Chapter 296: Beast Tide

Xilin was extremely agitated. The massive furniture and giant chairs gave off a magical, mysterious vibe. This game was so much fun, allowing her to eat delicious food and experience everything with completely realistic five senses. She certainly didn't want to die so suddenly.

Suddenly, an idea struck her, and her eyes lit up.

She lowered her head, gazing at the basket overflowing with ingredients. She drew out the bone knife she carried, muttering, "Brothers, you've met a terrible end. I can only prepare you for your final rest."

Soon, the firewood was split and a fire was kindled.

When the giant returned to the basket, he saw a peculiar slime-like creature.

The mud monster prostrated itself, bowing as if an ancient tribal native worshipping a celestial deity. It held up the prepared ingredients, then pointed at the bonfire, trying to convey: "Boss, let me cook for you!"

But internally, it instantly felt stumped. There was a language barrier; how could it explain itself?

Oh, right!

Tone!

But what kind of tone...

Suddenly, she looked at the farmer giant with a fawning expression, then pointed to the fire, bowing deeply with a look uglier than crying. "Master, I can cook, I'm very good at it!"

The farmer seemed to possess intelligence; he understood her gestures and nodded.

"See, tone works!" she thought. "Foolish human, you have no idea what a fatal mistake you've made. Today I may bow and kneel to you, but another day, I'll be the one putting you on the chopping block!"

She was ecstatic internally, secretly patting herself on the back for her cleverness. Yet, she cautiously began grilling, occasionally glancing back at the giant. She noticed him punching a colossal tree, apparently practicing some form of martial art.

Soon, however, the entire forest was filled with the tantalizing aroma of cooked food.

At this very moment, online communities were filled with lamentations.

"Morals have collapsed! It's all your fault for reproducing and then resorting to cannibalism! This is an abomination, and it's what triggered the monster attacks on the city!" (Gritting teeth)

"This is what happens when you don't love cooking! I've been eliminated!" (Crying)

"It's over for me. From today, I'm just a dish—partly pan-fried, partly deep-fried. Very silent, very proud." (Tears welling up)

A group of people were tallying the casualties.

The previous wave alone saw over six hundred players perish, a devastating loss, as they had been completely unprepared.

Some even speculated that had the giant boss not simply gathered ingredients and departed with a full basket, they would have been completely annihilated.

"We can't stay in the gathering place anymore; we're terrified the giant will return for another meal once it's full." (Gritting teeth)

"It's true; this gourmet world clearly has a similar worldview that forbids us from living a simple, lazy existence, forming settlements for safety, or engaging in intensive farming. Since congregating inevitably attracts attacks from large creatures, we must truly embrace the role of gourmet hunters and travel the world."

"Anyone want to form a team?"

"To the three grand final combat experts, Caiji052, Yuanqinghua, and Cathy, please carry us!"

At that moment, many thought of those three individuals; if anyone had the highest survival rate or lived the most comfortably, it would be them.

Soon, they pulled themselves together, clearing the debris in the ruined settlement. This was no time to dwell on other matters; they needed to figure out how to relocate and survive.

One by one, they hoisted their belongings and began their journey.

However, it wasn't long before a surprising post appeared online:

**I'm the only surviving player! Real photos of the Giant Boss's Lair!**

"Hello everyone, I'm Beibei Longxilin. I've been in the giant's lair for over two days now! I've become his personal chef, helping with the cooking. No more talking, here are the screenshots."

[Screenshot][Screenshot][Screenshot]

The screenshots revealed the giant's surroundings and an enlarged view of the interior furniture: a wooden table, wooden chairs, and a wooden bed.

"You actually became the boss's monster-chef, cooking for him to survive?" everyone exclaimed in astonishment.

Beibei Longxilin replied, "He only eats one meal a day."

Everyone instantly cheered up; this sounded like an incredibly leisurely job!

Plus, she could sneak food and level up!

