Chapter 427: Did I Forget Something?
Starting the next day, just as he'd promised, Qi Han began Ye Lingqing's new training plan—an absolutely hellish schedule.
Although this meant his own afternoon practice time in the training space was drastically reduced, and the time required to learn each new dish grew even longer, he still felt his sacrifice was worth it. After all, in order to finish his Side Quest as soon as possi—no, wait, in order to help his disciple grow as quickly as possible, giving up some training time was a small price to pay.
Even though the intensified practice schedule made Ye Lingqing question his very existence, Qi Han wasn't truly heartless. Under his special instructions, Ru Yi added more calming and restorative futuristic features to Ye Lingqing's bed, allowing him to wake up every morning fully refreshed and ready to throw himself into another day of training.
And the truth proved that under heavy pressure, humans can surpass their limits.
Ye Lingqing's training progress was even faster than Qi Han had anticipated. At this rate, completing all the cooking drills would only take forty to fifty days.
And keep in mind—Ye Lingqing couldn't accelerate time inside the training space. Being able to practice all these 1 Star recipes to a perfect, sellable standard in such a short period truly showed his talent in culinary arts.
As the days passed one by one, Han Shi's operations gradually returned to normal. Every day, the restaurant was still packed to the brim with customers. More and more diners from across the continent came after hearing its reputation, eager to taste Han Shi's cuisine. And after they left, they brought tales of this legendary restaurant back to their hometowns.
Word spread from one region to the next. As these out-of-town diners shared their firsthand experiences, even more people traveled to Shrek City to try Han Shi's famed dishes. Their satisfaction, in turn, attracted another wave of diners.
It was a positive cycle.
If Qi Han had a Quest to increase his continental fame at this moment, he would be shocked to find that Han Shi's name recognition among continental residents had already surpassed ten percent—and was still growing at a very steady rate.
Don't underestimate that number. Imagine going anywhere, and one out of every ten people knows Han Shi—that's no small feat.
Although Qi Han's current Main Quest had nothing to do with this, the growing number of out-of-town diners visiting Han Shi was something that anyone could easily notice.
Time flew, and before anyone realized it, forty-eight days had passed.
"Teacher, please have a taste."
Ye Lingqing took a deep breath and brought over the basket of steamed dragon dumplings, placing it before Qi Han. His expression was unusually serious, and his hands were nervously folded behind his back.
"Relax a little." Seeing his disciple's tense posture, Qi Han smiled briefly before letting his face settle into its usual calm. He picked up a dumpling with his chopsticks and took a bite. His expression didn't change at all.
Seeing this, Ye Lingqing's heart skipped a beat.
D-Did he… fail?
Just as Ye Lingqing's face grew even more anxious, a glint of mischief flashed in Qi Han's eyes. He grinned. "Lingqing, congratulations. You've completed all the breakfast recipes."
"Let's go!" Ye Lingqing snapped back to reality and shouted in joy.
It hadn't been easy!
For forty-eight straight days, he had completely immersed himself in practicing all sorts of dough-based dishes, constantly comparing and confirming with Qi Han, until he finally mastered every breakfast recipe. Even though it was only breakfast—and he had yet to learn the lunch and late-night dishes—it was still enough to make him ecstatic.
"You've worked hard these days. Take some time to rest," Qi Han said with a smile. After finishing the last dumpling, he stood up and quickly headed upstairs. "I've got something to take care of. I'll be upstairs for a bit."
"Alright, Teacher." Ye Lingqing nodded, already calculating how he would spend his well-earned break.
Click
The door closed softly behind him as Qi Han stared intently at the task page before him.
[Side Quest 9: Graduation—Holding the Fort Alone (Completed)
Reward: Spirit Power Levels +2 (Available to Claim).]
After completing Side Quest 9, no new quests appeared. This was probably the final Side Quest in this stage of the Main Quest.
