Martial artists can never be ultimately insulted.

However, Yuan Chen didn't mind and simply introduced her to everyone: "Mai Shiranui is my senior sister in the Shiranui School. She taught me Bone Fist, Fire Nen Technique, and the Shiranui School's charm techniques."

Upon hearing Yuan Chen's words, everyone turned their curious gazes toward Mai Shiranui.

Although somewhat surprised that Yuan Chen's family had so many beautiful girls, Mai Shiranui showed no fear whatsoever. Instead, she stood up with a beaming smile, bowed, and said:

"Please advise!"

"You're too kind." Upon hearing Mai Shiranui's words, Chun-Li quickly bowed in return, then led Mai to the low table in the living room, pushed a cup of hot tea in front of her, and said gently:

"Achen has already told me about the Shiranui School. We were planning to visit them to express our gratitude for their teachings after we finished our work these past few days, but we didn't expect you to come so soon."

Upon hearing this, Mai Shiranui hurriedly accepted the teacup with both hands, a rare hint of embarrassment appearing on her usually cheerful face:

"Not at all, not at all. Actually, I have nothing to teach Achen. Whether it's the Fire Mind Technique or the Bone Fist, Achen learned them by himself after just a couple of glances. In fact, I came here today to express my gratitude."

At this point, a look of gratitude appeared on Mai Shiranui's face:

"The lineage of Shiranui-ryu suffered a severe break a thousand years ago, and it was thanks to A-Chen's help that the lost parts were restored. If we're really going to talk about it, although I'm just occupying the title of senior sister, Yuan Chen's help to me is much greater."

After a pause, Mai Shiranui continued:

"And I haven't been able to properly thank my grandfather about this. He was my last remaining relative. That day, when Achen came to the temple and treated my grandfather, he sat alone in the tea room for a long time that night. I got up to check on him in the middle of the night, and he told me that he felt like he was twenty years younger."

Although he didn't say thank you, I know his gratitude runs deeper than anyone else's. So—really, thank you so much.

With that, Mai Shiranui bowed to Chun-Li in gratitude, her voice filled with sincerity and appreciation.

Feeling Mai Shiranui's feelings, Chun-Li was also touched. Looking at Mai Shiranui's bright and sincere face, she was silent for a moment, then subconsciously glanced at Han Zhu-li, who was sprawled on the beanbag chair.

Sprawled on the sofa, Han Zhuli had one leg dangling from the floor. Feeling Chunli's gaze, she rolled her eyes, her expression saying, "Auntie, you're trying to compare me to other kids again, aren't you?"

This left Chun-Li somewhat helpless, but she also knew that compared to Mai Shiranui, Han Zhu-li had suffered severe trauma due to her family situation, so she showed more care and concern.

With that in mind, Chun-Li briefly introduced the people present to Mai Shiranui.

After learning that Chunli was Yuan Chen's sworn sister, Han Zhuli was a lone traveler temporarily staying in a foreign land, and Wu Jialouluo Wu Fengshui was a family member who handled Yuan Chen's entry procedures, Shiranui Mai breathed a sigh of relief.

They're just ordinary friends, huh? Anyone who didn't know better would have thought Ah Chen was having a blast with them, completely oblivious to the world around him!

Thinking this, Mai Shiranui clenched her fist with full confidence.

She was confident that with her feminine charm, she could gain the approval of her parents (Chunli) and make Yuan Chen fall hopelessly in love with her!

Don't underestimate my perseverance as a ninja!

Unaware of what Mai Shiranui was thinking as she suddenly gripped her fan tightly and looked excited, Yuan Chen simply said, "How about we prepare dinner first?"

Looking at everyone, Yuan Chen gestured with his chin toward Han Zhuli, whose face looked pale, and said, "If we keep talking, Zhuli is going to faint."

Upon hearing this, Han Zhuli, who was already wearing a onesie, raised one leg and said, "Hungry!"

As for why she raised her leg instead of her hand, it was simply because the battle was over, and Han Zhuli instantly returned to her state of being a homebody, currently scrolling through short videos on her phone, with no extra time to raise her hand.

This left Chunli feeling particularly helpless: "When guests come, at least pay attention to etiquette... Ah, short videos really need to be properly regulated."

Hearing Chunli's words, Yuan Chen nodded in deep agreement. At least in Yuan Chen's view, short videos were far more harmful to children than games…

"I'm so tired." Upon hearing this, Han Zhuli also complained with a helpless expression:

"This isn't a case of qi depletion from overloaded meridians, it's that my dantian has been emptied... Ugh, is there anything that can help me digest this quickly? I feel like I'm starving to death."

Upon hearing this, Yuan Chen also ignited a golden flame and crossed over. As the golden flame was poured in, Han Zhuli's condition visibly improved.

However, as a price, Yuan Chen's aura also weakened somewhat, since he had already consumed a lot of his reserves during the previous treatment.

"Anyway, let's eat first."

