The Cub I Raised Turned Out to Be a Reborn Boss (GL) - Chapter 7

It was very late. The moonlight enveloped the entire $\text{Wansnow}$ $\text{Peak}$. The layers of accumulated snow reflected the diffused light, creating a gentle and enchanting moonlit scenery.

Jiang Yixue stared wide-eyed at the empty kitchen.

Jiang Yixue had long achieved bigu (abstention from food), so the $\text{Azure}$ $\text{Lotus}$ $\text{Residence}$ did not have a kitchen. Fortunately, $\text{Wansnow}$ $\text{Peak}$ had many disciples, some of whom were new and had not achieved bigu, so there was a large kitchen that provided meals. But it was late at night, and the cooks in the kitchen had long gone back to rest. She had no idea when they would return.

The kitchen was fully stocked with ingredients and utensils. Jiang Yixue hesitated for a moment, then rolled up her sleeves. She actually liked cooking, it was just that she wasn’t very good at it. Perhaps it would be okay to just make do?

Just as Jiang Yixue was pouring rice into the pot, an anxious voice suddenly sounded at the door: “Miss, the rice hasn’t been washed yet!”

A cook in coarse cloth clothes rushed over, rescuing the precarious pot from Jiang Yixue’s hands, and said, “Just tell me what you want to make, and I’ll do it for you. Given your distinguished appearance, how could you possibly cook? Fortunately, I left my hairpin here today and came back to look for it, or wouldn’t something have gone wrong?”

This cook was a woman in her forties or fifties, with an extremely faint fluctuation of spiritual energy, not appearing to be a cultivator.

This was not strange. The $\text{Yuqing}$ $\text{Sect}$ often took in ordinary people. Most of them had lost their families during monster attacks or were saved by the $\text{Yuqing}$ $\text{Sect}$ from $\text{Ghost}$ $\text{Cultivators}$. Taking them in served two purposes: providing them with a place of refuge and keeping them in the sect to help with chores.

Did she really look like she was about to blow up the kitchen? Jiang Yixue blinked, then looked at her reflection in the water basin.

This physical appearance was very beautiful. Her slender eyebrows were like distant mountain peaks, her light-ink glazed eyes held a slight aloofness and detachment, and her dark hair was half-coiled. The exposed neck was delicate and pale. She clearly looked like someone who never had to lift a finger for manual labor.

To facilitate movement, Jiang Yixue had just rolled her sleeves up to her elbows. The posture of being ready to work hard, combined with this appearance…

Jiang Yixue finally understood why the cook suddenly worried about her kitchen.

The cook efficiently washed the rice and sliced the meat, neatly preparing all the ingredients. She muttered to herself, “Miss, you are a cultivator. How can you do the things we common people do? But I’ve been here for five years and have never seen you before. You must be cooking for someone else, right?”

Saying this, the cook looked back and smiled at Jiang Yixue: “Don’t deny it. I was young once, and I understand everything. I just wonder who could be so remarkable as to have a beautiful young lady like you personally cook for them.”

She was getting off track. Jiang Yixue quickly denied it: “Auntie, it’s not what you think…”

Before she transmigrated, the area downstairs from Jiang Yixue’s apartment building was a square, a gathering place for all the aunties within a two-kilometer radius. She was acutely aware of the ‘battle power’ of these aunties. If she didn’t deny it now, this woman could conjure up a complete piece of gossip that would spread across the $\text{Yuqing}$ $\text{Sect}$ mountains within three days.

“Alright, alright, I won’t talk about it.” The cook laughed, then pushed the prepared ingredients toward Jiang Yixue’s hand. “Do you want to handle the rest yourself? Doing it yourself is more meaningful.”

The cook was smiling so wide her mouth reached her ears. Clearly, she didn’t believe Jiang Yixue’s denial at all and looked quite expectant.

Jiang Yixue: “…” Forget it. This generation gap existed forever in every world, and no amount of talking would ever clear it up.

