CHAPTER 1038: CHAPTER 1037: REVELATION (PART 1)

As evening approached, the neon lights of the shopping street began to illuminate.

"Take care!"

The young chef and shop owner, standing at the door, raised his hand to bid farewell to the last group of guests. Among them were both old and young, all pausing in awe and looking back.

"Thank you for having us." An elderly gentleman, full of vigor, bowed at a ninety-degree angle to express his gratitude. He seemed to be a retired company president, with an air of authority and precision lingering in every move and gesture.

Today wasn’t a holiday, yet there were high school girls rushing to line up after school. Ooyama Ruozi and Muraoki Kei skipped all their club activities after school to get here as soon as possible. At that time, the long queue was so daunting that it almost made the two girls despair. Fortunately, they managed to get tickets for the last batch of diners.

Faces of the two JK high school girls still showed a flush of surprise as if they’d won a super grand prize. And now, meeting the world-renowned young chef, as bright as a comet, who was showing respect to ordinary customers like them, was extraordinarily rare. The high school girls pressed their lips tightly and clenched their little fists, their entire bodies trembling with excitement.

Unlike the other middle-aged and elderly customers, their peers had a look on their faces that seemed to scream, "I admire you."

These two girls were true depictions of Chef Xia’s ardent fans.

"Oh?"

Xia Yu’s gaze swept over to them, noticing the familiar-looking school uniforms. He smiled, "Are you students of White Seagull High School?"

"Y-yes."

Ooyama Ruozi stammered. She had refreshing ear-length short hair and was the main runner of the school sprint club, in the second year of high school.

"What grade are you in?"

"Second year!"

Mura Yama Kei answered quickly. Unlike her plain friend, she wore makeup, had beautifully manicured nails that sparkled brilliantly, and wore exceedingly alluring lip gloss. In Xia Yu’s impression, this was the standard image of a Neon JK; wasn’t it said that fashion and makeup were mandatory subjects for JK girls?

"Then we’re classmates." Xia Yu maintained his smile, "Perhaps we’ve crossed paths at school before."

"Well..."

The expression on the two girls’ faces suddenly turned strange.

A giggle escaped.

Sen Tian Makoto, not far away, was chuckling as she shared Xia Yu’s earlier embarrassing stories from middle school with Lei Aoxue and Tiqie Helinai.

It seems that before reaching the protagonist’s spotlight, although Xia Yu sat in the second-to-last seat by the window in class, he was always unnoticed. No female fans to speak of, and not many male buddies either; he was an invisible person in class. So before being famous, who knew about this character?

Listening to Makki casually recount Xia Yu’s past, Tiqie Helinai couldn’t help but show a trace of subtle loss and envy in her eyes.

Overall, her gaze was quite complicated.

It was uncertain if the black-haired girl did it on purpose.

As Helinai watched Sen Tian Makoto speak with delight, a mischievous bad smile on her face, her heart couldn’t help but speculate about the other’s intentions.

Lei Aoxue noticed, her eyes flickering.

"Whew."

After seeing off all the guests, Xia Yu stood for a long time at the main entrance of Xia’s Restaurant, looking around at the neon signboards gradually lighting up after nightfall on the shopping street.

It’s different now.

He sighed inwardly.

He remembered more than half a year ago, the shopping street was on the verge of closing, ten stores almost empty, and every night the entire street was dark, with no passers-by in sight.

Now, the shopping street was more prosperous than in his memory.

Being a young person who enjoyed the brilliance of neon lights, Xia Yu felt that his mindset was not wrong.

"Prosperity has been established, but warmth can’t be lacking either." Xia Yu frowned.

Rui Shan Zhi Jin Ye was a qualified director of commercial development. He could ask him to expand and develop the shopping street, but in terms of community cultural and humanistic construction, this person was not qualified. After all, Rui Shan was a money-first fundamentalist, viewing elements like warmth and community culture as worthless from his perspective.

Moreover, what exactly is "warmth"? Everyone has their own opinion. Xia Yu currently had no suitable candidates.

So this matter was temporarily put aside.

Xia Yu knew his main task now—

Collect the Eight Legendary Cookwares!

Also, Killing Recipe!

Dragon-level Kill Path!

