130: The World of Food

Jiro was a good man, but he didn't intend to help to the very end. After confirming they had left the most dangerous area of the Gourmet World and stepped into the relatively safe peripheral zone, he decided to part ways.

He took out that peculiar Knocking Gun and lightly clicked it against his shoulder.

There was a soft "pfft" sound.

In the next second, Lin Luo watched in astonishment as the tall, lean, and overwhelmingly powerful body before him shriveled rapidly like a deflated balloon. Within a few breaths, a top-tier powerhouse with a magnificent Aura had transformed before his eyes into a hunched old man in his late seventies or eighties, with graying hair and a face full of wrinkles.

A strong stench of alcohol mixed with an indescribable 'old man smell' hit him. This high-impact contrast left Lin Luo completely dumbfounded.

Jiro, or rather the old man who had returned to his daily appearance, waved his hand dismissively, his voice becoming raspy and lazy:

"Alright, young man, let's part ways here. I'm off to the Liquor Lover Archipelago to find some good booze. We'll meet again if fate allows."

After saying that, he didn't wait for Lin Luo's response. He swayed with every step, hobbling off in another direction and quickly disappearing from sight.

Lin Luo stood frozen in place, his heart filled with mixed emotions for a moment, but he soon felt relieved.

Perhaps this was for the better.

There was no need to fabricate countless lies to hide his origins just to have a traveling companion. Of course, Jiro's blunt departure might also have been an instinctive lack of complete trust in him.

According to what Jiro had said earlier, a "gourmet id" was an essential proof of identity to live legally in this world. Especially in certain special places, entry and exit were strictly forbidden without a gourmet id.

Lin Luo knew very well that it would be difficult for him to obtain one through normal channels. His background wouldn't withstand any scrutiny; even if he claimed to be a refugee from some war-torn country, he lacked any supporting evidence that could be recognized by the authorities.

But there wasn't only one path.

An idea became clear in his mind—to become a "Gourmet Hunter."

Once he obtained this status, all his problems would be solved. The qualification of a Gourmet Hunter itself was a calling card that worked worldwide. With this identity, he could not only legally obtain a gourmet id but also enjoy various conveniences and benefits in life, potentially having exclusive discounts and channels for transportation, accommodation, and ingredient procurement.

Only... recalling the nightmare-like experiences in the Gourmet World—the giant insects, Vicious Beasts, abnormal gravity, and treacherous environments... every scene still left him with lingering fears. That sense of insignificance and helplessness in the face of absolute power was still etched into his bones.

However, Jiro had also stated that the "Human World" where he was now was very different from the Gourmet World. Although dangerous beasts existed in the Human World, they were far from comparable to the Gourmet World in terms of scale, strength, or environmental treachery. Correspondingly, the deliciousness of the ingredients there naturally couldn't reach such heights either.

"So, starting to adapt from the Human World should be... relatively safe, right?"

Once this thought arose, he could no longer suppress it.

He currently had no possessions and lacked a legal "gourmet id." In the short term, he didn't plan to go to the official "International Gourmet Organization (IGO)." Attempting to obtain a hunter's identity when his background wouldn't pass inspection would be no different from walking into a trap.

After thinking it over, a plan gradually took shape in his mind.

He might as well live in this relatively safe wilderness for a while.

On one hand, he could use this to familiarize himself with the ecological environment of this world, gradually adapt to the combat styles here, and try to use the meager Spiritual Qi in his body. On the other hand, a self-sufficient life in the wild would allow him to avoid urban areas that required identity checks as much as possible, providing a buffer period for him to observe and understand this world.

It was settled.

Lin Luo took a deep breath, his gaze becoming firm. He looked around and began to seriously search for a location suitable as a temporary base—ideally near a water source, on relatively high ground, easy to hide, and able to avoid obvious large beast trails.

Without much effort, he stopped by a shimmering stream.

What flowed in the stream wasn't spring water, but an amber-colored drink that constantly bubbled with fine carbonation, emitting a faint honey and fruit fragrance. The bottom of the river wasn't paved with pebbles, but with round, colorful candy pieces that gave off strange sweet scents like mint, strawberry, and even some spices. Several nearly transparent fish swam leisurely in the water, their form and texture like living, bouncy jelly.

Lin Luo couldn't help but lean down and scoop up a "Jelly Fish" with his bare hands. The fish trembled slightly in his palm and then turned into a cool, smooth sensation. He tentatively took a bite, and a sweet fruit flavor instantly flooded his mouth—the texture and taste were exactly the same as high-quality jelly.

"This place..."

He looked around, his internal wonder growing. The grass by the stream was lush and green, real plants. But those scattered "stones" exposed on the grass were light in texture; when tapped with a finger, they turned out to be sweet nougat. Not far away, several sheep were leisurely grazing; the snowy white, fluffy "wool" on their bodies had a unique, stringy texture in the breeze—it was clearly fluffy, soft cotton candy!

Everything before him harmoniously intertwined into a sweet and dreamlike landscape. Although bizarre, compared to the lethal crises of the Gourmet World, this place was like a fairy-tale paradise.

"This is the place."

