---
The Dim Sum Sect was unusually quiet. Not the peace-before-a-storm kind of quiet, but the someone-just-dropped-a-bun-in-the-sacred-soup kind.
Lin Feng stared at the ancient steamer in the center of the Sect's courtyard. It had appeared overnight—massive, jade-colored, humming with an ominous warmth. Around its base were inscriptions in nine dialects of the Forgotten Menu.
Flame Duck tilted his head. "That thing just showed up? You sure it's not some ultra-rare boss steamer? The kind that starts steaming your soul if you look at it wrong?"
Bai Xue inspected the glyphs. "No... it's real. This is the Steamer of Destiny. I read about it in Master Zhou's banned cookbook."
"You mean the one he hides under his meditation pillow?" Flame Duck asked.
"The very one."
Lin Feng stepped forward, and the moment his hand brushed the warm bamboo wood, the Ninth Seal on his palm pulsed—and the lid of the steamer popped open with a dramatic pssshhh of sacred vapor.
Inside was a single dumpling, resting on a lotus leaf, glowing faintly gold.
"Another dumpling?" Lin Feng muttered.
Flame Duck's eyes widened. "Don't eat it! That's how prophecies start!"
Too late. The dumpling levitated, unwrapped itself midair, and projected a holographic chef's hat into the sky.
A booming voice echoed:
"O Bearer of the Ninth Seal—if you are seeing this message, it means the Shadow Banquet is nigh. You must infiltrate the gathering of the Rogue Gourmets, for the recipe to reset the world is nearly complete. And also… someone owes me five spirit dumplings."
The projection exploded in sparkles and soy sauce mist.
---
Mission: Infiltrate the Shadow Banquet
Master Zhou stroked his beard furiously. "The Shadow Banquet is real. Every hundred years, the most dangerous culinary rebels gather to trade recipes, challenge fate, and gossip like evil aunties."
He opened a scroll, revealing a map that looked suspiciously like a takeout menu.
Bai Xue frowned. "Why is the location written in extra spicy chicken codes?"
Zhou nodded. "Because it is extra spicy chicken code. The banquet moves constantly, hidden by illusion spices. But according to this"—he tapped the menu—"it's being hosted in the Mirage Glutlands, inside a moving restaurant-palace called the Crimson Cart of Calamity."
Lin Feng, Flame Duck, and Bai Xue stared blankly.
"You'll need disguises," Zhou said. "And fake identities."
A moment later, Lin Feng looked down at his new outfit: torn robes, grease-stained apron, and an eye patch. His fake name?
'Chef Vengeance, exiled after poisoning a tyrant emperor with emotional hotpot.'
Bai Xue wore dark lipstick, a blade-infused qipao, and a paper fan made of sharpened tempura. Her alias?
'Lady Venomspice, assassin of hearts and slow cookers.'
Flame Duck wore… nothing new. Just a fake mustache and a bandolier of sour plum grenades. He chose the name:
"Boom Shroom the Sauce Mercenary."
Lin Feng raised an eyebrow. "That's not even food-related."
"I like mushrooms," Flame Duck said.
---
The Crimson Cart of Calamity
The Cart was impossible to miss.
A floating fortress shaped like a golden dim sum trolley, complete with cannons disguised as teapots and thrusters made of enchanted chili oil. It rolled through the sky on a trail of glittering salt.
Dozens of rogue chefs, cursed cooks, and culinary cultists boarded the Cart under moonlight. Lin Feng and his companions approached the entrance where two guards—a wasabi golem and a rice cracker samurai—eyed them suspiciously.
"Invitation?" the samurai grunted.
Flame Duck tossed him a wrinkled scroll that read:
'Chef Vengeance and Co. – Delivering Vengeance Flambé'
The guards glanced at it, nodded, and stepped aside.
"Enjoy the Shadow Banquet," the golem said in a deep, spicy voice.
Inside, chaos reigned supreme.
The main banquet hall was a surreal fusion of elegance and madness. Dishes floated midair, performing slow ballet spins. Waiters walked upside down, pouring flaming broth from cloud kettles. A band of pickled ginger musicians played spicy jazz in the corner.
Lady Lotusfire, their target, sat at the head table. Her gown shimmered with lotus blossoms, and her eyes held the stillness of cold miso.
She sipped soup from a dragonbone spoon. "Ah. The exiled chef and his talking poultry. Welcome."
Lin Feng bowed. "We come bearing recipes and rebellion."
Lotusfire smiled. "Good. But every guest must pass the Trial of Taste before joining the banquet proper. Serve a dish that awakens… fear."
Bai Xue smirked. "We can do fear."
---
Trial of Taste: Fear on a Plate
The trio retreated to a side kitchen, which was filled with cursed utensils and a ghost that occasionally offered sarcastic cooking advice.
Lin Feng cracked his knuckles. "We're going to make... Nightmarish Nostalgia Noodles."
"Sounds traumatic," Flame Duck approved.
They crafted a dish infused with haunting memory broth—each noodle curled to evoke one's darkest food trauma. Bai Xue added a drop of forgotten umami, a spice that reminded eaters of that one time they embarrassed themselves with overcooked rice in front of their crush.
When they presented it, Lady Lotusfire took one bite—and visibly shivered.
She clapped slowly. "You've passed."
Then she leaned forward. "Now... why are you really here?"
Lin Feng's grip tightened on his chopstick-blade.
But before he could answer, the lights dimmed. A bell rang.
A new guest arrived.
---
The True Host Appears
The crowd fell silent as a man in robes of seared velvet floated down. His face was veiled, his breath steaming with bone broth. Every step he took turned the floor into sizzling hotplates.
"Welcome… to the final course," he said.
Lady Lotusfire rose. "Everyone, I present—Chef Hollow Flame, Grandmaster of the Eclipse Order."
Gasps erupted. Even the desserts trembled.
Lin Feng's jaw tightened. This was the true threat.
Chef Hollow Flame raised a hand. "We have gathered to complete the Ninefold Recipe of Reshaping. The Ninth Seal has been awakened… and we will soon cook a dish so powerful, it will erase hunger. And history."
Lin Feng stepped forward. "Or maybe just erase you."
The hall gasped again.
Flame Duck dramatically pulled out a spirit wok. "Time to turn up the heat."
Chef Hollow Flame's eyes narrowed.