Another twenty minutes passed.
From the gaps in the pot lid, thick white steam began to spill out restlessly.
The aroma in the air also completely shed its previous restraint, becoming incomparably domineering.
The previous second, it was the wild savagery coursing deep within the Dracobeast meat.
The next second, it transformed into the rich and mellow freshness of Giant Deep-Sea Abalone that had been settled for a hundred years.
Immediately following, the ethereal fragrance of mushrooms originating from the mountain and cloud peaks forced its way in, seizing control of the sense of smell.
Countless kinds of top-grade aromas fiercely clashed and madly tore at each other in the small courtyard.
Yet they ultimately entangled and merged in a strange way, weaving a new aroma that could directly seize the soul.
"Gulp... gulp... gulp..."
Pan Wenhuo, lying on the lounge chair, had his Adam's apple bobbing up and down frantically.
His stomach rumbled, each sound louder than the last.
His gaze, which had been fixed on the endless void of the sky he had seen countless times, finally nailed itself onto that steaming big pot.
He saw Lin Qingyue's outrageously simple cooking process.
A thought, like a wildfire spreading over the prairie, grew wildly in his lifeless heart:
"Just... throw things in and cook..."
"Just doing it like this... can make such a fragrant dish?"
"Cooking can be this simple? Then... can I do it too?"
For the first time, an emotion called "confusion" surfaced deep within his lifeless eyes.
Immediately after, a wisp of desire, so faint it was almost invisible, like wild grass crushed by a giant stone for a thousand years, struggled to poke its tender head out from the indestructible stone crevice.
The spark named "appetite" in his heart waged a brutal war against the Abyss named "Sloth."
Lin Qingyue remained oblivious to everything around her.
She cracked the last sunflower seed, clapped her hands, and assumed a leisurely posture.
She could clearly perceive that the spiritual energy of countless ingredients in the pot had achieved the most perfect fusion within the most primal boiling water.
Lin Qingyue stood up, a smile of absolute control curling on her lips.
Under the breathless gazes of everyone present, she slowly reached out and grasped the scorching pot lid handle.
"Time to eat."
The moment her voice fell, the lid was lifted!
BOOM!
The long-accumulated aroma and spiritual energy broke free from their cage, transforming into a visible column of milky white gas that soared into the sky!
That wasn't just fragrance.
It was an "Olfactory Tsunami" that condensed the essence of mountains, rivers, seas, the sun, and the moon!
The tsunami swept through the entire backyard.
The meat aroma, so rich it made one's marrow feel numb, was its bone and sinew.
The seafood freshness, so delicious it made one's soul tremble, was its flesh and blood.
The fragrance of mushrooms and herbs, so elegant it could cleanse the soul, was its ethereal and drifting spirit!
These flavors, which should have been distinct, were forcibly blended by a power that transcended culinary art itself into a completely new, ultimate "Taste"!
Wherever the aroma passed, the plants in the courtyard seemed to be infused with the essence of life, glowing green and shimmering with a faint, precious light.
Gulp!
Pan Big-Ladle and Pan Ironpaw, uncle and nephew, felt their Adam's apples bob violently out of control, saliva instantly flooding their mouths.
They stared fixedly at the copper pot, their pupils holding only the flames of greed, their breathing as heavy as a bull's.
This was no mere food aroma.
This was poison!
It was the devil's whisper, igniting a primal appetite directly in the depths of the soul!
Lin Xiyue stomped her foot indignantly: "Sis! You're so unfair! Why didn't you bring out something this delicious earlier!"
Su Wan remained seated, but the hands clutching the hem of her robes so tightly that her knuckles turned white completely betrayed the raging storm within her heart.
Xia Lian was even more direct, covering her "gurgling" protesting stomach with both hands, her pretty face so red it looked like it was about to drip blood, wishing she could immediately dig a hole in the ground and bury herself.
This olfactory storm did not cease.
It effortlessly crossed the backyard wall and flooded into the front hall of the "Food is Heaven" inn.
The guests eating their meals all froze in unison.
A burly Pandaren had just lifted a piece of Braised Pork, glistening and caramelized, about to bring it to his mouth.
But when that utterly unreasonable fragrance snuck into his nostrils, the Braised Pork in his hand suddenly lost its allure.
