Guo Shouque was very strong. To be precise, terrifyingly strong… From the perspective of a Chef Demon, unsurpassable.

On the way back, Huai Shi was deep in thought about the scene he had witnessed. It wasn't any dazzling skill, but rather something so pure and simple, it seemed as easy to understand as a bench press. He was flaunting his power. Using his opponent's oil, tools, and ladle, he harvested his own fruits from the fertile ground of industrial cooking, even effortlessly turning his opponent into a part of the food. From Guo Shouque, Huai Shi glimpsed the essence of what it meant to be a Chef Demon. The madness and terror that extended from the extreme indulgence in food.

Throughout the long span of over a hundred years, that old man had slowly drawn dew from the whole world to converge into his own terrifying ocean. Here, he challenged all his competitors, intimidated them… This frightening level of mastery had become a mountain, weighing heavily on the hearts of all participants, making it difficult for them to breathe. Including Huai Shi himself.

Even if he had enough ingredients and enough time, could he cook a soup that matched the cabbage in clear broth effortlessly created by the other party? Huai Shi didn't know. Most likely not. Perhaps it was possible, maybe there was a chance, but the greater likelihood was that this was merely subconscious self-comfort. Aside from his mastery over negative Source Substance and his research on toxins, he was nothing but a half-baked Chef Demon. If Tong Ji hadn't tricked him, he wouldn't have even considered getting this certification.

He took careful stock. There were the basic cooking skills he learned as an assistant to Uncle Fang, the Tengu Mountain Chef Demon skills acquired from unabashed exchanges with Tengu·Ryuzanbo, and various advanced techniques picked up from compiling the simplified Hell Ingredients processing methods and interacting with other Chef Demons… All pieced together, all scrounged for free.

His strengths lay in handling negative Source Substance and toxins, the supreme temperature control from Alchemy Fire, and the delicate processing by the Blacksmith's Furnace. These aspects completely surpassed those of the vast majority of Chef Demons. But his weaknesses were equally clear. Aside from these points, everything else was below average. He had no unique secret techniques, no experience accumulated from countless hours immersed in the craft, and no closely-guarded family recipes passed down within factions. How could a self-taught path compare to formal training? Look at your dog-hearted, dog-faced appearance; how can you compete on the same stage as them?

No matter how he thought about it, he could only reach one conclusion: if he encountered Guo Shouque in this Chef Demon competition, he might as well prepare for defeat. Surrender and lose only half; at least he wouldn't end up humiliating himself by jumping into the pot.

Until that pot of oil cooled down, Kujikane didn't want to get out of the pot at all... It was really too embarrassing, too shameful. There was nothing more humiliating than this failure. If he had been a few years younger, perhaps Mr. Johnny would have been so upset he would have cried.

What if Miss Huaizhi accidentally ended up in the same situation? His grand plan for his alt account would be ruined...

Feeling tremendous pressure, even the chicken leg in his mouth no longer tasted good. He mechanically gnawed at it, bite by bite.

Until Zhenxi, at his side, let out a panicked cry. "Ah, Miss Huaizhi, your hair, your hair..."

She was shocked to see SuZi's hair, which was faintly tinged with green, turn a fiery red, wisps of flame rising from it. In disbelief, she cried, "It's, it's burning!" For a moment, she didn't know what to do, whether she should quickly take off her top to smother the flames.

No big deal. Huai Shi looked up at his hair and casually stroked it a couple of times. The flames went out, but the fierce heat still lingered, ready to reignite at any moment. Then, he lowered his head and continued eating.

—Exxon's Chicken Bucket Meal, or rather, the Mechanic's Tempura Super-size Platter.

That's right. When she left, she took all the leftover fried turkey made by Kujikane. At the time, she had politely asked Kujikane's opinion. Kujikane, still in the oil pot and looking utterly dejected, just stared at the ceiling and waved indifferently. So, Miss Huaizhi went home, carrying nine giant paper boxes taller than herself.

While eating, flames spewed from her head. It was as if she were swallowing bombs, experiencing an unparalleled, terrible impact. She personally felt Kujikane's immense power. It's said that he has even more incredible dishes, the most famous in industrial cooking being the Detroit Family Bucket, but Huai Shi probably wouldn't have the opportunity to see it. Whether Kujikane would have the courage to pick up a kitchen knife again anytime soon was uncertain.

But this bucket of chicken is really good. Huai Shi kept eating, one bite after another, his entire body emitting terrifying heat. Wisps of acrid black smoke rose from the top of his head, and even the sound of his breathing carried the grating noise of steel friction.

In the Dream Cage, the Ravens screeched excitedly, bathing in the Disaster and Curse transmitted from Soloist's Stigma. Their steel bodies seemed to glow red-hot as well, flinging sparks as they flapped their wings. True to industrial cuisine, the quantity satisfied their hunger; this massive wave of malice and madness made all the Ravens quite happy.

