Chapter 26: Special Ingredients

The three of them returned to the Black Wind Castle. They had not expected that the girl would return with them.

On the way, they introduced themselves to each other. The girl was named Jin Lingling. She looked about the same age as Lin Qi. She had a petite figure and a cute face. She looked like a girl in her teens.

However, despite how young she appeared to be, she was the head chef of the Central Hotel. She was also the best cook in Black Wind Castle.

“Thank you for saving me tonight. To show my gratitude, I’ll treat you to some delicious food when I get back!”

“Delicious food?”

For a person like Lin Qi who had a gourmet system, delicious food was only found in the system.

“Huh? Do you doubt my culinary skills?”

Lin Qi shook his head, saying that he was looking forward to it out of politeness.

Thus, Lin Qi and Luther went back to their rooms to rest for the night. Jin Lingling cooked delicious food for them the next day.

Lin Qi was not interested in such things at all. He only wanted to cook a NIght Light’s Billow in the system

That was a special dish. Not only was it delicious, but it also had the ability to help a person advance by one level. However, that advancement could only be used once. The second time, it would lose its effect.

If he offered that dish in exchange for the dimensional pouch from Yu Meng, perhaps she would agree.

However, if he cooked it now, it would probably be cold by tomorrow. It was better to wait until tomorrow to give it to Yu Meng personally.

After that tiring night, Lin Qi fell asleep on the bed.

The next morning, Lin Qi was woken up by a series of knocks on the door.

“Who is it? It’s so early in the morning!”

Lin Qi scratched his head sleepily and slowly walked toward the door.

Bang!

Opening the door, a fragrant smell assailed his nostrils. Lin Qi, who was in a daze, was instantly energized.

“It smells so good!”

The words escaped his mouth, and Lin Qi immediately widened his eyes, realizing that it was Jin Lingling.

She was holding a tray, and on top of it was a bowl of steaming pale yellow soup. That was the source of the aroma.

“Hehe, I’ve come to bring you something delicious!”

Jin Lingling was a relatively cheerful and open person. She raised her head with confidence and walked into the room. After placing the bowl of soup on the table, she smiled and said, “I only make one bowl of this soup every month. Many noble people in the Black Wind Castle would die for a chance to taste this soup.”

Hearing that, Lin Qi was very curious but smiled politely and asked, “This… What is the effect of this soup? Can it increase mana? Or can it increase magical and physical strength?”

Jin Lingling rolled her eyes and sighed. “Young Master Lin, I’m just a chef, not a magic alchemist. Moreover, even a magic alchemist might not be able to do what you spoke of.”

Lin Qi smiled to himself. A magic alchemist might not be able to do it, but he could. It seemed that the functions of the dishes from the gourmet system were still unheard of.

“This bowl of soup is called Taste of the Sea. The Black Wind Castle only receives one shipment of the rare ‘Bairong’ every month so we can only cook one bowl of this soup each time.”

Bairong was a Devil Beast that lived in the sea. It was a four-star demonic beast and was rarely ever seen. Therefore, there was only one or two of them spotted every month.

After Jin Lingling studied cooking herself, she found that Bairong was even sweeter and more delicious when added to her secret seafood soup. It also had the effect of beautifying the face, and many noble princesses liked it very much.

“Wow, how much does this bowl of soup cost?” Lin Qi asked curiously.

“If I tell you… I’m afraid I’d scare you!” Jin Lingling smiled.

“Tell me. I’ve been scared a lot worse before.”

“1,000 gold coins for a bowl!”

Lin Qi was stunned, and the hand that was holding the bowl of soup instantly began to tremble.

“What… What did you say?”

“1,000 gold coins? For a single bowl?”

Jin Lingling nodded. Seeing that Lin Qi’s hand was shaking, she warned, “Be careful!”

Lin Qi hurriedly put the bowl of soup back on the table and asked with widened eyes, “You… Are you sure this is worth 1000 gold coins?”

Jin Lingling blinked her eyes and frowned. “Yes, it has always been this price, because the rarer something is, the more precious it is!”

That made Lin Qi even more excited. ‘Then… Then wouldn’t I be rich?’

1,000 gold coins!

Upgrading would not be a problem with that kind of money.

“Quick, if you don’t drink this soup now, it will lose its value!”

“What?”

That sentence felt like a bucket of cold water just extinguished the fire in Lin Qi’s heart.

He forgot that the moment the food was made, it would have value. If it was cold, it would lose its flavor.

“Sigh, you might as well give me 1,000 gold coins directly!” Lin Qi was exasperated.

That made Jin Lingling feel a little suspicious. “You… Aren’t you the young master of the Lin family in New Moon City? Do you lack money?”

“My family has all the riches of the world, but I’m participating in the trial right now, and I’m in need of some money… You wouldn’t understand even if I told you.”

As he spoke, Lin Qi picked up the bowl of soup and took a small sip.

“Huh?”

The soup was indeed very delicious. Just as its name suggested, it tasted a little fishy when he drank it, but when he swallowed it, it was so fresh and sweet. It was as if he was in the middle of the ocean, and it was a very refreshing and comfortable feeling.

“How is it?”

Jin Lingling was very confident in her cooking skills, and she smiled when she saw Lin Qi enjoying it so much.

“Mmm, good soup!”

After Lin Qi finished the soup, he nodded to show his approval. However, it was still slightly inferior to the delicacies of his system.

It was Lin Qi’s final comment that surprised Jin Lingling.

“That’s it?”

“Huh? What else is there?”

Jin Lingling took two steps back in horror and said, “Everyone who drank this soup for the first time had been so excited and praised it endlessly. How can you be so calm?”

Lin Qi scratched his head and did not want to lie to the little girl. “Actually, the soup tasted a little fishy in the beginning so it’s not exactly perfect.”

As the head chef of the Central Hotel, Jin Lingling had always been very self-assured with her culinary skills. Many famous mages and swordsmen were impressed by her food.

However, the man in front of her was so indifferent toward her most outstanding dish and that made her feel a little angry.

“Impossible!”

Jin Lingling’s expression suddenly changed, and her eyes showed that she was unhappy with Lin Qi.

Lin Qi could only say helplessly, “Don’t misunderstand. I’m also a person who cooks…”

In reality, Lin Qi was just a supplier of delicious food, not a chef. However, his system came with its own cooking feature, so naturally, he had no choice but to be called a chef.

“You… You’re a chef too?”

Jin Lingling was extremely confused.. She put her hands on her waist and continued, “Aren’t you the young master of the Lin family?”