He stared blankly at what had once been his favorite dish, then sniffed the air, catching a scent that seemed to drift down from the divine realm, his face a picture of confusion and anguish.
Finally, he silently placed the meat back into his bowl, his gaze hollow, his appetite completely gone.
Throughout the entire hall, every single diner put down their bowls and chopsticks in unison.
In the kitchen, the chefs tossing their woks were struck as if by lightning.
They smelled the aroma in the air, then looked at the dishes they had meticulously prepared in their own pots, feeling a profound doubt about their own skills for the first time.
The fragrance continued to spread, washing over the Mid-Mountain Market.
Those top chefs who had come for the Feast of a Hundred Flavors, each with standards high above their heads, had their steps nailed to the spot at nearly the same moment.
"Hmm? What is this scent?"
"Who is cooking this? To create such an... utterly unreasonable aroma!"
"Nonsense! To throw so many overpowering ingredients into one pot is a complete waste of precious materials! But... but why can it be this fragrant?!"
Shock, confusion, and finally, a mixture of irresistible curiosity and a hint of... defiance.
One sharp gaze after another locked onto the source of the fragrance: the Food is Heaven inn.
The next moment, dozens of burly figures, carrying all sorts of woks on their backs and kitchen knives at their waists, swarmed toward the inn's backyard like iron filings drawn by a magnet.
-
In the backyard.
Lin Qingyue ignored everyone's shock.
She took a large white porcelain bowl and unhurriedly filled it with a serving of the essence, the various ingredients in the soup like stars surrounding the moon.
Then, she pinched a small bunch of emerald-green scallions between her fingertips and casually sprinkled them over the top.
Holding the bowl, she did not walk toward Pan Wenhuo, but instead handed it to the completely petrified Pan Big-Ladle.
"Boss Pan, care for a taste?"
"Me? I... I... I..."
Pan Big-Ladle was overwhelmed by the unexpected honor, his hands trembling.
He shakily accepted the bowl, the fragrance so close it nearly caused him to faint from sheer bliss.
Carefully blowing away the steam, he scooped up a small mouthful with the spoon and brought it to his lips.
Boom!
Pan Big-Ladle's mind went completely blank.
He felt as if he were swallowing not just soup, but an entire concentrated world!
The dominance of the giant beast, the crispness of the ice spring, the richness of the abalone, the freshness of the mountain mushrooms...
Countless ultimate flavors detonated an unprecedented culinary nuclear blast upon his taste buds.
His soul seemed to be dragged from his body by this force, thrown into a sea of stars to dance wildly with the spirits of countless legendary ingredients.
"So... so delicious..."
Pan Big-Ladle's eyes welled with tears. He tossed and turned, able to utter only those two words.
He felt that his culinary skills, which had not improved for years, now had a new direction to move forward.
Seeing that Pan Big-Ladle had already fallen into a mysterious state of enlightenment, Lin Qingyue only then served another bowl.
A faint, nearly imperceptible pink aura from her fingertips quietly merged into the soup.
Then, she walked to the lounge chair.
Pan Wenhuo's eyes stared fixedly at the bowl in her hand, and a dry rasping sound came from his throat, like a desperate beast that had been starved for ten days.
His body trembled violently between the inertia of sloth and his primal appetite.
"Gurgle... gurgle, gurgle..."
A thunderous roar erupted from his stomach, as if a sleeping Taotie were awakening, about to tear through its cage.
In his deadened eyes, the struggle grew more intense.
He smelled it.
He clearly smelled that aroma that could melt the very soul.
The small flame within his heart named "appetite," under the rule of the tyrant "sloth," for the first time raised an unprecedentedly large rebel army.
I want to eat...
It's too much trouble to get up, I'd rather lie here.
But it smells so good... Just one bite, just one...
No, if I eat, I'll have to brush my teeth, that's too much trouble.
But I saw it! That human's cooking... is so simple it's infuriating! She just washed the ingredients, chopped them up, and threw them all into the pot! I could even do that!
This thought, like a lightning bolt creating heaven and earth, struck through the chaotic mist in Pan Wenhuo's heart.
That's right!
What if "delicious" didn't necessarily equal "troublesome"?
What if there were a way to enjoy ultimate deliciousness without any effort at all?
The logical loop, completely welded shut by his [ Sloth ] desire, suddenly cracked open with a glaring split.