A Bite of Douluo Continent

This Ginkgo biloba, known for its poetry and etiquette, actually has the magical effect of enhancing mental strength?

Yu Lianxin's eyes lit up, and a look of surprise appeared on her face.

This increase in spiritual power is negligible for beings of Cao Rang and Tang Qianqiu's strength, but it is considerable for Yu Lianxin, who is at the eighth ring level; it is enough for at least half a month of arduous training.

It should be understood that there are only cultivation methods for soul power in this world, not for mental power. Even for mental-type soul masters who have stronger mental power, the only difference is that their mental power naturally grows faster than that of ordinary soul masters.

They also lack a systematic method for cultivating spiritual power.

Only by cultivating soul power and training mental strength through meditation can one enhance their mental strength by nurturing the sea of ​​spirit as soul power increases.

Therefore, compared with the cultivation of soul power, the cultivation of mental power is much more difficult, and even rare and precious natural treasures that can enhance mental power are extremely scarce.

Qi Han's Ginkgo biloba, which is said to enhance mental strength, was quite unexpected for Yu Lianxin.

If she can increase her mental strength this much, then what about the other inner and outer court participants...?

Yu Lianxin suddenly turned her head and looked at the contestants who hadn't yet tasted the Ginkgo biloba and were looking in her direction with longing eyes.

If they all consume a portion of the Poetry and Etiquette Ginkgo, the strength of the entire Shrek Academy's participating teams will likely increase significantly in a short period of time.

Chapter 125 The Core of Hot Pot

Just as Yu Lianxin had predicted, as the Qin sisters brought out one serving after another of the Ginkgo biloba soup, the Shrek Academy team members were finally able to enjoy it to their heart's content.

"Senior Sister... my mental strength has increased by about three percent!"

The speaker was a female disciple from the inner court sitting on the other side of Yu Lianxin, named Yun Ruo.

The Shrek Academy team consisted of eight boys and six girls. The eight boys were seated at two separate tables, while the six girls, along with Yu Lianxin, made up a total of seven people sitting at the other two tables.

At Yu Lianxin's table, there were only three people: herself, Fuya, and Yunruo.

Yun Ruo is a powerful offensive weapon spirit master, and a rare ranged powerful offensive type. Her spirit is a weapon spirit called Azure Moon Bow. Although she is not a spirit master of the mental type, improving her mental strength is very important for enhancing her strength.

Increased mental strength can enhance a Soul Master's control over Soul Power. For Yun Ruo, after her mental strength is improved, she can more easily lock onto enemies and shoot sharper, more concentrated arrows, which greatly enhances her own strength.

No wonder she was so excited.

For the other team members, the improvement in strength brought about by the enhancement of mental power may not be as great as that of Yun Ruo, but there is no doubt that they all showed expressions of shock and joy after eating the Ginkgo biloba.

I just came here for a delicious meal, and unexpectedly my strength improved. It was truly a pleasant surprise.

However, their attention quickly shifted from their own mental strength enhancement to the protagonist who was about to appear.

After the crab-stuffed orange and the Ginkgo biloba soup, the hot pot finally arrived, placed by the Qin sisters in the large hole that had been deliberately left in the middle of each table.

After setting down the hot pot, Qin Yue and Qin Yao turned on the high-tech heating device that came with the hot pot table, and then began to introduce the different types of broth to the diners.

Yu Lianxin opened her eyes wide, looking curiously at the huge bronze pot in front of her.

With Qin Yue's introduction, the soup base in the copper pot matched the soup bases that the three of them had ordered.

Yu Lianxin, Fuya, and Yunruo ordered a combination pot of sukiyaki, seafood, and spicy broth, so the copper pot in front of them was divided into three sections.

A thin metal sheet divides the entire copper pot in two, while in the very center of the pot, a small circular area avoids the division by the metal sheet, forming its own part and dividing the entire copper pot into three parts.

The section on the left is bright red, a color somewhat similar to that of candied hawthorn berries. However, the oil floating on the surface and the faint spiciness clearly tell the three women that the broth here is not only not sweet, but may also be very spicy.

Without a doubt, this red broth is a spicy hot pot.

