Chapter 971 - Brother Tong Cheng, Come Sit With Us
Chapter 971: Brother Tong Cheng, Come Sit With Us
Translator: Zenobys, CatatoPatch
What’s that smell?
Did they get the wrong door? Is this place not a restaurant? Is it a toilet instead?
The four of them had yet to prepare their minds when they pushed the door open, so upon smelling the thick stench, they were shocked out of their minds.
Xuanyuan Xiahui’s muscles shivered, and he could not help stepping backward.
Xuanyuan Xuan, who was standing beside him, couldn’t help using her hand to cover her mouth.
Although Mu Liuer was able to bear the smell, her smile had long since disappeared. She begrudgingly checked the invitation in her hand to see if she had gone to the wrong place.
Manager Chen’s face had turned even darker. When he exhaled, green veins emerged on his forehead, making him resemble a barrel of dynamite.
The onlookers that followed them were startled. Then, their gazes fell on the restaurant.
They turned their heads and exchanged looks, seeing the awed looks in each other’s faces.
Is this a restaurant owned by a hermit Immortal Chef?
It had attracted even the newly-promoted Immortal Chef Xuanyuan Xiahui and the other elders of the Immortal Kitchen Pavilion.
The news spread fast. Many people squinted their eyes, masking the excited glints within.
The news was spread even faster. In just a short while, a large number of people began to gather in front of the kitchen.
“See? It’s a famous restaurant!”
“My God! Since when did this sort of restaurant open in such a remote corner?”
“It has a name? Unbelievable! If it has a name, does that mean it was opened by an Immortal Chef?”
“Wow! Look at the name! For real? An Immortal Chef managing a restaurant so close to us?”
The crowd discussed among themselves spiritedly. They couldn’t wait to get into the restaurant to enjoy its good food.
However, many of them were hesitant. They didn’t dare to get in.
Xuanyuan Xiahui and the others had to exert much effort to step inside the restaurant. When they saw the interior, their eyes lit up.
It was different from the typical restaurants. This restaurant was really small, but the dining tables were arranged in a circle in front of the kitchen.
When people first saw this arrangement, they were really surprised.
Xuanyuan Xiahui strolled around the restaurant with bated breath. Shortly after, he saw the menu on the wall, and his eyes brightened.
“Hotpot, barbeque, Blood Lobsters... It’s all here. I’ve tasted the Blood Lobsters. It was spicy but very delicious.”
However, at that moment, the aroma of Spicy Blood Lobsters was nowhere to be perceived. Instead, the air within the restaurant was filled with a disgusting stench.
“Is this something a chef should cook?! It stinks to high heaven! It’s simply a humiliation to his chef status!” Manager Chen was infuriated, and his face darkened.
A chef ought to cook dishes that smell delicious to trigger the appetites of customers. For this chef, cooking something that smelled this bad was nothing more than humiliating for his career!
Mu Liuer just watched indifferently.
Xuanyuan Xuan wanted to say something, but she was so nauseated that she could not open her mouth. She was afraid that she would puke the moment she opened it.
Currently, there were two people sitting at the table.
One was a young, handsome man, who looked a little gloomy. He was holding a pair of chopsticks, which he used to pick food on a plate in front of him.
The other was bald and looked fierce.
They recognized the bald guy. He was the one who gave them the invitation.
At that moment, a plate was placed in front of the two. On the plate were black cubes stacked atop each other, dressed with a kind of sticky sauce.
Both men were shoving the black cubes, which were coated in the sticky, black dressing, into their mouths.
As they filled their mouths with the food, the men would chew so noisily that the sounds reached the ears of everyone present.
When Xuanyuan Xiahui’s group realized that it was this dish that was giving off the horrible stench, their expressions instantly changed.
Those cubes smelled no different than a turd...
“They... Are they eating turds?” Xuanyuan Xuan asked with fear in her voice. She was watching Nether King Er Ha and the Black Dragon King with wide eyes.
Xuanyuan Xiahui pursed his lips, and his expression became serious.
