Who Let Him Cultivate?!

"Master Lu, please look at the cultivator standing in the corner with a smile that hides his eyes. His name is Xie Qi, and he is the hot favorite to win this culinary competition," Ma Bin, who handled the pastries for the Ma Family and cut vegetables for the Imperial Kitchen, introduced various spirit chefs to Lu Yang with great diligence.

Xie Qi had medicine pots tied around his waist and appeared to smile at everyone as if his eyes were never open. In the Spirit Chef World, Xie Qi's reputation was widespread. Even among Five Star Spirit Chefs, there were differences in rank. Other Five Star Spirit Chefs would look at him with flickering gazes, a sign of reverence towards a stronger opponent.

But Lu Yang didn't notice that other spirit chefs were also quietly keeping their distance from Ma Bin.

Ma Bin was also a top contender for the championship!

"Oh, is he that capable?"

"Xie Qi has an ability, whether it's from his cultivation technique or a natural gift, that allows him to mimic the movements of others."

"Moreover, his tongue is also extraordinary, extremely sensitive to the flavors of food. Even the tiniest flaw is magnified in his mouth."

"Anyone who competes in a culinary duel with him will find that he completely imitates their movements, tastes the finished dish, and then improves upon it."

"In this way, the dishes he makes are always one step ahead of his opponents!"

Lu Yang nodded, acknowledging that this was indeed a formidable opponent.

"Anything else?"

"There's also the female cultivator wearing an ice-blue dress; her name is An Tong. She has never been defeated either, but she relies on sheer strength. Although she was born without a sense of taste, her vision, touch, smell, and hearing are far superior to those of other cultivators at her level. She can create exquisite dishes using just her other four senses!"

Lu Yang had seen this woman among the people gathered by Jin Tan but didn't know her name: "So her name is An Tong."

Ma Bin introduced these spirit chefs one by one, not only those with Five Star rankings. The rest of the four groups of spirit chefs were also there, after all, the Cultivation Monthly only wrote about Five Star Spirit Chef competitions.

As the sound of a gong echoed, the Spirit Chef competition officially began. Five groups of spirit chefs started their contests simultaneously. As each renowned spirit chef entered, they elicited exclamations of surprise from the audience.

"Look quick, that's the 'Golden Blade Master' Duan Lang!"

"That's the 'Poisonous Granny'!"

"That's the 'Blade of the Imperial Kitchen,' Ma Bin!"

"That's 'Immortal Tongue' Xie Qi!"

"That's the 'Invincible' An Tong!"

Yun Mengmeng listened for a long time, getting frustrated at not hearing anyone call out the name of the Second-in-command, feeling that the audience truly lacked discernment. The Second-in-command was an Immortal Chef's Successor, far more formidable than any Golden Blade Master or Poisonous Granny.

"That, that's actually 'Immortal Chef's Successor' Lu Yunyang!" Yun Mengmeng, standing in the stands, suddenly pointed at Lu Yang, her expression one of disbelief.

However, her expression was somewhat exaggerated. Fortunately for her, the audience was captivated by Lu Yang's title and didn't pay much heed to Yun Mengmeng's expression.

"Immortal Chef's Successor, who dares to claim such a grand title?"

"Where, where?"

"What, you don't know him?" Yun Mengmeng was very surprised.

"Who is this person?" The audience, comprised of gourmands, racked their brains but still could not think of any spirit chef worthy of the heaven-defying title 'Immortal Chef's Successor.'

Yun Mengmeng whispered mysteriously, "Rumor has it that Lu Yunyang received cooking lessons from an immortal in his dreams and mastered techniques only known to immortals. His knife skills are unparalleled, his medicinal food beyond compare. He kept a low profile only because the immortal advised him to be patient for ten years, to temper his character."

"The ten years have passed, and his sharp sword can finally be unsheathed!"

"Really or not, why does this sound so fake?"

"This kid received the legacy of the Yingtian Immortal?"

Although Yun Mengmeng's tale was elaborate, the gourmands weren't fools; they didn't just believe everything she said.

In the Spirit Chef World, only taste is everything!

Clearly, Yun Mengmeng wasn't as naturally talented at lying as Lu Yang was.

The Spirit Chef competition consisted of three stages, testing knife skills, medicinal ingredients, and the dishes themselves. It was an elimination tournament, with only those passing the previous stage qualifying for the next.

The five competitions were held simultaneously, all testing the same content.

Song Tianjing's forehead broke out in a layer of cold sweat. The first challenge was said to be a test of knife skills, but it wasn't looking like it at all.