Lin Luo made his decision immediately. This area not only provided seemingly safe food and water, but its own absurd characteristics might actually be a natural protection, effectively avoiding harassment from ordinary wild beasts.

With his mind made up, the next practical question came to mind: where to live?

If the Spiritual Qi in his body were abundant and flowing freely, he could easily cut wood and build a sturdy wooden house in no time. But with his current physical state, where his body was still adapting to the extremely sluggish Spiritual Qi of this alien world, trying to build a shelter with his bare hands was nothing but a pipe dream.

Fortunately, there's always a way out.

He didn't persist in "building" but turned to "searching." Exploring upstream along the carbonated drink stream, it didn't take long for a huge, shimmering lake to come into view. The lake water was an inviting orange-yellow, emitting a fresh citrus scent—another strange food region.

To his even greater surprise, at the foot of the cliff beside the lake, an entrance about two people high was clearly visible. He approached cautiously and investigated thoroughly: the entrance was dry, well-ventilated, and most importantly, there were no traces of any large animals living or active inside, only some dry moss and fallen leaves.

"Good luck."

Lin Luo let out a long sigh of relief. This natural cave was practically a temporary home tailored for him. It was hidden enough, backed by a cliff making it easy to defend and hard to attack, and within arm's reach of water and food sources.

He didn't hesitate any longer and began clearing the debris inside the cave, preparing to make this his first base in this new world.

Once the cave was cleared, he finally had a temporary place to stay.

Lin Luo sat cross-legged, focused his mind, and tried to communicate with the pendant on his chest. Fortunately, the suppression of his Divine Sense wasn't as complete as that of his Spiritual Qi; he could barely use the power of his Divine Sense to take out several crystal-clear Spirit Stones from his storage space.

However, reality soon dealt him a heavy blow.

He tried to guide the pure Spiritual Qi from the Spirit Stones into his body, but the result was frustrating. This world seemed to have some fundamental rule rejection; Spiritual Qi could not be invoked here at all. Even when he used his powerful Divine Soul strength to forcibly extract a wisp of Spiritual Qi and lead it into his Dantian, that Qi remained like stagnant water, unable to be moved or refined, completely incompatible with his body.

"This path is blocked."

He tried to awaken the cicada song collection, but it was like a pool of dead water with no response. Having so many treasures but no use for them made him very frustrated. He took out a few Spirit Fruits and tossed them into his mouth; other than tasting good, they couldn't even budge his deathly silent spiritual core.

After a moment, Lin Luo had to give up his attempts. He realized that relying on his past cultivation system to increase his power in this world was likely impossible. He had to find a source of power recognized by this world itself.

A term naturally surfaced in his mind—

"gourmet cells."

Based on Jiro's scattered mentions and the common knowledge circulating in this world, he understood that this was a type of "superhuman cell" first extracted from the body of a mysterious deep-sea Jelly Fish by the legendary Gourmet God, Acacia. Any creature that successfully achieved Fusion with gourmet cells would see a leap in its own level of deliciousness.

And in this world, there existed an immutable truth:

The more delicious it is, the stronger it is.

Power didn't come from ethereal Spiritual Qi, but was contained within mouth-watering delicacies. To survive and grow strong here, obtaining and activating "gourmet cells" seemed to be the only choice.

However, the coldness of reality soon extinguished the fire of hope he had just lit. After carefully recalling and sorting through the information he had heard from Jiro, a suffocating fact lay before him: the regular channels for obtaining gourmet cells were almost entirely monopolized by the IGO.

They might circulate in the underground world, but not only was finding these channels like walking on thin ice, the risks and costs hidden behind them were more than he could currently bear.

The regular channels were closed, and he couldn't afford the illegal ones.

The glimmer of dawn he had just seen was blocked in an instant by an invisible but indestructible high wall. Lin Luo leaned against the cold cave wall, a deep sense of helplessness slowly spreading.

"Gurgle..."

Just then, a clear stomach growl broke the silence in the cave. While the practical predicament was frustrating, the even more practical sense of hunger urged him to act immediately.

He sighed and rubbed his empty stomach. After working for so long, he had consumed a lot of physical energy and was hungry again.

Pushing his worries aside for now, he got up and walked out of the cave, preparing to go to the stream to catch a few more "Jelly Fish" to satisfy his hunger. His gaze habitually swept across the meadow where he had previously discovered the cotton candy sheep; the flock was still strolling leisurely.

However, when he turned his gaze slightly further toward a shaded area, he couldn't help but be slightly stunned.

There, several cows were bowing their heads to graze on the grass.

Their bodies were sturdier than ordinary cattle, with a shoulder height approaching two meters, and they were covered in thick fur the color of dark chocolate. Most striking were the pair of horns on their heads; they weren't the usual bone, but appeared as a crispy, layered spiral, like... two giant, freshly baked croissants?

Lin Luo subconsciously swallowed his saliva.

In this place where even the stones were nougat, what would these powerful-looking cows taste like?

Hunger and curiosity instantly overwhelmed everything else. He licked his lips and locked his gaze onto a "Chocolate Cow" that had strayed slightly from the herd.

Dinner, it seemed, was sorted.