Morning.
Chu Xingchen held a bowl of hot porridge in his hands, with several small dishes of reasonably refined side dishes before him—four plates of four delicacies, arranged with decent care.
These side dishes would hardly count as particularly refined in the Central Province, but here in the Western Niu Continent, for side dishes to be presented like this, the kitchen was already pulling out all the stops on top-tier flattery.
A glance at the other tables' side dishes made the difference obvious—the other diners' sides looked like they'd been scooped up with a foot and tossed carelessly onto the plates.
The philosophy was simple: never mind whether it looks good, the only question is whether you can eat it.
Chu Xingchen reached out with his chopsticks to pick up a side dish and spoke at the same time:
"This is the health-preserving set meal jointly endorsed by the sect's two great disciples—hot porridge with pickled mustard greens. This time you've really hit the jackpot."
The Radiant Buddha nodded with a satisfied expression, using his chopsticks to gently stir the hot porridge:
"One taste and you can tell it really does preserve health."
Wukong also held a bowl of hot porridge in his hands, listening to this founding Buddha of the Mahayana Buddhist path laying on the flattery.
Cultivators had all reached the point of grain avoidance—what was the point of drinking health-preserving porridge?
But he wasn't quite so tense now either. The situation was what it was, and if something really went wrong, they could only count on the taller ones to handle it.
Worrying any more about it would be useless.
Wukong pondered this and brought the hot porridge to his mouth, lightly tasting the flavor of the refined side dishes.
Business practices in the Western Niu Continent weren't that complicated. There was no VIP dining area set up—whether you had money or not, you ate in the main hall.
So Chu Xingchen's table, with the most refined pickled mustard greens, did draw some attention.
But this kind of attention was harmless. Being open and aboveboard was far less likely to arouse suspicion than being cautious and furtive.
The top-tier guest rooms were on the third floor.
Donggua had sat in meditation all night, only to discover that no one had come looking for her again.
With the Demon Lord's response, a future that had been utterly hopeless and entirely dark finally had a sliver of light to look forward to.
That meant the previous plan of taking things one step at a time also needed to change.
At the very least, she had to hold out until the Demon Lord descended, and take Cui Hao and Wukong away along with her.
So the matter of dying—well, that could still be compromised on a bit.
Donggua sat in meditation until dawn, her calculations settled in her mind.
As a Spirit Transformation cultivator, even without projecting her divine sense outward, she could still perceive the situation through basic senses.
At the very least, hearing what Chu Xingchen said from the third floor was simple enough.
So Donggua also walked down from the third floor.
Wukong held his white porridge, his gaze strange as he watched Donggua descend from the stairwell with a somewhat ingratiating smile on her face.
Before she was being hunted, Donggua would still show expressions like this, but ever since the pursuit began, she'd maintained a look of someone who didn't care whether she lived or died.
And after meeting Cui Hao, as Chu Xingchen was playing the part, she'd worn the expression of someone ready to die together with him.
Wukong was absolutely certain about the pure killing intent and malice Donggua harbored toward Cui Hao. At that level of killing intent and malice, at worst you'd fight until heaven and earth turned upside down—how could there possibly be any reconciliation?
Could it be that last night…?
Chu Xingchen was truly terrifying. His ability to grasp people's hearts was frightening.
Donggua took her seat with a softened expression, looking at everyone holding their hot porridge. Then she looked at the empty space before her and said in a gentle tone:
"You all ordered one, so why didn't you prepare one for me too?"
Chu Xingchen set his white porridge back on the table and said without any courtesy:
"Feeding a pig would at least make it grow meat. Feeding you would be pure waste."
Wukong pressed his lips together and lowered his head, the bowl in his hand trembling slightly.
Donggua showed a hint of awkwardness, but quickly reined it in and instead asked:
"Cui Hao, with your arrangement, how long do we need to stay here?"
Chu Xingchen raised his eyebrows slightly: "Didn't you say you didn't care?"
"I thought it over carefully last night, and I think what you said actually makes sense." Donggua sighed lightly, her tone quite sincere. "Before, I was just being stubborn. But on reflection, there's no need to gamble my life out of spite. If there's anything you need me to do, I will absolutely give it my all."
Chu Xingchen's mouth curved into a smile: "Lay down my life?"
"Lay down my life!" Donggua answered with absolute certainty, her sincere gaze revealing not a trace of killing intent.
Chu Xingchen smiled and nodded: "Then would you say I've saved your life?"
"Of course!" Donggua said seriously. "Given the current situation, I can only rely on you."
Wukong shook his head lightly at this scene, picking up the pickled vegetables from the table with a rather creeping sense of dread.
The Radiant Buddha chewed on pickled vegetables, his gaze equally uncertain as he watched Donggua, who seemed to have had her soul swapped out.
These days, strange things really were more common than before.
Chu Xingchen also nodded with satisfaction, then set his empty bowl down on the table:
"Since you've abandoned the dark for the light, I'll give you a chance too. Didn't you just ask how long we need to stay here?"
Donggua paused at his words. This sentence from Chu Xingchen instantly brought back many unpleasant memories.
When Cui Hao said things like this, nothing good was ever waiting for her.
But looking at Chu Xingchen's leisurely, appraising expression—
Donggua gritted her teeth and still answered:
"Yes, I asked."
"Then at least you have some sense of the situation." Chu Xingchen's smile was gentle. "If you'd been any slower, you'd have to stay here on your own."
"With so many Tribulation Transcendence cultivators from the Buddhist sects closing in, staying any longer is just waiting to die."
"So, my answer is: very soon."
"The reason we're staying here one more day is because there's preparatory work to be done."
As soon as Chu Xingchen finished speaking—
Wukong's gaze lifted toward the sky outside the door.
Just now, two Tribulation Transcendence auras had swept past. Mortals wouldn't notice, but cultivators like them could.
The Radiant Buddha's expression remained calm.
"Waiter, another bowl of porridge." Chu Xingchen raised his hand to call the waiter.
"Right away, sir!" The waiter responded promptly.
Chu Xingchen took a token from his spatial ring and pushed it toward Donggua:
"There's a coffin shop on the west street of this city. Someone there will draw fire for us. Remember—after you hear what the person on the street says, keep running west. That's our evacuation direction."
"Oh, and the porridge just now was ordered for you. Eat your fill before you go. There's no rush."
The waiter soon brought the porridge up and, at Chu Xingchen's signal, placed it in front of Donggua.
Donggua looked silently at the porridge before her and the token Chu Xingchen had set down.
A moment passed.
Donggua reached out and grasped the token, then picked up her chopsticks and drank the steaming hot porridge in one gulp. Then she turned and left.
She didn't say anything about how she was only at Spirit Transformation cultivation, and a Tribulation Transcendence divine sense sweep would absolutely mean her end here.
She didn't ask whether Cui Hao had any treasures to protect her safety.
Cui Hao wouldn't be that kindhearted.
And this matter clearly left her no choice either.
As for whether Cui Hao would really kill her…
Donggua believed she herself would never leave behind an enemy who harbored absolute killing intent toward her.
And Cui Hao was no fool.
Putting herself in his shoes… Cui Hao would have to be shattered into eight pieces to be that stupid.
What's more, since a token was required for the meeting, there might well be a way to turn things around.
This round—she was betting with her life!
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