In truth, while the Dragon King Golden Toad accepted its losses gracefully, the one it doted on most was Little Nora.
While Little Nora rolled around and played on its body, it quietly handed over, piece by piece, the items it had worked overtime to nourish.
Though none seemed particularly remarkable on its own, it gave them continuously, so half an hour later, Little Nora had actually received more treasures than Yu Xian. Only Niman noticed this. As for Yu Xian... well, blissfully carefree as he was, he had not noticed a thing, still believing himself to be the big winner.
Nora arrived late at this moment as well. The Dragon King Golden Toad used Dragon King Grants Treasure to deliver a bullet to her—an item she had specifically asked it to prioritize nourishing.
Mainly, the bullet's effect had been unknown, and Nora worried about using it in the wrong situation. Even though she possessed an infinite-bullet gun that could fire this bullet endlessly, not knowing what it did was still far too dangerous.
What if it were a suicide bullet?
If she pulled the trigger and the bullet curved around to kill her, wouldn't she die the most unjustified death?
To be safe, Nora had decided to have the Dragon King Golden Toad nourish the bullet first to figure out its effect before doing anything else.
Now, taking the bullet delivered by the Dragon King Golden Toad, Nora finally learned its effect.
[Mood Bullet: Can transmit one's mood to the target, allowing them to empathize fully, sharing the same sorrow and joy.]
Nora calmly drew her infinite-bullet pistol, loaded the Mood Bullet into it, and fired a shot directly at herself. Calm mood +1. Then she fired another shot: calm mood +1...
It was actually quite useful.
When happy, one could double the happiness; when unhappy, one could make others unhappy too.
If she encountered enemies who required specific emotions to fuel their abilities, this bullet would be their nemesis. It counted as a somewhat useful bullet—just not overly so.
At this time, Little Huangquan flew over at an unhurried pace riding a gourd, a spatula in hand.
"Little Sister Huangquan, the Dragon King says the things you wanted are ready," Little Nora called out with a smile as Little Huangquan approached, sitting atop the Dragon King Golden Toad's head and continuously conjuring massive heaps of food to share with it.
Little Huangquan's eyes lit up, and she looked at the Dragon King Golden Toad with anticipation. The toad gave its dragon whiskers a shake, and a shower of pots, bowls, ladles, and basins descended from the sky, landing right in front of her.
[Quick Marinating Bowl: After putting on the lid, the marinating time can be freely adjusted; opening the lid again completes the marination.]
[Precision Oven: Accurate to the point of evenly heating every single molecule of the food, making it delicious.]
[Gem of Salt: After merging into the body, it can produce an infinite amount of salt and grant free control over the salt produced.]
[Oyster Sauce Gourd: Any liquid entering the gourd will transform into top-grade oyster sauce, adding flavor to dishes.]
[One-Cut Ox Butchering Knife: With just a single cut, completely disassembles any creature with bovine attributes; the nemesis of bovines.]
[Masala Ring: A light touch of the ring conjures a designated amount of masala out of thin air at a specified location, causing anyone who eats it to involuntarily burst into song and dance.]
[World's Best Bun Mold: Uses only flour and eggs to create the world's most delicious stuffed buns, though the consumer will randomly acquire a minor affliction, which clears after one hour.]
[World Steamer: A spatial steamer that can hold infinite ingredients; any food placed inside will quickly steam to perfection.]
[Poop-Flavored Curry Powder Packet: Contains an infinite supply of feces-flavored curry powder, possessing immense attraction for creatures fond of this flavor.]
Dazzled by the sudden shower of so many items, Little Huangquan took a moment before beaming with delight, stowing all the treasures into her storage ring.
Looking at the Dragon King Golden Toad, she smiled and said, "Thank you, Dragon King."
"Little Huangquan, now that you've got so many kitchen utensils, why not make a meal to try them out?" Yu Xian floated over to her side and suggested.
Little Huangquan was instantly tempted. Even though she loved cooking nowadays, the others rarely ate her food—mainly because Little Nora could effortlessly conjure meals. Food was essentially abundant every day in the God Vault Space, and often by the time she finished cooking, everyone had already eaten their fill.
"Okay, I'll cook right away!"
Little Huangquan agreed with full enthusiasm, then took out the items the Dragon King Golden Toad had just given her one by one.
She first put on the ring, then merged the gem into her body, and immediately afterward brought out all kinds of ingredients to prepare.
A vast amount of snow-white salt materialized out of thin air; she actually used the conjured salt directly to build a stove, then began cooking.
Naturally, the most important part was the pig's trotters.
She took out several trotters and chopped them into pieces with a few deft strokes, then brought out soybeans to soak in water. Once the ingredients were prepped, she began braising the pig's trotters with cooking wine.
In the blink of an eye, two hours flew by. She announced happily, "Dinner is ready!"
"Finally, time to eat." Yu Xian perked up upon hearing that and immediately dropped down to the ground, looking at the dishes laid out on the table Little Huangquan had prepared.
Cooking wine braised trotters, stir-fried bolain with green seedling vegetable, pan-fried laughing flower with liansheng, salt-baked chicken, fork rice topped with fengwa meat...
Once everyone took their seats, they all picked up their chopsticks. After Yu Xian took the first bite, everyone dug in, showering Little Huangquan with praise.
The bolain was a wolf-like creature native to the Green Green Prairie, yet its meat tasted vastly different from wolf meat, possessing a unique savory aroma instead. The green seedling vegetable also came from the Green Green Prairie. Stir-fried together, the two made for an exquisite pairing.
Yu Xian took several mouthfuls in a row before pausing, then looked toward the pan-fried laughing flower with liansheng.
Liansheng had absolutely nothing to do with lotus flowers or lotus roots; it was actually the seed of a massive tree, called liansheng—"linked growth"—because the seeds grew chained together.
Once the liansheng seeds matured, the tree would launch them like artillery shells in a manner resembling thrown bolas. It was said that in the ancient past of a certain world, a cavalry charge had once been struck directly by liansheng seeds, tripping the horses and leading to the total rout of the entire army.
The laughing flower, on the other hand, was a carnivorous creature. Normally, it liked to bury its head underground with its rear facing up and tail spread open, making it look just like a blossom.
If prey drew near, the tail would strike abruptly, attacking the target with the venomous stinger on its tail.
Though these ingredients came from two different worlds, bringing them together produced a wonderful chemical reaction that elevated both flavor and texture by several notches, making it a signature dish unique to Crescent Bay.
Yu Xian took a taste and nodded in approval. Catching Little Huangquan's expectant gaze, he promptly gave her a thumbs-up, which sent her over the moon with delight.
She loved to cook—initially because she wanted to make Yu Xian happy, but over time it had gradually become her genuine passion. She found happiness in culinary arts, and she also loved feeding others so they could share in that happiness.
Now, watching everyone happily sharing a meal together, the smile never left her face. Today, she truly felt blessed.
Chapter 410