Chapter 289: Way of Cooking

Lin Bai's way of livening up the atmosphere was clearly somewhat unconventional; everyone inside and outside the city found their minds unable to keep up.

With today's events spreading, the Justice Alliance would surely be in its prime, and the rise of Fazhe Zhidao would be a certainty; was there any point in dwelling on that so-called cooking competition at a time like this?

Shouldn't they be seizing the time to discuss post-war matters, settle the captives, stabilize the morale of the Justice Alliance, recover the lost Beggar Sect headquarters, and negotiate cooperation with the Taiyi Kingdom?

With so many important tasks waiting for you to do, why are you being so neglectful of your proper work?

Even if the food is cooked well, can it be more powerful than the Way of Love?

However, at this moment, no one was blind enough to jump out and raise any objections; instead, they each offered flattering and expectant smiles.

Lin Bai had defeated ten Great Vehicle Realm experts single-handedly; he had the capital to be capricious...

Lin Bai drew his meticulously polished kitchen knife. The Craftsman God System's task was to tailor a weapon for a prestigious person and have this weapon recognized by the world, with the reward being intermediate Dharma Treasure theory.

This task had been dragging on without being completed.

Now, Lin Bai felt his reputation was sufficiently large, and the weapon he had tailored for himself should also be revealed to the world.

The Binding Immortal Rope refined with primary Dharma Treasure theory was snapped by people with a single struggle, falling far short of Lin Bai's expectations, so the Craftsman God System's task had to be continued.

"This blade is nine inches and three fen long, forged from millennium black iron, impervious to water and fire, breaks edges and cleans itself; one slash and it is invincible. I forged it personally for the Way of Cooking, and after eighty-seven upgrades, there is a natural flaw on the spine, hence it is named Heaven's Flaw. Today, this blade reveals its edge for the first time; in the future, it shall flourish along with the Way of Cooking."

Holding the kitchen knife, Lin Bai introduced the blade's quality and origin with great passion, then turned to the Demon Beasts of the Beast Taming Sect to find his ingredients.

Swept by Lin Bai's gaze, the Demon Beasts all took a step back in unison.

It had to be said, the pressure of the Great Vehicle Realm was too intimidating, especially since Lin Bai had also shared Qiu Liang's beast-taming Skill; one glance over, and all the many Demon Beasts were trembling in their livers.

"Under the Heavenly Dao, all living beings are equal. Are you willing to leave the Beast Taming Sect, join the Demon Kingdom, serve the Demon King Xiaobai as your master, and strive for the glory of the Demon Kingdom for the rest of your lives?" Lin Bai asked.

"We are willing."

The Demon Beasts replied in a ragged, uneven chorus.

With people under the eaves, one has to bow one's head; from beginning to end, the Beast Taming Sect had been domesticating Demon Beasts toward a state of having no self. Even their own master had surrendered to the Justice Alliance, so what else could they do?

Moreover, Lin Bai had just said he wanted to complete the cooking competition, and then turned his gaze toward them; even a ghost knew he had ill intentions.

Throughout history, besides being domesticated, Demon Beasts were also high-end ingredients in the Cultivation World. Those weak, culled Demon Beasts of the Beast Taming Sect eventually ended up as ingredients anyway.

The cultivators of the Beast Taming Sect were in a state of chaos.

A Disciple gathered his courage and came out to say, "Alliance Leader, we are inextricably linked with the Demon Beasts, and both sides complement each other. If you force us to separate, the strength of both sides will be damaged..."

"The Demon Kingdom has long had a countermeasure. They will register in the Demon Kingdom, and you can go to Xiaobai to sign an equal contract, naturally allowing you to fight together again. Of course, it must be voluntary for both sides." Lin Bai looked back at him, "In the Justice Alliance, humans and beasts are equal. Once you have joined the Justice Alliance, you must discard your previous dross-like thinking and act according to the policies formulated by the Alliance."

"Many thanks, Alliance Leader." The Beast Taming Sect Disciple looked at his pet beast and ultimately retreated. As defeated soldiers and surrendered generals, saying one sentence was enough; how could he keep raising objections?

"Where are Qiu Liang's Demon Beasts?" Lin Bai looked at the well-behaved Demon Beasts, unable to find a reason to strike. With such a grand setup, finding just any ingredient would lower his own status, so he hesitated for a moment and asked again.

