A Bite of Douluo Continent

Slowly retracting his soul ring, Qi Han steadied himself before turning his attention to the main quest five, which he had already completed.

"receive!"

Without a second thought, Qi Han clicked to claim the +5 Soul Power. A surge of heat coursed through his meridians, and in that instant, Qi Han's Soul Power jumped several levels from level 22 to level 27.

Feeling the increasingly powerful soul force within his body, Qi Han smiled slightly.

The remaining two rewards left Qi Han with a dilemma.

3 random recipes and 1 three-star random recipe.

Qi Han is now a junior chef, and can randomly obtain recipes starting from two stars, and even has a chance to obtain three stars. Three-star random recipes are guaranteed to appear.

Both are quite good, but having learned from the lesson of hiding a sheep in the fish's belly, Qi Han is now worried about getting stuck on a difficult recipe and being unable to learn other recipes.

"System, can I use it first, extract only the recipes, and then choose one to enter the training space after all the recipes have been extracted?"

The system paused briefly before speaking.

【Can. 】

Then there's no problem.

Qi Han perked up and chose the three-star random recipe without hesitation.

Come on! Let me see what three-star recipes you come up with.

A purple roulette wheel appeared in front of Qi Han. The wheel spun rapidly and then suddenly stopped. The color block selected by the pointer suddenly enlarged, and a lifelike picture appeared in front of Qi Han.

Qing Dynasty Imperial Blessing Meat.jpg

Qi Han's pupils suddenly contracted. It was this dish?

The ultimate way to cook pork belly: Imperial Blessing Pork Belly from the Qing Dynasty!

[Samsung Recipe: Qing Dynasty Imperial Braised Pork Belly with Ten Thousand Blessings, prepared by Shandong native Zhao Guibao at Empress Dowager Cixi's 60th birthday banquet. Through multiple processes including steaming, boiling, cooking, frying, and braising, all the fat in the pork belly was rendered out, making it rich yet not greasy. Even regular consumption would not cause weight gain, making it a favorite of Empress Dowager Cixi and her concubines, who spontaneously named it "Braised Pork Belly with Ten Thousand Blessings."]

[Special effects of Qing Dynasty Imperial Blessing Meat: It can cure all chronic and stubborn illnesses after consumption.]

[Price of Qing Dynasty Imperial Blessing Meat: 1200 Gold Soul Coins/serving]

hiss...

Qi Han couldn't help but gasp.

It can completely cure chronic and stubborn diseases, almost like treating the root cause of the disease and bringing the patient back to health with miraculous skill.

This is not as simple as ordinary healing.

Forcibly suppressing his excitement, Qi Han accepted three randomly dropped recipes, intending to see what other surprises awaited him.

Four-colored roulette wheels appeared and spun rapidly under Qi Han's tense gaze. Soon, the random results appeared.

Two-star recipe: Crab-stuffed Orange.jpg

Two-star recipe: Ginkgo biloba.jpg

Samsung recipe: Boiled cabbage in clear broth.jpg

Crab-stuffed orange is a specialty dish of Suzhou and Hangzhou. It has an innovative preparation method, a fresh and fragrant taste, and a unique aroma. The umami of the crab and the sweet and sour taste of the orange are perfectly blended together, making this dish sure to be loved by diners.

Moreover, Qi Han thought that she might like this dish too.

A beautiful figure slowly emerged in Qi Han's mind, and he couldn't help but smile.

Poetry and Etiquette Ginkgo belongs to Shandong cuisine and is one of the dishes of the Confucius Mansion.

Confucius cuisine is renowned for its exquisite and luxurious ingredients, with dishes such as Buddha Jumps Over the Wall and Eight Immortals Crossing the Sea to Make Arhats Celebrate. As one of the famous dishes of the Confucius family, the Poetry and Etiquette Ginkgo dish has almost no flaws except that it should not be eaten in large quantities.

Ginkgo, also known as white fruit, is slightly toxic. You should not eat more than ten at a time, otherwise you will experience poisoning symptoms.

[This system has hybridized ginkgo fruits with plants native to the Douluo Continent, removing their toxicity. Please feel free to consume them.]

Oh, that's okay.

What surprised Qi Han the most was the three-star recipe: boiled cabbage in clear broth.

Qi Han had previously tested the system once, but the system wasn't stupid and didn't put this dish among the one-star vegetables, which greatly disappointed Qi Han.

Recipes drop randomly, starting at two stars, but the probability of getting two stars is extremely high; the probability of getting three stars or higher is very low.

Although Qi Han was hoping for the best, he never expected to receive such a famous dish from a state banquet.

Yes, the seemingly ordinary name "Boiled Cabbage in Clear Broth" actually represents a top-tier Sichuan dish worthy of being served at state banquets.

[Samsung Recipe: Boiled Cabbage in Clear Broth, created by Sichuanese chef Huang Jinglin during his time in the Qing Dynasty imperial kitchen. Huang Jinglin later brought the recipe back to Sichuan, where it became widely popular. Later, Sichuan cuisine master Luo Guorong further refined it, making it a delicacy served at state banquets. The finished dish is delicately flavorful, with a rich and mellow aroma, a thick broth, and is neither oily nor greasy, yet refreshingly delicious.]

[Special effect of Boiled Cabbage in Clear Broth: Consuming this cabbage will trigger a cleansing effect during the next meditation session, increasing innate soul power level by 1 (can only be triggered three times per person).]

