Ch 76: The Malevolent Monster Just Wants To Farm

Today, Zong Yu went for a stroll to the Food God’s place and casually took some rare ingredients.

He knew Jiang Lin’s preferences well and was certain these things would please him more than anything else.

This wasn’t the first time he’d done something like this.

The Food God didn’t suspect anything—after all, everyone in the Heavenly Court knew that Lord Zong Yu’s true form was the ancient god-demon Taotie, and it was said that Taotie could devour anything in the world, so it was only natural for him to be fond of food.

Besides, the Heavenly Emperor had already issued a decree: as long as Lord Zong Yu liked something and it wasn’t of critical importance, he could take it at will. Even if it was very precious, efforts should be made to meet his needs.

As a result, the first picky-eating Taotie in history gained a reputation in the Central Heavenly Court for his love of food within just a few months.

No one ever suspected that Zong Yu was actually searching for these things to please someone else.

Zong Yu happily brought the goodies he’d found back to the celestial palace on the Ninth Heaven.

He found Xiao Pu sitting on the steps in front of the palace, resting his chin on his hands, lost in thought.

Zong Yu had always been quite fond of this cute little guy, so he asked, “Xiao Pu, where’s Jiang Lin?”

In his soft, childish voice, Xiao Pu replied, “Sir is with Sister Zhinü picking vegetables.”

Zong Yu: ?

“Zhinü? That female immortal who came to see Jiang Lin last time?” Zong Yu frowned. “What’s she doing here again?”

“I don’t know,” Xiao Pu blinked his big eyes and asked curiously, “Lord Zong Yu, what does ‘well-matched’ mean?”

Zong Yu, who was about to step inside, paused and asked, “Well-matched? What did you hear Qingfeng and Qingyue say this time?”

Qingfeng and Qingyue, those two talkative attendants, had spent years serving a quiet Immortal Lord Liu, holding back their chatter. Now that the Immortal Lord had become more cheerful and several new people had joined the palace, Qingfeng and Qingyue were overjoyed.

Among the newcomers, Xiao Pu, with his childlike appearance and temperament, was undoubtedly their favorite.

Xiao Pu was well-behaved and quiet, often sitting obediently and listening to their chatter all afternoon, occasionally picking up new words.

When Zong Yu asked, Xiao Pu faithfully repeated what he had heard: “Brother Qingfeng and Brother Qingyue said that Sister Zhinü and Sir are well-matched, a perfect couple.”

Zong Yu: ?!

Xiao Pu then innocently asked, “What does ‘well-matched’ mean, Brother Zong Yu?”

Zong Yu, retracting his step, turned back with a slightly displeased expression.

He huffed and explained, “Well-matched means that when two people stand together, they look very suitable, very pleasing to the eye. Whether in appearance or status, they are a perfect match.”

“Oh…” Xiao Pu thoughtfully considered this for a moment before saying, “Sister Zhinü is a princess of the Heavenly Court and very beautiful. When she stands in front of Sir…”

He reluctantly said, “Yes, they are quite well-matched.”

In his eyes, Jiang Lin was, of course, the best in heaven and earth.

It was always others who were fortunate enough to be matched with Jiang Lin.

As for Sister Zhinü… well, she was just barely acceptable. Xiao Pu generously thought.

Clearly, he didn’t fully grasp the true meaning of the word “well-matched.”

Hearing Xiao Pu say this only made Zong Yu even more displeased.

Suddenly, Zong Yu asked, “Xiao Pu, do you think I’m good-looking?”

Without hesitation, Xiao Pu nodded. “You’re very good-looking!”

Zong Yu continued, “And compared to Zhinü?”

Xiao Pu tilted his head and looked at him. “Brother Zong Yu is even more good-looking!”

“Good boy.” Zong Yu praised him, then added, “Not only am I better looking than her, but I’m also a Chaos-born god-demon. In terms of divine rank, I’m higher, and my power far surpasses hers.”

“So—” Zong Yu emphasized seriously, “If you think about it, Jiang Lin and I being together is much more well-matched than him being with Zhinü.”

Xiao Pu stared at Zong Yu, wide-eyed and speechless.

He felt that something about this statement didn’t quite seem right.

But no matter how much he thought about it, he couldn’t figure out what was wrong.

And Zong Yu wasn’t planning to let him off easily. He pressed, “Why aren’t you saying anything? Did I say something wrong? Do you think Jiang Lin and I don’t look well-matched together?”

The small Xiao Pu furrowed his brow, pondering for a long time before finally nodding. “Yes, you’re right. Brother Zong Yu and sir are very well-matched.”

“That’s a good boy.” Zong Yu rummaged through the treasures given to him by the Heavenly Emperor, pulled out a rare Eight Treasures Fruit, and tossed it to Xiao Pu. “Here, go eat this!”

“Thank you, Brother Zong Yu.”

Zong Yu waved his hand, feeling quite pleased as he walked into the celestial palace.

But that good mood vanished the moment he walked through the palace and saw the two people standing under the fruit trellises, chatting and laughing.

“Immortal Lord, this place is really interesting,” Zhinü said, her face slightly flushed with excitement from seeing so many things she hadn’t noticed before.

However, in Zong Yu’s eyes, what he saw was a beautiful female immortal, blushing and gazing at Jiang Lin with affection.

And Jiang Lin was smiling back!

It was simply… simply unacceptable!

