Chapter 313: Magical Cuisine (Fourth update, extra update for monthly votes)

Su Xiao put his top on his shoulder, took out the map, confirmed the direction, and left the open space.

He was going to eat, but it wasn't just to eat; he was also looking for someone, a master hidden in Water 7. Of course, whether this master was real or fake was for him to judge himself.

Half an hour later, Su Xiao arrived at the east side of Water 7. In a wide waterway, a small boat was docked at the shore.

This boat wasn't used for going to sea, but a small restaurant built on a boat.

There was a low dining table in the boat shed, which could seat at most three people. At one end of the dining table were cooking utensils, with pots and pans neatly arranged.

There were no guests on the small boat. At the head of the bed, a thin old man was sleeping soundly, drooling. The old man's height was at most 1.2 meters, with limbs like hemp stalks, his face full of wrinkles, and two age spots. His hair and beard were all white, and his teeth were sparse, with only a few left.

The old man slept sweetly, holding an empty wine bottle in his hand, seemingly without any guard, but for some reason, Su Xiao felt somewhat afraid to approach.

This old man was like a lion that had grown old and weak; although he had aged, his remaining prestige still existed.

Su Xiao walked onto the boat and just sat at the dining table without calling the old man.

After about ten minutes, the thin old man seemed to have difficulty breathing and was choked awake by his own saliva.

The old man opened his eyes in a daze, subconsciously raising the wine bottle to drink, but unfortunately, the wine was already empty.

"Hmm?" The old man looked at Su Xiao with sleepy eyes.

"Not receiving guests at noon. Come back in the evening."

The old man seemed to have no interest in cooking, closing his eyes and wanting to continue sleeping.

"I heard there is a master chef here who is very good at cooking and loves drinking very much. I specially brought a bottle of good wine as the meal money."

Su Xiao took out a bottle of wine, on which were written three golden characters: "Wuliangye"!

After seeing the wine in Su Xiao's hand clearly, the old man shook his head. He hadn't seen this kind of wine, but he had heard of good wines in the world even if he hadn't drunk them.

"Come back in the evening..."

The old man stopped halfway through his sentence. Su Xiao had already opened the Wuliangye in his hand, and the mellow fragrance unique to white liquor drifted out.

Compared to the wine in the Pirate World, the brewing method of white liquor was more unique and refined, so the fragrance was more mellow and tempting.

"This is... what kind of wine?"

The old man swallowed his saliva, stood up with difficulty, leaned on a cane, and walked toward Su Xiao tremblingly.

Seeing the old man's pace, Su Xiao felt somewhat ashamed. The other party hadn't taken a few steps, and those two withered hemp-stalk legs seemed like they could break at any time.

"Let me taste a sip, and I'll cook food for you in a moment."

Su Xiao handed over the Wuliangye. The old man took it with trembling hands and drank a large mouthful.

The white liquor entered his throat, and the old man's face immediately turned red, his eyes widening.

"*Gulp. *"

The old man swallowed a large mouthful of white liquor and let out a long, long hiccup.

"What a fierce wine."

The old man's body swayed somewhat. He had drunk at least half a bottle of white liquor in this one mouthful.

The old man fell to the ground with a *plop*, emitting a steady snoring sound, but the mouth of the wine bottle miraculously pointed upward. Su Xiao was speechless; this was drunk.

He didn't pay attention to the old man and looked at the two photos in the boat shed. These two photos were a sea surface and a photo of two people, respectively.

In the photo, a man with an afro was strangling the neck of a yellow-haired boy. The yellow-haired boy was struggling, with abrasions on his face, seemingly having just experienced a battle.

In this photo, the man with the afro was the old man on the boat, and that yellow-haired boy was named Zeff, a pirate.

Red-Leg Zeff had once roamed the Grand Line for a year, then left the Grand Line for some unknown reason, retreating completely. His strength was unknown, but definitely not weak.

In the original work, Sanji had come to this restaurant boat. In this old man's mouth, Zeff, who had once been a pirate, was just a little brat.

Based on Su Xiao's estimation, the strength of this old man when he was young might not be lower than a pirate with a bounty of 100 million Berries, and might even be stronger. The reason was that photo of the sea.

If he hadn't guessed wrong, the sea in the photo was the dream sea for all chefs: "ALL BLUE"!

Of course, this was just Su Xiao's guess. If he guessed right, this old man's identity was definitely not simple. It wasn't impossible that he had mastered both types of Haki.

Waiting for about an hour, the old man woke up leisurely.

"I'm old, and my drinking capacity isn't good."

The old man shook his head. Apart from his mouth full of alcohol, there was no other abnormality. His physique looked weak and wind-blown, but in reality, it wasn't weak.

The old man walked to the stove tremblingly, picked up a kitchen knife with trembling hands, and started cooking.

