Aisha’s voice echoed through the empty canyon, her hand outstretched and frozen midair, her ice‑blue eyes filled with desperation.
Yelena paused mid‑step, but Yvette had already moved to block her path.
The red‑haired Sword Saint looked down at the kneeling Hero, her tone utterly cold.
“Beg us?”
Yvette let out a sneer.
“We completed the mission. The kitchen utensils are naturally ours. Lady Hero, weren’t you pretty stubborn before?”
“I…” Aisha’s lips parted, her cheeks flushed bright red as she struggled to speak.
“What’s wrong? Now you know how to beg?” Yvette crossed her arms and tilted her head, studying her.
“Where was this attitude earlier? When you were fighting us for that item at the auction house, did you ever think it would come to this?”
“Yvette…” Aisha clenched her teeth, forcing back the humiliation. “The Golden Lion Holy Alliance… is willing to pay any price.”
“Any price?” Yvette laughed as if she’d heard the greatest joke. “What does the Golden Lion Holy Alliance have that our Asteria Family would even care about?”
“The so‑called price you offer is nothing but worthless scrap in the eyes of my family. That includes you and your sword.”
She pointed the tip of her blade at the Holy Sword that had fallen to Aisha’s side.
“If the Lady Hero isn’t satisfied, by all means, go file a complaint with the Capital Knight Order. Let’s see if they recognize the mission completion certificate—or your tears.”
With that, Yvette turned and pulled Yelena to leave.
Aisha swayed, unable to hold herself up any longer. She coughed up another mouthful of blood and collapsed to the ground.
Kate and Sylvia rushed over to support her.
“Aisha!”
Seeing Aisha’s breath growing weaker, Yelena’s eyes flickered. She stopped Yvette, who was about to continue her taunts.
She didn’t want this important “emotion collection source” to die here.
“Wait, Yvette.”
She walked over to Aisha and crouched down.
Aisha looked up at her, a complicated expression in her eyes.
Yelena simply pulled a pale green talisman paper from her chest and pressed it onto Aisha’s chest.
“What’s this…?”
A green light spread from the talisman, flowing into Aisha’s body. The bleeding stopped, the sharp pain in her chest eased, and even her breathing became much smoother.
[Cure Talisman Type B, complete.]
“Just a little healing trick. Don’t die here—you still have teammates to protect.” Yelena stood up and dusted off her hands.
[Ding, collected key character’s intense humiliation and gratitude emotions.]
The system prompt sound rang in Yelena’s ears one after another.
Feeling the change in her body, Aisha thought of Ye Lian—the Fox Tribe boy who used to clumsily bandage her wounds whenever she was hurt.
She stared at the fox‑girl before her, momentarily lost in thought.
Yelena could probably guess what was on her mind, but she didn’t care.
Since they had already parted ways, it was better to each go their own path.
She turned back to Yvette, not sparing another glance at the others.
“Let’s go. Clean up the battlefield.”
“Wait.” Yelena grabbed Yvette’s arm. “Everyone’s exhausted from the fight. Don’t rush off.”
She looked around, her gaze settling on the petrified corpse of the Lava Colossus and the glowing mushrooms on the nearby rock wall—more Earthfire Ganoderma.
“We’ll use what’s here. I’ll make a feast to restore everyone’s stamina.”
Yvette’s eyes lit up, her anticipation maxed out. “Great! I get to eat Little Fox’s cooking again!”
Yelena ignored her cheering and walked straight to the colossus’s corpse. Using a small knife, she pried off a still‑warm black core.
[Lava Core (Edible Grade): Rich in fire‑attribute energy. If properly handled, it can become an excellent ingredient.]
Then she carefully harvested the Earthfire Ganoderma.
Once everything was ready, Yelena skillfully took out her portable set of kitchen utensils from her Space Ring.
First, she sliced the Lava Core into thin, crystal‑clear pieces. Just looking at them made one’s appetite stir.
Then she boiled the Earthfire Ganoderma in spring water to make a refreshing cold soup.
She arranged the Lava Core sashimi on a plate of ice, drizzled it with a special sauce, and placed a bowl of Ganoderma cold soup beside it.
Lava Sashimi with Ganoderma Cold Soup—done!
Without immediately calling everyone to eat, she closed her eyes and lightly ran her fingers over the dish, infusing it with emotions as seasoning.
