The precious Blasting Pufferfish sells for 6,000 per kilogram, with an edible grade of 45.
Perfectly prepared Pufferwhale meat fetches over 30,000 Berries, a similarly exorbitant price.
BB Corn, priced at 800,000 Berries per kilogram, doesn't even rank high among plant-based ingredients.
Ozone Grass is sold per stalk; its flesh, weighing tens of kilograms, costs two to three hundred million Berries.
Jewel Meat has become cheaper recently, at 18 million Berries per kilogram, still beyond the reach of ordinary people.
Impact Turtles and Leo Dragons, weighing hundreds or thousands of tons, sell for 2.2 billion and 60 billion Berries respectively. Remember, the Leo Dragon is a terrifying Level 95 creature, a top predator that hunts with impunity in the ocean.
Then there's the Crimson Sugar at four billion Berries per kilogram… the Silver Apple at six billion… the Rich Cola at five billion…
The exquisite ingredients in Zhang Wei's hands are countless!
Gang Tu asked, "Then, if exchanged for money, how much can it be worth?"
"Edible grade 105 for Pure Gold Whale. Depending on the cut of the meat, it can sell for anywhere between 200,000 and 60 million Berries per kilogram. On average, I'm willing to purchase it at 850,000 Berries per kilogram!"
850,000 Berries!
How much is that…
Gang Tu was already numb, unable to even conceive what kind of caliber of ingredient cost 850,000 Berries per kilogram.
Floze, standing nearby, quietly reminded him, "Seafood Fruit only costs 30,000 Berries per kilogram…"
Hiss~
Is it really that terrifying!
Zhang Wei continued to drop bombshells, "However, considering you're selling the whole thing, I'm willing to round it up to one million Berries per kilogram."
One million Berries per kilogram!
That's ten billion for a ton!
And how many tons can a whale weigh?
Gang Tu gasped for air, an unimaginable fortune for his lifetime!
"So, do you want to weigh it now?"
"This…"
Seeing Gang Tu's hesitant indecision, Floze added fuel to the fire, "This whale wasn't professionally raised, it loses weight every day… and one pound is…"
Hiss!!!
This won't do!
"Weigh it!"
"Weigh it right now!"
Xifeng made a pinch!
The entire Pure Gold Whale floated up, as if an invisible hand was restraining it!
"650 tons!"
"You will be paid 650 billion Berries, or 65 million Gourmet Coins!"
In less than a year, Xifeng's strength had rapidly climbed from Level 42 to over Level 75, ranking among the best in the Human World.
This was all thanks to the endless delicacies of the Great Glacier!
With Xifeng's current social standing, every meal was equivalent to Great Returning Pills or Minor Returning Pills in martial arts novels, and his strength grew by leaps and bounds!
Xifeng's current levitation ability could lift at least 150,000 tons, making it very easy to grasp a small whale.
Just moments ago, he was worried about a few hundred Gourmet Coins for a meal, facing the dire prospect of working for centuries to repay debts, and now he was about to receive 65 million Gourmet Coins!
Life's dramatic ups and downs are truly peculiar.
However, despite the Pure Gold Whale's rarity, its actual capture level was quite low.
"So, will all of this be settled in Gourmet Coins?"
Gang Tu pondered.
Although the sum was substantial, if there was a long-term income…
"What kind of businesses can I invest in?"
Xifeng pushed forward a list, including restaurants already built within Gourmet City.
Businesses related to transportation and accommodation for tourism.
The cooking utensil and firewood trade for the Gourmet Academy.
Equipment procurement and research for the Assassin's Guild and Gourmet Hunters…
Among these, Gang Tu was most familiar with Gourmet Hunter equipment. His own strength wasn't high, and it was his skilled use and effective selection of equipment that truly allowed him to hunt the Pure Gold Whale!
"I want to use half of this money to invest in building a Gourmet Hunter equipment shop."
Xifeng mused, "That would be a venture of considerable scale… If you're amenable, I could also have you teach, imparting your skills in equipment usage, and you'd receive a share of the profits."
Teach?
Alright!
As a veteran Gourmet Hunter, his accumulated skills needed to be passed down.
Gang Tu, a classic "wild monk," had figured out all his capture techniques through practical combat, making them extremely effective!
Given Gang Tu's achievements, appointing him as a professor was more than justified!
Finally.
Gang Tu got to see Gourmet Coins with denominations over one hundred!
The 200-denomination Gourmet Coin was primarily made of saccharin, which is the essence of sugar harvested from the Gravity Well. Due to the gravity compression, it was many times more expensive than salt essence.
The 500-denomination coin's main ingredient was dried meat from the Ruby Crab, prepared using purified tree sap wine, sourced from the snake caves of Mount Melker and the Hengduan Mountains.
The 1,000-denomination coin was also a product of the refined cuisine technique, primarily made with ingredients such as Yin-Yang broth, Blasting Pufferfish, Jet Clam, Seven-Spice Wine, and Sushi Salt, all of which were extremely expensive. It also contained oil from the Pufferwhale's tongue, a small coin that embodied the essence of countless delicacies!
If this coin were used as a broth base, even a novice with no culinary skills could prepare a soup comparable to a seven-star chef's masterpiece!
And the 10,000-denomination Gourmet Coin was currently the largest denomination available.
Its main ingredient was very simple.
Crimson Sugar!
The most precious ingredient from the Gravity Well, it was simmered from the essence of a Level 135 Brown Sugar Golem. A Brown Sugar Golem weighing several tons could only yield five kilograms of Crimson Sugar, but Zhang Wei's perfect grade quality increased this amount to 40 kilograms.
Currently, one kilogram of perfect grade Crimson Sugar sold for a whopping forty billion Berries.
"Crimson Sugar!"
Gasps of surprise came from the surroundings.
Many merchants were seeing it for the first time. It was said to be the new flagship treasure of the Gourmet Bank, replacing Silver Apples, an ingredient of high energy that could absolutely not be cultivated in the Human World.
An experienced merchant stated, "The Brown Sugar Golem is a mineral-based variant lifeform. Its body contains easily absorbable folic acid and iron elements, providing extremely strong blood replenishment and hematopoietic capabilities!"
"How strong?"
"It's said that just a few grams can sustain peak combat readiness for a full month!"
"And because of its mild properties, it can clear blockages in the body, opening it up! Firstly, it can be used for women's gynecological blood stasis, or cold uterus conditions."
"Secondly, Crimson Sugar also has the ability to remove blemishes, enhance complexion, and regulate internal pigmentation. This ability isn't about skin whitening, but rather removing dullness, dark spots, acne, tear troughs, etc., from the skin's surface, making one look completely refreshed. Therefore, Crimson Sugar is extremely suitable for girls. In ancient times, it served as a royal tribute, exclusively for the use of the emperor's harem."
"If consumed by women, it can make them appear at least ten years younger!"
An ingredient that could drive women wild!
What woman could refuse a beautiful and charming appearance?
Furthermore, Crimson Sugar could also be used in medicine, as a syrup to treat respiratory illnesses, and complex digestive diseases like gastritis and stomach ulcers. Its functions were extremely diverse.
Zhang Wei had previously gifted some Crimson Sugar to the Human Skin Doll, their attributes being highly compatible.
Listening to the praise from the surrounding crowd, Gang Tu even felt an impulse to eat a piece.
Could Crimson Sugar truly possess such miraculous effects?
Speaking of which, if it weren't for the Pure Gold Whale's massive size, its per-kilogram price was far inferior to that of the Brown Sugar Golem!