Chapter 115: Does Your Butt Hurt Anymore? (Second Update)

East Sea

Although Jiangzhou was not too far from East Sea, Chen Feng had never actually been there before. Standing on the soil of East Sea for the first time, he couldn’t help but sigh inwardly. East Sea was undoubtedly far more prosperous than Jiangzhou—by an unfathomable margin. Jiangzhou could be considered a second-tier city, yet compared to East Sea, it was clearly still a world apart.

After the two arrived in East Sea, a car was already waiting to pick them up.

“Sister Xiao, when did you start developing your career in East Sea?” Chen Feng asked curiously as he settled into the car.

Xiao Yu smiled faintly and replied leisurely, “Even before I met you, I had already begun shifting my focus to East Sea for development. But recently, because of you, I stayed in Jiangzhou.”

Chen Feng nodded, a spark of anticipation lighting his face. East Sea represented a brand-new challenge for him.

Xiao Yu owned a company in East Sea as well, though it seemed smaller in scale compared to her operations in Jiangzhou. She spoke smoothly and confidently, clearly well-acquainted with East Sea.

After a simple day of rest, at nine the next morning, Xiao Yu took Chen Feng to the East Sea Television Station to register for the competition.

Unlike the public registration area, Chen Feng and Xiao Yu signed up at a separate registration desk. This time, there were several hundred chefs applying. The first round was a mass preliminary selection, from which only around sixty would advance.

However, there were backdoors. For someone like Chen Feng, who was recommended by a sponsor, there was no need to participate in the preliminary round. He would automatically be among those sixty advancing contestants.

This competition was originally heavily funded by Xiao Yu herself. Now that the show had moved to East Sea and with Liu Kaifeng’s involvement, many more sponsors had been brought on board. Although Xiao Yu was no longer the largest sponsor, she still had no trouble recommending whoever she wished.

“What? The rules have changed to this?” Chen Feng’s eyes widened as he read through the competition guidelines, dumbfounded. “They’ve brought in mentors? And these mentors are celebrities? Are they even gourmets? Can they really taste food properly?”

Chen Feng was utterly speechless. The competition format had been turned into something resembling “The Voice.”

First, there was the preliminary selection, then forming teams, and finally advancing rounds.

Chen Feng was thoroughly confused. Teams? What nonsense was this? He couldn’t understand the reasoning behind this concept of celebrity mentors. This was cooking, after all—did those so-called celebrities know how to cook?

He could understand singing competitions because the mentors were accomplished singers. But cooking? Having celebrities as mentors was utterly absurd.

“There’s no other way,” Xiao Yu said with a slight shake of her head as she looked at Chen Feng. “You have to understand, for any show to become a hit, it first needs creativity, then big-name celebrities. Without them, it’s almost impossible to gain widespread attention. Honestly, this culinary competition isn’t particularly innovative. East Sea Satellite TV wants to hype it up, so it must have star power. Otherwise, who would even know it exists?”

Of course, there were some differences. Each celebrity mentor could bring along ten fans to taste the dishes. The mentor’s vote counted as five points, while each fan’s vote counted as 0.2 points.

At this, Xiao Yu let out a few cold chuckles before saying calmly, “Chen Feng, believe it or not, countless people will be cursing this show, but the ratings will be through the roof!”

Chen Feng shook his head slightly. Suddenly, he felt his previous thoughts had been somewhat naïve. Once commercial interests got involved, everything became tainted. He began to doubt just how many achievement points he could really earn, even if he won the championship.

“Ah, whatever,” Chen Feng said with a bitter smile. “What I’m really worried about is whether there will be backstage dealings.”

“Backstage dealings?” Xiao Yu laughed softly, looking at Chen Feng seriously. “You don’t need to worry about that. Sure, there might be some, but they definitely won’t affect you. Don’t forget, I’m the biggest investor in this show. Even if you don’t win, I have ways to make you the champion!”

Hearing Xiao Yu’s words, Chen Feng sighed lightly. That meant the show’s credibility was truly low. He had a strong premonition that even if the show’s ratings soared, the achievement points he gained wouldn’t be particularly high.