Yuan Chen looked at Mai Shiranui beside him and asked, "Are there any dietary restrictions?"

"No!" Upon hearing Yuan Chen's question, Mai Shiranui smiled expectantly and replied:

"But let me make it clear first, I have some experience in cooking~ Would you like to try my cooking too~"

Upon hearing this, Chun-Li blinked curiously, but then a hint of helplessness appeared in her eyes.

Judging from Mai Shiranui's tone, she seems to be very confident in her cooking skills, and having excellent culinary skills is a great advantage from every angle.

Unfortunately……

Unfortunately, Yuan Chen's culinary skills cannot be encompassed by the ordinary word "cuisine".

In ancient times, Yuan Chen could easily become a renowned immortal master, Taoist priest, or alchemist by simply making up a few words about life-saving cooking, right?

After all, compared to those 'elixirs' made from medicinal herbs and various metals, Yuan Chen's life energy truly gives people the feeling of ascending to immortality in every sense.

Thinking about it, and feeling the expectation and confidence on Mai Shiranui's face, Chun-Li seemed to already see everyone's expressions of heartfelt admiration and praise after tasting her cooking, thus successfully infiltrating the family. For a moment, she was speechless.

Noticing Chun-Li's expression, Mai Shiranui assumed that Chun-Li, as the hostess, was embarrassed to let her cook, so she smiled and said:

"Cooking has always been my greatest hobby besides my spiritual practice! However, I have very few friends, so please let me have this opportunity to share!"

Silly child, I'm worried you'll lose interest.

"Let's all come together then, the kitchen is so big anyway."

Yuan Chen nodded, and then everyone went downstairs.

Before going downstairs, since they were going to cook in the restaurant, it wasn't very convenient to wear a leather motorcycle outfit, so Mai Shiranui went to Chun-Li's room to change into a set of loungewear that hadn't been opened yet.

It wasn't a onesie, but a simple white tank top paired with pink hot pants.

As an old-fashioned family restaurant, the first floor of the Sakura family's old house is both a restaurant and a place for everyone to eat.

Having regained some strength, Han Zhuli asked curiously, "Speaking of which, shouldn't we give this eye a name? What would be a good name?"

"How about calling it Feng Shui Engine?"

Upon hearing this, Yuan Chen said with great interest:

"After all, the original optic nerve of this eye was completely dead, and most of the existing nerves are regrown based on the redundant nerves activated after the feng shui liberation."

"That sounds a bit strange." Hearing this, Han Zhuli scratched her head, but didn't take it to heart. She had never been the type to pay much attention to details.

"Okay, that's settled then, it sounds great~"

The people around nodded in agreement, not minding at all. After all, it was just a name, insignificant compared to the eyes' actual abilities.

On the contrary, Yuan Chen found it quite interesting—indeed, if Zhu Li didn't know super feng shui, she would definitely be missing something.

Wearing an apron, Mai Shiranui looked at Yuan Chen with a face full of fighting spirit and said:

"Heh heh, while I might not be able to guide you in other areas, I'm quite confident in my cooking skills~"

In response, Yuan Chen simply gave a gentle yet polite smile.

Mai Shiranui remained full of fighting spirit—a spirit that lasted until the blazing stove was lit.

Wearing a pink apron borrowed from Chun-Li, Mai Shiranui's knife skills were also quite nimble. Her handling of ingredients showed that she had practiced for many years. The scallions she cut were of uniform thickness, and the fish slices were so thin that they were translucent.

Unfortunately, he was much slower than Yuan Chen in terms of pace.

With one hand tossing the wok and the other wielding a spatula, Yuan Chen multitasked. As soon as the garlic in the wok turned golden, he tossed it into the sliced, marinated beef. Meanwhile, a meat porridge simmered on the other burner. The rice for the porridge had been steamed and soaked in advance and frozen; all that was needed was to cook the ingredients thoroughly to bring out its flavor.

While stir-frying the beef, I casually lifted the lid, stirred it a couple of times, sprinkled some chopped green onions, and then covered it again. Then, I took out the cucumbers that I had crushed, chopped, and marinated with granulated sugar to dehydrate them, squeezed them dry, and soaked them in the sauce.

This made Mai Shiranui realize that Yuan Chen's cooking skills might be as good as his martial arts skills, which startled her, but she still told herself that slow and steady wins the race.

A moment later, as Yuan Chen's three dishes were served, Mai Shiranui, looking embarrassed, brought out her own six-serving serving of salt-fried blue and white porcelain.

"Slow down, slow and steady wins the race," Mai Shiranui said, trying to save face.

Chun-Li could only smile helplessly at this.

Meanwhile, Han Zhuli, not even bothering to pretend, propped her chin on her arm and looked at Mai Shiranui as if watching a show, saying:

"Yuan Chen's cooking skills are not just simple, they are delicious. Rather, it's like he's using a cheat code."

