The kitchens had never seen a crowd like this.
By the fourth day, the courtyard outside was no longer just a passageway. It had become an arena.
Disciples packed shoulder to shoulder, their robes brushing in the press. Servants clung to the walls, balancing on stools and crates to see through the smoke-stained doorway. Even passing merchants and wandering elders slowed their steps, pretending to scold their juniors while their eyes strained toward the kitchen.
The air itself buzzed.
---
Whispers tangled together, too many voices to count.
"I heard he's already fed fifty!"
"Idiot, it was sixty-one! Even Senior Meng admitted his dantian feels smoother after porridge."
"Bah, it's trickery. Cooking cannot be Dao. The Elders will crush him soon."
"Then why are you here?"
"…To watch him fall, of course."
Some clutched coins, desperate for a chance. Others folded their arms, sneers tight, daring me to fail. A group in the corner even set down spirit stones, shouting bets.
"Two to one odds he collapses before noon!"
"Ha! You'll be poor by sunset when the stove-boy makes another breakthrough happen!"
The noise rolled like thunder.
---
Inside, I worked.
The Stove burned without pause, Spirit Flame bright and steady. Rice steamed into pearls that shone faintly like jade. Broth thickened into gold, bubbling rich and fragrant. Tea hissed sharp as steel, steam carrying the crisp breath of mountains.
Every bowl carried Dao.
Every bowl silenced another laugh.
---
The System pulsed steady in my chest.
> [Quest Progress: 61/100 disciples fed. Time remaining: 3 days.]
Three days. Thirty-nine mouths left.
The number beat like a second heart, merciless and unyielding.
---
Yet not every disciple left in gratitude.
A boy in silk finished his porridge, wiped his mouth with disdain, and shoved the bowl back. "So it works. So what? You're still a cook. Bowls don't make you equal to cultivators."
He stomped toward the door—only to trip on the step and sprawl face-first in the mud.
The servants giggled behind their sleeves.
I didn't laugh. I simply stirred the pot. The Stove flared once, silver sparks snapping as though it laughed for me.
---
Then the courtyard fell silent.
Because Yun Kai had arrived.
---
He strode through the crowd like a flame in scarlet silk, his clan emblem stitched in gold across his chest. His hair was bound with jade, his features sharp, his smirk wide—but the pride in his eyes was cracked, his aura trembling.
The humiliation of the Awakening Square still clung to him, a wound no robe could cover.
Behind him swaggered Luo Feng, voice sharp as a crow, laughter dripping with venom. Their pack followed, disciples who had mocked me only days before, their faces twisted with eager cruelty.
The air turned heavy.
Servants shrank back, clutching their aprons like shields. Some disciples sneered, eager for spectacle. Others fell quiet, sensing storm.
---
"Ren," Yun Kai drawled, stretching my name like filth, "the sect buzzes with your little parlor tricks. Rice, porridge, tea. Feeding beggars until they call you master."
He spread his arms, his voice rising for all to hear. "But today, I end your farce."
Gasps rippled like waves through the crowd.
Luo Feng tossed a silver ingot onto the counter with a clang. "One dish. For all of us. Fail, and your Stove is ours to smash. Crawl back to your rags where you belong."
Their entourage jeered, voices ugly.
"Feed us, stove-boy!"
"Let's see if Heaven saves you now!"
"You won't dare!"
---
The Stove flared, Spirit Flame leaping tall, silver sparks dancing.
I met Yun Kai's glare.
And smiled.
"You want another slap?" My voice was soft, but it carried through the courtyard like a blade slicing silk.
The crowd stilled. Even the gamblers stopped shouting.
---
I laid out the ingredients.
Marrow bones black with age. Meat cut tough as leather. Roots shriveled from storage. Barley stale enough to crack teeth.
The crowd laughed at once.
"Trash scraps!"
"He'll shame himself!"
"That's fit for dogs, not disciples!"
But the Stove pulsed warm, flame shifting silver-blue. To it, nothing was waste.
The bones cracked under my knife, marrow gleaming pale as moonlight. I dropped them into the pot. Smoke rose, curling like dragon breath. Spirit Flame seared the marrow, fragrance blooming thick and deep.
