I was just fishing, how did I become a Great Old One?

Abyss Kitchen, Black Iron Pot City, South Heaven Gate (if you can even call this a gate).

The Tree Spirit (World Tree Ark) resembled a giant beetle, skimming low over the viscous, oily swamp before finally coming to rest at the foot of this magnificent city.

A close-up view reveals the devastating visual impact of the Black Iron Pot City.

The city is built on an active volcano, and its outer walls are cast from a single piece of black meteorite iron, presenting a perfect arc, like an inverted giant wok with a diameter of over 100 kilometers.

The bottom of the pot (which is also the top of the city wall) was billowing black smoke, which was proof that countless stoves were burning day and night.

What is most outrageous is its moat.

That's not water.

That was... scalding hot, boiling, and steaming...

【Age-old oil】

Golden waves churned in the moat, which stretched for a kilometer. Countless enormous bones (probably those of dinosaurs or giants) floated in the oil, and occasionally, one could see some undercooked eyeball monsters or tentacle creatures sizzling on the surface of the oil.

An intensely strong, suffocating aroma of fried food (mixed with the smell of corpse oil) formed a natural biochemical barrier.

Location: South Gate of Heitieguo City.

[Defense Structure: Boiling Oil River.]

[Rule: All those entering the city must prove they are "the one wielding the knife," not "the one being cut."]

……

"Oh My God……"

Er Gou (the Chaos Devouring Dog) stood by the moat, looking at the scalding waves of oil, his calves cramping.

"Woof! If that falls, it'll be fried to a golden brown on both sides in less than three seconds, right?"

"The kind that's sprinkled with cumin."

Nezha then delivered the final blow from the side.

He looked at the only passage leading to the city gate—a log bridge made of huge ribs.

The bridge was crowded with all sorts of abyssal creatures.

There was a pig-headed butcher carrying a kitchen knife.

There were headless waiters pushing food carts.

There was also a group of strange mollusks that looked like octopus sausages.

They are queuing up for inspection.

……

"Let's go."

Jiang Li straightened his pristine white chef's uniform (which looked completely out of place in this dirty world).

"Remember, starting now."

"We are neither saviors nor passersby."

"We are... chefs who came to cause trouble."

"Your eyes should be fierce, your movements swift, and your posture stylish."

"Do you understand?"

"clear!"

Wukong hoisted the golden cudgel onto his shoulder and swaggered onto the Rib Bridge.

Tang Sanzang (the cyber monk) wore data sunglasses, clasped his hands together, and exuded a transcendent aura that said, "I don't eat people, and people can't eat me either."

……

At the city gate, a checkpoint.

The guards here are not ordinary soldiers.

Instead, it's a ten-meter-tall, muscular being with four arms... [The Minotaur Chef].

It was wearing a blood-stained apron, and in its four hands it held a cleaver, a boning knife, a meat mallet, and a huge pepper grinder.

[NPC: Black Iron Pot City - Gatekeeper - Bull Demon Chef.]

[Rank: Abyss Lord]

[Hobby: Turning unqualified newcomers into meatballs.]

[Catchphrase: You look like a good piece of meat.]

……

At this moment, Chef Bull Demon is holding a slime that is trying to sneak into the city.

"No chef's certificate?"

"Didn't you bring any ingredients either?"

"That is... you yourself are the ingredient."

"Bang!"

The meat hammer fell.

The slime was instantly smashed into a puddle of jelly.

"Next!"

"Chef Bull Demon roared."

……

Finally, it was Jiang Li and his group's turn.

The Bull Demon Chef's blood-red bull eyes swept down over the strange group.

Its eyes lit up when its gaze fell on Tang Sanzang.

"Moo!!!"

It exhaled a strong breath, a breath of excitement.

"Absolutely top-notch!"

"Top-quality ingredients!"

It was pointing at Tang Sanzang.

"Skin and flesh are delicate and tender, fair and clean, without a single impurity!"

"This is simply the legendary... 'Tang Monk's Flesh' (it actually knows that)!"

Then, it looked at Er Gou.

"This dog is also nice, with a good balance of fat and lean meat, perfect for hot pot!"

Finally, it looked at Wukong and Nezha.

"This monkey is a bit skinny, but its brain must be quite sharp."

"Forget about this iron doll (Nezha), it's too hard to chew."

……

As for Jiang Li...

Chef Niu Mo completely ignored him.

