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Chapter 299 - Essence Dormancy
🕑 Added 2025-04-28 07:00:25 +0000 UTCLumine was shocked. Can a normal chef in the Foundation Building Realm cook all of these high-level demonic beasts in a day or two and have heavenly taste? Impossible! Only a skilled Spirit Gourmet Maestro could achieve this. Her jaw tightened, disbelief swirling in her mind as she stared at Valenia. Her fingers twitched, itching to disprove the ridiculous claim.
A normal chef without the skill and knowledge of a Spirit Gourmet Maestro would take weeks to cook all of these unless they had a higher cultivation level. Demonic beast meats, whether boiled or roasted without any seasoning, usually tasted fine—plain but edible.
However, to have delicious taste, it must be prepared properly, or the huge essence energy contained within would just destroy its original and additional flavors. Therefore, an extra preparation step was needed to make the essence energy dormant before cooking. For a normal chef, this essence-dormancy process would take around a week compared to only a few hours if done by a Spirit Gourmet Maestro. However, because the cooking process took so long for a normal chef, some of the essence might break out of dormancy, affecting the taste slightly.
Are they lying? No, they didn't seem like they were lying. It's not impossible for a normal chef to discover and develop any of the essence-dormancy methods used by Spirit Gourmet Maestros. There had been many such cases in the past. If that young lady could cook these high-level demonic beasts as fast as the redhead claimed, then that young lady had quite the talent as a chef.
However, this is where the chasm lies. Only a Spirit Gourmet Maestro's skill and knowledge could bring out the best of each ingredient's flavor, entering the realm of heavenly taste! Lumine's eyes narrowed, a spark of realization igniting her thoughts. A triumphant smirk tugged at her lips, the puzzle snapping into place.
Hahaha. That's it! I've solved the mystery! Since that young lady can cook the demonic beast meat quickly, the essence must not have reawakened yet, thus not affecting the flavors! This is why it tasted better than what other chefs could do. They might have thought it tasted heavenly, unaware of the real heavenly flavor if prepared by a Spirit Gourmet Maestro. A smug little laugh bubbled up in her chest, her confidence surging back.
Cheh, it was just a misunderstanding. Makes sense. They don't have Spirit Gourmet Maestros over there, so how could they know what real heavenly flavors taste like? Since that was the case, as a master-level Spirit Gourmet Maestro, I shall educate this redhead bumpkin about what true heavenly flavor tastes like! Her chest puffed out, pride swelling as she mentally prepared to dazzle them.
Lumine looked up at the piled demonic beasts. Ugh, although the amount is a bit exaggerated, it is still within my capability. She sighed inwardly, already calculating the effort it'd take, but her resolve didn't waver.
A moment later, a big, proud smile returned to Lumine's face.
"Fine. I'll do it. I'll compensate for my mistake with my gourmet skills. Let's find a suitable place to settle first, unless you don't mind eating food full of sand dust," Lumine said. Her voice carried a newfound swagger, ready to prove her point with every bite.
"Alright, there's a ruined ancient city nearby. We can go there and find a good place to cook," Valenia said.
"What?? Is that true? We haven't found a single settlement yet all this time," the ladies were shocked and looked at each other in surprise. Their voices buzzed with sudden excitement, heads turning in unison.
"That's great, yaa. Maybe we can finally find more information about this place," Ayaya became excited. Her hands clasped together, a spark of curiosity lighting her face.
Ziana nodded, agreeing with Ayaya. She was no longer in her armored suit.
"Good, very good. It's finally time to proceed to the next chapter of my adventure in the lost world of the Mystic Realm. Hopefully, the climax of this chapter will be the reunion with my spirit beasts," Megumin said, dramatic as usual. Her arms swept outward, as if she were narrating to an invisible crowd.
Valenia's eyes widened. Her heart sank. She realized she had just made a big blunder by blurting out about the city.
Arrghh! Why did I tell them? I haven't finished looting everything yet! If we go to the city, sooner or later they'll also notice all the hidden safes and vaults. I can't keep everything to myself anymore… sigh… this is what happens when you talk too much… Leyvi and Madam would tease and laugh at me if they knew about this.
Valenia felt depressed.
