A wealthy merchant in a white robe, a brightly dressed young woman, thugs with red headbands, and some ordinary travelers hiding away…
All were gathered, looking at the powerful man who had appeared before them.
Zhang Wei wasted no time. He filled the mended iron trough with water, then summoned a large amount of Level 1 ingredients and dried firewood from Level 1 magical pea vines.
The hungry crowd’s eyes immediately turned green as they stared fixedly at the food.
Zhang Wei declared, "From now on, I am the boss on this ship. Everyone must get my consent to obtain food. From now on, you all have only one identity: my hired laborers."
"First, I dislike seeing a messy environment. From today on, everyone will clean. Also, I dislike arguments. No one is allowed to make loud noises."
"The last point: I do not wish for any of my laborers to be lost. Murder will be met with death."
...
With a simple and direct approach, the chaotic situation was completely suppressed.
Returning to the ship’s cabin, Sheng Tairou laughed, "Why did you bring out a whole set of labor management theories? I didn’t realize you liked being a local emperor."
"Just to scare them. If I didn't put on a show, they wouldn't follow my rules. They all think I’m a pushover; who would strictly adhere to my rules then?"
Cang Ma, standing beside them, exclaimed, "Makes sense!"
Truly, human nature!
Another piece of news material!
Twenty days later.
Zhang Wei and the other two descended the ladder house. They were reported by most people, who described Zhang Wei as a heinous demon.
However, Zhang Wei paid no mind.
He had already led Cang Ma and Sheng Tairou deep into the desert.
"Travelers, would you like to rent some water-carrying camels? They are essential transportation for traversing the desert."
"These are giant camels capable of storing 2,000 liters of water in their humps. They are a powerful species from which you can draw water anytime using the faucet on their sides. If you're willing to pay extra, we also have advanced wine camels and soda camels available."
Zhang Wei had previously collected similar species in the Gravity Well. They were about Level 30 higher and possessed terrifying water storage capabilities.
Zhang Wei asked, "Have you heard of the Gourmet Pyramid?"
The camel vendor was greatly alarmed and quickly stopped him, "You can't go there!"
"Oh, you know of it?"
The vendor nodded, "It's known as one of the Seven Great Death Zones of the world, located in the very center of the Scorching Sand Sea. It's an ancient place whose age even archaeologists cannot measure!"
The center of the Scorching Sand Sea is filled with red sand, believed to be stained by the blood of gourmets.
Every year, countless adventurers venture there, but none have ever returned. It has become the graveyard of explorers.
The temperature there is consistently above sixty degrees Celsius, hot enough to boil an egg, while a mere forty-five degrees Celsius is enough to kill a person.
The intense heat generates strong updrafts, forming highly deceptive mirages and sandstorms far more terrifying than those in the Sea of Sand!
As for the ferocious beasts that inhabit that place…
No one has ever been able to bring back any information about them!
Cang Ma remarked, "So your target is the Gourmet Pyramid. It is indeed a place of considerable age and mystery."
Zhang Wei smiled noncommittally. The true target was not there.
Zhang Wei requested a map. Due to the lack of landmarks and the shifting dunes, the map was quite crude.
He marked the entire route with lines and paid a few dozen Beli as thanks.
He then inquired, "How much does it cost to rent your camels?"
"Water-carrying camels are 120 Beli per month, with a deposit of 4500."
"Soda camels are 350 Beli per month, with a deposit of 9000."
"Wine camels are 450 Beli per month, with a deposit of 12000."
"Iced plum juice camels are 1150 Beli per month, with a deposit of 35000 Beli. These camels are the most advanced species in the entire desert, possessing an internal chilling function, making them an unimaginable treasure for desert travel."
Iced plum juice quenches thirst, consolidates lung qi, and calms the nerves, making it a rare health drink for hot summers.
To have a cup of it in the scorching desert would be an ultimate indulgence.
These camels were all tall, but the most expensive iced plum juice camels were the shortest, with a water storage capacity of only around 400 liters. Nevertheless, this did not diminish people's fondness for them.
"So, esteemed customer, which type would you like to choose?"
"Every type."
The vendor's eyes lit up, "A wise choice! Having several spares in the scorching desert significantly increases your chances of survival when facing danger."
"How many do you have?"
"Uh... what do you mean?"
"A hundred of each type, to start."
