Chapter 24: The Harvester of Crops: Yi Ya

If he had a choice, Li Yu would never waste a third Truth Bubble.

Although this thing could be generated continuously, the method of recharging it was not easy at all.

But now that a life-and-death crisis was right in front of him, how could he dare to be careless?

It was strange, to say the least!

The eerie evil cultivator disguised as Cui Yuan outside the door, since she could even kill Cui Yuan, must at least be a formal Rank 8 cultivator, perhaps even Rank 7; a mere door could not possibly stop her.

Yet she chose not to break in, but instead to put on a show for Li Yu.

This peculiarity gave Li Yu an opportunity.

"Within fifty breaths!"

"Range of manifestation is over three zhang."

Unsurprisingly, the power of the third bubble was once again far greater than the first and second.

However, Li Yu had no time to rejoice; he was desperate to know the background of the visitor, whether he could save his own life, and whether he should fight or flee next.

Filled with tension and urgency, his Truth Bubble form left his body and passed through that mottled, old courtyard gate.

The next breath, the familiar "Tofu Beauty" Cui Yuan came into view.

Her attire was beautiful and revealing, her body mature and charming, full of endless temptation.

There was no difference whatsoever from the real Cui Yuan.

The only difference was that this time, she was carrying a gorgeous, exquisite, and large silver dining tray.

If there were no surprises, what was on that tray must be the so-called "Jade Maiden Feast" that this fellow had cooked.

The ingredients were, most likely, Cui Yuan herself.

"Is it a transformation technique?"

"Or did she kill Cui Yuan and steal her skin to wear?"

"Either way, it's disgusting enough."

As doubt rose in Li Yu's heart, a rainbow-colored finger reached out without hesitation, touching the center of this Cui Yuan's brow directly.

That’s right, he even skipped the step of observing from a distance.

Fifty breaths of time—he didn't want to waste a single second.

The moment he made contact, he asked a series of questions in his mind, trying to make his inquiry as comprehensive as possible, leaving nothing out.

Who exactly is this person?

What is their transcendent rank?

What abilities do they have?

What are their weaknesses?

How did they find me?

Do they have backup?

The power of this third Truth Bubble did not disappoint.

Although it consumed a full twenty to thirty breaths of time, the transcendent information that followed, emerging in segments, could indeed answer these questions.

"Yi Ya, human male, practitioner of the Forbidden God Sect, originally a failed scholar from the Qian Kingdom. After suffering a human tragedy during a great famine, he joined the Forbidden God Sect by chance. He holds the position of 'Vegetable Harvester' within the sect, responsible for harvesting the Forbidden Eggs that have been scattered once they mature."

"This practitioner is currently a Rank 8 'Vegetable Person' of the Forbidden God path. Having been at this rank for many years, he has gathered the secret medicine formula for the Rank 7 'Blood Slave' of this path and is confident he can pass the promotion ritual. However, because he is obsessed with the pleasure of cooking and harvesting, he has continuously delayed his promotion."

"He possesses physical strength and power superior to a Child of the Forbidden God, super-senses, extremely high poison resistance, a powerful blade technique, transcendent culinary skills, and a rather rich repertoire of cannibalistic recipes."

"His weakness is his strict adherence to rules; he has an almost obsessive pursuit of the ritualistic nature of his feeding and hunting, extremely enjoys the struggle of his prey before death, and has a level of persistence regarding gourmet food that far exceeds other Vegetable People."

"Yi Ya had already completed the harvest of Forbidden Eggs planted in the Heavenly Mystery Workshop area, turning in three mature Children of the Forbidden God. Later, while passing through the Old Street on his way back to his residence, he accidentally smelled the lingering scent of spiritual food on Chen Canglu, Sikong Nian, and Cui Yuan, and subsequently interrogated and slaughtered them one by one, learning the location of the cook."

"He made a temporary decision to use Cui Yuan's body to cook a spiritual dish, coming here to spar with you on the art of 'making people'."

The answers that surprised Li Yu beyond measure came flooding in.

Based on these secrets alone, Li Yu saw the charging progress of his fourth Truth Bubble jump forward once again.

The visitor's cultivation realm did not exceed his expectations; what truly caught Li Yu off guard was this.

It wasn't just Cui Yuan who had been killed.

"Zhu Mei should be fine, but I wonder how many of the remaining ten neighborhood evil cultivators met their end?"

"The newly formed secret society gathering, and the members were just slaughtered seven or eight out of ten?"

"Chen Canglu can never promote to Rank 8, Sikong Nian can no longer be a water ghost, and Cui Yuan's dream of being a courtesan is shattered..."

"And this person has the ability to kill so many evil cultivators in a single night; his divine abilities and methods are far beyond what an ordinary Rank 8 cultivator could compare to. An experienced hand, is he?"

Ordinarily, knowing this and realizing his situation, Li Yu should be panicked and scrambling to flee.

But he was no longer the same person he was when he first arrived; his whole being had been somewhat corrupted and driven mad by this bizarre world.

And in the Truth Bubble state, he could maintain absolute rationality.

Seeing that there were still a dozen breaths left, Li Yu originally wanted to keep probing to see if he could find more secrets favorable to himself.

