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

Leaving the warm cat realm of Usa City, the Treant (now in its walking treehouse form) crossed an invisible boundary.

The surrounding scenery began to change dramatically.

The once lush forests have disappeared, replaced by a gray, desolate, and bitterly cold Gobi Desert.

The two moons in the sky turned pale, like two dead fish eyes, coldly staring at the earth.

The gravity here seems stronger than elsewhere, and the air is filled with a suffocating smell of sulfur and stale blood.

Location: Leng Yuan.

This is the most infamous no-man's-land in the Dreamland, and also the only way to the unknown Kadas.

"Achoo!"

Er Gou (in Snoopy form) wrapped himself tightly in his pilot jacket, his snot freezing out.

"Boss, why is this place even colder than that liquid nitrogen galaxy?"

"That kind of cold is physical; the cold here... feels like it seeps into your bones."

Jiang Li stood on the terrace, still holding that cup of hot tea in her hand.

"Because it's not just cold here."

"This place is still... a dumping ground for despair."

Jiang Li looked at the guide next to him, who was trembling on the railing—the Star Thief (Giant Rat).

At this moment, the giant rat was wearing the golden headband given to it by Sun Wukong, and it looked much more docile.

"Hey, mouse."

What's ahead?

The giant rat trembled, and deep fear was revealed in its cunning little eyes.

"Ahead... is the territory of the Moon Beasts."

"They are the masters of the Cold Plains, and also the biggest... slave traders in the Dreamland."

"They not only capture the native inhabitants of the dream world, but also capture... dreamers in the real world."

"Extract their souls, put them in bottles, and transport them to the far side of the moon..."

"As an offering to that... Nyarlathotep (the Chaos of the Crouching)."

……

"Slave traders?"

Sun Wukong was originally idly twirling the enormous pair of rule chopsticks (ivory chopsticks) in his hands.

Upon hearing this, his eyes narrowed instantly.

Two golden flames flickered in his eye sockets.

"I, Old Sun, hate demons who traffic in people the most in my life."

"What do these Moon Beasts look like?"

"Can we fight?"

"Looks like..."

The giant rat swallowed hard, as if recalling something disgusting.

"It's ugly."

"Like... a giant toad with its skin peeled off."

"It has no eyes, and its face is covered with a bunch of pink tentacles."

"They don't speak; they communicate only by vibrating their tentacles."

"As for whether we can fight..."

The giant rat shrank its neck.

"They have... black-sailed warships."

"That was a void warship bestowed by the Great Old Ones..."

……

Before he could finish speaking...

"Waaah————"

A low, mournful horn sound pierced the cold wind of the desolate plains, coming from above the clouds.

Everyone looked up.

All that could be seen was a dark sea of ​​clouds.

A huge, jet-black ancient galley emerged from the clouds.

It wasn't in the water, but in the air.

The ship was constructed from some kind of black, greasy wood and emitted a nauseating, fishy stench.

On the black sails, there is a distorted yellow one-eyed emblem.

[Target: Black-sailed warship.]

[Affiliation: Moon Beast Trading Guild]

[Cargo loaded: High-purity soul crystals (i.e., the unfortunate souls who were captured).]

……

"They're here!"

The giant rat was so frightened that it burrowed directly into Er Gou's arms.

"Don't let them see me! They love eating Saturn mice!"

"Look at your pathetic self."

Nezha (the New Year picture doll version) flew up on his wind-fire wheels.

"Just a wrecked ship."

"Watch me burn it to ashes!"

Nezha was about to make a move.

Jiang Li waved his hand.

"Don't rush."

"Since it's in the transportation business..."

"There must be... local specialties on that ship."

Jiang Li's gaze pierced through the deck of the black-sailed warship and saw the densely packed white monsters inside the cabin.

Just as the giant rat said.

They were a group of disgusting creatures that looked like upright-walking toads, their bodies were slippery, they had no eyes, and their mouths and noses were covered with pink tentacles.

[Ingredient: Moonbeast.]

[Rank: Former Familiar (Mass Production Type)]

[Meat Quality Assessment: Although it looks ugly, the meat is extremely firm and chewy (due to its long-term residence in a gravity-abnormal zone). The taste is similar to a combination of bullfrog and pufferfish.]

[Best cooking method: Use plenty of spice and oil, and alternate between hot and cold temperatures.]

……

"Bullfrog?"

Jiang Li's Adam's apple bobbed slightly.

On this cold plateau.

