The judge had been taking note of Bu Fang"s actions. He had that feeling… He had a feeling that the dish Bu Fang was cooking was not going to be simple.
Because of that, when the flames shot into the sky, the chief judge jumped in shock.
The surge of flames was followed by a resounding roar which came from within the wok. This made the chief judge think that the wok was going to explode. He had recently developed a conditional reflex toward this sort of things, for he had been traumatized by exploding furnaces in the past.
After thinking about it, the chief judge felt that something was wrong. His previous thought could not be right. Even if something was going to explode, how could it be Bu Fang"s wok? This chef had caused the furnaces of others to explode, so how could he blow up his own wok?
And just as he had suspected, a few moments later, the flare grew smaller and gradually diminished.
At that moment, Sorceress An Sheng was extremely focused. All her concentration was on the refinement of the Wind and Cloud Breaking Pill. Although she had refined higher quality pills before, the Wind and Cloud Breaking Pill was the most difficult pill for her to refine.
Hence, she didn"t dare slack off in the slightest during its refinement. She knew that the slightest mistake would cause the medicinal liquid to undergo a qualitative change. The elixir would then become thrash, and all her efforts would have been wasted.
That was why the refinement of the Wind and Cloud Breaking Pill was of a higher difficulty level than some three-mark spirit pills. This was also the reason why the chief judge was so shocked when he realized that An Sheng planned to refine the Wind and Cloud Breaking Pill.
Boom!
An Sheng, who had been extremely focused, was momentarily distracted by the loud blast, and her mind deviated slightly.
A huge blaze engulfed Bu Fang"s bronze platform once more and surged into the sky. The flames rolled around for a short while and began to diminish, dissipating before long.
Shouts of surprise came from the audience. They were amazed by Bu Fang"s actions. How was this considered cooking? Why were flames constantly surging from his bronze platform? The scene was too d.a.m.n cool!
It seemed as though he was playing with their hearts. Whenever they thought that the wok was going to explode, nothing f*cking happened.
The audience members who initially thought that Bu Fang would lose this round quietly became excited. Some members of the audience held some expectations for this black horse—Bu Fang. They were looking forward to Bu Fang"s counterattack.
Xiao He, who was sitting in the audience, watched the flames rush into skies with bright eyes, and the corners of his mouth curled upwards. This kind of cooking method… It was similar to the way those barbarians in the Valley of Gluttony cooked their food.
Ximen Xuan had his usual serious expression on his face and a slightly imposing glint in his eyes.
When he looked at the porcelain bowls floating around Bu Fang"s body, his heart jerked. He had realized that Bu Fang"s mental force wasn"t weak in the slightest.
Although Bu Fang was focused on cooking, he was still able to control all the porcelain bowls to orbit his body. His control over his mental force was amazing!
Even regular alchemists would not possess such a strong mental force…
Ximen Xuan wasn"t the only one who noticed this. Bu Fang"s performance had caught the eyes of the judicators, who were sitting at their table. They looked at Bu Fang with bright gazes.
Surprise flickered in Grand Master Gu He"s eyes as he watched Bu Fang.
Grand Master Xuan Ming furrowed his brows, and he began to pay close attention to how Bu Fang cooked.
This terrifying mental strength… If this little fellow were to refine elixirs, he would definitely be an alchemy genius!
The audience"s attention instantly s.h.i.+fted from An Sheng"s platform to Bu Fang"s platform.
It was probable they were attracted by the cool explosions.
The audience began to exclaim in great surprise.
Suddenly, a pleasant aroma permeated the air. It was the aroma of meat.
Bu Fang narrowed his eyes and raised his slender palms. True energy to gather on his palm before erupting ferociously. A fierce wind arose, and the thick smoke was blown away with one move from Bu Fang.
Bu Fang waved his hand with a speed so quick that almost no one was able to see it move, and the skewers atop the iron mesh were instantly flipped over. None of the skewers were damaged in the process.
Buzz…
With a single thought, a porcelain bowl floated in front of Bu Fang. He grabbed it with one hand and used his other hand to scoop up a handful of spice from within it. Rubbing his index finger against his thumb, he slowly sprinkled the spice powder onto the meat.