However, Jiang Yixue did feel a bit tempted watching her busy herself. She actually loved cooking, but unfortunately, she didn’t know if she had allocated her skill points incorrectly.

In the world before her transmigration, the first time Jiang Yixue cooked, she almost burned down the kitchen; the flames in the oil pan shot up a meter high. The second time, she dared not use an oil pan to stir-fry vegetables, so she decisively chose to boil noodles, but all the noodles stuck to the bottom of the pot, almost ruining the pot…

Now that she had an experienced cook watching over her, surely nothing would go wrong, right? No sooner said than done. Jiang Yixue rolled up her sleeves and nodded: “Okay, just tell me what to do next.”

Perhaps the cook had already considered that Jiang Yixue was a novice in the kitchen, so she immediately went with a beginner’s tutorial—making porridge. All the ingredients for the $\text{Matsutake}$ $\text{Chicken}$ $\text{Shredded}$ $\text{Porridge}$ had been washed and cut for Jiang Yixue. All she had to do was add the ingredients according to the timing and wait for the porridge to cook.

Slowly simmering over a low flame, the fragrance of the rice gradually permeated the kitchen. Jiang Yixue’s cultivation was quite deep, allowing her to stay awake for several days, but the cook beside her was so sleepy that she was almost leaning on the stove to doze off.

“Auntie, you should go back to sleep first. You have to get up early tomorrow to prepare meals for the $\text{Junior}$ $\text{Brothers}$ and $\text{Junior}$ $\text{Sisters}$. Thank you for your hard work tonight.”

The cook lifted the lid to look at the porridge in the pot, advising, “It’s almost ready. Wait until the rice grains are about to bloom, then add the $\text{matsutake}$ and chicken. Before taking it off the heat, add the green vegetables and a little salt, and that’s it.”

“Mm.” Jiang Yixue nodded. She watched the cook leave, feeling a little relieved. Fortunately, the cook didn’t know her or her name. Otherwise, by tomorrow, the rumor of Jiang Yixue personally cooking for her sweetheart would spread throughout the $\text{Yuqing}$ $\text{Sect}$…

After putting the finished porridge into an insulated food container and placing it where Song Xi would see it when she woke up in the morning, Jiang Yixue immediately went to $\text{Fengyuan}$ $\text{Mountain}$. The disciples who had completed five years of training were already waiting there.

Upon seeing Jiang Yixue, they bowed and saluted: “Greetings, $\text{Senior}$ $\text{Sister}$ Jiang.”

Jiang Yixue’s gaze swept around, finally resting on a young man. He looked to be seventeen or eighteen, dressed in blue. His eyebrows were sharp, his features were handsome, and he stood as graceful as a jade tree. When he smiled, it was gentle and warm like the sun, making him stand out from the crowd as if a glowing special effect had been added.

Jiang Yixue walked up to him, stopped, and slowly said, “Disciples of the $\text{Medicine}$ $\text{Hall}$ are not required to participate in the trial. What are you doing here?”

Among the four major halls of the $\text{Yuqing}$ $\text{Sect}$—$\text{Discipline}$, $\text{Artifact}$, $\text{Technique}$, and $\text{Medicine}$—the $\text{Medicine}$ $\text{Hall}$ was the most unique. It didn’t have its own territory and was established on $\text{Wansnow}$ $\text{Peak}$, where the $\text{Sect}$ $\text{Master}$ resided. Furthermore, the $\text{Medicine}$ $\text{Hall}$ was arguably the safest place among the four. Its disciples did not need to participate in disciple trials or periodically execute sect missions; they only needed to guard the medicinal furnaces.

The young man frowned slightly, raised his eyes to look at Jiang Yixue: “$\text{Senior}$ $\text{Sister}$ Jiang recognizes me?”

Jiang Yixue scoffed softly: “Of course I do.” Not only did she recognize him, but she had died many times at his hands in the game.

