Chapter 2123: Eternal Night Descends Upon Yun
Yun Che's expression twitched, and he quickly said, "Senior Six Laughs, your words are too heavy. A recipe is ultimately a lifeless thing. The same recipe, the same ingredients—in the hands of different people, they can bloom into vastly different colors, aromas, and flavors. While these are a gift from this junior, for them to fall into Senior's hands is undoubtedly their supreme fortune."
As he finished speaking, he stepped back, bowed, and said, "Farewell."
Six Laughs Divine Official watched the two leave, his expression complex. When they were far away and he lowered his gaze back to the jade slip, his eyes once again blazed with an irrepressible intensity.
Yuanying Divine Attendant walked in from outside, his clothes neat and tidy, and said with a bitter face, "My master, I'm still shaking inside. Please don't do such terrifying things again."
Six Laughs Divine Official paid him no heed, his gaze still fixed solely on the jade slip, as if sinking into a dream sea from which he didn't wish to wake.
"However..." Yuanying Divine Attendant was clearly accustomed to this. He continued on his own, "This matter with Caili... it can only blow up big, not be brushed aside. Once it's exposed, it will definitely be impossible to settle peacefully."
Six Laughs Divine Official reacted. He finally lifted his head and muttered softly, "Yun Che, Meng Jian Yuan... this kid is far from simple."
"Oh?" Yuanying Divine Attendant's interest surged. "This is the first time I've heard Master give such praise to a junior. I take it... it's not just about the culinary path?"
"Of course not."
"When the Divine Successors of the Six Divine Kingdoms first meet a Divine Official, they are invariably nervous and reverent. To manage a forced calmness, with a balance of humility and dignity, is already rare. But this kid... his composure comes from within. Even every flattering remark he made was perfectly measured."
He raised the jade slip in his hand. "He took this out after I agreed to help, not before... The difference between the two is vast."
"When I asked him what he wanted in exchange, his answer was polite and courteous, every word a respectful compliment to me, as if it would be a waste if I didn't accept it. But in truth, he never denied the word 'exchange.'"
He narrowed his eyes. "You must know that the most expensive things in this world are often those that are 'gratis.'"
Yuanying Divine Attendant fell into thought, then said, "Since Master sees through it clearly, why didn't you refuse?"
Six Laughs Divine Official shot him a glare. "Refuse my ass! You've followed me for so many years, and you're still not as sharp as that Yun kid. This is something I can refuse? This is a divine object, a true divine object!"
Yuanying Divine Attendant rubbed the tip of his nose, at a loss for words.
"I wonder what kind of old monster his master is, to have taught such a little monster in just a hundred years. And then Meng Kongchan, that bastard, managed to pick him up. This generation of Weaving Dream has had an incredible stroke of luck, tsk tsk."
"Not necessarily," Yuanying Divine Attendant said slowly. "The marriage contract between Caili and Dian Jiuzhi was personally approved by Lord Yuan Huang, known and witnessed by all. Dian Luohou's fiery temper is also well known. And the most serious thing is... Lord Yuan Huang has the broad chest to accommodate all, but his greatest, perhaps only taboo, is betrayal of affection."
He shook his head. "Difficult. Could this be what they call 'fortune and misfortune depending on each other'?"
"None of your damn business, get lost, get lost!" Six Laughs Divine Official couldn't be bothered to listen further and directly swatted him away. "Don't interrupt my study of this divine object."
"Uh, one more thing," Yuanying Divine Attendant quickly said. "Master must have also noticed that Yun Che's ability to control flames is extremely strange. Such an anomaly, even if it were Lord Lingxian..."
"Hurry up and get lost!"
Six Laughs Divine Official impatiently kicked out. Yuanying Divine Attendant's vision blurred, and he was instantly thrown thousands of zhang away, his ears filled with the master's scolding: "How many times have I told you? Don't meddle in worldly affairs, don't let your mind sink into the mundane! No matter how strange it is, even if it's the Creation God reincarnated, it has nothing to do with you!"
Yuanying Divine Attendant stood up. His first action was still to meticulously brush the dust off his clothes before saying slowly, "Yes, yes, yes. I humbly receive Master's instruction."
He looked in the direction where Yun Che and Hua Caili had disappeared, sensed the changes in the Pure Land's atmosphere, and murmured to himself, "This Pure Land gathering... I fear there's going to be a big show to watch."
In the Divine Residence, Six Laughs Divine Official hunched over, reading the jade slip in his hand over and over again, muttering to himself.
"This kid, even his name is so fancy. Sounds like a woman's taste."
"This kid has eyes like a dark abyss and a heart like a bright flame, but he got one thing wrong. Trapped in the illusory world, how can one talk about carefreeness? 'Only delicious food never betrays you'—ho ho ho ha ha ha... burp!"
…………
"Brother Yun, you're really amazing! I thought you were only a little better than Uncle Six Laughs, but I didn't expect Uncle Six Laughs to be almost stunned silly. He even wanted to become your apprentice, hehehe!"
Her cheerful laughter was even more pure and flawless than the light of the Pure Land. Even the breeze seemed to be softened by her laughter, quietly brushing the curve of her lips.
Yun Che unconsciously averted his gaze from her smiling face and looked ahead as he said, "So the reason you took me to visit the various Divine Officials was for this purpose. Aren't you worried that our matter will be exposed too early, catching your Father God and Lord Dreamless off guard?"
Hua Caili showed no worry at all. "Uncle Six Laughs is obsessed with the culinary path and absolutely refuses to meddle in anything outside of it. Even if it were a secret ten times bigger, he wouldn't bother to say a word. The only thing that can move him is the culinary path, and Brother Yun happens to be best at that, so I had to give it a try. Even if it failed, he'd never want to get involved in other people's business."
