Chapter 404: Owner Bu, You are Deceiving an Underage Girl
Xiao Xiaolong looked at Bu Fang with teary eyes and made a gurgling sound that sounded similar to a flood breaching through the dike. Moreover, every time he blinked, his tears would flow faster, and he spoke amidst his intense trembling:
"Didn’t you promise me a delicious dish?
"Didn’t you promise me an invigorating, pleasing, and intoxicatingly delicious dish?
"What the hell was that thing?
"Owner Bu, you weren’t like this before. All the dishes you made in the past were fragrant and intoxicating.
"You are certainly not the real Owner Bu."
Xiao Xiaolong’s white complexion quickly turned thoroughly red, and he felt his body heat up to a fiery degree. His sight became blurry.
That wasn’t going right.
Xiao Xiaolong suddenly pinched his own thigh fiercely, and his entire body trembled from the pain. He raised his hand, feeling aggrieved, and looked at the bowl of Rampage Ramen on it in terror.
Thereafter, he ignored Bu Fang and put down his bowl, then turned around and left.
Bu Fang watched Xiao Xiaolong leave and shook his head in regret. It seemed that he had failed. He was too careless, concluding that the Rampage Ramen was quite an easy dish to cook.
In fact, the simpler a dish seemed, the more difficult it would be to cook it into a delicacy. Bu Fang got a lesson out of this, and he re-engrossed himself into cooking the Rampage Ramen.
Xiao Xiaolong left the kitchen and sat down on a stool. His lips were swollen, and his tears kept flowing down. He hadn’t expected Owner Bu to be such a deceitful person.
After Ouyang Xiaoyi saw Xiao Xiaolong’s current state, she jumped in fright.
It was her first time seeing Xiao Xiaolong in such a pitiful state. What had happened? Who had ravaged him?
Ouyang Xiaoyi curiously approached Xiao Xiaolong, and her heart lurched when she sensed the true energy surging within Xiao Xiaolong’s body.
The lassie’s cultivation had already reached the fifth grade Battle-King realm, and she would be breaking through to the sixth grade Battle-Emperor realm shortly, so naturally, she could see the true energy within Xiao Xiaolong’s body, which seemed like it would go out of control.
Her complexion became slightly dignified.
She wanted to ask him what had happened. Did the smelly boss stir up some infuriating matters?
The aggrieved Xiao Xiaolong gazed at Ouyang Xiaoyi’s face, and his tears began to pour out once again. Xiao Xiaolong had intended to answer Ouyang Xiaoyi’s question and tell her about what had happened.
However, before he could open his mouth, Bu Fang’s slim figure appeared behind him, and his shadow caused Xiao Xiaolong’s body to tremble.
When Xiao Xiaolong raised his head, he saw Bu Fang’s expressionless face.
"Xiaoyi, come over... I have some good things for you."
Bu Fang patted Ouyang Xiaoyi’s head and curled his lips into a faint smile. That faint smile caused a chill to crawl down Xiao Xiaolong’s spine. "Owner Bu.... don’t smile!"
Ouyang Xiaoyi doubted his intentions, and she shot him a gaze filled with doubts.
Bu Fang gave her a mysterious gaze, then turned around and returned to the kitchen.
Xiao Xiaolong intended to stop Xiaoyi; however, the look that Bu Fang had given him before he stepped into the kitchen caused him to give up.
Ouyang Xiaoyi still looked doubtful as she came to the kitchen’s windows.
Her slim body leaned into the window, and she saw Bu Fang carrying a steaming hot dish toward her.
"Well? Is that a new dish?" Ouyang Xiaoyi’s eyes lit up in excitement.
Xiao Xiaolong eyed Xiaoyi’s excited expression and began to recollect. Back then, he had been as pure and naive as she was now.
"Em, it’s a dish I just came up with. Taste it; its taste should be excellent, and you will probably be pleasantly surprised," said Bu Fang calmly.
He placed the steaming hot bowl of Rampage Ramen, which was emitting a rich fragrance, in front of her.
"It seems tasty, and it’s truly fragrant." Ouyang Xiaoyi squinted her adorable eyes and curled up the corners of her mouth in excitement.