An aromatic fragrance reached the noses of the audience members; no one knew when it began to permeate the air. The fragrance was not very strong, yet it was able to captivate the hearts of the audience members.
The chief judge stood in front of Bu Fang"s bronze platform, and the smoke surging out from there enveloped him; he instantly began to choke and felt like he was going to burst into tears.
He really had been caught off guard as his eyes were focused on the skewers atop the iron mesh. He never expected thick black smoke to rush out all of a sudden.
"Cough, cough, cough…"
The chief judge began to cough violently and involuntarily took a few steps back. He swung his arms around wildly in an attempt to disperse the smoke around him.
Unfortunately, however, the black smoke did not disperse. Hence, the chief judge continued to choke and cough. The sounds of his lung-tearing coughs echoed throughout the stage, and this made the audience members feel pity for the judge.
There was something special about the black smoke; it was accompanied by a nice aroma.
The chief judge felt he was definitely going crazy. Despite choking within the black smoke, he actually had a sudden impulse to perceive the aroma that accompanied it.
What was he thinking?
Different porcelain bowls graced Bu Fang"s hands, and he unhurriedly sprinkled the spices within them onto the meat atop the iron mesh.
Sizzle!
Waves of hot air rose, accompanied by sizzling sounds. The sizzling sounds were caused by the oil that dripped from the supreme beast meat onto the red-hot crystals beneath the iron mesh. It wasn"t just the supreme beast meat; there were sizzling sounds emanating from the spirit herbs as well. The water content in the spirit herbs was extracted, causing sizzling sounds to fill the air.
Bu Fang slowly walked around the Black Turtle Constellation Wok. As he moved, he constantly flipped the skewers atop the iron mesh.
He dipped his brush into some oil and brushed it all over the skewers!
Another roar resounded as flames shot into the sky!
After the flames dissipated, the skewers were glistening. The aroma in the air grew thicker. Every time the flames charged into the sky, the aroma permeating the air would grow denser.
Hiss!
The audience members were shocked, and they all sucked in breaths of cold air. This dark horse chef… was indeed extraordinary.
They were already able to catch a whiff of the aroma permeating in the air. Black smoke began to surge once more, but Bu Fang dispersed it with a wave of his hand. Somehow, this caused the aroma in the air to thicken, and everyone was able to perceive it. The temperature also rose dramatically after Bu Fang dispersed the black smoke, bringing with it an irresistible fragrance.
Everyone felt as though an invisible force had enveloped their hearts.
Rumble!
When the audience members perceived the aroma, their pupils dilated, and they all swallowed mouthfuls of saliva.
The chief judge forcefully stopped the tears streaming down his face and sniffed the aroma permeating the air. His expression changed in an instant; he didn"t know whether to laugh or to cry.
"Indeed, he"s done it again! It"s another dish which smells really good…"
The chief judge subconsciously turned to look at Sorceress An Sheng. He wondered if her furnace was actually going to explode.
The situation was even more extreme this time. The aromatic fragrance from Bu Fang"s dish was accompanied by clouds of black smoke, which caused everyone to choke.
Bu Fang"s bronze platform was directly opposite Sorceress An Sheng"s. Every time he dispersed the black smoke with a wave of his hand, the smoke went directly over to An Sheng"s side.
This fragrance which brought along with it a choking black smoke... Would Sorceress An Sheng able to hold out against it?
Boom!
Roaring flames surged into the sky yet again!
There was something different about the flames this time. It contained strong spirit energy, and an invisible fluctuation started to spread out.
After the flame dissipated, the eyes of the audience members widened, and they all cried out in surprise!
The skewers on the iron mesh had started to glow!
The brilliance was incomparable, and it seemed as though it wanted to tear the heavens apart as it charged into the sky. The members of the audience were shocked; the brilliant glow seemed to shoot through their hearts like an invisible arrow!
A glowing dish? That meant that the dish was about to be completed!