The section on the right has a plain, light yellow broth with a semi-transparent color. Although it doesn't have much of an aroma, just looking at the broth is very tempting.

That's the broth for sukiyaki.

In the small circular section in the middle, there is a slightly milky white broth. The broth is a little thick, and when you smell it up close, you can feel as if the sea breeze is blowing in front of you. The unique freshness of seafood is very obvious.

The seafood hot pot is located in the very center.

Next, Qin Yue took three pairs of hot pot ladles and placed them in the three sections. Each pair of hot pot ladles consisted of a soup ladle and a strainer. Although there had never been a strainer in Douluo Continent, one could tell at a glance that this kind of utensil was probably used to scoop food out of the hot pot.

"Please wait a moment, the ingredients will be here soon." After introducing the hot pot, Qin Yue turned around and went back downstairs to continue serving the dishes.

Seeing Qin Yue leave, the three women immediately became interested in exploring. The pot in front of Yu Lianxin was a spicy hot pot. She picked up the strainer in the hot pot and gently stirred it in the bottom of the pot. Soon, a strange expression appeared on her face.

There seems to be nothing in the bottom of this pot except for broth?

Is this even edible?

Yu Lianxin glanced at the other soup ladle in the pot, carefully scooped up a little bit, and brought it close to her mouth and nose.

The spicy sensation suddenly intensified, making her swallow hard.

How about we try a little?

Just a little bit!

So she poured the soup from her spoon into the bowl and drank it all in one gulp.

"Cough, cough, cough!"

Yu Lianxin suddenly felt her eyes redden, her mouth burning, and a tingling sensation spreading through her.

So spicy!

She glanced at a kettle on the table, poured herself a glass without hesitation, and drank it down in one gulp. Only then did she feel the burning sensation in her mouth subside a bit and become slightly bearable.

It was only at this moment that Yu Lianxin realized the deliciousness of the soup base beyond just the numbing and spicy sensations.

This soup base...

After smacking her lips twice, Yu Lianxin's eyes lit up.

Although she hadn't officially started eating yet, she could already imagine how delicious the ingredients cooked in this flavorful and spicy broth would be.

Sure enough, Qi Han's cooking skills are always reliable.

Unlike Yu Lianxin, Fuya chose to try the seafood hot pot. Her family lived in a coastal city, so she was naturally more familiar with seafood and was extremely interested in it.

Of the three hot pot bases, the seafood hot pot was the one she recommended.

Following Yu Lianxin's eating method, Fuya carefully scooped up a little bit of the seafood hot pot broth with a soup spoon, poured it into her bowl, and then took a small sip. Her eyes suddenly lit up.

The delicious flavors of various seafood, including fish, shellfish, and shrimp, flooded her mouth. With her familiarity with food, she could only distinguish one or two types of seafood that she recognized from this mixed flavor. As for the rest, they were all types of seafood that she could not identify.

How can there be so many different seafood flavors when there's nothing in the pot?

The boss is really amazing!

The ingredients hadn't been served yet, and many people, like Yu Lianxin and Fuya, were curious enough to try the soup base. They soon discovered that there was something special about it.

Even though there's nothing there but soup, you can still taste all sorts of delicious flavors.

This is also the difference between the complete guide to hot pot bases that Qi Han obtained from the system and the normal hot pot on Blue Star.

In the hot pot broth of Lanxing, various ingredients are often added. One purpose of these ingredients is to make the broth look appealing and prevent it from appearing empty, which would make people lose their appetite. On the other hand, hot pots in many places are served full because the ingredients in the broth are also edible.

For example, Chongqing's tripe hot pot.

However, among all the hot pot bases provided by the system, the ingredients used to make the soup base will be discarded after cooking, leaving only a pure and rich soup base. There is no need to worry about the soup base being empty, because the soup base made through the improved cooking process is already tempting enough on its own.

This kind of hot pot broth itself isn't very edible, but it enhances the process of cooking ingredients. Perhaps in the system's philosophy, the core of hot pot lies in the word "cooking".

Chapter 126 Yu Lianxin's First Hot Pot Experience

The preparation of ingredients was slightly slower than that of the hot pot base, but it didn't keep the diners waiting too long. Soon, the Qin sisters brought out the exquisitely prepared and plated ingredients and placed them on the shelf next to the table in the order the diners ordered, so that they could take what they wanted.

