Chapter 116

After all, this was the first time in his life he had faced such a grand occasion, so excitement and meticulous preparation were inevitable.

"Yes!" The Immortal Attendant bowed and received the dish.

Sun Wukong nodded, about to retreat and redo the dish, but a glance revealed Maitreya Buddha engaged in improper conduct.

Bold!

How dare he come to my Imperial Kitchen and cause trouble!

Sun Wukong vanished instantly from the spot, leaving the Immortal Attendant dazed.

How did the Great Chef disappear all of a sudden?

Maitreya Buddha's restless hand was about to succeed, his heart growing more eager—this dish's quality was absolutely perfect.

He could already imagine how exquisite and delightful it would be when the greens entered his mouth.

While thinking.

Smack!

A furry paw seized Maitreya Buddha's wrist, saying: "Now, you still cannot eat!"

Hearing the voice beside his ear, Maitreya Buddha suddenly snapped back to awareness, looked up, and saw it was a monkey—no matter, just keep eating.

Wait!

Maitreya Buddha froze suddenly, then hurriedly examined Sun Wukong's entire body carefully.

Short stature, dressed all in red, long-haired, with a monkey face, eyes radiating confidence and vigor—this appearance, why does it feel increasingly familiar the more I look?

Damn!

Isn't that the monkey?

Maitreya Buddha's eyes widened, his whole body dazed—how could he be here?

At this moment, under normal circumstances, shouldn't the monkey be causing a ruckus at the Yaochi Banquet?

Could this be a karmic affinity with the Buddhist Sect?

He came to the Imperial Kitchen to steal food, while the monkey came to cause trouble?

"What a coincidence, you're here too." Maitreya Buddha greeted cheerfully, after all, we'll be fellow believers in the future—I don't mind saying hello early.

Sun Wukong:???

How does what this food-stealing thief says feel so inexplicably strange to me?

"Coincidence my ass!" Sun Wukong sneered: "Don't try to pull the wool over my eyes!"

"Just say it—you came to steal food, didn't you!"

Maitreya Buddha showed no quasi-sage airs, chuckling: "How could a monastic's act be called stealing? It's called begging for alms."

"You came here without permission—surely this isn't stealing chickens and dogs?"

Maitreya Buddha shook his head, speaking solemnly: "The monk is merely following the Buddha's guidance, honoring the Buddha's heart, acting in accordance with circumstances."

He himself is the Buddha, honoring his own guidance—there's absolutely nothing wrong with that.

"The monk came through the main gate, everyone saw it—so where's the stealing chickens and dogs coming from?"

For a moment, Sun Wukong was speechless—this fat guy actually makes a bit of sense.

"Don't just talk about the monk—you came too, didn't you? You're not even as good as the monk!" Maitreya Buddha declared with righteous indignation.

That damned monkey—where else could he cause trouble at the banquet?

Still, he's quite sharp, knowing to start from the source.

This said to Sun Wukong is rather confusing: "I came here—what's the problem?"

As the head chef of the Peach Banquet, not coming here to cook—does he expect to just sit at the Yaochi Banquet seat and wait for the feast to begin?

"The monk is here to beg for alms—you're not here to cause trouble, are you?"

Fifty steps laughing at a hundred steps, yet still putting on airs with him.

Maitreya Buddha rolled his eyes, though he also somewhat understood—this monkey must have failed to see through his quasi-sage cultivation, which is why he interrupted his rampage to come feel things out.

Perfect—let him finish eating first, then cause trouble; it won't be too late, and he won't have wasted his trip.

"I'm the chef of the Imperial Kitchen—what trouble am I causing? It's you, this fat guy, speaking nonsense—just spouting off like that might stir up trouble; you should be detained and strictly watched!" Sun Wukong said with a solemn face.

This is my first time managing such a large banquet—I cannot allow any mistakes.

"You're a chef?!" Maitreya Buddha exclaimed, nearly jumping up, his flesh trembling.

Sun Wukong's face darkened with black lines, the Ruyi Knife instantly appeared, he swung a few moves and said: "Are you questioning my cooking skills?"

Even if others say he lacks ability, Sun Wukong won't react—but besides his master, no one has the right to question his cooking proficiency.

Maitreya Buddha said nothing, instead sinking entirely into dazed confusion—wasn't this already planned?

Sun Wukong should be looking at the Peaches, incidentally stealing them to advance his cultivation—how is the Heavenly Court operating this?

How did they assign the monkey a cooking task? How will the Peach Banquet proceed now?

Is the monkey poisoning the food?

"Want to steal food here? No way!"

"Everything here is already prepared, to be used when dishes are served later—if you truly want to eat, I'll take you to the Back Kitchen."

Sun Wukong then thought: to run all this way just to steal my food—also counts as support and affirmation of my cooking skills, so looking at Maitreya Buddha's chubby face, I no longer find him hateful.

Grabbing Maitreya Buddha without hesitation, he forcefully squeezed through the door and arrived at the Back Kitchen.

"Fatty, you should lose weight." Sun Wukong shook his arms, kindly reminding.

Quite a handful—this fatty is truly fat, almost couldn't drag him in.

"Great Immortal Wukong, what is this?" The busy Stove God and Food God, along with Zhou Kang, dazedly stared at Sun Wukong bringing in Maitreya Buddha.

Seeing the visitor clearly, the Food God and Stove God trembled, hurriedly bowing: "We welcome the Buddha."

Though they are minor officials, they have endured endless ages in the Heavenly Court, and know much of the immortals and buddhas of the Three Realms.

As one of the Three Great Buddha Ancestors of the Buddhist Sect, Maitreya Buddha, though his fame is not prominent, still possesses extremely high cultivation.

They, these minor deities, must not be disrespected.

"Greetings to the Buddha Ancestor." Zhou Kang also dared not be negligent, imitating his second aunt's manner and performing the bow.

Buddha Ancestor?

Sun Wukong stared blankly; he had never come into contact with any Buddhist Sect forces before, and he did not know what the concept of Buddha Ancestor in the Buddhist Sect entailed, so he felt indifferent in his heart.

Anyway, he only bows as a disciple to one master.

"Alright, alright, the Almsgiving Monk never minds these formalities; everyone, rise." Maitreya Buddha said with a hearty laugh.

I don't know why this monkey insists on dragging him to the back kitchen to do what.

On this side, Sun Wukong did not greet Maitreya Buddha again, but instead continued joining the work; this Palace Guardian Chicken Ding still needs to be continued.

The original requirement of the Peach Banquet was three hundred and sixty-five dishes, each dish needing to be prepared twelve times.

Following the Heavenly Stem and Earthly Branches, twelve is the ultimate.

They had already been busy for a long time, and the tables outside also all had preservation formations maintaining temperature and freshness; placing the dishes on them fundamentally would not get cold or spoil.

The first portion just now was merely a trial; there are still eleven portions remaining.

On this side, the ingredients have been prepared by Zhou Kang and the Two Deities; Sun Wukong only needs to stir-fry them properly to be done.

He needs to stir-fry eleven plates at once; this pot is large enough!

Great Pot Dish, though it looks simple, is actually very difficult; large quantity represents uneven heating.

For some seasonings, controlling the quantity, and managing the heat, these are all extremely difficult.

However, Sun Wukong possesses sufficient confidence.

No matter how large the pot, in Sun Wukong's hands it feels as weightless as nothing, like an extension of his arm; saying to flip the wok means flipping the wok.

Overbearing to the extreme.

The most difficult heating issue was directly resolved; various seasonings, stir-frying.

The movements flowed like clouds and water, just like memories imprinted in the bones.