The person before her was Lin Chen, the gentle and warm-hearted type among the four male leads. He appeared to be just an ordinary $\text{Medicine}$ $\text{Hall}$ disciple, but his hidden identity was the $\text{Ninth}$ $\text{Prince}$ of $\text{Dongxuan}$ $\text{Canghai}$.

When Lin Chen was young, a huge upheaval occurred in $\text{Dongxuan}$ $\text{Canghai}$. The throne of the $\text{Cang}$ $\text{Emperor}$ was seized by his uncle. Because his mother and Xue Qiancheng were old friends, he was protected by Xue Qiancheng in the $\text{Yuqing}$ $\text{Sect}$ and narrowly escaped death.

He bore the heavy burden of blood vengeance. During his interactions with the female lead, he was healed little by little by her, eventually achieving his revenge.

Although $\text{Ninth}$ $\text{Prince}$ Lin Chen was currently down on his luck, he would soon rise to power. At that time, Jiang Yixue, who had bullied the female lead, would die at his hands.

Thinking of this, Jiang Yixue frowned. She was getting along too well with Xi Xi; she almost forgot there were four ticking time bombs here.

The current $\text{Ninth}$ $\text{Prince}$ had not yet grown up and didn’t know that Jiang Yixue was a villain behind the scenes. His eyes were full of respect and admiration as he looked at Jiang Yixue. He cupped his fists and bowed deeply, saying, “$\text{Senior}$ $\text{Sister}$ Jiang, I want to become stronger. I hope you can give me this opportunity.”

Jiang Yixue said flatly, “Does the $\text{Sect}$ $\text{Master}$ know about this? You should know that she won’t agree.”

Although $\text{Dongxuan}$ $\text{Canghai}$ was far away, it couldn’t be ruled out that Lin Chen’s uncle would arrange for people to assassinate Lin Chen within the $\text{Yuqing}$ $\text{Sect}$‘s territory. This was why Xue Qiancheng had placed him in the safest $\text{Medicine}$ $\text{Hall}$.

Hearing Jiang Yixue mention Xue Qiancheng, Lin Chen immediately became anxious: “$\text{Senior}$ $\text{Sister}$ Jiang, I promise you, I will leave a personally written letter. Regardless of any danger I encounter, it will be my own responsibility and have nothing to do with you. The $\text{Sect}$ $\text{Master}$ definitely won’t punish you.”

Lin Chen’s attitude was respectful and courteous. Through those eyes, Jiang Yixue read a youthful passion and a firm, resolute determination.

Jiang Yixue looked around. Fine, Song Xi wasn’t involved in this trial anyway, and there was no way the two of them would develop any romantic feelings during this trial. If he wanted to go, let him go.

The male lead certainly wouldn’t die; he was surrounded by destiny’s favor. As long as she paid a little attention, she wouldn’t let him die.

Moreover, even if she stopped Lin Chen this time, it was no guarantee that he wouldn’t choose other methods to sneak into a team a month later. In that case, it was better to keep him openly in sight to save trouble.

Jiang Yixue raised her eyes and said, “Forget it. No need for any letters. I understand your thoughts. Go if you want to. $\text{Qingyang}$ $\text{Mountain}$ is not particularly dangerous. Since I am in charge of this protection duty, there will be no fatalities.”

Without waiting for Lin Chen to speak, Jiang Yixue turned and walked a few steps, standing at the very front of all the disciples. She said clearly, “The location of this trial is $\text{Qingyang}$ $\text{Mountain}$. In the heart of $\text{Qingyang}$ $\text{Mountain}$, there is a type of $\text{Qingyang}$ $\text{Spiritual}$ $\text{Tree}$. The fruits from that tree are the basis for passing this trial. Of course, I must remind you that every exotic treasure is protected by a spiritual beast. I will only guarantee that you will not die, but injuries are inevitable. During the trial, there will be no restrictions on methods, only results. So, you have one more month to prepare.”

The four words “no restrictions on methods” caused an uproar in the field. Disciples looked at the people next to them with wariness.

