“My name is Sudden Death King,” Lu Ran introduced himself.
Suddenly, murmurs spread through the crowd.
“So he’s the Sudden Death King? The one from Frost Moon House?”
“Seems like it. The rumors said he was a young man!”
“I thought he was already a top-grade chef. I didn’t expect he hadn’t taken the assessment yet!”
“Wait, are we talking about the chef from the Ning Chuan City Lord’s banquet who sliced fruit? He’s here too?”
What’s with the fuss...?
At this point, the three examiners noticed the discussions below, glancing at Lu Ran with piqued interest. It appeared he was a talented chef with a modest reputation in Cang Lan Province. After a long period of routine candidates, they finally had someone intriguing.
“Draw your cooking tool and begin,” the female examiner said, mentally starting the timer to assess this Sudden Death King.
In the next instant, however, Lu Ran pulled out his cooking tool, and her expression shifted.
With a flick of his wrist, Lu Ran drew out the Wind Slashing Sword, letting its tip touch the ground as it emitted a faint hum in the air.
The three examiners were puzzled, whereas Bai Ling and the other candidates were left stunned.
“Huh?” The chubby examiner was momentarily speechless.
Isn’t that a sword? It has to be a sword!
Lu Ran hadn’t summoned a familiar or taken out a chef’s knife. Instead, he brought out a sword, which left the three examiners momentarily disoriented. They had seen all kinds of chef’s knives, but a sword? This was a first.
The female examiner’s composed expression wavered for the first time.
“Is there a problem? As long as it can be used to dissect, any cooking tool should be acceptable, right?” Lu Ran asked.
To be honest, while he could combine sword intent with a chef’s knife, he felt more comfortable using his sword. For practicing precise knife techniques, he had trained with the Wind Slashing Sword.
“As you wish!” the female examiner replied, her tone casual.
In the next moment, Lu Ran looked down at the Rock Ox lying on the ground. He closed his eyes briefly, then suddenly opened them, and in that instant, the three examiners’ expressions shifted drastically.
They felt a transformation in Lu Ran’s presence, from that of a youth to that of a fierce beast. An intense, bone-chilling cold began radiating from the sword in his hand.
They recognized that this wasn’t an ordinary cold wind, but rather a chill that came from Lu Ran’s Wind-attribute sword; yet, its aura was so cold it struck at one’s very spirit.
Following his memory, Lu Ran made one slash, then a second, then a third, each executed with such speed that his movements became nearly invisible. All that could be seen were faint afterimages.
“What remarkable skill and a formidable physique!” the chubby examiner exclaimed, astonished.
Lu Ran was by far the strongest in both physique and agility among the candidates he had observed today, unlike any ordinary human. Lu Ran’s superhuman physique, honed through Super Beast Mimicry, was finally proving useful.
In just under ten seconds, Lu Ran stopped moving, flicking his sword without a drop of blood on it. From the outside, the entire ox appeared untouched.
Then, a collective gasp spread through the crowd as they saw fine cuts appear across the ox’s surface, each cut glinting faintly with a white light.
As the white light pulsed, the entire ox fell apart, revealing smooth, glistening cuts that, combined with the red fibers, turned the dissected ox into a piece of art.
“What kind of culinary technique is that!?”
Some candidates stared in awe at the display. Even the three examiners showed a rare, serious expression.
“It’s already fully dissected?” The chubby chef opened his eyes wide.
“This candidate may not have extensive practice with dissecting a whole ox, but his control over strength is extraordinary, enabling him to wield his cuts freely within the ox,” the white-haired elder said, surprised.
Could this be a unique culinary technique lineage?
“What’s most impressive is that he hasn’t spilled a single drop of blood or juice, trapping all the moisture within the meat. This is not due to the tool itself but rather...”
“Ice-attribute Culinary Intent!”
The female examiner looked at Lu Ran, visibly impressed. They hadn’t expected to encounter a candidate who had mastered culinary intent.
This was no assessment, but a showcase. Without possessing Ice-attribute Culinary Intent, the other examiners would find it nearly impossible to replicate this, even with Rare Ice-attribute cooking tools.
The three examiners looked at Lu Ran with serious expressions.
Who is this kid? His technique was remarkable—he had preserved nearly all the meat’s nutrients.
Unlike the low-grade ingredients from Blue Planet, which required bleeding to improve flavor, every part of a transcendent life form was valuable.
Lu Ran, having been thoroughly trained by the proprietress, knew exactly how to handle it. In fact, in this professional exam hall, there were no inexperienced, half-baked chefs. Everyone was striving to retain the extraordinary nutrients.
“You pass. The dissection was flawless,” the white-haired examiner announced seriously.
