The knack of popping.
It's that incredibly tough corn husk!
The husk!
Not only can the husk inflict sharp damage, but when combined with the dense corn silk, it can effectively block blunt force strikes.
By dispersing and diluting the force, the impact of the fist won't damage individual corn kernels, as the pressure is spread across multiple kernels.
"Let's try it gently first!"
"Unwound Spiral Ordinary Fist, one-tenth power!"
Parting the corn about halfway, Zhang Wei punched the unopened husk!
Zhang Wei's current level has reached 72, far surpassing his time in the Cloud Country. A casual punch now carries the deterrent of a nuclear explosion!
Everyone present felt an evil wind approaching; just the residual shockwave made them unsteady.
The shockwave transmitted!
On the exposed side, the final end with no leverage to brace itself could no longer withstand it, just like the final ball in that mechanics experiment on force transmission, the last one swinging high!
*Bang~*
*Bang·~*
*Bang~*
A series of popping sounds!
Dozens of corn kernels shot out, carrying strong impact force that pierced straight through the greenhouse and flew towards the distant sky.
Howling cold wind rushed in...
Zhang Wei's eyes were dazed...
"Damn it, why don't you guys catch them!"
.........
...
After a flurry of activity, the escaped corn kernels were finally retrieved, and the holes they made were left unfilled.
The corn exploded with a bang under Zhang Wei's precise firepower control!
There were so many!
The sky was filled with white, irregularly shaped spheres!
Soft and yielding...
To be honest, popcorn somewhat resembles a pulled-out molar.
Instantly, a sweet aroma filled the entire room!
"Everyone, enjoy!"
"This is the gift of the Fiber Land!"
The popcorn pieces were quite large, about the size of two fists put together.
But they were very light, like holding clouds, giving the illusion of being able to float away at any moment.
They felt warm to the touch, still retaining the heat from being popped, making the sweetness even more intense!
Zhang Wei scanned the crowd: "About ten thousand kernels were popped. It's still not enough for such a large crowd."
*Bang bang bang~~*
Zhang Wei continued to heat and pop, and cheers echoed throughout the greenhouse.
"So soft and chewy! I took such a big bite, and I swallowed it without even chewing!"
"And it gives a sense of relaxed leisure; you don't feel like you need to digest it at all."
"My hands just can't stop! I really want to keep eating!"
"Regular popcorn can be very rough, but this... it's more like cotton candy, crisp and soft cotton candy!"
"Although it's very sweet, it doesn't feel greasy. It's a refreshing kind of sweetness..."
"I just ate so much, but my stomach started rumbling. This popcorn is very appetizing! It truly is the legendary perfect snack!"
Just then.
Shao An retrieved a box of dusty-looking stuff from under the counter.
He sprinkled it evenly on the popcorn, and his expression became even more delighted as he ate.
Xiao Quan, standing nearby, looked puzzled and tentatively added some as well.
"Delicious!"
"This seasoning is full of natural essence, unlike salt, sugar, or MSG. And it pairs incredibly well with the BB corn. What is this?"
Shao An replied: "It's a very common seasoning, it seems to be called Volcanic Ash Pepper Powder. It was produced during the eruption of the nearby Ash Furnace Fort. I was just trying it out, and I didn't expect it to pair so well."
Xiao Quan's heart skipped a beat!
This person is not simple!
And...
Can this kind of thing be called an accident?
This person's mastery of seasonings has reached a terrifying level, as perfectly demonstrated by the previous Sichuan dishes!
After processing hundreds of kernels, Zhang Wei sampled a few.
He turned and walked towards Shao An.
"Master Zhang."
Zhang Wei picked up his chopsticks and sampled from the five dishes.
"The taste... is adequate."
Shao An bowed his head: "I'm very sorry. I don't have a deep understanding of these dishes yet, and I can't create anything truly innovative."
"No, sometimes being adequate is a good thing."
Zhang Wei said: "If you cannot understand every part of an ingredient, every path for pairing, how can you reach the pinnacle?"
Shao An was greatly shaken!
It wasn't because the theory was so astounding, but because he had always held this very idea!
He had said the same thing to Master Abe before.
But he was met with Master Abe's denial.
'How can you make delicious food with such a formulaic approach? Food that truly makes people happy must come from the heart!'
Liu Ang Xing shared the same philosophy as Master Abe.
And with this theory, he had defeated Shao An countless times.
Countless failures had made Shao An question himself.
But today, as the familiar theory echoed in his ears, Shao An was so moved that tears welled up in his eyes!
