Chapter 491: What Do Low-Level Cultivators Eat in the Wild?
Since the two of them jumped the start, they unsurprisingly won the first round.
When Yu Yin learned how these two had won, she felt she had already grasped thirty percent of Jiang Li and Bai Hongtu’s essence. She thought it was about using up all the ingredients so other contestants couldn’t compete, but it turned out to be about feeding the mortals early so other contestants couldn’t compete.
She was almost getting it.
When the Human Sovereign candidates learned how Jiang Li’s pair had truly put themselves in others’ shoes, they began reflecting on why they hadn’t considered this aspect.
They were indeed thinking from others’ perspectives, but not thoroughly enough.
Actually, neither Yu Yin nor Bai Hongtu—both pampered cultivators—had considered the round-trip issue. Only Jiang Li, who had struggled his way up from the bottom and witnessed many people’s hardships, knew what they needed most.
Eating early, not missing noon rest, and having energy for afternoon work were what mattered most.
“Congratulations to Team Feng Li for winning first place in the first round. Now we begin the second round.”
Yu Yin didn’t need to guess to know Jiang Li had changed his surname again.
“As everyone knows, low-level cultivators cannot practice inedia and cannot sustain themselves on heaven and earth’s spiritual energy alone—they still need to eat. Low-level cultivators often adventure in the wild, either training themselves or searching for natural treasures, and their food supply cannot be guaranteed.”
Seven Kill Daozi showed the expression of someone meeting a kindred spirit after hearing this.
The Spirit Chef Sect Leader didn’t notice Seven Kill Daozi’s reaction and continued: “Therefore, this second round requires contestants to create food convenient for low-level cultivators to eat in the wild. The one receiving the most praise from low-level cultivators will be the winner.”
When Jiang Li and Bai Hongtu heard the topic, they glanced at each other, realizing they were thinking the same thing, and immediately sprang into action.
They weren’t boasting, but this kind of topic was far easier than the Old Human Sovereign’s tests.
The three groups—spirit chefs, Yu Yin, and Human Sovereign candidates—were still pondering where to begin.
“Low-level cultivators can’t practice inedia, so what they most commonly eat in the wild is barbecue. As long as I develop a standardized barbecue process to unify the flavor, I can satisfy low-level cultivators.”
This was the most common line of thinking.
Barbecue might seem simple, but factors like different ingredients, heat levels, and seasonings resulted in extremely inconsistent flavors.
Seven Kill Daozi had deep personal experience with this.
Yu Yin analyzed: “Compared to mortals, low-level cultivators have relatively ample spirit stones, though not excessively so. The ingredients can’t be too expensive. I remember Jiang Li mentioning a food called compressed biscuits—small in volume yet filling. Perhaps I can imitate compressed biscuits.”
“But Jiang Li didn’t explain how compressed biscuits are made. Literally understood, it means compressing food into blocks as much as possible.”
This was simple enough for Yu Yin.
“What would Jiang Li and Bai Hongtu do?”
Yu Yin thought for a long time but couldn’t figure out where they might cut corners.
“Maybe they’ll behave honestly in the second round?” By the end, even Yu Yin wasn’t very certain.
…
“Time’s up, the competition is over. Please place your finished food before these cultivators, who will judge the quality themselves.”
Hundreds of contestants brought out their proud creations, each believing theirs was the best.
Among these, half the contestants had chosen to make barbecue.
However, some had put considerable effort into their barbecue.
Seven Kill Daozi loudly promoted to attract numerous cultivators: “Everyone look! As long as you follow our process—timing precise to the second, flame temperature precise to the degree, seasonings precise to the gram—you can produce identical barbecue results.”
A cultivator tasted Seven Kill Daozi’s group’s roasted rabbit and found that while the flavor was average, it wouldn’t become tiresome even after prolonged consumption.
“Can we only eat roasted rabbit?”
“Of course not.” Yuan Wuxing stepped forward to explain, “Rabbits, pheasants, wild boars, and more can all be barbecued. If there’s no meat, certain specific leaves can also be roasted and eaten.”
Yuan Wuxing pulled out a small booklet: “This documents which wild plants and animals are edible and which are not. Now I’ve also added notes on barbecue methods for various foods.”
The cultivators passed around and read through the booklet, finding Yuan Wuxing’s guide extremely practical and very helpful.
Yuan Wuxing’s wilderness survival experience surpassed that of Qin Luan and Seven Kill Daozi combined.
“Immortal Lady, what have you made?” The cultivators held Yu Youxian’s instant noodles, unsure how to eat them.
“This is a noodle cake I made from spirit grains, then deep-fried for long-term storage. It tastes quite good.”
“These are dehydrated spirit herbs—just add hot water to reconstitute them. Their spiritual energy content and nutritional value won’t be significantly reduced.”
“This is a specially made soup base from beef bones, lard, and other ingredients that also requires hot water preparation.”
Yu Youxian had made some improvements from the previous round, using more expensive ingredients.
After preparing the instant noodles, she had the cultivators try them. They found this invention both novel and delicious.
“Master was right—no preparation is ever wasted. What didn’t get showcased last round finds its opportunity this round.” Yu Youxian cherished Bai Hongtu’s teaching.
Bai Hongtu had only taught her a few proper things, so she remembered his reliable advice particularly well.
Yu Yin’s compressed biscuits also gained popularity among many cultivators. While the taste was average, their filling quality was superior. When surviving in the wild, one shouldn’t be too demanding—being full is enough.
Could anyone really expect to increase cultivation through wild eating? Impossible.
The biggest problem with compressed biscuits was their tooth-breaking hardness. Many cultivators already reported that the biscuits were harder than spiritual treasures—better suited for attacking enemies than for eating.
Qi Refining Stage cultivators absolutely couldn’t withstand an attack from these compressed biscuits.
Only then did Yu Yin realize she had compressed too much food into one biscuit.
She immediately remade compressed biscuits on site, using brute force to compress smaller amounts of food, making the biscuits chewable and gaining even more popularity among cultivators.
“Come, brother cultivator, try our self-heating rice.” Luo Ying enthusiastically recruited cultivators.
During the early apocalypse, self-heating rice was extremely popular supplies—no fire or electricity needed to enjoy hot rice. While not as tasty as steamed rice, surrounded by zombies, nobody cared about such details.
People only started eating compressed biscuits one or two years after the apocalypse began.
His younger sister Luo Zhu didn’t know about the food evolution during the apocalypse—in her timeline, the zombie crisis was resolved within just six months.
“Look, even in the wild, you can make delicious stir-fried dishes.” Li Nian’er displayed a set of wilderness cooking utensils. Since low-level cultivators could afford storage rings, these utensils weren’t much burden.
Li Nian’er demonstrated wilderness cooking considerations to everyone. Her options were more diverse than the barbecue Seven Kill Daozi had prepared.
“The most important thing is appropriate simplification—streamline whatever can be simplified. The wilderness isn’t home. For example, with tomatoes, no need to peel them—just chop into small pieces and stir-fry directly.”
Li Nian’er had a restless nature, often going out to play. She would cook while enjoying the scenery at the farthest corners of the world.