As a chef, his mentality was different from Xuanyuan Xuan’s and the others. He noticed the expressions of satisfaction that appeared on the faces of Nether King Er Ha and the Black Dragon King after they had eaten those black cubes.
The dish had delighted them mentally and physically.
Manager Chen reacted in the same way. As an Immortal Chef test judge, he understood what customers considered the most important role of a dish—it should delight them.
The corners of Mu Liuer’s mouth curled into a smile.
Indeed, Bu Fang was always Bu Fang. This mortal chef never ceased to surprise people.
Ding! Ding! Ding!
The bell hanging on the kitchen door frame jingled.
Bu Fang walked out of the kitchen, wiping his wet hands with a cloth as he calmly walked forward. It looked like the disgusting stench in the air had no effect on him at all.
When Bu Fang saw Xuanyuan Xiahui’s group standing by the door, he blinked in surprise.
“Come. Have a seat there,” Bu Fang said to them.
A smile immediately appeared on Xuanyuan Xiahui’s face. “Congratulations on opening your new restaurant, Bu Fang!”
After saying that, Xuanyuan Xiahui brought Xuanyuan Xuan along with him to sit opposite Nether King Er Ha.
They sat down, facing the kitchen.
As they were now closer to the area giving off the disgusting stench, they began to doubt their existence.
Even with Xuanyuan Xiahui’s persistence, he could not stifle his frown. He found it difficult to imagine how these two could eat this kind of food.
Manager Chen sat down as well, his face dark. He glanced at Bu Fang, snorted, and looked away.
He wasn’t pleased seeing Bu Fang do all this. He thought that, at this time, Bu Fang should be practicing his hardest for the Immortal Chef test instead of acting like a moth that was trying to conduct a bizarre kind of ritual.
Mu Liuer, on the other hand, smiled with delight.
“You guys wait a minute,” Bu Fang said to the group of four, showing them a slight smile. After that, he turned around and walked back to his kitchen.
The four glanced at each other, and their faces suddenly changed.
Did Bu Fang intend to cook that dish with the heaven-defying stench for them?
Could they refuse him?
Ding! Ding! Ding!
The bell jingled once again as Bu Fang walked out of the kitchen.
They hadn’t guessed wrong. The plate placed in front of them was filled with ink-black tofu cubes dressed in black sticky sauce.
The dish with the heaven-defying stench...
Bu Fang placed his hands on the table and bent slightly, saying to them, “This is just an appetizer. Enjoy yourselves. No need to be polite.”
Who wants to be polite to you? Can we not eat this?
Fear filled Xuanyuan Xuan’s eyes as she covered her mouth.
The others looked awkward as well.
“Owner Bu...”
“Trust me... Do not be fooled by its smell and appearance. What you’re seeing might not be the truth. You should be able to see the dish’s nature through its exterior,” Bu Fang said.
The group of four were dumbstruck.
His words were smooth and logical, and surprisingly, they had nothing to say in reply.
Mu Liuer looked a little strange, but she said nothing. Instead, she was the first to grab her chopsticks to pick up a tofu cube.
The black sauce smeared all over the cube, dripping down.
Mu Liuer gulped before opening her mouth and shoving the tofu cube into it.
Xuanyuan Xuan went wide-eyed in disbelief.
What?
Mu Liuer thought that the moment the cube entered her mouth, the stench would make her puke. However, beyond her expectations, a very fragrant aroma wafted out as soon as she tasted it.
It smelled so good. The fragrant aroma spread from her mouth to the rest of her body, and her mind suddenly felt refreshed. It was as though her soul had just been cleansed.
She chewed the soft tofu and swallowed it. Its thick, savory juice, which had just been smeared all over the interior of her mouth, lit up her taste buds.
“Good... Delicious!” Mu Liuer exclaimed. She had looked bewildered at first, but a moment later, her eyes had lit up.
She looked at Bu Fang, excitement evident on her face.
This mortal chef was... indeed extraordinary!
This tofu could cleanse one’s soul. At that moment, she could feel her spirit sea sink and congeal.
For Divine Spirit Realm experts, the congealing of the spirit sea was very important. Not only would it increase their mental force, but it would also strengthen their cultivation base.
