Demon hunter’s Cooking Manual
Chapter 1175 - 105: Facing Death! _2

Cao Ye panicked.

He hurriedly took two steps forward, circled to the front of the three female fighters, and knelt down without hesitation.

"I beg you."

"Save me."

As he spoke, Cao Ye directly kowtowed.

At the moment his head touched the ground, a sleeve arrow narrowly grazed past him.

More sleeve arrows were shot toward Hui Lixiang and the other two.

Swish swish swish!

The piercing sound of arrows filled the air.

The sleeve arrows embedded into the nearby grass.

The vibrant green grass instantly turned scorched and blackened.

Each blade of once-thriving grass withered rapidly.

Even the ground itself became parched and cracked.

Poison?

This was far beyond the level of ordinary toxins.

Seeing this, Cao Ye's face turned deathly pale with fear.

Meanwhile, Hui Lixiang sighed softly.

"No way to evade."

That was all she said.

Yuli, however, looked eager to try, her eyes scanning the dense forest and nearby shrubbery.

Kaoru?

This female fighter was already making her move.

She raised both hands high above her head, then brought them down heavily.

Whoosh!

A wave formed of Sword Qi surged forward with unrelenting sharpness, sweeping directly toward the cluster of shrubs.

Massive trees, requiring two people to encircle them, were destroyed instantly as though they'd been relentlessly crushed.

Including the attackers hidden within.

But that was just one group.

More adversaries emerged from the dense forest, launching an attack on the four of them.

Swish swish swish!

Bang bang bang!

There were arrows as well as gunfire.

In an instant, the previously quiet mountainside erupted into chaos.

Hanakaiin Ra, who had been outside the estate, was immediately drawn to the commotion.

"Stay alert!"

After gesturing to members of the affiliated families to remain vigilant, his gaze turned toward Hanakaiin Tōru.

He was waiting for Hanakaiin Tōru to issue orders.

But Hanakaiin Tōru remained intensely focused on the chessboard in front of him, ignoring Hanakaiin Ra's expectant eyes.

This left Hanakaiin Ra in a difficult position.

He was accustomed to leaving everything to Hanakaiin Tōru whenever the latter was present.

All he had to do was follow orders.

But now?

Even though Hanakaiin Tōru was right here, he wasn't giving any commands, forcing Hanakaiin Ra to make decisions on his own—something he found deeply unsettling.

Scratching his head.

Hanakaiin Ra finally said—

"Keep the alert up."

As soon as he said it, Hanakaiin Ra felt that this somehow undermined his "authority."

He quickly added another line.

"Stay extra vigilant."

Then?

Hanakaiin Ra positioned himself beside Hanakaiin Tōru, silently waiting.

He firmly believed that with Tōru by his side, everything would be sorted out.

...

"Is that all?"

Tsuchimikado Motoharu frowned deeply.

It shouldn't be!

This really shouldn't be!

Although the attack seemed intense, it was far weaker than he had expected.

At least, if the 'Flourish of the Moon' had intervened...

They wouldn't have resorted to firearms.

But if it wasn't the people from 'Flourish of the Moon,' then who had responded to his 'bait'?

Unconsciously, Tsuchimikado Motoharu turned to gaze toward a direction cloaked in dark mist.

That was a place permeated with concentrated negative emotions.

Very likely, it was also where the Hanakaiin Family Head resided.

"Could they really be so irrational?"

"Or perhaps..."

"You have another plan in motion?"

With this thought in mind, Tsuchimikado Motoharu stood up.

He strode purposefully toward the direction he sensed.

Clear in his intent.

Unwavering in his path.

Just like Jason.

Following the scent, he arrived at a relatively intact house.

Here, the battle between two groups was nearing its end.

Most of the combatants on both sides were already sprawled on the ground.

Only two individuals remained standing.

But even standing, they were both panting heavily.

It wasn't just their physical strength—both were gravely injured.

One had lost their left arm, with blood gushing uncontrollably.

The other had a gaping wound in their abdomen, with internal organs plainly visible.

It was clear that without the influence of transcendent secret techniques, both would have long been dead.

As Jason stepped forward, the two immediately turned toward him and charged.

"Mine! It's all mine!"

"Die! Everyone else, just die!"

