Master Loves Desserts

The kitchen door was pushed open from the outside.

Cen Xi'er walked in holding an empty water skin, seemingly here to fetch water. When she spotted Lin Zhiyue standing by the stove, she froze in her tracks, nearly dropping the water skin.

“Junior Sister... what are you wearing?”

Lin Zhiyue spun around. The hem of her short pink skirt flared out in a gentle swirl, the lace trim of her apron catching the soft morning light. The floral patterns along the edge of her chef's hat tilted up slightly, while the frosted wings on her back shimmered with fine, silvery-pink light.

Holding her cup of milk tea, she curled her lips into a smile at Cen Xi'er. “Second Senior Sister, I just made some milk tea. Would you like a taste?”

Cen Xi'er walked over in a daze and took the cup. She took a sip, then paused. She took another sip, then a third, before clutching the cup tightly as if she would never let go. Her eyes sparkled as she looked at Lin Zhiyue. “What is this?! It's delicious! It's a hundred times better than the spiritual fruit juice in the dining hall!”

“Milk tea,” Lin Zhiyue said, pushing the other two cups toward her. “There's plenty more. If you want, you can have—”

“I want them!” Cen Xi'er scooped up the two cups of milk tea, cradling them protectively. She then reached out with her free hand to pat the chef's hat on Lin Zhiyue's head and poke the frosted wings on her back. Her eyes crinkled into crescent moons as she laughed. “Junior Sister, you are way too cute! You dressed up like this just to make milk tea? Can you make this every day from now on?”

“I'll try.”

As they were talking, the kitchen door was pushed open once more.

Liu Fengyao poked her head inside. The moment she saw Lin Zhiyue, she let out the loudest, most high-pitched squeal of her life. “Wow! Junior Sister, what's going on?! What are you wearing? It looks amazing! You look so sweet!” She rushed in, circling Lin Zhiyue once before stopping right in front of her to cup Lin Zhiyue's face with both hands. “What is this? A little fairy? Are you made of sugar? How can you be this adorable!”

Her face gently shaken back and forth, Lin Zhiyue didn't know whether to laugh or cry as she handed over the last cup of milk tea. “Drink this first, and stop shaking me.”

Liu Fengyao took it, gulped down a large mouthful, and instantly went silent.

Holding the cup, she stared down at the steaming milk tea, then looked back up at the soft, pink-and-white, incredibly cute Lin Zhiyue. Her expression shifted from awe to sheer bliss, before settling into a complex look that seemed to say, Is there anything my junior sister can't do?

She and Cen Xi'er stood in the kitchen, each clutching a cup of milk tea, scanning Lin Zhiyue from head to toe. From time to time, they would let out exclamations like, “This apron is so cute!” and “The wings are actually shimmering!”

Surrounded by the two of them, Lin Zhiyue felt like a little sister being doted on and dressed up by her older sisters.

The three of them ended up sitting in the kitchen for nearly an hour. By the time Cen Xi'er finished her second cup of milk tea, she said in all seriousness, “Junior Sister, if you sold this in the dining hall, the disciples of the entire Tiance Palace would be lining up for it.”

Liu Fengyao nodded like a chicken pecking at grain. “I'll be first in line! Save a cup for me every day!”

Leaning against the counter with her half-empty cup, Lin Zhiyue watched her two senior sisters shower her with praise as they drank.

She suddenly felt that this skill might be far more useful than it sounded.

Lin Zhiyue spent the entire day cooped up in the kitchen.

She discovered that the Dessert Master skill covered everything. Not only did she know how to make desserts, but she also knew how to make them delicious, how to present them beautifully, and how to adjust the proportions so that ingredients with different spiritual properties blended together perfectly.

The cake base baked from ground spiritual rice was even fluffier and denser than the low-gluten flour of her past life. The cream whipped from spiritual eggs was as light as clouds, and the jam simmered from spiritual fruits had the perfect balance of sweet and sour.

As she folded the batter with her pink spatula, she could even feel spiritual energy flowing through the ingredients.

A row of her creations was lined up on the counter—sliced cake pieces, golden and crispy egg tarts, puddings served in jade bowls, several cups of milk tea in different flavors made from spiritual tea and spiritual milk, soft candies made from spiritual fruits, and a steaming cup of ginger spiritual milk curd.

