Chapter 6: Food Wars!

Charlie moved closer to Elder Guo and raised both hands. Two fingers from his right hand settled against the point between and just above the elder’s eyebrows, while the fingers of his left hand rested against his chest. For a moment, he simply held them there, studying the old man’s expression.

He curled his thumbs inward and twisted both wrists in the same motion, as though turning two invisible locks at once.

The change in Elder Guo was immediate.

His eyes, already wide, seemed to brighten even further, catching the lantern light with an almost unnatural clarity. The trembling running through his body became stronger, and several members of the Azure Cloud Sect recoiled in confusion.

"What is he doing?"

"Is that some kind of technique?"

Charlie ignored them. He could feel something moving through the elder, something he couldn’t quite understand but could somehow sense. The strange warmth from earlier had returned to his hands, and for once, the system appeared to be keeping pace with what he was doing.

[Taste Trance has reached its completion point.]

[The target may now be released from the effect.]

Charlie frowned.

[Warning: Prolonged Taste Trance may cause excessive Qi circulation and destabilization of the target’s meridians.]

He glanced at Elder Guo.

"So that’s bad?"

[Yes.]

"Right. Good to know."

The Azure Cloud Sect members stared at him in disbelief.

"What is he talking about?"

"Why is he talking to himself?"

"Someone stop him!"

Charlie lowered his hands and sat down directly across from Elder Guo. The old man remained perfectly upright, his expression caught somewhere between complete serenity and overwhelming pleasure, while everyone around him seemed ready to panic.

If the trance was being maintained by his own heightened sensory state, then simply telling him to wake up probably wouldn’t accomplish anything. Charlie had spent enough time arguing with people to know that there was rarely any point in attacking the thing a person was currently thinking about. If you wanted a reaction, you found the pressure point underneath it.

He brought his hands together in front of his chest, his fingers forming a loose circle.

[Dao of Ragebait activated.]

A strange warmth spread from his chest into his shoulders, then down both arms. Unlike the sensation from the cooking ability, this one felt sharper, almost deliberate.

Charlie leaned slightly forward.

"Elder Guo."

There was no response.

"I’ve been watching you for the past few minutes, and I’ve come to a rather interesting conclusion."

The elder’s breathing remained slow.

Charlie smiled faintly.

"You really are enjoying yourself, aren’t you?"

One of Elder Guo’s fingers twitched.

[Emotional response detected.]

Charlie felt the warmth in his arms pulse.

"I suppose I can’t blame you. After all, it’s probably the best meal you’ve ever had."

Another twitch ran through the elder’s hand. This time, his fingers curled slightly against the table.

"But for someone who has spent his entire life cultivating martial arts, I’d have expected a little more self-control."

Elder Guo’s brow tightened.

The Qi inside his body shifted. It was subtle at first, little more than a change in the air around him, but Charlie could see the effect. The elder’s chest rose more sharply with each breath, and the veins along his hands began to stand out.

One of the younger disciples noticed it as well.

"Elder?"

Charlie kept going.

"You’re sitting in front of an entire room full of people, completely helpless because you tasted something delicious."

The vein at Elder Guo’s temple throbbed.

His fingers pressed harder against the table, and the wood gave a faint creak beneath them. Charlie watched the change carefully. The elder’s anger was no longer hidden behind that blissful expression; it was beginning to push through it, little by little.

The warmth in Charlie’s arms tightened.

He could feel the Dao responding, but not in the way he had expected. It wasn’t simply making Elder Guo angrier. Instead, the moment Elder Guo’s emotions shifted, something inside his own cultivation shifted with them.

His Qi began moving faster.

The elder’s breathing deepened. A faint pressure gathered around his body, disturbing the air close to his robes. Several cups on the table trembled against their saucers.

"What is happening to Elder Guo?" Lin Meiyue whispered.

Zhao Wenhai’s expression hardened as he watched the old man’s hands. "His Qi is circulating."

"That much I can see."

"It’s not normal."

Charlie heard them but kept his attention on Elder Guo.

The old man’s Qi was responding to his emotions.

That made sense. Charlie had seen enough people become angry to know that anger changed the body. The difference here was that Elder Guo had spent decades cultivating that body. His emotions weren’t merely affecting his heartbeat or breathing. They were reaching something much deeper.

"So you’re angry."

Elder Guo’s fingers tightened.

The table cracked.

A sharp sound ran through the dining hall.

"I suppose that makes sense. Anyone would be embarrassed."

The pressure around Elder Guo increased.

His robes began to move as Qi leaked from his body in uneven bursts. His beard lifted slightly, and the strands around his sleeves fluttered as though a strong wind were passing through the room, despite every candle remaining perfectly still.

Han Yucheng’s hand went to his sword.

"Step away from him."

Charlie ignored him.

"Elder Guo has spent his entire life cultivating his mind and body, and yet one meal was enough to leave him sitting helplessly in front of everyone."

The elder’s breathing became heavier.

His eyelids twitched.

"You know what I find most interesting?" Charlie continued. "You’re not even fighting it."

Elder Guo’s eyes suddenly moved. For the first time, they focused directly on Charlie. The old man’s pupils were sharp now.

Charlie smiled.

"There you are."

The moment those words left his mouth, Elder Guo’s Qi surged.