The two screamed madly, rushing toward Jason with incredible speed, only to be kicked aside even faster.

One kick per person.

They soared through the air.

Fell heavily to the ground.

And lost consciousness.

Jason had encountered this kind of situation several times now.

Persuasion was futile.

A direct approach was more effective.

He then pushed open a still-functional door nearby.

The room was small, filled with various items.

But most were useless to Jason.

Save for one item that exuded the aroma of food.

For Jason, that was enough.

He picked up a dagger-like 'object' and swallowed it whole.

The unique texture was soft yet slightly springy, with a rich flavor of eggs and fresh shrimp inside.

The taste of egg and shrimp intertwined.

Neither dominated the other.

They complemented each other perfectly.

Paired with the outer layer.

Jason couldn't help but squint in satisfaction.

Rice rolls!

Too bad there was no sauce.

Jason sighed with some regret, then looked at the text before him.

[Consumed the Blade of Sacrificial Feasting (Imitation)]

[Physical Strength, Energy, and Wounds have been greatly restored!]

[Satiety +60]

[Satiety: 2048]

...

On his way to the Hanakaiin Family, Jason's satiety had fallen below 1000 due to integrating the [Great Majestic Heavenly Dragon Technique]. But ever since arriving at the foot of the mountain and continuing his feast, his satiety had been rapidly climbing.

Although there was no Excitement of Feast, achieving over 2000 points of satiety gave Jason an inexplicable sense of security.

As for the Excitement of Feast?

Thus far, he had only cleared out some 'food points' on the outskirts.

He hadn't yet reached the core.

He believed he'd find what he truly wanted there.

After thoroughly exploring the house and confirming there was nothing else worth his attention, Jason headed back outside.

"Was it... was it you who saved us?"

By now, the two individuals who had been fighting to the death earlier had regained consciousness.

Unlike their previous life-or-death struggle, now they were supporting each other, applying rudimentary bandages to their wounds.

The effect of the mist had disappeared!

Based on his prior encounters, Jason knew that knocking someone out would bring them back to normal upon waking.

Clearly, these two were no exception.

"No."

Jason replied as he always did.

He hadn't come to save them.

He was here for food.

Saving them?

Not even an afterthought.

Knocking them out had just been a means to better secure food.

As such, Jason didn't even entertain the idea of lingering and walked straight toward the core area.

The two, watching Jason's figure fade into the distance, were filled with an overwhelming sense of gratitude.

They had already been saved by Jason once before.

And now, a second time.

"As expected, the Sword Saint has a cold exterior but a warm heart."

"Exactly!"

"This makes the second time he's saved us!"

"Huh, what about the items in the room?"

"What items? We were in such a bizarre state earlier—maybe those items were the cause of it. The Sword Saint must've destroyed them."

"True!"

"With the Sword Saint's noble character, how could he concern himself with such trivial things."

"And the Hanakaiin Family's head... truly sinister to set us up like this!"

"Indeed!"

"Absolutely despicable!"

Their voices reverberated through the mist.

Growing fainter and fainter.

Their perspectives lifting higher and higher.

Until it reached an extreme, revealing a crystal ball in a pitch-black room.

Two figures standing in the shadows watched the scenes within the crystal ball. The shorter one erupted into a series of laughs.

"Is this it?"

"Is this the person you planned everything around?"

"Do you think it's worth it?"

The shorter one turned their gaze to the taller figure beside them.

"It's worth it!"

"Every bit of this was worth it!"

The taller one replied firmly, their eyes not on the crystal ball but on the scene behind them.

There, hundreds of artifacts were arranged in a specific pattern.

Dozens of unconscious Shikigami were tied to wooden stakes.

The ever-thickening darkness obscured the room.

Blocking perception.

And preventing divination.

"There's no problem here, is there?"

The taller figure asked.

"Of course not."

"I can guarantee it."

The shorter one said.

"Then that's good."

With that, the taller figure began walking toward the exit.

"Hey, is this really necessary?"

"Why not just wait here?"

"Everything is already perfect!"

The shorter one hesitated briefly before urging otherwise.

"No!"

"Something is still missing!"

"The answer they seek—me."

With these words, the taller figure's steps never faltered.

He continued forward.

Even if certain death awaited him, he didn't stop.

Or rather, he had been prepared to...

Face death head-on.