Chapter 183: Chapter 180: Ambition
Never mind Liu Hui, but what was the deal with Jin Sanpang?
A bone age of fifteen, and an Early-stage Vajra Realm cultivation!
If he hadn’t seen it with his own eyes, you could beat Wu the Old Ghost to death and he still wouldn’t have believed it.
Forget the Mountain and Sea Empire; even in the vaster world beyond it, you would never find a second person who had reached the Vajra Realm at the age of fifteen.
At the very least, Wu the Old Ghost had never heard of such a thing, nor were there any records of it in his wife’s Cold Cicada Bloodline clan.
Wu the Old Ghost could tell that both Liu Hui and Jin Sanpang held a deep, heartfelt admiration and reverence for Mo Qi.
’Could it be that Mo Qi’s strength and talent are even more terrifying than Jin Sanpang’s?’
Before this, Wu the Old Ghost had always considered Mo Qi a capable person, but he thought this capability lay in special skills, not in raw strength and talent.
’It seems I’ve still underestimated Mo Qi.’
"There’s no need for such formalities, you two. If you don’t mind, you can just call me Brother Wu, same as Little Brother Mo."
"Thank you for your help, Brother Wu. We are eternally grateful!" Jin Sanpang and Liu Hui bowed once more.
After all, the Dragon Vein Imperial Bell was crucial to the safety of Jin Sanpang’s father.
After some more pleasantries were exchanged, the whole roasted dragon and the pan-fried dragon steaks were ready.
With the Nether Soul Flame, a Celestial-level Fire Seed, if Mo Qi weren’t in a weakened state with less-than-perfect control, it wouldn’t have even taken a few minutes. He could have roasted the Earth Dragon Demon Beast in the blink of an eye.
"Alright, time to eat!"
After making the announcement, Mo Qi produced a complete set of tables, chairs, and stools from his Storage Space, along with bowls, chopsticks, plates, and platters. He set them all out, creating exactly eight place settings—no more, no less.
Qian Duoduo and the others: "..."
’My dear brother, what in the world did you do for a living? Why do you have this stuff?!’
’Next thing you know, are you going to pull a house out of there?’
The group didn’t dwell on it for long. Their attention was soon captured by the pan-fried dragon steaks Mo Qi was serving.
There was one palm-sized steak for each person.
They were golden-brown, their fragrance assailing the senses.
"I can’t take it anymore!"
Qian Duoduo didn’t even bother with chopsticks, grabbing a steak with his bare hands and stuffing it into his mouth.
He took one bite, and it was crispy on the outside and tender on the inside.
The steak was a good half-inch thick, yet he felt almost no resistance from the meat fibers against his teeth.
Fresh, tender, and scalding hot juices exploded in his mouth.
A mixture of the Earth Dragon’s own Dragon Blood and the seasonings Mo Qi had added completely eliminated any trace of a Demon Beast’s gamy odor, leaving behind only the purest, most fragrant taste of meat.
It was the first time Qian Duoduo realized that meat could literally melt in your mouth.
But this "melting" wasn’t the kind where it literally turned into a liquid. The meat was simply so tender that the slightest touch of his tongue could part the fibers of the dragon meat, and there was none of that deeply unpleasant experience of getting food stuck between his teeth.
Forgetting the flavor for a moment, the texture alone gave Qian Duoduo the illusion that he was ascending to become a Divine Being.
It was like a dream.
However, the dream had barely begun before it was over.
Before he knew it, the dragon steak was gone.
The dream was over. Qian Duoduo looked crestfallen, completely oblivious to the fact that, at some point, he had stuffed both of his hands into his mouth and was sucking on them incessantly.
Zhu Fan, Zhao Zijun, and the others were all dumbstruck.
They had known Qian Duoduo for nearly twenty years, but only now did they realize the guy’s mouth could actually fit both of his hands inside.
’What the hell, is he an acrobat or something?’
’And besides, were the pan-fried dragon steaks really that good?’
"Mmph..."
Qian Duoduo finally snapped out of his food-induced trance and realized what he was doing.
His expression changed drastically.
"Mmph mmph mmph!"
