Chapter 1089: This Position of Leader Should Rightfully Be Mine!

Lu Yang observed the behavior of the two spirit chefs, feeling as though they were street-level operatives making a secret contact.

Could it be that some unwitting gesture of his just now happened to match their secret signal?

He decided he might as well go and see.

With this thought, a warm and enthusiastic smile appeared on Lu Yang's face: "I was delayed by some matters on the road, but fortunately, I still managed to make it in time."

"Sister Mengmeng, I have some business to attend to here, so I won't keep you company on your stroll. Let us meet back at the inn tonight."

"Very well." Yun Mengmeng found this sudden turn of events rather baffling, but since the Second Master had spoken, she did not press further with questions.

"Fellow Daoist, please." One of the spirit chefs made a gesturing motion, inviting Lu Yang to follow him, while the other remained at the stall.

Lu Yang swept his divine sense over them and discovered that both spirit chefs were in the Soul Formation stage, and atop their heads grew a pair of ram horns.

Were they of the Goat Tribe?

"They belong to the Taotie Tribe," the Immortal Fairy remarked. Lu Yang was unfamiliar with the Taotie Tribe and could not discern their origins, but she knew them intimately.

"The Taotie Tribe? Did they perceive my use of Heaven-Devouring Earth-Devouring just now and mistake me for one of their own?"

Lu Yang quickly pieced the logic together.

If eating dirt was indeed the secret signal, then only by employing Heaven-Devouring Earth-Devouring could one actually consume it. In contrast, someone like Yun Mengmeng, who ate it directly, would be judged as an outsider.

Lu Yang followed one of the spirit chefs out of the market, opened a hidden door, and entered a crowded basement.

After Lu Yang entered the basement, the spirit chef returned to the stall to continue frying dirt clods.

Within the basement were individuals bearing ram horns, others with the features of different demon tribes, and some who possessed no demon traits at all.

Noticing the door to the basement open, the people in the back rows collectively looked toward Lu Yang. Finding him unfamiliar, they turned their heads back.

"There are more than just the Taotie Tribe here?" Lu Yang was perplexed. If they weren't exclusively Taotie, how had the other demon tribes and humans passed the test of eating dirt?

"Presumably, these people have consumed the blood of the Taotie Tribe. Consuming their blood allows one to learn Heaven-Devouring Earth-Devouring, though the resulting effect is certainly inferior to that of a true Taotie."

"Furthermore, once they consume the blood, the Taotie Tribe gains a suppressive power over them. This is a common method the Taotie use to form factions."

"So that is how it is."

"The time has arrived; everyone should be accounted for," said a middle-aged, ram-horned cultivator standing at the very front.

"Is that man Jin Tan, the patriarch of the Taotie Tribe?" Lu Yang vaguely recalled catching a glimpse of him at the founding ceremony of the Demon Kingdom. He was a Tribulation Transgression stage Demon Emperor, ranking among the top ten in strength within the Demon Region, and a high-ranking minister of the Demon Kingdom.

The moment Jin Tan spoke, the crowd instantly fell silent.

Jin Tan looked upon the gathering and spoke unhurriedly: "You all ought to know, more or less, the purpose for which this seat has summoned you."

The crowd gazed at Jin Tan standing on high, their eyes burning with fervor, their fists clenched tightly, as though they were ready to march through fire and water to sacrifice themselves for the cause at any moment.

Lu Yang had no choice but to feign the same expression, his acting quite convincing.

Jin Tan was highly satisfied with the crowd's reaction; to plot a grand enterprise, he could not do without the assistance of these people.

"Today, the leader is faint-headed and autocratic, ignoring the dissuasion of others to actually host this Spirit Chef Tournament within the Demon City. This is utterly outrageous!"

"Yet look at the state of our organization now. Internal management is a chaotic mess, and the leader rules through inaction, unwilling to govern, permitting internal strife to consume our strength!"

"It was truly no easy feat for the organization to reach its current scale. But if we allow the leader to govern in this manner any longer, we will surely march toward ruin!"

Jin Tan scanned the crowd. He possessed a very skillful way of looking at people, his gaze moving slowly, as if he were locking eyes with every single individual, imparting a sense of being respected.

