Translator: CatatoPatch Editor: Vermillion
The moment he looked at Bu Fang’s masterpiece, Jun Qingxiao was somewhat absent-minded. When he saw what Bu Fang had carved, his mind shivered in a flash. He got goosebumps in his entire body and was dumbstruck at his spot.
In his mind, a giant alligator was opening its large mouth and storming toward him. The intimidation erupted instantly, making him pale. He had to take several steps backward.
So scary… What was that thing after all?
His mental energy focused to separate the images. Now, in front of Jun Qingxiao was just an exquisite-carved, white-jade radish alligator placed on Bu Fang’s table.
Bu Fang shot him a faint look and a slight grin.
“It… What’s it? How can it move?” Jun Qingxiao was much surprised. He turned to ask Bu Fang.
Move?
Bu Fang was stunned. A moment later, his grin grew bigger.
“Nah, you were dizzy. It doesn’t move,” said Bu Fang.
Jun Qingxiao didn’t believe him. He came closer to observe the white-jade alligator, then took a deep breath.
“You used those trashy radishes to carve it?” Jun Qingxiao yelled in disbelief.
He used such a trashy kitchen knife and garbage-quality white-jade radishes, yet he could create such a romantic and charming masterpiece?
This fellow…
Who was he, after all?
Jun Qingxiao lifted his head and his pupils shrank. He gazed at Bu Fang and continued to draw in more cold breath. He was somewhat panic-stricken.
The old man with the handlebar mustache took the rigid-face man and the evilly beautiful woman, walking forward. The old man looked a little serious.
The three of them, with many eyes fixing on them, walked toward Bu Fang’s station.
Jun Qingxiao was shivering inwardly. He dashed to his station, stooping his head, trying to make himself look smaller.
Seeing the three people coming to him, Bu Fang remained unchanged.
“Is this your product?” The old man with a mustache observed the white-jade alligator closely. After a while, he exhaled deeply, turning to Bu Fang and asking.
“If not me… then who else did that? If I hadn’t been given those strange-shaped trashy radishes, I wouldn’t have had the idea to carve this toy,” answered Bu Fang.
The woman standing behind the old man put on a cold face immediately. She snorted secretly as she got Bu Fang’s mocking tone.
The stiff-faced man gazed at the white-jade alligator. His pupils slightly shrank. After a long time, a hissing noise came out from his gritted teeth.
“This white-jade alligator… is so fierce. It seems to have a soul!”
“Excellent. Young people are full of vigor,” the old man didn’t talk more. His look drilled into Bu Fang for a while before he took the woman and the stiff-faced man and left.
Seeing the three of them leaving, he pulled the corners of his mouth, then parted his lips.
“Hey… How much time will this take? I’m in a hurry.”
Jun Qingxiao was dumbfounded on his side. This fellow didn’t want to live… He didn’t want to waste time! This was naked provocation!
Right at the moment Jun Qingxiao was waiting for the other masters to get angry, he found that the others had just paused for a second then continued to walk away.
“Aren’t we all…”
The old man with the handlebar mustache’s faint laughter came with the wind.
Everybody paused in the middle of their action. They were not believing when they turned to Bu Fang.
What’s going on?
Sixth Elder agreed with that kid? Did he hate their slow progress?
People became teary. Being slow… It’s not their mistake… It’s that kid who is too fast!
Many people felt somewhat indignant. However, their indignation turned into fear shortly afterward. Looking at Bu Fang, they had only fear in their hearts. This kid’s knife skill… Why was he so damn talented!
From what the Sixth Elder had said, he obviously recognized that kid’s work. He had carved a masterpiece of art within the short given time.
This kind of competence… The ordinary first-grade chef couldn’t compare to him!
Jun Qingxiao was the most horror-struck. He had thought that Bu Fang was just an average Joe. This Joe was unexpectedly really in a hurry.
The bald man looked unwilling to believe it. His work was done, but Bu Fang had somehow defeated it. A man with pride like him would feel irritated, naturally. He continually squeezed the snake spirit beast in his hand.
The snake wound its body around the bald man’s arm.
“Okay, the Knife Skill Challenge ends here! Please stop all of your actions.”
When the joss stick was burned off, their time was up. The beautiful woman asked them to stop their work. They then placed their knives on their station. The boisterous scene with so many pieces of radish meat flying around had finally stopped.
The chefs displayed their finished or unfinished works on their tables. There were so many interesting shapes, though.
The woman swayed her waist, slowly came and retrieved people’s knives. When she came to Bu Fang, seeing his calm demeanor, she couldn’t help but snort.
“This kitchen knife should be thrown away,” said Bu Fang. Then, Bu Fang threw the knife to her.
The woman caught the knife, and her face changed, looking at Bu Fang in disbelief.
“You…”
Bu Fang waved his hand, showing his reluctance.
The woman said nothing. The array carved on the knife was completely broken as if it was torn apart by some formidable force. She understood that it was because of the chef’s formidable skill that was over the knife’s bearing capacity.
