Li Nianfan returned to the four-part architecture. He started to prepare the ingredients for the Kunpeng Feast.
‘This is going to be a legendary Immortal feast. According to the Jade Emperor and Empress, it’s going to be on par with the Flat Peach Feast. I can’t be careless,’ Li Nianfan picked his vegetables while reminding himself. He had to laugh. ‘I can’t believe it. I can’t believe I’m going to a feast full of legendary Immortals. Life’s so unpredictable. So interesting!’
However, he could not make the soup on his own for such a huge pot.
Li Nianfan looked at the side. Xiao Bai was cleaning all sorts of vegetables. He said, “Xiao Bai, pick more vegetables and fruits from the backyard. Also, come with me to the Kunpeng Feast. I’ll bring you to look at the view of the sky. Haha…”
Xiao Bai bowed like a gentleman and said, “Yes, my noble master.”
Li Nianfan started to think about who he should invite again. He could not forget any of them.
‘The Holy Emperor, the Linxian Palace, the Wanjian Immortal Sect, the Linyun Immortal Pavillion, the Azure Ville…’
‘Oh yeah, and Blackie!’
Blackie had joined the dogs. He should invite some of the dogs, too, so they would look after Blackie. He did not want the newbie Blackie to be bullied by the dogs.
‘Sigh, I’m such a worrisome dad.’
Time passed by.
Li Nianfan and everyone in the Heavenly Palace were immersed in preparing for the feast. They did not notice the passage of time.
Soon, it was the day after tomorrow.
It was still dark out. Li Nianfan packed his things and headed toward the Heavenly Palace with Daji and the others.
They naturally needed to be there early to prepare for the feast.
Li Nianfan noticed an extra birdie at the four-part architecture. He was surprised. He asked, “Yo, Daji, is this canary a demon?”
The Fire Phoenix nodded, “Yes, it’s a Canary Demon. It represents one of the Demons.”
The canary was palm-sized. It saw that Li Nianfan was looking at it. It instantly trembled and tried hiding its head in its chest.
It was clearly terrified and nervous.
‘Bigshot, I was wrong. Please, spare me…’
The canary screamed and pleaded internally. It was anxious and its feathers were ruffled.
The canary was Lord Kunpeng.
After Daji took away his Primordial Spirit, it was brought to the backyard just like the Black Kirin of the Dragons.
Lord Kunpeng was astounded by everything in the backyard. He did not expect that there would be a part of the eldritch eras in the Absolute Era… It was even better than the eldritch eras!
Lord Kunpeng knew there was a mysteriously powerful bigshot but he still could not handle it. He was thoroughly impressed.
At that moment, he felt anxious because the bigshot was staring at him. He thought that the bigshot would not want to spare him.
‘If the bigshot wants me dead, I’ll be dead!’
Li Nianfan casually smiled. He looked away, “Ha, this canary’s so cowardly. Must be one of those shy species. Alright, let’s depart.”
Chirp—
The canary chirped weakly. It sighed in relief. It barely survived.
Lord Kunpeng turned into a canary because of energy.
The bodies of a greater cultivator would be more unnatural no matter who it was. Beginner cultivators would still have their veins and blood. However, once they were a Daluo Golden Immortal, their way of life would change. Their veins automatically transformed. Even Saints were like that. Their bodies followed the Power of Law and their flesh was merely an exterior.
This was why the body of a greater cultivator was more precious than the body of an ordinary person.
Lord Kunpeng had Saintly Flesh. His body was filled with all sorts of powers. He was not able to form another flesh because of the energy inside his original body.
It was hard enough for him to be able to form a palm-sized canary’s flesh. Lord Kunpeng leveled down to a Daluo Golden Immortal.
The canary looked determined. It thought to itself, ‘Watch me as I cultivate into the Garuda Bird again! I’ll write a legendary story in the future, I shall call it ‘Reincarnated Birdie Back into the Garuda Bird’!’
They rode on clouds. They were familiar with the route so they soon arrived at the Southern Sky Gate.
The Southern Sky Gate was clearly decorated because of the feast. It was decorated with lights and ribbons. There was a huge banner on top, too. It stated ‘Heavenly Palace’s First Kunpeng Feast’!