"Granny Lingxian dotes on me the most, so she definitely won't do anything bad for me. And..." She glanced secretly at Yun Che, her voice lowering a few notes. "Actually, back then, after Uncle Yuan Huang bestowed the marriage contract, Granny Lingxian once said that I had been engaged too early, when I knew nothing about love between men and women. It was hard to say whether it was fortune or misfortune. She worried that I might one day regret it, and that once such regret arose, it would likely bind me for life."
Yun Che: "..."
"I was confused and ignorant back then. It was only after meeting Brother Yun that I truly understood Granny Lingxian's words. I think, since Granny Lingxian already had foresight and worry, she must be the one who understands my feelings and current situation the most. She would also be the most willing to help us. Unfortunately, we happened to encounter her old ailment recurring... I hope Granny Lingxian recovers soon."
Yun Che smiled, his face brimming with emotion. "This trouble was caused by me. This matter should actually be handled by me..."
"Between us, there's no need to distinguish who's who." Hua Caili interrupted him, half-jokingly, half-seriously.
Yun Che fell silent, then nodded firmly. "Mm! Between us, there has long been no distinction. And with the backing of your Father God and Lord Dreamless, and with Six Laughs Divine Official having agreed to help, the future will surely be even smoother than we imagined."
"Of course." The girl's face broke into a light smile, her eyes flowing with rosy clouds.
Her figure unconsciously drifted a little closer to Yun Che, then immediately and rationally moved slightly away. For her, compared to worries about the future, the joy and lack of regret in meeting and falling in love with Yun Che far outweighed everything else.
Myriad Paths Divine Official managed the core resources of the Pure Land, extremely cautious and upright. Hua Caili naturally wouldn't attempt to seek his help.
As for the Great Divine Official, needless to say, he was the only being in the Pure Land that Hua Caili feared.
Having obtained Six Laughs Divine Official's promise of assistance, she was already overjoyed. She dawdled and walked alongside Yun Che for a long time before reluctantly parting from him and returning to Hua Fuchen's side.
Yun Che's pace remained slow. His gaze was calm as he sensed every fluctuation in the surrounding aura. But the direction he was heading was not where the Weaving Dream Divine Kingdom was located.
"What are you thinking?" Li Suo, sensing Yun Che's state of mind, suddenly spoke.
Yun Che didn't stop walking and murmured softly, "Laugh at people, laugh at self, laugh at past and present; Laugh at heaven, laugh at earth, laugh at the pagoda."
"Laugh at people, laugh at self, laugh at heaven, laugh at earth, laugh at past and present—all reveal a carefree and unrestrained attitude of looking down on everything. But only 'laugh at the pagoda'... When Caili first mentioned it to me, I felt a strange, indescribable sense of incongruity."
"Today, having met this Six Laughs Divine Official, I somewhat understand what 'laugh at the pagoda' means."
Li Suo waited in silence for the answer.
Yun Che didn't explain directly but instead said something with hidden meaning, "To laugh disdainfully at the mundane world may not necessarily be the carefreeness of seeing through everything. It could also be... an extreme disillusionment and withdrawal from the world after seeing through everything."
"..." Li Suo pondered for a long time before softly saying, "You mean, Six Laughs Divine Official's temperament is not one of unrestrained carefreeness, but of disillusionment and withdrawal from the world? As a Divine Official, lofty and looking down on all, he seems to have no reason to be so... And what does that have to do with the three words 'laugh at the pagoda'?"
Yun Che gave a faint smile. "The three words 'laugh at the pagoda,' which sound the most profound and mysterious, might actually be the most straightforward—their literal meaning is their intent. Of course, I could be wrong. After all, this was only the shallowest of contacts. How dare I jump to conclusions?"
But Li Suo said, "If it were truly a groundless 'rash conclusion,' your mind wouldn't be so deeply immersed in it. Clearly, you have great confidence in this guess, and there's a high chance it can be used to your advantage."
"Oh..." Yun Che narrowed his eyes slightly and praised without stint, "Little Li Suo, should I say you're getting smarter, or getting to know me better?"
"..." Li Suo let out a very faint, almost imperceptible sigh and didn't respond. After a long while, she once again emitted her ethereal, dreamlike voice: "At the very least, don't try to exploit beings like true gods too early. Playing with fire tends to burn oneself. To someone at the level of a Divine Official, you are nothing but a wisp of light grass. There's no need for a flame—a single tiny spark carelessly splashed out can incinerate you into ashes with no return."
"Don't worry, I understand." Yun Che's voice carried a seriousness clearly perceptible to Li Suo. "I'll say it again... and it's a guarantee—I value my life very much."
At that moment, the gentle breeze of the Pure Land suddenly ceased, and the world ahead abruptly dimmed by a fraction.
It wasn't a fading of light, but a sudden obstruction in perception.
Yun Che lifted his head, his gaze sharpening as he looked at a row of figures slowly passing in the distant sky.
It was the unique divine might aura of a Divine Kingdom, yet it carried a heavy oppression that the Zhe Tian Divine Kingdom and the Weaving Dream Divine Kingdom definitely did not possess.
Though they were far apart, Yun Che could distinguish at a glance that this procession of a hundred people consisted entirely of women.
A Divine Kingdom's name instantly flashed through Yun Che's mind.
The one that could be called the most special, the most mysterious, the most infamous among the Six Divine Kingdoms—the one that Meng Kongchan, Hua Caili, and Hua Qingying had all warned him he must never approach lightly:
The Eternal Night Divine Kingdom!