Chapter 1081: What I Say Is Evidence

The entire venue fell silent. No one—neither the spirit chefs competing, nor the audience members on stage, nor even the higher-ups of the Spirit Chef Alliance—had ever heard of the Qilin Immortal Medicine's origin. Yet, Lu Yang spoke with such conviction that it didn't sound like a lie. Could the Qilin Immortal Medicine truly have originated in such a way? If Lu Yang's words were true, it would be a monumental discovery for the culinary, alchemy, and archaeological worlds alike!

"Lu Yunyang, you pass," Liu Xing announced. Regardless of the Qilin Immortal Medicine's true origin, Lu Yang had successfully identified the ingredient. Lu Yang returned to his seat, drawing all eyes. Xie Qi, in particular, felt that Lu Yang would be his greatest rival in this competition. "Excellent," he thought, "only a challenging competition can truly showcase my strength!"

"Second Boss, so that time when Ying Tianxian and the others fought with Qilin Immortal, was there a mastermind behind it?" Immortal Fairy knew the origin of the Qilin Immortal Medicine perfectly, but she truly hadn't been aware of the deeper machinations.

Lu Yang sighed inwardly. "Weren't *you* the one who instigated their fight, Fairy?" he thought, recalling how she had given a divine fruit to Ao Ling and Jiang Lianyi, claiming it was for the most beautiful demon race. Of course, such thoughts were best kept to himself; there was no need to mention it to the Fairy. A good subordinate should organize intelligence, filter information, and alleviate the worries of their superior.

"Senior Ying Tianxian told me," Lu Yang explained. "Originally, the four of them were like siblings. The only reason they fought was because someone interfered. Now, when they think back, they all regret fighting the Qilin Immortal. Their true enemy is someone else, but that enemy is too powerful for them to defeat!" Lu Yang clenched his fists, saying with righteous indignation, "I believe only that despicable mastermind, who deserves death, could have manipulated the Four Ancient Immortals!"

"We'll eliminate him sooner or later!" Immortal Fairy declared, clenching her small fists as well. With the First Boss and Second Boss united against a common foe, there was surely nothing they couldn't accomplish!

Liu Xing uncovered the third item: a piece of meat from an unknown demonic beast. Its flesh was translucent, and its fat layers resembled crystal. Lu Yang could sense that this demonic beast must have been incredibly formidable when it was alive.

"It's the hind leg meat of a Yaoyu," An Tong stated.

"Correct," Liu Xing affirmed. An Tong truly lived up to her reputation as a spirit chef meticulously cultivated by the Taotie clan; she could identify the origin of a demonic beast with just a glance.

"Next, we will present the fourth ingredient." With only two spots remaining, the spirit chefs rubbed their palms together, eager to compete fiercely for a chance.

Liu Xing lifted the fourth cloth, revealing a fist-sized, gray stone sphere. Its surface was perfectly smooth, seemingly untouched by artificial processing, as if it were naturally formed this way. The stone also continuously emanated spiritual energy.

The spirit chefs were utterly silent; no one could provide an answer. A smooth stone? This was something impossible to even guess at.

"A gray Golden Core?"

"Incorrect."

"A lodestone?"

"Incorrect."

"Realgar?"

"Incorrect."

Three contestants were eliminated in a row, striking fear into the hearts of the remaining spirit chefs, who then kept silent, afraid to speak.

"Does no one know?" Liu Xing asked, scanning the expressions of everyone present. Even Xie Qi and An Tong, two highly anticipated rising stars among the spirit chefs, failed to recognize what the stone sphere was.

"Isn't this a star core?" Lu Yang couldn't help but blurt out. "It's one thing for the Immortal Fairy to feed star cores to the Four Immortals, but for your Spirit Chef Alliance to also treat this as an ingredient... are you out of your minds?" He wondered if they had consumed too many star cores themselves.

"Correct!" Liu Xing exclaimed, his voice betraying a hint of excitement at Lu Yang's recognition of such a rare treasure. "This object is indeed the core of a planet, a substance that only existed in ancient times. However, during that era, many powerful beings engaged in conflicts, causing stars to shatter, and occasionally, a star core would be left behind."