The canary almost coughed up blood when it saw the banner. ‘What do you mean by first? Will there be a second, third time? I’d tear down this Southern Sky Gate right now but I’m not a violent bird!’
Juling Shen stood at the Southern Sky Gate. He instantly lit up when he saw Li Nianfan. He quickly went over, saluted, and said with respect, “Greetings to the Lord Saint.”
Li Nianfan smiled and teased, “Juling Shen, long time no see. How are you?”
Suddenly, he noticed that his face was swollen. Juling Shen was already a big and buff fellow, so his swollen face was very obvious.
Li Nianfan immediately asked with curiosity, “What happened to your face? Is it swollen?”
“I ran into a small accident. Don’t mention it.”
Juling Shen waved it off. Then, he gestured, “Please, after you, Lord Saint.”
Li Nianfan nodded. He followed Juling Shen into the Heavenly Palace.
They quickly passed through the Lingxiao Palace and arrived at Yao Chi.
‘Yao Chi, Yao Chi, pond water everywhere. The beautiful Jade Bridge and the tall pavilions. Clouds surrounded this place. It’s spacious, comfortable, luxurious, and magnificent. The perfect place for a feast.’
The Jade Emperor and Empress were waiting there. They immediately went over to welcome him when they saw Li Nianfan.
Li Nianfan noticed that a lot of the other Immortals had returned, too. For example, the Seven Princesses. They were all here. They smiled and nodded at him.
They had to rush back no matter what because it was a huge event planned around the expert.
The Jade Emperor saluted. He smiled and said, “Morning, Saint. Take a quick look, do you think there are any adjustments required for the decorations?”
Li Nianfan looked around. The huge pot was placed at the center of Yao Chi. The stove at the bottom of the pot was nicely set up.
The jade tables and chairs were neatly placed around the big pot, three seats per table. The Goddesses would help serve food for the guests by then.
There was a levitating round stage in front of him. It was most probably used for the dance performances.
Li Nianfan genuinely complimented, “This setup’s perfect. Thanks for everything, everyone!”
The Jade Emperor laughed. “Good, good.”
“Oh yeah, I brought the fruits and wine.”
Li Nianfan took out three huge sacks of fruits. Then, he took out four big barrels.
“These three barrels are the white wine, red wine, and milk. This one’s the fruit juice. Be careful, don’t get it mixed up.”
The Immortals were dumbfounded. They tried their best to control themselves. They silently gasped.
‘Rich and generous!’
‘Such a huge amount of treasures for treating guests! Only the expert could do that!’
The Empress said, “Hurry up. Servants, quickly set it up!”
“Yes, Empress.”
The servants bowed and carried the fruit sacks and the big barrels.
Taibai Jinxing followed them and kept reminding them with a quiet voice. He carefully watched them as he said, “Be careful. You cannot mess this up. Don’t spill any of the wine. This stuff is too precious, even the Emperor and Empress don’t have it!”
Li Nianfan looked at the pot and furrowed his brows. He mumbled, “Next up, time to deal with the dead body.”
Lord Kunpeng was way too huge. He could not handle it on his own. However, Li Nianfan had an idea on how to prepare the meat. He told the Jade Emperor, “Emperor, I’m afraid I’ll need helpers to prep the dead body.”
“Lord Saint, what about me?”
The Food God was ready to go. He could not wait to recommend himself. “I have experience in cooking and I also have a few students that can cook. We can be your helpers.”
“Of course, nice.” Li Nianfan smiled and nodded. “Let’s do this then. I’ll teach you how. Xiao Bai, let’s begin.”
They immediately surrounded the dead body of Lord Kunpeng.
The canary watched as they abused its former body. Then, it looked at its canary body and teared up. ‘I used to have such a big and perfect body but it’s no longer mine. Boohoo…’
The guests gradually arrived.
Juling Shen, Ye Liuyun, and the Seven Princesses welcomed them at the gates.
The first guests to arrive were the people of the Underworld, Black and White Impermanence, as well as Ox-Head and Horse-Face. They all looked emotional and excited, especially Ox-Head and Horse-Face. They were drooling hard.
Black Impermanence looked angry. He had to scold them, “Wipe that saliva off now! There’ll be a lot of people at this feast. We’ve been chosen by the expert to be his guests so we represent the Underworld. Don’t embarrass me!”
