The crowd returned to the inner chambers, and the giant was gone. Only a young man of normal stature sat at a desk, quietly reading a book.
The youth was pale, looking as if he had just recovered from a serious illness, appearing quite gaunt.
Upon seeing the young man, Zhan Hua immediately understood. It must have been a secret art to alter one's form; such a thing was not difficult.
"Daoist Zhan Hua, the Sect Master of Tianmen Sect, greets the venerable senior from the Upper Realm!"
Zhang Wei put down the scroll in his hand and, looking at their familiar attire, said with a sigh, "Are you all cultivators?"
The crowd exchanged glances, then replied, "We are indeed practitioners of true qi. It would not be wrong to call us cultivators."
"Hmm... interesting."
That teleportation gate must have been guided by his soul's will to perform the transfer.
He never expected to be guided by strange knowledge to such an odd place. A world of cultivation... he wondered if there was anything delicious in this world.
At this moment, the cook approached, grinning broadly at Zhang Wei. "Esteemed guest, I've truly become so powerful! Just as you said, I've dealt with all the enemies who tried to invade, beating them into utter submission!"
Zhang Wei said, "I never expected that, upon arriving in this world, I would find someone as talented as you. Truly, I have struck gold."
This chef possessed an innate sensitivity to taste. Even in such a culinary desert, he could, through his own efforts, forge a unique culinary style. He was a genius among geniuses!
Even Shao En and Mr. Luo might not possess such talent.
Zhan Hua was shocked!
This cook had talent?
And he was valued by a senior from the Upper Realm?
How could this be? He could barely even sense true qi. He was clearly a cultivation prodigal! Could it be that he had some hidden talent or physique that hadn't been developed yet?
The cook quickly said, "Senior, I have no such ability."
Zhang Wei shook his head. "You can be considered my savior. Without you, I might never have woken up, my consciousness unable to control my body."
In truth, Zhang Wei knew everything that had happened to his body.
However, his body was too fragile, and his consciousness had completely left it. This was a sign of near-death, and his body was incapable of any action.
And this world was truly despairing. No one had thought to use delicious food to activate Gourmet Cells. Those two pills were nutritious, but their deliciousness was practically zero.
After tasting the food prepared by the cook, Zhang Wei's Gourmet Cells finally responded.
And they granted Zhang Wei a faint, almost imperceptible bit of strength.
However, Zhang Wei did not waste this strength. Instead, he let them feed him, constantly accumulating. It wasn't until the surrounding people became agitated that Zhang Wei realized the external environment might have changed.
Only then did he regain control of his body and slowly recover his consciousness.
The moment he woke, Zhang Wei immediately took several candies made from Crimson Sugar. These candies had a light aroma and contained a large amount of energy, making them most suitable for his current condition.
Zhang Wei didn't know the situation and dared not take out anything too outlandish. The current circumstances were not suitable for facing powerful enemies.
After a brief exchange with the people around him, Zhang Wei's first question was, "Did you see the woman who fell with me? She was about thirteen *zhang* tall."
"Thirteen *zhang*! That's already the height of a Linglong Tower, a library... no, there really wasn't."
Zhang Wei felt relieved, then summoned the cook and bestowed a bowl of ramen upon him.
Putting taste aside, this ramen contained many high-grade ingredients that were very beneficial to the body. After eating it, the cook immediately became as strong as a superman. Zhang Wei estimated he was at least at the level of a level forty Gourmet Hunter.
According to electromagnetic induction, this strength was definitely enough to eliminate the trouble at the entrance.
By the time Zhan Hua and the others returned, Zhang Wei had already eaten another meal and replenished a good deal of his strength.
Zhang Wei said, "Bring me some things."
"What does Senior require?"
"Hmm... the things you eat, in their unprocessed state."
Zhuo Bufan stepped forward and presented a storage bag, exchanged for goods bought with points.
Zhang Wei indicated he didn't know how to use it. Zhuo Bufan gave it a firm pat, and several streams of light spilled out. Several objects enlarged from small to large, possessing a fairy-tale-like quality.
Different from the storage equipment mechanism in the Gourmet World!
Zhuo Bufan enthusiastically introduced, "These are delicacies bought for Senior. Please take a look."
"This first item is called Snow Hair Flower Rong Deer... Although it hasn't been graded, it possesses considerable spirituality!"
[Found storable ingredient: Snow Hair Flower Rong Deer]
[Edible Rank: 2]
[Description: An animal entirely devoid of Gourmet Cells, but its taste is still quite good, worthy of careful savoring. Additionally, it contains a small amount of spiritual energy, which is very beneficial to the human body.]
[Description: Spiritual energy is a peculiar form of energy, which can also be considered a type of food additive or seasoning. Foods rich in spiritual energy will have a slightly enhanced taste and greatly improved nutrition. However, it is slightly inferior to Gourmet Cells.]
"Spiritual energy, huh..."
"It's a unique seasoning..."
"This world has no Gourmet Cells, so all energy must be hidden within this so-called spiritual energy. Spiritual energy is the nourishment of this world!"
"The consideration of edible rank has two aspects: taste and nutrition. Comprehensively, it's quite good and naturally valued by the Treasury Hall."
"Moreover, storing all foods that completely lack Gourmet Cells is also important. Perhaps it will be useful someday."
Afterward, Zhuo Bufan introduced a few more items, but their edible ranks were all between 1 and 3, and their value was very low.
Soon, the main event arrived.
Zhuo Bufan took out several uniquely shaped storage bags. Later, he learned that these bags were called Mystic Beast Bags and were custom-made. They allowed animals to rest inside.
There were also bags for carrying humans, but those were used by evil cultivators and were called Human Seed Bags.
[Found storable ingredient: Mystic Crystal Tiger]
[Capture Rank: First-grade Lower-tier Demonic Beast]
[Edible Rank: 6]
[Description: A feline creature that can gather spiritual energy, concentrating it within the crystal on its forehead, enabling it to perform actions beyond ordinary animals. It is more intelligent and also tastier.]
Zhuo Bufan said, "This creature alone is worth 50 spirit stones, and it's priceless, very difficult to acquire!"
In addition to the Mystic Crystal Tiger, there was also the First-grade Middle-tier Golden Thread Sable, worth 150 spirit stones, and the First-grade Upper-tier Purple Flower Golden Rooster, worth 350 spirit stones.
Spirit stones...
The currency of this world.
It seemed he was beginning to grasp some concept of this world.