She took a pair of bamboo chopsticks, and as she leaned even lower against the window, she fished up some noodles.
These noodle strands had a red luster from being immersed in the scarlet soup. It also seemed extremely soft and supple, and it emitted a dense steam which stimulated Ouyang Xiaoyi’s appetite.
If it was to be judged on its appearance alone, then the noodles would be considered extremely excellent.
Slurp!
Ouyang Xiaoyi placed the noodles in her mouth and slurped it.
Xiao Xiaolong’s ruddy lips trembled slightly. He sighed and involuntarily burped a turbulent stream of true energy.
Bu Fang expectantly looked at Ouyang Xiaoyi.
Ouyang Xiaoyi widened her eyes. She stopped moving her mouth after chewing for a while and then turned to stare at Bu Fang with eyes which were gradually widening even more.
Slurp!
After she swallowed the noodles, Ouyang Xiaoyi immediately opened her mouth and let out a hot breath. Her nose turned completely red from the spiciness, and glittering tears appeared at the corners of her eyes.
Was this the dish that Owner Bu cooked?
Ouyang Xiaoyi was quite angry. Was this what one would call a delicious dish?
Owner Bu, you are deceiving an underage girl.
"Well... it seems like it’s still no good. Was it because I still put too much of the Abyssal Chilli Sauce into it?" murmured Bu Fang, then he carried the porcelain plate and returned to the kitchen.
Ouyang Xiaoyi’s nose reddened, and her lips swole up. She glared at Bu Fang while panting with rage.
The angry Ouyang Xiaoyi sat down beside Xiao Xiaolong. As the both of them sat there with teary eyes and swollen lips, they formed quite a strange picture.
"Oh! What are you two doing here? Why are your lips swollen? Did you eat fire?"
Duan Yun, who had a head of graceful gray-hair, entered the store and looked at the two people, who were seated on a stool and had moist eyes and swollen lips.
He was quite astonished.
From the moment Duan Yun first tasted the store’s dishes, he chose to remain in the Light Wind Imperial Capital and didn’t want to leave. Whenever he had some free time, he would come to the store to have a meal.
Therefore, he had become quite close with Ouyang Xiaoyi and Xiao Xiaolong.
Ouyang Xiaoyi and Xiao Xiaolong glared at him in displeasure, and they didn’t know what to say.
Duan Yun was amused, and just when he intended to mock them so more, he saw Bu Fang come out of the kitchen.
"It’s you. Come over, and I will give you some good things."
When Bu Fang saw Duan Yun, his brows rose up, and he extended a finger, beckoning Duan Yun to come over.
Duan Yun was taken aback and was flabbergasted. What did Bu Fang call him over for?
The eyes of Ouyang Xiaoyi and Xiao Xiaolong immediately lit up, and they watched in glee as the stupefied Duan ate the Rampage Ramen, laughing at him in their hearts.
A short while later, another tearful person with swollen lips was added to their table.
In the kitchen, Bu Fang furrowed his brows in confusion. He had only put a small quantity of the Abyssal Chilli Sauce in the last dish, so why did it still have the same effects?
Shrimpy, who had been sleeping atop Bu Fang’s shoulder, suddenly turned, seeking a more comfortable position, then it continued sleeping.
Bu Fang shot a looked at the thing, and his eyes lit up immediately.
Bu Fang suspected that the problem came from the ingredients. If it wasn’t the flour that had a problem, then it could only be the dissolved water source.
He started cooking another wok of Rampage Ramen—and this time, after he had cooked the noodles, he threw Shrimpy, who was still asleep, into the wok.
It fell into the wok with a soft splash.
Shrimpy’s eyes opened wide, and it thrashed its feet about and jumped in fright. A light golden radiance surged from it and gradually seeped into the soup and noodles.
Bu Fang’s mind, which had been linked to the Black Turtle Constellation Wok, remained fixed on the ingredients, and when that golden radiance seeped into them, a peculiar change occurred to the Rampage Ramen.
The noodles and soup seemed to become more gentle and supple because of the golden radiance.
It really was effective.