Su Xiao had no great interest in cooking. As long as the food made wasn't difficult to eat, it was fine. He didn't prepare to study culinary arts.

A few minutes later, a plate of steaming hot seafood noodles was placed in front of Su Xiao.

"I won't drink your wine for nothing. Taste it."

The old man turned back to the bow of the boat tremblingly, holding the Wuliangye and drinking it in small sips, his expression enjoying. This fine wine from Earth quickly conquered this drunkard.

Su Xiao was also somewhat hungry. He picked up the seafood and put it into his mouth. Three seconds later, he was stunned.

He had always thought "delicious to the point of exploding" was an exaggerated description, but this seafood noodle was truly delicious to the point of exploding. It was the most delicious food he had ever eaten, none other.

"Hahaha, my cooking is not bad, right? Is there any more of this kind of wine?"

Su Xiao shook his head. Negotiating with this old man couldn't be rushed.

"What a pity." The old man stopped talking. Su Xiao quickly finished the seafood noodles and stood up, preparing to leave, still feeling unsatisfied.

"Little brat, your purpose in coming here isn't just for the food, right?"

Su Xiao's footsteps paused, and he looked back at the old man.

"I am a swordsman."

Su Xiao left this inexplicable sentence and turned to leave.

The old man licked the slightly spicy alcohol on his lips, also feeling somewhat unsatisfied.

"Little brat!"

The old man shouted, and Su Xiao looked back in confusion.

"When practicing body techniques, pay attention to the focus, and don't be impatient. You are too anxious; your ankle is injured, right? Come to me in the evening, and I'll make you a medicinal diet."

Su Xiao was overjoyed in his heart, but his expression remained calm.

"Many thanks for the guidance."

Su Xiao took out a bottle of Wuliangye and placed it on the gunwale.

"Didn't you say there wasn't any just now?" The old man looked at Su Xiao thoughtfully.

The old man grinned.

"This kind of wine is very rare. I obtained it occasionally, and there are only a few bottles."

The old man didn't doubt it; he hadn't seen this kind of wine either.

"Come often in the future."

"Hmm."

Su Xiao turned and left. He was now certain that this old man wasn't simple.

The whole afternoon, Su Xiao practiced Shave. After the old man's advice, he would rest for a while after practicing for two hours each time.

At 5:30 PM, Su Xiao arrived at the old man's boat restaurant as agreed.

The old man was cooking a pot of thick soup. Seeing Su Xiao come, the old man scooped out a large bowl of thick soup.

"Taste it."

A large bowl of thick soup was placed in front of Su Xiao. He vaguely saw mushrooms and several medicinal herbs in the soup.

He picked up the thick soup and took a sip. The taste wasn't too good, slightly bitter, but there was no poison.

Drinking the thick soup in a few gulps, Su Xiao let out a long breath. Just at this moment, the Reincarnation Paradise prompt actually appeared.

【Hunter drank 'Secret Medicinal Diet Cuisine', HP permanently +10 points, stamina attribute increased slightly. Because it is less than 1 point, it cannot be displayed in personal information. This item only increases physical fitness upon the first consumption.】

A warmth appeared in his stomach, and Su Xiao felt a sense of comfort throughout his body. The ankle that was sore from practicing "Shave" was relieved.

"My medicinal diet cuisine is not bad, right? Back then, even Golden Lion and Roger would come to my shop to eat, and the purpose was the medicinal diet cuisine."

The old man seemed to have seen through Su Xiao's purpose.

"I like that kind of wine of yours very much. You come to me every evening, and I'll help you make medicinal diet cuisine. The reward is a bottle of that wine."

Su Xiao didn't care about being seen through. Rather than pretending to be friendly, it was better to choose mutual help and mutual benefit. The attitude he showed at noon was: give him benefits, and he would provide good wine. His 5-point charm attribute wouldn't make any plot character take the initiative to help him. Su Xiao's greatest advantage was having self-knowledge.

He took out a bottle of "Moutai" and handed it to the old man. Until now, he didn't know the old man's name, so he simply called this old man the Medicinal Diet Old Man.

He had no interest in the other party's name and background, as long as he knew the other party was very strong and could make medicinal diet cuisine.

"*Hic—*, the taste is not bad. Although it's different from the wine at noon, each has its own characteristics."

The Medicinal Diet Old Man drank a mouthful of Moutai and was very satisfied. Su Xiao was very satisfied; the fatigue from practicing for a day was swept away after drinking the medicinal diet cuisine.

There were three days left until the Straw Hat Pirates arrived on the island. Su Xiao had to fish for benefits as soon as possible, at least master "Shave" initially. With the help of the Medicinal Diet Old Man, this wasn't too difficult.

PS: (Asking for monthly votes) ===== CHAPTER 314 =====