Chapter 1811: Chapter 1838: Contemporary Open Conspiracy
“Indeed, it’s quite unusual and distinctive, never eaten such intestines before!”
Monk Changsheng gritted his teeth and remarked, overwhelmed by the stench, yet the foolish crowd believed he was moved to tears by Li Xiaobai’s cooking.
And that perpetrator was still watching him with a sly smile. Definitely on purpose!
“Li Xiaobai, you failed to properly clean the intestines; this is an act of blasphemy!”
“You’ve lost the eligibility for the top prize, and you made a mistake. Though I don’t understand how you avoided the risks, you made a mistake; you didn’t clean them, your process was flawed!”
“In all these years, you’re the first person to make me consciously eat something so vile. I acknowledge you, and also, you can die now!”
“Law of Order, judge him!”
Monk Changsheng, furious, shouted.
He possessed the Law. Even if Order didn’t pull Li Xiaobai to the back hill, he could summon the Law for re-judgment.
Yet, despite the roar, nothing happened; no spatial ripple appeared as anticipated, Order didn’t respond to his summons.
“What’s going on?”
“Please, this humble monk calls upon you; I have doubts about Li Xiaobai’s cooking process, rejudge him!”
Monk Changsheng’s heart surfaced with a hint of an ominous feeling.
The village leader Shangguan Dong seemed to have sensed something, discreetly retreated two steps, quietly distancing himself from Monk Changsheng.
“What did you do?”
“Could it be you can neutralize the Law of Order’s power?”
Monk Changsheng was somewhat at a loss, disregarding the villagers’ shocked gazes, he gazed at Li Xiaobai with anger and panic intertwined.
“Master, you’re exaggerating. Haven’t you noticed you’ve lost the protection of the Law already? Didn’t you just spit out my intestines?”
“You violated the rule of tasting dishes. I thought the Law of Power would take you away. Now it seems, it merely stripped you of the qualification to use the Law’s power.”
Li Xiaobai strolled leisurely in the courtyard, hands behind his back. At this moment, the dynamic shifted, and he was confident without fear.
“So what? This humble monk chewed thoroughly, and it’s damn disgusting; do you really expect me to swallow it?”
“Moreover, you made the mistake first; you never cleaned the intestines. Even if I spit it out, it’s not considered a fault!”
“Trying to trick me? You’re a hundred years too early!”
Monk Changsheng spoke angrily, killing intent permeating his words, outwardly calm as a mountain, but inwardly flustered, like an old dog, because the fact was as Li Xiaobai said: he had lost connection with the Law of Order.
Regardless of how he attempted to communicate with the Law of Power internally, there was no response.
“Master, you can lose judgment too; the more you say, the more mistakes you make. Your critique of the intestines fully exposes you haven’t properly tasted its flavor.”
“Didn’t you notice, just a slice from the scraps had an astonishingly rich flavor?”
Li Xiaobai’s lips curled into a smile, asking with interest.
“You didn’t wash them, so naturally inside…”
Monk Changsheng was about to blurt out in a rage but suddenly stopped, realizing he had only cut the scraps, with all the waste concentrated in the core; there should be none on the edges, maybe just an unpleasant smell.
Reviewing the taste, indeed, it was just smooth intestine texture, without the gritty feel of impurity.
“Could it be… when blanching…”
Monk Changsheng’s eyes widened with disbelief.
“Exactly, I cleaned the intestines thoroughly, but the blanching used the very water that cleaned them.”
“And not just the blanching; during cooking, I used the same water, reducing it. Thus, the intestines’ original flavor evenly penetrated every corner.”
Li Xiaobai said nonchalantly.
Upon these words, the nausea Monk Changsheng had suppressed surged back forcefully.
Finally, he understood why the Law of Order didn’t judge—it was all correct; Li Xiaobai deliberately made it taste this way!
Unable to bear the stench, he secretly spat out the intestines while wiping his mouth.
“Contemporary open scheme—without eating my intestines, you can’t evaluate me.”
“Eating them, you fall into the trap.”
“Everything went smoothly. You’ve lost the favor of the Law of Order, and this village is no longer your backing!”
Li Xiaobai rebuked sternly.
Monk Changsheng’s lips twitched, fists clenched within his sleeves. He didn’t expect this outcome; his calculations to punish Li Xiaobai unexpectedly turned onto him.
As a Divine Envoy selecting sacrificial meals for the gods, losing his temper amidst the villagers’ expectant gazes and having to spit out the dish, severely broke the rules. Not being dragged to the back hill by Order was already fortunate.
“Stay calm. I’ve made two mistakes; the Law of Order leaves me, but it doesn’t matter. I’m still in the village, and the Law of Order still envelops the village, just ownerless now.”
“My rules rely on the concept of immortality within the Divine Envoy. As long as this concept isn’t broken, the village’s rules remain!”
“From now on, stop acknowledging Li Xiaobai, choose the finest sacrificial meal, use Blinding Technique to delude villagers, masquerade as a divine feast, and then conclude it all; I’m still safe.”
Monk Changsheng muttered to himself, quickly sorting his thoughts. The logic was correct, no problem, he was still safe.
He took a deep breath, flashed a brilliant smile, and resumed tasting dish after dish as if nothing had happened previously.
Step by step, selected Wang Dachui’s Double-Sided Azure Dragon, raised the tray high, and a holy light descended from the sky, sweeping the ingredients inside the platter clean.
The whole process was smooth and seamless; Monk Changsheng no longer gave Li Xiaobai a chance to disrupt. With a combo of decisions, villagers cleaned up pots and pans, leaving with doubts and wonder.
Li Xiaobai lamented inwardly; had Monk Changsheng, in his fury, taken action against him or incited others against him, he would surely be captured by the Law of Order to the back hill. Yet having made him lose the Law’s favor was quite the success.
“Master Xiaobai, what happened between you and Master Changsheng earlier? It seems he didn’t quite like your dish?”
Fang Hua appeared from somewhere, blinking his big eyes at Li Xiaobai.
“Haha, perhaps it wasn’t to the Master’s taste, upset him—my fault.”
“Such a pity missing the top spot.”
Li Xiaobai casually deflected a few remarks, eager to check the back hill to see if Ma Niubi and Liaowang managed to escape.
However, Fang Hua’s next words made him freeze on the spot.
“It’s okay, Master. You’re not from the village, so taking first place wouldn’t mean much to you.”
“Mean much for what?”
“The chance to avoid punishment! Every month, villagers favored by the divine get a chance to negate mistakes, just like the Divine Envoy.”
Fang Hua stated innocently.
“Chance to avoid punishment?”
“For any mistake, avoid being taken to the back hill?”
“Yes, precisely why everyone takes it so seriously.”
This was major news.
He recalled the winning dish was the Double-Sided Azure Dragon by Wang Dachui!
[Happy School Year; remember to finish your homework!]