Chapter 152 Have You Ever Eaten Instant Noodles?

CLANG!

Amidst the throng of monsters, a flash of cold light erupted as a sharp kitchen cleaver split through the air like lightning, hurtling straight toward the white-haired old man who had been beating the Colgate toothpaste monster with his walking stick.

"You rely on your age to bully others and cause trouble in the tavern—did you ever ask the kitchen cleaver in this lady's hand for permission?"

Following the flying cleaver, a figure in a cyan dress emerged from the crowd, drifting gracefully through the air before landing right in front of the white-haired old man.

"Young lady, you have such pretty and delicate features, how can you go around wielding a kitchen cleaver like a common butcher? Where is your decorum?"

"Besides, I'm old enough to be your grandfather, yet you keep referring to yourself as 'this lady'—isn't that rather inappropriate? Furthermore..."

With his hands clasped behind his back, the white-haired old man launched into a stern lecture directed right at the young woman in the cyan shirt.

"Who cares about any of that, old man! Hurry up and clean up this mess of yours, or else this lady is really going to lose her temper!"

The sharp-tongued young woman in the cyan shirt cut him off, pointing at the chaotic mess scattered all around them.

Such was her personality; unlike Lin Dandan, she never overthought things before acting. She spoke purely on impulse, possessing a straightforward and fiery disposition. Even though the opponent was an elderly man, the moment he crossed her bottom line...

She wouldn't care about the consequences and would deal with an old man just the same as anyone else...

"And another thing..."

"Shouldn't you really work on improving your knife-throwing skills..."

The white-haired old man shook his head helplessly.

"Oh, that's right! Where's my cleaver? My heavy profound-iron kitchen cleaver? Old man, did you secretly hide it?"

The young woman in the cyan shirt pointed at the white-haired old man and demanded an explanation.

"How would I know? Do I look like someone who's hiding a kitchen cleaver on him?"

The white-haired old man patted his pockets and waved his hands frantically to signal his innocence.

"Sis, are you looking for this cleaver...?"

At that moment, a tomato monster stepped out from the crowd of monsters, with a gleaming kitchen cleaver deeply embedded right in the top of its head...

"Oh, right there. Sorry, I got a bit carried away just now. I'll definitely be more careful next time."

Looking rather apologetic and sheepish, the young woman stuck out her tongue and awkwardly pulled the cleaver out from the tomato monster's head.

"Sis, look at how much tomato juice I'm losing. What should I do?"

Clutching its head in agony, the tomato monster watched helplessly as its face grew increasingly pale while tomato juice continuously spilled from its wound.

CRACK!

Right under everyone's watchful eyes, the young woman in the cyan shirt raised her cleaver and chopped it right back down into the exact same spot on the tomato monster's head with pinpoint accuracy...

This sudden action instantly stunned every single monster present...

"Sis..."

Flabbergasted, the tomato monster let out a cry of pure anguish.

"Shut your mouth!"

Embarrassed and enraged, the young woman glared fiercely at the babbling tomato monster.

***

Li Changluo was so frightened that he couldn't help reaching up to touch his own head.

"A true feast for the eyes..."

Sitting right next to Li Changluo, Heiwa couldn't help licking his lips...

"You're into that type?"

Li Changluo was utterly shocked; Heiwa's tastes were truly unique.

"No, I like the tomato next to her. If only I had a box of French fries right now."

Staring fixedly at the tomato sauce oozing from the tomato monster's head, Heiwa swallowed hard.

***

By now, the young woman in the cyan shirt was growing rather irritated. She had originally intended to use her cleaver to intimidate this uninvited guest—to make this white-haired old man behave himself...

And stop causing a ruckus in the tavern...

Yet, because of her own blunder, the entire plan had backfired. To make matters worse, the old man was still giving her a benevolent smile, his eyes carrying an undeniable hint of mockery...

Therefore...

With a flick of her finger and a flash of light, several miniature sprites holding bows and arrows materialized out of thin air. They drew their bows and nocked their arrows, waiting only for her command to let fly and pierce the enemy's head.