Perhaps he had been mistaken from the start. At this rate, he should have entered “The Brain” competition instead, or hell, why not just tap into some famous singers’ abilities and join “The Voice” directly?

Still, Chen Feng narrowed his eyes slightly. “The Brain” was still within reach. As for “The Voice,” better not—for now, his current abilities were already extraordinarily powerful. If he suddenly developed singing talent, Zhang Mu would probably start suspecting him of something again.

Indeed, the ability to extract skills had made Chen Feng much more versatile.

“Forget it. Since we’re here, I’ll just show my strength properly!” Chen Feng glanced over the rules again, full of confidence. He had never thought anyone could surpass him.

“Oh, by the way!” Xiao Yu suddenly smiled at Chen Feng. “I’m going to introduce you to someone who speaks highly of you!”

“Who?” Chen Feng’s curiosity was piqued. “Do I know him?”

“You know him, but he might not know you yet. Don’t worry; sooner or later he will. He’s already very curious about you!” Xiao Yu smiled broadly. “You’ll see soon enough.”

“Ah, Director Xiao, you’re here?” In the hall, Liu Kaifeng’s voice reached Chen Feng and Xiao Yu.

They both turned toward the sound and saw Liu Kaifeng approaching with a sinister smile, surrounded by a crowd. Beside him was a woman Chen Feng recognized well—Lin Suxin, a famous figure in the entertainment industry.

Lin Suxin was a blazing star domestically, boasting a massive following online. This kind of show was meant to recruit rising celebrities. If you were popular enough and had a large fan base, your skills mattered less. Unlike “The Voice,” where you needed both fame and undeniable talent—otherwise, you’d be roasted alive.

Lin Suxin was casually linked arm-in-arm with Liu Kaifeng, their relationship palpably intimate. Liu Kaifeng shamelessly groped her backside.

“Liu Kaifeng?” Xiao Yu smiled faintly as she looked at him. “I didn’t expect to see you again so soon!”

Chen Feng stepped directly in front of Liu Kaifeng, sneering. “What’s wrong, Liu Kaifeng? Your ass doesn’t hurt anymore? I saw you limping just now—are you okay?”

“You!” Liu Kaifeng jumped as if stung, startling Lin Suxin, who wondered what had suddenly come over him.

Chen Feng had ripped open an old wound and rubbed salt in it. Liu Kaifeng was about to lose it.

“Calm down, calm down!” Liu Kaifeng struggled to contain his anger, but Lin Suxin could clearly feel his grip on her growing tighter.

Though Liu Kaifeng hated Chen Feng’s guts, he still forced a smile. “Chen Feng, do you want to win the ‘Ultimate Food God’ championship?”

“Of course!” Chen Feng replied with a smile, as if it were the most trivial matter. “And I’m determined to!”

“Heh,” Liu Kaifeng chuckled coldly. “Then I’ll tell you this: you’ll never win. By the way, let me introduce you—this is Lin Suxin, also a judge and mentor for the competition. Chen Feng, you better watch out!”

Chen Feng glanced at Liu Kaifeng calmly. “And so what? Are you threatening me with this?”

Liu Kaifeng looked scornfully at him. “I’m just warning you. I never said I’m threatening you, so don’t slander me!”

“You’re not even worthy of that,” Chen Feng said with cold indifference.

“Young people these days, really…” Lin Suxin sneered. “They always think they’re so great. Young man, the world isn’t as simple as you imagine!”

Chen Feng opened his mouth to retort, but Xiao Yu gently patted his shoulder and smiled. “Chen Feng, no need to stoop to their level. By the way, the friend I told you about earlier has arrived. Let me introduce you.”

“Huh?” Chen Feng blinked, following Xiao Yu’s gaze to a man with graying hair.

It was a face that had almost grown up alongside Chen Feng’s childhood—the very same face stored within his skill extraction system.

It was him?

(Guess who it is!)

(To be continued…)