In its eyes, this thin human was neither tasty nor a threat.

"My lords!"

The Bull Demon Chef brandished four weapons and roared at the guards behind him (a group of little devils holding forks).

"Bring these...top-quality ingredients!"

"Detain them!"

"Send it to the City Lord's Mansion! It'll be an extra meal tonight!"

wow-

Dozens of little devils surrounded them, holding ropes and spice bottles.

……

"Amitabha."

Tang Sanzang sighed.

"The number of demons who have tried to eat me along my journey could circle the equator."

"But those who dare to openly rob me at the city gate, treating me like food."

"You're the first one."

Just as Tang Sanzang was about to recite the "Physical Salvation Mantra",

A hand stopped him.

It's Jiang Li.

Jiang Li was not angry.

Instead, he... laughed.

He walked up to the giant bull demon chef.

I looked up at the cleaver that was still dripping with slime.

"This... is the head chef."

"You mean, we're ingredients?"

"nonsense!"

Chef Niu Mo snorted coldly, and swung his cleaver down, stopping right in front of Jiang Li's nose.

"In this city, if you don't have a knife, you're just food!"

"With your tiny frame, even I'm too lazy to chop you up!"

"knife?"

Jiang Li shook his head.

"As a chef."

"That thing in your hand... you can call it a knife?"

……

The entire room fell silent.

The abyssal creatures queuing around them were terrified.

Has this human gone mad?

Dare to question the gatekeeper's knife?

That's a demonic weapon forged from abyssal black iron; it can cleave a tank in two with a single strike!

"What did you say?!"

The head chef, nicknamed "Bull Demon," was furious.

"You dare say my knife is no good?"

"It was never going to work."

Jiang Li extended a finger and lightly flicked it on the massive blade.

"when--"

The sound was muffled and there was no echo.

"The steel is too soft."

"The blade is too thick."

"Most importantly..."

Jiang Li pointed to the tiny nicks on the blade (from chopping bones).

"It's...dull."

"To kill with this blunt knife."

"It is...the greatest disrespect to the ingredients."

"It not only ages the flesh, but also causes the soul... to suffer."

……

"fart!"

The head chef was so angry that fire was shooting from his nostrils.

"I sharpen this knife every day! It can cut a hair in two!"

"Don't believe me? I'll test you!"

It raised its cleaver, ready to split Jiang Li in two.

"Wait a minute."

Jiang Li calmly took out a... black stone from his pocket.

The stone was only the size of a palm, completely black, and had no luster whatsoever.

Even the surrounding light was swallowed up when it got close.

This is the god-tier equipment Jiang Li bought at the Omniscient Market using a 10% discount gold card—

[Item: The Antimatter Whetstone]

[Level: Cosmic-grade kitchenware.]

[Description: An antimatter crystal bound by a force field. It's not for sharpening knives; it's for "annihilating" blades.]

[Effect: Through annihilation reactions at the microscopic level, it sharpens the edge of any metal to an absolute sharpness at the "single-atom" level.]

……

"Since you think your knife is fast."

"Then I'll... help you polish it."

"Let me show you..."

"What does it mean to be... truly sharp?"

Jiang Li gently placed the black stone onto Chef Bull Demon's knife blade.

"Sizzle————————"

No sparks.

No sound.

There was only one kind of chilling silence...

That is the microscopic annihilation that occurs when matter and antimatter come into contact.

The head chef, Niu Mo, was stunned.

It felt the knife in its hand... become lighter.

Jiang Li's hand slid along the blade from the hilt to the tip.

Just once.

"alright."

Jiang Li put away the whetstone.

Take a step back.

"Give it a try."

……

"Want to give it a try?"

Chef Niu Mo looked at his knife.

The blade didn't look any different, except that the original tiny nicks were gone.

There was an invisible line on the blade.

That's the vacuum left after the light was cut off.

"Playing tricks!"

Chef Niu Mo didn't believe in superstition.

It grabbed a huge dinosaur leg bone from the side.

"Watch me chop it up!"

It swung the cleaver and chopped hard at the bone.

but.

No sound.

There was no resistance.

The blade sliced ​​through the bone as easily as it sliced ​​through the air.

There was no "crack" sound.

The bone remained standing there, completely still.

"Ha ha ha ha!"

Chef Niu Mo burst into laughter.

"I told you you were a liar! You can't even chop a bone..."

Before he could finish speaking...