His expression instantly darkened as he walked over to stand between Jiang Lin and Zhinü, making no effort to hide his displeasure.

“Xiao Zong?” Jiang Lin asked in surprise, noticing his expression. “Who upset you?”

He was quite astonished. With the Heavenly Emperor being so protective of him, who would dare to provoke Zong Yu?

Zong Yu shot a glance at Jiang Lin and replied stiffly, “No one!”

Jiang Lin: “…”

Do you even believe yourself when you say that?

Zhinü looked at Zong Yu with a complex expression.

She now understood Zong Yu’s identity and was fully aware of how much the Heavenly Emperor favored him.

As the Heavenly Emperor’s own daughter, it was hard for Zhinü not to feel a bit of resentment.

But she also knew deep down that this had nothing to do with Zong Yu.

All the issues stemmed from the Heavenly Emperor.

No matter how many thoughts were swirling in her mind, the other two in the room weren’t focused on her at all.

Zong Yu, naturally, had all his attention on Jiang Lin.

And as for Jiang Lin?

Xiao Zong hadn’t acted like a child, throwing a random tantrum at him, in quite some time.

Strangely, rather than feeling annoyed, he actually found it amusing.

He said slowly, “If no one upset you, are you angry with yourself?”

Zong Yu: ?

“I’ve been watching you all along! I’ve been dropping hints so obviously, yet you still haven’t noticed?”

This realization made him even more frustrated.

However, Jiang Lin had already turned his head, smiling, and said to Zhinü, “We’ve picked most of the vegetables and fruits, and Qingfeng and Qingyue have already taken care of the fish and poultry. Let’s prepare a big feast to celebrate!”

Zong Yu’s eyes widened. “You’re going to cook for her?”

Jiang Lin nodded naturally. “Yes, Zhinü has some good news. We should celebrate.”

Zong Yu felt a wave of frustration building up inside him.

He knew he was being unreasonable.

But he couldn’t help it.

He was just… unhappy.

Unable to hold back, he asked, “What’s your relationship with her that you’re cooking for her?”

The question was already quite impolite.

Jiang Lin frowned and gently reprimanded, “Xiao Zong, what’s wrong with you today? Why are you being so rude to our guest?”

Zhinü, however, gave Zong Yu a curious glance.

She had sensed some hostility from this Taotie Lord toward her earlier.

But what shocked her more was the relationship between Jiang Lin and Zong Yu.

In all the rumors in the Heavenly Court, people envied Immortal Lord Liu for his luck in gaining the favor of the Taotie, which had elevated even the status of his remote celestial palace on the Ninth Heaven.

All the deities assumed that Lord Zong Yu was the dominant one in their relationship.

Zhinü had thought so too.

When she first visited the palace, she had seen Zong Yu but hadn’t spoken to him, let alone witnessed his interactions with Immortal Lord Liu.

But now that she had seen it for herself, she was astonished.

It was completely different from what people speculated—that Immortal Lord Liu had somehow earned the favor of the Taotie.

Immortal Lord Liu treated Zong Yu like a close friend and a concerned elder to a junior.

There was no flattery, no attempts to curry favor, and certainly no master-servant dynamic.

As for Zong Yu, the infamous Taotie of the Heavenly Court, he behaved like a child who hadn’t fully grown up in front of Immortal Lord Liu.

A child who liked to monopolize the attention of the adults around him.

Indeed, Zhinü had already noticed the subtle possessiveness Zong Yu displayed toward Jiang Lin.

With a strong sense of intuition, she quickly clarified, “Immortal Lord Liu and I are very good friends. In my heart, he’s as close to me as an older brother.”

Jiang Lin looked at Zhinü in surprise, not quite understanding how their relationship had suddenly turned into a brother-sister bond.

But he didn’t contradict her.

Zong Yu, however, felt much better after hearing this.

In his eyes, Zhinü’s status had swiftly shifted from “rival” to “sister-in-law” in just one sentence.

“Really?” Zong Yu’s mood lifted, and even his tone became more cheerful. “I’m sorry, I wasn’t in a good mood and spoke a bit harshly.”

He was now all smiles, as if the earlier tension had never existed.

Jiang Lin: ???

He felt like he couldn’t understand Xiao Zong anymore.

This confusion hadn’t happened since Xiao Zong had matured.

Could it be that Chaos-born god-demons go through a second adolescence? Jiang Lin wondered in bewilderment.

After realizing there was nothing romantic between Jiang Lin and Zhinü, Zong Yu found everything about Zhinü pleasing to the eye.

Even knowing that Jiang Lin would cook for her didn’t bother him anymore; he even suggested a couple of dishes himself.

During the rest of the time, Zhinü fully grasped the nature of the relationship between the two.

She watched in shock as the elegant, otherworldly Immortal Lord Liu cooked a meal and as the renowned Taotie willingly assisted him, both appearing to genuinely enjoy themselves.

Suddenly, Zhinü felt at ease: when she first learned that the Taotie favored Immortal Lord Liu, she was happy for him but also worried.

Given her experience with her father, the Heavenly Emperor, she had always felt more fear than affection toward these lofty Chaos-born god-demons.

If the Heavenly Emperor didn’t even care about his own children, how long would the Taotie’s affection for Immortal Lord Liu last?

And what would happen to Immortal Lord Liu when those envious deities saw him fall from grace?

All these concerns vanished as she witnessed the scene before her.