“Thank you,” Lu Ran replied with a slight smile.
Turning to Bai Ling and the others, he gave a thumbs-up.
“Do your best. See you in the second round!”
Bai Ling and her group were momentarily stunned.
Though this ascension realm was peaceful, Lu Ran’s fellow trial-goers were still facing a challenge by being grouped with him.
After Lu Ran finished, it was Bai Ling and the others’ turn. In fact, Lu Ran could have left by then, only needing to wait until the practical exam the following day. But as a fellow Limitless City trial participant, he wanted to see how the other five would perform.
Snakeskin had bought a Advanced-grade Metal-attribute chef’s knife. It was sharp, but due to his nervousness and lack of experience, he accidentally chipped the ox’s bone, causing Lu Ran to cover his eyes in dismay. A complete misstep.
Deer Masking Horse had also acquired a Advanced-grade Wind-attribute chef’s knife, but his hands kept trembling when he infused it with stamina. Unfortunately, he accidentally ruptured the ox’s internal organs.
Mountain Adventurer, seeing his two friends stumble, became even more anxious. Taking a cautious approach, he dissected it slowly and eventually ran out of time.
Compared to the three male beastmasters, Ibeth’s technique was more refined, and she maintained composure despite the bloody dissection.
However, her practice time was still too short. Though she completed it within the allotted time, her performance failed to satisfy the examiners.
One preliminary round eliminated four out of the six examinees, a brutally high cut.
“These five are all recommended by Frost Moon House?”
The female examiner glanced at the roster, her expression surprised.
What’s going on with Frost Moon House? The candidates they recommended are all over the place. Some were genuinely skilled, while others were genuinely lacking...
Soon, another candidate recommended by Frost Moon House stepped up.
Bai Ling felt the weight of enormous pressure. Just as Snakeskin and the others assumed her chances were slim, she pulled out a Rare, top-quality Wind and Ice dual-attribute chef’s knife.
Thanks to the knife’s quality, she performed a flawless dissection of the ox and even managed to imitate a low-tier version of Lu Ran’s Blizzard Culinary Intent effect.
“Huh???” Snakeskin and the others were shocked.
“Damn, she’s rich!” Mountain Adventurer was dumbfounded.
This White Tiger Sis really went all out, obtaining a Rare cooking tool.
This knife must have cost tens of thousands of crystal coins.
When the three examiners announced her success, Bai Ling’s legs nearly gave out.
“Good thing I was well-prepared,” she thought with relief.
As the eldest daughter of the Four Saints Guild, while Bai Ling wasn’t as wealthy as those from Pluto’s family, she wasn’t short on resources either. Purchasing a top-quality cooking tool was manageable for her.
“That girl’s imitating me,” Lu Ran thought as he noticed her chef’s knife, realizing she was mimicking his Blizzard Culinary Intent.
But he had to admit she was clever, knowing how to make compromises. Clearly, advancing to a higher rank took priority for her.
She made a dismissive gesture at Lu Ran, smirking as if to say, Take that! The Four Saints Guild had originally been a black-market organization, dealing in the trade and poaching of Rare animals.
However, they had successfully transformed into a legitimate business group just before strict legal regulations were implemented, and they had seized opportunities as the Limitless City boom unfolded two years ago.
As a former underworld princess, Bai Ling had inherited a knack for shrewdness from her family.
“It’s too difficult!”
“Limitless City is such a scam!”
When Bai Ling returned, she found Snakeskin, Deer Masking Horse, and the others looking utterly defeated. She slammed her knife onto the stovetop.
“Enough with the whining! If you didn’t pass, just try again next time.”
She still had the second round to worry about, so she wasn’t fully relaxed yet. The last thing she wanted was to be affected by her teammates’ negativity.
This ascension realm didn’t involve any major losses or dangers.
So what if we fail? We will just try again!
She found the men overly dramatic.
“Don’t be so down,” Lu Ran added.
“Look at it this way. Passing the first round is one thing, but even if you did, making it to the second round wouldn’t be easy. Creating an Unique-level dish requires either exceptional cooking skills or Rare ingredients.
“Your cooking skills might not be enough, and as for Rare ingredients, most of those come from champion species materials, which is even less likely!
“That’s actually the only risky part of this exam. Instead of risking it and facing harsh consequences for failing, getting eliminated now might be a blessing. Plus, you’ll have an extra day to do whatever you want. Isn’t that a good thing?”
Snakeskin, Deer Masking Horse, Ibeth, and Mountain Adventurer were silent after hearing Lu Ran’s “motivational” speech.
We appreciate your words of wisdom. By ‘social anxiety,’ do you mean you’re a social terror attack?
After hearing him out, their feelings grew even more conflicted.