404: Human flesh? (two chapters in one)

Choose a dish?

Lin Yang muttered to himself. From their conversation, he could roughly tell that the so-called 'dish' was likely not something ordinary.

But facing the Skinny Goat-Beard Old Man's invitation and the Black-Robed Ghostly Man's chilling gaze, Lin Yang still stood up and followed.

They passed through the front hall of the tavern and continued to the backyard.

What was called a backyard was actually a very large farm and pasture.

"Sir, feel free to pick whichever one you fancy. We'll slaughter it on the spot, absolutely fresh!" the Skinny Goat-Beard Old Man said, pointing to some livestock on the farm.

Lin Yang's gaze shifted slightly.

He had thought it would be some exotic ingredients, but he never expected that the Skinny Goat-Beard Old Man was referring to a few cows and sheep.

And on this vast farm, there was no other livestock besides these few cows and sheep.

"These are the ingredients you mentioned earlier, Sir?" Lin Yang confirmed.

"Indeed," the Skinny Goat-Beard Old Man nodded.

Hearing this, Lin Yang was puzzled. Cows and sheep are the most common ingredients for humans, so why would he say they weren't suitable for humans to eat?

"These are the most common meat ingredients for our human race. Why did you say earlier that they weren't suitable for us to eat?"

Then, Lin Yang asked directly.

"Hehehe, kid, the cows and sheep at Old Ghost's tavern aren't ordinary cows and sheep."

The Black-Robed Ghostly Man spoke first.

As Lin Yang was puzzled, he continued, "The cows and sheep raised by your human race are herbivores and don't eat meat, but the cows and sheep here are carnivores!"

"Carnivores?" Lin Yang was slightly startled, looking again at the cows and sheep basking in the sun.

Carnivorous cows and sheep?

"Haha, surprised, aren't you? Still a bit disbelieving?"

The Black-Robed Ghostly Man laughed as he looked at Lin Yang, then clapped his hands.

A waiter holding a tray suddenly ran quickly from the other end of the pasture, as if he had received an order, and placed the tray in front of one of the cows.

The cow, which had been leisurely sunbathing, began to devour the food on the tray as if it hadn't eaten in days.

And the food on the tray was none other than a piece of cooked meat!

And it was even cooked and prepared meat!

The aroma of meat filled the air!

Even from a distance, smelling the rich meat aroma, Lin Yang even suddenly felt a little hungry.

"That meat... something's not right..." A warning bell rang in Lin Yang's heart.

Just smelling it made him want to eat it too.

This was not normal.

He had never seen meat so fragrant, so enticing.

"Could it be..."

Suddenly, Lin Yang seemed to think of something, his expression slightly changed, and he secretly said to the System: "System, can you check what kind of meat that is?"

"Host, are you suspecting that the meat is human flesh, processed from the abducted workers here?" the System replied.

"Hmm, such a fragrant meat smell, far exceeding all the meats I've encountered. If it's human flesh, it could explain why they don't abduct people on a large scale," Lin Yang replied silently.

He now suspected that the abducted workers were being used by this tavern to feed and raise these strange cows and sheep.

With just a few cows and sheep, abducting one person every few days would indeed be enough to feed them.

Moreover, if it really was human flesh, it would also explain why the Skinny Goat-Beard Old Man said earlier that the ingredients here were not suitable for humans to eat.

Cows and sheep fed with human flesh are indeed not suitable for humans to eat.

However, using human flesh to feed cows and sheep, then slaughtering these cows and sheep to make appetizers, this is simply too perverted.

"Did this boss warn me out of kindness, or was he worried I'd discover something after eating it?" Lin Yang glanced at the Skinny Goat-Beard Old Man without a change in expression, a hint of doubt arising in his heart.

If it was out of kindness, yet he immediately brought him here, there were some inconsistencies that couldn't be explained.

In short, this tavern, so far, was peculiar in every way.

"If only I had enough national treasure value, I could directly have the System conduct real-time monitoring."

Then, Lin Yang sighed inwardly.

His meager national treasure value, which passively grew thanks to the title "Glory of Homeland," was almost depleted after two System function scans.

The System was unable to provide him with monitoring of the Mingye Clan guy after he entered the tavern.

Coupled with the fact that the tavern had a large number of anti-monitoring Systems installed, he had no choice but to come in person to find evidence.

Currently, the only function the System could provide him was the free tracking feature.