With such a powerful boss procuring ingredients, wouldn't she advance in power in no time?

This must be a hidden plot trigger, a stroke of good fortune! It's a sure win!

"Yes, yes, he only eats one meal a day, but that meal requires a giant bathtub full of food! Not a bathtub for our size, but one for *his* hundred-meter stature. What does that amount to? Two hundred square meters!"

Everyone was speechless.

They had assumed the boss was large, but his appetite was truly a bottomless pit.

Beibei Longxilin added, "I'm already a miserable tool. I'm grilling dozens of skewers at once, constantly flipping them, cooking for over ten hours every single day."

Everyone felt her plight; this sounded worse than death.

"And then, something even more tragic occurred," she continued.

Everyone paused, wondering if anything could be worse.

She went on, "He started complaining that I cooked too slowly, so he's making me teach him how to cook himself."

"Isn't that good? Then you'll be free!"

But Xilin nearly burst into tears. She had initially hoped that things would eventually turn around, but despair instantly washed over her. "If I teach him, I'll be useless, and he'll most likely cook *me* as an ingredient! I'm currently studying hard, researching new dishes, and striving to become an even better chef, so my culinary progress outpaces his learning speed. He learns very slowly, after all, because he spends most of his time exercising and fighting wild beasts."

Everyone gasped. "This boss is truly toxic!!!"

It's like the frog in boiling water analogy.

Xilin explained, "Clearly, he's primitive; we can't communicate with him through language. Every day, besides eating, he practices martial arts and hunts monsters to fight. He's incredibly barbaric...."

Everyone immediately felt that this player was living a fate worse than death.

Just then, Mengmei popped up again, laughing heartily, "Are you following my disciple's example? As long as I advance the 'Nine Revolutions Profound Art' quickly enough, Emperor Qi won't be able to catch me!"

Wherever there was excitement, that slacker was sure to appear.

Xilin completely broke down: "Everyone, please help! Even though he's huge, he's only Tier 4! Once we have Tier 4 experts among us, come fight this boss! We can attack him from the inside and out, let's take him down!"

"Yes, we'll cultivate, and then we'll take him down!"

"This giant must also be a gourmet creature; his meat definitely has to be delicious!"

"Let's defeat the evil dragon and rescue our beautiful chef!"

Everyone's eyes immediately blazed with newfound courage.

Online, heated discussions began as players started devising strategies. The narrative also revealed a lot of information, suggesting there might be more than just one such powerful monster.

Otherwise, this primitive being wouldn't need to train every day; it's clear there are more powerful entities threatening his life.

While they were discussing, Xu Zhi sat at his dining table, his expression remarkably calm.

Steaming hot dishes slowly appeared before him, emitting an enchanting aroma.

Though not large, they were exceptionally exquisite.

The Buxiaosheng mirror clone was used for acquiring knowledge, and this second mirror clone, just manifested before him, was naturally also for learning, but it was specifically for combat knowledge.

One for scholarly pursuits, the other for martial arts.

After all, a high volume of knowledge is useless without practical application; combat experience must be cultivated. Without real combat ability, even with comparable strength, one would instantly perish against seasoned veterans like Emperor Qi and Medusa, whose combat experience is unparalleled.

This clone was designed to learn through constant combat, as its primary function.

And the targets for this combat learning were the players themselves.

Of course, this mirror clone was also simultaneously learning the culinary arts of the gourmet world, aiming to become an excellent chef who could cook for Xu Zhi.

Xu Zhi sat at the dining table, calmly chewing the steadily served dishes. "Inside, one day equals one year. In this scenario, most people probably won't survive long, but the player influx is constantly refreshed due to the competition... Twelve months a year, the giant can attack the city three times, once every four months. This gives them a sense of urgency while also training my mirror clone's combat abilities..."

He continued to chew and ponder, finally speaking softly:

"The gods have decreed: in the gourmet world, there shall be beast tides!"

"Three attacks per year—this represents three meals a day!"