The entire kitchen was filled with a sweet, warm aroma—a blend of milk, eggs, and the crisp scent of spiritual tea. Even the spiritual cat that usually napped under the stove all year round crept over, squatting beneath the counter and tilting its head up, waiting to be fed.

Lin Zhiyue was bending over to pull the last batch of egg tarts out of the oven. A small smudge of flour clung to her face without her noticing, and several white streaks of flour were rubbed onto her apron.

Finding the wing back accessory too cumbersome while moving around the kitchen, she had long stored it in her space. However, she still wore the short skirt and apron, and with her shoes dusted with flour, she looked like a little pink animal that had just rolled around in a flour pile.

As she turned around holding the tray of egg tarts, the kitchen door opened, and she found herself face-to-face with Qi Yan standing at the entrance.

Today, he wore a charcoal grey casual robe. It lacked the sharp, intimidating edge of his usual red-and-black martial attire, making him look as though he had just returned from a meeting at the main hall.

Standing at the doorway, his gaze swept across the kitchen, moving from the rows of desserts on the counter to Lin Zhiyue—who was currently staring blankly at him like a startled kitten.

Qi Yan's gaze lingered on her face for a brief moment before he looked away, clearing his throat softly.

“What are you doing?” His voice was slightly lower than usual. Lin Zhiyue didn't notice anything amiss, but if anyone else had been present, they might have noticed a very faint blush dusting Venerable Yanchen's earlobes, contrasting sharply against his charcoal grey collar.

“I made some treats,” Lin Zhiyue said, setting the tray of egg tarts on the counter. She picked up a bowl of pudding from the side and walked over to Qi Yan. “Master, try this. I spent the whole afternoon experimenting with the proportions, and this version has the perfect ratio of spiritual milk to spiritual honey.”

She held the pudding out to Qi Yan. The pale gold pudding inside the jade bowl was as smooth as a mirror, releasing a sweet, warm aroma of blended spiritual milk and spiritual honey. It was decorated with two halved spiritual fruits on top, presented as exquisitely as if she had spent hours plating it.

Qi Yan looked down at the bowl of pudding, then up at the smudge of flour on Lin Zhiyue's face, and finally into her eyes, which were looking at him with eager expectation. After a brief silence, he reached out and took the bowl.

He scooped up a spoonful and placed it in his mouth.

Lin Zhiyue noticed his brow twitch almost imperceptibly. He swallowed, then took a second spoonful, and then a third, eating at a steady, unhurried pace.

By the time the bowl of pudding was nearly empty, he had eaten most of it. When he set the bowl back on the counter, only a trace of pale gold syrup clung to the sides.

“Not bad,” he said, his voice still low. He pursed his lips slightly, as if savoring the aftertaste.

Lin Zhiyue beamed. She turned around, sliced a piece of cake, and brought it over. “Try this one too! It's made from spiritual rice flour, so it's much fluffier than normal cake—”

Qi Yan took it.

Standing by the counter with the piece of cake, he took a bite. Lin Zhiyue noticed that he was chewing slightly faster than before.

When he finished the cake, his gaze fell back onto the smudge of flour on her face. He pointed to his own left cheek. “Right here.”

Lin Zhiyue blanked for a moment before realizing what he meant. She reached up and rubbed her cheek haphazardly, but the flour only smeared onto her fingers, making the smudge even messier.

Watching her face grow messier with each wipe, Qi Yan let out a faint sigh and pulled a clean handkerchief from his sleeve, handing it to her.

Lin Zhiyue took the handkerchief and wiped her face clean. She then took off her chef's hat, patted the flour off it, and popped it back on her head. Smiling at Qi Yan with eyes crinkled in delight, she asked, “Master, which one did you find the most delicious? I'll make more of it next time.”

Qi Yan fell silent for a moment. He averted his gaze from her smile, letting it land on the row of untouched egg tarts on the counter. After a pause, he spoke. “They are all fine.” He paused, then added, “I haven't tried those yet.”

Lin Zhiyue immediately turned to pick up the tray of egg tarts. The bow of her apron bobbed up and down with her movements, and the hem of her short skirt swirled in a soft, pink arc.

Qi Yan accepted the egg tart she offered. As he took a bite, Lin Zhiyue noticed that the lines around the corners of his mouth had softened slightly.

The spiritual cat had already squatted down by Qi Yan's feet, tilting its head up and letting out a soft meow at him.

Qi Yan cast a downward glance at the cat, ignored it, and finished his last bite of the egg tart.