This meant that they could rely on the power of spiritual artifacts, form teams to help each other, and even snatch fruits from others’ hands…

Jiang Yixue waited for the clamor to subside slightly and continued, “The team that performs best in each five-year assessment will receive the title of $\text{Champion}$. All members of the $\text{Champion}$ team will become direct disciples.”

First, she dropped a bombshell rule, then gave them a seemingly unreachable goal. The fighting spirit of these teenagers and young adults was instantly ignited.

With no restriction on methods during the process and extremely generous rewards, this assessment would undoubtedly turn into a murky situation.

Moreover, Jiang Yixue announcing the rules a month in advance undoubtedly made the waters even murkier. A month’s time allowed for too much manipulation.

Seeing them immediately enter a state of focus, Jiang Yixue nodded in satisfaction. They should be this full of fighting spirit.

She was also surprised when she heard the rules set by Xue Qiancheng, but she quickly accepted them. No wonder the $\text{Yuqing}$ $\text{Sect}$ was one of the most powerful sects in the righteous path.

The biggest problem with the righteous path in teaching disciples was the tendency to nurture flowers in a greenhouse. The outside world would not be as harmonious as the sect. They needed to guard against outsiders and monsters, and even against the people around them. After such a trial, these greenhouse flowers would learn a valuable lesson.

In the end, Jiang Yixue would be there to guarantee the safety net, so no one would die.

After announcing the rules, Jiang Yixue said flatly, “$\text{Junior}$ $\text{Brothers}$ and $\text{Junior}$ $\text{Sisters}$ who want to form teams can start discussing now. Remember to gather here one month from now. Missing the departure time will be counted as failure of the trial.”

With a clear clang of a sword, only the afterimage of a blue lotus remained in the air. After saying this, Jiang Yixue left.

Calculating the time, it was already time for $\text{Wansnow}$ $\text{Peak}$‘s collective morning practice. She activated her fastest speed and headed toward $\text{Wansnow}$ $\text{Peak}$.

Jiang Yixue’s cultivation was high enough that she didn’t need to participate in the collective morning practice anymore, but today was Song Xi’s first time attending $\text{Wansnow}$ $\text{Peak}$‘s collective morning practice. She had to go back and supervise, lest any of Jiang Yixue’s sycophants on $\text{Wansnow}$ $\text{Peak}$ try to curry favor with her by making things difficult for Song Xi, like Yan Zi and Yan Ming did.

If that happened, not only might she not be able to raise her $\text{cub}$, but her own life might be forfeited later. Jiang Yixue sighed. The original host had too many subordinates and a huge mess. One slip-up, and her life would be in danger.

In an instant, Jiang Yixue’s figure disappeared into the sky. The disciples remaining in the field looked around, their expressions changing several times. They then began to walk toward familiar disciples. Jiang Yixue was right; forming a team was the best way to pass this trial.

Lin Chen, however, stood still. He stared intently in the direction Jiang Yixue had left, his fists, hanging at his sides, slightly clenching.

He knew his situation. Leaving the $\text{Yuqing}$ $\text{Sect}$ was very dangerous right now, but he had to go. He had to seize every opportunity to grow stronger so he could reclaim the $\text{Cang}$ $\text{Emperor}$‘s throne that rightfully belonged to him.

When Jiang Yixue recognized him, he thought he definitely wouldn’t have the chance to participate in the trial this time. After all, Xue Qiancheng’s intention was for him to live peacefully in the $\text{Yuqing}$ $\text{Sect}$.

If anything went wrong, Xue Qiancheng would certainly blame Jiang Yixue. From Jiang Yixue’s words, she clearly knew his identity and the dangers of this trip. Yet, she still let him go and said she understood his thoughts.

Lin Chen exhaled deeply. The image of the figure stepping on the lotus and disappearing into the distance lingered in his mind.

Whether for himself or for $\text{Senior}$ $\text{Sister}$ Jiang, this journey had to be successful. He must be careful and cautious, allowing no accidents to occur.