What could be more heartwarming than a hot and delicious meal of frog meat?

"and……"

Jiang Li looked around at the desolate environment.

"This place is called Lengyuan."

"This monster is called the Moon Beast."

"This situation, this scene."

"I won't make... cold pot skewers."

"It's a disservice to this land."

……

"Prepare for battle!"

Jiang Li shouted loudly.

"But I'll remember!"

"Don't break them!"

"We need to...capture them alive!"

"Especially the Great Sage!"

Jiang Li looked at the pair of enormous chopsticks in Wukong's hand.

"Your chopsticks will come in handy now."

"Give me... this!"

……

at this time.

The black-sailed warships in the sky have spotted the Treant on the ground.

The side of the ship.

Dozens of white moon beasts poked their heads out.

The tentacles on their faces vibrated violently, emitting waves of mental energy that made people dizzy.

"attack!"

Although there is no sound, it is a malicious attack that directly affects the brain.

Whoosh whoosh—

Countless black, slimy bone spears were hurled from the ship.

"A trivial skill!"

Tang Sanzang (Jin Chanzi) put his hands together in prayer.

"Amitabha."

"Although I have transformed into a cicada, I am not someone to be trifled with."

"Golden Bell Shield!"

hum!

A golden light enveloped the treehouse.

The bone spears that struck the light barrier were all deflected.

"My turn!"

Wukong chuckled.

He did not fly up.

Instead, he stood on the terrace and raised his pair of rule-making chopsticks (the Golden Cudgel and the Fire-Tipped Spear), each a hundred meters long.

"Hey! That toad!"

"You're quite fat!"

"Get down here!"

Wukong suddenly extended the chopsticks in his hand.

Like a red-gold lightning bolt, it instantly traversed a distance of a thousand meters.

It precisely... clamped down on a moon beast leader who was directing the battle.

"squeak?!"

The moon beast hadn't reacted yet.

It felt like I was being squeezed between two unshakeable "pillars" at the waist.

The binding force of those rules prevented it from moving even a finger.

"Get out of here!"

Wukong flicked his wrist.

The several-ton moon beast was easily carried back.

"Splat!"

She fell onto the treehouse terrace.

……

"Excellent chopstick technique!"

Jiang Li exclaimed in admiration.

"continue!"

"Take all the fat ones off the ship!"

"Yes, sir!"

Wukong is having a blast.

These chopsticks are so useful.

It can grip exactly where you point it, and it even has a built-in "anti-slip" function (although it doesn't have cat whiskers yet, it's perfect for gripping soft creatures like this).

"folder!"

"Squeeze again!"

"Double kill!"

A rain of toads began to fall from the sky.

One by one, the white moon beasts were picked up from the ship by Wukong like dumplings being dropped into boiling water, and piled up on the terrace into a small mountain.

……

The other moon beasts on the ship panicked.

What kind of weapon is this?

How can it ignore distance and shields and grab people directly?

"retreat!"

"Full speed retreat!"

The black-sailed warship turned its bow, attempting to escape.

"Trying to run away?"

Nezha gave a cold laugh.

"Stay!"

"Heavenly Silk! Bind!"

brush--

The red Hun Tian Ling (now a materialized red silk ribbon) flew into the sky.

It instantly grew larger, like a giant red python, tightly coiling around the warship's mast and hull.

"Get down here, young master!"

Nezha's divine power erupted.

They forcefully dragged that huge black-sailed warship... down to low altitude.

……

"All the materials are ready."

Jiang Li looked at the moon beasts scattered all over the ground, and the trapped warship.

He began his performance.

Step 1: Prepare the ingredients.

"Ergou! Stop hiding!"

"Get out there and get to work!"

"Use your claws to skin these moon beasts!"

"Ugh? That's disgusting..."

Although Er Gou was disgusted, he still endured the nausea and went to eat it because he thought there might be something delicious to eat.

brush brush --

As the skin was peeled off.

The moon beast revealed its interior... snow-white, translucent muscles, like garlic cloves.

It's definitely top-quality bullfrog meat!

Step 2: Skewering.

"The key to cold pot skewers is the skewering technique."

Jiang Li waved his hand.

The branches of the giant trees in the surrounding forest automatically fell off, sharpened, and turned into countless giant bamboo sticks.

"wear!"

Jiang Li controlled it with his telekinetic power.

Bamboo skewers flew through the air, threading large chunks of the prepared moon beast meat onto the skewers.

Each string is more than a person tall.