[Boiled Cabbage in Clear Broth Price: 1000 Gold Soul Coins/Serving]

The system's introduction arrived late, and Qi Han's pupils dilated instantly.

Wow, this special effect...

A +1 to innate soul power level represents an effect akin to a complete transformation, enhancing the soul master's inherent aptitude and future potential—a truly terrifying transformation.

Fortunately, the special effect of Boiled Cabbage in Clear Broth can only be activated three times per person; otherwise, if everyone could become a genius with innate full soul power, the entire Douluo Continent would probably go crazy.

After collecting all the rewards, Qi Han suppressed his excitement at receiving two three-star recipes and turned to look at the new task. What he saw immediately stunned him.

What happened...?

These three new tasks...

It seems like they're all related to opening new stores?

"System? My shop in Shrek City is doing just fine, why would I need to open a new one?"

[Leaving your comfort zone starts with me.]

"What the hell?! Leaving your comfort zone!" Qi Han's face twitched.

Look at this time-limited mission! I have to arrive in Star Luo City and choose a store location within three days. It's practically urging me to leave Shrek City as soon as possible.

"System, tell me honestly, why did this kind of task appear?"

I have a feeling that this was premeditated.

[Because Star Luo City is about to host the once-every-five-years All-Continent Advanced Soul Master Academy Tournament, this grand event, held every five years, will inevitably attract a massive influx of people from across the continent. By traveling to Star Luo City now, you can quickly increase your shop's influence throughout the entire Douluo Continent.]

That's more or less.

Qi Han nodded knowingly. With this reason in mind, Qi Han understood why a new store was inexplicably opened in Xingluo City.

Speaking of which... Fuya seemed to have mentioned before that she would represent Shrek Academy in this Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Battle Tournament?

What a coincidence!

(Quick access to today's recommendation votes; requesting monthly votes on the last day of September)

Chapter 109 Departure (Sixth update before publication)

Afterwards, Qi Han checked the rewards for the three tasks and nodded in satisfaction.

After completing these three tasks, you will receive a total of 5 randomly dropped recipes, 2 three-star random recipes, +3 Soul Power level, and 3 three-star selectable recipe fragments.

As for system customization...

Let's consider this a reward, shall we?

Qi Han remembered that one of the prerequisites for being promoted to intermediate chef was mastering five three-star recipes.

He currently only knows one recipe: mutton stuffed in a fish's belly. He's already acquired the Qing Dynasty Imperial Braised Pork and Boiled Cabbage in Clear Broth; he just needs a lot of time to train in the training space. Plus, there are the two three-star random recipes he'll get after completing these three tasks...

The intermediate chef finally saw a glimmer of hope.

Of course, not to mention how long it would take to practice the four three-star recipes, all the other prerequisites are currently a long way off.

Therefore, this glimmer of hope... was truly only a sliver.

It's better than nothing, I suppose.

Qi Han shrugged and walked out of the training space.

Three shop assistants were already waiting at the door.

...

"Good afternoon, boss!" The three girls greeted Qi Han in unison as they entered the shop. Qi Han closed the shop door, a smile spreading across his face.

The three employees were already very familiar with the shop. After glancing at the menu and confirming that there were no new dishes, they all told Qi Han the work meals they had been wanting for a long time.

Qi Han nodded to indicate that he understood, then went into the kitchen and quickly brought out the three women's work meals.

"Fuya, what's wrong?"

Seeing Ying Shuangshuang and Ji Yunruo engrossed in their meal, but Fuya hesitated to pick up her chopsticks, her expression somewhat uncertain. Qi Han couldn't help but ask her a question out of curiosity.

"Um... Boss, I might not be able to come to work at the shop for a long time starting tomorrow."

Upon hearing this, Ying Shuangshuang and Ji Yunruo subconsciously slowed down their chopstick movements.

Qi Han was slightly taken aback, as this was somewhat unexpected. However, he quickly realized something and tentatively asked, "Is it because of the Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Battle Tournament?"

“Yes.” Fuya nodded. She had mentioned being selected by the academy a few times before, so she wasn’t surprised that Qi Han had guessed it. “Tomorrow I will be heading to Star Luo City with the Shrek Academy team to participate in the competition. The competition will last for about a month, so I probably won’t be able to work at the shop for the next month.”

Qi Han smiled and said, "It's nothing."

I originally planned to announce it after the three girls finished their working lunch, but since Fuya has already brought it up, I might as well say it now.

Thinking of this, Qi Han pondered for a few seconds before slowly speaking, "In fact, the shop will probably be closed again starting tomorrow, so Shuangshuang and Yunruo don't need to come tomorrow."

Eh?

Upon hearing this, the three women were all taken aback.

Fuya, however, quickly realized what was going on and asked, "Boss, are you asking for leave to go out?"

After all, I had taken ten days off before.

"Yes, but I don't know how long I'll be on leave this time." Qi Han smiled wryly. "I plan to open a new store in Xingluo City and operate there for a while, so I won't be opening a store here for the time being."

"Star Luo City?" Fuya exclaimed softly. Wasn't that the same destination as hers?

"Hmm." Qi Han nodded. "Star Luo City is about to host the Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Battle Tournament. At that time, people from all over the continent will flock there, so I plan to open a shop there for a while to increase the shop's popularity."