The Nine-Age Crane instantly became despondent again, only letting out a aggrieved wail from its throat.
It desperately tried to endure that tempting meat aroma that was almost burning through its rationality, as well as the immense sense of loss in its heart, its body trembling under Chen Zhou's hand.
Chen Zhou got down from the Nine-Age Crane and stood suspended in mid-air.
He looked down at the seemingly warm yet incredibly eerie scene below, his gaze like a torch.
Within the Path of Hungry Ghosts, the illusions were quite advanced, a mix of truth and falsehood that even he could not easily distinguish.
Chen Zhou thought to himself.
In normal circumstances, he might not have hesitated.
But he had not forgotten Wu Gou's warning: those with obsessions in their hearts were more likely to lose themselves here and be assimilated by the Path of Hungry Ghosts.
"Your master is the Heavenly Chef; do you remember what the food he made tasted like?" Chen Zhou asked in the Nine-Age Crane's ear.
Although the Nine-Age Crane could not see, it still nodded vigorously and let out an affirmative soft cry.
The flavor of the Heavenly Chef was the supreme delicacy of heaven and earth, harmonizing the five elements and reaching through Yin and Yang.
Eating it satisfied more than just physical hunger; it could warm the heart and calm the spirit, allowing one to find a moment of peace in a desperate situation and see the clarity of their true self amidst the chaos.
Chen Zhou continued, "Didn't Song Zi'an say that the essence of the culinary way lies not in how rare the ingredients are, but in the heart-intent of the chef while cooking?"
"A wish for the diners to eat happily, to be satisfied, and to have confidence and hope."
"No matter how great the skill, it is merely a technique; only when the heart-intent is present does the food have a soul."
The Nine-Age Crane nodded again; it had heard its old master talk about these principles countless times, and they were already engraved into its instincts.
"Then, if that really is your old master down there, and you have been reunited after a long time, he specially cooked this pot of soup for you."
"Although you are blindfolded and cannot see his face, can you smell his heart-intent?" Chen Zhou said slowly.
The Nine-Age Crane quieted down, lifting its head and trying hard to distinguish.
It could not see the kind old man holding a soup ladle, nor could it see Song Zi'an's warm, smiling face.
It could only smell.
It twitched its nose, carefully discerning the scents in the air.
The intense meat aroma from the pot was very fragrant, extremely fragrant.
It was so fragrant that it was somewhat... domineering.
It was the mellow richness released by high-quality meat and bones after being simmered for a long time.
It seemed to contain common spices like cinnamon, star anise, and grass fruit, as well as some familiar, fresh-enhancing herbs that its old master favored...
The craftsmanship was impeccable, the heat was just right, and the layers of aroma were rich and appetizing.
But...
The more the Nine-Age Crane smelled it, the more it felt something was wrong.
Its neck gradually lowered, and it shook its head heavily.
The aroma of the meat soup was extremely tempting, enough to drive anyone starving into a frenzy.
However, deep within this dense aroma, it did not smell that familiar, warm heart-intent that could dispel all gloom like the winter sun.
There was no blessing from the old master wishing to soothe all living beings with gourmet food, wishing for the diners' souls to be settled and at peace.
There was no happiness that brought peace of mind, no tranquility of the Lights of Ten Thousand Homes.
There was only naked desire.
Eat! Eat! Eat!
This was not the soup of the Heavenly Chef.
Seeing the old crane shake its head and its emotions stabilize, Chen Zhou thought to himself that it was indeed a fake.
In fact, he could not be entirely sure either; the illusions of the Path of Hungry Ghosts were too high-level and difficult to distinguish; he had never truly tasted the Heavenly Chef's craftsmanship, so how could he tell the difference?
He could only look for flaws.
Fortunately, he was an evil spirit, and he had no obsessions that the Path of Hungry Ghosts could exploit.
Chen Zhou had simply noticed that the hungry ghosts everywhere had such a strong reaction to the Nine-Age Crane's fallen feathers.
Yet the Heavenly Chef and Song Zi'an were simmering soup out in the open like this, with such a fragrance, and there was no abnormality around them—not a single ghost dared to approach?
Was that normal?
Furthermore, the little pig that usually followed Song Zi'an was missing.
That could only mean it was a fake.
Because the Nine-Age Crane's only obsessions were its old and young masters, the illusion only presented those two and ignored the little pig.
The Nine-Age Crane quickly gathered its spirits from its disappointment; it held its head high, trying not to look at the fake Heavenly Chef and Song Zi'an below.
Chen Zhou reached out and plucked one of its feathers.
"Ga?!"
The Nine-Age Crane was shocked, nearly failing to fly straight from the pain; why pluck its feathers again at the slightest disagreement?
Where are your manners?
It looked at Chen Zhou resentfully.
Chen Zhou stroked its head soothingly. "Just a temporary loan, don't be stingy."
After saying that, he threw the feather down.
"Quick, use that move from before again."
Half-doubting, the Nine-Age Crane flapped its wings to kick up a haze of yellow dust, and the feather Chen Zhou had thrown down began to emanate a sweet fragrance again.
The feather drifted down toward the large pot.
Below, the Heavenly Chef and Song Zi'an were still smiling and holding their ladles, waiting for them to descend.
But when the fragrant feather drifted down, their expressions changed.
All their expressions collapsed in an instant, becoming greedy and distorted.
Their eyes went wide, their sockets nearly splitting open, and black saliva dripped from the corners of their mouths.
"Give it to me... that's mine!"
"No stealing, that's mine!"
The two of them lunged toward the feather in a daze, the soup ladles and bowls in their hands already discarded on the ground.
Clang!
The large pot was also knocked over, and the scalding liquid spilled everywhere.
The two of them ignored the soup on the ground entirely, instead wrestling with each other to fight for the feather.
Song Zi'an bit into the Heavenly Chef's neck, forcefully tearing off a piece of flesh.
Meanwhile, the Heavenly Chef picked up the large ladle and slammed it hard against Song Zi'an's head, causing his skull to cave in.
Not far away, in the shadows that were previously empty, countless crowds suddenly surged forth.
They were also attracted by the strange fragrance of the crane feather, revealing their forms as hungry ghosts, roaring as they pounced to join the struggle.
There was only one feather, and it was quickly divided and consumed.
But the hungry ghosts knew no satiety; they turned instead to pounce on the meat soup spilled all over the ground.
"Eat... eat..."
The meat soup emitted a thick fragrance as it was scrambled for.
Chen Zhou, however, saw that the pot of soup that had originally been glowing and incredibly tempting had turned into a completely different appearance after being poured out and scavenged by the ghosts.
Bubbling in the pot was pus and blood, stewed with rotten rats, maggot-infested internal organs, and all sorts of unknown insects.
Yet the hungry ghosts were completely oblivious; it was as if they were seeing nectar and ambrosia.
Their hands continuously scooped up the rotten meat and pus from the ground, frantically stuffing it into their mouths.
It was not even enough.
One hungry ghost finished what was on the ground and, not feeling satisfied, actually grabbed his own hand and took a fierce bite.
"Delicious... so delicious..."
While chewing his own fingers, he wore a satisfied smile.
The other ghosts followed suit.
The feeding quickly evolved into a chaotic scene of self-cannibalism.
The hungry ghosts had not only eaten all the manifested food on the ground, but they also began tearing at their own arms and thighs, stuffing them into their mouths to chew and swallow.
Bits of flesh flew everywhere, yet they seemed to be tasting a supreme delicacy, until they had eaten themselves down to only a head, their mouths still opening and closing on their own, letting out groans of "Hungry... hungry..."
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