Shao An suppressed his excitement and said: "Understanding every part of an ingredient, every path... this entire process is a joy!"
Zhang Wei let out a soft "Oh?": "You have quite a talent. Have you read my textbooks?"
"Never."
Zhang Wei was silent for a moment, then asked: "Your master is the Sichuan Cuisine Fairy, right? What's your chef's star rating?"
"Eight stars. I haven't improved in a long time."
Eight stars... that seems sufficient.
"After this is over, come to my greenhouse. I want to see your cooking."
How could Shao An not know what this meant!
A personal disciple!
The highest status among all disciples, a personal disciple!
One-on-one, top-tier guidance!
At this moment, Shao An was so excited he could barely kneel.
"I... I understand!"
"Mm."
Zhang Wei was also very interested in this person.
.........
From a personal perspective, Zhang Wei leaned more towards the Spirit of Soup.
But unfortunately, the Spirit of Soup was too old, and his talent was genuinely poor. For him, Zhang Wei's complex formulaic cuisine was like scribbling.
No matter how hard he studied, he could barely grasp even one-tenth of it.
And the Gourmet Bank needed a chef to oversee it.
The ten-times larger ice glacier had already begun to take shape, and the freezing of ingredients had commenced.
Only perfect ingredients from the Treasure Hall could enter. The new Gourmet Display Window surpassed the previous one, storing ingredients from the entire continent.
The Gourmet Bank was complete!
Xi Feng once again summoned a large number of reporters to publicize the Gourmet Bank.
The Gourmet Bank only required finishing touches on the interior decoration. The remaining labor force began to transfer to the affiliated academy.
"The name of the academy... let's call it the Gourmet Academy."
"Cough cough..."
Xi Feng coughed: "An academy called 'Gourmet Academy' sounds like a small regional academy. There are probably a thousand such academies in the Human Realm..."
"Uh... that seems to be the case."
Zhang Wei was terrible at naming things.
This was the most troublesome part.
Zhang Wei even considered a prank and naming it New Oriental.
"It needs to match the Gourmet Bank... How about 'Delicious Treasure Academy'?"
It implies preserving the world's deliciousness here.
Both ingredients and culinary skills!
Returning to the greenhouse.
Recently collected ingredients were stored here. As the Gourmet Bank's business grew, more high-level rare ingredients became available.
Lemon Peach...
Crystal Cola...
Boneless Saury...
Deodorizing Ginger...
Air Spring Water...
Garlic Bird...
Blissful Rice...
Seaweed Worm...
Love Sardine...
Any one of these picked at random was an exceptionally rare and precious item.
It seemed Xi Feng had been working diligently lately.
Collection begins!
A knock echoed on the door.
Shao An entered, bringing the scent of wind and snow.
At this moment, Zhang Wei was resting with his eyes closed, reclined on a rocking chair, utterly still.
"Is he testing my sincerity..."
Without a word, Shao An gently knelt on the ground, maintaining that position without moving.
Meanwhile, Zhang Wei was happily collecting items in the Treasure Hall and vaguely felt he had forgotten something important.
Three days passed in the blink of an eye. Shao An was starving and exhausted, his legs numb and devoid of sensation. If not for his decent physique, he might have needed amputation.
But no matter how uncomfortable, Shao An persisted in his spot, his posture unwavering.
Time in the Treasure Hall passed even faster. Zhang Wei's heart swelled with joy as he watched the ingredients being added to the display.
"I seem to have forgotten something..."
"When I start collecting ingredients, I tend to subconsciously overlook many things!"
"What did I forget..."
"Holy hell!"
Zhang Wei suddenly retreated from the Treasure Hall.
He glanced at the time; three days had passed.
"Oh no, so much time has passed... this is delaying things terribly."
Shao An, tears of joy streaming down his face, thought the trial was finally over...
He choked back sobs and said: "It's not delaying anything, not at all..."
"How could it not be delaying? If the Mammoth goes hungry for a day, the Gem Meat grows for one less day. And for the Carnivorous Forest, if the BB Corn doesn't grow, I won't even consider bringing it back."
Zhang Wei blinked.
Looking at Shao An kneeling on the ground, he asked, "Huh? Why are you here?"
Shao An: .........
.........
...
After clearing up the awkward misunderstanding, Zhang Wei casually left a few exam questions.
"Hmm... these are all rare ingredients from the entire Human Realm. What you need to do now is find the ingredients most suitable for you."