But he suddenly saw the evil cultivator called "Yi Ya" frown, a mocking smile appearing at the corner of his mouth, as he reached out to touch the courtyard gate.

Knowing that this fellow's patience had been exhausted, Li Yu already had a preliminary plan in his heart.

This evil cultivator liked to act, so he would play along. Fortunately, judging from the secrets he had obtained, the situation was not so dire that he was guaranteed to die.

On the contrary, Li Yu caught a faint glimmer of survival.

Without further delay, he immediately returned to his body.

The next breath, the courtyard gate was opened with a creak.

Li Yu, with a brilliant smile on his face, stepped up to greet him.

"Sister Cui, please come in."

Having said that, Li Yu turned to lead the way as if completely unguarded, exposing his back to the other party.

But this Yi Ya did not strike immediately.

Instead, he stared at Li Yu, his nose twitching as if sniffing something.

After entering the courtyard, he acted as if he didn't care at all about being "exposed," looking Li Yu up and down and clicking his tongue in wonder.

=9+Shu_ba

"Strange, truly strange."

"I have been harvesting [Children of the Forbidden God] for so many years, and I have seen them in all shapes and sizes, but someone like you is a first."

This person had exposed himself without warning.

As his voice fell, facing the shock on Li Yu's face, he smiled with elegant enjoyment, then reached up and grabbed his own forehead.

Accompanied by a teeth-gritting "shredding" sound, the entire human skin belonging to Cui Yuan was torn off.

Revealed was a man of about thirty, with a slender build and excessively pale skin.

He didn't care at all about the pus, blood, and flesh sticking to him, showing no signs of being disheveled. He stretched, and with a relaxed and self-satisfied air, he looked over Li Yu and the Jiao family courtyard.

When his gaze swept over Hong Dou, he showed a faint look of disgust.

"What's wrong? Are you surprised? I smelled your fear through that door. What I'm curious about is that you clearly saw through the fact that I wasn't that streetwalker, yet instead of thinking of fleeing, you came to open the door for me. Could it be that you have some sort of reliance?"

"By the way, this technique is called 'Skin Changing.' If you want to learn it, I can teach you."

"As payment, you only need to taste the [Jade Maiden Feast] I brought and give me your evaluation."

Hearing these words and watching Yi Ya slowly lift the lid.

Inside was an exquisitely arranged "cold dish."

The ingredients were exactly those he had mentioned outside the door.

It was just unclear how he had processed them; not a single trace of blood could be seen. Instead, each item had its own unique quality—some crystal clear, some shimmering with luster—and they emitted a series of fresh and elegant aromas.

Li Yu seemed to be scared out of his wits at this moment!

One could see the expressions on his face changing constantly: first shock, then intense fear, and then struggle and disgust.

This performance!

Made Yi Ya feel extremely comfortable.

A look of enjoyment even appeared on his face as he smiled and urged:

"Yes, that's the scent of fear. It's so delicious."

"Come on, child!"

"Tell me, how did you resist the possession of the Forbidden Egg? And how can you borrow the power of a Vegetable Person while in a clear-headed state?"

"Don't think about hiding it. I have tasted every one of those spiritual dishes you cooked, you know. Although it was indirectly through eating the diners, that deliciousness definitely came from the recipe of my great Lord."

"I was raised in captivity by my parents since I was young. A few days ago, I couldn't help but slaughter them. I wanted to commit suicide, but I unexpectedly discovered that I could consume the power of the Forbidden Egg in my belly this way. And because I am quite compatible with it, it allows me to borrow its power. It's just that every time I borrow it, I get one step closer to alienation and corruption, and in the process, I have to listen to that shitty Forbidden God chanting the Vegetable Person song."

"You are a member of the Forbidden God Sect? What do you want?"

"I will absolutely not eat this shitty Jade Maiden Feast of yours."

After Li Yu finished speaking, he seemed to have gathered his courage, his face cold as he retorted.

Who would have thought that these few sentences would precisely step on several of Yi Ya's triggers.

The once gentle scholar instantly had veins popping on his forehead, appearing in front of Li Yu like a ghost, grabbing him by the throat with one hand, and lifting a foot to kick away the clumsy, slow-moving mechanical maid who was rushing over.

"What did you say? You're courting death!"

"My Lord is great, and the Vegetable Person song is a rare and beautiful chant in this world."

"This Jade Maiden Feast of mine is an extraordinary spiritual food. Even if it were taken to the Garuda Grand Restaurant, it could be sold on the third floor; it is priceless and rare."

"If you apologize to me now, obediently eat it all, and give me the best evaluation, I can temporarily spare your life and take you back to study you properly. Who knows, you might even have a chance to survive."

Li Yu's face flushed red from being choked.

Yet he still refused to admit defeat, and even gave a well-reasoned negative review on the spot:

"Heh, you call that culinary skill? You aren't even fit to carry my shoes."

"Since it is called the Jade Maiden Feast, why were the ingredients chosen from the evil cultivators of the Lust Sect?"

"Do they have even a single cent of connection to a jade maiden?"

(End of chapter)