Chapter 9

"Chi!" A wisp of cooking oil smoke rose, and a rich aroma of meat wafted through the air.

Jiang Xingchen stood in a corner of the courtyard, facing a slab of granite heated by charcoal. On it lay slices of meat, roasted to a golden brown.

Not far away, Mo Hongxian and Wan Rou sat at a separate table, while the dozen or so burly men from the other table were busy picking up the meat slices, dipping them in the sauce made by Jiang Xingchen from minced garlic, soy sauce, and vinegar, and eating heartily.

Mo Hongxian and Wan Rou were still composed, but the dozen burly men were eating like fierce beasts fighting for food, their chopsticks moving so fast they could rival the "Sunflower Pointing Hand" technique from TV shows.

Beside them stood a small jar that Jiang Xingchen had brought, now completely empty, cleaner than if it had been scrubbed.

"Truly a bunch of foodies!" Jiang Xingchen turned his head and glanced at them, cursing inwardly. He moved his sore shoulders. From the start, these people hadn't stopped eating, their stomachs like bottomless pits. He had already roasted over twenty pounds of meat.

He put a slice of golden-brown roasted meat in his mouth, closed his eyes slightly, and praised inwardly: "No wonder this is top-grade meat. The texture is so tender, and the aroma fills your mouth with every bite, as if your taste buds are about to explode..."

After eating flatbreads for several days, any meat was a rare delicacy to him, let alone this top-grade meat. However, Jiang Xingchen still felt a bit regretful: "Unfortunately, there's no chili or cumin!"

The meat from the back of the swordback pig had very little gamey smell but a faint muttony odor and was very tight. Therefore, Jiang Xingchen didn't use alcohol to remove the gamey smell. Instead, he had the mercenary group buy Sichuan peppercorns, which he boiled with ginger slices. Then he cut the meat, which had been soaked in cold water, into thin slices, marinated them with the peppercorn water and scallion ends, and roasted them on the stone slab.

Once he started, Jiang Xingchen found his choice to be very wise. The back meat was very tight, and it would burn easily if the fire was too high, and it wouldn't cook if the fire was too low. It required just the right heat. If he had stir-fried or stewed it, he, a chef who only knew how to cook home-style dishes, would have definitely failed.

After roasting, when Jiang Xingchen tasted it, he was stunned. He had thought the tight texture would make it tough, but the golden-brown meat slices were incredibly tender. He was sure he had never eaten such good meat in his previous life.

As he placed the roasted meat on the plate and occasionally pinched a slice, he thought: "I'll talk to Captain Mo later and take some of this swordback pig meat back. We've already cooperated, so she shouldn't mind a little money... Mei'er will be happy to see the meat... I wonder how much the Tai Chu Array will develop from the energy of the meat we ate today..."

While Jiang Xingchen's thoughts wandered, Second Brother turned his head and shouted loudly: "Brother Jiang Ling, are you done yet?" The plate of meat in front of them was empty again.

At the beginning, these people had treated Jiang Xingchen with a slight arrogance, even though he had made excellent roasted ribs, he was still a commoner. The members of the mercenary group were mostly from the side branches of various families and had noble status.

However, when they heard that Mo Hongxian had already cooperated with Jiang Xingchen, their attitude changed immediately. Once the roasted meat was served, the status difference between them disappeared completely, and Jiang Xingchen was directly called Brother Jiang Ling.

"Almost done!" Jiang Xingchen responded, serving the last few slices of meat.

"Hurry up, Brother, you're too slow, can't keep up... Hey!" Second Brother's words were cut off when a wine cup exploded on his head.

He let out a scream, slightly rose, and turned his head to see Mo Hongxian glaring at him. His muscular body quickly shrank back, his hands and feet pulling back involuntarily, as fast as a turtle encountering danger.

The group tried hard to suppress their laughter, their bodies trembling slightly, especially Fourth Brother, whose face turned red. Second Brother's current state was the result of his earlier underhanded move, which Mo Hongxian had remembered even though she hadn't shown it at the time.

Jiang Xingchen's lips twitched. Being hit on the head with a wine cup and not feeling a thing—truly a different world, even the lowest martial power was incomparable to Earth...

"Jiang Ling, can you drink?" Just as Jiang Xingchen brought the roasted meat, Mo Hongxian suddenly asked. Without waiting for his response, she threw a wine flask at him.

"This damn violent woman..." Jiang Xingchen caught the flask in a flurry, didn't respond, and uncapped it, tilting his head back and gulping it down. He wiped his mouth and threw the flask back.

The alcohol, about 20 degrees, was like water to him, used to drinking erguotou. Moreover, he judged that to get along with these mercenaries, he needed to act more generous. The bolder he was, the more they would respect him.

Sure enough, Jiang Xingchen's action stunned Mo Hongxian and the burly men.

"This kid is interesting!" Mo Hongxian watched Jiang Xingchen walk back, her eyes brightening.

Second Brother finally straightened up and said, "Brother Jiang Ling, you're a real man~"

The last word turned into a long nasal sound as he shrank back again, Mo Hongxian already glaring at him.

