Journey to the West: Starting by taking Sun Wukong as my disciple!-Chapter 106: Going to the East Sea to Get Some Seafood
"You have soda in front of you," Chen Nuo said indifferently.
As soon as Sun Wukong heard this, his face lit up with joy and he hastily picked up his cup and took a big gulp.
Then, the moment his tongue made contact with the soda, it got even spicier!
Sun Wukong’s eyes widened, turning slightly red, but he didn’t cry like Qiong Xiao did; he held it in.
The spiciness subsided, replaced by an indescribable sense of exhilaration.
Refreshing!
Sun Wukong let out a long burp, his eyes filled with contentment.
The red hotpot lamb had been too spicy for Sun Wukong before, so he hadn’t really enjoyed it.
Unable to wait, Sun Wukong hastily picked up a slice of lamb and swished it in the white hotpot broth; the taste instantly illuminated his eyes.
The delicate, thin slices of meat became exceptionally fragrant after being soaked in the white broth, and the smoothness in his mouth combined with the tender chewiness made him sing its praises.
It was a taste to reminisce over.
Eager to try more, Sun Wukong kept going, one piece after another.
Chen Nuo, shaking his head helplessly, put all the other dishes, like meatballs and such, into the pot; they were almost cooked.
"Don’t just eat one thing; the others are good too," Chen Nuo said.
Sun Wukong glanced at the green vegetables with a hint of disdain in his eyes; he was a carnivore, but since the master had spoken, he still had to listen.
He reluctantly picked up a stalk of crown daisy and dipped it in the sauce.
After trying a bite hesitantly, he was surprised and began chewing unconsciously.
The sauce’s flavor dominated, leaving a hint of freshness to dispel the greasiness of the meat.
Fish balls, vermicelli, enoki mushrooms, fresh shrimp, tripe.
One ingredient after another transformed in the enhancement of the hotpot.
Each one had both the rich flavor of the base and its own captivating taste; not a single one was unappetizing.
Gathered around the hotpot, you feel a warm glow in body, heart, and stomach.
With someone else eating, Chen Nuo got an appetite too and ate quite a bit more.
That’s the thing about hotpot: the more festive it gets, the better it shows its charm.
Chen Nuo took a sip of Flat Peach soda and watched Sun Wukong, who was busy eating, and asked, "So, what happened today that brought you here?"
Sun Wukong hurriedly swallowed the food in his mouth, set down his chopsticks, and chuckled, "Master, I was just missing you."
"Bullshit, do I not know you?" Chen Nuo rolled his eyes and said, "The Flat Peach Banquet starts the day after tomorrow, and it should be your busiest time, yet here you are. Isn’t it because something’s up?"
How did the master know the exact time of the Flat Peach Banquet?
Sun Wukong was shocked, but then he eased up, thinking that someone as divinely skilled as his master, how could he not be aware of the Flat Peach Banquet?
He scratched his head sheepishly, "This time, disciple truly has a favor to ask, and I earnestly hope that you could help me, Master."
"Go on," Chen Nuo said. He had received many useless things in the lottery today, but still got one or two useful items, so he was in a fairly good mood.
As long as it wasn’t too much to ask, he would help; after all, it was his own disciple, right?
"Queen Mother decreed that there should be three hundred and sixty-five dishes for the Flat Peach Banquet, and despite racking my brains, I’ve only managed to come up with two hundred and seventeen. I’m here to ask if Master could teach me another one hundred and forty-eight recipes today so that I can complete this task," Sun Wukong requested.
One hundred and forty-eight dishes?!
In less than one day’s time?
Impudent disciple!
Chen Nuo’s face was covered in black lines, fighting the urge to smack Sun Wukong dead.
"You calculate it yourself, how long would it take just to make one hundred and forty-eight dishes!" Chen Nuo said through gritted teeth.
This Sun Wukong really wasn’t an easy one to deal with; even if it wasn’t like the fight scenes in the original story, he still managed to create a whole bunch of troubles with just cooking.