With this function, he could only tell that the Mingye Clan guy was still somewhere inside the tavern.

"Besides this pasture, this tavern should also have an underground space. The Mingye Clan guy is nearby, but at a glance, there's only this pasture nearby, so that guy should be in the underground space beneath our feet."

While the System was analyzing the meat's composition, Lin Yang pretended to be curious and walked a few steps towards the cows and sheep, also confirming that the Mingye Clan guy was likely underground.

The small red dot representing the Mingye Clan guy was almost overlapping with his current position.

But there were no other buildings around the pasture where they were currently located.

So the answer was quite obvious.

Beneath this vast pasture, there should be a secret underground space.

"Sir, you seem very interested in our cattle and sheep food?" the Skinny Goat-Beard Old Man suddenly asked, seeing Lin Yang constantly staring at the cooked meat.

Lin Yang was slightly startled, unsure how to respond.

In other circumstances, he would definitely say he was interested.

But saying he was interested in this situation, if the old man suggested he try a piece, that would be very awkward.

Eat human flesh?

He wasn't that perverted.

Just as Lin Yang was pondering how to respond, the System's detection results were promptly issued.

"Responding to Host, this piece of meat is not any human tissue; in other words, it is not human flesh, but a type of animal meat."

"Not human flesh?" Lin Yang was somewhat surprised.

It wasn't human flesh?

"Yes, Host, this should be a relatively rare animal meat. Its texture is very delicious, and with professional cooking, it makes you very appetizing just by smelling it."

"This..." Lin Yang was stunned, and secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

As long as it wasn't human flesh!

But while sighing in relief, his previous doubts resurfaced.

Since this wasn't human flesh, what exactly were they capturing people for?

"Sir, your mental state doesn't seem very good. Do you need me to call for medical attention?" the Skinny Goat-Beard Old Man said again, seeing Lin Yang suddenly lost in thought.

"Ah... no need. I just haven't seen cows and sheep eat meat before, so I was surprised and stared blankly," Lin Yang recovered, making up a random excuse.

"Hehe, carnivorous cows and sheep are indeed rare; ours are unique," the Skinny Goat-Beard Old Man's eyes flashed with a hint of brilliance, seemingly without suspicion, but with a subtle sense of pride.

"How is this cultivated?" Lin Yang was genuinely curious.

Transforming herbivores into carnivores is not theoretically impossible.

Changing the gene sequence might achieve it.

But the cost would be considerable, and if it were just to satisfy one's appetite, it would truly be too luxurious.

Moreover, in the Universe Alliance, arbitrarily altering species' gene sequences is prohibited.

Highly advanced technology can bring about some heaven-defying techniques, but some techniques, being too heaven-defying, can even cause uncontrollable and unknown risks, hence the Universe Alliance explicitly forbids them.

And for this old man to dare bring him to see, it should mean that these cows and sheep have not undergone genetic sequence modification.

Since it's not by modifying gene sequences to change biological habits, he was genuinely curious about what new technology could achieve such a degree.

To this, the Skinny Goat-Beard Old Man leisurely said, "This is our exclusive technique, please forgive me for not being able to disclose it."

"Understood." Lin Yang's eyes flashed, and he no longer asked.

Anyway, as long as it wasn't fed with human flesh, how it was cultivated wasn't that important.

"Sir, pick a cow or sheep that catches your eye. We'll slaughter it for you on the spot, and a professional chef will cook it, guaranteeing a taste that will absolutely surpass all the meat you've ever eaten!" the Skinny Goat-Beard Old Man spoke again.

At this moment, he seemed to have transformed into a gourmet, chattering on, "These are fresh ingredients you can see being prepared right before your eyes. Although they are also cows and sheep, I can guarantee that these are absolutely incomparable to the cows and sheep you eat in your human restaurants. This will definitely be an unforgettable experience for you!"

"We can provide any cooking method your human race enjoys, frying, stewing, grilling, and so on. We'll prepare a portion of each for you, absolutely ensuring your satisfaction!"

Seeing this, Lin Yang, though still feeling some doubts and strangeness, could no longer refuse, given the situation. He simply pointed casually: "Just this one."

He pointed to a cow.

"Sir, would you like a sheep too? The flavors of beef and lamb are not entirely the same," the Skinny Goat-Beard Old Man added. "Of course, Sir, you can rest assured, this is not a crooked business, and the prices are absolutely fair. You don't have to worry about the cost!"

