The new edition of the Gourmet Showcase!
Only ingredients of perfect quality can enter!
Ingredients are highly arranged by grade, with about fifty types of ingredients on each floor, and more than fifty portions of each type.
Even with Zhang Wei's current collection, the Gourmet Showcase has already built over thirty floors!
And the workers pouring concrete are constantly busy, with construction still progressing rapidly.
"A miracle! It's simply a miracle!"
"How can such a wonder exist in this world!"
Wu Yong tempted them by saying, "In the future, when you're practicing your culinary skills, feel free to take whatever ingredients you need from here! These ingredients can also be used as your salary, with no exchange bottlenecks whatsoever~"
"Really?"
"Absolutely!"
Many chefs rejoiced.
"Do you still think this is a desolate and barren land?"
"No, no, no, this is paradise, the paradise for chefs!"
Wu Yong said, "Alright, let's go to the kitchen first and see where you'll be working."
The Taste of Soul Banquet!
Fueled by Zhang Wei's culinary masterpiece, these chefs all advanced!
Their power levels increased significantly.
At this point, the gap between the two groups of chefs began to show. The chefs from Kikuka-lo could analyze two to three tenths of Zhang Wei's techniques, and although not perfect, they could easily grasp his creative ideas.
The arrogant chefs under Zhang Wei felt a strong sense of crisis!
Even their work efforts increased substantially.
The Warm Harbor Toad was summoned.
On the eve of their departure.
Zhang Wei said, "The chefs from Kikuka-lo will return with me to arrange the matter of studying abroad with our family."
"Also, each chef can choose some of their favorite ingredients to take back, as a small token of my appreciation for our guests."
A roar of cheers erupted!
…………
By the time Zhang Wei appeared at Kikuka-lo.
It was already packed with people.
Although it was a private banquet, the aroma that brought unparalleled satisfaction was something that even a brief whiff of would be an eternal regret to miss.
Golden Label Chef Shao An.
Liu Bangling's most proud disciple, and also the most talented and arrogant.
A long time ago, Shao An, believing he had mastered all of Master Abe's skills, made a move to betray them.
At that time, Master Abe had gone to the Gourmet World, leaving only his eldest son, Liu Angxing, to guard Kikuka-lo.
That time, Shao An lost miserably.
Shao An was also the first whetstone on Liu Angxing's path forward.
Afterward, Shao An challenged Liu Angxing many times, but each time ended in failure.
When Master Abe returned, he found Shao An directly and, with supreme magnanimity, accepted him back.
However, Shao An, having re-entered Kikuka-lo, found it difficult to feel the sense of home he once had.
"You're back."
"Come in and eat something. You must have had a hard journey. What was it like over there?" bigwindfiction.com
As the eldest disciple.
He was naturally the one leading this expedition.
Seeing Master Abe's enthusiastic demeanor, Shao An forced a smile and said, "It was good, except for the cold. Everything else was fine."
"That's good. Since I haven't seen it with my own eyes, if it weren't for you, I really wouldn't have been at ease."
Shao An sighed inwardly.
"Master, I plan to... I want to study in the Great Glacier."
Master Abe's hand stiffened. "Alright, you can learn new theoretical knowledge there and have more opportunities to practice with advanced ingredients. I approve of you going."
"Master... I have always wanted to surpass you. Although I was overconfident in the past, this is my goal. I must do it."
Master Abe nodded. "That is also my wish. What master doesn't want their disciples to do well? I'll be happy if you can all surpass me."
Shao An fell silent.
Not so long ago, Liu Angxing was just a young brat, showing off in front of him.
But now, Liu Angxing was someone he looked up to.
Shao An believed his culinary talent was no less than Liu Angxing's, but...
Perhaps Master Abe's cooking style simply didn't suit him.
And Lan Yun Dao Sheng's evaluation of Zhang Wei still echoed in Shao An's ears.
"Tsk tsk, it's a pity he's too smart, and a bit too calculating..."
That was precisely how Lan Yun Dao Sheng had evaluated him back then!
Did this mean Zhang Wei's approach was more suitable for him?
At this moment!
A wondrous aroma seemed to travel across an endless distance.
It soothed the restless hearts of people.
And gave them endless satisfaction.
Shao An thought, "If I could learn Zhang Wei's techniques, defeating Liu Angxing shouldn't be a problem..."
I will definitely succeed!
…………
Zhang Wei's private banquet went smoothly. Whether it was Wang Shoucheng, Lan Yun Dao Sheng, or Mie Jue Shi Tai... they all succumbed to the endless satisfaction of Wuxiang.
