CHAPTER 159: [159] - RAPIDLY IMPROVING CULINARY SKILLS, A NEW GROWTH BAIT

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Deep within the Gourmet Pyramid, Yuuki finally found it. The Salamander Sphinx was once a creature kept by the Red Nitro, but after they fell into their deep slumber, its life had become difficult.

The Sphinx itself wasn’t an ingredient. The true prize was its tears—a cola known as Mellow Cola, with a capture level exceeding 90.

This was the very same cola that Zebra had placed on his Full Course Menu. Every so often, he would travel to the Gourmet Pyramid to collect it.

For the Salamander Sphinx, this was a blessing. It was a Super Special Preparation Ingredient.

It couldn’t release its tears on its own, and a normal person couldn’t make it happen either. The process was incredibly intricate, requiring a series of strikes—a full-body massage, to put it simply—where the force, position, and technique all had to be perfect.

A single mistake would lead to failure, and no cola would be produced. In the original story, Toriko and Zebra had to expend every last calorie they had just to release the tears.

They were so drained that they had to resort to Autophagy—the desperate act of an Appetite Demon consuming its host—just to recover enough energy to defeat the awakened Red Nitro.

Autophagy was a special technique available only to those who had awakened their Appetite Demon. It allowed for a near-instant full recovery of energy, but it came with a terrible price: if you didn’t replenish the consumed energy with enough food afterward, you would die on the spot.

The fact that it took Toriko and Zebra draining their entire energy reserves to release the Mellow Cola spoke to the immense difficulty of the preparation. Even knowing the method, very few could actually pull it off.

For the Salamander Sphinx, releasing its tears was a relief. Since it couldn’t do so on its own, the cola would continuously build up in its eyes, causing immense discomfort.

"ROARRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!!"

Upon spotting Yuuki intruding on its territory, the Salamander Sphinx let out a furious roar. It was the ruler of this place, and it would not suffer another creature to enter its domain.

"Quiet down, kitty. I’m here to help you."

As Yuuki spoke, his aura exploded outwards. A terrifying pressure slammed down on the Salamander Sphinx.

Though the Sphinx was powerful and would normally be resistant to intimidation, Yuuki’s presence was simply on another level. Even with its partial immunity, it couldn’t withstand his aura.

The ferocious expression on the Sphinx’s face instantly melted into one of terror. Its massive body slumped to the ground like a frightened cat.

"Now, wasn’t that easier?"

Yuuki said, pulling out the cookbook he’d acquired. He flipped to the page on the Salamander Sphinx, and after reading the information, he quickly mastered the preparation method.

And so, he began to give the massive creature a full-body massage.

Once the process began, the Sphinx realized that Yuuki was trying to release the tears from its body. Its expression immediately shifted to one of joyous anticipation.

After all, ever since the Red Nitro here had fallen into their slumber, it hadn’t been able to release its tears. The discomfort had been unbearable. In the original story, the Sphinx had initially fought back against Toriko and Zebra.

They had used their own combat techniques to perform the "massage," and the Sphinx, not knowing their intentions, had naturally defended itself against their attacks.

But once it realized they were trying to help, it had given up its resistance.

....

After a full-body massage, a stream of cola trickled from the Sphinx’s eyes. But this wasn’t Yuuki’s target; it was just the dregs that had accumulated over a long, long time.

While the creature was reveling in the initial relief, Yuuki pulled out a massive barrel to collect the cola.

A moment later, a torrent of Mellow Cola gushed out like a fountain. Yuuki quickly guided the stream, ensuring every drop fell into the massive barrel.

He wasn’t like Toriko and Zebra, who had let it spill all over the ground and then slurped it up after rolling around in it.

He collected the cola, and because it had been building up for so long, the final amount was enough to fill several fifty-meter swimming pools.

The barrel was custom-made. In this era, a barrel hundreds of meters wide was nothing; you could even get one several thousand meters tall if you wanted.

It was a good thing this place was so spacious, and the city so large. Otherwise, there would have been no room for such a massive container.

With its tears finally released—the Salamander Sphinx was much more comfortable. It lay before Yuuki like a giant housecat, all traces of its earlier malice gone.

Before, it had seen him as an invader trying to steal its territory.

But now, it understood that Yuuki, like the Red Nitro of old, was here to help it release its long-accumulated tears.

And his overwhelming aura had earned its respect. It was now completely friendly.

....

"I’ve helped you release the cola. If all goes well, someone else will come to help you again after some time."

Yuuki said. Just in case, he carved the method for obtaining the cola onto a nearby wall, writing out the steps in human language.

"Protect this wall. It’s the method for releasing your tears. Anyone who comes here and sees it will understand what to do!"

After saying his goodbyes, Yuuki left. Though the Sphinx was sad to see him go, it didn’t follow.

