she’s just a little girl. Why are you so anxious? Surely her skill can’t be considered against heaven’s order?”

When the maid said this, the Qi girl paused. Fine, it does seem like she was being too paranoid. However, she really wasn’t.

“I’m not sure why, but when we were at the tea house two days ago, the jade pendant around my neck suddenly became warm.” This pendant was given to her by the Venerable Ancestor. It is said that it was made by him just before he left the Ninth Realm and has the power to protect its wearer.

She had been wearing it every day, pretty much treating it like a normal accessory. That day was the first time she felt the jade heat up.

“Enough of this, we should return now. We should find out if Grand Ancestor has left his close Cultivation.” This signalled the end of their investigation.

 

Meanwhile, Shiyu had just overheard some rather astonishing news.

In a restaurant full of guests, the talk would sooner or later revolve around the Qi Clan. They were the major movers and shakers of the whole of Wushan, after all. Moreover, there’s that legendary ancestor…

“… that Venerable Ancestor of theirs left Ninth Realm about 300 years ago and returned to the Qi Clan 70 years ago. He came back just in time to revive a declining clan. Though the Qi Clan still had plenty of properties and disciples, they were barely different from any rich noble family in a provincial town. After his return, Qi Clan rapidly became Xuan Chu’s most powerful Sect. In fact, I heard that even Xuan Chu’s Imperial Family is under Qi Clan’s control…”

Who could resist such juicy gossip? Everyone leaned in to hear this amazing story.

Meanwhile, Shiyu was busy calculating the time. Hold on, 70 years ago? Wait, when did Mister Qi come back to the Ninth Realm again [5]? Mister Qi should be dead by that time, right?

Feeling Ocean Heart Flame began to agitate within her body, Shiyu said out loud, “I wonder how many from the Qi Clan broke through Divine Transformation Realm and left Ninth Realm?”

Someone scoffed and said, “Hah! Do you think breaking into Divine Transformation Realm is so easy? There’s only that one Venerable Ancestor, ah.”

“What is the name of this great ancestor? It would be an honour to know his name.”

“I have seen his name on the ancestral tablet once. Surname Qi, his honourable name is Yinuo.”

A powerful thump resounded within her body and her belly began to riot. Ocean Heart Flames clearly recognised this name.

Still shaking from the Spiritual impact, Shiyu quickly paid and left the restaurant. The moment she was in a remote place, Shiyu disappeared into the Saint’s Dwelling.

“Don’t be agitated, let us discuss this matter together.” Something was clearly fishy about this Venerable Ancestor Qi. The person was clearly dead, but why do people think he’s still alive?

“Ocean Heart Flame, do you think it’s possible that your master might still be alive? Could he have left a cloned body with some of his consciousness?” It’s not an unreasonable question. In so many of the xuanhuan or xianxia novels, people who really did not want to die would somehow find a way.

A wave of gloomy feeling washed over Shiyu.

If master is not gone. I would not be like this.

“If that is the case, I shall continue to inquire after the matter for you.”

 

[Gumihou: … what is this plot twist!!??]

 

Gumihou is keeping track so that you don’t have to ~

 

Condensation Stage	Stage 1
Core Transformation	Stage 2
Core Condensation	Stage 3
Divine Transformation	Stage Amazing, lol

 

 

[1] Adjusted Detail for Logistic Purpose: Original “Shiyu could clearly understand…”

… yeah, well, Gumi doesn’t believe you!!!

[2] Added Details for Logistic Purpose: Did you buy, steal or pick it off the ground?

Just buy the tea bushes, for goodness sake.

[3] Additional Details for Comparison: This is not the first very influential clan, so there’s actually room for comparison

[4] Changed Details for Convenience: ‘The Girl in Goose Yellow Dress’ is too much of a mouthful, so ‘Qi girl’ it is

[5] Actually, Mister Qi came back 80 years ago according to the skeleton. Check details in Chapter 105

Please click the picture for the translated recipe ~

 

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Come choose your Tier~

Have a Grilled Rice Ball

Cooking St – 136 Plum Wine (a)

 

Or Try a Skewer of Grilled Intestines

Cooking St – 137 Plum Wine (b)

Big Eaters, Have a Bucket of Mala Crayfish

Cooking St – 138 Plum Wine (c)

Cooking St – 139 Plum Wine (d)

 

For those with a Discerning Palate, How about some Grilled Matsutake?

 

Cooking St – 140 Plum Wine (e)

Cooking St – 141 Plum Wine (f)

Cooking St – 142 Dry Hotpot (a)

Cooking St – 143 Dry Hotpot (b)

Cooking St – 144 Dry Hotpot (c)

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