"Pfft—"

The massive dinosaur leg bone suddenly... slipped off from the middle.

The cut surface is as smooth as a mirror.

Even the bone marrow cells inside the bones were neatly cut open.

There wasn't a single bone fragment.

There wasn't a single crack.

This is... [single-atom cutting].

……

"this……"

The sound effect of Chef Bull's laughter got stuck in his throat.

Its four arms began to tremble.

Cold sweat trickled down the cow's horns.

As a seasoned chef, he knew all too well what this meant.

This level of sharpness...

If I had just slashed it...

It can't even feel pain before it splits in two.

"What...what kind of sorcery is this?"

It stared in horror at the inconspicuous black stone in Jiang Li's hand.

"This is not sorcery."

Jiang Li blew the dust off the whetstone.

"This is... a fundamental skill."

"The first thing a qualified chef must learn is how to sharpen a knife."

Jiang Li raised his head, his eyes sharpening.

"Now."

"This head chef."

"Excuse me……"

"We are ingredients..."

"Or...are we in the same industry?"

……

Chef Niu Mo swallowed hard.

It glanced at the bone that had been sliced ​​so smoothly it was almost translucent.

He glanced again at the monsters behind Jiang Li (Wukong, Nezha) who all looked like they knew this would happen.

It immediately changed its tune.

That fierce-looking bull's face forced out a smile like a chrysanthemum.

"Let's go together!"

"Definitely a competitor!"

"And a... master-level colleague!"

Chef Niu Mo put away his knife and made a "please" gesture with all four hands at the same time.

"I was blind to your greatness just now!"

"It's a misunderstanding! It's all a misunderstanding!"

"Please come in!"

Welcome to... Black Iron Pot City!

……

"That's right."

Jiang Li nodded in satisfaction.

He led the group and swaggered past the checkpoint.

The abyssal creatures behind them fell silent, automatically making way for them.

In the Abyss Kitchen.

Strength is the best passport.

A sharp knife is the most powerful language.

……

Enter the city.

We passed through that huge black city gate (which was actually an oven door).

The scene inside instantly broadened everyone's horizons.

If the outside is a desolate swamp.

So this is... the ultimate in chaos and revelry.

This is not an ordinary street.

Instead... [conveyor belt].

The entire city's ground is covered by countless crisscrossing food conveyor belts.

People stand on conveyor belts and are transported to every corner of the city.

The buildings on both sides are even more bizarre and varied.

There is a sauna room made of a huge steamer.

There's a Ferris wheel made from a rotating grill (with real meat hanging on it).

There's also a bank made from a pressure cooker.

The air was filled with the aroma of various spices: cumin, chili, curry, and some unknown magic potion.

"Come on in! Take a look!"

"Freshly baked 'Deep-Fried Eye Monster'! A burst of flavor in every bite!"

"Special offer! Special offer! [Braised Goblin Thigh]! Buy one get one free!"

"A family secret recipe! [Ghost Chili Sauce]! So spicy it'll make your soul leave your body!"

……

"Wow!"

Er Gou looked at the bizarre food at the roadside stalls. Although it was a bit disgusting, his primal appetite was still aroused.

"Boss, what's that? It looks like fried centipedes?"

"That's the Abyss Millipede."

Jiang Li glanced at it.

"It has five times the protein content of beef."

"However, if not handled properly, it will have an earthy taste."

Jiang Li did not stop at the roadside stall.

His goal was very clear.

"Don't worry about food for now."

"We need to go to... [the registration point]."

Jiang Li took out the poster.

"The heart of Black Iron Pot City."

"【Hell's Kitchen Hall】."

"We're going there..."

"Take that... [admission ticket]."

……

The group jumped onto a red conveyor belt marked "To the City Center".

Heading towards the very center of the city.

There.

There is a magnificent building that is a kilometer tall and shaped like a white chef's hat.

That's the headquarters of the Abyss Chefs Association.

It was also... the starting point of the Dark Cuisine Competition.

And at the top of that building.

It has a pair of golden eyes.

It's shining through layers of smoke.

They watched the group of uninvited guests.

[NPC: Abyss - Top-Tier Gourmet - Gluttony (Avatar of Gluttony)]

[Review: A few...interesting snacks arrived.]

[Comment: Especially that guy... the one holding the antimatter stone.]

[Review: Hopefully, it will produce a flavor that... will surprise me.]