The flavors continuously evolving on their tongues were like heaven!
Everyone who tasted it couldn't help but shed tears of emotion and happiness.
Lan Yun Dao Sheng lay on the ground, his formerly gaunt body now filled out, but his hazy eyes indicated he was still swimming in an ocean of bliss.
Everyone murmured amongst themselves.
"This... is this the pursuit of life..."
"I feel like I have no regrets in this life."
"No, perhaps there are. What should I do if I can't drink it again in the future?"
On the other side.
The personnel Zhang Wei brought began preparing for the business association's work.
The person in charge here was Roger, the former head of resource distribution for the Century Collector's Association, who had extensive experience in this field.
Lan Yun Dao Sheng privately found Zhang Wei and handed him a map.
"Kid, I told you I wouldn't owe you any favors. This is one of the rifts in the Gourmet World. An old man like me explored it before and marked the safe routes."
Zhang Wei took the map.
It clearly read 'Gravity Well'.
It was said to be a metallic place, with a very sci-fi atmosphere.
Lan Yun Dao Sheng continued, "Don't underestimate this place. I risked my life exploring it. According to my map, you can easily obtain large quantities of Fourth-tier Yuan Water, or Fifth-tier Yuan Water!"
"As for the higher tiers, Sixth and Seventh, don't even think about it. The danger level there is already at the level of the Gourmet World. Even a passing mobile beast can easily defeat a level 100 Gourmet Hunter."
Yuan Water?
Seeing the old man's serious expression, it seemed to be something famous.
However, Zhang Wei had never encountered it in any literature.
Lan Yun Dao Sheng said proudly, "Have you ever heard of Tianyi Divine Water!"
Tianyi Divine Water!
Legend has it that it is the most potent poisonous wine in the world!
If even a drop is accidentally consumed, the body will swell and explode into a thousand pieces of flesh!
"The deepest part of this Gravity Well produces the legendary Tianyi Divine Water!"
Zhang Wei asked doubtfully, "Isn't this Tianyi Divine Water a poison? And what does it have to do with the so-called Yuan Water?"
Yuan Water!
Also known as Heavy Water!
In the fantastical environment of the Gravity Well, it condenses from ordinary water.
Ten drops of ordinary water, under special conditions, combine to form what is called First-tier Yuan Water!
Ten drops of First-tier Yuan Water, in the deeper parts of the Gravity Well, can combine to form Second-tier Yuan Water!
And so on.
Ten drops of Second-tier Yuan Water form one drop of Third-tier Yuan Water, up to the highest, Ninth-tier Yuan Water.
And Ninth-tier Yuan Water is the so-called Tianyi Divine Water!
In other words, to obtain one drop of Tianyi Divine Water, one needs 1,000,000,000 drops of ordinary water.
"Ten billion drops!"
Lan Yun Dao Sheng chuckled, "If someone accidentally drinks Tianyi Divine Water... just imagine, a drop no bigger than a fingertip, instantly expanding to a thousand tons of ordinary water. Even the strongest person would be killed!"
Indeed, impressive!
But what use would a chef have for such a thing?
To poison someone?
Zhang Wei said with a wry smile, "Alright, it's certainly an extraordinary thing, but I'm just a chef. I'm not interested in this kind of poison. Consider this meal on me, Saint."
Saying this, Zhang Wei handed the map back to Lan Yun Dao Sheng.
Lan Yun Dao Sheng said displeasedly, "Do you really think I'd try to fool you with useless things like this? Yuan Water is essential for processing high-level ingredients, and countless high-level chefs seek it in vain!"
"Oh?"
"What is the use of this thing?"
Lan Yun said, "Yuan Water is a very rare natural ingredient. Its largest source is not the Gravity Well, but inside various creatures."
Yuan Water exists within living beings!
Here, we must mention a legendary skill – the Art of Food Exemption!
This technique can greatly compress the caster's body size and allow for more precise control, and due to the reduction in volume, the body's consumption is also greatly reduced.
In this era, the Art of Food Exemption is very popular.
Even Zhang Wei had worked hard to practice it, and Lan Yun Dao Sheng was an expert in it, otherwise, given his level, he would have starved to death in the Human World long ago.
If Zhang Wei were to release the Art of Food Exemption, his body would instantly swell to over three meters tall, becoming a muscular physique.
In the original work, Jirou only needed to release a wisp of his power to transform into a small giant.
Lan Yun Dao Sheng pointed to his gaunt body and said, "With my level of the Art of Food Exemption, the water content in my blood is comparable to Third-tier Yuan Water!"
Third-tier.
