CatatoPatch

  Vermillion

  The next morning, the sun shone brightly.

  Its warm light rays shone down from the sky onto the restaurant below. On this day, the queue in front of the restaurant’s bronze gates was short. The few customers who lined up would raise their heads and glance at the restaurant every once in a while.

  With a loud bang, the bronze gates were swung open, and someone slowly walked out of the restaurant.

  Bu Fang wore the red and white checkered Vermillion Robe, and the red feathers on his chest fluttered gently. It made him look really handsome.

  The rays of the sun shone down on the Vermillion Robe, making it glow a dazzling red.

  Bu Fang narrowed his eyes as he gazed at the piercing light from the sun, and the corner of his lips curled upwards. He raised his hands and patted Shrimpy, who was sleeping atop his shoulders; as per usual, the little fellow was blowing bubbles in his sleep.

  Nethery wore a black robe, and her long straight black fell past her shoulder. Her fair feet only touched the ground lightly as she followed Bu Fang from behind.

  Bu Fang glanced at her but said nothing.

  The duo walked out of the restaurant’s bronze gates and closed them afterward.

  This was the day of the finals of the Magical Hand Conference. Everyone in the Pill Palace would be paying close attention to it.

  When Bu Fang emerged from the restaurant, the people outside dispersed in excitement, rushing to share the news of Bu Fang setting out.

  Bu Fang was unconcerned about this, however. The Vermillion Robe made his body feel lighter than usual. He strolled casually on the road of Heavenly Mist City, and a series of highrise buildings stood tall on either side. Many people stuck their heads out to peek at Bu Fang.

  Many of the onlookers cheered him on loudly from above.

  Bu Fang nodded gently at them and walked onward.

  The Cloud Mist Restaurant was now famous, and everyone in Heavenly Mist City knew of it. Furthermore, everyone knew who its owner was—the dark horse chef Bu Fang.

  As Bu Fang casually strode forward, Nethery walked behind him. After the events that occurred the last time, she began to pay more attention to Bu Fang, following him everywhere.

  If something happened to Bu Fang, her Dragon Blood Rice would be no more. This was something Nethery definitely did not want.

  After walking down the small road, which was between the tall buildings, for a while, Bu Fang and Nethery were momentarily blinded by a bright white light; it made them unable to see what was in front of them.

  After a brief moment, their eyes got used to the bright light, and their ears were assaulted by loud noises.

  The noises resounded throughout Central Plaza.

  Standing at the entrance of the plaza, Bu Fang and Nethery watched the shocking scene. The seats for the audience were already completely filled with people; there was not a single seat left empty. This development was enough to leave one in shock.

  When the audience spotted Bu Fang at the entrance, an uproar of screams and cheers erupted.

  “Boss Bu! Do your best! The championship is yours!”


  “Boss Bu, use your dishes to sweep through the competition! You are invincible!”


  “Dark Horse, remain a dark horse till the very end! Let the other people from the other Pill Cities recognize the strength of our Heavenly Mist City!”
……

  Most of the audience were residents of Heavenly Mist City. They were very excited because this was the first time someone from Heavenly Mist City had made it into the top three of the Magical Hands Conference.

  Furthermore, the competition was being held in their territory, so it was only natural that it received such a large reception.

  The residents of Heavenly Mist City obviously wanted the competitor from their Heavenly Mist City to win. This made them cheer as loud as they could from their seats in the audience’s stand.

  Naturally, some members of the audience were people from other Pill Cities. At that moment, they all wore ugly expressions, but they were not intimidated into retreat by the overwhelming support for Bu Fang; instead, they cheered as loudly as they could for the other competitors from their Pill Cities!

  Bu Fang was a little absentminded, but he was also calm. As he was to become the man at the forefront of cooking in this fantasy world, how could he be intimidated by such a reception?

  Nethery was even calmer. Other than eating, the Netherworld Woman did not care about anything else.

  Shrimpy, on the other hand, straightened up hurriedly from fright, but Bu Fang rubbed it gently before bringing Nethery with him to the resting area.

  When he entered the resting area, he spotted four people already waiting there. Bu Fang momentarily froze because these four were familiar faces.

  Nangong Wuque gave Bu Fang a thumbs up and said, “Boss Bu, if you can become the champion, I, Nangong Wuque, will order every single one of the dishes in your store!”


  Nangong Wan rolled her eyes at that, then her eyes turned to Bu Fang, giving him a deep gaze as she said, “Boss Bu, you can do it!”


  Nangong Wan never thought that Bu Fang would make it this far; after all, he was only a chef! A chef had forcefully made a path for himself in the Magical Hand Conference, a competition primarily dominated by alchemists.

  As this was the first time her belief had been shaken, she was in a daze. In the past, she had considered alchemists amazing existences, but after meeting Boss Bu, she realized that alchemists…… weren’t all that.

  Sorceress An Sheng smiled broadly at Bu Fang, and her twin peaks jiggled slightly. She leaned forward, toward Bu Fang, and with a voice brimming with curiosity and a sparkling gaze, she asked, “Boss Bu, what dish are planning to cook this time? Could you give a small hint?”


  She felt the same way Nangong Wan did. After interacting with Bu Fang, her impressions of chefs and alchemists had undergone a complete change. She never knew that chefs could be this awesome.

  Now, she was more interested in them.

  “You will see it soon……” Bu Fang gently replied as he returned her glance.

  An Sheng pouted at that.

