578 Assemble the Cooks, a Match in the Kitchen!

To think that the knife would actually cause his cleaver to resonate...

The middle-aged man narrowed his eyes. After taking a closer look at the knife, he was quickly taken aback. It was no ordinary knife, but a very rare knife from Valley of Gluttony. Not only was it a spiritual sagacity blade especially used by masters to polish blades, but it was also impossible to find it outside the Valley of Gluttony.

Simply put, even the Supreme Blade Tyrant's Slaughter God Blade was merely a spiritual sagacity blade. He had managed to obtain the blade by going to the Valley of Gluttony with the required materials and having a master forge the Slaughter God Blade.

With the Slaughter God Blade, the Supreme Blade Tyrant's combat power and strength had increased significantly; he had used the blade to slaughter countless spirit beasts, even a Divine Beast.

However, the ashen black knife in that young man's hand was able to resonate with his spiritual sagacity blade. Just what kind of knife was that?　　

The middle-aged man stared so intensely; it was almost as if he wanted to see right through Bu Fang's knife. However, no matter how intensely he stared, the knife remained ever so black. There was no trace of enchantments around it; it was just an ordinary-looking knife.

The Slaughter God Blade was sent into the system's dimensional storage. As soon as the violent blade entered the storage, it quieted down.

Bu Fang skilfully displayed his knife skills when his eyes fell on the high-grade belly meat. The peak level Divine Physique Echelon spirit beast's meat was valuable.

It was the most valuable ingredient Bu Fang had encountered so far. Of course, that was without counting the Golden Phoenix Egg in his system's dimensional storage.

Suddenly, Bu Fang sensed a gaze fixed on him, and he turned to look in its direction.

Oh?

Bu Fang spotted the middle-aged man, and their gazes met.

The man's lips curled to a side, revealing a coy smile. His Ice Crystal Cleaver glowed with a glaring brilliance.

Bu Fang's interest in the middle-aged man's cleaver was instantly piqued. As though sensing the new target of Bu Fang's gaze, the middle-aged man waved his cleaver and smiled at Bu Fang.

However, Bu Fang expressionlessly turned away. Although he found the man's cleaver visually amazing, the man's smile made him uncomfortable.

After retracting his gaze, Bu Fang turned serious and began to handle the ingredients. The opportunity to cook such a valuable ingredient was something Bu Fang thought was not too bad. The Golden Dragon Bone Kitchen Knife twirled in his grasp before he got a tight grip on its handle, while his other hand held the meat firmly on the chopping board.

The meat had a layer of black carapace, and beneath it was the greasy meat, which was rich in spirit energy.

Bu Fang pressed down on the meat before piercing it with the tip of his knife. Sliding the knife back and forth skilfully, Bu Fang quickly separated the meat from the carapace.

His moves were as fluid as a stream clear flowing water, which had no traces of mud.

The middle-aged man, who was observing him from a distance, narrowed his eyes, watching Bu Fang's skillfully use his knife. Could it be that this lad was a chef as well?

The man's mouth twitched slightly, and his heart burned with interest. If he really was a chef, then the challenge, this time, wouldn't be boring, after all. He turned his cleaver and pierced the point between the carapace and the meat, and with movements as fluid as Bu Fang's, in the next moment, he smoothly separated the meat and the carapace.

After the separation was done, the middle-aged man's expression became serious. He repeatedly swung his cleaver at the meat, dicing it into cubes.

The diced meat was clean and smooth. If one paid close attention, they would see a thin layer of ice crystals above the meat cubes.

Bu Fang, on the other hand, sliced his meat calmly. He was skilled with a knife and easily cut the meat into many fine slices. Once he was done, the knife was sent swiftly across the chopping board, and the meat was settled on the blade.

What was the best dish to make for this meat?

The Red Braised Meat, no doubt. Since he was dealing with meat brimming with spirit energy, it would taste absolutely delicious after being made into Red Braised Meat.

Bu Fang initially wanted to use his Black Turtle Constellation Wok, but seeing that there was already a wok on the stove, he decided to use that. He also did not use his Heaven and Earth Obsidian Flame; instead, he simply ignited the flame in the stove. The fire emerged, and the temperature of the wok rose rapidly.

When the temperature finally rose to the right level, Bu Fang poured the meat into the wok.

Fizzle!

The fizzling sounds were loud, and fumes from the wok rose to the sky.

...

At a distance, the middle-aged man also ignited his stove. His diced meat rested atop the blade of his cleaver, and when his wok became hot enough, he tipped the meat into it.

Surprisingly, he had chosen the cook the same thing as Bu Fang—Red Braised Meat.

However, unlike Bu Fang, the flame he chose to use was his own flame, which was currently burning with vigor.

The aroma of the meat quickly permeated the air around the wok.

He was satisfied. The meat of a peak-level Divine Physique Echelon spirit beast was a rare ingredient, and with the secrets of the Valley of Gluttony, not only was the aroma of the dishes he made preserved greatly, but he could also enhance their flavors drastically.

Fizzle.

The wok was tilted, and the flames beneath rose to the sky. Its fiery glow reflected on his face, illuminating the confident smile on it.

