A man and a snake stood behind the stove, Melbourne Si holding a spatula, a pan of unidentifiable food simmering and emitting an aroma that titillated everyone's appetite.
"It's you?"
Yan Qiu Ren was no stranger to him. It was precisely because Jun Wu Chen had seen Melbourne Si in the secret realm that he concluded someone had escaped, and he had even drawn his portrait.
"You two know each other? Are these two deviants?"
"Mm... they are my friends."
"Buddy, what delicious food are you making?"
Qi Qing's eyes lit up, and he leaned in to look.
Jin An glared at him, "This is food for me."
"When did you two become so close?"
Duan Chen breathed a sigh of relief, closed the door of the seafood restaurant, and casually found a seat.
"Everyone, do you all want to eat? Don't rush, one by one."
For some reason, Duan Chen felt a hint of roguishness in the man's smile.
"You two still haven't answered my question, when did you come out? I didn't even see you."
"Speaking of which, we are also deviants, so we were quite comfortable staying within the barrier, and our strength could be maximized."
Melbourne Si, wearing a hat, waved his spatula, creating a bizarre sense of dissonance.
Soon, the food in the pan was ready. Jin An, impatient, opened his maw and swallowed it.
"Do any of you have any dietary restrictions?"
"No, thank you for the trouble."
"You are too polite."
Melbourne Si lowered his head and took something unknown from the storage space within the table, throwing it into the pot. The others didn't see it, but Wu Suo Wei keenly noticed it was a large chunk of slime...
Seemed like the one in Hill's room?
This was a bit...
He looked at Tu Fei Yuan on his lap and said with a serious expression, "You have to eat more later. You've worked so hard taking care of Xiao Jian Jian for me."
Tu Fei Yuan meowed twice.
"At least you have some conscience."
Admittedly, Melbourne Si's culinary skills were excellent. The steak and noodles alone were mouth-watering. Duan Chen beckoned Qi Qing and the others to push the tables together.
"Whoa! This seafood restaurant has steak?"
"Uh... never mind, this is homemade."
Everyone began to eat voraciously. Duan Chen picked up his chopsticks, but a stinging sensation shot through his palm.
"Hiss!"
It was the lotus pattern that Chu Yue had drawn on his palm. Duan Chen tilted his head in confusion.
Strangely, Wu Suo Wei hadn't touched a bite either, leaving it all to Tu Fei Yuan.
"You two... why aren't you eating?" Melbourne Si smiled maliciously.
"Haha... I'm not hungry," Wu Suo Wei chuckled.
"I..." Duan Chen felt a bit awkward. It wasn't that he didn't want to eat, but every time he picked up his chopsticks, his palm would sting, as if Chu Yue didn't want him to eat this meal.
"What's wrong?"
Helpless, Duan Chen had to establish a mental link through the mark and ask.
"Go check the ingredients in the kitchen, then decide if you want to eat."
Chu Yue's thoughts seemed a little exasperated.
Duan Chen calmly said he was going out to use the restroom.
"Come back quickly."
"Got it."
Duan Chen returned quite quickly, in about three minutes. Everyone noticed that his face had turned a little green.
"What's wrong? Are you sick?"
"Sick people need to eat more."
Duan Chen looked at Melbourne Si, wanting to speak but hesitating.
"Hmm?"
This detestable fellow was still smiling...
Duan Chen's face was grim, "You actually made that stuff into food..."
Melbourne Si's smile widened upon hearing this, "Don't mind it, don't mind it. At least it's edible, and I think my cooking is quite good. Weren't you all enjoying it?"
"Ah?"
Tu Fei Yuan felt something was wrong. Looking at Wu Suo Wei, who was avoiding its gaze, it bolted out of the seafood restaurant and into the kitchen.
What greeted its eyes were the corpses of several deviants, and even the bug it had seen in Bai Ye's room was among them. More importantly... an entire room full of slime monsters! They were almost overflowing!
"Meow—!!!"
Everyone followed its cries to the kitchen and was equally stunned.
"I, I'll be damned—!"
When Bai Ye saw that bug, his entire being collapsed.
As for the girls like Tian Qi and Ding Ding, if it weren't for the fact that Melbourne Si's cooking was indeed delicious, they would have thrown up immediately.
"Don't mind it, don't mind it. Besides, there's nothing else edible in this place."
After everyone returned, Melbourne Si placed several cups of water on the table. Duan Chen stared at him suspiciously.
"They were also made from those guys."
"Damn it..."
Sheng Chen suddenly felt that the delicious dishes on the table were no longer appealing.
"I, I think I'm not very hungry yet."
"Me neither."
"I'm suddenly not hungry either."
"Wu Suo Wei—! You knew all along, didn't you?! Meow meow meow!"
Hill calmly pulled Tu Fei Yuan off Wu Suo Wei's face, still tasting the "delicacies" on the table with Will Ben Ya.
"It seems these two ladies... and this young gentleman have better taste."
Melbourne Si looked at Hill, Will Ben Ya, and Niya.
"Don't eat unhealthy food." Jia Yun Lian directly grabbed Niya by the collar.
"Hungry..."
Jia Yun Lian was dazzled by the light in Niya's eyes.
"Don't worry, miss, the dishes I make are absolutely pollution-free and additive-free!"
Jia Yun Lian hesitated for a moment, then put Niya back on the chair.
Seeing this, Melbourne Si smiled even more happily.
...
Su Cheng, Spirit Hunter Guild.
"The situation is like this."
"The phone can't be reached either?"
Du Qing Yi looked at the report in his hand, his expression not very pleasant.
Qin You Ran nodded, "The signal is completely blocked. According to Sister Ming Yan, it was possible to make calls before the barrier was raised, but not afterward."
"It seems that if we want to confirm the safety of Captain and the others, we can only enter the barrier."
Du Yu's face darkened, "Let me remind you first, after the barrier is raised, the beach space inside may expand or shrink, and I cannot guarantee that I will be able to send you to Duan Chen."
"There's no other way."
Ming Yan entered the office. If she didn't need to oversee the Spirit Hunter Guild, she would have personally entered the barrier.
"Guild Leader Ming, shall we depart now?"
Ming Yan shook her head, "Wait a moment, for someone."
"Who?"
The few people were stunned.
"Duan Chen's disciple..."
"The Captain has a disciple?!"
Ming Yan smiled slightly. If it was about suitable combat power, Mi Xue Er, who inherited the Unsentimental Sword Technique, was undoubtedly a suitable candidate.
"Bang!"
The office door was kicked open, and a high school girl with a ponytail and another short-haired high school boy burst in.
"Guild Leader, is Brother Duan Chen alright?"