Without any effort at all, without encountering any obstacles.

The distance that seemed insurmountable to others simply did not exist for Huai Shi; he didn't even need to take a step, and the destination arrived at his feet.

As if afraid he might feel a bit tired or the slightest annoyance.

It wasn't condescension but rather an obsequious servility, like a fawning dog, that brought a perfect dish before him.

Huai Shi's chopsticks had already fallen on the pig ear.

With a gentle pluck, the thick meat and soft cartilage slipped off into his hand, like picking fruit from a tree, the strange and delightful aroma wafted in and after passing over the dipping sauce on the dish, it fell into his mouth.

The chewy pig ear crackled loudly in his mouth. The rich, aromatic flavor of the meat spread out, filling his mouth and lungs, and he felt as if immersed in warm water, experiencing an unprecedented satisfaction.

However, it did not feel greasy at all.

Because the crisp and clear fragrance of wine complementing the rich meat flavor swept away the greasiness that would discomfort the stomach, while also greatly increasing Huai Shi's appetite.

Another bite...

This is truly, a peerless delicacy!

He had never tasted such good food, never enjoyed such honor, never wielded such immense power.

It's almost as if... as if...

A god!

In that moment, Huai Shi's movements paused, a line suddenly surfaced in his mind.

"You have not delivered the reeds you should have; the royal sacrifice cannot proceed without the materials to purify the sacred wine, so I must come to punish..."

Duke Huan of Qi attacked Chu using this pretext!

These were words that Huai Shi's level of cultural education had never memorized, yet they emerged in his mind naturally at this moment.

"Finally remembered, Miss Huaizhi?"

Guo ShouQue looked down at her astonished expression, his smile growing increasingly ferocious: "Purifying wine with reeds is a necessary step before offering sacred wine in sacrifice to a god — this is a supreme delicacy only a demigod like the King of Zhou has the right to enjoy!

Are you feeling satisfied now?"

Huai Shi could not stop anymore.

He was eating wildly, with no regard for manners, wolfing down the special pig in front of him and savoring the endless power and indescribably wonderful fragrance of wine.

As if he could see himself soaring high above the sky, worshipped by thousands.

Countless devout praises and prayers echoed in his ears.

His consciousness and voice covered the Nine Fields of the Heavens and the Nine Provinces of the Earth, operating majestically across this vast land.

The Stigma of the Soloist was trembling.

The trace of divine nature hidden within began to burgeon and grow rapidly, absorbing this solemn offering and sacrifice. A cold and vast presence emerged from the depths of Huai Shi's soul, little by little, encroaching upon his soul.

Assaulting his humanity.

Once this piece of divine nature rapidly sprouted and crossed the boundary Huai Shi could control, it triggered fatal chaos, turning around to dilute Huai Shi's soul and consciousness.

Devouring humanity!

To slowly... transform him into the phantom of a god!

Just like how a massive disaster could petrify a person, this overwhelming divine nature beyond Huai Shi's limit of control was about to crush him!

"Finally realized?"

Guo ShouQue tapped his fingers on the table, scrutinizing Huai Shi struggling in expression, smiling, telling him word by word: "Miss Huaizhi, the moment I first laid eyes on you, I realized... your soul harbors such pure miracles.

That precious radiance, like the sun.

For a Chef Demon of the Yiya School, you are a once-in-a-lifetime extraordinary material!"

At this moment, the Chef Demon, who most loved using humans as ingredients, widened his eyes, unable to contain his excitement and agitation, "Comparing with something like Tai Lao, the pinnacle peak, you are the masterpiece I have painstakingly sought to complete!"

In the silent arena, apart from Huai Shi's labored breathing, there was no other noise.

Until now, with the water settled and the stones revealed, the sinister intention hidden under this match finally emerged.

At this moment, between the dueling parties.

One was willing to use any means to break the opponent's internal balance, provoke disaster backlash, and cast him into Hell.

The other, however, tried painstakingly to elevate the opponent to the divine throne!

To humans, there was no difference between these two results.

Becoming a Demon and becoming a god, thoroughly petrifying and completely vaporizing, there was no difference to a human soul.

Both represented a transformation that couldn't be stopped.

Both represented the tragic future of losing oneself and becoming a walking corpse...

Huai Shi was fully aware of this.

But he could not stop. Instead, he was... accelerating.

The divine atmosphere descended upon his soul, causing his consciousness to quickly vaporize, memories to burn, rapidly evaporating, everything belonging to Huai Shi was swiftly dissolved, quickly thinning.

But within the soul, the pages of the Book of Fate were constantly turning.

Constantly maintaining Huai Shi's consciousness and all his memories intact. Like a grand competition of deletion and input. Every time the divine nature erased a line, the Book of Fate would rewrite that line, rapidly filling in Huai Shi's persona and history.

