Chapter 4, The Boss in Silent Tears

However, despite the crowd in the noodle shop, when Liu Shuyu entered, he seemed oblivious to everyone around him, his gaze steady and his voice loud

It has been over a month since I last came to our dormitory, what a coincidence today. Liu Shuzhi smiled in response, and Chen Fengshi let out a slight sigh of relief. He had intended to gauge the situation, and it seems that the effects of the red mist are not as chaotic as he had imagined.

At the beginning, Chen Fengshi was worried that the red mist would come towards him, but he had already planned to meet Shen Ai to clarify things. Sooner or later, he would have to face it, so he simply decided not to avoid it.

The thin man had long since fallen asleep, while Chen Fengshi lay in bed, pondering these questions, unable to fall asleep. Thus, he got up and turned on the computer to search for various keywords, but found no relevant information.

Until the sky was dimly lit, Chen Fengshi finally made up his mind—rather than living in constant fear of the unknown, he would rather take the risk to uncover the truth. To obtain more information, it was nothing more than Shen Ai, or the endpoint of the red mist beams extending from Shen Ai and her companions.

Chen Fengshi was still eating his eleventh bowl of noodles when he suddenly saw someone coming from outside. It was a man he had seen yesterday, the one who had met with Shen Ai.

Today he has no classes, and usually sleeps in so late that he can easily sleep until noon and then have breakfast and lunch together. However, today he woke up a little after 8 o'clock, wanting to continue sleeping, but he felt completely unable to do so and had no sleepiness. He felt very good mentally, even better than the feeling of sleeping from 10 o'clock at night to 8 o'clock in the morning

The problem is, I feel unsatisfied and could still eat another bowl. Chen Fengshi felt quite pleased, although he did not particularly enjoy being the center of attention

I feel fine, but I am particularly hungry today; eating a little feels like not eating at all. However, you know my daily plan consists of six steamed buns and three bowls of porridge from the cafeteria. Liu Shuzhi's behavior is truly unusual; in the past, he would not talk about these things and was even afraid of others caring enough to mention them. The people in his dormitory would help him without being direct about it, often trying to treat him under various pretenses, insisting that no one in the dormitory should know; or they would feign disgust at the taste of a bag of instant noodles they bought, only to give it to him. He would not discuss these matters before, and he was even afraid of others caring enough to mention them. The people in his dormitory would help him without being direct about it, often trying to treat him under various pretenses, insisting that no one in the dormitory should know; or they would feign disgust at the taste of a bag of instant noodles they bought, only to give it to him.

Although their school is a bit far, Chen Fengshi feels that he can completely endure the more than one hour drive

Just as the food god has emerged, another one comes along! The mood of the noodle shop owner at this moment is simply infuriating!

Does this thing require close proximity and a sustained invasion for a certain period of time? Chen Fengshi, comparing the situation he observed yesterday with Shen Ai to the current one, could not help but draw such a comparative conclusion. If that is the case, he also understands why Shen Ai arranged to meet people alone, and it was always for a walk of about ten minutes

Thus, Chen Fengshi sat down in the Rabbit Noodle Restaurant and completed a portion that was twenty times the average person's capacity. Although there was no monetary reward, there was a challenge prize of one month of unlimited eating here

The decision made Chen Fengshi feel much more at ease, and soon he was overcome by drowsiness and fell asleep quickly

Am I also infected by the red mist? But I can't see it on myself? Chen Fengshi's speculation thus seems to draw closer to the truth, and at the same time, he said: "Great minds think alike; I also came here to find free food. In Xuancheng, I found eight restaurants offering this challenge, and the Rabbit Noodle House is the most recent one, plus I love eating noodles."

Even though his original ability to take on challenges was quite impressive, at this moment, everything around him seemed to be getting lower. As he leaped and saw the glowing sign of the noodle shop around the corner quickly drop below the level of his feet, the sensation was akin to flying

"Damn! What on earth happened!" Chen Fengshi couldn't explain, but taking advantage of the darkness to directly jump onto the dormitory building, disregarding the lights-out time, still made him feel that his current jumping ability was quite practical

Borrowing money? This is certainly a solution, but if Chen Fengshi can find a way to resolve the issue, he prefers to solve it himself.