This was its home. While Yuuki’s presence had been powerful enough to command its respect, that didn’t mean it had submitted completely. It just didn’t dare to bare its fangs at him.

Before leaving, Yuuki tasted the cola. It was truly exceptional.

The carbonation was intense, feeling as if it were exploding in his throat. But at the same time, it caused no harm.

He could clearly feel that while the sensation was powerful, it was just the stimulating feeling of carbonation; it didn’t actually hurt his throat.

All in all, the Mellow Cola was an excellent ingredient. And it had also triggered another Cell Activation for him.

....

After leaving the Gourmet Pyramid, Yuuki settled down in the Gourmet Desert for a while. He planned to first study the cookbook and consume all the ingredients he had captured.

As he deciphered the book, his culinary skills continued to improve. The various ideas and experiences recorded within were the true treasures; the methods for preparing specific ingredients were secondary.

This was a book summarized by the Golden Chef, Jiji. As a Nitro, his lifespan was infinite, giving him countless eons to study all kinds of cuisine.

If it weren’t for the fact that he was pure appetite, lacking certain things that humans possessed, his culinary skills would have long surpassed even Froese’s.

It had to be said, in this world, humanity was a uniquely blessed existence. Even Appetite Demons would only parasitize human Gourmet Cells.

Other creatures might have a higher starting point than humans, but their ultimate growth potential wasn’t as absurd.

In a sense, humanity’s potential was truly limitless. Though only a very few reached that point, it was still incredible.

The things Jiji had summarized were the pure essence of his craft. Many of them were incredibly useful to Yuuki.

So, he took this cookbook very seriously. In the end, he stayed in the Gourmet Desert for over a month.

During that time, he used one Large Bait. The ingredient he got this time was still somewhat useful, but its effectiveness was diminishing.

Yuuki could only sigh helplessly. Though the Large Bait had been upgraded once, his own growth rate was clearly much faster. It seemed the catches from the Large Bait were once again becoming useless to him.

....

"I see... so there’s another level between Transcendent-Class and God-Chef. It’s a transitional rank, but the system still recognizes it!"

After more than a month, Yuuki had completely absorbed the contents of Jiji’s cookbook. His culinary skills had advanced tremendously, reaching a new level entirely.

At this stage, his cooking was in no way inferior to Granny Setsuno’s.

And this level was also recognized by the system, which rewarded him with a new Growth Bait.

This was a pleasant surprise. He had thought he would only get another Growth Bait after becoming a God-Chef, but he never expected to get one for this intermediate rank.

He used the Growth Bait immediately.

The catch this time were the last 2 of the Five Growth-type Senses.

Now, his five senses were complete, and they had once again been upgraded along with his culinary level.

His Sense of Touch had grown to the point where his hair could now extend for ten kilometers, and the strength and hardness of each strand were greatly enhanced. His other senses had also undergone a qualitative leap.

And most critically, so had his Gourmet Cells—

His cell level had once again increased due to this rank-up, an improvement completely independent of eating ingredients.

The boost this time was more horrifying than any ingredient he had eaten before. Yuuki found his strength had grown to an almost absurd degree, but he still couldn’t determine his exact level. He lacked a point of reference.

He didn’t have the experience of Setsuno and the others.

Every time his culinary skills improved, all his Growth-type abilities would improve along with them. That was the most terrifying part. A pity that improving his cooking was now incredibly difficult.

He was lucky to have Jiji’s book this time. Otherwise, to reach this level, it would have probably taken him several, or even dozens of times longer.

....

"Since my cooking has improved, it’s time to head to my next destination."

Yuuki planned his next move. The destination was: the Land of Healing, Life.

This place was the headquarters of the Revivers. After the incident in Wul Jungle, Yuuki wanted to learn their techniques. Otherwise, his actions would have too great an impact on the natural environment.

It was only because he wanted to get the cookbook first that he had gone to the Gourmet Pyramid.

He had now mostly deciphered the book. He had even recorded a video of himself translating its contents.

The reason for doing so was, naturally, to give it to Granny Setsuno.

....

Upon returning to Gourmet Town, Yuuki went straight to Setsuno’s Diner without stopping. To his surprise, it was open for business today.

But the customers weren’t Toriko and his friends; they had already been here.

This time, it was a different group of guests. Yuuki had no interaction with them and went directly into Setsuno’s kitchen.

"Ms. Nono, who is that person? He was able to walk straight into Ms. Setsuno’s kitchen!"

Seeing Yuuki enter so casually, a few of the dining guests were completely baffled.

"The one who just went into the kitchen is Mr. Yuuki."

Nono said with a smile. The moment she said his name, the others knew who he was. Although Yuuki wasn’t on the Chef Rankings and thus wasn’t famous—anyone who knew about Setsuno’s company would know that it now had a special consultant position. This position held great power, and the dividends were very high.

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