Wait, How Did My Digital Girlfriend Become a Sword Immortal?-Chapter 695: Tailspin

Chapter 695: Tailspin

…

"Tsk," Chen Huaian set down his jade chopsticks and, looking sincerely at Hua Jin the True One seated at the main place beside him, praised, "The culinary skill in this Immortal Palace is truly unparalleled. Especially these side dishes—the spiritual energy they contain never dissipates, and the flavors are balanced to perfection, far superior to those so-called spirit elixirs that only gleam but have lost their true taste."

He glanced meaningfully at a few jade vials of pills bearing the Kunlun Immortal Palace insignia stacked in a corner. These pills were resources Hua Jin the True One had gifted to the C Province Exorcist Division, though… Chen Huaian felt the Exorcist Division didn't actually need them.

Hua Jin the True One was personally pouring wine for Zhang Yibai. At his words, the corners of her mouth lifted slightly; rarely did her eyes show warmth and a faint, barely perceptible pride. "Senior Chen flatters me. These are just crude rustic delights; they cannot compare to the Immortal Palace's long-standing alchemy tradition. If Senior likes them, I'll have Little YiYi copy down the recipes for you later."

Her gaze shifted, and unconsciously swept past Wang Shouyi standing behind her, who was secretly staring at her profile. When Wang Shouyi met her look, he immediately dropped his head and his ears flushed.

"How wonderful!" Chen Huaian laughed heartily, lifting the glazed cup before him. The amber spirit wine inside shimmered with tiny flecks of light. "Shouyi is truly fortunate!"

All the best-tasting dishes on the table had been prepared personally by Hua Jin the True One. After so many cycles of rebirth, even without studying cooking in depth, merely spending fragments of time tinkering had accumulated into a skill that would beat ninety-nine percent of Earth Star chefs in an instant.

Chen Huaian's words were casual, but they made Wang Shouyi's face go even redder; he buried his head lower. Hua Jin the True One's hand paused slightly as she poured, then continued for Zhang Yibai as if nothing had happened, though her lowered lashes hid a ripple of feeling.

Their relationship was now common knowledge. Denying it openly in front of everyone was unnecessary. No need to advertise it loudly either—that would be too ostentatious.

The wine was good: soft on the tongue but with a lingering strength. After several rounds, the banquet hall relaxed. Zhang Yibai and Gu Changsheng conversed in low voices. Hua Jin the True One was surrounded by Zhao Ying, Xiang Xiaoyuan, and others offering toasts, their laughter bright. Lin Lingling had slipped fully into foodie mode, too busy devouring to do anything else, only lifting an empty cup perfunctorily when toasting.

In the shadowed corner, Wu E—clutching a huge spirit fruit and gnawing it until juices dripped—rolled his bean-sized eyes a few times. Seeing Chen Huaian reclining on the cushion, one hand supporting his temple, his gaze hazily fixed on the dregs in his cup with a tipsy, listless look, opportunity struck.

Wu E dropped the half-eaten fruit, wiped his greasy claws on himself, and carefully slunk over to Chen Huaian, forcing a fawning smile and in a very low voice said, "Big Boss… Big Boss?"

Chen Huaian lazily lifted his eyelids. His unfocused glance landed on him.

"Heh heh," Wu E rubbed his hands together, looking embarrassed. "I… my stomach's a bit uncomfortable. Maybe I ate that fruit too fast… want to… go find a place to relieve myself… if you don't mind…"

There wasn't a better excuse for Wu E. As long as one excuse worked, keep using it. As the saying goes, all's fair in war.

Chen Huaian stared for two seconds, a look that made Wu E's heart tighten for no reason. Just when Wu E thought he'd been seen through, Chen Huaian suddenly grinned, voice thick with wine as he waved a hand, dragging the syllables: "Mm… go on… don't go too far… speed there and back…" Then, as if overcome by drink, he closed his eyes again, fingers idly rubbing the rim of his cup.

"Thanks, Big Boss! Thanks, Big Boss!" Wu E acted as if pardoned. He bobbed and scraped but moved with surprising speed. His fat frame slid along the wall like a wraith, silently slipping out the banquet hall door and quickly blending into the heavy night outside.

The instant the curtain fell, the seemingly drunk Chen Huaian on the cushion abruptly opened his eyes—clear and sharp, with not a trace of intoxication. A cold arc curled at the corner of his mouth. His form diffused like ink dropped into water, silently fading away and leaving only a shallow depression in the cushion.

…

The night breeze was slightly cool, carrying the humid, leafy scent characteristic of the Tianfu region. Wu E's huge body prowled through the shadows with astonishing speed, barely making a sound, as if it were part of the night itself. It did not go find a place to relieve itself. Instead it headed straight away from the Exorcist Division's station and deeper into a desolate mountain hollow.

It did not know that a hundred zhang behind it, a shadow paler than the night—almost merged with the space's fluctuations—was trailing at a leisurely pace. Chen Huaian's divine sense was like an invisible web; he had long since locked onto the crocodile-like silhouette ahead that thought itself hidden.

"Stupid humans, really fond of trickery!" Wu E smugly thought. Chen Niu was right—humans loved to get smug. This time Kunlun Immortal Palace snagged the Celestial Jade Marrow, and Great Thunder Temple got none—didn't that go straight to their heads? Cultivators getting drunk? How reckless! Too bad its cultivation was only Nascent Soul… If it hadn't possessed this trash body, it would have slaughtered everyone at the banquet just now! "I really need to improve my strength—go to the Demon Sealing Pagoda to absorb fierce beasts' demonic souls, sigh—!" "What excuse to use to visit another Demon Sealing Pagoda? Can't have an upset stomach every day…" "Fine, I'll report the current situation to my elder first."

…

Chen Huaian hung back behind Wu E and listened to the crocodile's inner monologue in full. He had intentionally let Wu E go to tail it and see if he could glean more intelligence. If he could learn where another Demon Immortal avatar was through Wu E, all the better—once the Sect Summoning Token's cooldown expired, he'd send Lin Fan, that deadly weapon, straight at that Demon Immortal avatar.

"So this evil entity needs to devour fierce beasts' demonic souls from the Demon Sealing Pagoda to increase strength—because it possessed Muscle Tyrant, it developed this trait?" Chen Huaian squinted, musing inwardly. If so, then those two Demon Immortal avatars, lacking resources, would surely seek other ways out—like actively attacking Demon Sealing Pagodas to devour fierce beasts' demonic souls and perhaps open a Well of Heaven in the process. Once they grew stronger, they'd be like time bombs ready to go off anytime.

"In that case, I’ll first collect the fierce beasts' demonic souls from the Demon Sealing Pagoda, which also prepares for Muscle Tyrant's resurrection." Chen Huaian narrowed his eyes. For safety, he couldn't let these Demon Immortal avatars devour any fierce beast demonic souls. He had to know which Demon Sealing Pagodas they would attack and beat them to it. One could only say Bai Ze's innate divination skills were a godsend for his plan! Without that divine ability, he’d probably still be in the dark now.

…

Burned out