In the Two-Star Spirit Chef competition, all the Two-Star Spirit Chefs were confined to a Beast Fighting Arena. As cage after cage opened, countless Foundation Establishment Demon Beasts crawled out, baring their teeth and staring at these Spirit Chefs, seeing them as food.

"How come, you're not telling me you can't even beat a Demon Beast?" Master Wu watched Song Tianjing's scared appearance, a cold smile curling the corner of his mouth. It seemed that Song Tianjing was nothing special after all, and there would be no need to target him to eliminate him.

Master Wu and Yu Qian'er, both Two-Star Spirit Chefs, had come to participate in this grand event.

Yu Qian'er explained to Song Tianjing, "The Spirit Chef Alliance believes that as a qualified Spirit Chef, the first thing you must be able to do is overcome your ingredients. If you can't even defeat your ingredients, what qualifications do you have to process them?"

"So, the first challenge often tests how you overcome and handle a Demon Beast."

Yu Qian'er didn't linger after speaking and charged toward a Spirit Rhinoceros armored in plate mail. The more difficult the Spirit Beast you chose to handle, the higher the score you would receive in the final evaluation after the three challenges. This Spirit Rhinoceros ranked within the top ten among a certain type of Demon Beast and was a worthy opponent to challenge.

Song Tianjing's eyes twitched. He was very confident in his knife skills, but the problem was he had little combat experience, especially none against Demon Beasts.

What should I do? What should I do?

Song Tianjing inadvertently saw Yun Mengmeng in the audience stands, his heart jolted. Why were people from the Heavenly Court Sect here?

Could it be that the Young Sect Master had also come? Was he here to watch his performance?

If he performed too poorly, would the Young Sect Master have him eradicated?

The more Song Tianjing thought about it, the more likely it seemed. He decided to throw caution to the wind. Better to face a Demon Beast with courage than to be dispatched by the Young Sect Master. After all, he was at the Foundation Establishment Late Stage; he should be able to defeat at least one Demon Beast.

Song Tianjing chose a purple mink. The purple mink stood on its hind legs, its forepaws tucked into its fur, blinking its small eyes innocently.

Noticing Song Tianjing's choice, the Purple Sky Mink immediately bared its teeth and its eyes turned into a fierce red. Its claws scraped the ground, leaving behind a trail of marks.

The audience stands immediately stirred, their attention focused on the Two-Star Spirit Chef group.

"Who is that person? He actually chose the Purple Sky Mink!?"

"Isn't the Purple Sky Mink the strongest among these Demon Beasts?"

"Yes, it is the Beast King!"

The other Two-Star Spirit Chefs also noticed Song Tianjing's choice, and sneers and taunts were endless.

"The Purple Sky Mink carries the bloodline of an Ancient Demon, its ancestors included a Crossing Tribulation Demon Emperor. It moves as fast as lightning, and even Spiritual Sense can't catch it."

"More than that, its claws are exceptionally sharp, a mere scratch can sever a head. Did he choose it because he has a death wish?"

"Beast King Purple Sky Mink, even I wouldn't dare choose it as an opponent," laughed Master Wu uncontrollably.

Song Tianjing quietly reached into his chest, caressing the "Culinary Bible" to boost his courage.

However, just as he touched the Complete Culinary Compendium, the Purple Sky Mink, which had been ready to attack, suddenly seemed to sense something, its red eyes dissipated, and it lay prostrate on the ground.

That was the ever-present fear ingrained in their ancient bloodlines, a grand will that Demon Beasts could not contend with!

"What's wrong with the Purple Sky Mink?"

"Not right, not just the Purple Sky Mink, look at the other Demon Beasts!"

Exclamations of amazement were incessant from the audience stands, with some spectators so shocked that they stood up straight.

Every Demon Beast in the Beast Fighting Arena stretched their claws forward, prostrating themselves on the ground, bowing to Song Tianjing.

Yu Qian'er covered her mouth in shock, her beautiful eyes filled with boundless astonishment.

"Is it because of this 'Culinary Bible'?" Song Tianjing immediately thought of the key. The partial copy of his family's ancient "Complete Culinary Compendium" had never instilled fear in Demon Beasts. Could it be that only this original "Culinary Bible" had such power?!

This should please Young Master Lu, right?

The commotion around Song Tianjing was too great for Lu Yang to ignore even if he wanted to.

No, how could a book casually given away by a Fairy have such an effect? Why have I never been treated this way?!