Chapter 365: A Craft Wasted on Cooking—He Should Be Refining Pills
Dinghu Shangsu — 2,000 gold coins per serving.
That price was ridiculously cheap compared to the value of the ingredients.
More than twenty kinds of rare medicinal herbs and heavenly treasures—averaging out to less than a hundred gold coins per item?
Even with Ru Yi's time-accelerated pocket world, calculating cost like that didn't make sense.
The only reason the 2,000-coin price tag worked was because each batch of ingredients made multiple servings.
When bundled together, the twenty-plus heavenly treasures could produce seven servings of Dinghu Shangsu. Divided evenly, the cost per plate became affordable.
During the pre-opening staff meal, Qi Han had made one serving for Ping Xinyan and one each for himself and Ye Lingqing. The remaining portion from that batch was still enough to make four more servings.
That's why, just a few minutes after the two Limit Douluo placed their order, Fu Ya brought their dishes to the table.
At that time, the first wave of customers had just begun to take their seats and hadn't even ordered yet. But the moment the dishes arrived—accompanied by gasps of surprise—an unforgettable Cloud Dancers' Soaring Grace heavenly phenomenon unfolded before their eyes.
Tang Qianqiu and Qi Poxiao, seated closest to the phenomenon, were struck in unison.
As two of the strongest beings alive, their spiritual sense had long since reached mastery. From the moment the vision appeared to when it faded, they could perceive its every detail with stunning clarity.
And that clarity told them that this vision was different from the ones triggered by previous Purple Card Dishes.
"This one… it feels like it's really breaking the boundaries of illusion and becoming real," Qi Poxiao muttered, his expression filled with disbelief.
"Agreed." Tang Qianqiu nodded. "That sense of reality... it's beyond a mere symbolic manifestation."
"Interesting," Qi Poxiao chuckled after a thoughtful pause. "Well, let's see what this so-called special effect is all about."
"But it's useless for the likes of us. How are we supposed to test it?" Tang Qianqiu asked quietly.
"Good point…" Qi Poxiao raised a brow, then suddenly laughed. "Actually, maybe we don't need to worry about that."
As Limit Douluo, their hearing and perception were razor-sharp. If they wished, they could monitor every tiny fluctuation in the dining hall with their spiritual senses.
After they had ordered the Dinghu Shangsu, many of the nearby diners had begun flipping through the menu, whispering about whether they too should give it a try.
While the special effect was meaningless to the two of them, watching others experience it would be more than enough to judge its validity.
"Indeed." Tang Qianqiu smiled knowingly. "Honestly, I trust little Qi. There's no reason for him to exaggerate or lie."
"What I'm more concerned about," he continued, "is whether this method of breaking through bottlenecks might cause instability in one's foundation. If there are no side effects… then this dish is of immeasurable value."
Among both Tang Sect disciples and Shrek Academy students, it was rare to find anyone completely stuck at the sixth ring. Most people could break through with enough time.
The real concern was instability—advancing too fast could lead to a hollow foundation, which would undermine future cultivation.
After all, spirit power level alone wasn't the key to true strength.
When a Spirit Master entered a new realm, the advancement typically involved two stages.
The first stage was accumulation—gathering spirit power through consistent cultivation. Anyone with talent could do this, though the pace varied.
The second stage was the bottleneck phase. At this point, one's total spirit power no longer grew, but its purity gradually deepened with continued training. It was like filling a gas cylinder: initially, it fills quickly, but as you keep pumping, the volume doesn't change—only the pressure increases.
Once a spirit master's power had been refined enough to break through the bottleneck, it would rupture like an over-pressurized gas cylinder, and their spirit power level would rise instantly.
This was also where natural talent—or the lack of it—truly made a difference.
The less gifted a spirit master was, the more stubborn the bottleneck. For some, it might never break no matter how long they trained—even decades might yield no progress.
Conversely, a talented spirit master could steadily cultivate through the bottleneck phase and eventually break through as a matter of course.
The term "unstable foundation" referred to forcibly breaking the bottleneck before the spirit power had been adequately refined—like puncturing the gas cylinder when the pressure wasn't high enough.
The spirit master might still advance to the next rank, but their spirit power would be impure and their strength significantly weaker compared to peers of the same level.
What's more, cultivation was like building a tall tower—if the foundation was weak, the entire structure would be compromised in the long run.
Thus, advancing too quickly without proper preparation was not advisable.
"Exactly," Qi Poxiao nodded. "A dish that can help repeatedly break through bottlenecks? If spirit masters below Rank 70 eat one serving per level, their training speed might increase by over 40%. If it really has no side effects... the implications are enormous."
"Well then," Tang Qianqiu chuckled. "Let's see how it tastes first."
He picked up his chopsticks and reached for the Dinghu Shangsu in front of him.
"I'm honestly a little tempted now."
He quickly picked up one of the outer bamboo shoots and took a bite. After a few chews, his expression shifted to mild surprise.
"This is... vegetable bamboo shoot?"
No wonder he looked so surprised—although vegetable bamboo shoot was considered a decent spirit herb, its flavor was notoriously bitter and harsh.
But what he was tasting now was soft, fresh, and slightly springy—completely lacking that raw bitterness.
If not for its distinct aftertaste unique to the vegetable bamboo shoot, Tang Qianqiu would've had a hard time identifying it.
He didn't say another word and continued sampling the other ingredients within the dish.
Qi Han had clearly listed all the herbs and spirit materials used in the dish on its description page, including their species and age. With that to reference, Tang Qianqiu quickly recognized most of the herbs present.
And that only made him more stunned.
Almost all the ones he recognized had unpleasant or at least unimpressive flavors. Only a few could be considered decent-tasting, and even then, none could be called "delicacies."
Yet in this dish, every single one was absolutely delicious—each with its own unique texture and unforgettable flavor.
Leaving aside the special effects for now, the sheer culinary skill on display here made Tang Qianqiu deeply admire Little Qi.
If he ever took up alchemy instead of cooking… could he make pills taste good too?
The thought flickered in Tang Qianqiu's mind, half in jest, half in awe.
He wasn't the only one thinking that.
Yu Hua, seated at another table, had much the same idea.
"If Little Qi doesn't study alchemy with skills like this, it's a real loss," Yu Hua said, swaying contentedly as he savored his own Dinghu Shangsu. His face was full of delight.
"Heavenly treasures are still medicinal in nature. And good medicine is supposed to be bitter. Since when were medicinal herbs supposed to taste this good?"
"And yet, Little Qi has managed to make every single one of them taste amazing—and without compromising their medicinal effects at all. Just that alone puts him far beyond me."
Yu Hua sighed with admiration—only for his expression to suddenly darken.
"Old monkey, are you trying to spend another three days scratching yourself raw?"
"Ahem—" Tai Lei awkwardly retracted his chopsticks, which had been sneaking toward Yu Hua's plate.
"It's a habit—I haven't gotten mine yet, that's all."
"Serves you right!" Zhao Yunsheng chuckled gleefully nearby as he slowly savored his own Dinghu Shangsu.
Tai Lei fell silent for a moment.
Then suddenly made his move.
"Ah! My Dinghu Shangsu!"
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