Although it is unclear why, this is certainly good news

Another one comes?

"The challenge is about to begin, so hurry up and eat! There is a time limit!" The noodle shop owner couldn't help but remind them, to prevent those participating in the challenge from making excuses when it comes time to pay.

He saw that the red mist first climbed onto the noodle shop owner's body, but their conversation did not last long. After they separated by a certain distance, the red mist could no longer continue to surge onto the noodle shop owner. After the owner left, Chen Fengshi also did not notice any more red mist appearing on him.

The feeling of possessing powers that transcend the ordinary is not actually unpleasant; the world is constructed based on human norms. A human who can easily leap several stories high finds many obstacles to be virtually nonexistent

This feeling lasts only for a moment, as Chen Fengshi's feet quickly touch the ground. The sound of the ground shaking indicates a significant impact; however, after being dazed for two seconds and gradually regaining composure, Chen Fengshi does not feel a strong impact. The sensation in his legs is as if he had effortlessly jumped down from a height of over 1 meter.

The noodle shop was already filled with diners, all of whom had finished their meals. They were gathered around, eager to witness a moment of miracle, and now that they had seen it, they all applauded and cheered enthusiastically

But can he get the money immediately

Upon entering the kitchen, he incredulously exclaimed to his apprentices, "That kid must be able to perform magic, right?"

Given their proximity, will the red mist crawl onto him?

However, this highest reward was not set up for people to achieve, which caused the noodle shop owner to be extremely anxious, fearing that Chen Fengshi would literally die from overeating. At one point, he even couldn't help but propose to waive the bill, along with offering him several discounts, with the condition that he would stop his frenzied eating.

This is entirely feasible, and Chen Fengshi expresses gratitude for the myriad of commercial promotional methods available in the world. He is even more fortunate that Xuancheng is sufficiently prosperous, thus the promotional strategy for noodle shops in the city is to use quantities that normal individuals could not possibly achieve as a standard of challenge and a gimmick

Bowl after bowl, when Liu Shuzhi finished his eighth bowl, the face of the noodle shop owner had already turned grim. In his eyes, the challenges posed by Chen Fengshi and Liu Shuzhi were originally opportunities to make money, but in the end, Chen Fengshi dealt him a series of slaps in the face. Now, Liu Shuzhi had completed the challenge for the third prize, earning the qualification to eat for free for three days.

"Are you Liu Shuzhi?" Chen Fengshi recalled the name of this classmate, with whom he had played a few times in Liu Shuzhi's dormitory. Due to Liu Shuzhi's relatively introverted personality, he left a strong impression on him. Today's Liu Shuzhi gave Chen Fengshi a different feeling compared to their past encounters. In his memory, Liu Shuzhi was someone who instinctively avoided crowds, always preferring to keep his head down, with his gaze directed towards his toes.

Therefore, for Chen Fengshi, what feels terrible is the uncertainty regarding the reasons behind all these changes, leading to a sense of suspicion about himself, about Shen Ai, and about the future.

Compared to directly confronting the mysterious unknown behind it, it is certainly more appropriate to first approach Shen Ai

His foot deliberately approached the straight foot of the willow tree in a probing manner, yet the red mist still kept its distance. Even when he was about to touch it, the red mist would retreat, clearly unwilling to make contact with him

Chen Fengshi was eating noodles, but his mind was already elsewhere, with almost all his attention focused on the classmate in front of him. This classmate, like Shen Ai, was enveloped in red mist, and the beams of red mist above his head extended out the door, towards the direction of the school

Although nothing was prepared for those who successfully met the challenge, the boss cleverly took a photo of Chen Fengshi and cheerfully said that it would be developed and displayed in a prominent position by tomorrow. The photo serves as both an honor of the first generation of food gods and proof of the unlimited meals for one month.

