Mag smiled to all the apprentices. “I will provide 10 crayfish and a small wok to every one of you today. If anyone of you can reach the standard for graduation, you can open another crayfish restaurant on Carapace Island or any other place.”


  All the demons’ eyes lit up. Opening a crayfish restaurant was their objective in coming to learn cooking crayfish from Mag. At first, they thought Mag would be using them as free labor for some time. They didn’t expect he would let them open their own crayfish restaurant as soon as they mastered cooking it.

  “Can we also open the restaurant on Carapace Island?” Kitar asked expectantly.

  “Yes. You may open it wherever you like.” Mag nodded with a smile. After all, he would be leaving soon, so it was naturally for the best if they could spread on Carapace Island.

  “That’s fantastic. In this case, I could go back to my hometown and open a crayfish restaurant.” Ivan’s eyes lit up. He didn’t want to continue to stay on Carapace Island, and wished to return to their hometown in glory. Although Rock Island was remote, the crayfish was a huge tonic to his kind, so he would be able to sell them for a much higher price than on Carapace Island.

  Then, Mag began to teach as usual. Of course, since everyone had already entered into the hands-on phrase, he was mostly responsible for pointing out their mistakes.

  Among these apprentices, Kitar was the fastest learner and did the best.

  An aroma tickled his noses when he removed the cover. A red crayfish was lying in the wok quietly as he turned up the fire to reduce the gravy. He then turned off the fire and plated the crayfish before drizzling the gravy all over it. A simplified version of the thirteen-spice crayfish was done.

  “Please taste it, Boss,” Kitar said to Mag with anticipation as he placed the big bowl on the table at the side with both hands.

  Mag went forward and waved away the steam gently before twisting a pincer off. The gravy had seeped into the pincer through the cracks, and dyed the meat with a beautiful brown color. He took a bite after dipping it in the gravy.

  The modified version of the thirteen-spice still had a very good taste and aroma. Although it was still a little lacking in the layered texture aspect when compared to the system-enhanced version of thirteen-spice, it was still a spice with a unique flavor.

  Numb, spicy, fresh, fragrant, and sweet. All the tastes were present, and the texture of meat and the control of heat were fine. Although the meat was slightly overdone, it wasn’t obvious if they tasted it closely.

  “Not bad.” Mag gave the expectant Kitar his approval after eating a whole pincer.

  Kitar was the most hardworking, and had the most trials among the apprentices. He had gone beyond Mag’s expectations by reaching such standards, yet it felt very reasonable too.

  Elation flashed across Kitar’s face and his voice quivered. “T-then did I pass the test?”


  “Not yet.” Mag shook his head, and continued, “The fire was too big during the stir-frying, and the frequency of tossing was too low. If there were 10 crayfish in the wok instead of one, this flaw would be magnified 10 times. You have to control the timing of adding in the thirteen-spice more accurately. Too early or too late would affect the meat’s absorption of both spices and condiments.”


  Kitar nodded appreciatively. There was no despair on his face even though he was rejected. He continued to wash the wok, heat up the oil, and practice.

  Very soon, the other apprentices had cooked their crayfish, and Mag tasted them one by one. They didn’t do as well as Kitar, and their problems persisted.

  The demons were indeed not talented in cooking. However, Mag didn’t want to use his standards to limit them. After all, not everyone could be as outstanding as him.

  From the customers, Mag received the latest news about the abyss demons and the flaming demons. Although the other tribes weren’t involved in the battle, they were sniping at one another because of the sudden unexplainable deaths of their demon diplomats. The situation on the Demon Islands had become very tense.

  Of course, the most shocking news on Carapace Island was something else: the abyss demons’ office on Carapace Island had launched a sneak attack on the flaming demons’ office last night, and killed all the flaming demons.

  The other eight halls arrested the demons from abyss demons’ office with combined efforts, but nobody knew how they were going to handle them yet.

  Those living on Carapace Island, who weren’t involved in the battle, also began to have an ominous feeling. Many demons were worried.

  Tony wasn’t affected by the war at all. Smiling, he said to Mag, “Boss, I’ve already sent the culinary review about your crayfish to the editors of all the culinary magazines. If everything goes smoothly, it should be published in the coming few days, and your crayfish restaurant is going to be full of customers. How are you going to thank me?”


  “Oh, I see……” Mag murmured. He would have left Carapace Island in the next few days, so he really had no idea how to thank this friendly critic.

  It was still fine if that article wasn’t famous. If it got popular and those customers who came because of it only saw a ruin, he wondered if they would murder Tony.

  Mag suddenly looked at Tony sympathetically. “Well, in this case, I will give you three crayfish. One for each flavor.”


  This way, at least he could hit the road after he was full.

  Maybe he would be cursed to death by the readers’ grievances and be immensely unlucky for his next life.

  Come to think of it, it would be the start of another kind of miserable life.

  Served him right.

  “Alright, then I will not stand on ceremony.” Tony’s eyes lit up. He was simply saying it for fun, and didn’t expect Mag to agree. Anyway, he did publicize for Mag, and Ayi Crayfish Restaurant would become the most popular restaurant on the Demon Islands under his influence. He felt he deserved those three crayfish.

  “Kitar, Cassis…… The six of you have passed. Of course, you’ve only just passed. You still are some distance away from cooking real scrumptious crayfish. However, that would take time and practice to accomplish. During this journey, you may choose to open your own crayfish restaurant,” Mag smilingly said to the six apprentices, including Kitar. He shook their hands and smiled. “Congratulations, you’ve graduated.”


  “Thank you so much.” Kitar bowed to Mag deeply with ill-concealed excitement on his face. He already couldn’t wait to get the big wok that he ordered from the blacksmith home and opened a crayfish restaurant immediately before going to catch a few dozens of crayfish on the beach.

  There was also excitement on the other demons’ faces as they expressed their appreciation to Mag.

  Meanwhile, Ivan and the other three demons who didn’t pass had a depressed look.

  “Boss, what about us? Are we weeded out just like this……” Ivan said to Mag weakly. He was reminded of Gemina’s tough words earlier. He didn’t dare to think what he had to face when he returned home.

  “The crayfish that the four of you made didn’t reach the minimum standards to be presented to the customers. I will add on another day of lessons for you. However, you will need to purchase the crayfish that you need for practice tomorrow yourself. That’s all if you still can’t reach the minimum standards,” Mag said to Ivan and the rest. He was rather helpless when he faced the apprentices with bad talent.