Braised Dragon with Soy Sauce

Chapter 282 The Tournament is Approaching

Half an hour later, Yuan Gou's body temperature slowly rose, and his condition began to stabilize. Only then did Alchemist He breathe a sigh of relief. After placing a Spirit Gathering Pill into his mouth, he stopped the treatment.

"Tell me about what happened back then. How come this guy couldn't even beat a teenager? Wasn't he supposed to be one of the most powerful cultivators in this realm? Was that teenager even more extraordinary?" Old Man He pulled the three people who were still waiting in the infirmary aside and asked.

"How can I put it? Compared to that boy's cultivation level, this guy's cultivation level is nothing! He didn't even move, he just waved his hand and beat this guy up like this!" one employee said first.

"You can't say that. This guy's cultivation is quite good. He broke through to the Earth Rank at just over twenty years old, which is already very impressive. He's much stronger than those of us who only broke through to the Earth Rank in our thirties or forties. It's just that this guy is unlucky. He relied on his cultivation to provoke others recklessly, not knowing that there are always people better than him. This time, he kicked a hornet's nest. He doesn't know that there is a type of person who can't be described as a genius but only as a monster. And that young man is a monster among monsters."

"Yes, that young man can only be described as a prodigy among prodigies!"

On the top floor of the academy, Duan Shichen and a group of senior officials working at the academy gathered together to drink tea and chat, with Mo Yuming at the head.

"Young Master, what kind of profound martial arts technique did you use earlier? I'm a bit blind and didn't recognize it." Lu Rongxuan was a scholar known for his academic achievements, but his profound martial arts cultivation was not high. He was only at the advanced level of the Earth Rank and had not yet broken through to the Heaven Rank. Among the elders, his cultivation was relatively low.

"I use a water-based profound technique, which I learned from Elder Chu He some time ago. I don't know why my water-based profound technique is black," Mo Yuming said without hiding anything. Chu He was the most skilled in water-based cultivation among all the elders, already at the fourth level of the Heavenly Rank, placing him among the top five in the Great Xia Empire. Currently, only Ji Xianlin and Shi Potian are on par with him. However, everyone had seen Chu He's profound technique; his spiritual power, when activated, was a deep blue, a very dark color, yet still easily recognizable.

"There's nothing special about it. It just means your elemental spiritual power is purer than Chu He's. The purest water element among the five elements is black. Green wood, black water, white gold, yellow earth, and red fire—these refer to the five most authentic elemental spiritual powers. The blue water spiritual power, golden earth spiritual power, green wood spiritual power, and silver gold spiritual power we usually see are all impure elemental spiritual powers, more or less lacking something or having undergone some mutation." Ji Xianlin, with his extensive knowledge, promptly dispelled everyone's confusion. Among the elders present were several practitioners of water-based profound arts, and their water spiritual power had all undergone mutations.

"I never expected that the young master would actually cultivate genuine water-attribute spiritual power. This is truly a cause for celebration! There are countless people who cultivate water-attribute spiritual power, but how many can cultivate pure water-attribute spiritual power?" Lu Rongxuan said with emotion.

“Authentic water-attribute spiritual power is also called Xuan Water. It possesses all the characteristics of water attributes. It can freeze everything like ice-type Xuan Techniques, and it can also devour like Weak Water Xuan Techniques. It can also melt like Red Water,” Ji Xianlin continued to explain.

This was the first time Mo Yuming had heard of it, which gave him a deeper understanding of elemental spiritual power. He never expected that the water-attribute profound technique he cultivated was actually an extremely authentic water-attribute profound technique.

"Can other ordinary mutated spiritual power be upgraded or advanced to the orthodox attribute?"

This question speaks for everyone.

"Theoretically, it's possible. Take Elder Chuhe, for example. When he first started cultivating, it was a mutated weak water attribute profound technique. After advancing to the Heaven Rank, his water attribute spiritual power underwent an advancement and is now moving closer to the Profound Water attribute. However, no one has yet been found to have successfully and completely advanced to the orthodox attribute; they are only infinitely close. His cultivation has now reached the mid-Heaven Rank level, but he is still half ice attribute and half weak water attribute. He is still very far from the Profound Water attribute."