"Here."

A Flying Dragon, a bear, and an eagle stepped out obediently. They transformed into human forms and lowered their proud heads before Lin Bai.

As pet beasts of a Great Vehicle Realm expert, they held high status in the Beast Taming Sect.

But Qiu Liang had been taken as a Puppet, and the arrogance of the few Demon Beasts was instantly suppressed. Facing a fierce god like Lin Bai, they dared not act presumptuously at all.

"Your master has been taken by me as a Puppet; have you ever thought of avenging him?" Lin Bai asked.

"That our master was taken as a Puppet was his own willingness. Alliance Leader Lin is benevolent and righteous, establishing the Demon Kingdom to provide shelter for many Demon Beasts; we are too grateful to even think of it, so how could we avenge him?" The Flying Dragon glanced sideways at the dull-eyed Qiu Liang, swallowed a mouthful of saliva, and revealed a fawning smile.

【Resentment from Long Qian, Xiong Lie, Ling Kong; +1 +1 +1...】

Sensing the emotions provided by the three Demon Beasts, Lin Bai smiled: "That is not what you are thinking in your hearts, is it!"

"Alliance Leader, please see clearly; what we just said is our heartfelt words." The three Demon Beasts knelt in the void, smiling in fear and trepidation.

"Just now, that cultivator from the Beast Taming Sect said that only by uniting with Demon Beasts can they exert maximum combat power. Now, Hu Qing and Qiu Liang have both become my Puppets, and you are all his Demon Beasts; are you willing to serve me just like them?" Lin Bai pressed step by step.

To be sealed?

The three Demon Beasts felt their tongues dry and sweat pouring down like rain. They knew Lin Bai was picking a fight, yet they could not say a word of rebuttal...

Hu Qing had his marriage randomly decided by Lin Bai, and his former master was muddled and had lost his sanity; anyone knew that being Lin Bai's Puppet had no benefits!

But refuse?

The next second, Lin Bai's kitchen knife would likely be hacking at their heads!

"Forget it, I knew you were saying one thing and meaning another. Back then, when I made a slight suggestion, Hu Qing was willing to be taken as my Puppet. You guys, you push back against even the request of an Alliance Leader like me." Lin Bai didn't give them time to consider, shook his head, and snorted, "Xiaobai's cultivation is currently only that of a three-tailed demon fox. You are all Void Refinement Realm great demons; I cannot suppress you yet. If one day you develop a rebellious heart and harm my good disciple's life, wouldn't I regret it too late? Very well, today I shall use you as ingredients to establish the Demon King's prestige for my disciple..."

"..." Everyone.

Good heavens.

The transition was too stiff!

With such methods and temperament, if he isn't a devil, what is he?

Why bother?

Why look for so many reasons; isn't it better to just start cutting?

Inside the Zhen City Defense Array.

The little white fox looked up at Lin Bai, her tail wagging involuntarily behind her, showing off triumphantly: "Master is indeed still the most doting on me; he knows I can't suppress them, so he is helping me establish prestige in his own way."

Xu Longyun glanced sideways at the little white fox and shook her head with a smile.

No matter how outsiders viewed Lin Bai, in her heart, everything Lin Bai did was right.

The members of the Justice Alliance were too mixed; the new members were either Void Refinement or Great Vehicle, and the old members couldn't suppress them at all. If even one developed a second heart, it would be a disaster for them. The fiercer and more unreasonable Lin Bai was, the safer they, the people close to Lin Bai, would be...

The Duke of the State watched Lin Bai unreasonably looking for trouble in the sky, remaining quiet and saying nothing; his thoughts were the same as Xu Longyun's.

For a king, if his temper and character are figured out by those below, it is not a good thing; it is quite good like this!

The Flying Dragon and the other two Demon Beasts were scared out of their wits and hurriedly begged for mercy: "Alliance Leader, we are willing to be sealed, willing to fight together with the Alliance Leader."

"Willing to contribute everything to the Alliance?" Lin Bai asked next.

"Willing, we are willing." The three Demon Beasts nodded hurriedly.

"Good, I need to take some organs from you to cook, to promote the Culinary Dao. Reveal your true forms!" Lin Bai said calmly.