A low boom rolled through the room.

The table shook violently. Plates rattled. Several servants stumbled backward, and one of the younger disciples instinctively drew half of his sword before Lin Meiyue caught his arm.

"Wait."

Elder Guo’s face had changed completely.

The serenity was gone.

His jaw was clenched, his brows drawn together, and the veins along his neck had begun to rise beneath his skin. His entire body trembled beneath the pressure of his own Qi.

"Elder Guo," he said calmly, "I’d advise you to relax."

The elder’s eye twitched.

Charlie almost laughed.

"No, genuinely. You’re making things worse."

The floor beneath his feet cracked with a sharp snap, and a burst of pressure exploded outward. Plates jumped from the table. Wine spilled across the cloth. Several people were forced to brace themselves against their chairs as the invisible force swept through the dining hall.

Han Yucheng finally drew his sword.

"What did you do to our elder?!"

The old man was breathing heavily now, but his eyes were clear.

The trance was breaking. Not because Charlie had dispelled it. Because the anger had given Elder Guo something stronger to focus on than the sensation of the food. His mind was returning.

Elder Guo slowly raised his head. His gaze locked onto Charlie.

"You..."

Charlie waited.

Elder Guo’s hand closed around Charlie’s collar before anyone could react. The old man pulled him across the table with enough force to send several dishes rattling, then lifted him clean off the ground. The sudden pressure against his throat made Charlie instinctively grab at the elder’s wrist, though he quickly realized that wasn’t accomplishing much.

Elder Guo’s expression was no longer dazed or confused. The bliss had vanished completely, replaced by a cold, furious clarity.

"You..."

His voice was low enough that the entire dining hall seemed to quiet around it.

"You made a fool of me."

"I wouldn’t say that."

The elder’s eye twitched.

Across the table, the manor master slowly pushed himself upright.

He had been sitting through the entire exchange with an expression that had shifted between anger, confusion, and something approaching disbelief. His body was still sore from Charlie’s earlier encounter with him, and getting to his feet clearly took effort, but the moment he saw Elder Guo’s hand around Charlie’s throat, his expression changed.

"Enough."

Elder Guo didn’t even look at him.

His other hand moved toward his sword. The blade came free with a sharp metallic sound. Several people around the tables immediately stood.

"Senior Elder!"

Han Yucheng took a step forward, uncertain whether he should intervene or support his elder. Lin Meiyue caught his sleeve again, her eyes fixed on Elder Guo.

"Don’t."

"But he’s going to—"

"I know."

Nobody seemed quite sure what to do. Elder Guo was a respected elder of the Azure Cloud Sect, but this was the master’s manor, and the master himself was now standing between him and the rest of the room. The Liang family had gone silent. Even the Yun Merchant House’s young master, who had seemed amused by the entire situation until now, was watching carefully.

The manor master took another step forward.

"Elder Guo."

This time, Elder Guo looked at him. The master stopped several paces away.

"Put the sword away."

The master’s Qi erupted. It wasn’t as overwhelming as Elder Guo’s, but it was powerful enough to make the air in the dining hall feel heavier. The flames of the nearby lamps bent away from him, robes shifted, and several of the weaker servants instinctively lowered themselves.

The Azure Cloud Sect members stared at him. Even Elder Guo’s expression changed slightly. The master spoke again, his voice carrying through the hall.

"This is my manor. You will not draw a sword in my dining hall."

Charlie’s feet were still hanging uselessly above the floor, and the sword in Elder Guo’s other hand was close enough that he had no desire to test whether the man’s anger had completely returned him to his senses.

Han Yucheng stepped forward, his hand still wrapped tightly around his sword.

"Elder Guo," he said, his voice carrying through the dining hall, "allow me to settle this. I challenge him to an Honor Duel."

The words immediately changed the atmosphere.

A few of the Azure Cloud Sect disciples exchanged glances. Even the Yun Merchant House young master stopped speaking to his family and looked over.

Elder Guo slowly lowered his sword and looked toward the manor master.

"If the master of this household acknowledges the challenge, the matter can be settled according to Jianghu custom."

The entire room went quiet.

The manor master stared at Charlie. His expression made it painfully obvious that there was absolutely nothing about this situation that he liked.

He had already been humiliated in his own home, his dining hall was half destroyed, one of his guests had nearly started a fight with a major sect elder, and now someone wanted to turn the entire disaster into a formal duel.

He could refuse. But doing so after Charlie had openly insulted their elder in front of everyone, would hardly make the situation disappear. If anything, it would give the sect another reason to remain involved.

The master slowly exhaled.

"Very well."

There was no enthusiasm in his voice whatsoever.

"I acknowledge the Honor Duel."

Han Yucheng gave a small nod.

"Two weeks from tonight."

Charlie finally felt Elder Guo’s hand release his collar. His feet touched the floor, and he immediately rubbed his neck while looking between Han and the master.

Yu was already walking toward him.

"Come on."

Charlie allowed her to pull him away from the dining hall, still trying to understand how an evening that had started with cooking had somehow ended with him being challenged to a formal duel by a martial sect.

As they disappeared down the corridor, Charlie glanced back once at the ruined dining hall.

He had two weeks. That was probably enough time to figure out what an Honor Duel actually was.