“Hehe, sorry. We can’t help it because we’re about to eat a meal cooked by the expert.” Ox-Head quickly slurped up his drool. “I can’t. I smell something nice. What about you, Horse-Face?”
“Such a nice wine aroma. I’m in Heaven…”
Then, the dogs arrived.
“Huh? Deified Dog, I can’t believe you came.”
Juling Shen was surprised to see the Deified Dog. Then, he smiled and asked, “Why just you? Where’s your Master? Also, why did you bring an ordinary dog with you? Aren’t you worried that it might embarrass you?”
“I forgot to introduce,” smirked the Deified Dog. “This is the Dog of the Lord Saint, Blackie!”
“Oh, the Lord Saint’s…”
Juling Shen widened his eyes in shock. He stopped in his tracks and choked on his words. He instantly curled up and whined, “Dog… Lord… Lord Dog. I see that you have arrived, Lord Dog. Sorry for being rude just now, I was out of it. You didn’t hear anything, right? Lord Dog?”
Blackie grinned. “Uh-huh, what do you think?”
Then, Blackie cat-walked into the Heavenly Palace with the Deified Dog.
Juling Shen was dumbfounded as he watched Blackie leave. He wanted to slap himself hard.
‘I just came back from my punishment and my stupid mouth landed me in trouble again. Man, my mouth’s a curse!’
Immortal Linzhu also arrived. She was so excited. Everyone could tell that she was a foodie.
“Argh, Sister Ziye, thank you for the invitation. I’ve been going crazy thinking about delicacies. I wished upon the stars every night for a nice meal. Look, I have tears in my eyes.”
Ziye looked annoyed. She moved away and said, “I don’t see tears but I do see a lot of drool. Stop talking to me. You’re spitting in my face.”
Several figures rode in on a lousy cloud.
Luo Shiyu, Qin Manyun, and Lin Qingyun had arrived. They were not Immortals yet so they did not know how to ride on clouds. They came together to be more courageous.
Luo Shiyu flinched. “Dad, I… I’m slightly nervous.”
The Holy Emperor laughed. “Silly child, why are you nervous?”
Luo Shiyu replied, “This is the Heavenly Palace. The place of Immortals. Everyone else is an Immortal except us.”
“So what if it’s the Heavenly Palace?” the Holy Emperor asked. “Back then, we went to the four-part architecture to visit the expert. Do you think the Heavenly Palace can compare with that?”
“The expert’s four-part architecture’s naturally superior to the Heavenly Palace.”
“Right? We’ve been to the four-part architecture. So, this is just the Heavenly Palace. We got this, don’t worry.” The Holy Emperor sneakily calmed himself while he comforted Luo Shiyu. He was also nervous.
Yao Mengji said in a quivering voice, “I heard that this is a Kunpeng Feast. Kunpeng. An existence that’s so incredibly powerful. We’re about to eat Kunpeng’s meat. This is unreal.”
Lin Mufeng said, “Right? When I got the invitation, I thought it was fake. After all… I can’t believe someone like the expert would still remember someone like me. I really…am touched. I could cry at the thought of it.”
Lin Qingyun had a complex gaze. She said with determination, “Sigh, the expert always gives us opportunities. We truly don’t deserve it. I won’t hesitate if he ever needs me!”
Then, the Dragons arrived.
Ao Yun and Xiao Chengfeng got along with each other. They were both cultivators with damaged cultivation. They instantly sympathized with each other.
They were instantly the senior-cultivator-best-friends duo.
Xiao Chengfeng laughed and said, “Brother Ao, we’re free and don’t need to worry about anything. We shall drink, play chess, and stroll around the three realms as we please. This is a much more comfortable way of life. This is the life!”
Ao Yun nodded in agreement. “Right? Look, we might’ve damaged our cultivation but we’re still here to eat Kunpeng’s meat. The Saintly Kunpeng. More importantly, we’re going to eat the fruits and wines of the expert. Life’s wonderful, isn’t it?”
“Nicely said! I won’t exchange my cultivation for a life like this!”
Xiao Chengfeng raised his sword and caressed it. He said, “I used to be so stubborn. Sword cultivation’s so hard! I’m going to set up a few tests and pass down my legacy to my successor. Then, I’ll live a comfortable life. The sweet, nice life!”