"..." The three Demon Beasts stood frozen on the spot. They had the heart to lash out, but seeing the several Great Vehicle Realm experts eyeing them covetously beside Lin Bai, they suppressed the anger in their hearts.

If they really charged in recklessly, they would likely be beaten to death on the spot and still not escape the fate of becoming ingredients.

A demon!

Lin Bai was a genuine demon!

"Contributing to the Culinary Dao is your honor. Do not be afraid. I am not a villain. Once sealed by the card, no matter how severe the injuries are, they will instantly recover." Lin Bai smiled slightly. "Fortune follows misfortune, and misfortune hides within fortune. Great talents have suffered hardships since ancient times. It may seem like you have been wronged, but to personally experience the Culinary Dao, to be able to follow by my side at all times, and to listen to the teachings of the laws at all times—I don't know how many people will envy you! In the future, when I attain the Heavenly Dao, I will designate you as the Four Symbols Divine Beasts, to be revered for ten thousand generations. The more wronged you feel today, the more glorious you will be then!"

【Resentment from Long Qian, Xiong Lie, and Ling Kong; +1 +1 +1...】

The three Demon Beasts wore expressions of sorrow. As things stood, they could only hope that Lin Bai would keep his word! They looked at each other, nodded, and revealed their true forms. Blocking out the sky and sun, the three Demon Beasts spread out alone, hovering in the air, and closed their eyes: "Please proceed, Alliance Leader."

"Bear with it, it will be over soon." Lin Bai's mind did not fluctuate much. Although these individuals had surrendered to the Justice Alliance, the background emotions he received were mostly resentment and hatred, which was enough to prove that none of these guys were sincere. If he couldn't make them respect him, then he would make them fear him. The Justice Alliance could not afford any more deaths.

Flash.

Lin Bai appeared abruptly beside the Flying Dragon. The Zaitixie Zhi Shu and the Insight of Flaw were activated simultaneously. In an instant, the physical structure of the three Demon Beasts seemed to have become transparent in Lin Bai's eyes; the muscles and meridians were clear as day.

Lin Bai seemed to have entered a mysterious and profound state.

With one slash, the Flying Dragon let out a miserable shriek, and one dragon claw was easily severed.

Flash again.

One slash severed a bear paw.

Flash again.

Another slash chopped off the eagle demon's wing.

Clean and efficient.

In the sky, blood rained down.

Ye Song, Xiao Yu, Cen Qing, and the other Great Vehicle Realm experts widened their eyes in unison.

Laymen watch the excitement, while experts watch the technique. Severing the limbs of a few Demon Beasts easily was something all of them could do with ease.

After all, having reached the Great Vehicle Realm, they had experienced most things in the world.

But like Lin Bai, using a small kitchen knife to perform dismemberment on Demon Beasts with such ease—they could not do it...

Of course, this only counted as a minor path. With their intelligence, they could succeed with more practice.

It was Lin Bai's Flash that made them take notice.

At the Spirit Transformation Realm, one could possess close-range burst movement techniques, and similar movement techniques at the Great Vehicle Realm were countless, often used by Great Vehicle Realm experts in battle; it was a common occurrence.

However, Lin Bai's Flash had not the slightest fluctuation of Spiritual Power.

Without Spiritual Power fluctuations, it was impossible to defend against. If Lin Bai used Flash to suddenly appear beside them and slash at them with such a blade, they feared they would not be able to defend against it either...

Could this also be the Fazhe Zhidao? Just how many things was Lin Bai hiding?

"Long Qian, Xiong Lie, Ling Kong, why haven't you returned to your positions yet?" Lin Bai put away the ingredients, looked at the three Demon Beasts, raised his volume, and used the Decibel Multiplier skill. He suddenly let out a sharp shout, the rolling thunderous sound rushing straight into the eardrums of the three Demon Beasts, shaking them into a daze.

The next second.

Three silver cards had already flown above them. With a flash of silver light, all three Demon Beasts were collected into the cards.

Lin Bai flicked his hand and released them again. Although they were dazed, their severed limbs were already as good as new. It had to be said, the restoration effect of the cards was truly astonishing.

The crowd of Demon Beasts, who had been intimidated by Lin Bai's Blade Technique and Flash, were all stunned the moment they saw the recovered Flying Dragon and the others. The look they gave Lin Bai became complicated; he had actually kept his word and helped them recover!

