Actually, even if the Dragon King hadn't come to the kitchen to find Xia Zhi today, he had already planned on making [Gods' Temptation].
Not specifically for the Dragon King, but rather for Cloud Retainer.
The reason was simple: the Adeptus' Temptation Cloud Retainer had made yesterday didn't receive the enthusiastic welcome she'd anticipated, leaving her visibly discouraged.
Seeing her downcast mood, it was clear she wanted to taste the legendary Gods' Temptation herself.
After all, she was technically his future mother-in-law, so fulfilling such a small request was naturally a given.
Then last night, after Xia Zhi walked through Furina's Corridor of Fate again, he had another thought.
He didn't particularly mind the idea of Furina being a yandere. Rather, he just found Furina's loneliness and sadness too heartbreaking.
Although he couldn't personally accompany her through those five hundred long years, he could at least give her something to keep her company during that lonely time.
The best choices for such gifts, naturally, were delicious foods and entertaining items.
Moreover, these had to be things he personally made, so they could provide enough comfort and reassurance in his stead.
Therefore, Xia Zhi wasn't making just one jar of Gods' Temptation today—he was preparing six.
One jar of Gods' Temptation would be served at today's lunch for everyone present.
The remaining five jars would be magically sealed into many smaller portions, to be given to Furina later. Whenever she felt hungry, tired, or missed him, she could enjoy a serving.
Xiangling, unaware of the reasons behind all this, watched Xia Zhi suddenly pull out a massive pile of ingredients—almost enough to fill half the kitchen—leaving her utterly stunned.
"Master, why so many?!"
"They're all for making Gods' Temptation later."
"But isn't this way too much?"
"I'm making six portions in total. Five of them are for something else."
"Oh!"
Since he was making Gods' Temptation, he naturally had to prepare some Hundred Herbs Broth as well.
After all, Ganyu didn't eat Gods' Temptation, and Xia Zhi couldn't bear to have her watch everyone else eat and feel left out.
He would also make extra portions of this vegetarian delicacy, similarly sealing them with magic into smaller portions to bring to Furina, letting her enjoy this exquisite taste too.
As for other ordinary dishes, he'd have to skip them today—there simply wasn't enough time.
After a busy morning, Xia Zhi and Xiangling finally finished preparing the six jars of Gods' Temptation, six portions of Hundred Herbs Broth, and an entire table of famous Liyue dishes.
Xia Zhi stored the extra food away, and Shenhe came in to help carry out the finished dishes.
Based on their previous experiences, they served the other dishes first.
Because once everyone tasted the Gods' Temptation, they'd lose any appetite for other dishes, and such a sumptuous feast would go to waste.
Once the meal was nearing its end, Xiangling went into the kitchen and brought out the jar.
Everyone had been eagerly awaiting this moment.
Especially the Dragon King and Cloud Retainer.
Those who had never tasted Gods' Temptation could never imagine just how incredibly delicious it truly was.
When the jar's lid was opened, a brilliant radiance burst forth, and immediately, an intoxicating fragrance filled the entire room.
Cloud Retainer froze in place, utterly mesmerized by the aroma.
As for the Dragon King, he was already unconsciously swallowing his saliva like crazy.
Because [Gods' Temptation] possessed the special attribute, its deliciousness was multiplied several times over for beings like him.
"Could such heavenly flavor truly exist in this world?!"
Xiangling smiled brightly as she served everyone their portions of [Gods' Temptation].
Guoba helped deliver the [Hundred Herbs Broth] to Ganyu.
Ganyu accepted it with a gentle smile, quietly thanking the little bear.
Afterward, the entire hall fell into a strangely silent atmosphere, with only the crisp sounds of spoons clinking against bowls and the quiet sounds of chewing and swallowing.
Xia Ci and Xia Zhen fell into a trance-like state after their very first bite.
It took them a long moment to come back to their senses. They exchanged glances, both seeing overwhelming satisfaction in each other's eyes.
They had truly become inseparable from their cousin now.
Meanwhile, Xia Zhi was observing another disciple of his—Qiqi—from his god's eye.
Just a moment ago, a platinum-colored progress bar had appeared above Qiqi's head.
Progress: [0%].
This was exactly like what had happened to Ganyu during Lantern Rite when she ate [Hundred Herbs Broth].
This meant Qiqi's overall tier had ascended.
From Gold up to Platinum.
Xia Zhi then turned his attention toward another of his shop employees—Chi Yu.
Like Qiqi, she previously had a Gold-tier progress bar.
However, no new progress bar had appeared for her.
Similarly, Diona, who had also eaten the Gods' Temptation, hadn't ascended from Silver to Gold.
This indicated that the [Gods' Temptation] itself wasn't the main reason behind Qiqi's advancement.
The real reason was likely something else—specifically, the cultivation technique he'd taught her: [Corpse Immortal: Ninefold Transcendence].
It appeared that Qiqi had been diligently cultivating these past days.
Xia Zhi felt deeply gratified.
He wasn't in any rush to unlock Qiqi's treasure chest either.
After all, he spent time with Qiqi every single day, and she ate his cooking daily.