[Emotion Menu, activated.]
[Injected emotions: Calmness, Healing.]
A unique fragrance spread out, the scent of rock and Ganoderma burrowing into everyone’s nostrils.
“So fragrant…” Yvette held her face in her hands, drooling.
Anna couldn’t help but glance over a few more times.
Yelena handed each of them a portion. “Eat up, replenish your strength.”
Yvette and Anna immediately took a bite.
The Lava sashimi melted on the tongue, warm energy permeating through the body, driving away all fatigue.
Then they drank the Ganoderma cold soup. A cool sensation flowed from the throat straight to the chest, refreshing the mind.
“Mmm… delicious! So good!” Yvette squinted in bliss. “I feel like I could run a few more kilometers!”
Anna nodded silently, a satisfied smile spreading across her face.
“If you have that much energy, you can carry me on your back later~” Yelena replied playfully to Yvette.
While the Phoenix Nirvana Team feasted, the atmosphere on the other side was far less pleasant.
“Grrr…”
An untimely stomach growl came from Kate.
She and Sylvia stared longingly at the food in Yelena’s hands, their throats bobbing.
They had eaten nothing since morning, endured a fierce battle, and just finished healing. They were starving.
Aisha turned her head away, not wanting to see the tempting scene, but the aroma of the food kept drilling into her nose.
Yelena, as if only now noticing them, smiled and took out four more plates.
She unhurriedly filled four portions and handed them to Anna.
“Anna, send one to each of them. After all, they’re the Holy See’s Hero team. If they starve to death in front of us, it would look bad.”
“Yes, Lady Yelena.”
Anna carried the four servings to Aisha’s team.
Kate and Sylvia’s eyes went wide.
Aisha looked at the food set before her, her hands trembling slightly.
[Ding, collected key character’s emotion: Intense longing.]
“Eat up, ladies of the Holy See,” Anna said calmly. “It’s a gesture of goodwill from our captain.”
Aisha took the plate with shaking hands.
Sylvia and Kate wolfed down the food, mumbling between bites, “So good…”
Yelena watched their reactions, a corner of her mouth curling up involuntarily.
Then she picked up the last portion—the specially made “Lava Sashimi with Ganoderma Cold Soup”—and walked slowly toward Mila, the silent Battle Maid.
She had secretly mixed ground Starlight Grass into the cold soup.
This plant only grew by absorbing starlight at night and had a special reaction to demonic and abyssal auras.
“Miss Mila, you must be tired. Please try my cooking.” Yelena smiled with a meaningful, fox‑like glint.
Mila looked up, took the food from Yelena, and gave her a smile.
“Thank you, Lady Yelena.”
She picked up the spoon, elegantly scooped a mouthful of cold soup, and brought it to her lips. Her movements were flawless.
On the surface, nothing seemed different.
But from the perspective of Yelena’s God of Cooking’s Five Senses, the moment the cold soup infused with Starlight Grass entered Mila’s body, the dark‑purple aura that had been hidden inside contracted slightly, as if irritated by something.
It was only for a split second, but it was enough.
After Mila set down the bowl, she remained poised and elegant, but her smile was a little stiff.
“Lady Yelena’s cooking skills are truly beyond compare.”
“Not at all, as long as everyone enjoys it.”
Yelena returned an even brighter smile, her nine tails wagging happily behind her.
But inside, she had already reached a conclusion.
This Mila… is suspicious.
…
By nightfall, the temperature in the canyon began to drop.
The two teams camped about several dozen meters apart on the flat terrain above the canyon, each setting up their own tents.
Inside the Phoenix Nirvana team’s tent, Yelena was peeling an apple for Yvette with a fruit knife.
The firelight cast on her face made her fox eyes even brighter.
Yvette lay on a cushion, watching Yelena’s focused profile, and suddenly spoke up.
“That maid is suspicious?”
Yelena didn’t stop peeling. She took a bite of the freshly peeled apple, the crisp sound ringing clearly in the quiet tent.
“Mm,” she said after chewing, “she’s plenty suspicious.”
She turned to look at Yvette and handed her the other apple.
“But don’t rush.”
A sly smile curved on Yelena’s lips.
Maybe some of the interesting emotions she’d been collecting recently could come in handy.
“Since she likes playing pretend so much, let’s have some fun.”
“I’ll make her ‘eat’ her own secret out into the open.”