146: Living Demon

"Dinner is served, everyone! The feast is ready, don't hold back!" Director Mansam grinned broadly, his voice booming like a bell.

His full-course menu wasn't particularly complicated to prepare, and it didn't use those unreachable, dreamlike delicacies, but it was unique in its own way.

On a massive long table, delicacies were laid out, and the aroma filled the air. Among them, the most eye-catching was the Pterosaur-type beast that took up almost half the table, served on an oversized platter, its Aura astonishing.

"Eat until your hearts are content! Don't stand on ceremony with me!"

"Th-this is... a Bacchus Dragon?" Komatsu widened his eyes, his voice filled with amazement. "An Advanced alcoholic ingredient! This is my first time seeing one in person!"

"That's right," Toriko said while devouring the food. "The lord of Bacchus Island, the Bacchus Dragon. Its meat is rich in natural alcohol and is famous for a flavor that resembles top-tier brandy—this is the main dish of Director Mansam's full-course menu."

"Hahaha! Kid, you can drink, right?" Mansam laughed heartily, raising the glass in his hand.

"This is my full-course menu."

Komatsu held his breath, full of curiosity about the menu of this IGO number three figure—surely it was filled with Advanced ingredients that ordinary people couldn't even imagine.

However, as Mansam read them out one by one, Komatsu's expression gradually shifted from anticipation to astonishment:

Appetizer: Alcohol-Thief Snail (Mollusk type, capture rank 28)

Soup: Alcohol-Shell Soup (Shellfish type, capture rank 25)

Fish Dish: Bacchus Shark (Fish type, capture rank 31)

Meat Dish: Alcohol-Mania Cow (Mammalian Beast type, capture rank 30)

Main Dish: Bacchus Dragon (Pterosaur Beast type, capture rank 37)

Salad: Bacchus Onion (Natural Vegetable type, capture rank 15)

Dessert: Alcohol-Hero Melon (Fruit type, capture rank 19)

Drink: Bacchus Whale Tide (Mammalian Beast type, capture rank 33)

"W-wait a second..." Komatsu couldn't help but hold his forehead, feeling a bit dizzy. "Why does every single dish... contain alcohol? Director, just how much do you love drinking?!"

He had listened with great curiosity, expecting to hear about all sorts of legendary ingredients, but from beginning to end, not a single dish on the menu was alcohol-free. This wasn't so much a gourmet's full-course menu as it was a flowing "Feast of Alcohol."

During the meal, everyone enjoyed various delicious dishes filled with the rich aroma of alcohol. Lin Luo tasted a piece of Bacchus Dragon meat, turned to Toriko, and asked about the curiosity he had held for a long time:

"Toriko, I've seen you strike a few times... How do you manage that sudden Intimidation? It doesn't look like a force-exertion technique like 'Nail Punch,' and it doesn't seem like something that can be replicated just by imitating."

Before Toriko could answer, Director Mansam, who was sitting nearby, put down his wine glass and smilingly took over the conversation:

"Toriko's 'Intimidation' is not just some ordinary battle cry. It's about stimulating the gourmet cells within the body to awaken the 'Gourmet Devil' residing inside. The pressure you felt is simply the Aura naturally carried by the devil when it manifests."

"Gourmet Devil... a devil residing in the cells?" Lin Luo said thoughtfully, then asked, "Then how does one obtain this power?"

Toriko scratched his head, feeling a bit embarrassed. "I can't really explain it in detail. It's just that after constant battles and tasting countless delicacies... one day, it just woke up on its own. It was like an instinct; I just knew how to do it naturally."

Lin Luo turned his gaze toward the knowledgeable Director Mansam: "Director?"

Mansam nodded, his expression becoming a bit more serious:

"gourmet cells—these are a special type of cell discovered by the Gourmet God Acacia inside a deep-sea 'Gourmet Jellyfish,' hence the name.

"These cells coexist with the host, constantly evolving by consuming delicious food—especially high-Rank, high-energy ingredients—thereby granting the host strength, speed, and regenerative abilities that surpass ordinary people, and even driving the transformation of their life form.

"As for the 'Gourmet Devil,' it is formed by the condensation of highly evolved gourmet cells, residing within the host. They usually possess an independent consciousness and can be regarded as a symbiotic life form.

"When the host consumes enough high-Rank ingredients and accumulates enough 'Food Luck' and energy, the Gourmet Devil will gradually undergo Awakening, granting the host all sorts of extraordinary abilities. For example, the devil inside Toriko granted him his unparalleled super sense of smell."

He paused, his tone carrying a hint of distance:

"As for the Origin of these 'devils'... opinions vary. Some believe they are the Incarnation of the endless appetite of powerful beings who once dominated the Universe; others believe they are simply the manifestation of your own 'appetite,' a projection of that side of your Soul that yearns to consume and evolve.

"If one day, you have tasted enough delicacies, perhaps you can attract a devil to reside within you; or perhaps, a devil consciousness unique to you will be born within your body. By then... you can try to communicate with it and dig out that power sleeping deep within your appetite."