The remnants of the Heavenly Kingdom firmly safeguarded that flickering spark of humanity, preventing it from being extinguished under the solemn divine nature.

And that already excessively complete divine nature solemnly operated within Huai Shi's soul, stripping away all human weaknesses.

What remained was an almost non-human clarity.

A majestic light burst forth from Huai Shi's eyes.

No sadness or joy.

It was at this moment that he realized... he had lost emotions?

Anger, love, sorrow, pieta, and hatred...

The weapons that lay dormant within the soul had already vanished without a trace, because their source no longer existed within Huai Shi's consciousness. At this moment, he had already ascended to overlook the mortal realm as a demigod.

Even if it was only the moon in the mirror, the flower in the water, a fleeting illusion of prosperity.

In front of him, Guo ShouQue smiled benevolently, folded his hands, and offered his own praise and prayers.

As if from the bottom of his heart, hoping Huai Shi was okay.

"Soon, you will be completed, Miss Huaizhi."

He spoke gently, full of hope and expectancy: "Then, I will offer you sustenance."

Yet no matter how gentle the demeanor, it could not hide... the malevolent intent concealed beneath that smile, nearly filling all of Hell!

Joy.

An indescribable joy.

Schadenfreude, hitting a person when they're down, slander, rumors, betrayal, murder, deceit... All these primal darkness seemed to ignite in his dark eyes, burning vigorously.

He said, "After this, it's your turn."

Huai Shi felt more clear-minded than ever.

As if drinking the Raven's potion of regret, entering a mechanical state of mind even more thorough, dealing calmly with everything in front of him.

Enduring the endless divine nature's erosion deep within the soul...

But it did not matter.

Even though the desire for this impulse had disappeared, the plan would not change, he knew he was steadily progressing towards the path of victory.

If dealt unexpected heavy blows, then, it's time to turn the tides in the next round, reclaim the advantage!

This round's defeat wasn't in vain; it was through testing, that precious information about the opponent was found.

Huai Shi looked at the opponent in front calmly and asked: "Guo ShouQue, are you afraid of loneliness?"

"Yes, indeed, I am very afraid."

Guo ShouQue nodded without any concealment: "I fear my skills being buried in dust, even more, I fear being forgotten by people... at my age, I should have seen through it all, but unexpectedly, I possess a profound wickedness."

This man bathed in the shadows of the Abyss opened his mouth, revealing sharp teeth, his smile twisted:

"Miss Huaizhi, to catch the eye, to prove my strength—just to make myself a bit less lonely, I would do anything.

Realizing this, your boasting indeed wasn't groundless, so... what's the next dish? Where did the recipe come from, what malice did it integrate, and what result will it produce?"

"The next one... let me think, something with enough calories."

Huai Shi rolled up his sleeves and calmly said: "Some things that can make people enthusiastic."

Just like that, he emptied a bucket full of fuel into the deep fryer.

The silver-white liquid resembled mercury, smooth, reflecting every detail on the face, from the cold metallic light, it was impossible to tell just how terrifying the heat was brewing within.

This was metal fuel transformed and enhanced by a Great Grandmaster, already reborn as the Wrath of Ramses!

Every drop of it was an insidious liquid fuel that could burn through marrow upon contact, now the heat contained in the fryer was sufficient for an aircraft to ascend the sky, conducting long-duration offensive sweeps and cruises.

Next, amidst the flowing thick batter, heavy parts and mechanical fragments fell into it, after being coated with a sticky medium, they appeared more presentable.

Iron, absolutely unusable by humans, was tenderly clad in a sugary coating, as the mercury-like metallic fuel began to slowly move and gradually heat up, it was thrown into the fryer.

Welcoming the tempering and rebirth.

Is this metallurgy or cooking? No one could discern the boundary.

But when the sound of steel ringing erupted, Kujikane in the audience bit his teeth in humiliation, widened his eyes, staring intently at the wilderness phantom rising within.

Unwilling to admit, but forced to admit.

This was industrial cooking already surpassing his level, entering a new phase, a new realm, a new path!

In the icy light without warmth, a deathly silent phantom of Hell slowly emerged.

After millennia of decay, the Town of Dusk again revealed its deranged outline, injecting the essence of Hell into this disaster cuisine.

Guo ShouQue's pupils were illuminated by that light, seeming to shimmer.

"Marvelous, marvelous... such a decadent form, truly intoxicating!" He examined Huai Shi's appearance and smiled as he asked, "But, merely a shell, isn't it? How will you, devoid of all emotions now, use your best skills to imbue it with soul, your Source Substance and will?"

What to do with lost emotions? 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

Isn't it very simple?

At that moment, Huai Shi's mouth seemed to twitch, curling into a faint arc.

——Just forge emotions anew, and it's done?