"Thunder, rain, and dew are all the grace of the monarch. A word is as heavy as the Nine Cauldrons; this is the image of a king." The Duke of Zhen came to Xu Longyun, shook his head, and said softly, "Xiaoyun, you did not choose the wrong husband."

Having fulfilled his promise, Lin Bai no longer paid attention to the three Demon Beasts. The kitchen knife danced in his hand as he focused on processing the ingredients.

Zaitixie, trait analysis, knife skills, and other system-rewarded chef skills merged into one at this moment. Lin Bai used Spiritual Power to hold the ingredients aloft, his kitchen knife flying up and down, staging a spectacular scene of preliminary ingredient processing for everyone in mid-air...

Lean meat, fatty meat, tendons, and bones were sorted and classified, each hanging in the air.

Subsequently.

He used Spiritual Power to ignite the trees in the mountain forest below, skewered the prepared meat with branches, and began to roast them over the fire.

The series of operations left people dazzled.

As the aroma of the roasted meat emerged.

A moment later.

A skewer of golden-colored meat was roasted to perfection.

At the very moment it was cooked.

A golden light illuminated the horizon.

Inside and outside Zhen City, there were gasps of surprise. Everyone knew from "Justice Weekly" that Lin Bai's culinary skills could light up half the sky, but seeing it with their own eyes, they still felt incredibly shocked.

Looking at the meat skewer emitting golden light, Ye Song sniffed and frowned slightly: "Lin Bai's Culinary Dao is indeed exquisite and masterful, but to say it forms a path of its own is a bit far-fetched. It is far inferior to the Love God's path."

"Indeed, this food emitting golden light is of no help in battle," Xiao Yu echoed. "It's not even as good as the previous teleportation movement technique."

Although the others did not speak, they harbored the same thoughts as Ye Song.

After all, the path of love was too stunning; no matter how dazzling the light of the food made by the Culinary Dao was, it could not injure or defeat an enemy!

The two were too far apart; the promotion of the Culinary Dao was likely to sink.

Lin Bai did not care about all that; all he wanted was to complete the mission.

He held up the glowing meat skewer, looked at Xu Longyun and City Lord Feng Jing on the city wall, and asked loudly: "City Lord, Xiaoyun, fellow judges, can my culinary skills be worthy of the championship of the Culinary Competition?"

"Naturally, they are worthy," Xu Longyun smiled.

"Worthy," Feng Jing said with a dark face. He had no idea what the point was of Lin Bai showing off this inexplicable culinary skill after the battle.

【... Host a cross-city level culinary competition recognized by the authorities and win the championship in the competition (Completed); Reward: The food made will emit an ultimate aroma (Distributed)】

【Host a national-level culinary competition and win the title of champion in the competition; Reward: Dazzling and Bewitching, you will attract everyone's gaze when you cook】

As soon as the words of the several judges fell.

The Chef God System's task was instantly completed, and then a new task was posted; Lin Bai glanced at the new task reward and couldn't help but be stunned, feeling that this reward was somewhat inexplicable.

Not only did Ye Song not understand, but up until now, Lin Bai also did not know what use these rewards created by the Chef God System had.

If in the end, it really was just that the food tasted good, it would be somewhat not worth the loss.

Having already won the championship, there were still many ingredients left, so Lin Bai simply continued to grill; at the very least, he had to figure out what this ultimate aroma was.

In a moment's time.

A few more meat skewers were grilled until cooked.

Different from just now, while golden light shone upon the sky, an aroma, even more intensely rich than the previous meat fragrance, suddenly burst forth.

Lin Bai, who was closest to the meat skewers, instantly had his mouth overflow with saliva; he looked at the meat skewers in his hand with infatuation, licked his lips, and drooled; at this moment, there was nothing left in his eyes but these few meat skewers, and he wished he could pounce on them right then and there to take a bite.

Gulp!

The sound of swallowing saliva rose and fell one after another; his powerful Mental Power caused Lin Bai to suddenly wake up, and he looked around, only to discover that regardless of human or beast, almost everyone's gaze was tightly fixed on the meat skewers in his hand, as if they were possessed, swallowing their saliva incessantly.

Hiss!

Lin Bai gasped, as if he understood the mystery of the Chef God System; good heavens, it was an ultimate temptation!

(End of this chapter)