Director Mansam heard this and showed an intrigued expression: "Lin Luo, kid, so you're saying... your gourmet cells weren't implanted through official IGO channels?"

Lin Luo shook his head frankly: "At that time, I hadn't even secured my identity, so how could I afford a tube of that sky-high-priced serum? In fact, even now, I'm not entirely sure if this thing that evolved inside my body... counts as 'gourmet cells' at all."

He paused slightly, his tone carrying a touch of scrutiny and confusion:

"It has indeed granted me strength, speed, and recovery abilities that surpass ordinary people, allowing me to make it this far. But compared to Toriko—whether it's the intensity of the Intimidation, the limits of the burst, or that feeling of pressure that seems to stem from the very Origin of life... my abilities are far inferior."

Lin Luo looked at his own palm, as if examining the source of the power flowing within it:

"It's more like some... product of passive adaptation. It's something that 'grew' out of desperation to protect this body, and it grows slowly as I consume high-energy ingredients, but it seems to lack that... will and vitality that belongs to a 'devil'."

Mansam listened, grinned, and suggested: "How about it? Do you want our research institute to help you check it? Current IGO technology can already quite accurately detect the activity and content of gourmet cells in the human body."

Lin Luo quickly waved his hand: "That won't be necessary. It's more practical for me to just go capture more high-energy ingredients I haven't eaten yet." He didn't want to lie on an experimental table surrounded by a group of researchers analyzing data.

"Hahaha!" Mansam laughed and went with the flow: "That's perfect! From now on, all those particularly troublesome ingredient capture missions that no one wants to take, I'll just leave to you."

Lin Luo immediately pouted: "Don't, I have other things to do. By comparison, I would prefer IGO to reduce my workload—it would be best if you didn't assign me any for half a year."

"Hey, kid!" Mansam gulped down the wine in his hand, tore off a piece of Alcohol-Mania Cow leg meat, and feigned displeasure: "Do you think you joined a charity organization? IGO is not a place for you to just take a salary and live freely!"

He chewed the meat, but his eyes flashed with a mischievous glint; he was clearly not truly angry, but rather like an elder giving a half-serious, half-joking reprimand to a lazy junior.

"Director Mansam's full-course menu is the—worst—!"

A crisp, loud voice suddenly came from the doorway, getting closer. A woman with neat short hair and a spirited figure rushed in—it was the staff member who had been talking to Mansam in the Beast Fighting Arena control room earlier.

"Hmph, I don't care what you say, Rin." Mansam waved his hand indifferently, not even bothering to turn his head. That nonchalant attitude almost made Rin so angry she wanted to pull out her Battle Perfume and hit him with it.

Rin was one of the core members of this research institute and also had another eye-catching identity—the younger sister of one of the Four Heavenly Kings, Sunny.

And in her heart, she had always secretly admired another Heavenly King: Toriko.

As soon as she walked in, her gaze subconsciously searched, and when she saw Toriko devouring food, her heart skipped a beat, and her cheeks uncontrollably flushed red.

"Rin," Director Mansam swallowed a mouthful of meat, his tone shifting to one of accountability. "Just as well I'm asking you—what was up with the Demon Great Serpent earlier? How did it suddenly rush out from Gate No. 6? That wasn't on the schedule."

"Ah... that..." Rin was suddenly at a loss, her ears turning even redder, and her voice grew smaller. "Earlier... when I saw Toriko appear in the Beast Fighting Arena, I accidentally... just, just panicked, and made a mistake in the operation..."

The more she spoke, the lower her voice became, and her head hung slightly, clearly both embarrassed and ashamed.

"Right, Director!" Toriko suddenly slammed the table and stood up, his gaze sharp. "The Gourmet Association went to such great lengths to infiltrate this time; their goal probably isn't just as simple as the gt robot, right? They must have another motive!"

Mansam patted his shiny forehead and realized: "I almost forgot the main thing. You're right; receiving the gt robot was just one part, the other key target is the 'Legal Mammoth'!"

"Legal Mammoth?" Lin Luo, Komatsu, and Tina looked at each other, confused by this sudden term.

Toriko, however, instantly widened his eyes, and drool even unconsciously flowed out when he spoke: "C-could it be... that the Jewel Meat has ripened?!"

Mansam nodded, his expression solemn: "The core mission assigned to you this time is precisely to hope that you can successfully capture that Legal Mammoth before the Gourmet Association does."

Toriko slammed his fist on the table, alarm bells ringing in his heart—since the Gourmet Association's gt robot could infiltrate the research institute, they were clearly prepared. And they had first been delayed by the Beast Fighting Arena accident, and then were here having a meal and drinking... precious time was slipping away.

He was absolutely unwilling to have traveled so far, only to return empty-handed.

"Don't worry," Rin, who was nearby, licked her ice cream and chimed in with a smile, "My brother contacted me just now—on his way here, he happened to have already captured a Legal Mammoth."

"Sunny is coming too?!" Toriko was greatly surprised; he hadn't heard at all that this colleague would be coming.

"Oh my?" Director Mansam raised an eyebrow, showing a look of surprise. "Sunny is actually reliable for once this time."