Chapter 6

Benedict's eyes shifted as he turned to look at the elderly man.

He could sense a frightening and intensely wicked aura emanating from this man.

Though this elderly man was fair and plump, with a kindly expression like Santa Claus, he was in fact a power-hungry warlord with blood on his hands. He exuded a menacing, murderous aura.

Benedict was slightly taken aback, but it didn't bother him much. He had seen his fair share of monstrous demons far more intimidating than this man. He had also beaten up quite a few of them, too.

"I could tell from this dish." Benedict pointed at the dish before him, The Ocean's Embrace—the wild seabass.

"From this dish?"

The elderly man was holding prayer beads, which he then put behind his back. He leaned forward and drew close to the dish, but couldn't tell that anything was off.

He said doubtfully, "Is there something wrong with this dish? I can't see anything."

"We're talking about the spiritual world. Not just anyone has the eyes to see." Benedict poked the seabass with a fork. "There is something wrong with the vital energy of this dish. Since it originated from the kitchen, I figured something must be wrong with the kitchen and guessed that something odd took place there."

The elderly man looked at Benedict with a mixture of shock and awe.

He was Gavin Lyons, the boss of Riverside Piazza. He was also known as the Monarch of Southshore. As the chief of the underworld, Gavin had always been a strong believer of geomancy. When he opened Riverside Piazza, he hired a geomancy master to design the entire layout of the restaurant.

Vital energy was something geomancy masters often focused on. All living things had vital energy, but a complete mastery of it required a deeper understanding into the metaphysical world.

In modern science, it could be said to be a mysterious source of energy.

The fact that this young man was able to deduce that something odd had happened in the kitchen, just from the vital energy he sensed from this dish, was enough to prove that he was quite extraordinary.

"What kind of vital energy would a dish have? Heat energy? Just focus on the meal and quit talking nonsense!" the bespectacled middle-aged man standing behind Gavin reprimanded Benedict with a frown.

He was Kenny Hall, the boss-in-name of Riverside Piazza. A foreigner, he spoke with a thick accent.

Oddities had been striking the kitchen over the past few days. Many of the kitchen crew had fallen sick one after another, causing Kenny a lot of headaches. Worried that Gavin might blame him for poor management, he hid the truth.

Benedict's bold claims naturally displeased him, so he wanted to stop Benedict from saying more.

Benedict's gaze swept across Kenny's face. He was about to speak, but Gavin beat him to it.

Gavin turned around, clearly upset, and questioned Kenny, "Kenny, is it your place to interrupt us when we're speaking? Do you really think I'm still clueless about the kitchen crew falling sick one after another?"

Kenny saw the icy look in Gavin's eyes and shuddered, cold sweat beading on his brow. He lowered his head and said guiltily, "Monarch, I spoke too much. I would never dare hide anything from you regarding the kitchen. I was just about to report the situation to you."

"Shut up for now," Gavin said coldly.

Kenny nodded, not daring to utter another word.

Meanwhile, Victoria was staring silently at Gavin, wide-eyed with shock. She soon realized that this elderly man before her was the legendary Monarch of Southshore!

Thinking of all those rumors she had heard about him, she felt apprehensive. She glanced at Benedict and hesitated for a moment before gently kicking him under the table.

Benedict arched a brow at her. "What's the matter?"

"No, nothing," Victoria said with a forced smile, shaking her head.

She lifted a hand and covered half of her face, then shot Benedict a meaningful look, hinting that he be careful and not offend the Monarch.

Benedict chuckled.

For him to make a rich heiress like Victoria so alarmed and on her guard, this man was clearly someone out of the ordinary.

To Benedict, however, he was no different from any other man on the street.

Gavin turned to look at Benedict once more and flashed him a kind smile. "Young man, it seems like you know a thing or two about geomancy. Can you help me see where the problem lies in my kitchen?"

Benedict looked around and said emotionlessly, "The layout of Riverside Piazza is excellent. It's clearly the work of a geomancy master. However, it's not perfect. The kitchen, a place of killing and bloodshed, is bound to come into trouble."

"You mean, the strange things happening in our kitchen are due to the layout and geomancy-related factors?"

Gavin was flabbergasted.

He had hired a geomancy master from overseas, an expert well-known in the field, to design Riverside Piazza's layout. Over the past few days, members of his kitchen crew had been falling sick one after another, and their symptoms were exceedingly odd. Realizing that things may not be so straightforward, he called the geomancy master over again to help.

Gavin was here at the restaurant today because the geomancy master had arrived at Arlen City and would soon be brought here by one of his men.

It was laughable that Kenny still thought he was in the dark about the entire situation, and was still trying to hide the truth from him.

Gavin wanted the geomancy master's help, but didn't expect to bump into a young man with insight on geomancy. He pondered for a moment before asking with a smile, "Do you have a way to solve our problem, young man?"

"I sure do, but I'm here today for a meal. I'm not interested in helping you deal with your problems." Benedict glanced at Gavin before going on, "What's more… If I'm not wrong, you've already hired someone else to solve this problem for you. I really shouldn't interfere."

Gavin's smile froze on his face. His eyes widened in shock.

He could accept that Benedict was talented enough to sense the vital energy of the dish and, from there, identify a problem in their layout.

But how did Benedict guess that he had hired the geomancy master from overseas?

His foresight was certainly unbelievable.

"How did you know I got someone to help me with this?"

"I won't explain myself further. You wouldn't understand it, anyway," Benedict said flatly.

He spoke insolently and almost rudely, causing Kenny and the two men standing behind Gavin to scowl ferociously at him.

One of the two, burly and muscular, raised his voice at Benedict. "Young man, watch your words! Just because the Monarch is being friendly to you, doesn't mean that you can step all over him."

Benedict surveyed the burly man from head to toe and said calmly, "Strong vital energy and blood circulation, protruding temples, and thick calluses on your knuckles. You're obviously a martial arts expert, and a second-tier master at that."

The man scoffed. "Since you know how strong I am, you should be cautious and watch your words!"

Benedict said coldly, "You're a nobody with the meager ability of a second-tier martial arts master and haven't even cultivated your internal force. Yet here you are, barking like a mad dog when your owner is talking?"

Gavin was courteous to Benedict, so he was willing to chat more with him.

This burly man, however, was hostile and haughty. Benedict wouldn't bother treating him with respect, either.

"How dare you call me a dog? You're asking to die!"

The burly man's strong vital energy and blood circulation also meant that he had a hot temper. He certainly wouldn't take it lying down when called a dog.

He stomped forward and aimed a swift, hard fist at Benedict's face.

"Charlie! You're being ridiculous!" Gavin berated his bodyguard, who immediately resorted to violence just because of a verbal disagreement.

However, Charlie had already sent the punch flying in the air and couldn't retract it.

Victoria yelped in fright and tried to stop the fight.

She was alarmed. The bodyguard's fist came fast and furious, boasting the strength of a well-trained martial artist. Wouldn't Mr. Drake get a concussion if that punch landed on his face?

Benedict, however, stood there unmoving. In an instant, he flicked his fork upward and effortlessly pierced Charlie's arm.

With just one fork, Benedict managed to stop Charlie's incoming attack with ease.