Walnut used me to boost her sales performance.

After her birthday this year, Hu Tao will be 17 years old.

It'll be here soon.

After finishing their meal, knowing that Jiang Bai and Hu Tao were preparing to leave to visit other parts of Narugami Island, Granny Gui helped Ito pack some clothes, food, medicine for bruises, and bandages.

Since you're going to learn martial arts, these things are all necessary.

The old woman carefully gave Yi Dou some instructions, which sounded a bit nagging, but Yi Dou didn't find it long-winded at all and listened very attentively.

"Yuanta and Ahuang, please take good care of Grandma!"

After putting the items into the basket, Yi Dou gave his two younger brothers some instructions and then said goodbye to the old woman.

"Grandma, I'm leaving now. I'll come back to see you in a while, and by then I'll definitely be invincible in Hanamizaka!"

Ichidou clenched his fist, as if he could already see himself dominating Hanamizaka.

"And that Kujo Tengu, let's have another match next time. I'm sure I won't lose so badly!"

Hearing such unambitious words, Jiang Bai's lips twitched. "I thought you were going to say you were absolutely determined to beat her next time..."

"If it were a sumo wrestling match or eating ramen, I could definitely beat her!"

"The key is that they don't compare themselves to you in this respect..."

Ichidou's face fell slightly, but he put on his boss-like demeanor. "Hmph! When I return after completing my training, those nine tengu will surely be defeated!"

"Very good, that's ambitious!"

"Please be careful on the road..."

The old woman stood at the door, watching the three of them leave.

Leaving Konta Village, Hu Tao picked a blade of grass from the roadside and put it in her mouth, the grass swaying as she walked.

"We're planning to explore Inazuma in two months, so if you come with us, be prepared to endure the elements!"

"It's just about sleeping in the open and eating outdoors. I often take my brothers out to roast violets in the wild." Ichidou didn't seem to care at all.

He doesn't have much other experience, but he has the most experience in wilderness survival.

"Don't worry about food, and nobody needs to worry about not having a place to sleep. The one thing our Rebirth Hall has in abundance is coffins!"

Jiang Bai hooked his arm around Yi Dou's shoulder, a playful look on his face, "If he's fast asleep, we can go straight to him in one step."

Ichidou looked at him in horror, "No way! You're not going to make me sleep in a coffin, are you?! I may be a demon, but I don't sleep in coffins!"

Jiang Bai said mysteriously, "Perhaps you could sleep in my newly developed 'Wangsheng Hall' style outdoor camping bunk bed?"

"What is that?" Ichidou asked innocently.

Jiang Bai's lips curled into a wicked smile, "It's rainproof and windproof, warm and safe. You don't have to worry about outside disturbances while sleeping inside. Whether you're alone in the wild or camping with others, it provides the best sleeping environment... As my second eldest brother, you can experience it for free."

As clever as Hu Tao was, she instantly understood what Jiang Bai was talking about.

To be honest, they initially considered developing this "Wangshengtang version of a simple outdoor camping bedroom," but the difficulty in carrying it out caused the idea to fail quietly from the very first step.

She smiled slyly and, following Jiang Bai's lead, began her sales pitch, "I've personally experienced it, and the comfort is truly unparalleled. You can experience it tonight; I guarantee you'll never forget it, and you'll never be able to live without it in the wild..."

Yi Dou glanced at Jiang Bai, then at Hu Tao, and his intuition told him that something was amiss.

But he was genuinely curious about what they were talking about.

"Since you've all put it that way, I'll condescend to take a nap!"

Chapter 516 Walnut's Dark Cuisine Reappears [Seeking Monthly Tickets]

After joking around the whole way, the three of them arrived at the abandoned shrine that Hana-san had mentioned as evening approached.

"Is this the abandoned shrine that Hana-san was talking about? It really is quite abandoned."

Jiang Bai wiped the dust off the torii gate by the roadside. Because it had been abandoned for a long time, the once bright colors of the torii gate had faded, and a thick layer of dust had settled on it.

"There are so many fox statues here."

A quick glance at Hu Tao revealed three or four fox statues resembling those in Konta Village.

"Be careful, I have a feeling something's not right here..."

Ichidou saw shadowy figures in the bushes.

"Youyou, go check on her." Hu Tao pulled out Little Ghost, who nodded and looked around the area.

Not long after, Little Ghost returned, and the two communicated in a way that Jiang Bai couldn't understand.

You said there were some strange figures?

"Let's go take a look."

With her exceptional skills and daring, Hu Tao went straight to the first figure.

The figure looked very ethereal, as thin as a wisp of smoke, as if it would dissipate with a single breath.

"Strange, it's a bit like a ghost, but not quite..."

Hu Tao frowned, reached out to touch it, and the figure vanished instantly.

"Why would such a figure appear?" Jiang Bai checked the area where the figure appeared but found nothing unusual.

"I don't know, let's go check the next figure."

The second figure was exactly the same as the first, without any difference, and it too dispersed with a single breath.

After looking at several dishes, Hu Tao discovered a clue.

"This may be a kind of image left by the earth's veins."

"Earth vein image? What is that?" Yi Dou was completely bewildered.

"In areas where the earth's veins flow frequently, earth vein projections like these will appear. These projections are mostly left behind by people who were active in this area in the past. For example, they appeared on Wuwang Slope and still exist today..."

Listening to Hu Tao's words, Jiang Bai thought of the ghost village of Wuwangpo.

The village had been abandoned for many years, but from time to time, phantom figures would appear, as if they were still alive, doing the things they used to do.

