Chili Oil

Chapter 93 Chili Oil

Seeing that Liao Yudie had passed the buck to him, Nan Xu pondered for a moment and then smiled slightly: "I do think that Miss Yudie's plan has its merits. If the trap works, it can indeed effectively limit the bear demon's lethality."

Just as a hint of joy appeared on Liao Yudie's face, Nan continued, "However, it's a bit naive to pin our hopes on the bear demon returning to its lair."

Hearing this, Liao Yudie felt a surge of displeasure: "Then tell me, what should we do?"

Nan Xu already had a plan in mind, and he responded fluently and calmly, saying, "It's very simple. We don't need to stay in the nest all night. Instead, we should wait until tomorrow and choose another place suitable for an ambush, then lure them here with bait."

"In this way, we will have the initiative in our hands and won't have to worry about being suddenly attacked by the bear demon in the middle of the night."

Liao Yudie scoffed, "That's easy for you to say, but what bait do we have?"

"Besides, that bear demon is extremely cunning; how could ordinary bait possibly fool it?"

Nan Xu gently shook his head: "Miss Liao, don't forget, I'm a chef."

"The bear demon has a keen sense of smell. As long as I can make a dish with an enticing aroma, it will be the perfect bait."

"As for whether this bait can fool it—"

A hint of confidence ignited in Nan Xu's eyes.

"Wouldn't it be better if the allure of the dish outweighed its caution and rationality?"

"This—" Liao Yudie was momentarily speechless.

Liao Changfeng looked thoughtfully at the middle-aged hunter beside him: "Uncle Li, what do you think?"

"It's not impossible," Uncle Li said after thinking for a moment. "No matter what, a black bear is just an animal. Even if it has some intelligence, reason may not be able to overcome desire and instinct."

But soon, his brows furrowed slightly: "However, the dishes needed to attract that beast with the aroma must be of a high quality."

As he spoke, Uncle Li subtly sized up Nan in front of him. This boy looked no more than sixteen or seventeen years old; did he really have the ability?

Thinking of this, he asked, "May I ask what rank chef Brother Nan is now?"

"Eighth grade." Nan Xu said calmly, "But I can also cook dishes of higher grade."

Upon hearing this, Liao Yudie laughed and said, "I didn't expect you to talk so big, but your rank is only eighth grade!"

Liao Changfeng quickly pulled Liao Yudie aside and glared at her fiercely: "Little sister, stop talking nonsense!"

"Young Master Nan is already an eighth-rank chef at such a young age; it's no exaggeration to call him a prodigy."

He was about to apologize to Nan Xu when Nan Xu waved her hand dismissively and said, "It's okay, I don't bother with spoiled kids like this."

Liao Changfeng breathed a sigh of relief, cupped his hands in greeting, and said, "Brother Xiao Nan, you are very generous."

Liao Yudie pouted in dissatisfaction: "Hey, who are you calling a child? You're clearly the same age as me!"

Liao Changfeng felt a headache coming on and quickly changed the subject: "No matter what, Brother Xiao Nan's suggestion is indeed the best option for us right now. It's always good to give it a try."

"Let's find another place to camp tonight, and tomorrow morning we'll start setting up traps and bait!"

Upon hearing Liao Changfeng's words, the other hunters all secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

At least we don't have to sleep in those smelly bear caves anymore, and we don't have to be on edge to avoid being attacked at night!

Thinking of this, they looked at Nan Xu with a touch more gratitude.

Early the next morning, Uncle Li and several other hunters began setting up the traps.

"---Hmm, the traps here are almost ready. You two, cover them with soil and fallen leaves, making sure they match the color of the surrounding area."

"Also, you need to coat your whole body with these juices, making sure there's no smell at all." Uncle Li said as he smeared the black liquid, which smelled of earth and grass roots and leaves, all over his body.

"Huh? Me—me too?" Liao Yudie pointed to herself and blinked.

Liao Changfeng shook his head helplessly: "Of course. Little sister, you don't want the bear demon to detect your scent and cause everything to go wrong, do you?"

"Well, okay then—"

Liao Yudie had no choice but to smear the foul-smelling liquid on her body with a pained expression.

As she applied the product, she looked at Nanxu with envy, muttering to herself, "Honestly, why doesn't he have to use this stuff?!"

Nan Xu smiled slightly: "The role I play is that of a lone chef cooking in the wilderness. I am one of the baits used to lure that bear demon into a trap, so of course I don't need to pretend."

"If I hide with you all, even the most gluttonous bear demon will find it odd that a dish has suddenly appeared out of nowhere here, right?"

Damn it, he makes so much sense!

Liao Yudie looked unwilling, but he knew that Liao Changfeng and Nan Xu were right.

Finally, all she could do was bar her teeth and claws, threatening in a completely ineffective way: "Hmph, if your dishes don't attract anything, I'm not finished with you!"

"Alright, little sister, stop fooling around and hide." Liao Changfeng rubbed her head helplessly.

To his surprise, Liao Yudie showed him no respect at all: "Ugh, you stink, brother, stay away from me."

Liao Changfeng: "—"

After a while of commotion, everyone else finally managed to hide.

Nanxu also officially began his cooking career.

"What should we do?"

Nan Xu fell into deep thought.

He could make a lot of delicious food, but using such precious ingredients for a bear demon would be a waste.

Therefore, we also need to consider the cost-effectiveness. It's best not to bring out ingredients like cold-water whitefish and fragrant snow salt.

It just so happens that he had taken a lot of low-grade ingredients from Ningquanju earlier.

Although these ingredients are of relatively low quality, they are diverse in variety, and even include some specialty ingredients from various parts of Da Xuan.

"And there are also the Erjingtiao chili peppers from Sichuan and the Qin peppers from Shaanxi—"

Nan Xu picked up two bright red dried chilies and smelled them.

His eyes lit up immediately.

"Such a rich and spicy flavor!"

Erjingtiao chili peppers, with their unique rich aroma and mild spiciness, are hailed as the soul of Sichuan cuisine.

The Qin pepper from Shaanxi is also a well-known chili pepper with a mild spiciness but a rich aroma, and it is even known as the "King of Peppers".

If you want to make the most of the bait in Xiang Piao Gan, choosing these two types of chili peppers is definitely the right choice.

So, Nanxu took out each ingredient and kitchen utensil from the food bag and began to prepare carefully.

What he's going to do this time is create the soul seasoning that can bring out the aroma of these two types of chili to the extreme—chili oil!