The event happened very suddenly.

To put it simply, last night, Shenjin Qing was awakened by a knocking on the door, and upon opening it, he discovered a stunning beauty smiling gently at him under the moonlight.

Then he closed the door.

To Shenjin Qing, such a smile was no different from the grimace of an Evil Ghost, scaring him so much that his legs were trembling as he hid in the kitchen, clutching a kitchen knife and shivering.

He had no idea what this crazy woman was actually here to do.

Then the door was dismantled.

Miss Huaizhi walked in, amicably chatting with him, and asked for him to gift her the Dragon Pufferfish, preferably along with the recipe if possible.

To this, Shenjin Qing could only respond: Ha, you're dreaming.

After that, some things happened that nobody wanted to see. Mr. Shenjin later expressed that he regretted it greatly, very much indeed...

But ultimately, it wasn't the physical violence or the psychological shadow that persuaded him, it was one sentence before saying goodbye.

"Don't you want to see that old man fail?"

Huai Shi looked down at him and said, "I want to defeat him. Tomorrow, I will be on the competition stage, but I know I can't win—I need you to lend me some power."

The resentment towards Guo ShouQue outweighed the resistance to Huai Shi.

After hesitating for a moment, he sighed, took out the ingredient he had carefully tended to from the cooler, the Dragon King among the Dragon Pufferfish—a special species for the finals.

Along with it, the cooking methods and techniques of the Iron Cannon Banquet.

Even if revealing all of it, he wasn't worried, the most important part of his pufferfish feast had never been these, but that unique taste that perfectly balanced between deliciousness and toxicity—a secret technique passed down orally from generation to generation by Sanzu Chefs, something that Huai Shi could never learn.

Including this point, he confessed openly.

In response, Huai Shi wasn't worried; he had other ways to make up for it.

However, before he left, he was stopped by Shenjin Qing.

"What's the matter?" Huai Shi turned around, curiously asking, "Is there something else? As for the cost of the materials, please don't worry, I'll pay in full."

"No, I just wanted to tell you something—although I really don't want to admit it, I have to say, even the Dragon King may not be able to defeat that old guy. His power surpasses both yours and mine."

Shenjin Qing said unhappily, "If you want to defeat him, relying on my power alone is not enough."

"I'll try my best." Huai Shi said.

In the final silence, Shenjin Qing glanced subconsciously to the right and told Huai Shi, "If you're still unwilling to give up, I can only tell you… Johnny Kujikane lives next door."

He closed the broken door, returned to his room, and after a while, heard the familiar noise from next door that he had experienced before, and couldn't help but turn over in his sleep and enter an even deeper slumber.

There are two things in this world that bring the most happiness.

The first is seeing someone you dislike being unlucky.

The second is having someone to share in your unluckiness.

To encounter both on the same night,

is truly a blessing in life...

Thus, now on the competition stage, Johnny Kujikane, with his arm in a cast, appeared particularly resentful to Shenjin Qing's right.

On Shenjin Qing's left, Enrico Saget, looking relaxed, smoked leisurely while chatting and laughing with Vladimir, who was seated in a wheelchair.

Since he no longer considered himself a Chef Demon, he no longer valued his own skills… he even eagerly introduced the Chef Demon next door to Huai Shi.

It's a rare opportunity, everyone's together.

How joyful.

Just like that, at the back of the competition stage, everyone gathered joyfully to form a full row.

Besides having mostly been violently beaten or extorted by Huai Shi, without exception, there was… dislike and displeasure towards Guo ShouQue, even—malice.

"Understandable, who wouldn't want to see the wretched old man have bad luck, right?"

Miss Huaizhi enthusiastically waved to the supporters, then turned to look at him: "Friendship, effort, and victory, I already have two of them. Guo ShouQue, are you scared?"

"Scared, scared to death, hahahahahaha."

Guo ShouQue was amused by their united front, casually waving his hand, "No matter how many worthless dogs and chickens there are, it won't create any stir—Miss Huaizhi, you may begin."

In Huai Shi's hand, the first cut was already made.

With a crisp sound as the knife blade hit the chopping board, the Dragon Pufferfish, known as the Dragon King, twitched abruptly, letting out a loud, sharp cry.

Its body swelled, countless metallic-colored bony spikes piercing out.

Yet this couldn't stop Huai Shi from continuing to slice...

Guo ShouQue's smile gradually faded.

Focusing intently on watching Huaizhi's knife skills, his gaze turned serious.

It wasn't astonishment at the sharpness of the blade but surprise at Huai Shi's profound skill, akin to the legendary tale of inserting something thin where there's no gap.

In the rhythm of ups and downs, the knife blade painted a silent melody, with shimmering and splendid flashes of the blade dance among the Dragon King's texture.

In Yingzhou, there has always been a tradition of the master chef preparing dishes right in front of the guest.

Across the bar counter, guests can clearly see how their dish is completed in the master chef's hands, step by step transforming into a delightful essence for the palate.

It's not just about the closeness to the cuisine, but also the ability to appreciate the beauty within culinary skills.