As a chef of the Valley of Gluttony, he believed his cooking skills were the absolute best outside the Hidden Dragon Royal Court, and no one could surpass him.

Other than Bu Fang and the middle-aged man, many others remained stuck. The saintess from Ancient Shura City trembled as she held the kitchen knife. She slowly and cautiously cut her meat. The knife she used was the one provided along with the stove. It was her first time holding a knife, and it felt magical in her hand. She bent over and her hair hung loosely, covering her delicate face, and it made her appearance more mysterious.

Cooking... really wasn't easy for the Saintess of the Ancient Shura City.

However, the group suffering the most was the alchemists. They stared at their chunks of meat blankly. Other than staring at it, what else could they do? Were they supposed to turn the meat into pills?

Funnily enough, even if the meat could be refined into pills, what kind of pills would they be? Could they be eaten?

This thought made the alchemists anxious. Left with no other options, they each took a knife and began to cut their meat. It did take too long before shrieks pierced the air; some of the alchemists had accidentally cut their fingers. Some alchemists embarrassed themselves even more. Instead of removing the meat from the carapace, they threw it directly into the wok.

A moment later, the smell of burnt meat permeated the air. The man who had just burnt his meat stood foolishly still.

In this kitchen, there were all kinds of emotions on display.

The Supreme Blade Tyrant stood at a distance with a smile on his face as he watched the contestants cook. The smile on his face widened as more time passed.

Bang!!

Suddenly, a blast resounded through the area.

Someone's black wok had exploded, and its lid soared into the sky, closely accompanied by an unpleasant stench.

The wok belonged to another alchemist, who could do nothing but stare at the lid flying into the air. He had always believed that such explosions could only happen during pill refinement; he never knew that woks could suffer the same fate!

"What a blast; you're disqualified. You'll be staying here with me," the Supreme Blade Tyrant gently said to the man, with a grin on his face.

When the alchemist heard that, his pupils dilated, and he screamed before attempting to flee.

However, his body was instantly restrained.

With a loud bang, his head exploded.

He had become another headless cook.

Fresh blood splattered on the contestants around him. Frightened from the shock, they almost dropped their laddle. 

The Supreme Blade Tyrant... was really a madman!

Although death was inevitable when fighting for an inheritance, such blatant cruelty made the contestants frightened.

When Bu Fang saw what happened, he frowned in disgust.

When the middle-aged man glanced at the headless cook, his lips curled upward, into a disdainful smile. These losers... were just weak.

Fizzle!

The middle-aged man grabbed a lid and covered his wok. The flames dissipated, and a thunderous roar resounded within the wok. When the roar reached the man's ears, his eyes narrowed. After a while, he raised the lid, and a rich aroma escaped the wok.

The people around could not help but pause to take a whiff of the tempting aroma.

"What a wonderful aroma…"

"So meat can really be cooked till it emits such a fragrant aroma. But why does mine smell a little bitter?"

"Nonsense! Mine's still a little sour!"

...

The people around began to whisper amongst themselves as they looked at the food cooking in their own woks. Some were even speechless. They felt that their cooking was somewhat different.

When the aroma from the middle-aged man's wok reached Bu Fang's nostrils, his heart lurched, and he turned to look at the man, with a slightly raised eyebrow. 

This was the aroma of an authentic Red Braised Meat. It was enough to cause Bu Fang to be taken aback, but despite that, he knew his own Red Braised Meat would not be inferior. However, he never expected the Hidden Dragon Continent to contain someone who could cook such a dish!

That middle-aged man looked at Bu Fang and smiled.

Fizzle...

After tilting the wok for a bit, the man began to stir the dish. When he was done, he scooped out the Red Braised Meat out of the wok and tipped it into a porcelain bowl he had prepared earlier.

After that, he poured some savory broth into the bowl, thus completing his Red Braised Meat dish.

Many of those around him were awed by the dish. It was just like an art.

The Saintess flicked her hair behind herself. She was finally done cutting her meat. Although the meat had been chopped into different sizes, she was done cutting it.

She had been paying close attention to Bu Fang's action and memorized the steps he had taken so far. This had inspired a little confidence in her, with which she currently used to cook. She believed that Bu Fang was the only chef there. If she could not learn from him, then who else would she learn from?

However, contrary to her belief, Bu Fang was not the only chef there; there were many other chefs there as well.

The two contestants using the stoves in front completed their dishes at this point.

Their dishes were also aromatic.

After that, both contestants turned around. One was skinny, and the other was fat. These two were the two brothers Ah Lu and Ah Wei.

"Brother, look over there. Isn't that uncle?"

After completing his dish, Ah Lu took out a chicken drumstick and stuffed it into his mouth. When he spotted the middle-aged man, he hurriedly patted the person next to him.

However, Ah Wei did not seem to have heard Ah Lu's words. His attention was fully focused on Bu Fang, and the flames in his eyes lit up.

"Even Owner Bu's here? What a coincidence. Finally, I'll be able to have another cooking match with Owner Bu!"

This was a real match between chefs!

At that moment, Bu Fang slowly lifted the lid off his pot.

The fragrance boiling inside the wok was released instantly.