Chapter 11: They are about to be hooked like bleak fish

A deep, resonant voice filled with killing intent erupted, its crushing pressure making one’s legs turn to jelly, as successive waves of spiritual energy slashed through the air.

Booming sounds rang out incessantly. In the blink of an eye, the heads of his men were severed. The sheer sharpness of the attacks left the group stunned. The violent, surging spiritual energy made their leader afraid to engage head-on; he couldn't even discern the true cultivation level of the person behind it.

Panic began to fester, and the urge to retreat took root.

Unwilling to give up, the leader tentatively took a step forward. In the next instant, another slash swept toward him. Had the leader not been prepared and quickly twisted his body to dodge, his head would have been parted from his shoulders.

"You little mice, go back and tell the people in your sect: no one is allowed to touch Boss Lu!"

The icy voice, layered with a millennia-old chill, rolled over them. The razor-sharp aura left the leader unable to muster any thought of resistance.

"Go!"

His voice trembled. With the mission a failure, the leader and his men fled in disarray. The alley returned to silence, the lingering corpses and the stench of blood serving as a testament to the slaughter.

"Hmph." Someone let out a soft snort. If he hadn't needed someone to carry the message back, none of them would have left alive today.

In the neighboring courtyard, a flame drifted out, landing on the corpses and incinerating every trace of evidence. He, Old Man Li, was destined to be Boss Lu’s strongest guardian!

Once all movement had ceased, a head poked out from the shadows at the alley’s entrance. It was the large yellow dog that had fought Qin Zhan for a steamed bun earlier that day.

Fear filled the dog’s round eyes. As a member of the canine race, it excelled at tracking—and as the future Dog Emperor, it was even more adept—having followed Boss Lu’s scent all the way here. It had originally intended to find a way to "碰瓷" (stage a fake accident) to get Boss Lu to take it in as her pet. But upon arriving, it had witnessed this one-sided crushing defeat.

It, Dog Aotian, was no match for that! It dared not even show its face, and the thought of staging an encounter vanished along with the flames that consumed the evidence. After pacing the alley entrance in frustration, the Dog Emperor lifted its hind leg and marked the wall.

It would leave a mark; one day, when it, the Dog Emperor, rose to power, it would return to abduct this human woman and make her cook meat buns exclusively for it. Meat buns fed to a dog must be returned in kind! Having lurked in the human world for many years, the Dog Emperor understood the principle of sustainable development.

Driven by ambition, the large yellow dog tucked its tail and ran off.

Wrapped in dreams, Lu Wu smacked her lips, sleeping soundly, completely unaware that she had nearly kicked the bucket.

The sun rose. A day's plan is best laid in the morning.

In the Qingyuan Realm, many cultivators practiced in the morning to absorb the purple energy from the east. Lu Wu decided to give it a try. She had bought a book on some common, basic cultivation techniques. She recognized the characters and followed the instructions, but after sitting cross-legged on her bed for half an hour with her five senses focused inward, there wasn't the slightest ripple of spiritual energy within her.

Lu Wu deflated. It seemed that even though she had spiritual energy in her body, she couldn't further her cultivation through practice. She could only naturally absorb and recover energy after it had been expended.

"Sigh!"

She let out a long breath, tidied herself up, and opened her courtyard door. The clean bluestone path looked as if it had been washed by rain.

"Strange, did it rain last night?"

With the thought passing by, Lu Wu headed to the morning market in Little River Town.

"Oh, Boss Lu is here again! What ingredients are you planning to buy today?"

Some of the vendors in the market now recognized Lu Wu and greeted her warmly. Her spending habits over the past few days had made her a big customer.

Lu Wu was considering this as well. She had promised her diners she would change up the flavors today. She was quite skilled at pampering her fans. She still had plenty of the red bean paste from before, so she would keep that option.

In the bustling market, where peddlers shouted their wares, people came and went. Some laughed and played, others teased and cursed, with smiles blooming on their faces. It was the essence of human life, rich with the flavor of the world. Lu Wu loved it here.

Spicy beef buns, soul-stirring crab roe buns, deadly chive and egg buns, and sweet red bean buns—this was the menu Lu Wu had planned. She began to shop. She needed quite a lot of side ingredients, and the quantities were large. After wandering the market a few times, she finally gathered everything she needed.

Back at her residence, Lu Wu began preparing the ingredients. The hairy crabs of the Qingyuan Realm were huge, weighing seven or eight taels each, waving their large claws menacingly in the water basin. Lu Wu sent a flick of spiritual energy to stun the crabs, then washed them and steamed them until cooked.

Extracting the crab roe and meat was hard labor. The crab meat, nourished by spiritual energy, was white, tender, and resilient. The crab roe, in particular, was incredibly rich and oily; even just steamed, it was enough to make one's mouth water.

She mixed the crab meat and roe evenly, adding minced pork and chopped water chestnuts to enrich the texture while neutralizing the greasiness. She added granulated sugar, salt, and the sesame oil she had pressed herself. As the filling was thoroughly mixed, Lu Wu sniffed the air and her eyes curved into crescents.

Perfect.

Compared to the crab roe buns, the remaining fillings were simpler to prepare. Lu Wu didn't grind the beef into a paste but cut it into small cubes to prevent the texture from becoming tough. She marinated the beef with minced ginger, Sichuan peppercorn powder, five-spice powder, and other seasonings for 20 minutes. Once the time was up, she heated oil in a pan and stir-fried the filling until cooked.

The aroma generated during the preparation alone was enough to stir the appetite. In the neighboring courtyard, Old Man Li smelled the increasingly potent fragrance and swallowed his saliva ungracefully.

"Boss Lu really did change the menu today."

"It smells so good!"

After a loud slurp, Old Man Li cast a spell to block out the scent. He couldn't see it, and he couldn't eat it; he was about to die of craving.

It wasn't just Old Man Li; passersby in the alley cast lingering glances. It was too fragrant. They all wanted to rush in and ask if the person in the courtyard was doing it on purpose—they were being teased like fish on a hook.

*Gulp, gulp.*

The sound of swallowing saliva echoed from every passerby. Fortunately, no one disturbed her.

In the process, Lu Wu had made herself hungry as well. After finishing all four types of fillings, she simply steamed a basket of assorted buns to treat herself. A short while later, Lu Wu randomly picked a fresh bun, blew on it, and took a bite. Hmm... it was chive and egg.

The eggs were smooth and tender, dotted against the vibrant green, and each bite carried the unique flavor of the chives. The refreshing scent of the chives and the delicacy of the eggs intertwined, blending perfectly; neither overshadowed the other, but rather complemented each other beautifully.

After chewing a few times, the food slid down her throat. Her hungry stomach was unsatisfied, urging Lu Wu to eat more.

"Whew!"

Lu Wu, blowing on the bun, gave herself a thumbs-up.

So delicious! Her culinary skills were truly excellent.

When she walked out of the kitchen with the steaming buns, she saw a sneaky figure flash across her courtyard wall. The movement was too fast for her to see what the person looked like. It was broad daylight, and she almost thought she had seen a ghost.

Biting into her bun, Lu Wu had a strange look in her eyes. If she remembered correctly, that was where Old Man Li lived.

Old Man Li was quite elderly, yet he was agile enough to climb walls—though he had looked a bit lecherous doing it.