493 The Elimination Round’s Dish (1/2)

Creak!

Bu Fang pushed open the bronze gate in front of the Cloud Mist Restaurant.

After returning to the store and opening the gate, Bu Fang was greeted by the sight of two pitch-black eyes. Nethery was sitting in the store as she looked at him with an eager expression on her face.

Lord Dog was lying beside the Path-Understanding Fruit Tree as he slept soundly. This plump dog was fond of sleeping when it had nothing to do and it wasn't out of Bu Fang's expectation that it was still sleeping when he returned.

Nethery's eyes lit up the moment she saw Bu Fang at the entrance of the store.

”Bu Fang, I'm hungry.” Nethery opened her mouth and spoke in a cold and aloof voice.

Bu Fang was taken aback by her words for a moment. Nodding at her with an expressionless face, he turned his body and walked toward the kitchen. In just a short while, a sweet aroma permeated out of the kitchen.

As he cooked, Bu Fang was thinking about the dish he should use in the elimination round the next day. What should he use?

He was somewhat regretful that he couldn't continue to use his Stinking Tofu as he had planned to use it throughout the competition. Although it was stinky, it tasted extremely delicious. Due to the contrast in smell and taste, Bu Fang wanted to use the dish in all of the rounds. It was exactly the contrast and disparity between the extremely stinky odor and its sweet taste which would captivate more people. The principle behind it was just like how people would feel as though everything was delicious as long as they were hungry.

The reason Bu Fang wanted to use the Stinky Tofu was exactly this.

Sizzle! Sizzle! Sizzle!

The flames soared up as he stir-fried the ingredients in the wok. A sweet aroma and waves of spiritual energy came from the dish. With a flick of his wrist, he shook the wok. The Dragon Blood Rice inside the wok rolled over and after Bu Fang lowered the intensity of the flames, a steaming hot portion of Dragon Blood Rice was completed.

Shrimpy, who was lying on Bu Fang's shoulder, had been quite well-behaved recently. It was asleep most of the time. Occasionally, it would open its eyes to observe its surroundings.

All of this should be because it ate the Crystal Source Purple Essence.

After he cooked the Dragon Blood Rice, Bu Fang started making the Sweet 'n' Sour Meat Ribs for Lord Dog. If anyone were to ask Bu Fang which dishes he was the most familiar with, apart from Egg-Fried Rice, it would be the Sweet 'n' Sour Meat Ribs.

That was because he had a black dog who loved to eat the Sweet 'n' Sour Meat Ribs in his store.

After placing the two dishes on one of the tables in the store, he completely ignored the woman and dog duo who were eating happily. He returned to the kitchen and thought about the dish he should prepare for the next round of the competition.

What should he make tomorrow?

Bu Fang played with the Dragon Bone Kitchen Knife in his hand and unceasingly waved it around.

The purple eyes of Whitey, who stood before the door, were occasionally flickering. As it looked at Bu Fang, it would sometimes raise its hand and scratch its round head.

All of a sudden, Bu Fang's eyes lit up as he thought of something.

”Since I'm not allowed to make a stinky dish, then why don't I make a fragrant one?” Bu Fang curled up the corners of his mouth and he settled on such an idea.

If he was forbidden from using the extremely stinky Stinky Tofu, why shouldn't he cook an extremely fragrant dish? This way he could easily attract people's attention and spread the name of his Cloud Mist Restaurant.

The Dragon Bone Kitchen Knife twirled around Bu Fang's fingers before it fell into his palm. He firmly grasped the knife in his palm.

After thinking about the dish he would make, he became much more relaxed.

He practiced the Overlord Thirteen Blades technique for a while and cooked a portion of Red Braised Meat before returning to the dining room. He started eating it beside Nethery and Lord Dog.

After Nethery and Lord Dog ate and drank to their fill, both of them went to sleep.

Returning to his room, Bu Fang took a bath. As the dense mist which shrouded the bathroom blew into his eyes, he couldn't help but let out a breath.

.....

In the morning of the next day, Bu Fang got up early from his bed and went to prepare Nethery and Lord Dog's breakfast. After he was done preparing the food, he opened the bronze gate of the store and started his business.

As the owner of a store, Bu Fang would never waste any time he had without making money. Anyway, all of the crystals earned by him would be converted into his cultivation. Although it was early in the morning, there were still many customers who came over.

All of those customers knew that Bu Fang was participating in the Magical Hand Conference. Despite the fact that they were not optimistic about his performance, all of them encouraged him.

After all, Owner Bu was trying to challenge alchemists as a chef...

It should have been already quite difficult for him to enter into the elimination rounds. None of them hoped that he would be able to go further.

Nangong Wan and Nangong Wuque didn't come over today and after Bu Fang sold some dishes, he closed the gate to the store.

He clasped his hands behind his back and left the restaurant to participate in the rest of the elimination rounds.

That lassie, Nethery, who was barefooted and had no expression on her face, silently followed beside Bu Fang when he left the store.

Bu Fang turned his head around and silently looked at her. He really had no idea what to say to her.

This woman should have been too bored after staying in the store for such a long time.

It was Nethery's first time seeing the prosperous Heavenly Mist City's scenery. Mighty waves rose in her gaze which used to be expressionless. She was quite curious about those tall and high bronze buildings. She was also curious about those carriages pulled by spirit beasts and other things of the like.

”After a while, closely follow behind me and don't run around. After passing this round of the competition, I will take you home.”

Bu Fang felt as though he had to warn Nethery. If he didn't remind her, there was a high chance she would be lost in the city.

Nethery simply looked at Bu Fang with a calm expression even after his solemn and serious warning. She didn't do anything else or say anything.

The two of them went to the Heavenly Mist City's central plaza.

The central plaza was as bustling as usual and there was a vast crowd in it. It seemed as though there were more spectators than the first day as the preliminary round ended and the elimination rounds were starting.