"I won't give up until I've tasted it!" Mai Shiranui exclaimed excitedly. She then took off her apron, went to the table, scooped up a spoonful of meat porridge, blew on it twice, and put it in her mouth.

Chewing, swallowing, and then Mai Shiranui got up and slowly knelt down on the ground to the side, supporting herself with her hands on the ground—a standard dejected forward bend.

No one was even slightly surprised by this, since directly replenishing life energy and activating taste buds is rather perverse when applied to the food industry.

"It tastes very good." Picking up a piece of salt-roasted mackerel, Yuan Chen nodded and said, "The outer skin is crispy, the inside is soft and juicy, there's no fishy or gamey taste, and it even has a sweet aftertaste of fish..."

"That sounds nice, but it's still not as good as yours." Mai Shiranui stood up with a wronged expression and returned to the table. She then ate in small bites, and then in large bites.

Although it was a loud voice, it still maintained its composure, only the frequency was slightly faster.

"good to eat."

Yuan Chen was not in a hurry. He simply lit a handful of golden flames, reprocessed the mackerel, softened its nutrients, transformed them into life energy, and sent it to Mai Shiranui.

Having experienced the sense of activation within, Mai Shiranui nodded in understanding, then couldn't help but remark:

"So the Golden Flame can be used in cooking? This is practically a cheat code!"

"There's not much difference between activating the human body and activating food ingredients." Yuan Chen shrugged.

"However, after the ingredients and taste buds are activated, more flavors can be released and perceived, and the concentration of volatile aromatic substances will also become greater in perception."

"Then wouldn't we have no chance of winning at all..." Mai Shiranui said, snapping her fingers to create a slightly reddish Nen flame.

"Even if it were to completely transform into the legendary Crimson Flame, it would only increase its power."

"Different areas of specialization are not necessary to force each other."

Yuan Chen reassured him.

Although somewhat disappointed, Mai Shiranui quickly rallied and said, "It's okay! Cooking is just one part of a woman's strength! I'll win back!"

As she said this, Mai Shiranui joined in the casual conversation with the others around her.

Perhaps because she had lived deep in the mountains for a long time and this was the first time she had eaten with so many people her own age, Mai Shiranui was very enthusiastic and quickly became friends with Wu Fengshui and the others.

While everyone was still eating, a man with long, dark red hair that covered half his face, a punk-style outfit with a crescent moon outlined on the back, and red trousers tied with ties walked toward the restaurant with a cold expression.

Volume 1: Chapter 153 - The Grudges of the Three Sacred Treasures

Looking at the restaurant in front of him, Iori Yagami's eyes were filled with coldness and irritation.

He took out his phone and glanced at the video recording. Looking at the battle that had broken out in an underground parking garage and the golden flames released by Yuan Chen, the protagonist of the video, a slightly solemn look appeared in Iori Yagami's eyes.

flame.

If it were just simple flames, Iori Yagami wouldn't care.

Because in this era, with the advancement of many martial arts techniques, energy conversion, which was previously considered a closely guarded secret, has gradually become compatible with lower-level systems.

Although very few people can truly master it due to its difficulty, among those martial artists who have mastered energy transformation, at least five or six out of ten will choose fire as their transformation form.

The reason is simple: energy conversion requires not only the subtle manipulation of qi, but also extremely strict requirements on the martial artist's intention.

Generally speaking, the more familiar a martial artist is with a natural energy, the easier it is to convert. In this case, fire becomes the most common choice.

The reasons for this include the fact that fire is the most readily accessible natural energy source in human society, and the fact that the natural high temperature of fire is always memorable.

This innate impression is also the main reason why fire can become a common energy conversion medium.

After all, compared to fire, water, lightning, and storms, they are either difficult to encounter often or difficult to leave a lasting impression.

The fear of fire, however, has existed since ancient times.

In this situation, if it were just an ordinary flame, Iori Yagami wouldn't care, because if he really cared, he would have to travel back and forth all year round.

That is precisely why, if it were just ordinary flames, Iori Yagami would simply dismiss them with disdain.

As the user of the Azure Flame, Iori Yagami's mastery of flames is not merely a simple burning process, but rather a manifestation of a certain rule—only presented in the form of flames.

Ordinary flames, in comparison, offer no useful reference.

But this time is different.

The flames are golden, and it's not just a change in color. Judging from the effect in the video, these golden flames don't seem to have any destructive power; on the contrary, they can provide a certain degree of healing and enhancement...

According to the video footage, the guy fighting in the underground fighting arena called Kengan Association appears to be a martial artist from the Tang Dynasty across the sea.

Is it a "clan" from another region?

Thinking this, a hint of annoyance appeared on Iori Yagami's face.

In the family records, Iori Yagami had seen some scattered records about other regions and other clans that had mastered special energy transformation, such as the Blanctoche clan in France, who could wield 'light' for magnificent battles, or special abilities that were randomly awakened, such as the Killing Intent Wave.