Initially, many people came here to buy the flatbread only, but after they tasted the other dishes in the restaurant, they were instantly hooked. In the end, they were queuing up to taste the delicious dishes as well.
The economy of Yellow Spring City was booming because of a small restaurant. As if there was a tacit understanding, the stalls that did very well at night would not appear during the day because they knew that the day belonged to that restaurant.
Today, however, there was a lot of noise in the queue. Usually, the restaurant was already open at this hour. It had a day off yesterday, but it was still not open today. That struck many people as a bit odd.
People were talking noisily. Some guessed that the restaurant owner overslept, while others thought that he might be out of town. No matter what they guessed, the door remained closed.
Some people decided not to wait and turned to leave the line they had been queuing for a long time. However, shortly after they left, the restaurant door opened.
Everyone’s face beamed instantly, and they looked into the door. The next moment, a graceful figure emerged.
With black hair framing her face, Nethery’s long eyelashes fluttered slightly as she said, “You needn’t wait. The restaurant will not open today.”
The sounds of sighs filled the air. The customers who had been waiting in line for a long time all felt a little disappointed and upset. They thought the owner of the restaurant finally opened the door, but it turned out to be a girl who came out to tell them the disappointing news.
Nethery’s manner was cold, and her words were very concise. Having said what she meant to say, she closed the door again. Inside the restaurant, she frowned and felt a little confused.
“Where did Bu Fang go?”
…
A great palace sat among the mountains. The Black Temple looked very shabby and was covered in dust. It seemed that no one had lived in it for tens of thousands of years, but in fact, it had only been turned into this miserable state about two weeks ago. The reason why it appeared so dilapidated was because of the Power of the Laws.
The Power of the Laws was somewhat similar to that of the Time Gourmet Array, but it was more profound. Before this, there were indeed experts living in the Black Temple, but because its master had fallen, all the living beings in it were wiped out, and it had turned shabby. It was as if those experts had never lived in the Black Temple.
This was the unfathomable effect of the Power of the Laws. It had erased all traces of those experts who once lived here as if they had died thousands of years ago.
Bu Fang walked slowly with his hands behind his back, kicking up dust with every step. The silent Black Temple was like a sleeping beast that had hidden its claws. After wandering around for a while, he had a general understanding of everything here.
Black Temple was already a very powerful force ten thousand years ago. Although it had now been obliterated, many of its things were left behind. In some secret rooms, Bu Fang found books of cultivation techniques and books with histories of ten thousand years ago. Unfortunately, the contents of these books disappeared after Black Demon was dead, and even the information recorded in them by experts of later generations was erased by the Power of the Laws. Therefore, he didn’t really get anything.
There was a surprise, though. Bu Fang found the kitchen. It was huge, with a whole row of orderly arranged stoves. They were relatively primitive stoves and needed to pump air manually. In addition, he also found some wine jars in the cellar.
He took out a jar of wine and slapped the lid off. A strong bouquet immediately wafted out. The wine was not very good, but its quality had been greatly improved due to its long storage time. Actually, these wines had long been drunk, but the Power of the Laws had restored everything to ten thousand years ago, the moment before Black Temple became a forbidden land.
Bu Fang produced out a cup and filled it with the wine. The liquor was transparent and looked quite sweet. He took a sip. It was spicy, but it also had a strong bouquet that made him feel comfortable.
Compared with the supreme-grade Yellow Spring Helplessness Wine, this wine was nothing. However, because it had been stored for a long time, it had become good wine. Some wines would be mellower and tastier the longer they were kept, and this was one of them.
He brought all the wine jars back to the great hall.
Yellow Spring Great Sage was reclining in a lounge chair, toying with his jade wine jar. When he saw Bu Fang, his eyes widened, “Where did you find so many jars of wine?” he asked with a gasp.
He was surprised to see Bu Fang bring back what looked like the contents of an entire cellar.
In fact, Bu Fang did empty the whole wine cellar.
“Would you like a jar of wine?” Bu Fang glanced at Yellow Spring Great Sage and threw a wine jar at him.
“How can this ordinary wine taste better than the wine in my hand?” Yellow Spring Great Sage took the jar, but he smiled disdainfully as if he despised the wine Bu Fang had offered him.
Bu Fang ignored him and took out the White Tiger Heaven Stove. Now that he had wine, he needed some side dishes to go with it. He was rather experienced in cooking dishes that went with wine.
After lighting the fire in the stove, he poured water into the wok. While waiting for the water to boil, he began to prepare ingredients.
Bu Fang exchanged some chicken feet from the System. They were not large, about medium-sized. Chicken feet that were too large were difficult to infuse with flavor, and those smaller ones were not enough to satisfy the appetite. Medium-sized chicken feet were just right.
The Dragon Bone Kitchen Knife spun in his hand, radiating a brilliant golden light. Bu Fang now wielded his knife very fast, and his knife skill had reached a mastery level. This was the result of regular practice. Under the sharp edge of the knife, the claws of each chicken foot were all cut off. After that, he put them into a wooden basin and began to clean them.
The cleaning step also required skills. He added spirit vinegar to the water. A sour smell immediately filled the air, causing Yellow Spring Great Sage to twitch his nose in the distance. Then, he began to scrub and clean the chicken feet.
