Chapter 89 - 36: Spiritual Cuisine, Golden Sun Stuffed Rice!

Chapter 89: Chapter 36: Spiritual Cuisine, Golden Sun Stuffed Rice!

By taking his time to thoroughly chew and swallow the meal, Jiang Xuan fully integrated every nuance and charm he experienced into his very body and Soul Spirit. With every spoonful of rice, his comprehension of the warm sun, the summer season, and the sun itself deepened by another fraction. The True Communication of the Three Purification Spell only amplified the efficiency of this Feast Ceremony.

Because of this flawless integration, by the time Jiang Xuan neared the end of the dish, his entire body was practically glowing. It was not a metaphor. He looked like a gentle, miniature sun, radiating a soft golden glow. This was partly the excess Yang Power from the stuffed rice passively venting from his body, but more importantly, it was the autonomous light of Dao Rhyme manifesting after he grasped the Warm Sun Dao Rhyme.

[Congratulations to the Player. You have comprehended the Summer Warm Sun Dao Rhyme. Moving forward, the difficulty of practicing any associated Cultivation Technique will be reduced by one level.]

[You have unlocked more classes related to summer and the sun.]

[Your Clear Heart Swordsman class can now advance to Sun Knight.]

[Your Daoist Acolyte class can now advance to Sun Priest.]

[Your Qi Cultivator class has unlocked a new advancement path...]

The notifications chiming within his Sea of Consciousness did not distract Jiang Xuan in the slightest. However, the scene unfolding in front of Wu Shan left the older disciple utterly dumbfounded.

"W-Warm Sun Dao Rhyme? How is that possible?!"

His shock was entirely justified. As a Dao Rhyme that every Inner Sect Disciple of the Valley of Summer was required to grasp, he too had successfully comprehended the essence of the warm sun. Yet, it was precisely because he had comprehended it himself that he was so thoroughly astounded.

After all, to master the essence of the warm sun back in the day, he had baked under the blazing sun for three whole months. Only after his skin had tanned to a deep bronze did he manage to barely scrape the edges of the Yang Dao Rhyme. Even then, his progress was considered proof of outstanding Talent among his peers. But the nearly one hundred days of grueling cultivation he had endured? Jiang Xuan had just bypassed all of it simply by eating a single meal!

Witnessing such a heaven-and-earth difference, how could Wu Shan’s mental state not shatter?

"Hahaha... So comprehending a Dao Rhyme is actually this easy? You don’t need to meditate bitterly under the scorching sun at all. You just need to enjoy a delicious meal and boom, enlightenment? Hahaha...

"This makes absolutely zero sense!"

While Wu Shan was off to the side, pulling his own hair out and muttering to himself, Jiang Xuan continued to chow down. Soon, the massive pot of Golden Sun Stuffed Rice had been entirely devoured. By the time he scraped the bottom of the pot, Jiang Xuan was thoroughly satiated. An overwhelming sense of satisfaction washed over him.

He set down his spoon, feeling a profound, unprecedented comfort permeate his entire being. The hearty texture of the grains and the fully activated Power of the Sun melded together within him. It left Jiang Xuan practically brimming with boundless energy, completely sweeping away the sickly pallor that his previous blood and Qi deficit had caused.

"That was amazing... Thank you, Senior Brother Wu." He offered his genuine gratitude while already calculating in his head how to get into Senior Brother Wu’s good graces. If he played his cards right, he might be able to eat Spiritual Cuisine like this every day.

On the other hand, Wu Shan was still staring into space in a daze. However, years of habit prompted him to subconsciously ask, "You’re welcome... How was the taste?"

Asking for feedback after a meal was practically an instinct for any dedicated Chef.

Xia He summed up her thoughts simply. "Delicious." Then, realizing she probably ought to offer a bit more praise than that, she added, "It was so satisfying. I feel like I’m bursting with energy right now."

As she spoke, she flexed her slender, pale arm, trying her hardest to look tough and powerful. Unfortunately, paired with her pretty face, the gesture only came off as incredibly adorable.

Jiang Xuan was also quick to nod in agreement. "It was a very hearty, deeply satisfying meal."

But after hesitating for a moment, he decided to add a few more thoughts. Ever since his class advanced to Gourmet, Jiang Xuan’s Culinary Skill hadn’t improved, but his palate and tasting abilities had undergone a qualitative leap. After all, the ability to cook and the ability to critique a dish were rarely one and the same. Case in point: thanks to his Feast Ceremony and Thousand-Attracting Tongue, Jiang Xuan had actually noticed a few glaring flaws in the Golden Sun Stuffed Rice.

"Using grains as the primary ingredient and skipping any unnecessary seasonings was a brilliant idea. Using your Yang Flame Fire to draw out the natural fragrance of the rice and the Power of the Sun shows that your foundational skills are incredibly solid.

"However, the addition of the Silkie Chicken and the Treasure Fish felt a bit superfluous. I assume you were trying to combine the powers of the sky, the earth, and the ocean to create a ’Golden Sun Great World Stuffed Rice’. But relying on individual grains of rice as the primary binding agent didn’t produce the best Effect. Rice grains are too independent. They struggle to perfectly fuse those three distinct powers together.

"If you want to continue pursuing that specific direction, I highly recommend using water as your core harmonizing element.

"Alternatively, since the earth encompasses all things, you could try grinding the grains into flour and preparing it as a dough or noodle dish."

The moment those words left his mouth, Wu Shan’s thick eyebrows knitted tightly together.

Seeing the Chef’s reaction, Xia He shot Jiang Xuan a fierce glare. She didn’t say a word, but Jiang Xuan clearly understood the message in her eyes. "Senior Brother Wu was nice enough to cook for you, so why are you being so nitpicky?!"

Jiang Xuan just stared back innocently, his expression conveying his own thoughts. "I’m not complaining. I just want to help Senior Brother improve."

That truly was Jiang Xuan’s honest intention. More often than not, pointing out a problem wasn’t meant to make things difficult for someone. It was about identifying a flaw so the person had a clear direction and the room to improve. Of course, Jiang Xuan only felt comfortable pointing out these minor defects because Senior Brother Wu possessed such an honest, warm-hearted nature and had treated him so well. Had it been anyone else, Jiang Xuan would never have bothered doing something so utterly thankless.

He sincerely believed that Senior Brother Wu would understand his good intentions. And very soon, Jiang Xuan realized that he had made the right call.

However, there was one thing he hadn’t anticipated at all. He never expected Senior Brother Wu’s ensuing reaction to be quite so explosive!