Luna's understatement had the whole Sect laughing. The Divine Elder had mastered Mystic Cooking over a thousand years ago and had progressed the skill to levels unimaginable by most Cultivators, even creating foods that had more potent magical effects than most of the potions that Mortals could create.
To think that any of the Disciples could possibly match that was ridiculous.
But they had come a long way and could create a number of dishes with impressive effects on the diners, a not-so-secret advantage that the Seaside Sect had over others when cultivating.
Eating with the Divine Elder and his direct Disciples was a great honor in the Sect, and events like this, where they would cook for everyone, were very rare.
It made all the Disciples very glad that they hadn't ditched early, no matter how much they thought their other pursuits were more important than volleyball on the beach and meeting their visitors.
Luna recorded every other Disciple in the kitchen area and found that all of them could be recorded without issue, and one of them even had Mythic Cooking Skills that were actually in the Mythic Rank. In theory, that was the limit of the technique, but the Divine Elder had taken it further than its original design.
Cain knew. He had recorded him while the Divine Elder was distracted by Luna's attempts.
He was having a relaxing conversation with a few of the Elders when a vortex of energy began to swirl in the area, signaling that someone was making the initial breakthrough from Spirit Rank into Immortality, where Immortal power would replace their mortal energy.
It was a long process and would go on for days or weeks, according to Elder Mariel, but the initial stages were sensitive, so the area around them was cleared, ensuring that they weren't disturbed and that the revelation that had caused the breakthrough wasn't lost in a distracted mind, stunting their growth.
"Your cooking really is amazing, Divine Elder." Cain congratulated him.
"Well worth the effort. Like your penchant for passing skills in an instant, my cooking has been enough to move the Seaside Sect from an average one to one of the faster-growing Sects on the continent." The Elder replied.
Even Cain could feel the effects of the energy stored in the food spreading through his body. At his rank, it wouldn't have much of an effect, but it was enough to at least make him notice the effect and increase his energy flow a little.
If he were actually competing against an evenly-matched Demigod, that could be enough to be the critical difference, but here on the beach, it was the most amazing meal that he had ever had the chance to enjoy.
While everyone else was eating, Sect Master Mooney was examining the Arena in great detail, trying to work out the method of its creation so that he could learn the skill. Mariel had told him all about the one he had made for the Crushing Mountain Sect, but the Lycan was determined that he would manage to learn the skill for himself so that they could not only have one at the Sect but also implement one wherever the Sect went.
They were already considered an up-and-coming power since he had ascended from a Demigod to a Minor Divinity, and having an incredibly useful skill like this would give them an edge on the other comparable Sects that they were competing with for new Disciples.
It was clear that Cain wasn't interested in creating a large Sect anytime soon, so the matter of Disciples wasn't a big deal to him, but to Sect Master Mooney, it was the most important part of establishing his Sect's spot in the hierarchy.
The Sect Rankings were important to humans, but they were much more than that to Lycans. Strength was considered one of the most important parts of worthiness to lead in their instincts and culture, so if he wanted to draw more of his own people to his Sect, he had to prove that he was better than their other options and not just rely on being a Lycan.
That had drawn a number of other Lycans to him, but only the weakest ones, for which he was the strongest option they had available. To get the loyalty of more talented Lycans, he needed to have better opportunities.
"How is the attempt progressing? Would you like for me to show you the basics?" Cain asked after he finished his dinner.
"I think if I had a year or two, I could manage it. How much time do you have?" The Sect Master asked.
"A matter of days. I'm not sure if Divine Elder Mariel has informed you, but my wife is on the other side of one of the portals you guard, and I need to get there before she gives birth. The time flow has given me a lot of leeway, but I'm starting to run short, especially if she goes into labor early." Cain explained.
"Yes, she did explain the situation. I also understand that Dragons keep strange company sometimes, so I won't cause a fuss. It's not like they're coming here to invade or anything. You're just going to see them." The Lycan agreed.
Cain wondered for a while why the Human Gods had a Lycan guarding such an important portal, but he couldn't find a way to ask that didn't equate the species in some way to dogs due to their intense loyalty and devotion.
"Here, it's the creation method." Cain offered, mentally linking the Elder and flipping through the pages of the skill book in his thoughts.
It wasn't as effective as the other methods he had available, but it was also unlikely to trigger a System activation, which would be a hard thing to explain to a Divine Realm cultivator who had a large pool of knowledge about both other worlds and what had happened between the Human Gods and the Ancients.
The chances that he knew about the System were low, but not zero, so it was better not to risk it.
"Hmm, I see. Now, if I, no, that's not right." The Sect Master mumbled as he assimilated the knowledge.
After a few minutes, he opened a small pocket dimension and started attempting to cast the skill inside.
With time flowing a hundred times faster in the pocket dimension, it only took him six hours to manage a working version of the skill. It was only at Immortal Realm power, but that was better than any of the failures he had before that point.
It also wasn't a Seraphim Arena, and the referee appeared to be a Lycan, but when Cain inspected the safety wards and the recovery room, they were both fully functional, meaning the basic arena usage would be the same.
"A few more tweaks and you can decorate the outside as well, so everyone who sees it knows it belongs to your Sect." Cain reminded the Sect Master before he could decide he was done.
"Good point. How are my Disciples doing out there?" Mooney asked.
"They're having the time of their lives fighting in the arena. I think the ones my Disciple transformed might be traumatized, though. The ladies of your Sect haven't been going easy on them in the arena, and they're still not fully used to those bodies.
I think they'll be back to normal soon enough, though. I analyzed the potion, and it wasn't particularly powerful." Cain explained.
"It's good for them. I can't think of a situation where they will have to fight in an unfamiliar body, but if they lose a limb in combat, the effect can be nearly the same, putting them off balance." Mooney dismissed the bullying as simple training.
Luna had worn herself out swimming after dinner and was asleep on Cain's lap, but the other Disciples were still watching the matches.
"The Sect Master is doing an incredible job on the new arena." Mariel greeted Cain as she sat down, lifting Luna's lower body to steal the sleeping girl from Cain.
Luna didn't notice at all. She just adjusted her position to curl up into Mariel's arms and continued to snore softly.
[Strong motherly instinct and a natural with children. Good news, good news.] The Laughing God's voice spoke in Cain's mind.
[You really are interested in her, aren't you? How long do we have before we have to go?] Cain replied.
[Not more than a day or two if you're going to be on the safe side. You should leave a gift for the Seaside Sect, though, something to earn some goodwill in case you want to return to this world in the future.]
[That's an excellent idea. They're learning their own method of creating the arena, but I am sure that I can come up with something that they would enjoy.] Cain agreed.
[Why not go with something simple? A direct buff to Lycans would gather a lot of the Sect Master's people to him, and it would give him enough of a pack that they could participate in the mating game if someone found an Immortal Bride.] The Laughing God suggested.
[The Mating Game?]
Cain sensed the amusement on the Creator's side before he answered. [I will tell you all about it when you get here. But for now, pick something that will give him an edge in gathering Lycans.]
Cain felt the mental link disconnect and returned his thoughts to the real world, where the fight in the arena was just ending, with the winner being sent to the recovery room for blood loss only a few seconds after the loser.
"You were distracted. What's on your mind?" Mariel asked.
"An appropriate parting gift for the Sect. I'm almost out of time in this world."
Read lat𝙚st chapters at fre(𝒆)webnovel.com Only