Bu Fang nodded his head in satisfaction. This time, it seemed more pleasing and correct.
He scooped a bowl of the Rampage Ramen and sniffed the fragrance wafting from it, and he immediately ascertained that something was different about it.
He grabbed that bowl of ramen and went out of the kitchen.
Because they were nearing the closing hour, there weren’t any customers in the store, and that fragrance only attracted Xiao Xiaolong and the other two. However, the three of them had already been taught a lesson, so they wouldn’t foolishly agree to eat the Rampage Ramen again.
Bu Fang pulled a chair and sat on it. His hair, which he still hadn’t tied up, hung loosely over his shoulders. Bu Fang looked at Xiao Xiaolong and extended his finger, beckoning him over.
"Xiaolong, come over and have a taste once more."
Xiao Xiaolong’s eyes immediately widened.
"Owner Bu, do you take me for a fool? " Xiao Xiaolong aggrievedly thought. He would rather die than obey him.
However, before Bu Fang’s severe and encouraging gaze, Xiao Xiaolong could only make a sullen face as he was pushed forward by Ouyang Xiaoyi and Duan Yun.
"That old saying is really correct; if you don’t enter hell, then who will?" thought Ouyang Xiaoyi and Duan Yun.
The dejected Xiao Xiaolong could only mentally brace himself for more of Bu Fang’s tyrannical abuse, then he ate a mouthful of the new ramen.
Then...
Em?
Xiao Xiaolong was taken aback. The more he chewed, the more his eyes lit up. Its taste wasn’t bad.
He nodded earnestly and gave Bu Fang a thumbs-up, then he clasped the bowl and started gorging it.
With slurping sounds, he finished the ramen in several mouthfuls, and then he drank all of the soup in the bowl and wiped his mouth. It was so so good!
Ouyang Xiaoyi and Duan Yun looked at him in astonishment. It turned out that Xiao Xiaolong was actually this brave.
"How is it?" Bu Fang asked, curiously.
"It’s extremely good. It’s delicious." Xiao Xiaolong smacked his lips and gave him another thumbs-up.
"I meant, what is it like within your body? Did your true energy experience any changes?" Bu Fang asked again, pushing down the thumb that Xiao Xiaolong had given him.
True energy?
Xiao Xiaolong was taken aback, and he immediately began to observe it. In the next moment, his face became flushed, and it seemed like there was a blazing flame burning within his eyes. He felt his true energy become more turbulent, surging even more.
This... this...
Xiao Xiaolong jumped in fright, and his lips trembled.
In just a short while, the intensity of his true energy had advanced by a large margin, and his entire body was brimming with strength.
It seemed like his battle prowess had increased by a large margin.
"Em... it seems like it had an effect. This Rampage Ramen was a success." Bu Fang stroked his chin and nodded in content.
"The Rampage Ramen can make one’s battle prowess increase by one fold after eating it. Do you have a feeling that you are invincible or so now?"
Duan Yun and Ouyang Xiaoyi, who weren’t too far off, were both stunned. What was Owner Bu saying?
How could a dish cause one’s battle prowess to increase by one fold after eating it? Did he take it for an elixir?
Duan Yun was an alchemist, so upon hearing Bu Fang’s statement, his eyes protruded so much that they almost came out of their sockets.
He was capable of refining an elixir that could increase one’s battle prowess by one fold. It was an eighth grade elixir—the Essence Burst Pill.
However, he needed to put in a great effort and energy, and consume countless spirit herbs just to refine it. Not only was the elixir expensive, but it also had some side effects.
And now, this Fang had unexpectedly said that a bowl of ramen had the same effect as the Essence Burst Pill.
Are you making fun of us?
However, in just a short a while, Duan Yun’s expression completely changed once again. He noticed that the condition of Xiao Xiaolong’s body seemed similar to the condition of someone who just consumed an Essence Burst Pill.
Was that ramen really capable of increasing one’s battle prowess by one fold?
Hiss!
Duan Yun swollen lips sucked in a breath of cold air; he was truly frightened and amazed by the dish.
Was Owner Bu trying to steal the business of alchemists like him, causing them to starve to death?