Upon returning to the store, Makki, Helinai, and Lei Aoxue had almost finished the cleaning work. Sen Tian Makoto reminded Xia Yu, "The General and President Dojima are still in the branch next door, Yu, you should go take a look. They probably stayed for a reason."

Xia Yu was aware that Tiqie Xianzuowen and the others hadn’t left, and nodded immediately.

Branch.

It hadn’t hosted guests for more than half a year, but this luxurious residence was not abandoned. The courtyard was cleanly maintained, the trees and flowers beautifully trimmed, the ornamental fish in the small pond not only survived but even grew in number and size. Xia Yu entered from the back door, stepping onto the walkway across the pond.

An old man in the lakeside pavilion at the center of the bridge held a small bowl, scattering feed into the pond, attracting the whole pond of colorful fish to scramble for food, creating a lively scene.

On the opposite side of the pond was the main building of the branch, with three floors, and the hand-pulled doors of the second-floor and ground-floor VIP rooms were already open. Familiar faces like Dojima Yin, the female captain, and Shinohara Shigetaro sat on either side of the case, looking towards the lakeside pavilion.

"What do you think the General left us here for?" Aoki Motota asked softly, his eyes wide open, full of questions.

The female captain and Shinohara Shigetaro were in a daze, and nobody replied.

Up on the second floor, all the Polar Star Dormitory friends were gathered, including a few graduates who had left school and Ten Elites members.

Xingping Chuangzhen, after more than half a year, finally saw the young instructor return. He couldn’t help but clench his fists, whispering excitedly, "The instructor is finally back, I’ll show him my progress!"

Hearing this, the companions around him exchanged strange glances.

The bespectacled otaku Marui Shanji delivered a cold blow, "While you’re progressing, the instructor is also progressing. Moreover, compared to Chef Xia, your progress truly counts for little."

"Indeed." Yoshino Yuuki stuck out her tongue, always lively and playful, she jumped out as a cold-blooded finisher, "Xingping, you’ve at most touched the Special-level Kill Territory now, but Chef Xia is already a Dragon Chef, maybe even..."

"Even what?"

Xingping’s shoulders slumped.

Si Yingshi, who had also closed his white restaurant under renovation and followed over, was staring intently at the figure in the lakeside pavilion, his voice as earnest as when he was cooking, "He might be...also sprinting towards another Kill Territory."

"Ha?!"

Xingping Chuangzhen instantly looked up, his expression collapsing.

His breakthrough in the Special-level Kill made him a top-notch new generation chef, his culinary achievements enough to catch up with a group of middle-aged chefs.

But his benchmark in his heart had left him two entire dimensions apart, heading towards an unattainable peak.

Such a gap was enough to cause despair and collapse.

"How can it be possible!" Xingping Chuangzhen was absolutely unconvinced, his face turned red, "He’s a Dragon Chef, above that is the Dragon-level Kill. As far as I know, there aren’t many Dragon Chefs in the world who have created their own Killing Recipes. The instructor just leaped the Dragon Gate not long ago, hasn’t even begun accumulating momentum, how can he be sprinting already! I don’t believe it! It’s unbelievable!"

"Indeed, it is unbelievable." Si Yingshi replied, and the others, looking at each other, fell into silence.

In the lakeside pavilion, Tiqie Xianzuowen turned his head slightly, smiling at Xia Yu, "It’s time. Are you ready?"

"Hmm?"

Xia Yu was taken aback.

"I will reveal to you the Dragon-level Kill. On the journey of the lost, a little guidance is needed."

"Reveal? What should I do?"

"Maintain a normal heart. Present the dish you should, and I will present mine. Place them on the same table, and you should know what you lack at that moment."

Xia Yu’s face shook, looking at Tiqie Xianzuowen and noticing a profound smile at the corner of his mouth.

He couldn’t help but mutter in his heart.

Isn’t this just a private duel?

’The Food Demon King,’ an unconquerable mountain in the Neon Food World, yet Xia Yu showed no sign of retreat, instead, he was eager to try, "The Far Moon Commander is a Heavenly King candidate, not much different from that bottom-tier Heavenly King in the Aegean Sea. Perhaps without the legendary cookware, Gaius might not be as good as Xianzuowen."

"Is this a warm-up before challenging Gaius? So be it!"