"What are you saying?" Zhao Zijun couldn’t understand him.
"Mmph mmph mmph!" Qian Duoduo was so frantic that tears started welling up in his eyes, but with both hands stuck in his mouth, he couldn’t form any words.
"What’s with all the ’mmph’-ing? Can’t you just use a voice transmission?"
"My hands are stuck, and my jaw is dislocated!" Qian Duoduo’s voice transmission was filled with grievance. ’What in the world just happened?’
’Was I just sneak-attacked?’
The group was speechless for a moment, then burst into uproarious laughter.
Dislocating his jaw while eating—Qian Duoduo had to be the first person in history to manage that.
Just then, Mo Qi brought over a platter of roasted meat carved from the whole roasted dragon and placed it in the center of the table.
When he saw Qian Duoduo’s peculiar predicament, he couldn’t help but laugh.
"Dear brother, help me!" Seeing Mo Qi, Qian Duoduo quickly sent a mental cry for help.
Mo Qi walked up behind Qian Duoduo and smacked him on the back of the head.
PLOP!
Qian Duoduo’s hands slipped out of his mouth.
"Eat a little slower. No one’s going to fight you for it," Mo Qi said, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.
Qian Duoduo remembered everything, but he didn’t feel the least bit embarrassed. He casually popped his jaw back into place and looked at Mo Qi with great anticipation.
"Dear brother, are there any more dragon steaks? Can I have another piece?"
Mo Qi shook his head. "They’re all gone."
"But you can try this. It’s really good, too," Mo Qi said with a smile, pointing at the roasted dragon meat.
’Sigh. No matter how good it is, could it possibly be as delicious as the dragon steak?’
Qian Duoduo first sighed with disappointment, but the moment he ate a piece of the roasted meat, his eyes lit up.
’Delicious!’
’It’s every bit as good as the dragon steak!’
He immediately forgot all about the dragon steak, his chopsticks moving nonstop as he picked up piece after piece of roasted meat and stuffed it into his mouth, gorging himself.
Seeing this, the others no longer stood on ceremony and began to eat as well.
Once they started, the entire group fell into a culinary dream state, their faces overcome with pure bliss.
Mo Qi took on the role of carving and serving the meat for them.
As a chef, there was nothing that made him happier than seeing his guests eat with faces full of bliss.
And so, what should have been a tense and thrilling trip Within the Pass was unexpectedly turned into a cheerful, harmonious picnic by Mo Qi.
The flesh of a Silver-backed Earth Dragon at the Peak of the Void Realm contained immense Medicinal Power.
To prevent Qian Duoduo and the others from literally bursting from overconsumption, Mo Qi had used the Chaos Scripture to absorb most of the Energy from the dragon meat.
Even so, they were only halfway through the meal when everyone, with the exception of Wu the Old Ghost, had to enter a state of cultivation to digest the food.
The rest of the Earth Dragon Meat all went into Wu the Old Ghost’s stomach.
"Little Brother Mo, your culinary skills are anything but simple." Wu the Old Ghost was exceptionally sharp; he had naturally seen what made the Medicinal Cuisine so special.
Whether it was the flavor or the Medicinal Power, it could only be described with two words: simply miraculous!
Wu the Old Ghost had no idea that Mo Qi had absorbed the vast majority of the Energy from the dragon meat. If he had, he wouldn’t have described it with just the three words "anything but simple."
"I’m just an amateur," Mo Qi said humbly, offering no further explanation. It wasn’t the right time.
"Brother Wu, you still haven’t answered my earlier question."
Wu the Old Ghost paused for a moment before realizing what Mo Qi was referring to.
"You’re asking how many experts of my caliber are imprisoned Within the Pass? And of those, how many are truly wicked and irredeemable villains?"
"Yes," Mo Qi affirmed with a nod.
Wu the Old Ghost gave Mo Qi a long, deep look. "Little Brother Mo, you have quite the ambition."
"And does Brother Wu think my abilities are a match for that ambition?" Mo Qi retorted.
Wu the Old Ghost fell silent for a moment, then laughed. "Of course they are!"
