Chapter 1080: Identifying Ingredients

"Who is that person? So powerful!"

"I remember someone just said he's a successor of the Immortal Chef?"

"Yes, Lu Yang, successor of the Immortal Chef!"

"I remember now! Just moments ago, Lu Yang and Ma Bin were standing together. At first, Ma Bin wasn't very friendly towards him, but later, it was as if he knew Lu Yang's identity, and he became quite polite!" A spectator suddenly recalled something from before the competition.

Ma Bin, in the stands, twitched an eye. "What do you mean I wasn't friendly to him at first? Don't spread rumors! I have sincere respect for Fellow Daoist Lu Yang!"

Ma Bin narrowed his eyes slightly, gazing at the slender figure below, and murmured, "So, he truly is a successor of the Immortal Chef..."

"Fellow Daoist Ma Bin, do you know his identity?" An eager gourmand leaned over and asked.

Ma Bin offered a knowing smile. "Whether he is or isn't, I cannot say."

Ma Bin's ambiguous answer, as if he held a secret, paradoxically made everyone believe Lu Yang's identity. By wholeheartedly helping Lu Yang gain fame, Ma Bin likely hoped Lu Yang would write a line or two about him in the newspapers.

"It seems that little girl was right; he really might be a successor of the Immortal Chef."

"I feel the same way."

Seeing more and more people recognize that her Second Boss was truly remarkable, Yun Mengmeng felt a great sense of pride. Her Second Boss was competing so diligently down there; she couldn't just sit idle! She got up, moved to another spot, and continued promoting her Second Boss.

"This Lu Yang is one of ours. How could I have no impression of such exquisite knife skills?" Jin Tan, the Patriarch of the Gluttonous Clan, noticed Lu Yang's actions with great surprise. Facing a Kui Niu, also at the late stage of the Divine Transformation realm, Lu Yang effortlessly carved off a piece of meat from it without the beast even noticing, all without exerting his full strength. "If he wished, all these demonic beasts in the arena would be mere matters of a single slice or stab for him." People like him should be vigorously cultivated by their Gluttonous Clan.

"Never mind, as long as he's on my side." Jin Tan revealed a triumphant smile. The spirit chefs he had trained performed remarkably well in the first round and would soon showcase their skills in the second and third rounds, helping him acquire the legendary ingredients. "Old Daoist Ming Yuan, what good is it that you've painstakingly obstructed me for three hundred years? This alliance leader position will ultimately be mine!"

The knife skills round concluded swiftly. All participants were top-notch experts; those eliminated were spirit chefs unable to defeat the demonic beasts.

Liu Xing continued to preside over the Five-Star Spirit Chef group's test. Unlike the first round, this round saw significantly more spirit chefs' eyes on Lu Yang, now recognizing him as a hot favorite to win.

"This round tests your ability to identify ingredients."

Liu Xing presented five display cases, all covered with red cloth. The cloth, woven from unknown material, blocked spiritual sense detection. "Each of these five display cases contains a different ingredient. You must identify the name of the ingredient. Only the first person to answer correctly will pass this round."

"However, if you answer incorrectly, you will be disqualified from the competition. Think carefully before you answer."

In other words, only five people would pass this round!

Upon realizing this, the entire arena fell silent. The spirit chefs grew tense and anxious. Their previous confidence in their knowledge wavered, as they began to doubt whether their skills were truly up to par.

Only Lu Yang yawned, unconcerned with winning or losing, wondering how he would write his manuscript after returning. "So troublesome. It would be great if I had brought Old Meng along. Then I could just focus on having fun and let him worry about this problem." Before setting off, Lu Yang had sought out Meng Jingzhou, who was diligently pondering the subtle profound meanings within the "Sayings of Immortals." Seeing Old Meng studying so earnestly, Lu Yang decided not to disturb him. Lu Yang's relaxed demeanor, in everyone's eyes, conveyed immense confidence.

Liu Xing unveiled the first red cloth. Inside the display case lay a single leaf, its surface shimmering with ancient, primitive golden runes—naturally formed symbols.

"Looks familiar," Lu Yang mumbled to himself. He felt he had seen it somewhere before, and quite frequently at that.

Master Golden Blade shot a beam of spiritual energy into the sky, signaling he was ready to answer. "It's a leaf from the Great Chūn!"

"Incorrect answer."

The first spirit chef to be eliminated appeared quickly, and it was none other than Master Golden Blade, who had performed quite well in the knife skills round. Witnessing this scene, the once eager spirit chefs seemed to have cold water thrown on them and no longer dared to rush to answer.

However, as Master Golden Blade was eliminated, another beam of spiritual energy immediately shot skyward. It was Immortal Tongue Xie Qi. "It's a leaf from a Bodhi Tree, specifically one from a five-thousand-year-old Bodhi Tree."

"Correct answer."

The spirit chefs cast envious glances. As expected of Xie Qi, he not only recognized it as a Bodhi Tree but also discerned its five-thousand-year age. "It's merely because our family cultivates a five-thousand-year-old Bodhi Tree," Xie Qi said modestly, though it was hard to tell if he was genuinely humble or merely showing off.

"So it's a Bodhi Tree," Lu Yang realized. No wonder it looked so familiar; his Eldest Senior Sister often brewed tea with Bodhi Tree leaves, though hers always came from the hundred-thousand-year-old Bodhi Tree King. This was the first time he'd seen a Bodhi Tree leaf of such a young age, which was why he didn't recognize it immediately.

"Next is the second ingredient."

Liu Xing unveiled the second red cloth, revealing a palm-sized, vibrant green vine, so lush it seemed to drip with vitality. The heat emanating from the vine distorted the surrounding space, making it quite terrifying. Behind the vine, a faint, illusory figure flickered, resembling both a tiger and a dragon.

The spirit chefs frowned, not answering immediately, as none of them had ever seen such a spiritual plant.

Lu Yang shot out a beam of spiritual energy, smiling. "This is the Qilin Undying Medicine, but not the parent plant; it's a separate growth from an ancient parent." He was very familiar with this one; the Medicine Garden of the Dao Inquiry Sect had a Qilin Undying Medicine plant that originated from ancient times. On the day of Immortal Qilin's grand wedding, Immortal Buxiu unintentionally interfered, leading Ao Ling and Jiang Lianyi to compete in cooking, with the three Immortals of Ying Tian as tasters. Afterward, the three Immortals, unaware of the full truth, blamed Immortal Qilin as the source of trouble and subsequently disciplined him. A few drops of blood shed by Immortal Qilin during that battle gave rise to the Qilin Undying Medicine of later generations.

"Qilin Undying Medicine?" Many spirit chefs exchanged bewildered glances; most of them had never heard of this immortal medicine. Although Immortal Tongue Xie Qi, Undefeated An Tong, Granny Poison, and others had heard of immortal medicines, it was only by name; they didn't know their origins.

With his hands clasped behind his back, Lu Yang paced around, slowly beginning to reveal an ancient secret. "In ancient times, a sinister force interfered, causing the Dragon and Phoenix Ancestors to clash. The Four Ancient Immortals debated the Dao, and Immortal Qilin, fighting three opponents, held his own. In that battle, the Great Dao collapsed, stars were extinguished, and a few drops of immortal blood, containing Immortal Qilin's power of creation, flowed out. They pierced through the void and penetrated the heavens, and several spiritual plants, fortunate enough to be nourished by this immortal blood, transformed into the Qilin Undying Medicine!"