Upon hearing this, Madam Wen looked up, somewhat bewildered. “Why did you suddenly change your mind?”

Luo Huai’an cleared her throat, her tone earnest and sincere. “Tongtong is so cute, his classmates must also be cute elementary school students. I can’t bear to see the hopes of these flowers of the motherland dashed, or to let gloom appear in their innocent eyes, so I am willing to make bamboo rice for them!”

Madam Wen was a bit of a looks-obsessed person. Seeing such a bright and beautiful girl with such a sincere demeanor, although she felt something was off, she thought she was overthinking it. So she sincerely praised Luo Huai’an, “You are so kind-hearted, that’s the best.”

Mrs. Wen was eager to facilitate the group purchase, since her grandson Tongtong would continue attending this private elementary school, and it would be best to maintain good relationships with his classmates.

Mrs. Wen then chatted with the homeroom teacher on her phone for a while, saying, “The whole class wants this red bean and glutinous rice bamboo tube rice, and they’re offering three times the price. Is it okay if we order it tomorrow?”

“Of course, I’ll make some extra tonight with my staff, and you can pick it up tonight.”

Mrs. Wen nodded happily and transferred the money. “Then it’s settled.”

After Madam Wen left, Luo Huai’an looked at the balance in her phone wallet, her eyes shining brightly.

She stroked the balance number on her phone with a loving finger; the warmth of the money traveled through the screen to every pore of her body, making her feel as comfortable as if she were soaking in a hot spring.

… … translated by Maela @ whitemoonlighttranslations.com

When the last class for the day ended, Qi Ze put his books into his bag, then handed the bag to Ji Wuchen next to him, saying in a calm tone, “Take my bag back to the dormitory. I’m not going back; I’m going straight to the Eighth Cafeteria.”

He was handsome and refined, like an elegant and pure white crane.

Ji Wuchen was astonished. He had thought Qi Ze was just joking about doing part-time work, but he hadn’t expected him to be so serious. For the past two days, he had gone to the Eighth Cafeteria as soon as class ended and only returned to the dorm room at 8 o’clock when the cafeteria closed. “Seriously? Are you really this serious?”

Qi Ze turned to look at him. “Of course I’m serious.”

He hasn’t yet figured out why the food at the Eighth Cafeteria helped alleviate his pain, but there’s been progress; he’s at least discovered that the cafeteria staff weren’t human.

Ji Wuchen almost burst out laughing when he thought of the post he saw on the forum last night. “They said you were working there as a fire stoker, is that true?”

Qi Ze paused upon hearing this, but not wanting to pay him any attention, he simply walked away, saying, “I’m going to work now.”

Qi Ze walked along the road to the Eighth Cafeteria, and with his eyes closed, he could see specks of light in the air—spiritual energy. The staff meals he ate every night were filled with abundant spiritual energy.

Qi Ze vaguely felt that he had touched upon the truth: the reason why the food in the Eighth Cafeteria was useful to him was probably because it was full of spiritual energy.

Eager to find an answer, he went straight to Luo Huai’an after entering the cafeteria and asked, “What effect do the employee meals we usually eat have on my health?”

Upon hearing this, Luo Huai’an’s hand trembled, a slight sense of panic rising within her. Food brimming with spiritual energy wouldn’t have an obvious effect on humans, but it would significantly heal and enhance the abilities of supernatural beasts. Qi Ze noticed the matter with the staff meals; was he about to recall his memories as Phoenix?

That won’t do.

Luo Huai’an was a little nervous. Phoenix was extremely proud, and she had to beg him for many years before he would occasionally use his fire to roast things for her. Every time he roasted things for her, he looked unhappy, saying that his true fire was a supreme thing and how could it be tainted with meat.

However, these past few days she has been behaving like a madwoman towards Phoenix, keeping him cooped up in the kitchen every day to take care of the fire.

If Phoenix regained his memories, he’d probably kill her.

Luo Huai’an glanced at Qi Ze several times before speaking, “Eating staff meals regularly will only make you a little healthier, and the health changes won’t be significant.”

Hearing this, Qi Ze asked in confusion, “But why is the pain in my body lessening?”

Luo Huai’an asked in surprise, “Why is your body in pain?”

In his search for a way to survive, Qi Ze pondered for a moment and, instead of hiding it, revealed his strange illness. “After I gained the ability to control fire, I found that my body often suffers from the pain of being burned by flames…”

Luo Huai’an opened her eyes wide, feeling somewhat puzzled. She walked to the man’s side and channeled her power into his meridians to examine his entire body.

The more she examined it, the more astonished she became. Phoenix was indeed now a mortal, but his innate flame still accompanied it. This innate flame was now constantly burning his soul, a phenomenon that reminded her of a word the phoenix had once told her—Nirvana.

Phoenix was ​​an immortal bird. When his body perishes, his soul would not perish but would be reborn in a new form. The death of the soul signified true death, and through Phoenix’s reincarnation, he would suffer the torment of being burned alive until the last trace of his soul was consumed. Only then will Phoenix be reborn from utter death.

Of course, the process of Nirvana was painful and terrifying.

Luo Huai’an hadn’t taken it seriously when she heard him speak about it at Danxue Mountain, only vaguely remembering it now. After all, top-tier divine beasts like them possessed high combat power; as long as they didn’t provoke powerful figures, they could practically do whatever they wanted, so how could they possibly die?

For example, although she couldn’t beat Qinglong, she could still escape unscathed, and occasionally she could even win against him a few times by using dirty tricks like sneak attacks.

Luo Huai’an withdrew her power, feeling somewhat nervous.

So it seemed that Phoenix had truly died. But he was not completely dead; he would return sooner or later.

If he came back and saw that she was using him as a mere fire starter, would he turn against her?

If Azure Dragon and Phoenix joined forces, she, a little Pixiu, would definitely be doomed.

Luo Huai’an fell into deep thought for a long time, glanced at Phoenix that was now human, sighed, and decided to tell Qi Ze about Phoenix’s rebirth.

Perhaps when Phoenix regains his memory, he would forgive her because she told him the truth!

Mythical Beast Cafeteria translated by Maela @ whitemoonlighttranslations.com

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