The owner of the noodle shop happily called for someone to bring over the noodles and mentioned three different levels of rewards. Finally, he added that if one participates in the challenge and fails, they would have to pay three times the price for each bowl of noodles consumed during the challenge.

When the slightly bent legs broke free from their constraints, power surged through them, and Chen Fengshi's body soared into the air—indeed, it felt as if he were flying

It was truly perplexing... The noodle chef was at a loss, as it was evident that Chen Fengshi's stomach could not possibly accommodate such a quantity of food.

However, this process is too rapid, leaving no time to savor it carefully; the body transitions from an ascending state to a descending one, and then Chen Fengshi's surprise transforms into fear during the landing process

The challenge here is not easy to accomplish, do you have confidence? Chen Fengshi was somewhat skeptical about whether the red mist posed any substantial or, one might say, overt danger to people. At the very least, Liu Shu remembered him, and naturally, she was concerned about the situation

The man was aware that his family background was far below the average level of the school. At that moment, he pushed the door open, took a look at the lively scene inside, and calmly squeezed into the only available spot—beside Chen Fengshi's two-person table. After sitting down, he shouted, "Boss, I am here to challenge."

At this height, which has already exceeded three stories, the fear of falling is overwhelming; if the body tilts even slightly upon impact, it is certain that the brain will be splattered, and even landing on both feet would likely result in shattered bones.

The owner of the noodle shop publicly stated that starting today, the promise of unlimited meals for one month for those who complete the challenge will be honored without fail

The master in the noodle shop could only secretly admire the boss's cleverness, as he unexpectedly became a spectator applauding at this moment despite being completely unprepared. However, what he found even harder to believe was that Chen Fengshi had truly finished so many bowls of noodles, and all of them were secretly increased in quantity and ingredients!

Does his strange physical condition have only a positive side? Could he suddenly die? Or are there hidden dangers in certain areas? Is the strange red mist he sees related to the changes in his body? He has come into contact with Shen Ai; could it be that he is also possessed by the red mist and cannot see the red mist on himself? If not, then why has he not been possessed by the red mist?

Chen Fengshi was certainly not in a hurry to leave; he sat there, leaning back, with his legs spread apart in an attempt to distance himself from the willow tree. However, he soon realized that the red mist surged towards him only to recede after a short distance, and thereafter, it did not approach him again

However, now he speaks these words so calmly, which is completely different from the impression Chen Fengshi had heard. What concerns Chen Fengshi even more is that Liu Shu directly expresses an unusual feeling of hunger

Master, even magic must have a place to hide it

Yet he could only get up, and what was worse was the hunger in his stomach, which added to his anxiety about reality, aside from his worries about the unknown. That is to say—if he ate 180 at each meal, his parents' earnings would not be enough to feed him. Moreover, the immediate issue was that it was the end of the month, and there were only a few days left until his parents provided his living expenses, while he had already run out of provisions

Most of the people watching the excitement in the noodle shop are quite eager, while some have other matters to attend to. Upon seeing Chen Fengshi truly take on the challenge, they feel inclined to leave, not believing that the new challenger can succeed. Others think that if someone has already succeeded, having a second challenger is not particularly special, and thus some people begin to disperse.

Apart from borrowing, there are no other possibilities to solve the problem immediately However, Chen Fengshi is clearly aware that the issue he needs money for ultimately boils down to hunger Therefore, while it is impossible to obtain money immediately, is it possible to get enough food right away

Today has indeed turned out to be lively

When Chen Fengshi completed the challenge and called for another bowl, the noodle chef who had been watching at the kitchen door quickly said: "That's enough."

Chen Fengshi observed Liu Shuzhi with increasing confidence, noticing that he was eating very quickly, bowl after bowl of noodles disappearing down his throat. The red mist surrounding him became increasingly vibrant, while Liu Shuzhi's body seemed to continuously produce this red mist, which flowed incessantly along the trajectory of the red mist strands extending from above his head

The willow tree fell silent and began to eat with its head down