Yu Lianxin picked up a small dish of delicate ingredients and examined it carefully.

The ingredient was placed in a small glass dish. It looked somewhat like a white paste, slightly transparent, and you could vaguely see that it was made from a mixture of many ingredients. Qi Han arranged the paste into the shape of a leaf, which looked very cute.

This is...

Yu Lianxin felt that the dish looked familiar. She seemed to have seen a similar ingredient on the menu earlier. She casually flipped through the menu and quickly found the relevant information about the ingredient.

Shrimp paste: Made from the specialty green prawns of Lanbo City, the shrimp are shelled and pounded thousands of times. Egg whites and other ingredients are added to shape the paste, giving the shrimp a crisp texture.

How to eat: Use a small spoon to shape the shrimp paste into small balls about two fingers wide, put them into the pot, and remove them as soon as they float to the surface. If left for too long, it will affect the taste.

So that's how it is. When Yu Lianxin looked at the shrimp paste again, the faint blue color inside was clearly the unique blue markings on the meat of the blue brocade shrimp.

Picking up the small plate, Yu Lianxin carefully used a small spoon to slowly separate the shrimp paste into small balls about two fingers wide on the plate, as instructed on the menu. Then, she gently dropped them into the spicy hot pot in front of her.

A few minutes later, a smile appeared on her face. The shrimp paste had floated to the surface, round and plump, with a light red broth on its surface.

After cooking, the shrimp paste was no longer a slightly bluish-white color, but turned into a light shrimp red. Yu Lianxin dared not delay for too long, fearing that the shrimp paste would not taste good if left for too long. She quickly used a slotted spoon to scoop up the shrimp paste one by one and put them into her, Fuya's, and Yunruo's dipping sauce.

"Come on, try the shrimp paste and see how it tastes."

Yu Lianxin felt quite accomplished, after all, she could say she cooked the shrimp paste herself.

Hmm... I followed the instructions on the menu, and it wasn't difficult at all.

But this was the first time she had ever cooked, even though her father was a chef!

"Thank you, Senior Sister!" x2

Faced with the polite thanks from the two junior students, Yu Lianxin smiled, picked up a shrimp ball from her dipping dish with her chopsticks, coated it with the sauce, and took a small bite.

Yu Lianxin made her own dipping sauce. After referring to the recipe for oil-based dipping sauce, she added less sesame oil and more of her favorite beef sauce, so it wasn't too greasy.

With just a few chews, the bouncy and tender texture of the shrimp paste in her mouth surprised Yu Lianxin. The dipping sauce, a mixture of beef sauce and various other sauces, was incredibly delicious. Combined with the numbing and spicy flavor of the hot pot and the fresh taste of the shrimp paste itself, the three flavors gradually blended together during the chewing process, creating an unparalleled feast for the taste buds.

good to eat!

Yu Lianxin ate the remaining half of the shrimp paste in one bite, continuing to savor the bouncy and delicious shrimp paste, her eyes narrowing in satisfaction.

Perhaps because Yu Lianxin personally prepared both the dipping sauce and added the shrimp paste, she not only found the shrimp paste particularly delicious, but also felt a great sense of accomplishment while eating it.

That's probably what makes hot pot so special.

Yu Lianxin suddenly realized.

These green prawns are a specialty of Blue Wave City and are considered a rare ingredient. They are not particularly plentiful, and their status is roughly equivalent to that of the hairy crabs of Blue Star.

A serving of shrimp paste isn't expensive, perhaps because the raw material is just ordinary sea shrimp. Such ingredients have a systematic and professional breeding cost that isn't too high, so it only costs two Silver Soul Coins per serving. A serving of shrimp paste can be rolled into about ten shrimp paste balls that are two fingers wide, which is quite a lot, and the price-performance ratio is still very good.

Yu Lianxin kept four for herself and gave the rest to her two junior classmates. Soon, her dipping dish was empty again.

Suppressing her urge to order another serving of shrimp paste, Yu Lianxin quickly turned her attention to another ingredient.