Xuanyuan Xiahui’s pupils dilated. Mu Liuer’s reaction had exceeded his expectations.
Was it...
Making up his mind, he used his chopsticks to pick up a cube of stinky tofu, which he promptly shoved into his mouth.
Umm...
He swallowed just as fast, and it was then he understood the thrill he had seen in Mu Liuer’s eyes.
Bu Fang... In the end, the dishes he brought to people were unexpected but delicious.
This creation had broken the norms of gourmet dishes. He was at a complete loss for words.
Although he was a newly-promoted Immortal Chef, he knew that his creativity could not hold a candle to Bu Fang’s.
He didn’t know why, but he had a firm belief that Bu Fang would astound people at the Immortal Chef test!
...
At the gate of Immortal Chef Little Store
A crowd of people had gathered at the gate, waiting for Xuanyuan Xiahui’s group to exit the restaurant.
Suddenly, the crowd raised an uproar.
The sounds of hooves rang out, and a moment later, a brigade with horses arrived.
Tong Cheng had arrived with a dark expression, turning as he jumped off his Thunder Dragon Horse. Clasping his hands, he scanned the crowd.
His gaze settled on the little restaurant.
“Is this the restaurant that that mortal opened? Haha! Trash, that’s what it is. Small and narrow,” Tong Cheng said with a sneer.
The onlookers sucked in breaths of cold air.
“It’s Immortal Chef Tong Cheng from the famous Tong family!”
“Wow! Another Immortal Chef arrived. This little restaurant must have an extraordinary background!”
“I’m so curious. Who is its owner?”
As the onlookers discussed, they became even more excited.
Tong Cheng didn’t care about the crowd. With his hands clasped at his back, he walked into the restaurant wearing a cold face.
He wanted to see how surprised that mortal would be at his arrival. That Bu Fang probably never imagined that he, Tong Cheng, would return.
Now, he could humiliate that mortal.
Squeak.
His two guards helped him push the restaurant’s doors open, exchanging looks before going in.
The moment Tong Chen entered the restaurant... his brows furrowed, his nose crinkled, and his face darkened.
What kind of smell is that?
Why is it so disgusting?
Tong Cheng looked dumbfounded. When the odor permeated his nostrils, it felt like his stomach was contorting, as though someone was trying to move the mountains and rivers in there.
His guards could no longer stand the stench as they hurriedly covered their mouths.
Their pupils dilated when they spotted a table where several people were seated.
Xuanyuan Xiahui, Manager Chen, and Mu Liuer... were all eating the stinky dish to their hearts’ content.
Were they eating turds? Tong Cheng was at a loss for words.
Xuanyuan Xiahui used his chopsticks to grab a cube of stinky tofu, which he shoved into his mouth. As he chewed and swallowed, his face revealed a blissful expression.
As though he had sensed something, Xuanyuan Xiahui turned towards the door and saw Tong Cheng. Although he was surprised, he smiled.
“Brother Tong Cheng, come and sit with us.”
As Xuanyuan Xiahui was grinning, Tong Cheng could see the pieces of black tofu in his mouth. This made him suck in a breath of cold air.
However, the horrible stench attacked his nostrils instantly.
As someone with germophobia, at that moment, Tong Cheng almost collapsed.
Bleeeuuurrrggghh!
That smell!
Can’t stand it!
Tong Cheng looked like he had just swallowed turds. His desire to humiliate Bu Fang had vanished into thin air. He turned around, pushing the doors open and storming out.
His guards hurried after him.
“Bleeeuuurrrggghh!”
As soon as Tong Cheng rushed out of the door, he could not hold the contents of his stomach in and vomited!
Damn it!
That mortal had been prepared to nauseate him!
Tong Cheng was enraged!
Suddenly, he had a bad premonition. Turning around, he saw his guards rushing out of the restaurant with their eyes bulged and their mouths open.
“Shut your mouth!” Tong Cheng shouted.
However...
Blargh! Blargh!
Tong Cheng felt as though the sky was about to fall.
The crowd outside was frightened as they watched the events unfolding in front of the restaurant.
Oh God. What happened... How come it was so... explosive?