"It's gone?!"
Lin Chen was surprised. He opened the task list and found that the task had indeed disappeared.
"I wonder if my guess was correct?"
Lin Chen pondered.
He was confident in his analysis and theories, but he also understood that he wasn't always right; the two didn't contradict each other.
"Goo goo~~"
The little fox tugged on his clothes, interrupting his thoughts.
"What's up?" Lin Chen hurriedly asked, thinking it might be uncomfortable.
"Goo goo~~"
The little fox gestured.
"You want to set up a stall?!"
Lin Chen was dumbfounded, wondering if he'd heard wrong.
Even Xiaobai, who was grinding his hooves, put down the dumbbells, thinking he'd heard wrong as well.
This little buddy of his was always shy around strangers, so why was it thinking about setting up a stall?
"Goo goo~~"
The little fox pointed at the food on the table.
Ever since it had the idea of earning money last time, it had been pondering.
Seeing the many street vendors and snack stalls, it thought of making food to sell.
Lin Chen was a bit stunned when he heard this.
A path they hadn't considered!
It seemed doable, though.
However, he didn't have the money to open a shop and wasn't familiar with it either.
The little fox was overjoyed when it saw Lin Chen appreciating its idea.
"I remember a food blogger sharing a great barbecue spice mix—this world probably doesn't have it," Lin Chen said as he thought, writing down the recipe.
A recipe is different from cooking; as long as the proportions are right, it will be the same.
"It's just going to be hard on you," Lin Chen said to the little fox.
"Goo goo~~"
The little fox grinned, feeling happy...
It could finally help out like Xiaobai and contribute to the household.
.....
Lin Chen went out to buy some raw chicken wings and, following the recipe, bought the necessary ingredients.
This world lacked certain things, so he had to manually grind some.
"I'm really broke; I hope this entrepreneurial attempt succeeds," Lin Chen said, feeling pained as he looked at his empty pockets.
His assets had plunged below a thousand.
Returning home and preparing to work, Lin Chen put the Guild Machine on the table and found it lit up.
"A private message?!" Lin Chen was stunned.
The Guild Machine couldn't communicate and could only receive messages pushed by the Beast Tamer Guild.
[You have completed the task: Finding the Secret Realm. It has now been settled. Please visit the Beast Tamer Guild to collect it at your earliest convenience.]
Lin Chen was thrilled.
It seemed like he guessed right; the bee nest was indeed under the Fire Shrub.
Lin Chen was in a great mood. That thirty thousand dollars was a lifesaver; without it, he and his two beasts would've been in deep trouble.
He wasn't in a rush; he could collect the task payment anytime. He was more curious whether setting up the stall would be successful.
So, Lin Chen started grinding the powder, with Xiaobai and Xiao Hong wanting to help, but they only made things more chaotic. In the end, the two beasts could only squat by the side and watch, not even in the mood to train.
After three hours, various spices were finally ground. Lin Chen took out containers for precise measurements.
"Smells so good!"
Lin Chen caught a whiff of the aroma. He had previously bought a box from that blogger, and it was this very smell.
A cow and a fox also caught a whiff, swallowed, and felt confident.
"Come on, Xiao Hong, give it a try." Lin Chen set up the barbecue rack.
The little fox stood still, then took a deep breath.
Lin Chen had a bad feeling...
Sss~~
A burnt smell emerged.
Alright.
The heat wasn't controlled properly.
The little fox was disheartened, but Lin Chen said, "It's okay, failure is the mother of success."
The little fox didn't have much education, so this explanation made more sense.
The little fox continued to try.
Burnt~~
The third attempt...
Burnt~
....
The human and two beasts were heartbroken; these charred chicken wings looked like blackened charcoal and were inedible—such a waste.
They hadn't had meat in ages.
The little fox almost wanted to give up.
"Come on, Xiao Hong," Lin Chen encouraged.
Xiaobai also mooed, unconditionally believing in its little buddy.
The little fox mustered up its courage, trying to control the heat as Lin Chen had instructed...
Sss~~
This time, Lin Chen caught a whiff of a delightful aroma.
"Smells so good!" Lin Chen had long known that the Flame Fox's fire was special and items cooked with it had a richer flavor.
But he didn't expect roasting directly would be so fragrant.
Lin Chen hadn't even added the barbecue seasoning yet and was already salivating.
When the seasoning was added, the human and two beasts almost drooled...
The aroma was indeed too captivating.
Lin Chen took a bite; as a connoisseur, he was more qualified to judge.
He couldn't wait to take a bite; his teeth crunched through the crispy exterior, emitting a slight "crunch" sound, and then the tender, juicy meat spread throughout his mouth, instantly filling it with flavor.
For the first time, he felt that animated shows like "Cooking Master Boy" weren't exaggerated but indeed real.
Lin Chen looked at the two drooling beasts beside him and handed it to Xiaobai.
Xiaobai took it but didn't eat, instead passing it to Xiao Hong.
"Moo~~"
Xiaobai meant for the younger one to eat first.
Lin Chen appreciated this; even though it wanted to eat badly, it understood the concept of sharing.
The little fox was touched and took a gentle bite before passing it to Xiaobai.
This time, Xiaobai didn't hesitate, swallowing it whole, leaving no bones...
The cow's mouth was just too big; nothing could be done!
Suddenly, Xiaobai's pupils, just like Lin Chen's, widened dramatically.
"Moo moo~~~"
Lin Chen nodded, looking appreciatively at the little fox.
The little fox was beyond happy...
As the cook, it didn't find the food remarkable; it only mattered that Lin Chen and Xiaobai thought it was delicious.
"I'll buy another batch tomorrow and sell it in town," Lin Chen said.
The two creatures nodded.
.....
At night, the little fox practiced repeatedly, trying to get the feel.
After two or three hours of practice, it was very tired and fell into a deep sleep.
Lin Chen was tired too, so he went to sleep first.
The last one to sleep in the house was still Niu Niu.
Niu Niu had always been hardworking, never stopping while not exhausted; it was in the cow's nature.
But no matter how tired Xiaobai was, it would always take a bath before sleeping.
Late at night, Xiaobai returned to the bed and saw Lin Chen cuddling the little fox in his sleep, so it squeezed in too...
Bang~~~
The human and two beasts fell off together.
Lin Chen woke up to see the collapsed bed, completely bewildered.
Xiaobai hung its head low in guilt...
Since contracting with Lin Chen, it had been growing, and not slowly either.
Lin Chen held up the little fox and said, "It was the little fox who finally broke the bed."
The little fox, with faster reflexes than Xiaobai, scratched its head, understood he was comforting Xiaobai, and took the blame.
"No worries, we'll go logging tomorrow and make a big bed," Lin Chen said.
"Moo~~"
"Goo~~"
"Xiao Hong, you don't have to come. Last time we took you, you almost set the woods on fire. In the modern day, you'd be sent to jail for that."
"Moo!"
"Goo~~"
"Good, it's not far."
The human and two beasts embraced the next day's tasks, falling into a deep sleep on the broken bed.
The following day, Lin Chen went to buy chicken wings right away, purchasing a total of twenty.
Lin Chen had calculated; Xiao Hong's limit was thirty, but he didn't want Xiao Hong to be exhausted each time.
After cleaning them at home, Lin Chen took Xiaobai to start logging.
Upon returning home, it was already noon. They ate the meal prepared by Xiao Hong, then took the barbecue grill to town.
"By the way, how much should we sell each for?"
This question had been on Lin Chen's mind since last night.