Simply through the interaction of "feeding," he could easily max out her progress bar within a single day.
Despite having fewer people eating today compared to Lantern Rite, the single jar of Gods' Temptation was still completely devoured.
The main contributor to this feat was naturally the Dragon King.
If it weren't for Mountain Shaper and Moon Carver stopping him, the Dragon King might have even eaten the jar itself.
And this was no joke.
As the Geo Dragon King, he could indeed eat rocks.
Seeing everyone's stunned and confused gazes directed at him, the Dragon King earnestly began explaining:
"You youngsters wouldn't understand. Back in the days of hardship when food was scarce, I survived by eating stones. Cor Lapis was softer, crystals had a crunchy texture, and iron ores tasted sweet..."
Zhu Zi and the others listened, genuinely astonished.
After the meal, Charlotte hurriedly approached the Dragon King, introducing herself politely: "Dragon King, sir, allow me to formally introduce myself. I'm Charlotte, Chief Editor of the Liyue Newspaper Agency."
The Dragon King waved dismissively, laughing warmly, "Oh, no need to call me Dragon King. I'm just an old guy who's lived a few thousand years. You're just a teenager, right? Feel free to call me Uncle Azhdaha, Grandpa Azhdaha, or whatever you prefer."
As a media professional, Charlotte's sweet-talking skills were impeccable. She immediately replied with a charming smile, "Uncle Azhdaha!"
The Dragon King chuckled happily, responding, "Ah, yes? Now, what were you saying just now? Liyue Newspaper Agency? What's that?"
Charlotte patiently explained, "A newspaper agency is an organization that publishes newspapers. A newspaper is a printed sheet of paper containing various information, such as official documents, entertainment news, weather forecasts, specialized columns, and so forth... Its main purpose is to convey all kinds of information to the public, and typically, a new edition is published daily."
The Dragon King seemed quite intrigued. "This newspaper thing sounds rather useful!"
Charlotte smiled brightly, nodding. "It really is. Many people can stay at home and still know exactly what's happening in the outside world just by reading the newspaper."
The Dragon King asked again, "And your job as Chief Editor, what exactly do you do?"
Charlotte patiently explained, "I'm basically in charge of coordinating everything. Our reporters go out to collect news, then they hand it over to me. I judge the value of each piece of news, select and combine them, and arrange them on the newspaper."
The Dragon King nodded thoughtfully. "I see. So, is there something specific you wanted from me?"
Charlotte smiled gently. "Well, it's like this—our newspaper still has two empty columns, and I've been looking for suitable content to fill them. Just now, when you were talking about rocks, Uncle Azhdaha, your terminology was so professional. And since Liyue itself is a nation founded upon stone, I think every citizen of Liyue should have some basic understanding of rocks. So, I'd like to invite you to officially sign with our Liyue Newspaper Agency and provide us with a weekly column on rocks and minerals. As for payment, our current rate is ten thousand Mora per article. Of course, considering your special identity, I could apply for double the usual rate for you."
After hearing this, the Dragon King laughed and nodded. "Oh, that's what you wanted? No problem at all. But there's no need to give me special treatment; just pay me according to your normal standards. I don't lack money."
Indeed, he was the Geo Dragon. Picking up a few random rocks and selling them would already keep him wealthy for quite some time.
Charlotte was delighted.
"That's wonderful! I'll draft up a contract for you to sign later, Uncle Azhdaha.
When you return to Liyue, you can take the contract to our newspaper office and look for the other chief editor."
The Dragon King readily agreed. "Understood."
He didn't mind what people called him, whether it was "Uncle Azhdaha" or something else.
What mattered most was sharing knowledge about stones with everyone.
—
In the afternoon, Xia Zhi didn't rest.
Instead, he continued to busy himself in the kitchen.
This time, he wasn't preparing dishes, but desserts.
A kind of dessert extremely common in his original world—a cake.
Specifically, a birthday cake.
Furina was mortal, so naturally she had a birthday as well.
From her Corridor of Fate, Xia Zhi had learned that her birthday fell on October 13th each year.
Five hundred years meant she would celebrate five hundred birthdays.
He knew he wouldn't be able to personally accompany her on those days.
Still, he could at least make the cakes now, take them to her, and have her take one out each year on her birthday.
It would be like he was there beside her, in a way.
But the workload was indeed enormous.
Five hundred large cakes.
And he couldn't just make them identical either.
Each cake needed to be unique, with its own special characteristics, to genuinely reflect his heartfelt intentions as the gift-giver.
It was troublesome, but he had no other choice.
Xiangling finished washing dishes and wanted to come help, but Xia Zhi gently declined her offer.
Firstly, he didn't want to tire her out further.
She'd already worked hard all morning, and she deserved some rest.
Secondly, he preferred to bake these cakes himself, to keep the intention behind them as pure as possible.
After Xiangling reluctantly left the kitchen, Xia Zhi closed the door and cast a spell to slow the flow of time within the kitchen by tenfold.
Thus, one hour outside would equal ten hours within the kitchen.
With an entire afternoon in the outside world, he would have enough time inside the kitchen to finish all five hundred cakes.
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