"Isn’t one dish just a matter of the time it takes to drink a cup of tea? It’s not that long!" Sun Wukong’s eyes rolled as he actually began to calculate.
"One hundred and forty-eight dishes, it seems... it really does seem..."
Sun Wukong beamed with a smile, "That’s quite a lot."
So you knew that all along, Chen Nuo was momentarily at a loss for words.
When you were stuck learning a single dish, how many days did you practice? Don’t you have any idea in your mind?
One hundred and forty-eight dishes were definitely impossible, but after all, Sun Wukong was his disciple, and Chen Nuo had to help him.
Bowing his head and looking at the hot pot in the middle and the array of dishes around it, a brilliant idea flashed across Chen Nuo’s mind.
"Wukong, your teacher has a dish that can count for countless others and solve your current crisis."
After receiving the guidance, Sun Wukong walked out of Chaos Residence cheerfully and leaped up, flying toward the direction of the East Sea.
Upon entering the East Sea and finding the Dragon Palace, he saw the same two guards.
Seeing Sun Wukong, the Shrimp Soldiers and Crab Generals greeted him warmly, "Isn’t that the Immortal? What brings you here on this fine day?"
Sun Wukong paused to consider, and then he remembered.
"Oh, it’s you guys. How’s it going, has that Old Dragon King given you your pay yet?"
At this, the Shrimp Soldiers and Crab Generals were even happier as they said, "Yes, we’ve been paid! Right after you left, the Dragon King distributed it immediately."
"That’s good." Sun Wukong nodded, "Come on, take me to the Old Dragon King; I have important business."
"Right away!"
The Crab General led Sun Wukong to the great hall.
The Dragon King of East Sea took a casual glance, did a double-take, then quickly got up from his dragon throne, warmly saying, "Oh my, if it isn’t the Immortal? What kind of wind blew you our way?"
Sun Wukong: ...
So the way of greeting in the Dragon Palace is always the same, huh?
"Nothing major brought me here, just wondering how many crabs, shrimps, scallops, that kind of thing, do you have in the East Sea? The most common ones without Spiritual Wisdom, I, Old Sun, have an urgent need for them."
Although he obtained the method from his master, some ingredients were still not easy to come by.
"Seafood?" The Dragon King of East Sea laughed.
There was nothing he lacked in the East Sea, especially not these things.
"You can have as much as you want!" The Dragon King of East Sea declared with confidence, waving his hand and giving orders.
"Hm? Old Dragon King, have you reached the level of Taiyi Golden Immortal?" Sun Wukong suddenly noticed the Dragon King of East Sea’s cultivation level.
"Yes." The Dragon King of East Sea responded, then looked at Sun Wukong with gratitude, "It’s all thanks to your Flat Peach."
"Otherwise, with the Little Dragon’s aptitude, breaking through to Taiyi Golden Immortal would have taken a thousand years," the Dragon King of East Sea said with deep emotion.
Who would have thought that this monkey, whom nobody in Buddhism had taken seriously, would bring such a great treasure to the Dragon Clan.
Sun Wukong nodded; eating Flat Peaches normally was indeed very effective.
"It’s just a small effort," Sun Wukong said casually, shrugging it off. To him, such things were all too common.
They were readily available at any time, and even now, he had a whole bunch of them on him.
"But may I ask, what do you need so much seafood for?" The Dragon King of East Sea finally voiced his curiosity.
"I happen to be the Imperial Chef in the Heavenly Court, and the day after tomorrow is the Flat Peach Banquet. I’m worried that I won’t have enough ingredients, so I came to you for some," Sun Wukong said.
...Imperial Chef?
Ao Guang was a little confused.
With a cultivation level of at least Taiyi Golden Immortal, wasn’t the Heavenly Court being a bit too extravagant? In their Dragon Palace, someone with the battle power of a Taiyi Golden Immortal would certainly be appointed as a high-ranking general.
Heavenly Court truly spares no expense. But can the Immortal cook?
He knew the Imperial Kitchen was not a trivial position.
The very Flat Peach Banquet that the Immortal had mentioned required the finest culinary skills in all the Three Realms to be suitable for the task.
