Yan Zaizen's head snapped towards the sound. The rolling of a serving table's wheels alerted his senses as his keen sense of smell went into overdrive. This reaction caused Lin Feilin, Shin Xuanji, and Shin Feiyu to be startled, unsure of how to react.
Yan Zaizen didn't care. He tossed his chicken leg aside, using his arm to make space for a new set of plates. Before the woman server could bring the cakes to the table, it magically vanished.
Before him, Yan Zaizen saw all sorts of variety and deliciousness. He analyzed each and everyone one, his amber-gold eyes even flickering with Dao Light as he inspected them thoroughly. There were forty-seven different types of cake, from red velvet to buttermilk. The frostings were varied and paired greatly with their respective cakes.
"Zai, yo-" Lin Feilin tried to say something, but Yan Zaizen had his fork and was already digging into a soft piece of chocolate cake with vanilla frosting . It was soft, moist, and adhered to the fork like it was made for it. When it slid into his mouth, his cells felt vitalized.
Even with this new body, his taste buds had never changed. He didn't know what about well-made and delicious cake, regardless of its design or flavor, but he was addicted to it. It was as if all sorts of memories of the past were roiling into his heart and mind.
After a long vocalized 'Mmmmmmmmm!' He gave a vigorous nod, unwilling to open his mouth. With his free hand, he gave a thumbs up to Shin Xuanji. His eyes sparkled with appreciation, as if saying: "You know what your Junior Brother loves. Don't worry, he loves you too."
The glint in his eyes caused Shin Xuanji's expression to turn dark, feeling uncomfortable as he wiggled slightly in his seat. Shin Feiyu held her hand over her mouth and giggled. This granduncle of hers was quite an interesting character.
Then, her eyes blinked.
Then, they widened in utter, total, incredible disbelief!
It wasn't just her. All the staff that was lingering about, cleaning plates and tables to replace them with new meals were stunned senseless.
Shin Xuanji and Lin Feilin's heart shook.
In that span of a blink, all of the plates had been wiped clean and replaced with a variety of all sorts of cakes. Before, there was merely forty-seven, but now...there were thousands lined up. The sweet fragrant wafted out endless.
Yan Zaizen shouted, "It worked!" His elation was at an all-time high. He didn't think it would actually work, but it did! With a thought, he recreated every single cake he had ever eaten using the Law of Mimicry. They were exactly the same as he remembered.
While they were stunned, he indulged. Endlessly!
For every cake he ate, another would replace it.
He ran through them like a bulldozer, smacking each piece into his mouth. It was a cake slaughter, horrific as these sweet little delicacies were absolutely helpless before the godslayer, no, the Great Cakeslayer! Each movement of his fork took another sweet life.
Yet, their ends were constant as they were constantly recreated. A endless cycle.
"..." Everyone.
-----
A few hours later, Yan Zaizen laid on the floor with his stomach bulging and frosting on his lips. His eyes were drunk. If one looked closely, they could see images of various shapes, colors, mostly resembling sweet delicacies.
Shin Xuanji looked on with a gaped jaw, his eyes and mind unable to keep up. He was frozen into a stupor.
"Ju-just how did you make so many?" It was like freaking magic. Regardless of how many he ate, more would appear without any hint of energy fluctuation or spatial distortion. It was as if they always existed. Existed to be eaten.
At first, he thought it was an illusion. So, he touched one. However, he was met with a fierce slap that sent him out of his own castle. He rolled out the windows in horrendous fashion and nearly into the Expanse. When he returned, the imprint of five fingers were still on his face.
He learned a very valuable lesson.
He felt aggrieved. When Lin Feilin asked for one from this stingy-cake eating monster, she was handed it without much fuss. However, when he later asked, he was given the stink eye as if he was a robber trying to steal another's wife.
What type of favouritism was that? Furthermore, wasn't he the Senior Brother, should the Junior Brother slap their senior into space? How disrespectful is that? He could only swallow his words as his Shin Feiyu merely laughed after her initial shock.
However, how could Yan Zaizen be so petty? After seeing how sullen this Senior Brother of his looked, he reluctantly offered him a single bite. Just a single bite, after all, he was kind, no?
Shin Xuanji, however, was incredibly ungrateful. He huffed and puffed and remained silent, unwilling to accept Yan Zaizen's gift. Yan Zaizen also learned a lesson, to never offer any of his cake to pouty men.
Shin Xuanji cleared his throat. It was already getting late, and he didn't want to dwell on this matter. However, he swore that he'll eat at least a thousand different cakes when Yan Zaizen wasn't around.
"Junior Brother Zai, we should talk." His expression became serious and calm. Lin Feilin and Shin Feiyu also put aside their laughs and short talks. While they were getting along well, it was time to get back to the point of their visit.
Yan Zaizen patted his bulging belly and sighed. His eyes closed as he regained his posture, no longer losing himself in his vices. He rose and said, rubbing his belly, "Yes. We should."
Yan Zaizen sat down, and Shin Xuanji glanced at Shin Feiyu and Lin Feilin. Before he could speak, Yan Zaizen said, "What happened to my clan?"
Shin Xuanji collected his thoughts and explained, "If you want the full story, you'll have to start with the former Xiantu Emperor and his plans."
The Xiantu Emperor? Yan Zaizen frowned, but he didn't interrupt.
"When you left all those years ago, the Xiantu Emperor's plans were already in motion. In fact, it started with the Asura Phantom Realm. I heard you went to explore it, so you should know about it."
The Asura Phantom Realm. It was a subrealm located in the folds of space within the Xiantu Realm. When Yan Zaizen was younger, he was hired to explore it and the Asura Phantom Palace within. It was an old, nearly forgotten power that delved in soul arts. No one knew that the Palace Master had forged a two-floor Hell Altar and was seeking a revival.
Yan Zaizen had fought and killed the phantasm, an immortal soul-like spiritual existence. One had to abandon their Essence Path, Soul Source Path, and physical bodies to become such an existence. During that fight, he nearly lost his life.
Shin Xuanji continued, "At that time, the Xiantu Emperor of that time had learned of another path of cultivation, the Infernal Forger, the Hell Altar. He became obsessed with it, retrieved the Hell Altar from the realm and seeked to restore its powers. However to do that, he needed to...venture into Hell."
Those who cultivate the Infernal Path had to obtain the materials to do so from Hell. It was a perilous journey fraught with danger and risk. Firstly, only an existence of the soul was said to be able to enter Hell and survive. This meant creatures like Phantasms, Ghosts, or Wraiths.
"Unfortunately, it seemed he lacked the ability or courage to do so, so he scoured the Xiantu Realm for an alternative or solution. And, he found it." Shin Xuanji's eyes focused on Yan Zaizen's.
It was that moment that Yan Zaizen understood what he meant. "The Yan Clan…" At the time of their actions, a genius of the Yan Clan had awakened his bloodline and seemed capable of mastering, using any art or cultivating any method without risk. As someone with a body that possessed that bloodline, how could he not know?
The Law of Mimicry made each Yan Clan member adaptable to any and all methods, even if they hadn't awakened their bloodline. This meant they were also the perfect guinea pigs.
He solemnly said, "What did he do?"
"..." Shin Xuanji and Shin Feiyu were silent with flickering emotions. Yan Zaizen was taken aback at Shin Feiyu's reaction. She was super young, yet she seemed to be invested in this. This piqued his interest.
Shin Xuanji took a deep breath and said, "He sent them to Hell."