"You hail from the Demon Region, the Great Xia, the Eastern Sea, and the Far North—from the ends of the earth. Each of you possesses unique divine abilities. My Taotie clan has exhausted the strength of our entire tribe, spending centuries nurturing you, all for this very moment!"

Lu Yang narrowed his eyes slightly. Was this a rebellion? A rebellion against Zhu Tian? Could it be they had a Half-Immortal backing them? This was growing rather interesting.

Jin Tan adopted an expression of righteous indignation and shouted aloud: "Everyone, what should we do!"

Jin Tan's words were like a torch, thoroughly igniting the atmosphere, and the crowd raised their arms, shouting at the top of their lungs: "Rebel against him! Rebel against him!"

"Exactly! That old Daoist Ming Yuan should have abdicated long ago. The position of leader rightfully belongs to me!"

Lu Yang froze. Old Daoist Ming Yuan? Wasn't he the Alliance Leader of the Spirit Chef Alliance?

Only then did Lu Yang recall Jin Tan's other identity—the Vice Alliance Leader of the Spirit Chef Alliance.

Wait, so you raised such a massive commotion just to become the Alliance Leader?

"To surpass old Daoist Ming Yuan, we must make him concede defeat wholeheartedly in the realm of culinary arts!"

"I have already researched a dish of supreme worldly delicacy that will surely best old Daoist Ming Yuan."

"However, assembling the ingredients is a task of utmost difficulty. Four of these ingredients are stored within the ingredient treasury of the Spirit Chef Alliance, but those four are far too precious. To obtain them requires the unanimous consent of the three Vice Alliance Leaders and the Alliance Leader."

"Yet, there is one exception—and that is to achieve victory in the Spirit Chef Tournament!"

"The Spirit Chef Tournament is divided into five brackets: Foundation Establishment, Golden Core, Nascent Soul, Soul Formation, and Body Integration. The champion of each bracket may select a single ingredient of their own choosing from the treasury!"

"What you must do is win the tournament by any means necessary! Remember, by any means necessary!"

"Understood!" the crowd roared in unison, their voices causing the basement to tremble.

Having rallied their morale, Jin Tan's tone became less impassioned.

"There is one more matter. Some among you have practiced the culinary arts diligently but have never obtained official spirit chef credentials."

"And if you were to take the spirit chef qualification exam, there is a risk of exposing your true capabilities."

"Therefore, I can exercise my authority to allow you to become spirit chefs without passing the exam, granting you direct entry into the Spirit Chef Tournament."

"Now, those who have not obtained spirit chef credentials shall remain."

"The Spirit Chef Tournament, is it? I haven't tried that before. Why not seize this opportunity to experience it for once?" Lu Yang felt that since he had come to report on the Spirit Chef Tournament, he should naturally experience the entire process as thoroughly as possible.

More than half of the crowd departed one after another, while the remaining minority, including Lu Yang, lined up to register their names.

"What is your name?" Jin Tan inquired when it was Lu Yang's turn.

"Lu Yunyang."

"Good. Next."

The mask Lu Yang wore was of extraordinarily high quality; even a Tribulation Transgression stage cultivator could not discern any flaws.

……

After parting ways with Lu Yang, Yun Mengmeng hummed a little tune as she continued to stroll the streets and gorge herself on food.

However, without Lu Yang's company, many cultivators saw how beautiful and lovely Yun Mengmeng was and stepped forward to strike up conversations, annoying her to no end.

"So annoying, I can't even eat in peace. I'm going to find somewhere else to eat."

Yun Mengmeng mumbled a few complaints, left the market, and wound her way through the narrow alleys.

"This little shop looks decent enough." Deep within a narrow alley, Yun Mengmeng discovered a small restaurant with a very fresh signboard, though it appeared to have no business whatsoever.

She lifted the door curtain and stepped into the small shop. The interior was clean and orderly, indicating that the establishment's owner was a person who took great care in cleanliness.

"Is anyone here?"

A woman dressed in a sky-blue dress emerged from the rear kitchen. Wiping her hands, she spoke with an apologetic tone: "My apologies, esteemed guest, the ingredients have run out, and the proprietor has gone out to purchase groceries."