"You saved me?"
The skin doll said shyly, "I'm very sorry, I can't help at all in battles of this level."
"No, you've done very well."
If it weren't for the skin doll.
Zhang Wei would have died twice in the battle.
The first wave, sacrificing himself, and the second wave, the silver apples.
He didn't know how she found this place, but these twenty-odd silver apples on this tree were definitely a fortune that would drive countless people mad. It was normal for any one of them to fetch a price of tens of billions of Beli, wasn't it?
This one tree would be more than enough to buy the entire Northern Territory and the Black List.
And...
Zhang Wei asked, "Why are you in this state?"
"I was grazed by the crocodile dragon's shattering sound wave earlier and almost didn't make it."
Zhang Wei pointed at the silver apple and said, "Didn't you eat some?"
"I'm fine, my vitality is much more tenacious than you imagine, and the chef's state was very bad at the time, on the verge of... I even felt your soul leaving your body."
Zhang Wei placed his hand on the skin doll.
His face sank.
The skin doll was in a terrible state, relying entirely on that strange skill to sustain herself.
"Give me the apple."
The skin doll handed it over directly.
Zhang Wei looked at the apple, "I won't share this apple with you."
"It's only right. Honestly, I didn't help much. In fact, having half of that bronze apple would have been enough to hire me for several months."
A silver metal ring floated between his palms.
It looked mysterious and magical.
The silver ring was covered in numbers, symbols, and scales, he didn't know what they represented.
Zhang Wei swallowed the remaining apple in one gulp, and the silver rings, as if losing their support, fell one after another.
And as the complete apple entered Zhang Wei's body, a beam of light seemed to pierce through countless darkness and distances, enveloping Zhang Wei.
"Blessing of Olympus!"
"It can greatly enhance the energy and level of Gourmet Cells!"
His healing speed increased!
In just a few breaths, Zhang Wei had fully recovered.
His level also rose from 59 to 61!
"To level up twice!"
This was an incredibly fantastical thing for Zhang Wei.
He knew that his barrier thickness was the thickest in the world, no, the entire world!
He probably couldn't find another gourmet demon as young as Kuni.
Zhang Wei walked to the silver apple tree.
He reached out to grab it.
[Storage complete: Silver Apple]
[Replication time: 160 days]
This silver apple was the same size as the bronze apple, but the sliding puzzle on it was gone, replaced by countless circular symbols and numbers.
"This is..."
The skin doll next to him said, "That's a combination lock."
The puzzle of the silver apple is a combination lock?
Creative.
For a master of infiltration and penetration, a combination lock was truly not difficult.
If it were a sliding puzzle...
Zhang Wei figured he'd be done for.
Specialty aligned, not bad, not bad.
Zhang Wei tossed the apple to the skin doll, "You have some too."
"No, no, no, Chef, this is too precious."
"The battles will only get more intense in the future, are you sure you want to keep slacking off?"
"This..."
"Alright, consider it an advance payment for your employment."
The skin doll looked at the silver apple, a smile appearing on her stiff face, "Will you hire me for life?"
Zhang Wei shrugged, "I very much hope to reach that agreement, but one apple is far from enough."
The skin doll wanted to say something more.
Zhang Wei immediately interrupted, "Alright, our friendship is not something that can be measured by an apple. Hurry up and unlock it."
"This... Okay!"
Zhang Wei continued to pick apples.
[Storage complete: Silver Apple]
[Replication time: 151 days]
[Replication time: 142 days]
133 days
124 days
115 days
106 days
...
The silver apple tree was lush, with a total of 26 apples.
After Zhang Wei fully stored them, the cooldown time was reduced to 66 days.
"Still a bit long."
"But at this rate, there's definitely more than one silver apple tree!"
A beam of light erupted beside him!
The skin doll who ate the silver apple had gloriously evolved.
The dazzling light was even brighter than Zhang Wei's!
"Damn it, is this discrimination?"
The skin doll's stiff face began to soften, becoming lifelike, just like a real person!
Her tattered Lolita dress also became clearer and more refined, even the needle and thread were clearly visible.
The skin doll opened her eyes.
She looked around her body, incredulous, "Chef, I've leveled up..."
"It's normal to level up."
"It's... a lot."
"How much did you level up?"
The skin doll swallowed, "I'm level 76."
"What?"
"I!"
"Level seventy-six!"
"Am!!!!!!!!!!"
The skin doll enunciated each word, shouting loudly.
Zhang Wei exclaimed, "Holy crap."
He remembered that after eating the bronze apple, the skin doll had just reached level 66. She hadn't even sat down yet, and she had jumped ten levels!
Ten levels!
That was ten levels!
Her combat power was at least more than three times what it was before!
Zhang Wei calculated that Lang Tu was no match for the skin doll before. Now, even Momobaba, Makabaka, and Golden Horn Silver Horn might not be a match for the skin doll.
She could even contend with powerhouses of the same level as the Bloodhound, Rage Beast Warwick, and Divine Servant Shaka. This was a qualitative leap.
However, even so, she still couldn't participate in battles against ferocious beasts like the crocodile dragon.
With the skin doll's stats, to defeat the crocodile dragon, she would need to reach at least level 95. The difference in size between humans and beasts could not be compensated for.
Moreover, such a powerful ferocious beast as the crocodile dragon was a top-tier, semi-invincible fighter among beasts of the same level 89. With a different skill combination, even at level 100, she might not be a match for the crocodile dragon.
Unable to hide her excitement, the skin doll said, "I feel full of strength!"
"Silver apples are the essence of energy and are not lost, but are permanently stored in the body. What you are feeling now is provided by the silver apple."
"Oh, oh, oh~~"
Zhang Wei's immense stamina cap could be filled by half an apple. This whole apple, consumed by the skin doll, would allow her to fight for more than ten days without issue.
"So, what do we do now? Continue exploring?"
"No rush... The danger level here has exceeded my imagination. We need to increase our stakes."
"Increase... our stakes?"
Zhang Wei's consciousness sank into the treasure trove.
Looking at the expanded exhibits, he said, "Speaking of which, I've been planning the second dish of the Chinese Feast for a long time. I once thought of gathering all the ingredients from the Cloud Country to prepare it."
"However, the spoils of war are still being distributed... but with the harvest from this trip, it should be fine."
"The second dish..."
"Let's call it 'Sweet Lovers'."