A flower quietly bloomed atop Bu Fang"s dish; it was the spirit herb which Bu Fang had prepared earlier. The flower emitted a misty light, and the petals on it trembled. As the flower bloomed, a faint fragrance emerged and permeated the sky.
Chi! Chi! Chi!
The faint fragrance permeated the entire arena and instantly drilled into everyone"s noses, then intoxicated expressions appeared on their faces.
How fragrant… It smelled so good!
"This smell is simply too amazing!"
"Dark horse chef, the public enemy of the alchemists… You are worthy of your name. I really feel like trying this dis.h.!.+"
"I"m going to change sides… Gooseb.u.mps appeared on my body when I perceived the aroma. I can"t take it anymore!"
...
The audience exclaimed as they swallowed mouthfuls of saliva. The fragrant aroma filled the air, and they were unable to control themselves.
Suddenly, they became terrified. If the aroma was already so strong for the people who were not on the stage, how would it be for G.o.ddess An?
Then, they turned their gazes to An Sheng and instantly fell silent.
They saw that Sorceress An Sheng had her eyes tightly shut as the black smoke and the aroma blew against her face. She was constantly been a.s.saulted by the smoke and the aroma.
Her charming body was s.h.i.+vering, and there were glittering tears streaming down from the corner of her eyes… However, she endured it with gritted teeth, but at that point, her pretty face was completely red.
She tried her best to endure and ignore the distractions happening around her. However, it was too difficult. The aroma charged into her nostrils and instantly a.s.similated into her bloodstream. Her sense of smell was aroused, and she was no longer able to concentrate on her refinement.
The flames in her alchemy furnace changed constantly. It would burn brightly for a moment and diminish in the next; the fluctuations were really huge!
Indeed… Our G.o.ddess An is unable to resist the aroma; furthermore, the black smoke is choking her!
The chief judge sighed in his heart. The outcome of this match was still unpredictable. If Sorceress An Sheng was able to hold on and refine a two-mark Wind and Cloud Breaking Pill, she would have a chance to advance to the next round. Bu Fang"s dish might be incomparable to a Wind and Cloud Breaking Pill anyway.
Nevertheless, the chief judge was extremely afraid that Sorceress An Sheng"s furnace would explode!
Looking in the direction this was headed… It seemed likely that she would lose control over her furnace soon, and the furnace would explode.
Bu Fang was expressionless, as usual. He raised his hand, and true energy condensed above his palm. With a single thought, porcelain bowls started to hover in front of him, and he quickly sprinkled a little of powdered spices onto the glistening dish. After he was done, Bu Fang unhurriedly took out the bottle of Abyssal Chilli Sauce.
He scooped a spoonful of Abyssal Chilli Sauce and poured it into a porcelain bowl. No one saw where he took another brush out from; he dipped the brush into some oil and dipped it into the bowl, then began to mix the oil and the Abyssal Chilli Sauce together. After mixing them well, he used the brush to smear them atop the skewers.
There was another resounding explosion, and flames surged into the sky again. This time, there was a tinge of red in the flames, and a spicy smell began to a.s.sault the noses of the audience.
It was simply torturing!
After the flame dispersed, the glow on the dishes began to fade. The skewers glistened because of the oil, and they took on an extremely tempting appearance.
Bu Fang was unable to control himself and licked his lips.
In the distance, Sorceress An Sheng"s eyes snapped open; there was anger flas.h.i.+ng within them!
She stretched her hand and smacked her furnace, then she shouted angrily, "I"m not refining this any longer. I"m not going to compete anymore. If the furnace explodes, so be it! This is infuriating!"
Her slap instantly sent the heavy alchemy furnace flying. It streaked towards the chief judge, who was sniffing the air with an intoxicated expression on his face.
The chief judge had no idea that a furnace was flying toward him.
Sorceress An Sheng was enraged… She wiped the perspiration off her forehead and bit her lips. She looked at Bu Fang"s expressionless face with a bitter expression.
As if he had noticed Sorceress An Sheng"s gaze, Bu Fang was stunned for a moment. His mouth thinned, and the supreme beast meat skewer in his hand, which had oil dripping from it, was hurled toward An Sheng.
The aroma rode the wind as it permeated the area...