"Then use these ingredients to create a dish that best showcases your culinary skills."
"I will explain your issues based on this dish."
Although Zhang Wei spoke with a serious demeanor, Shao An felt a sense of unreliability.
Summoning the Warm Port.
Zhang Wei teleported directly to Fading Island.
Using the Art of Wind Riding, he ascended quickly and soon discovered the hunting Fading Mammoths on a plateau.
Upon seeing Zhang Wei, the Fading Mammoth felt a mixture of love and hate, instinctively wanting to flee.
Zhang Wei accelerated and blocked their path: "Little guys, why run? Come, come, let me give you something good!"
Countless ingredients rained down from the sky.
Everything except meat was present, and the sheer quantity was more than a Fading Mammoth could eat in one go.
Out of respect for the food, the Fading Mammoth dared not move, lest it trample on these delicacies.
"Alright, you can eat slowly now..."
Electromagnetic induction.
Mm~
A sprout of Gem Meat had already formed within.
To supplement the Fading Mammoth's diet, Zhang Wei added ordinary Bronze Apples and Silver Apples he had collected.
This significantly enhanced the Mammoth's healing ability, allowing it to quickly grow the next batch of Gem Meat.
Summoning the Warm Port and traversing!
Plant Hell!
Similar to the Fading Mammoth, the will of Plant Hell displayed profound fear at Zhang Wei's appearance.
"You need to grow faster too! There's only this much 30-meter grade BB Corn, I don't even feel like harvesting it!"
Saying that, a sky full of carnivorous ingredients descended like rain.
Plant Hell couldn't resist the temptation of food and once again reveled in the rain of flesh and blood.
However, the growth rate isn't ideal without food of Silver Apple's caliber...
"Fine, you lucky dog!"
Saying that, Zhang Wei took out the Gem Meat. Its glorious luster stunned the entire forest.
Facing Zhang Wei's terrifying aura and the allure of the food.
Plant Hell had no thought of snatching but instead emitted a pleasing hum.
"I'm putting in a lot of effort here. If you grow slowly, don't blame me for my bad temper."
"Don't get cocky either. If it weren't for the Silver Apples holding things up, I'd be feeding the BB Corn to the Mammoth!"
Recycling is truly effective!
The nutritional value of Gem Meat is terrifying. A mere 0.8 tons of Gem Meat is equivalent to hundreds of thousands of tons of various meats, including high-grade beasts.
After consuming the Gem Meat, Plant Hell seemed to regain its vibrancy. Even its leaves grew denser, and a large amount of BB Corn grew at a visible rate. Judging by the situation, it wouldn't be long before a second 50-meter grade BB Corn grew.
Afterward, Zhang Wei also took time to visit Stalingrad, Chengdu in Chuan Di, and Penglai Immortal City in the Eastern Continent.
Among them, Penglai Immortal City in the Eastern Continent had developed remarkably rapidly and had exchanged a considerable amount of ingredients. According to the two person in charge, they had not shied away from using force during the process.
Promising.
Dispatch more subordinates!
Leaving some ingredients from the Mammoth and Plant Hell for the three regions, and then collecting the ingredients traded by the three regions into the Treasure Hall, ensured sufficient collection material for the foreseeable future.
"We need to quickly start preparing the branch offices in the Western and Southern Continents as well."
"We absolutely need people who dare to fight and spend money. Frugality is not important; as long as they can bring back enough new varieties of ingredients, they will have made a great contribution."
Through exploration, it was discovered that the model of merchant caravans colluding with the Black List was the fastest way to collect ingredients.
Let's hope that the Black List's dealings don't incite too much public outcry. Currently, Zhang Wei doesn't want to clash with overly powerful entities.
For example...
The Human Supreme Gourmet Association!
After feeding the Fading Mammoth and Plant Hell, Zhang Wei returned to the Great Glacier via the Warm Port.
"Xi Feng, prepare two more batches of personnel for me, ones who can take charge independently. I want to open new branches in the Western and Southern Continents simultaneously."
Xi Feng chuckled bitterly: "Boss, do you really think our manpower is endless?"
"We need people who are strong, experienced, intelligent, and can take charge independently... Where can I find so many talents? You've already pulled out all the capable people under me for these two branch openings."
"And regarding the Black List, you send a batch of instructors, and then you take them away, send a batch of instructors, and you take them away... You've made the Black List numb. Scorpion told me last time that if you take any more people, they won't even be able to assemble enough instructors to form a complete set."
Alas...
It seems the development has been a bit too rapid.