Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
The System’s serious voice rang out in Bu Fang’s ears, but it was different. It became a little muffled.
‘What’s the matter?’ Bu Fang frowned. ‘System, are you having a problem?’ He could not help but ask the System in his mind.
Rumble…
All of a sudden, Bu Fang’s spirit sea underwent a dramatic change. Terrifying rumbling sounds echoed out continuously as if mountains were collapsing and seas were churning, while all the Artifact Spirits became restless.
This abnormal phenomenon struck him as a little odd. There were not so many problems in the past. With a thought, his consciousness entered his spirit sea.
At that moment, great waves rose and swept across the vast spirit sea, and the Artifact Spirits were tumbling in it.
Qilin stood snarling in the middle of the spirit sea, causing the water to keep churning. Golden Dragon wriggled his body, and Vermilion Bird flapped her wings and kept crying. White Tiger roared and kept jumping, while Black Turtle was slowly rising from the depths of the spirit sea.
“What’s happening?” Bu Fang was confused. “What are the Artifact Spirits doing? Dancing?” Suddenly, he lifted his head and looked above him.
There, the pages of the God of Cooking’s Menu were turning. The true form of his divine sense, sitting cross-legged over it, opened its eyes, which shone like the God of Cooking’s Eye as they scanned the menu. The data in the menu kept pouring into his eyes.
Bu Fang calmed down and watched quietly. He wanted to see what was going to happen.
Boom!
Suddenly, he heard an explosion, and then he found that his spirit sea began to slowly collapse. The true form of his divine sense broke apart and kept disintegrating, while the God of Cooking’s Menu was crushed into pieces. The destruction spread and gradually worked its way down, causing the spirit sea to crumble inch by inch…
Rumble…
Bu Fang’s eyes suddenly went dark. Soon, he fell into a deep sleep, completely unaware of what happened next. Before losing his consciousness, he heard the System’s serious voice again.
‘System upgrade begins…”
…
Bu Fang did not know how long he had slept. When he opened his eyes, he felt light-headed as if he had a bad cold. But he should not be feeling that. He had forgotten how long it had been since he had been ill.
He tried to use his divine sense, but he found that his body was so heavy that he could not move at all. He could not even lift a finger. His spirit sea was dead silent, with no spiritual fluctuations at all, and neither the Artifact Spirits nor the true form of his divine sense responded.
‘What’s going on?’
Bu Fang was really confused. He had spent so much effort returning to Earth to get the sleeping Artifact Spirits, only to have them all disappear as soon as he returned. What kind of joke was this? All his efforts were in vain. And where was the System, the culprit behind this?
He struggled to his feet and leaned back in a chair.
It was still dark outside. At the moment, he was lying in the restaurant without anyone noticing him. Foxy and Shrimpy were on his stomach, looking at him with wide eyes. Whitey stood in the distance, its mechanical eyes flashing.
Bu Fang’s mind was confused. He needed time to gather his thoughts.
He called out to the System, but it did not respond. He sensed his strength. The power inside him could still be used, and it was still at the level of a God Emperor. However, he was completely unable to use his divine sense and mental force as if they had been completely wiped out.
He frowned. If his memory served him right, he was about to level up before he fell into a coma because he had completed the turnover required by the System.
Only he knew how difficult it was to accumulate the turnover this time. He had to sell almost an entire Soul Overlord to rake in a sufficient turnover.
However, this was what he got in the end… He felt as if he were dreaming.
The sky was getting brighter as the sun rose slowly over the horizon, shining brilliantly. Countless people scrambled toward the restaurant.
Bu Fang was a little dazed. Could he still cook delicious dishes after losing his mental force? Was he going to close the restaurant? He took a deep breath, his expression unchanged.
There was nothing he could do now about his missing mental force, so he chose to continue the day’s business. He thought he could take this opportunity to verify something. He stepped into the kitchen.
The Crown Prince had arrived to keep order in the restaurant. He seemed to notice that something was wrong with Bu Fang and was looking suspiciously at him as he walked into the kitchen. However, he did not ask anything but began his work.
Foxy and Shrimpy sat on the counter. They looked at Bu Fang, then at the guests whose faces were filled with frenzy. They were not ignorant. At their level, they were almost humans. There was worry in their eyes.
“Your Highness, give me Red Braised Meat! Owner Bu’s Red Braised Meat is my favorite. It’s flavorful and full of kicks!” the head of an aristocratic family said smilingly to the Crown Prince as he walked into the restaurant.
The Crown Prince, Xia Yi, nodded and took down his order. Then, he wrote down the orders for the other guests and gave the list to Bu Fang.
“Got it…”
Bu Fang’s calm voice came through the window. Xia Yi did not notice anything wrong and went on serving the other guests. Now that Nethery was gone, he had to handle everything alone when the restaurant was busy.
He did ask Bu Fang where Nethery had gone, but Bu Fang did not tell him. He sensed something unusual in the atmosphere, so he did not ask further.