If it were that 'Boiling Water Judgment' cabbage in clear broth, they might have gained even more sustenance, right? But Huai Shi was really not interested in someone else's bathwater. Too disgusting.

Thinking of that old ghost, Huai Shi couldn't help but sigh again.

"Miss Huaizhi... Are you worried about facing that Mr. Guo in the upcoming contest?" Under the quiet moonlight, Zhenxi's voice suddenly came from beside him. She asked curiously, "Is that person very strong?"

Huai Shi nodded. He didn't know how to explain it to her. It wasn't just 'very strong'; it was infuriatingly so. To put it in perspective, it was as if the final boss had suddenly materialized out of nowhere, respawning right at the entrance of Newbie Village. Terribly strong.

"But, is there really a need to fight him?" Zhenxi asked curiously. "Didn't Miss Huaizhi say that we had an agreement with Cousin Amber? If we encounter that person, can't we just admit defeat directly?"

"..." Huai Shi froze on the spot. Zhenxi was right. He actually had no need to fight Guo Shouque at all. After all, from the very beginning, he had an under-the-table deal with Amber; they were supposed to throw the match. Encountering Guo Shouque, why not just admit defeat? The answer was, of course... no.

In the silence, Huai Shi's expression changed. He didn't feel relieved at this realization; instead, he felt an even greater sense of loss. After witnessing that old man's competition, he had already put the idea of a rigged match out of his mind. Or rather, he had no mental space to consider anything other than how to defeat him. Involuntarily, he was infected by that mad yet pure will, and he felt a completely different attraction from the Chef Demon duels to which he used to be indifferent. He regarded Guo Shouque as a formidable enemy.

Challenging such an adversary, win or lose, would leave no regrets. Even if he were effortlessly crushed, lost the courage to ever pick up kitchen tools again, and had to give up on becoming an Abyss Kitchen Devil—that would be better than avoiding the fight. He wanted to win. Even if the chances were slim, he wanted to punch above his weight and give it his all. Like a true Chef Demon.

"Although it might not be right to say this, I think... even if it were a real contest, Miss Huaizhi wouldn't lose to anyone." In the quiet, the girl walking beside him suddenly said this. Full of trust and admiration, she stared at his face, smeared with grease and chili flakes, with utmost confidence: "Because Miss Huaizhi must be the strongest!"

"..." For a moment, astonishment struck him. Huai Shi didn't know whether he should be touched or ashamed. After a long while, he laughed silently. He ruffled her hair and, amid her regretful complaints, mischievously wiped his hands on it. Then, he continued to eat with great determination, filled with motivation.

Since she trusted him so much, he couldn't let her down. Even if he couldn't beat Guo Shouque, he couldn't lose to any other miscellaneous opponents, right? Anyway, for now... he just had to do his best...

The consequence of his efforts was that Huai Shi alone devoured all nine boxes of machine-oil tempura! All of it! Even Kujikane, if he saw it, would find it incredible. After all, this was physically impossible. Nine boxes of tempura together weighed more than ten pounds, not to mention the mass-produced industrial toxins concocted within. For the special version tailored for Guo Shouque, even one chicken wing—with its contained lung-disease curse, heavy metal particles, and Source Substance pollution—held enough toxins to equal a steel mill's emissions for a month.

Relying on his extreme resistance to Abyss corrosion and toxins, along with the burden shared by the Crow Flock, it took him a full six hours to eat it all. And now, he felt as if his entire being had turned into the shape of machine oil, seeing everything as engines and spark plugs. Even if he burped, he could spew a large mouthful of thick smoke. The detoxification work of the Blacksmith's Furnace wasn't even completed yet.

Now, the heavy metals in Huai Shi's blood far exceeded safety levels by thousands of times. Normally, Sublimators, let alone eating this much, would probably have turned into Iron Stone after just one box. Under the operation of the Hand of Confinement, flakes of rust peeled off Huai Shi's skin. He had shed two layers of skin, his nails had fallen out and regrown about four or five times, and he had probably lost around ten pounds of hair. His body temperature remained above forty degrees Celsius. Among the newly grown black hair, strands of fiery red still lingered, suggesting it would take a whole day to completely digest everything.

Conversely, the Ravens, having taken on so much negative Source Substance, were unusually excited and brimming with vitality, as if they had taken stimulants. Beneath their iron wings, their bodies—composed of countless gears, springs, and mechanisms—gleamed with a bluish, oily sheen, as if they had undergone thorough and meticulous lubrication with machine oil. They were in top-notch condition. This rare, satisfying meal had not been in vain after Huai Shi's binge; they seemed to have grown considerably.

But as a consequence, like Huai Shi, they became restless, overwhelmed with an energy that had no outlet, like a flame burning the soul. It burned his eyes bright red. He craved a hearty, uninhibited release, a bit of... tense and thrilling post-dinner activity.

He lifted his gaze to the night sky outside the window. "What beautiful moonlight..."

Grudge rumbled lowly.