"However, mutated attribute spiritual power also has its advantages. Cultivating a mutated attribute to its extreme is not much different from the orthodox one. Mutated attribute spiritual power can cultivate a certain characteristic to its extreme, while orthodox attribute spiritual power is more moderate and it is difficult to cultivate to the peak. Therefore, everyone does not need to care about the difference in attributes during cultivation. They should go with the flow and follow their own nature. Only in this way can they break through to a higher realm."

Most of these elders were independent cultivators or came from small aristocratic families. Their knowledge and cultivation level were no match for Ji Xianlin, who came from a large aristocratic family. Although they had accumulated considerable knowledge and experience, even if a family with thousands of years of history had its flaws, it was still far superior to them.

The experience and wealth accumulated by countless generations of powerful figures can at least help future generations avoid many detours on their cultivation path. Their vision and resources far surpass those of others. If it weren't for falling into the canyon for decades, Ji Xianlin's achievements would undoubtedly be even greater given the Ji family's wealth and resources.

This explains why the vast majority of powerful figures in each generation are born into prominent families. This factor also plays a role in the strong support these Heavenly Rank experts have for Mo Yuming's establishment of the academy. The academy's establishment not only educates future generations, but also indirectly resembles those of powerful families, attracting and accumulating various resources and talents, and facilitating academic exchanges. This greatly benefits the cultivation of these Heavenly Rank experts. The longer and more successful the academy, the more solid its foundation becomes, even surpassing some thousand-year-old families in certain aspects.

"Esteemed elders, the Dragon Chef Competition, held every five years, will be held again in less than a year. What are the rules for participating in the Dragon Chef Competition, and what preparations should be made?"

Mo Yuming asked.

"The Feather Emperor Palace holds the Dragon Chef Competition every five years, which is another major event in the Tianxuan Continent besides the opening of the Domain Emperor's Tomb. Cultivators from all over the continent will participate. The rules of the Dragon Chef Competition are that the contestants must be under fifty years old and each team can have a maximum of fifteen contestants. There are no special regulations. The competition is divided into team competition and individual competition. Each team can also lead a team of up to ten assistants. There are no restrictions on the cultivation level or age of the assistants, but they can only prepare raw materials for the contestants from the sidelines and cannot participate in the cooking. They are also not allowed to go on stage to give guidance or assistance."

Ji Xianlin replied.

“Before the Dragon Chef Competition begins each year, the host city is randomly selected from among the five countries, so the location is different every year. The competition is divided into two stages: the preliminary round and the semi-final round. The preliminary round is held in the capital cities of the five countries, and teams that want to participate can choose the one closest to them,” Duan Shichen added.

"To ensure fairness, all team members must wear masks and be provided with uniform competition attire and identification badges by the Feather Palace. The judging panel members will also be randomly assigned by the Feather Palace and will vote remotely," Lu Rongxuan continued.

"Are there any rewards for such a large-scale competition? A single competition requires a huge amount of manpower and resources. It would be a loss if there were no benefits."

"There are rewards, of course, but you have to be in the top eight. For individuals, the rewards are more about the Dragon Chef certification, which is very attractive to people who want to open a hotel and become a head chef."

"This Feather Emperor Palace is really interesting. Instead of competing in profound cultivation techniques or alchemy and weapon crafting, they're holding a cooking competition that has absolutely nothing to do with profound cultivation techniques. Could it be that the leader of the Feather Emperor Palace is a chef? Or a foodie?"

Mo Yuming asked, puzzled. He had transmigrated to this world and, while still in the canyon, had heard much about the Dragon Chef Competition. He assumed the food scene in this world would be incredibly developed, with all sorts of delicious cuisine readily available.

But he later discovered that the food in this world was actually of very low quality. Most restaurants and hotels offered food that was at best just enough to fill one's stomach. Even the food in high-end hotels was of very low quality, inferior in both presentation and taste to the home-cooked meals Mo Yuming usually ate. There was absolutely no concept of color, aroma, or flavor.

The primary method of food preparation in this world is boiling. All kinds of food are boiled. The most common and primary method used by so-called high-level chefs is to add other ingredients during the boiling process to make the cooked food look more varied and have more flavors.

Therefore, the most successful food in the Tianxuan Continent is porridge, and all kinds of porridge can be said to fill the entire Tianxuan Continent.