"I'm not worried about not being able to afford it, but I don't like lamb. I can't stand the gamey smell of lamb," Lin Yang shook his head and stated directly.

He really couldn't eat lamb.

Even if it was prepared by the best chef, with virtually no gamey smell, he still couldn't eat it.

A physiological aversion.

"Alright, that's a pity. I thought all you humans loved roasted whole lamb."

The Skinny Goat-Beard Old Man shrugged.

He then had the attendant take the cow Lin Yang had chosen for cleaning.

"Sir, you can watch the entire slaughtering process to ensure the ingredients are not swapped," the Skinny Goat-Beard Old Man said again.

Hearing this, even knowing how strange this small tavern was, Lin Yang couldn't help but marvel at the excellent service.

However, the next moment, he suddenly heard the System's voice urgently say: "Host, System has detected some unusual things on these cows and sheep. Please try to get closer to them. System needs to conduct a more thorough inspection. At the same time, please refuse the slaughter for now, and temporarily refuse to consume the cattle and sheep ingredients, awaiting System's inspection results."

"Huh? What's going on? What did you detect?" Lin Yang was immediately startled.

"Responding to Host, the distance is a bit far, and you do not have enough national treasure value. System cannot perform a detailed examination and cannot accurately inform you at this time. Please make sure to get closer to the cattle and sheep," the System's voice was unusually serious.

"Okay!"

Hearing this, Lin Yang wasted no time and immediately changed his words to the Skinny Goat-Beard Old Man: "How about this, Boss, actually, I'm not very interested in beef. Instead, I'm very interested in the meat you just fed the cow. To be honest, I got a huge appetite just by smelling it. Compared to this beef, I'd rather try that piece of meat first."

"Oh?" The Skinny Goat-Beard Old Man raised an eyebrow: "How can that be? That's just what we use to feed the cows and sheep. As a guest, it wouldn't be quite appropriate for you to eat those things."

"It's fine. When I encounter something I haven't eaten before, I always have to try it, not to mention I can feel that that piece of meat must be extraordinary, not ordinary animal meat," Lin Yang continued.

"This... alright, but I still hope you can taste our special beef!" The Skinny Goat-Beard Old Man no longer refused, but looked at Lin Yang with an indescribably strange and solemn expression.

Lin Yang had a feeling that if he said he wanted to refuse to taste the beef, the old man would probably make a move on him the next second.

Of course, he wasn't afraid of a fight, but it would then be very difficult to uncover the truth.

Therefore, after thinking for two and a half seconds, Lin Yang nodded: "Since you strongly recommend it, then of course I must try it. However, I've never seen carnivorous cows and sheep before. Can I get a little closer to take a look? I'm truly very curious."

"Hehe, of course you can, Sir, feel free," the Skinny Goat-Beard Old Man immediately smiled again and made a gesture of invitation.

Lin Yang strode directly towards the cows and sheep.

Behind him, the Black-Robed Ghostly Man and the Skinny Goat-Beard Old Man exchanged glances, a hint of indescribable strangeness in their eyes.

At the same time, a voice Lin Yang couldn't hear spoke to the short, stout old man: "Why did you let him observe from close range? Aren't you afraid of being exposed?"

"Hehe, wasn't it your suggestion just now that he try our specialty dish?"

The Skinny Goat-Beard Old Man chuckled, and under the Black-Robed Ghostly Man's peculiar gaze, he said leisurely:

"Didn't you suggest he taste it earlier to test him? If that's the case, then just let him observe closely. If he can't detect anything even from close range, it means our plan is a perfect success!"

"Alright, what if he discovers something?" the Black-Robed Ghostly Man couldn't help but ask.

"Heh heh, on such a chaotic neutral planet, what's a death of a person?" the Skinny Goat-Beard Old Man said dismissively.

While the two conversed quietly, Lin Yang also reached the cows and sheep, and at the same time said to the System: "Is this distance enough?"

"Enough. If convenient, please try to touch the body of the cattle and sheep, so that System can detect more accurately."

"Oh... it seems what you've found is quite extraordinary, huh?" Lin Yang's eyes narrowed.

Previously, the System could detect and scan things from a distance, but this time it wanted him to personally touch them, which made him increasingly curious and serious.

What exactly had the System detected?

——

Today's update is a bit late, apologies!

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