  The fourth person in the resting area was not someone Bu Fang had expected to be there. It was Yang Meiji, the previous owner of the Cloud Mist Restaurant.

  Of the four, Yang Meiji felt the most conflicted.

  This was because she never thought that Bu Fang would so quickly fulfill the promise he had made to her in the past. Bu Fang had promised that he would make Cloud Mist Restaurant famous and guaranteed her that the restaurant would not decline in his hands.

  In the end, he had fulfilled his promise. Today, Cloud Mist Restaurant was famous in Heavenly Mist City and throughout the Pill Palace. This reality had exceeded her imagination greatly, as though it was now in the realms of fantasy.

  Hence, Yang Meiji was very emotional. Although she also glanced at Bu Fang, she did not say anything.

  Bu Fang, who knew what she was feeling, patted her shoulders silently.

  When the others saw the huge woman become emotional, they felt a bit weird.

  “Keep it up! The championship is definitely yours!” Yang Meiji clenched her hands into fists and shouted words of encouragement as Bu Fang walked away.

  Bu Fang froze for a moment, then he continued to walk onward.

  The Central Plaza, which was destroyed in the last match, had now been completely restored. The new platforms atop the stage were gold in color, not bronze.

  Under the sunlight, that golden platforms dazzled brightly, making the audience feel even more excitement!

  When Bu Fang ascended the platform, he realized that he was the first party to arrive. This left him surprised.

  Suddenly, tremors spread outward from the entrance, and the entire ground soon began to tremble.

  Someone slowly came in from the entrance. This person was carrying a huge alchemy furnace on his back. The furnace was pitch-black in color, and it had mysterious lines engraved on it.

  The handsome Mu Bai walked in through the entrance with a smile on his face. He had donned a green robe and was slightly bending his waist. Every step that he took caused the ground to tremble!

  When the audience saw him arrive, they raised an uproar in excitement.

  Pill King Mu Bai. He was favorite to emerge champion in the Magical Hand Conference. His alchemic abilities were just too great, and his talents were demonic; no one could stand up to him.

  However, a dark horse chef had appeared all of a sudden, casting doubt over a result that was originally set in stone.

  Hence, Pill King Mu Bai had decided to get serious. He couldn’t afford to do otherwise; the pressure Bu Fang placed on him was simply too great.

  “It’s a nine star furnace! Oh my god…… Even this type of mythical alchemy furnace has been brought out!”


  “A nine star furnace? Isn’t that the alchemy furnace which the Pill Master of Pill Palace used once before?”


  “I heard that Mu Bai was recognized by the Pill Master of the Pill Palace and has been receiving pointers from him. Now, it seems to be true!”
……

  With wide eyes and bated breaths, the audience watched Mu Bai slowly ascend the platform, one step at a time.

  Even the Pill Master of the Pill Palace had used a nine star furnace before. The furnace gave a huge boost to refinement. The moment Mu Bai whipped out that alchemy furnace, the champion title became his!

  Dong!

  A loud sound rang out as Mu Bai slammed his alchemy furnace onto the platform, causing the latter to tremble. Mu Bai heaved in a deep breath, loosened his muscles, and nodded at Bu Fang, with a smile on his face.

  When Bu Fang caught sight of the alchemy furnace, he narrowed his eyes before returning Mu Bai’s gaze.

  However, Bu Fang was not nervous; this dish he was going to make this time, with Shrimpy’s help, made him completely confident.

  Three people were to compete in this match, aiming to emerge champion. Their places were to be decided based on the rating of the audience.

  There were three golden platforms on the stage but only two contestants; therefore, one contestant had yet to arrive.

  The audience did not care about the last contestant, though. To them, he was just cannon fodder. Everyone had their attention on Mu Bai or Bu Fang. The third contestant, whoever he was, was of no importance.

  Da da da……

  Quiet footsteps echoed at the entrance of the arena, and a beautiful person walked in. This person soon entered the audience’s field of view. She had a great figure, but she looked like an average alchemist. The only visually captivating feature she had was her pure white hair, which drew some attention toward her.

  So, the third contestant was a woman?

  A woman with pure white hair?

  However, when many members of the audience finally laid eyes on the woman, they froze momentarily before sucking in breaths of cold air.

  This woman…… was somehow familiar?!

  A gust of wind blew past Mu Bai causing his hair to flutter and his green robes to sway. He casually turned to look at the third competitor, who was leisurely walking toward the stage. When he spotted her face and white hair, his pupils dilated, and he stiffened in place.

  “It’s her?!” Mu Bai deeply sucked in a breath, and his expression turned solemn.

  The woman walked up the stage, and a slight breeze caused her hair to flutter gracefully. However, a horrifying pressure was being emanated from her body, and this caused the hearts of the onlookers to lurch; they didn’t dare to make a single sound.

  Mu Bai and Bu Fang also felt the pressure.

  When she ascended the stage, Bu Fang frowned, but the woman only smiled meaningfully at him in reply.

  “You are the famous dark horse of the conference? Very good…… I enjoy trampling on dark horses the most.” After she’d said that, the woman shifted her gaze to Mu Bai, who was still frozen stiff with a solemn expression on his face.

  “We meet again. This time, you won’t be as lucky,” said the woman gently, but the audience felt a wave of killing intent.

  Mu Bai’s pupils shrank, and he whispered, “White Demon Jiang Ling?!”


  “That’s right; it’s me. Have you two made your preparations to be crushed?” asked the woman, smiling as she ran a hand through her gently fluttering white hair.