And with these two levels, Qi Han's Spirit Power would reach level 50, triggering the Ingredient Acquisition Quest and granting him his fifth Spirit Ring.
Once he obtained his fifth Spirit Ring, he would officially step into the Spirit King realm—and that meant he could finally begin training 4 Star recipes!
Thinking of this, Qi Han didn't hesitate at all. He reached straight toward the "Claim" button.
"Wait!!"
Ru Yi suddenly screamed inside his mind—so urgently that her voice even sounded sharp.
Qi Han jolted in surprise, and his already-extended finger accidentally tapped the claim button directly.
As the vast Spirit Power began to surge through his body, Qi Han blinked in confusion. "Ru Yi, what's wrong?"
"…Noth—" Ru Yi's voice sounded strange, even awkward. "Nothing."
…Weird.
Qi Han's Spirit Power rose rapidly from level 48 to level 50. As the rewards were fully claimed, the Side Quest gradually faded away, and a brand-new Quest appeared.
[Time-Limited Quest: Ingredient Acquisition
Within five days, travel to the Yubin City in the Heaven Dou Empire and independently kill the 10,000-year Spirit Beast, the Azure-Scaled Dragon Eel.
Quest Description: With your current strength, defeating a 10,000-year Spirit Beast should no longer be an issue. Go for it, Chef!
Quest Rewards: System Spirit Ring ×1 , 4 Star Recipe — "Zilong Sheds His Armor."]
Good lord—Qi Han could only mentally yell good lord.
He originally thought this Ingredient Acquisition Quest would be like the previous ones: kill a thousand-year Spirit Beast, get a 3 Star recipe.
But this time, the requirement was a 10,000-year Spirit Beast, and the reward was a 4 Star recipe.
It was unexpected—but thinking about it more closely, it also made perfect sense.
After all, the maximum absorption limit for a fifth Spirit Ring was ten thousand years. Even though the Spirit Beast killed for the Ingredient Acquisition Quest wasn't used for Spirit Ring absorption, its required age always matched the age limit of the corresponding Spirit Ring.
And ten-thousand-year Spirit Beasts matched perfectly with 4 Star recipes.
The Spirit Beast for this Quest—the Azure-Scaled Dragon Eel—was a long, eel-like marine creature with dragon blood in its veins. Unlike eels that lived in lakebed muck or rock crevices, this species was a sea Spirit Beast.
Which was why the Quest location was the Yubin City, rather than a typical Spirit Beast forest.
As for the Quest reward, the dish "Zilong Sheds His Armor", also known as "Zilong Removes His Robe," it was a famous dish from the Hunan cuisine tradition, made from eel as the main ingredient.
Qi Han was honestly quite curious how the dish would turn out when cooked using a creature like the Azure-Scaled Dragon Eel.
Yubin City was quite far from Shrek City. Even riding Zhui Yun at full speed, it would take nearly a day to arrive. To complete the Quest within five days, he would need to depart tomorrow.
Tonight, he would have to pack up and request leave.
Request leave… what a strange, unfamiliar phrase.
It felt like he hadn't asked for time off in ages.
Wait…
Qi Han's expression stiffened.
Did he… forget something very important?
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Note:
Zilong Sheds His Armor / Zilong Removes His Robe / 子龙脱袍:
https://www.google.com/search?q=%E5%AD%90%E9%BE%99%E8%84%B1%E8%A2%8D&oq=%E5%AD%90%E9%BE%99%E8%84%B1%E8%A2%8D&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUyBggAEEUYOTIHCAEQABiABDIGCAIQABgeMgYIAxAAGB4yBwgEEAAY7wUyBggFEEUYPDIGCAYQRRg8MgYIBxBFGDzSAQgxMDc5ajBqOagCBrACAfEFq4Eb10O7sIo&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#vhid=-dci0BhfcsqwkM&vssid=_xFchacv-Ir6F4-EPxeCJwQw_67
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