The vendor nearly choked, exclaiming, "Sir, are you planning to march with an army!"
"Do you have the stock or not?"
The vendor gritted his teeth. Such a large order could not be missed!
"Please wait a moment, I'll have them ready for you in half an hour."
"Alright, no need to limit it to a hundred. Bring as many as you have, just make it as many as possible."
Finally.
The vendor managed to gather over three hundred water-carrying camels, over two hundred soda camels and wine camels, and a meager eighty iced plum juice camels.
Even so, the total cost for these camels was only a little over three million.
Zhang Wei casually took out a few ingredients to settle the bill.
The vendor shook his head, "This is a desert region, and the shelf life of food is reduced by over sixty percent. We prefer gold coins here."
Zhang Wei thought for a moment and produced a large amount of blissful rice.
"Do you recognize this?"
The vendor shook his head.
Cang Ma, however, raised an eyebrow, "Is that blissful rice, worth its weight in gold? The market price is around eighty million Beli per ton, and I haven't seen it in your Gourmet Bank."
Zhang Wei explained, "That's because it hasn't been listed. My Gourmet Bank only holds one-third of my ingredient reserves."
Cang Ma clicked his tongue. Zhang Wei was already wealthy enough, but he didn't expect him to have so much hidden away.
Blissful rice, being a grain, had a long shelf life. The vendor happily accepted fifty kilograms of blissful rice, which could be resold in the Desert Kingdom for a profit of 4 million Beli.
Zhang Wei stored all the camels in his Treasure Hall for later use.
Only three water-carrying camels were kept for travel.
As the three ventured deeper, the desert temperature rose, and Cang Ma began to sweat slightly.
"Fortunately, we didn't bring the Bushtucker, or it would be roasted into dried jellyfish."
"The Warm Harbor Toad also dislikes this place; there's not even a hint of moisture in the air."
Cang Ma continued, "Where exactly are you leading us?"
"Don't rush, we've already reached our first stop."
Looking around, the gravel here had different hues. Golden gravel was mixed with some gray and white, appearing to be remnants of basalt.
"This is..."
Cang Ma dismounted and scooped up a handful of gravel.
Upon closer inspection, he discovered that the gray and white mixed within the gravel were tiny grains of gray and white rice!
[Discovered Collectible Ingredient: Rock Rice]
[Edible Level: 1]
[Capture Level: 15]
[Description: Formed from ancient starch collapsing into rock and then breaking into small grains, hence the name Rock Rice. Together with the yellow sand, it forms the unique landscape of the Sand Kingdom - the Sea of Rice Sand.]
[Description: Rock rice is rich in compressed starch, which can be quickly converted into glucose to restore stamina. It is an excellent satiating ingredient, providing far more energy than a Level 1 ingredient and is very filling!]
Cang Ma was speechless, "Your goal... isn't it... this thing?"
"Of course, you guessed correctly."
"I wish you had guessed wrong!"
Cang Ma clutched his head, "Are you an idiot? This is just a common Level 1 ingredient. What use is it to you! Aren't you wasting your time? Are you going to pick these grains one by one? Or is it just a common Level 1 ingredient?"
Zhang Wei replied, "Although it's only Level 1, it is indeed a gourmet food!"
This world has standards for classifying gourmet food. Generally, anything with a level is considered gourmet, while anything without a level is ordinary food.
Another classification is based on Gourmet Cells. Animals and plants that have not been infected by Gourmet Cells generally do not taste good enough to be classified as Level 1 gourmet food.
There are many ingredients not infected by Gourmet Cells, but few are lucky enough to have a level without being infected. You'd be hard-pressed to find one in a hundred ingredients.
Furthermore, Gourmet Cells are more infectious to more delicious foods. Not being infected inherently indicates a problem.
Zhang Wei touched the rice and said, "The ingredients we consume are too refined and difficult to be enjoyed by the common people. If we want ordinary people to also enjoy gourmet food, we must lower the price of ingredients and ensure sufficient quantities!"
"That's a noble sentiment, but what does it have to do with you picking rice? Do you have this much time to bestow charity? Wouldn't it be better to catch more high-level ingredients and exchange them?"
Of course, it's different!
For Zhang Wei, nothing is more important than the development of his Treasure Hall!
"Mind Projection, Winnowing Basket!"