Meat followed. The fibers hissed, softening under Dao fire. Each sizzle whispered like a heartbeat.
Roots softened, releasing the smell of earth and rain.
Barley cracked, swelling, each grain shining faintly, tiny stars in the dark.
---
The broth thickened. Steam rose, tinged silver, Dao runes weaving in the mist. Some in the crowd swore they saw beasts, others mountains, rivers, or ancient kitchens carved of jade.
The fragrance struck like a tide.
One disciple clutched his chest. "Why… why do I feel my qi move?"
Another whispered, "My wound… it aches less…"
"It smells like… home…"
The courtyard leaned forward, silence heavy as mountains.
---
I stirred once. The flame leapt silver, licking the roof beams.
The Dao was ready.
I ladled the stew into bowls, each one steaming, each curl of fragrance brushing meridians awake.
"Eat," I said coldly.
---
They hesitated. Then Yun Kai snatched the first bowl, glaring as if daring me to poison him. He drank.
His eyes widened. His qi, still cracked from his rushed breakthrough, smoothed instantly. Veins glowed faint beneath his skin. His chest rose, steady and strong.
The crowd gasped.
"He… stabilized again!"
"From stew?!"
"Impossible…"
---
Luo Feng lunged next, greed blotting his smirk. He slurped noisily, drops staining his chin. His laughter died. His hands trembled, his breath deepening. Awe crept into his eyes though he fought it.
"Luo Feng too…" whispers hissed. "Even he…"
---
A boy from their pack shoved forward, bowl clutched in sweaty hands. He swallowed once, then staggered, eyes wide.
"My bottleneck—" he gasped. His qi surged, a wall crumbling. His body shook with joy and terror.
Another fell to his knees, tears streaking his cheeks as pain from old scars eased. He clutched the bowl as though it were life itself.
A sneering girl drank, lips curled to mock—and froze. Her eyes darted, panic flashing as her qi hummed smooth. She set the bowl down quickly, trying to hide the truth.
Each disciple changed. None could deny it.
---
The System chimed.
> [Ding! Dish Cooked: Earthbone Stew (1★)]
✦ Effect: Restores stamina, stabilizes qi, strengthens meridians
✦ Bowl Points +40
✦ Quest Progress: 72/100 disciples fed
---
Seventy-two.
Twenty-eight left.
Victory pulsed in my bones.
---
I looked at Yun Kai, his face pale, pride cracked.
"You mocked me," I said, voice soft but cutting. "But Heaven chose me. Every bowl I serve is truth you cannot deny. Sneer, poison, plot—yet in the end, you will eat."
The Stove roared, silver flame leaping skyward, shadows forming shapes of cauldrons and heavenly kitchens.
The crowd fell silent.
Not a laugh remained.
---
Yun Kai trembled. Rage twisted his face. But his qi was smoother, his body stronger—and he could not deny it.
He hurled the empty bowl. Porcelain shattered.
"This isn't over!" he spat. "Enjoy your moment, stove-boy. Tomorrow, I drag you from this kitchen and grind your Stove to ash."
He stormed away, Luo Feng hissing venom at his side. Their entourage followed, shaken and silent.
---
Spy POV
From the shadows beneath the eaves, two stewards watched, faces pale.
"You saw it. He fed them, and their qi grew stronger."
"He's no trick. If this spreads, the Inner Court will act."
"What do we do? Report to Elder now? Or wait?"
"If we wait, the Inner Court will claim him. If we move too soon…"
They swallowed hard. "Either way, the sect will bleed."
They vanished into the dark.
---
The courtyard erupted behind them.
"He fed them all!"
"Even Yun Kai ate!"
"The Cooking Dao… it's real!"
Servants dropped to their knees, foreheads pressed to stone. Some disciples stared in awe, others with fear, a few with naked hunger.
The Elder's spies melted away.
---
The Stove pulsed, silver sparks snapping.
The System whispered:
> [Quest Progress: 72/100 disciples fed. Time remaining: 3 days.]
---
I wiped the ladle clean, voice cold.
"Remember this taste. Tomorrow, and the day after, I'll feed you again. Until even Heaven kneels for a bowl."
The Stove roared. The courtyard shook.
And somewhere in the shadows, Yun Kai's hatred burned hotter than flame.
---