Oh no! I've been kept as a pet by a stray killer whale!

Chapter 34 Stop eating, I want to chew up my phone screen.

Night falls.

The deserted island was once again shrouded in darkness.

But this time, it was no longer a deathly, pitch-black void.

Behind the log cabin on the single slope, in the bottomless fire pit, orange flames danced merrily. Although hidden underground, the light they emitted illuminated Jiang Che's face and also the bright, sparkling eyes of Qiangzi beside him.

Jiang Che sat by the fire and added a handful of dry firewood to the pit.

Crackling sound.

Sparks flew everywhere.

This warmth penetrated the windbreaker, reaching deep into my heart and dispelling all the chill brought by the night sea breeze.

Although he didn't have a pot, he found half a rusty tin can in the garbage dump, washed it clean, put it on the fire, and boiled the stream water he had just fetched inside.

Soon, the water boiled.

Bubbles rolled and bubbled, releasing white steam.

Jiang Che picked up the can, blew on it to cool it down, and took a small sip.

Hot.

Clean.

Boiled water.

"ha----"

After drinking a mouthful of hot water, Jiang Che felt completely revived.

Looking at the flickering flames, he gave the audience in the live stream his most genuine smile since arriving on the island: "Brothers."

"Tonight, we finally won't have to eat raw meat and drink blood anymore."

"This fire not only boiled the water, but also melted away the last barrier between me and these big guys."

"From today onwards, this is no longer a desert island survival situation."

"This is island life."

The night was as dark as ink, and the sea breeze was cool.

But beside the newly dug "Dakota Fire Pit," the orange-red flames created a warm little world.

The fire has stabilized. The hardwood charcoal at the bottom of the pit is burning slowly and steadily, yet there is hardly any annoying smoke.

Jiang Che sat cross-legged beside the fire pit, with his personal butler, the otter "Qiangzi," squatting next to him.

At this moment, Qiangzi was holding a palm-sized, jet-black volcanic rock slab with its two front paws and frantically rubbing it against the sand next to it.

rustling sound—

Its movements were extremely focused, even bordering on fanaticism. Every grain of sand had to be rubbed to perfection, and every inch of the stone slab surface had to be polished to a mirror-like smoothness.

Jiang Che found this stone slab in the pile of rocks at the edge of the island. It is made of basalt, with a dense texture, good thermal conductivity, and a very smooth surface. It is simply a "natural teppanyaki grill" bestowed by nature.

"call----"

Qiangzi blew the sand off the stone slab, then rubbed it with its fur until the firelight could be reflected on the black stone surface. Only then did it nod in satisfaction and respectfully hand the stone slab to Jiang Che.

"Here you go! It's clean!"

"It must be spotless! It must be polished! Only then can it be considered qualified tableware!"

Jiang Che smiled as he took the stone slab and placed it over the fire pit.

"Thanks, Butler Qiang."

As the flames licked at it, the temperature of the black stone slab rose rapidly, and Jiang Che dripped a drop of seawater onto it.

Noisy!

Water droplets boil and vaporize instantly on the stone slab.

"The temperature is right."

Jiang Che's expression changed.

In that instant, he was no longer the pathetic survivor, but a top chef about to begin his performance.

He took today's ingredients from the large banana leaf next to him.

Those were yellowfin tuna belly meat brought by the big orca, and the tail meat from the spiny lobster that wasn't finished yesterday. Although there was no refrigerator, Jiang Che managed to keep them somewhat fresh by soaking them in seawater and burying them deep in the sand.

Especially the belly of that tuna.

After a full day of aging, the pink flesh became even softer, with snow-white fat veins densely covering it like frost, and under the firelight, it shone with an almost bewitching oily sheen.

"Brothers."

Jiang Che faced the camera, his Adam's apple bobbing, his voice low and deep: "Although there's no oil, no butter, not even scallions, ginger, or garlic."

"But when faced with ingredients of this caliber, any extra seasoning would be a desecration."

"We only need—a little bit of warmth."

After saying that, he used his Swiss Army knife to pick up the tuna steak, which was at least two fingers thick, and solemnly placed it on the scorching hot stone slab.

Sizzle!!

that moment.

A sound powerful enough to awaken the most primal desires deep within human DNA exploded in the silent night sky of the deserted island.

That's the sound of oil bursting instantly at high temperatures.

The tuna's belly fat, so abundant it was outrageous, instantly turned into golden oil the moment it came into contact with the hot stone slab, which was several hundred degrees Celsius, and gushed out of the red muscle fibers.

There is absolutely no need to add extra oil.

This piece of fish itself is a huge oil reservoir.

As the oil is released, the edges of the originally pink fish meat begin to turn white rapidly. Then, this white layer gradually spreads towards the center, while the side that is in contact with the stone slab begins to show an enticing dark brown color.

This is one of the most beautiful reactions in chemistry—the Maillard reaction.

Proteins and reducing sugars undergo complex chemical changes at high temperatures, producing hundreds of different flavor compounds.

A rich, domineering aroma of caramelized meat, like a demon unleashed, instantly rose from the stone slab!

The aroma, carried by the sea breeze, drifted across the beach and the coconut grove, sweeping irresistibly towards the sea.

The viewers in the live stream collectively broke down at that moment.

The picture quality is incredibly high.

The sound reception is incredibly clear.

They watched as the fish sizzled and dripped oil onto the stone slab, the fat dancing on the edge, and listened to the sizzling sound that sent chills down their spines.

I'm dead—I'm really dead—

[Is this a deserted island? This looks like a scene from a kaiseki dinner costing 2,000 yen per person!]

[That oil! See that oil? It's sizzling and bubbling out!]

[Hey streamer, have some decency! Releasing this kind of toxic content in the middle of the night, don't you have a conscience?]

This sound is so relaxing, but also so torturous. I can almost smell the aroma of burning meat—

The instant noodles in my hand suddenly tasted bland; I felt like biting my phone screen.

Jiang Che ignored the wailing in the comments section.

He was intently watching the heat.

"That's about it."

He gently flicked the fish fillet with the tip of his knife and flipped it over.

Sizzle—!

Another crisp sound.

The side that was originally against the stone slab has now turned into a perfect golden-yellow brittle shell. The dark brown texture is as beautiful as marble, and it is still slightly oozing with glistening oil droplets.

Jiang Che seized the opportunity and added the peeled lobster meat to the dish.

Lobster meat itself is low in fat, but this stone slab is now covered with premium tuna oil.

The snow-white lobster meat curls up tightly in the fish oil, turning a light golden color and exuding the unique sweet aroma of crustaceans.

The two premium aromas blend together to create a storm of "carbohydrate destroyers".