Shen Yu wiped the edge of the plate with a cloth. "Finally, some peace and quiet. Hey, miss on the ground. Are you hungry? We're open."
Su Ling stared at the spot where a powerful Foundation Establishment cultivator had just been erased. Then she stared at the white puppet peeling garlic. Then she stared at the young man who looked like he was just annoyed by a fly.
Hidden Expert! Her mind screamed. This is a peerless Hidden Expert playing at mortal life! That puppet... that was a heavenly-grade artifact! And he uses it to peel garlic?!
Trembling, Su Ling crawled to the stool and pulled herself up. She didn't dare to run. You don't run from a god.
"I... I..." Su Ling stammered.
"Menu is on the board," Shen Yu said, pointing his thumb behind him.
Su Ling looked.
[Menu]1. Golden Egg Fried Rice - 1 Spirit Stone2. Dry-Mixed Noodles - 50 Gold Coins3. Ice Water - Free
One Spirit Stone? Su Ling blinked. A single low-grade spirit stone could buy a hundred catties of mortal gold. For a bowl of rice?
But she dared not question him. She fumbled in her robes and placed a glowing Spirit Stone on the counter.
"One... One Egg Fried Rice, please, Senior."
"Coming right up," Shen Yu said. He swept the stone into his pocket. "And don't call me Senior. It makes me feel old. Call me Boss Shen."
Shen Yu turned to the stove.
This was the Golden Egg Fried Rice, the dish he had practiced a thousand times in the System's training space.
He scooped a ladle of oil. The oil shimmered like liquid amber.
Sizzle.
The sound was music.
He grabbed two eggs. These weren't normal eggs. They were eggs from the Thunderstorm Pigeon, a low-grade spirit beast provided by the System. The shells crackled with faint static.
Crack.
Shen Yu broke them one-handed into a bowl, whisking them into a frenzy of yellow.
Then came the rice. Pearl Spirit Rice. Each grain was plump, translucent, and emitted a faint white mist.
He threw the rice into the wok. The grains danced.
Then, the secret technique. He poured the egg mixture over the rice while tossing it.
"Coat every grain in gold," Shen Yu muttered.
To Su Ling, this wasn't cooking. This was Alchemy.
She watched, mesmerized. The way he controlled the heat... he wasn't using spiritual energy, but the rhythm of his wrist, the timing of the toss... it aligned perfectly with the Dao of Fire.
He is refining the rice like a pill! Su Ling realized, her jaw dropping. Every grain is being evenly coated, sealed, and tempered. This isn't food. This is supreme pill refinement disguised as cooking!
The aroma hit her.
It wasn't just the smell of egg and onions. It was the smell of sunshine. It was the smell of a golden field of wheat swaying in the breeze.
The spiritual energy in her body, depleted and stagnant from her escape, suddenly surged just from the smell.
"Order up," Shen Yu said.
He placed the bowl in front of her.
It was blinding.
The rice didn't look like rice. It looked like a pile of golden sand, or tiny nuggets of gold. Every single grain was wrapped perfectly in egg, distinct and separate, glowing with a warm, soft light. Green scallions were scattered on top like emeralds on a treasure pile.
"Golden Egg Fried Rice," Shen Yu said, wiping his hands. "Eat it while it's hot. The texture changes if you wait."
Su Ling picked up the spoon. Her hands shook. She felt unworthy to eat this. This bowl contained more Dao intent than the teachings of her Sect Leader.
She took a bite.
Crunch. Soft. Savory.
The texture was contradictory and perfect. The egg was crispy, the rice inside soft and chewy. But what followed was a shockwave.
BOOM.
A stream of pure, unadulterated spiritual energy rushed from her stomach into her meridians. It was violent yet gentle, washing away the impurities in her blood, repairing her torn muscles.
"Oh!" Su Ling gasped, a flush rising to her cheeks. She couldn't help it. The pleasure was intense.
She shoveled another spoonful. Then another.
With every bite, she saw illusions. She saw a giant golden chicken soaring through the clouds. She saw fields of spirit herbs growing in seconds.
My cultivation...
Crack.
The bottleneck she had been stuck at for three years... shattered.
Mid-chew, spiritual energy swirled around Su Ling. Her aura spiked.
Qi Condensation Level 6... Level 7... Level 8...