Those who didn't know the truth thought it was a ghost, and some even dared to hold a test of courage there.

In fact, those are just projections of the earth's veins and are not harmful.

Jiang Bai gave Yi Dou a detailed explanation of the concept of earth veins and some common anomalies caused by earth veins.

This knowledge may seem like common sense, but apart from scholars, there are not many people who truly understand or have studied it.

Most of them, like Yi Dou, only know that there is such a thing as ley lines, but have no idea what their specific function is.

Jiang Bai was lucky to have met Hu Tao and Zhong Li; otherwise, he might not have learned these common-sense facts for a long time.

Jiang Bai reached into each of the statues and touched them, but he didn't find the talisman. Instead, he found a book.

""Shenying Dazu Essentials"?"

He opened it and flipped through it; the text was somewhat profound, and he couldn't quite understand it.

"Let me see." Hu Tao took it.

"It records the rituals, methods, incantations, and so on required for the Divine Cherry Blossom Great Purification..."

"The impurities we purify in Konta Village are called 'Great Purification,' right?"

"That's right, but what we did was just a simple minor purification. According to the book, a true major purification cleanses the entire Divine Cherry Tree of all its accumulated impurities, which is extremely complex."

Jiang Bai looked at the Narukami Shrine atop the distant mountain, somewhat speechless, and once again uttered a complaint:

"Well, you've entrusted us with such an important and complicated task. Yae no Miko is really bold."

"Never mind that for now, it's getting late, let's find a place to cook, rest, and sleep."

Hu Tao had no intention of resting in that abandoned shrine. Resting there would require cleaning, and there was someone nearby who could build houses on a whim, so why bother?

Jiang Bai found a sheltered open space, snapped his fingers, and tables, chairs, and benches sprang up on the spot, just like when he was home.

"Wow! Ah Bai, you've been hiding your true strength!"

Yi Dou stared at Jiang Bai in shock, only then realizing that his little brother was also a possessor of the Eye of God and could use elemental power!

Jiang Bai waved his hand smugly, "Those are just some small tricks. You haven't seen how good I am yet!"

Yi Dou's face came right up to Jiang Bai's, almost touching him. He glared at Jiang Bai angrily, "You actually kept this from the boss for so long!"

Jiang Bai was startled and took a step back, putting some distance between them.

He's not the head of the hall, why is he getting so close!

Jiang Bai spread his hands, looking completely innocent. "I didn't deliberately hide it. It's just that there was no use for it. Besides, this is the Eye Hunting Order, so of course the Eye of God has to be hidden."

What a joke! He can use not only Geo power, but also Wind and Lightning!

I'm not telling you, I'm not telling you!

Slightly!

"Hmph, boss, I'll mercifully forgive you."

"There's a stream nearby, Yi Dou, go catch two fish. Today, I'll let you taste my cooking skills!" With the fire lit, Hu Tao rolled up his sleeves, ready to get to work.

Seeing Hu Tao's posture, Jiang Bai recalled the culinary disaster Hu Tao had made back in Guyun Pavilion.

Hu Tao was in a similar situation at the time, and he almost died there.

He shivered and quickly said, "Master, you rest. I'm in good shape today, I'll do it!"

Hu Tao put her hands on her hips, her eyebrows furrowed, and said, "What? Don't you want to eat the food I, the head of this hall, cook?"

"No, no, I was just worried about tiring the hall master..." A bead of cold sweat appeared on Jiang Bai's forehead.

Judging from Hu Tao's posture, she's definitely going to make some culinary disasters today.

Dishes made with walnuts, while not the best-tasting, are mostly edible.

But whenever she tries to research something new, it inevitably turns out to be a disaster.

"I learned a unique skill of cooking fish from Wan Ye on the ship, and I'll show you how today!"

"Go and see if there's any singing grass around here, and also pick some violets and mint..."

Jiang Bai had these things on him, so he just took them out.

Yi Dou quickly caught two fish, the lively fish stubbornly flapping their tails in his hand, trying to escape.

"The fish are here! The fish are here!"

Walnut simply removed the scales from the fish, took out the gallbladder, and began to work.

"Use violets to color the fish, add mint for a refreshing feel, and some swaying grass for a crackling thunder effect..."

Looking at the purple fish and purple soup in the pot, Jiang Bai silently took a few steps back, wanting to turn around and run away.

Walnut put the pot of fish into a bowl and even added a sprig of mint as a garnish.

She was very satisfied with her work.

"This dish is called 'Auspicious Purple Qi Comes from the East'! Who wants to try it first?"

Looking at Yi Dou, who had long since retreated to the side, and then at the hall master's excited eyes, Jiang Bai swallowed hard.

He picked up a piece of fish and walked over to Yi Dou, pinching Yi Dou's cheek with one hand.

"The master's cooking is excellent, especially his unique ideas. Boss, why are you standing so far back? Come and have a taste!"

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P.S.: Last day of the month! Please vote with your monthly tickets!

Chapter 517 How to appease the angry sect leader? Awaiting answer online!

Yidou kept his mouth tightly shut, staring in horror at the purple fish meat brought to his lips, his entire body screaming rejection.

Jiang Bai pinched his cheeks, trying to pry his mouth open. "Open your mouth! The sect leader worked so hard to make this, and you don't want to eat it?"

"Better to die than for me, brother! Please test the poison for me first!"

Unable to break free, Yi Dou's mouth was forcibly pried open.

The fish meat instantly entered his mouth, and when it touched the tip of his tongue, he felt a jolt.