"Young lady, are you a chef?"

The white-haired old man suddenly asked out of nowhere.

"Y-Yes, I am. What about it?"

Taken aback, the young woman hadn't expected the old man to ask such a question. Under normal circumstances, when faced with this kind of situation, she would never bother answering such a tedious question from anyone.

If you disagree, just fight—why waste breath?

However, the young woman was deeply passionate about culinary arts. Whenever the topic turned to cooking, she would eagerly and eloquently discuss it with anyone, completely shedding her fierce and aggressive demeanor.

"Ah, that settles it then. Have you ever eaten instant noodles?"

Clapping his hands, the old man threw out another abrupt question.

"Instant noodles? That junk has no nutritional value; it pleases the mouth but does nothing for the body..."

The young woman curled her lip in utter disdain and replied scornfully.

"That's precisely it! Come take a look here. Lately, this old man has taken to browsing short videos when I have some free time. Look at what it says here: making instant noodles this way is both nutritious and delicious, and a husband can easily devour dozens of bowls in one sitting..."

Producing his smartphone, the white-haired old man clumsily fumbled with the screen, making stiff, awkward swiping motions...

Hearing this, the young woman's interest was piqued, and she actually walked over to look at the old man's phone screen...

"Wait, you can do that? Adding cheese to instant noodles..."

"Look at that! Modern dietary practices have truly undergone a revolution. Look, you can even use herbal tea infusion to cook instant noodles..."

"Oh nice, I've seen this short video before. I was actually thinking about giving it a try..."

"Come, come, add me on WeChat. I'll recommend a few public accounts to you; they're all about cooking and are extremely useful..."

***

Inside the monster tavern, a sparse crowd of onlookers stared blankly at the scene unfolding before them. Had their power level permitted it, every single one of them would have flipped the tables over in frustration.

The situation up to this point had felt like a verbal sparring match that had escalated through dozens of rounds, reaching a stage where neither side could easily back down...

Everyone had been rolling up their sleeves in anticipation of a fierce battle...

Who could have possibly expected that these two would end up exchanging WeChat contacts and walking off chatting and laughing amicably...

Leaving behind a crowd of unsatisfied onlookers completely bewildered in the wind.

"Should I go try this in the kitchen then?"

Holding up her phone, the young woman happily shook it at the white-haired old man. On the screen, a food-vlogging short video was still playing.

"Mm-hm, make sure to let me taste some when it's fresh out of the pot..."

Nodding encouragingly, the old man smiled at her.

"Have you all seen this? Take a step back and the ocean and sky will open up before you. Remember never to act rashly when handling matters; we must learn to control our emotions. Not every problem requires brute force to resolve..."

Speaking like a venerable professor, the white-haired old man began imparting profound life lessons to the various demons gathered in the tavern...

"That makes so much sense..."

"This society nowadays is simply far too impatient."

"We truly ought to calm our hearts and handle conflicts with a tranquil mind."

"Um... but respected elder, why are you locking the door?"

Filled with admiration, all the demons in the tavern were marveling at the high emotional intelligence, elevated state of mind, and meticulous handling of affairs demonstrated by the senior sitting inside the silver coffin...

Yet...

They couldn't quite fathom why he was instructing his Colgate-toothpaste-monster lackeys to shut the heavy tavern doors and even haul up tables to barricade the entrance...

"Do not panic, everyone. It's quite all right, quite all right. This old man is merely closing the doors so that none of you can run away..."

"This old man is simply making preparations to beat all of you to death, granting everyone a bit less struggle and a bit more time for contemplation before you set off on your final journey..."

"Contemplation? Have you ever truly lived? Have you genuinely lived even once?"

Still maintaining the demeanor of an elder offering wise guidance and earnest instruction to a group of juniors, the white-haired old man spoke on.

***

Upon hearing this, the monsters in the tavern rose from their seats in unison.

"Sit back down, everyone, and relax. Impulsiveness is the devil; acting on impulse only leads to trouble."

Waving his hand, the white-haired old man signaled for everyone to stay calm and resume their seats.