Jiang Xingchen, facing away from the group, smiled slightly, feeling a bit smug: "Your martial arts may be high, but in drinking, you're far behind..."

However, Jiang Xingchen forgot that his body was no longer that of a college student who could drink a liter of erguotou without falling over.

Next, Mo Hongxian, Wan Rou, and the burly men watched with wide eyes as Jiang Xingchen staggered, deviated from his path, and crashed into the wall, letting out a painful cry as he fell backward.

"Ha ha ha ha..." The courtyard erupted in laughter, Mo Hongxian and the burly men pointing at Jiang Xingchen, holding their bellies, and even shedding tears. Even Wan Rou couldn't hold back, spitting out her mouthful of wine onto Mo Hongxian!

Jiang Xingchen's consciousness remained clear, but his limbs were weak, and his vision was spinning. Lying on the ground, he felt a mix of pain and embarrassment, his forehead throbbing, and he lamented: "Why did I... show off!"

The courtyard of the Purple Thistle Mercenary Group was filled with laughter, but outside, the atmosphere was heavy and tense. The owners of the major restaurants were all present, knowing the value of the secret recipe to remove the gamey smell from the meat. Whoever got it would be like sitting on a vein of yellow crystal coins, just waiting to collect the money.

At that moment, they wished they could immediately grab the commoner boy and use any means to get the secret recipe.

However, in front of them was the Purple Thistle Mercenary Group, and no one dared to act rashly. They could only suppress their anxiety and wait patiently.

The owners of the restaurants that had driven Jiang Xingchen away the previous day were even more depressed, their faces as black as the bottom of a pot. The wealth they had in their hands had flown away, and they felt worse than if they had lost a close relative. Seeing the mocking and sympathetic glances from around, they wished they could immediately grab the staff they had driven away and beat them to vent their anger.

The creaking of the gate breaking the silence, everyone quickly perked up. A burly man walked out and loudly said, "The Rich Glory Restaurant and the Green Garden Restaurant, our captain has invited you!"

The two middle-aged men at the front immediately smiled, leading their chefs and running over, entering the courtyard.

The expressions of the others from the other restaurants darkened, and they helplessly shook their heads, turning to leave. Since Mo Hongxian had invited them in, it meant the secret recipe had been taken over by the Purple Thistle Mercenary Group. The commoner coming out wouldn't yield any results, and纠缠 would definitely bring trouble.

In no time, the courtyard gate was quiet, and the visiting noble merchants were invited into the courtyard to discuss the purchase price of the swordback pig.

Meanwhile, in a room on the east side of the courtyard, Jiang Xingchen lay on the bed, his forehead swollen and bruised.

"This is a huge embarrassment!" The sound of the group's laughter still echoed in his ears. Thinking about the smugness he felt when he drank the entire flask, his face flushed.

Taking a deep breath, Jiang Xingchen stopped thinking about the awkward scene and began to change his breathing method. He had eaten so much meat and drunk alcohol, and he was eager to see how much the Tai Chu Array would develop.

As he applied the breathing method, he felt a heat flow ten times stronger than usual surge from his stomach to his head, followed by fine heat streams converging from all over his body. The Tai Chu Array, nourished by this heat flow, began to spread rapidly. The speed was much faster than Jiang Xingchen had expected.

Neck, shoulders, arms, chest... the complex patterns spread like vines after a rain, becoming denser...

His breathing method became faster, and the Tai Chu Array had already covered his thighs, continuing downward, about to envelop his entire body. The fine heat streams had disappeared, but the heat flow from his stomach continued.

"How can there be so much energy? Could it be because of the top-grade ingredients..." Jiang Xingchen wondered as the Tai Chu Array completely occupied his body.

At that moment, Jiang Xingchen felt a buzzing in his head, and countless neurons, like stars, vibrated intensely. He could almost see the invisible brain waves passing between them.

At this time, the complex patterns of the Tai Chu Array began to fade, not disappearing, but Jiang Xingchen clearly felt the runes merging into his body.

This process was very quick, and in the blink of an eye, the Tai Chu Array was gone. However, Jiang Xingchen had a sense of enlightenment, feeling that he could now control the vibration of the Yuan Spring.

Almost as soon as he thought of it, the Tai Chu Array, the three characters, made the Yuan Spring vibrate intensely. Around his head, a clear ripple appeared and disappeared.

"Success! My guess was right, the Tai Chu Array's function is to activate the Yuan Spring!" Jiang Xingchen was overjoyed. Originally, he thought that even with sufficient food, the development of the Tai Chu Array would take time. But after eating the top-grade ingredients today, the Tai Chu Array had spread throughout his body, activating the Yuan Spring.

However, it wasn't over yet. As Jiang Xingchen rejoiced, the heat flow from his stomach continued to supply his brain, and the mist reappeared, revealing a new complex pattern, imprinted in his mind.

"This is..." Jiang Xingchen calmed down from his joy, staring at the mist, seeing three large characters appear: Sensitivity Array!