……

Step 3: Prepare the base sauce.

Jiang Li took out that all-purpose black pot.

"Since it's called a cold pot..."

"Then we'll have to use... cold oil."

But it wasn't actually cold.

But...

Jiang Li poured in a bucket of hellish red oil.

Add Sichuan peppercorns (for a numbing sensation).

Add Void Chili (spicy).

then.

He did something amazing.

He stirred up the cold winds of the surrounding desolate plains.

"Use the extreme cold of this world to seal in the scalding heat of this red oil."

call--

The cold wind swept into the pot.

The surface of the chili oil cooled instantly, forming a thin layer of oil skin.

But beneath this oily skin...

It is a spicy broth that is boiling vigorously at a temperature of several thousand degrees.

This is... [Conceptual-level Cold Pot].

It looks cold, but it tastes hot.

Yin and Yang in harmony, ice and fire in contrast.

……

Step 4: Soaking.

"Next skewer!"

Jiang Li directed Wukong to use chopsticks to pick up the bundles of meat skewers.

Soak it in the bottom of the red oil pot.

"Sizzle—"

Although the surface is cold.

But the moment the meat skewers hit the pot, they were instantly cooked by the high temperature underneath.

The snow-white flesh quickly contracted, locking in the juices.

The surface is coated with bright red chili oil and sesame seeds.

aroma!

An extremely powerful spicy and savory aroma exploded across this cold wasteland.

……

【Dish Name: Lengyuan Spicy Cold Pot Moon Beast Skewers】

[Level: Hell (referring to spiciness, not difficulty).]

[Description: Made with locally sourced ingredients, primarily the Moon Beast, the overlord of the Cold Plains. Utilizing the low temperatures of the Cold Plains and the high temperatures of the Hellfire Red Oil, it creates an extreme texture that is cold on the outside and hot on the inside.]

[Effects of Consumption: Warms the stomach and dispels cold, significantly increases mental resistance (SAN value recovery). Because it's so spicy, it will temporarily make your brain forget fear.]

……

"alright."

Jiang Li picked up a huge skewer of meat.

The pieces of meat on top were still dripping with red oil.

"Try it."

"This is an authentic flavor that can only be found in this cold plain."

……

Wukong couldn't wait to take a bite.

"Hiss—ha—"

"It's so hot! It's so spicy!"

"But...it's so tender!"

"This toad meat... is even more tender than dragon meat?"

Wukong ate until his mouth was covered in red oil, and exclaimed how delicious it was.

Tang Sanzang also broke his vows (at least in a dream).

He used the cicada's mouthparts to suck up the meat juices.

"Amitabha."

"Wine and meat pass through the intestines, but Buddha remains in the heart."

"But this meat... is indeed extremely delicious."

……

Everyone ate with great enthusiasm.

And that black-sailed warship that was trapped.

The few surviving moon beasts were now huddled in the cabin, trembling with fear.

They looked through the window at the horrific scene.

Their companions.

Those were the overlords of the cold plains who once struck fear into the hearts of countless dream creatures.

now.

They were turning into strings of red food, which were then... devoured by that group of outsiders.

"Squeak... (Demon)"

"Squeak... (Even more terrifying than the Great Old Ones)"

……

"It's not over yet."

Jiang Li finished eating a skewer and wiped his mouth.

Their gaze fell upon the warship.

"We've eaten your flesh, but we still have business to attend to."

"I heard this ship...carries quite a few soul crystals?"

Jiang Li held a half-eaten bamboo skewer.

They walked step by step toward the warship.

"Hand over the goods."

"I can consider it..."

"I won't turn you into... dry-pot bullfrogs."

……

The remaining moon beasts dared not resist.

They rushed to carry the boxes out of the cabin.

The box was opened.

It was filled with sparkling, diamond-like crystals of soul.

These are the souls of innocent dreamers that they have captured.

"many!"

The giant guide rat's eyes widened in disbelief.

"If you took these and exchanged them for gold coins in Usa City, you could buy half the city!"

"I won't exchange the money."

Jiang Li picked up a crystal.

Feel the imprisoned, fearful consciousness within.

"These……"

"These are all top-quality... seasonings."

Jiang Li's lips curled up slightly.

"Next stop is Qatar."

"We are going to meet those high and mighty gods of dreams."

"It's not good to go empty-handed."

"How about..."

"Let's take these soul crystals..."

"To make a... [Soulful Ice Jelly]?"

"For those gods..."

"Calm down."