An item dating back ten years, a tool for separating grain from chaff.
By utilizing the difference in density and inertia between grains and stones, it is continuously shaken up and down to remove impurities, and dust is also removed during the scattering process.
Zhang Wei's mind-projected winnowing basket was a hundred square meters in size, equivalent to a three-bedroom apartment.
One scoop could hold at least two hundred cubic meters of sand.
Then!
Shaking!
Zhang Wei's hand slid through the air, and the sand in the mind-projected winnowing basket was thrown high up. The heavier rock powder would fly higher, while the less dense rock rice would remain more at the bottom.
Controlling the height at which the sand flew, Zhang Wei adjusted the shaking angle, directing the force slightly forward.
This way, the flying sand would fall outside the winnowing basket, leaving behind the clean rock rice.
This move completely astonished Sheng Tairou and Cang Ma!
Mind projection itself is a relatively advanced skill, but most people only create simple forms that disappear quickly. They had never seen someone like Zhang Wei maintain it for such a long time.
And...
They had never seen such a strange projection before!
Cang Ma asked in confusion, but Zhang Wei was even more astonished.
"You don't even know what a winnowing basket is? Aren't you the editor-in-chief of Gourmet Journal?"
"This... this is indeed the first time I've seen it. I've never encountered such a kitchen utensil."
Zhang Wei thought for a moment, "Well... strictly speaking, this isn't a kitchen utensil. It's a tool for processing grains, mostly used to screen old and new grains."
"I see..."
Zhang Wei continued, "It's a very basic, simple tool, likely common in poor households. Cang Ma, your focus seems to have strayed from the basics and the common people."
Zhang Wei's meaningful tone left Cang Ma speechless, lost in thought.
After over two hundred shakes, Zhang Wei had removed most of the gravel.
[Collection Complete: Rock Rice]
[Edible Level: 1]
[Replication Time: 20 days]
[Replication Quantity: 50 tons]
Zhang Wei looked at the rice in the winnowing basket, "The replication quantity is only 50 tons. Two hundred cubic meters of sand only yielded this much..."
The price of this rock rice wouldn't be very high, around 1.5 Beli per kilogram.
However, this was a price that most common people could afford, and the quantity was enough to achieve an astonishing replication rate.
Continue!
Zhang Wei's stamina was astonishing. Using his Inner Fire, the winnowing basket grew by another third, holding even more, reaching three meters high.
If calculated by volume, it was about 1000 cubic meters.
This was only after filling it to one-third capacity, as a winnowing basket cannot be completely filled.
Dual casting, using two at once!
This time, the output surged, directly producing a staggering 500 tons!
Zhang Wei waved his hand, storing the ordinary yellow sand that had been shaken off into the Treasure Hall, to avoid overlapping with the unscreened area and causing unnecessary trouble.
"Continue!"
Five hundred tons!
Five hundred tons!
Another five hundred tons!
But Zhang Wei's face showed no joy. This efficiency still couldn't satisfy him.
Zhang Wei had extraordinary expectations for the Sea of Rice Sand.
"Perhaps... I should try a different method."
"Besides a winnowing basket, what else can quickly separate them..."
Weight...
Density...
Properties...
One by one, keywords echoed in Zhang Wei's mind.
Generally speaking, the sand in deserts is formed from tiny rock fragments. The fineness of the sand is due to the long-term external forces of nature.
Rock fragments weather, forming deserts under the force of the wind, or are transported by the wind...
Soil erosion, desertification...
"Fundamentally, this sand is rock, mainly composed of silicon dioxide, possibly mixed with some mineral metals..."
"The density of silicon dioxide is 2.6, while the density of rock rice is between 1.3..."
"If there were a liquid with a density between 1.3 and 2.6, as soon as it's poured in, the denser silicon dioxide would sink, and the lighter rock rice would float."
...
...
"Could it be honey?"
But would viscous honey really be suitable for flotation?
Or perhaps Yuan Water?
Zhang Wei had collected a lot of honey.
Seeing Zhang Wei suddenly stop and construct a giant container, Sheng Tairou and Cang Ma were confused again.
"Zhang Wei, what kind of trick are you up to now?"
Zhang Wei smiled, "You'll see!"
Saying that, Zhang Wei waved his hand and summoned a thick, yellowish liquid that gushed out, instantly filling the giant container!
"This is..."