This young chef’s competence… should be estimated better.
The old man with a mustache clasped his hand, walking around with the other two to grade the work of each chef.
“What’s this? Flashy but no good. Chaotic shape. Get lost!”
“Did you think you were playing with mud? What is this thing?”
“Are you stupid or what? You got a big radish and you carved me a ball? Do we need you to carve a ball?”
…
The mustached old man looked gentle but he poured his scolding on the contestants along his way. The ones who got scolded didn’t dare to look up. Their faces looked as if they had constipation.
He was the Elder and he got the right to talk. What could they do!
On his way, he had eliminated so many chefs. People thought that the Knife Skill Challenge would be easy… but the result was so brutal.
The rigid-faced man and the beautiful woman exchanged looks. They saw the reluctance in each other’s eyes.
The old man seemed hot-tempered today. Those contestants were just unlucky.
Facing the fiery man, Jun Qingxiao was so scared that he trembled hard… Indeed, this legendary Elder was really terrifying.
Could he get his approval? Too scary!
Bu Fang looked indifferent, leaning on his chair while squinting. His calm face made Jun Qingxiao even more anxious.
The old man finally walked to Jun Qingxiao’s stove. His dark face glared at Jun Qingxiao and then at his work. It was a blooming flower with petals like cicada’s wings. The flower radiated beautiful radiance in the center.
The old man didn’t scold him. He just admired the flower for a while, stroking his boastful curved ends of the mustache.
“Not bad.”
The old man nodded at the white-jade flower, giving a compliment. Jun Qingxiao’s stooped head lifted up immediately. His anxious body trembled.
He got a compliment?
Jun Qingxiao suddenly felt so emotional that he wanted to cry. He had always been scolded and had never had a compliment. Today, he was praised!
He immediately turned contented.
The old man patted Jun Qingxiao’s shoulder, then moved to Bu Fang. He didn’t look at Bu Fang’s work, but indifferently study the chef. His eyes seemed so oppressive. The atmosphere at this moment seemed to become at daggers drawn.
The stiff-faced man and the pretty woman didn’t understand why their Sixth Elder had to do that to this boy.
“Tell me, what did you carve?” asked the old man.
“An alligator,” Bu Fang answered, with his brows arching.
An alligator? Was it just a normal alligator?
That young man wasn’t honest.
The stiff-faced man gazed at the alligator for a while. He also felt an alligator roaring and trying to swallow him. He was scared and he had to move his eyes away from the thing.
“What happened to you?” The pretty woman asked him.
The muscles on the man’s face convulsed.
“Didn’t you recognize what this young man had carved?” the rigid-faced man took a deep breath, and his eyes looked scared.
The charming woman was bewildered. She turned and studied the white-jade alligator. A moment later, her red lips parted. She covered her mouth, disbelieving what she saw.
“It… It’s the monster in the Sunset Lake!” The woman screamed, with her eyes filled with surprise.
Perhaps many people in the Valley of Gluttony didn’t know this tremendous monster, but the stiff-faced man and the beautiful woman were considered apprentices of the Elder so, of course, they knew how frightening it was.
They couldn’t figure out how this young man could carve that monster.
“Green Teeth Ancestral Alligator! You little chef, you know this savage beast? Who… are you, after all?” The stiff-faced man asked solemnly. His sharp, sword-like eyes stared at Bu Fang.
“You know the Green Teeth Ancestral Alligator… I heard that the Sunset Lake broke into a riot yesterday. Is it related to this kid? The Green Teeth Ancestral Alligator rampaged and attacked the seal. It almost smashed the seal,” said the mustached elder.
His eyes were extremely serious, sending shivers down people’s spines. Not many people dared to look him in the eyes.
“Ah… I went fishing. I was careless and provoked that beast,” said Bu Fang.
The stiff-faced man and the beautiful woman were somewhat speechless. What’s that about going fishing? Fishing in the Sunset Lake? You are f*cking funny, you know?
The Sunset Lake had countless savage beasts. The Green Teeth Ancestral Alligator was an extremely brutal one among them.
That little chef dared to fish there…
But the important point was… He got out alive.
Young people these days… No one was honest!
The old man looked Bu Fang deep in his eyes. He squinted, then took a deep breath. He rose one finger, touching the Green Teeth Ancestral Alligator made of radish. The true energy swelled and the radish exploded, turning into so many broken pieces that fell on the ground.
“You’ve passed. However, this beast isn’t carved good enough. If you made it better, it could affect people’s spirit, energy, and even the soul,” said the old man. Then, he stroked his mustache, walking away. “Prepare for the next challenge. It’s the Fire Control Challenge.”
The old man looked at Bu Fang deeply then wielded his sleeves, leaving.
Fire Control Challenge?
Everybody was bewildered.
What good was it to test controlling the flame? Being a chef, did they want to play with the fire to get some small sparks?