After soaking, cleaning, and scrubbing the chicken feet, all impurities were removed from them, and the meat and bone were separated. Next, he blanched them, drained them, and laid them flat on a plate for later use.
What Bu Fang needed to prepare next was the braising liquid, which was the essence of this dish.
He took out a large piece of rhino meat and used it to make a stock. The meat came from Yellow Spring Great Sage, who picked it up from the battlefield of the stars. After the stock was made, he put together eighteen precious spirit herbs and boiled them into a golden brown liquid. When both were ready, he mixed the stock and the liquid together and added the rhino meat he used to make the stock.
The next step was the preparation of spices. For Bu Fang, it was an easy job because he had a good understanding of spices. After adding spices to the braising liquid, he mixed in some minced Exploding Flame Pepper and Son Mother Ginger.
Soon, the braising liquid was done. The liquid boiled in the wok, giving off a plume of steam and an attractive aroma of herbs.
Looking at the boiling liquid, Bu Fang added the chicken feet into it and reduced the temperature by making the flames burn slower. If the temperature was too high, the skin of the chicken feet would burst open, which would affect the appearance and taste. Temperature control was also a very important skill in cooking.
In the following braising process, he added various ingredients, such as Spirit Star Anise, more minced Son Mother Ginger and Exploding Flame Pepper, and some other spices.
Over time, the liquid thickened, and the chicken feet turned dark brown. They now seemed to be coated in a layer of liquid sugar, glistening and looking very delicious.
The braised chicken feet were finally ready. Bu Fang took them all out of the wok, drained them, and placed them in a blue-and-white porcelain plate, stacking one atop another.
Yellow Spring Great Sage was already stunned as he watched Bu Fang cook. The delicious fragrance in the air made his stomach growl, and he suddenly felt very hungry.
“Bu Fang, my little friend, what is this dish called? Is it the dish that goes with wine you mentioned?”
Yellow Spring Great Sage wiped the drool from the corners of his mouth with the back of his hand. He couldn’t wait to try this dish. The chicken feet were braised with the liquid made of the rhino meat, which was actually the flesh of a Nine-revolution Great Saint. Just thinking about it was enough to fill him with excitement.
Bu Fang sat in a chair, slapped the lid off a jar of wine, and then gave Yellow Spring Great Sage a sideways glance. He didn’t say anything but just picked up a chicken foot and took a bite off it. The skin was tender, the bones were not tough, and the tendons were very chewy. He could easily crunch them with his teeth.
After finishing it, he took a swallow of the wine. The mellow liquor and the tasty chicken feet filled his heart with happiness.
“This dish is called braised chicken feet. It goes perfectly with wine.” After saying that, Bu Fang continued eating and drinking.
Yellow Spring Great Sage couldn’t bear it anymore. He grabbed a chicken foot and began chewing it, filling the air with crunching sounds. He didn’t even spit the bones. Then, he took a swallow of the wine and let out a sigh of satisfaction.
With wine jars in hand, the two of them ate the chicken feet. Soon, the floor was littered with chicken bones and empty wine jars.
If Lord Dog knew that they were happily eating chicken feet and drinking wine here, he would probably have a nervous breakdown. He asked them to protect him from being disturbed, not to have a feast. Of course, he didn’t know what they were doing, and Bu Fang and Yellow Spring Great Sage didn’t care.
The sound of crunching chicken bones and drinking echoed in the silent great hall, and from time to time, there was a burp from Yellow Spring Great Sage.
…
The sky in Earth Prison was torn apart. A terrifying pressure filled the air, and then a silver sword flew out of the rift in the void and sped away in a flash.
On the silver sword stood an old man in a gray robe. An old gourd hung on his waist. Although it looked very shabby, it was the source of the old man’s confidence.
Even Tyrant Patriarch died in Bu Fang’s hand. How could he be so ignorant as to come to Earth Prison and get himself killed? Without this gourd, he would not have come here again. It was a different story, however, now that he had it, for the gourd was something left behind by that man…
Soon, Sword Demon Patriarch saw the huge Black Temple and the invisible vortex rotating above it.
“Nether Puppeteer was right… That dog is really making a breakthrough!”
Hovering in midair, he narrowed his eyes and looked at the Black Temple below the vortex. His gaze passed through the walls and saw Bu Fang and Yellow Spring Great Sage, who were eating chicken feet and drinking wine in the great hall.
“Hmm? Sure enough, someone is guarding him…”
When Sword Demon Patriarch saw Bu Fang, his body gave a shiver—he instantly recalled Tyrant Patriarch’s death. Then, he brought the gourd up, gave it a swirl, and uncorked it. A scarlet drop of liquid immediately floated out of the gourd.
“The Heaven-defying Fortune Wine… I can finally taste you.”
A look of desire emerged in Sword Demon Patriarch’s eyes, and he snapped his finger. The liquid drop immediately flew into his mouth and burst into a strong bouquet.
Suddenly, a terrible aura exploded out in the sky.
Bu Fang and Yellow Spring Great Sage, who were drinking and eating chicken feet, stopped and looked up into the sky. Their eyes fell on Sword Demon Patriarch standing on a silver sword.