The identity of the Cursed Goddess was very special, and it was recorded in many ancient books in the imperial library.
The atmosphere in the restaurant was harmonious. Several diners even put their tables together, chatting and laughing about the deliciousness of the food and the recent major events in the capital.
Xia Yi went to the window, took a bowl of Red Braised Meat, and walked toward them. The translucent meat looked perfect. The Crown Prince, however, was slightly taken aback when he saw it. He noticed that Bu Fang’s dishes today seemed to be out of standard and not as spiritual as before.
However, he did not know much about cooking, so he just shook his head, brought the Red Braised Meat to the family head, and set it down on the table.
“Here’s your Red Braised Meat… Please enjoy it,” Xia Yi said.
The family head quickly put his palms together in thanks. Xia Yi nodded and went back to work.
“Hehe… I’m sorry, guys, my food is here. I’ll dig in first!” A smile lit up the face of the family head. He came to Bu Fang’s restaurant every day to eat Red Braised Meat, but sometimes, he did not get in line because he was late. He had not had the dish for several days.
In his friends’ envious eyes, he grabbed his chopsticks, picked up a piece of glowing meat, and stuffed it into his mouth.
The family head had a look of enjoyment on his face, but after chewing a few times, his face changed, his brows furrowed, and his enjoyment disappeared.
He kept chewing, trying to find the taste in his memory, but no matter how much he chewed, he could not find it.
“This…” The family head put down his chopsticks. There were still many pieces of Red Braised Meat on his plate. His brows remained furrowed, and his face turned a little unsightly. His friends did not fail to notice that.
“What’s wrong, Shen?”
“Is the dish not to your liking? It shouldn’t be… Every one of Owner Bu’s dishes is very tasty…”
“Are you unwell?”
His friends were all asking with concern. The family head shook his head and said, “No… I’m fine. It’s just that this Red Braised Meat is a bit odd. It’s not bad, but it’s a lot worse than those I’ve tasted before.”
The people around him thought he was just joking. A few moments later, their dishes were served, so they ignored him and began to enjoy their food.
Soon, however, all the people who had eaten their food stopped eating.
“Yuck… It doesn’t taste right!”
“I can still taste the fishy smell in my dish… What’s going on here?”
The diners frowned and complained with dissatisfaction. Bu Fang’s dishes had never failed them, but on this day, they were disappointed. It was as if the chef who cooked the dishes had changed overnight, and all the food had no spirit at all.
At this moment, Bu Fang came out of the kitchen, his brows furrowed. He had also realized the seriousness of the problem. After losing his divine sense, he found that the techniques he had been using in cooking were not fit to be used.
He walked up to the family head, grabbed a pair of chopsticks, picked up a piece of Red Braised Meat, and put it in his mouth. The dish was cooked with a top-grade spirit beast. It was definitely edible, but Bu Fang’s face turned ugly in an instant.
Was this really the dish he cooked? How could it taste like this?! He took a deep breath.
The Red Braised Meat did not have any spirituality. He had just taken a bite, and a greasy feeling immediately rushed into his body and mind, making him sick. It did not taste bad, but it tasted awful compared to the dishes he had cooked in the past.
The impact of the loss of divine sense on Bu Fang’s cooking was enormous.
“That’s all for today. We’re closed,” Bu Fang said seriously. He did not choose to continue cooking.
Many diners left, shaking their heads in disappointment. They did not know what had happened to Bu Fang, but they were disappointed with today’s meal.
After these diners left, the news spread like crazy, and soon, the entire capital had heard it.
Many people could not believe it. After all, Bu Fang’s dishes were like faith to them. However, this faith suddenly collapsed!
Meanwhile, the restaurants in the nearby buildings were happy. They were all ready to go out of business, and now they had seen the light ahead of them. The restaurant that could not possibly have made a mistake made a mistake—an opportunity had now been presented to them.
After learning the news, Luo Sanniang hurried to Bu Fang’s restaurant. The door of the restaurant was closed. Xia Yi sat down in a chair and looked at Bu Fang seriously. This was a serious matter. Bu Fang’s cooking was the key to holding up the restaurant, but now it had a problem.
Bu Fang sat in another chair, thinking. The impact of this incident on him was huge. Unconvinced, he continued cooking in the kitchen for another two hours.
He knew how to cook every dish, and when they were done, he tasted them all himself. However, they were unpalatable and had completely lost their former spirit and flavor.
Why did this happen? This change must have something to do with the System and the anomaly of his spirit sea!
Bu Fang scooped up some Egg-Fried Rice with a porcelain spoon. Xia Yi and Luo Sanniang tried it with him. However, as soon as they took the first bite, their expressions changed. The Crown Prince even spat out the rice in his mouth. It was too salty.
There was something really wrong with Bu Fang’s cooking. He could not even make Egg-Fried Rice, which was his best dish, taste as good as it used to be.
He was in a trance. It seemed that the disappearance of his mental force had a huge impact on his cooking skills. Where exactly did his spirit sea go?
