Chapter 9

In the middle of the night, in the kitchen of the high-end district.

Ever since Zhang Wei modified the Lingxi Five-Bird Soup, the Soul of Soup left a letter in a hidden place, hoping to communicate with Zhang Wei.

Zhang Wei only found out about this after he returned to work.

Exchanging skills as a form of communication among chefs is a common practice, and Zhang Wei was not opposed to it.

To avoid being exposed, Zhang Wei secretly took the letter when no one was around at midnight.

Back at the labor dormitory.

Zhang Wei opened the letter and, relying on the scattered memories left by his physical body, managed to read it.

"Why did you make the Lingxi Five-Bird Soup? Do you have any connection with my master? Thank you for your guidance, which has enlightened me. If there is an opportunity, could we exchange ideas and taste your cooking?"

"Exchanging ideas is fine, but I don't want to draw attention to myself for now. However, speaking of cooking, I happen to have gathered all the seasonings..."

As Zhang Wei's strength improved, the over a hundred dishes in the Treasure Hall gradually became insufficient.

Now, he could easily consume twenty kilograms of food in one meal, equivalent to the food intake of thirty strong men.

Although practicing the Art of Eating could significantly reduce daily energy consumption, the second growth spurt caused by his improved strength required even more energy and nutrients! It easily amounted to tens of thousands of calories, and the nutrients provided by ordinary ingredients were far from enough.

Immersing his mind in the Treasure Hall, Zhang Wei began preparing his first formal dish in this world.

Zhang Wei came from an ancient nation on the Blue Star, where the population was large but arable land was scarce, leading to a scarcity of food.

The people's utilization of ingredients was unparalleled, turning even wild vegetables from the fields and animal organs into delicious dishes through processing.

Despite the adverse conditions, this ancient nation managed to grow into the world's top culinary nation!

Apart from preparing top-notch state banquets, Zhang Wei was also skilled in various regional folk snacks.

"What should I make?"

"Since this is an exchange, let me show you the pinnacle of mysterious Eastern culinary art."

Previously, due to the lack of ingredients, some braised dishes, curries, stews, stir-fried noodles, and spicy soup could not be included in the Treasure Hall.

This was a constant regret for Zhang Wei.

"This time, I will bring the folk dishes to the hall!"

Meanwhile, at the top of the Great Glacier.

Following the rising air currents, a figure descended from the sky and landed on the transport platform on the glacier.

"Sure enough, the air passage is the least guarded."

In the cold wind, even the native animals of the ice plain had hidden away, let alone people who would venture out.

The figure was tall and imposing, dressed in a tight black suit that made him look like Batman. His wide cloak could harden into gliding wings, allowing him to fly solo using the rising air currents.

Flipping through the parchment in his hand, it roughly depicted the terrain of the glacier and various strong beings to be cautious of.

This black-clad man was named Bruce, a retired executive of the Sky Thieves Alliance.

Half a month ago, someone approached the Sky Thieves Alliance, insisting on obtaining an item from the Food Display Window. The difficulty of the mission was so great that they had to seek out the retired former executive, Bruce!

Out of respect for his long-standing relationship with the Sky Thieves Alliance, Bruce reluctantly agreed.

Inside the air transport passage, a group of security guards shivered by the fire.

"Damn, it's getting colder these days. Even my fourth-level awakened cells can barely handle it!"

"We're still okay. If ordinary people came to this entrance, they would freeze to death in a few minutes."

"Hey? Did you guys feel something just now?"

"Stop being paranoid. With such a strong wind, it was probably a frozen bird."

"You're right..."

Below the Food Display Window.

"President, you called me."

Xifeng looked at the arriving Soul of Soup and smiled, "Old Tang, what did the Century Display Association gain this time?"

The Century Display Association was founded sixty years ago, and Xifeng was the second president.

Human appetite is insatiable, with countless ingredients being discovered and countless others being eaten to extinction every day.

The association has always been dedicated to collecting the world's delicacies, preserving them in the Century Ice Pillar for future generations to admire.

Of course, extinct ingredients are rare treasures with immense value.

The Soul of Soup said, "This time, the association went all out, so it must be an extraordinary treasure!"

Xifeng proudly took out a square box, the highest-quality food preservation container.

"A few months ago, the association received news that a group of Duro Gorillas was discovered in the Eighth Courtyard!"

Duro Gorillas are four-armed gorillas, carnivores, with a capture level of nine.

The Soul of Soup was puzzled, "Duro Gorillas? Those creatures have a voracious appetite. How can there be enough prey for them to live in groups?"

"We were also puzzled, so we sent people to investigate. The result was..."

"What?"

"They don't rely on hunting. Countless herbivores would come to them directly! In other words, there must be something in the Duro Gorillas' territory that drives herbivores crazy!"

The Soul of Soup smiled bitterly, "Captain, stop teasing me. Just tell me what it is."

"The Fruit of Treasure!"

"The Fruit of Treasure? The legendary Rainbow Fruit? The dream fruit that can change into seven flavors based on temperature and humidity?"

According to legend, just one drop of the original liquid from the Rainbow Fruit can turn an entire swimming pool into a rich and fragrant juice. Although it's just a legend, it's enough to prove the quality of the Rainbow Fruit!

"This time, the association went all out, exterminating fifty Duro Gorillas and obtaining seven Rainbow Fruits. I have decided to take one of them, divide it into several portions, and use it for the association's operations."

A mature Rainbow Fruit weighs about 150 kilograms, and the preservation box in front of the Soul of Soup had a capacity of about two liters.

Given the rarity of the Rainbow Fruit, the value of this box was considerable!

This is also one of the benefits for chefs, as they can receive countless delicacies from food hunters without venturing into dangerous places.

Food hunters who focus on combat need chefs to enhance themselves, and chefs need food hunters to capture ingredients. The two are interdependent.

Holding the Rainbow Fruit and returning to his room, he placed it aside.

This level of treasure, the Soul of Soup had no interest in tasting, his attention was completely focused on the earthenware jar in front of him.

"Where is the gap... I wonder if that letter was seen."

"This soup was improved based on my original recipe, which means the gap between me and perfection is not significant... It's just a missing key point."

"The theft of the seasonings... They must be afraid I would guess something from the types and quantities of the seasonings used, they want me to figure it out on my own..."

For the past two days, the Soul of Soup had devoted all his energy to this jar of soup, almost to the point of obsession.

A faint white smoke drifted into the room, and the Soul of Soup immediately yawned, collapsing under the bed after taking only a few steps.

Bruce, dressed in black, walked into the room.

"Old friend, your sleeping posture is a bit ungraceful."

"I apologize for meeting you in this manner. We each serve our own masters, and this is unavoidable."

As Bruce expected, the Soul of Soup had never been interested in improving his strength, and the sedative easily knocked him out.

Opening the box containing the Rainbow Fruit.

"A bit less, but this should be enough to complete the mission."

Bruce left a letter, reminiscing about old times and leaving the Sky Thieves Alliance's emblem.

This is an important method for thieves to enhance their reputation.

"This fragrance... Lingxi Five-Bird Soup!"

Before leaving, Bruce finally noticed the sealed jar on the table.

This jar was tightly sealed, heat-retaining, and specifically used for storing soups.

Even with such top-notch sealing, the fragrance could still escape, proving the richness of the Lingxi Five-Bird Soup.

"It's been ten years since we last competed, hasn't it?"

"Fine, since I'm here, let me taste your cooking to see if you've improved at all."