Which is a thousand times!
Zhang Wei is around 50-150 times, at the level of Second-tier Yuan Water.
"This means that Third-tier Yuan Water poses no danger to me, but rather a way to quickly replenish my fluids!"
"If I can drink some Third-tier Yuan Water or Fourth-tier Yuan Water during combat or when I'm thirsty, my stamina will recover at an astonishing rate."
"Tianyi Divine Water is not a poison, it's just that ordinary people are not blessed enough to enjoy it."
So that's how it is!
This thing is a bit like compressed water...
Recalling his past life's physics experience, water's volume could be slightly compressed, but never to such an exaggerated extent. Reducing its volume by just one percent would require 200 atmospheres of pressure.
If one were to compress it using pressure alone, even fusing hydrogen and oxygen atoms into nuclear fusion wouldn't yield the simplest First-tier Yuan Water, would it?
But talking about physics in this world is even more absurd.
Lan Yun Dao Sheng continued to ask, "Chef Zhang, have you ever encountered any ingredients that you couldn't process?"
Ingredients that couldn't be processed...
There are far too many!
Zhang Wei casually gave an example, "When I was trying to obtain the fruit of the Overlord Tree, I once killed an Ice Field Dragon. The dragon's blood was like lava, over a thousand degrees Celsius. Its flesh and blood were impossible to process, and could not be cooked at all."
The temperature of firewood flames is only 600 degrees Celsius, and water boils at only 100 degrees Celsius at standard atmospheric pressure.
If a pressure cooker is used, the water can reach around 120 degrees Celsius, which can quickly cook many foods.
Lan Yun Dao Sheng laughed heartily, "Next time, get some First-tier... Second-tier Yuan Water!"
"Try using Second-tier Yuan Water for cooking, and see if you can cook the dragon meat then!"
Cooking meat with Yuan Water!
This is the true value of Yuan Water!
When it comes down to it, the Gravity Well would be of unimaginable help to Zhang Wei!
The ingredients that were previously shelved due to processing difficulties could now be attempted with Yuan Water!
This would significantly expand the number of foods Zhang Wei could process!
It was equivalent to opening a new door to the world!
This meal was a huge gain!
…………
Preliminary construction of the bank branch in Chengdu, Sichuan.
With money and connections paving the way, everything went smoothly. Zhang Wei personally excavated an ice cellar of 100,000 cubic meters. It had a drainage channel at the bottom, and the walls were made of ice blocks, which would ensure ease of cleaning later.
Zhang Wei initially stored ingredients worth fifty million Beli. Business was slow at first, so this should be enough for a while.
Afterward, he immediately rushed to another location on the initial continent, Stalingrad!
The person in charge here was Lola of the Dodo Merchant Association, with Fu Long and Chun Niang assisting.
"How is the situation?"
Lola exclaimed excitedly, "Our ingredients are selling like crazy!"
"When we first started selling, people were quite wary. I offered some for sale and some for free, letting many people try them. The results were overwhelmingly positive, and repeat customers are plentiful!"
"As time went on, our sales have soared!"
"Yesterday alone, our sales reached 900,000 Beli!"
900,000 Beli, for the Dodo Merchant Association before, that was about half a year's revenue.
At the previously agreed upon 15% commission, the Dodo Merchant Association could earn 135,000 Beli per day.
"Then what about the ingredients you were tasked to collect?"
Lola produced a roster.
It was filled with countless small characters, with many areas smudged and altered, clearly indicating it was an account book.
Currently collected.
123 types of Tier 1 ingredients...
135 types of Tier 2 ingredients...
195 types of Tier 3 ingredients...
...
35 types of Tier 9 ingredients...
...
21 types of Tier 13 ingredients...
...
9 types of Tier 18 ingredients...
The majority were Tiers 1-9.
Collection became significantly more difficult starting from Tier 10, with many items not circulating in the market, and the rarest ingredients being offered in limited quantities.
Lola complained, "Those guys are incredibly greedy. They add a lot of added value to their own ingredients, brand value and whatnot. For ingredients that aren't that great, they demand ten times the exchange."
"Some even quote outrageous prices of a hundred times!"
"This is absurd!"
Since.
They didn't want to exchange them for money, so they had to challenge their security capabilities.
A while ago, they sent the Bandit Brothers to recruit more people. Calculating the date, it should be soon.
Lola said sternly, "The controllers of those ingredients are quite powerful. The newly recruited individuals might not have the same strength as Vladimir..."
But the sheer number of ingredients to collect was too vast. With only Vladimir and his dozen or so strong subordinates, the manpower was insufficient.