"Initially, when our Alliance acquired this star core, we didn't know what it was," Liu Xing continued. "Through our research and investigation, we discovered that immortal chefs once used star cores in their dishes to entertain friends. Following this clue, we found that by simply scraping off fragments from the star core's surface, grinding them into powder, and adding them to ingredients, the freshness of those ingredients could be elevated by a whole level!" Restoring the culinary techniques of immortal chefs was a momentous event, worthy of being recorded in the annals of the Spirit Chef Alliance!

Lu Yang's mouth twitched. "You've got the restoration wrong, haven't you?" he thought. "It seems the Fairy fed entire star cores to the Four Immortals."

"Now, we present the final ingredient." The last red cloth was lifted, revealing half of a golden apple. Even its flesh was golden, and the apple looked as if it had just been sliced, with no signs of spoilage on its surface! The fruit's fragrance wafted through the venue, lingering pleasantly in everyone's minds.

"Damn it, an Immortal Fruit?" Lu Yang almost cursed aloud. "The Spirit Chef Alliance certainly has some formidable capabilities if they can find something like this. Even the Fairy thought this no longer existed in the outside world." The Immortal Fruit was a divine fruit cultivated by the Immortal Fairy; consuming it could prevent a corpse from decaying.

"An Evergreen Spirit Fruit!" Poison Granny exclaimed. She didn't actually recognize it, but she was Jin Tan's planted person, and this was the answer Jin Tan had given her.

"What 'Evergreen Spirit Fruit'..." Lu Yang thought to himself. "Don't speak if you lack knowledge." However, Liu Xing's response caught him off guard. Liu Xing waved his hand decisively, announcing the result: "That's correct! The second stage of the test is now complete. The four of you will advance to the third stage..."

"Wait a moment, this is not an Evergreen Spirit Fruit at all!" Lu Yang stepped forward and said in a deep voice, clearly displeased. Although the Fairy's creations were often peculiar, they shouldn't be misidentified as something else.

"Lu Yunyang, what nonsense are you talking about?!" Poison Granny exclaimed, agitated. Her advancement depended on this.

"Legend has it that in ancient times, the Evergreen Sovereign planted an immortal herb on an eighth-grade spiritual vein on Yingzhou Island. This herb bore golden fruits called Evergreen Spirit Fruits, which were incredibly fragrant and remained perpetually fresh after being picked!" Liu Xing nodded subtly. This information was indeed what the Spirit Chef Alliance possessed. They had obtained this half-golden fruit tens of thousands of years ago, and even today, it looked as fresh as if it had just been picked, perfectly matching the characteristics of an Evergreen Spirit Fruit.

"Evergreen Sovereign?" Lu Yang recalled hearing the Immortal Fairy mention him. He had once boasted of competing with the Immortal Fairy for the position of Dao Fruit, only to be knocked down by her in two punches.

"If you say it's not an Evergreen Spirit Fruit, then what is it?!" "This is the Immortal Fruit cultivated by the Ancestor of Spirit Chefs," Lu Yang declared. "When consumed by a demonic beast, it renders the beast's corpse immortal, preserving it in a freshly deceased state and ensuring its flavor remains perpetually fresh. How can a mere spirit fruit even begin to describe such a divine item?!"

"That's ridiculous! You claim this is an Immortal Fruit, but what evidence do you have?"

Lu Yang tore off his mask, revealing his true face, which drew gasps of astonishment from the entire audience. "Is that Lu Yang?" "He's actually a spirit chef?"

Lu Yang looked at Liu Xing and Daoist Ming Yuan, who stood on a higher platform, and stated seriously, "It was I who infiltrated the Immortal Cult, discovered the location of its headquarters, and then the imperial court and my Dao-Seeking Sect jointly launched an operation to annihilate the Immortal Cult." He continued, "While I was undercover at the Immortal Cult's headquarters, I personally saw the Immortal Fruit, and I learned its origin from the subsequent confessions of the cult leader. Furthermore, I later awakened Senior Ao Ling in the East Sea Dragon Pearl and confirmed the Immortal Fruit's origin with her." Lu Yang's voice grew firm. "My words are the evidence! If you don't believe me, you are welcome to invite Senior Ao Ling here to discern the truth!"