"Alright, redhead. Where's the city? Lead the way," Lumine said.
"Stop calling me redhead! My name is Valenia!" she snapped.
Slashy looked at his mistress with concern. He could sense that she was feeling down.
The ladies were speechless. Why did she suddenly get angry? She was fine with "redhead" previously. They exchanged puzzled glances, caught off guard by the shift.
"Jeez, calm down, VALENIA. No need to get angry. What's wrong with calling you a redhead when you have red hair? It's not like you introduced yourself before," Lumine said.
Valenia sighed. It was her mistake, and it had already happened. No need to get angry at other people. Is this what happens when people become greedy? Easily consumed by emotion? Her breath steadied, a flicker of self-awareness cutting through her gloom.
Leyvi's goofy image suddenly appeared in her mind. Now that she thought about it, she had never seen her husband showing any greed for anything. Is that why he's always happy-go-lucky, goofing around? Maybe.
"You're right. I apologize. Let's go to the city. This way," Valenia apologized with a slight bow. She then turned around, stored the demonic beasts again, and moved in the direction she came from.
Lumine blinked. Weird, I thought she would retort back. She calmed down pretty quick.
And so, Valenia brought them to the ruined ancient city.
When they arrived, they immediately noticed that all the debris and remains had been swept away from the ruined buildings, indicating someone had done a thorough inspection. The cleared patches stood out starkly against the city's decay.
The ladies immediately looked at Valenia with questioning expressions.
With such intense gazes behind her, how could she not be aware? So she felt it was better to tell them everything so she wouldn't become a target. In any case, she had gained plenty already. It was a pity that she couldn't surpass her madam's wealth due to this. A small sigh escaped her.
"Ahem, no need to stare that much. I've only explored this district. There are other districts as well where you can treasure hunt. However, since I brought you ladies here, I want something from your findings," Valenia said.
"Oh my spirit beasts… I'm about to be extorted. How could I survive after this?" Megumin acted again. Her hands flew to her face, a theatrical gasp echoing her usual flair.
"What do you want?" Saloma asked with a light tone. Her mental energy had recovered, so the uncomfortable feeling had disappeared as well, making her mood better again.
"If you ladies find any intact broadswords, please give them to me," Valenia replied. Her eyes lit up briefly, the familiar spark of her broadsword obsession flickering back to life.
"Ayaa? That's it? Alright then," Ayaya agreed.
"No problem," Ziana said.
Saloma and Megumin nodded, showing agreement.
"What if we don't find any broadswords?" Lumine asked. Her brow arched.
"That's fine then. I'm not really interested in other things. Oh wait, my madam is an alchemist. If you find alchemy formulas or alchemy techniques, please share them with me," Valenia requested when she remembered halfway.
"Okay, sure. Nobody here is an alchemist, so it's not a big deal," Lumine nodded.
She then turned to the other ladies. "You guys don't go treasure hunting yet! Let me finish my cooking first. Agree?"
"Ah… my riches… I can't wait anymore… ladies, tie me up so I don't go secretly… my spirit beasts would be disappointed with my lack of self-control," Megumin wailed. Her arms flopped dramatically, as if she were already bound by invisible ropes.
Lumine ignored her. "Alright, good, everyone agrees." She faced Valenia again. "Give me the demonic beasts."
Valenia brought out the demonic beast carcasses again and let Lumine take them.
Without wasting time, Lumine went to a suitable, empty wide place and cleaned the area first. After that, she brought out all sorts of cooking equipment, from small utensils to cookware and appliances as large as the demonic beast.
Lumine picked up a beautifully designed blade and studied the anatomy of the demonic beasts carefully before she started to flay and section them into parts. Her movements were precise, each cut deliberate and graceful, a dance of skill unfolding before them.
Next, Lumine began the essence-dormancy process, her hands glowing faintly with Qi as she pressed them against the meat. She channeled a rhythmic pulse of energy into each section, calming the wild essence within to prevent it from overpowering the flavors. With a deft twist of her wrist, she infused a subtle mix of spiritual herbs into the cuts, speeding up the dormancy as the meat's vibrant energy settled into a quiet hum.
While Lumine was busy, the other ladies asked many questions to Valenia in an attempt to know more and get familiar with her.