She slammed the spoon down. She couldn't eat fast enough. She lifted the bowl and shoveled the rice into her mouth, tears streaming down her face.
It's so delicious. Why is it so delicious? And why is my cultivation skyrocketing? Is this the legendary Divine Pill of Nine Revolutions?
Shen Yu watched her eating like a starving refugee.
"Slow down," he said, handing her a glass of ice water. "You'll choke. Is it too salty? I tried a new soy sauce."
Su Ling slammed the empty bowl onto the counter. Her eyes were glowing with a new light. She burped, and a cloud of white spiritual mist escaped her lips.
She had advanced three minor realms in five minutes.
She looked at Shen Yu. The young man was casually leaning against the counter, reading a book (it was a cookbook, but to her, it looked like a Scripture of Heaven).
Su Ling slid off the stool and fell to her knees, prostrating herself so hard the floorboards shook.
"Disciple Su Ling pays respects to the Alchemy Grandmaster! Thank you for the supreme lecture on the Dao of Fire and Grain! I beg you, accept me as your servant!"
Shen Yu blinked, holding his spatula. "Alchemy? Lady, I'm a chef. I fry rice. And I don't need a servant, I have a dishwasher."
He pointed at Dumpling, who was now mechanically crushing cucumbers with a fist. Smash. Smash. Smash.
Su Ling looked at Dumpling. She shivered. That puppet just deleted a Foundation Establishment cultivator. And the Grandmaster trusts it more than me. Of course. I am trash compared to that garlic-peeling god of war.
"Then..." Su Ling gritted her teeth. She pulled the jade box from her robes—the reason she was hunted. "I cannot pay for the grace of enlightenment with mere money. Please accept this ingredient as tribute!"
She opened the box.
Inside sat the Seven-Heart Lotus. A rare, Tier-4 Spirit Herb that could bring the dead back to life. Cultivators would kill nations for this.
Shen Yu looked at it.
System Scan: [Seven-Heart Lotus. Grade: Excellent. Usage: Can be brewed into tea or stir-fried with bamboo shoots for a crisp texture.]
"It's a lotus," Shen Yu said, unimpressed. "Looks a bit dry. But... I guess I can make a stir-fry with it. Sure, I'll take it."
He tossed the priceless herb onto the counter next to a pile of onions.
Su Ling's heart pounded. He treats a Seven-Heart Lotus like an onion. His realm is truly beyond my comprehension.
"Boss Shen," Su Ling said, her eyes burning with determination. "I don't have anywhere to go. My sect has been infiltrated by traitors. Please. Let me stay. I can... I can wait tables! I can sweep the floor! I can be the food taster!"
Shen Yu looked at her. She was a mess, but she had spirit. And honestly, Dumpling scared the customers, and Meatball just ate the profits. He needed a human face to handle the front of the house.
"Do you know how to count money?" Shen Yu asked.
"Yes!"
"Do you know how to deal with difficult customers who try to dine and dash?"
"I will poison them!" Su Ling declared fiercely.
"No, no poisoning. Just... call Dumpling," Shen Yu sighed. "Fine. You're hired. Probationary period is one week. Payment is three meals a day and... uh... 5% commission on sales."
"I don't need money!" Su Ling cried. "Just being near your cooking is enough!"
"Right. Well, grab an apron. It's in the back. And wash your face, you look like a raccoon."
As Su Ling scrambled to put on an apron, Shen Yu looked out at the misty wasteland.
[Ding! Second Customer Served. Rating: Ecstatic (She thinks you are an Alchemy God).][Reward: 50 System Points. New Recipe Unlocked: Sweet 'n' Sour Ribs (Gourmet Style).][Host Level Up: Qi Gathering Level 1.]
Shen Yu felt a warm trickle in his stomach. "Finally, some cultivation. Maybe now I won't get back pain from standing all day."
He didn't realize that the "warm trickle" was actually the purest Primordial Qi forming a golden vortex in his dantian, a foundation that would make geniuses of the realm vomit blood in jealousy.
He just wanted to make ribs.
"Meatball!" Shen Yu shouted. "Stop trying to eat the new waitress! She's staff!"
The Taotie, who had been sniffing Su Ling's leg like a savory bone, whined and slunk away.
Thus, the Peace Tavern gained its first waitress, and the legend of the "Golden Rice that grants Immortality" began to spread through the winds of the Wildlands.