Chapter 26: The Warmth of the Patriarch

“Ugh, it won’t fit anymore, no more, please don’t stuff any more in.”

Half an hour later,

With the bribing behavior of the first Spirit Serpent, more and more serpents eagerly followed suit, plucking off the Snake Spirit Fruits and offering them to Su Qi as if to please him.

Seeing the pile of fruits in his arms growing larger and already threatening to spill,

Although Su Qi knew from the gathering task that Snake Spirit Fruits were precious, and consuming them could boost the experience of those with Abilities,

He couldn’t help but think these might be the staple food of the Purple Spirit Snakes.

As a qualified Su Wife, abiding by the principle of not wasting,

Su Qi hurriedly shook his chest full of Snake Spirit Fruits, signaling to the serpents not to give any more.

At the same time, to avoid stepping on the little serpents, he carefully stepped down the tree trunk bit by bit, heading down to meet the members of the Cangyou Wildcat Team waiting below.

The Cangyou Wildcat Team members, upon seeing Su Qi jump down from the tree holding a huge pile of Snake Spirit Fruits,

Were first greeted by An Xiaoling.

“Su Sister, you’re amazing! You managed to gather so many Snake Spirit Fruits at once, and the Spirit Serpents didn’t even harm you. Did you use your Ability?”

An Xiaoling blinked with curious, bright eyes as she eagerly asked this question.

Feeling the gaze of the other four members gathering around,

Su Qi suddenly didn’t know how to explain.

If he directly said it was due to his Su Wife Ability—Su Wife Sweetness—it would sound a bit long-winded.

Calling it charm didn’t feel quite right.

Saying it was based on goodwill also seemed inaccurate.

Just as Su Qi hesitated, Big Mountain kindly spoke up at the right moment.

“Xiaoling, this is Su Boss’s first time in the Saint Ruins, so she might not fully understand her own Ability yet. But that’s okay, we’ll verify it later.”

While speaking, Big Mountain cleared his throat to draw everyone’s attention and continued.

“Besides, compared to the Ability, considering Su Boss’s agility just now and all these Snake Spirit Fruits she has now, I think she’s passed today’s interview.”

Following Big Mountain’s words, Lin Xue, An Xiaoling, Wei Mian, and Brother Jianghu Hao showed no dissatisfaction; instead, they all raised their palms and started clapping in unison,

Welcoming Su Qi as the new member.

Clap clap clap~

But as the Cangyou Wildcat Team applauded their welcome,

The Purple Spirit Snakes watching from the tree mistakenly thought they were about to attack Su Qi.

Hiss hiss hiss~

They bared their fangs and even began preparing to descend from the tree.

Seeing the serpents’ reaction, and glancing at the overflowing Snake Spirit Fruits being offered by the serpents,

Su Qi suddenly remembered something.

Lightly stepping forward, he approached Senior Lin Xue, who had just stopped clapping.

As the distance closed, under the faint glow emitted by the Purple Spirit Serpents’ breathing,

Whether it was an illusion or not, Su Qi caught a fleeting expression of regret on Senior Lin’s pretty face.

Just as Su Qi was about to take a closer look, Lin Xue switched to a cheerful smile, tilting her head slightly and teasing in her usual playful tone,

“Wow, Su Boss, are you so moved you want to come and give me a hug? You can, you know.”

Faced with Lin’s arms opened wide for an exaggerated hug, Su Qi’s black leather shoe slipped slightly as he dodged,

Then he spoke,

“Senior Lin, may I take out the packed bento and share it with these little guys? After all, they gave me so many Snake Spirit Fruits—I should compensate them somehow. If everyone likes it, I’ll make new bentos for you all after we return.”

Hearing Su Qi’s reply,

Lin Xue and the Wildcat Team members were momentarily stunned, surprised.

Because before meeting Su Qi, based on their experiences as a five-person adventuring team, the relationship between humans and the Spirit Creatures in the Saint Ruins was mostly hostile.

And the idea of humans sharing their bentos with Spirit Creatures sounded utterly absurd.

However, as the five glanced at Su Qi’s earnest pale face and the gentle aura of a Su Wife surrounding him, recalling the harmonious scene of Su Qi and the Spirit Serpents in the tree,

Lin Xue and the others quickly relaxed.

Perhaps this was the reason why Su Qi was liked by the Spirit Serpents.

With a gleam flashing from the ring in Lin Xue’s hand,

The more than a dozen Disposable Food Boxes packed by the Wildcat Team earlier suddenly appeared on the ground.

After Su Qi entrusted the Snake Spirit Fruits to Lin Xue’s care, he flexed his calves lightly and jumped back up into the tree with the bento.

Gently opening the bento, a rich aroma immediately spread around.

Perhaps because the Spirit Serpents had only ever eaten Snake Spirit Fruits and plants, they curiously surrounded the bento but didn’t make a move.

Seeing this, Su Qi guessed the little guys were herbivores, so he picked up a slice of lotus root with his hand and offered it to one of the small serpents.

The lotus root was simply stir-fried, only seasoned lightly with some small chili for color.

Its flavor was fresh and crisp.

The little serpent hesitated for two or three seconds, then gently bit the piece.

At that moment,

The vertical pupils of the little serpent, which had previously shown no emotion, suddenly widened to their fullest.

Its entire body trembled as if overwhelmed by the delicious taste, coiling around the treetop, its tail flicking wildly.

With the first little serpent’s trial, more and more of the serpents on the tree shifted their attention to the bento,

Beginning to try the food.

However, the serpents only ate the vegetables and rice; the meaty dishes like lobster and ribs remained untouched.

Seeing the little guys so happily eating, Su Qi nodded with satisfaction, then jumped down from the tree and left the Forest of Purple Trees with the members of the Cangyou Wildcat Team.

As for whether the little guys would get an upset stomach from eating the bento, Su Qi didn’t worry at all.

Before setting up his night market stall, Su Qi had conducted some tests out of concern for quality and customers’ health.

For example, he used certain technological and rare ingredients, and he also fed the dishes to sick or weak kittens and puppies.

The results were surprising: when technological and rare ingredients were added, the prepared dishes weighed much less than expected.

The kittens and puppies with weak stomachs did not vomit after eating; on the contrary, they became energetic.

Through these tests, Su Qi knew that his Su Wife Ability naturally removed harmful impurities when cooking, ensuring the food was 100% healthy.

As Su Qi and the Cangyou Wildcat Team members exited the forest,

Unbeknownst to him, a small shadow slowly peeked out from the shade of the tree where he had just stood.

The figure was tiny, roughly the size of a three- or four-year-old human child.

Two slender gray ears sprouted atop its head.

Its face was grayish from digging soil moments ago, and its large eyes were full of caution and vigilance.

After waiting for over an hour and confirming the “human” had not returned,

The little one finally gathered courage, carefully climbing out of the hole beneath the tree hollow and approaching the bento box that had fallen from the tree—untouched, filled with meaty dishes.

Gently extending a muddy little paw, it touched a rib glazed with rich red sauce.

Sniff sniff~

Its small nose twitched lightly, and upon catching the aroma of the food,

A look of delight flashed across its big eyes.

“Ah-woo~ woo woo woo woo~”

As it opened its mouth and bit into the rib,

Feeling the savory flavor and the comforting aura hidden within the dish,

Tears began to well up in its large eyes.

Through muffled sobs, it began to utter words incomprehensible to humans: “!@￥%&（）*（））——(Wuwu, it tastes like the warm flavor the chieftain made.)”