As for various delicious dishes, forget about it. Even salt, the most commonly used seasoning, doesn't have a good method for refining. Therefore, in each level of culinary competition, whoever refines the purest salt is most likely to win. Even the reclusive Peach Blossom Village, renowned for its gourmets, can only brew a few simple sauces.

Mo Yuming knew that the reason why Peach Blossom Village was able to brew sauce was not because they had any special skills, but because the salt needed to brew sauce just happened to be coarse salt with low purity. This coincidence was accidentally discovered by the ancestors of Peach Blossom Village.

The most popular place for the officials following Mo Yuming is now the Wushuang Hotel and its branches. However, since its construction, Mo Yuming has not seriously managed the Wushuang Hotel. It only has a few signature dishes, which are the signature dishes of Peach Blossom Village, mainly consisting of pickled vegetables. The rest of the dishes are no different from the main cuisines of this world, and most chefs can make them.

However, the same dishes tasted better when prepared by the chefs at all the Fuyuan Hotels and Fushan Restaurants than at other establishments. Therefore, every chain restaurant that Mo Yuming ordered Jia Shan and Master Fu to open in the cities of the five kingdoms was incredibly popular. Even the royal hotels couldn't compare.

The main reason for this is that both Fuyuan Restaurant and Fushan Hotel use refined salt extracted from the canyon, and the pickles are made according to Huang Rongrong's method.

The salt fields in the canyon were originally run by old men like River Master and Water Master. Mo Yuming had planned ahead and never stopped refining salt during the years he spent in the canyon. Over the years, the refined salt filled dozens of warehouses, amounting to at least tens of thousands of kilograms. This refined salt was the best stepping stone to gain access to cities in various countries.

After everyone left the valley, River Master and Water Master, while stationed at Wushuang Castle, would occasionally take turns going down to refine salt. Later, when the young witches went down, they gained a few more helpers, and salt production remained unchanged. However, to prevent these hotels from standing out too much, Mo Yuming added restrictions on the use of salt, ensuring the flavors weren't too outstanding. This was to avoid arousing jealousy from competitors and becoming a target of criticism. Apart from a few signature dishes, other cuisines were not allowed to overuse refined salt. This was because Mo Yuming's primary motivation for establishing hotels in various cities wasn't to make money, but to gather information.

Even with Mo Yuming's efforts to restrain himself, over the years, Fuyuan Restaurant and Fushan Hotel have remained among the most luxurious hotels in the cities of Tianxuan Continent. The few Wushuang Restaurants are even more prestigious, serving as the preferred gathering places for the wealthy and powerful.

Thanks to Jia Shan and Master Fu's excellent management and diplomatic skills, the hotels thrived, experiencing little or no pressure or provocation. Furthermore, Mo Yuming instructed Jia Shan and Master Fu to subtly and intentionally mystify the hotels' background, creating the impression that the owners were a powerful, reclusive family with a thousand-year history. This deterred any envious forces. Especially since the hotels' signature dishes bore a resemblance to those of Peach Blossom Village, many believed the hotels were connected. Peach Blossom Village was one of the seven great families, its power surpassing even the kingdom. Almost no one wanted to offend a thousand-year-old family.

"Although cooking skills may seem unrelated to alchemy, weapon crafting, and cultivation of profound arts on the surface, they are actually closely related. This is because all the utensils needed for cooking must be crafted by weapon craftsmen, and high-quality utensils can greatly assist in cooking. The quality of utensils can have a significant impact on the preparation of dishes."

As for alchemy, it goes without saying that alchemists need to understand the properties of various medicinal herbs, know their interactions and how to combine them to best enhance their medicinal effects. Many ingredients used in cooking can also be used for alchemy, so a chef who understands alchemy will undoubtedly cook more outstanding dishes.

As for the level of one's profound martial arts cultivation, it can also greatly influence a chef's culinary skills. A chef with higher cultivation can more precisely control the heat and knife skills when preparing dishes, and is more confident in handling difficult-to-process ingredients. Therefore, the Dragon Chef Competition is not as simple as it seems on the surface; the competition assesses not only culinary skills but also, more importantly, various other abilities.

"So it turns out to be a contest of financial resources and power. Individuals and independent cultivators who have no resources or limited resources have virtually no hope of winning. Their participation is just a way to make up the numbers."