The Wind Rises on the Continent, the Golden Spatula Craze (Seeking Follow-up Reads)

A week later.

Spirit City, Golden Spatula Pavilion.

This structure, built from god-tier materials, had become the liveliest spot in Spirit City within a mere few days.

From dawn until dusk, the pavilion was packed with spirit masters and common citizens alike, all eager to experience the Battle of the Golden Spatula.

Golden holographic chessboards flickered throughout the spacious hall, accompanied by the sound of clashing pieces, the exclamations of players, and bursts of laughter, all merging into a sea of clamor.

Bibi Dong stood in a VIP room on the second floor of the pavilion, looking down at the bustling scene through a one-way glass wall, a complex expression flashing in her eyes.

"In just seven days, registered players have already exceeded eight hundred."

Chrysanthemum Douluo Yue Guan stood behind her, holding a statistical report, his voice tinged with amazement.

"And this number is still growing at a rate of over a hundred people per day. At this rate, within a month, Spirit City alone will have tens of thousands of players."

Bibi Dong did not answer immediately; her gaze fell upon a middle-aged spirit master in the hall below who was staring intently at a chessboard.

She recognized him—a Spirit Saint-level deacon of Spirit Hall who was usually stern and focused solely on cultivation.

Yet at this moment, he was as excited as a child, his face flushed red from a brilliant winning streak.

"This game... truly has a magical quality." Bibi Dong spoke slowly, her voice filled with emotion. "It allows people to forget the gaps in status, age, and strength, immersing them in a pure contest of intellect and strategy."

"Furthermore," Ghost Douluo Gui Mei emerged from the shadows to add, "according to our observations, players show a marked increase in mental activity after prolonged sessions of the Battle of the Golden Spatula. While the margin is small, the long-term accumulation is highly beneficial to a spirit master's mental cultivation."

Bibi Dong nodded, a sharp glint in her eyes. "That is precisely why I agreed to cooperate with him. This Yi Chen has brought not just a game, but an entirely new approach to cultivation."

She turned to face the two Title Douluos. "Pass down the order: Spirit Hall branches in all major cities are to establish Golden Spatula experience points as soon as possible. Within three months, I want the Battle of the Golden Spatula to have a footprint in every major city across the Heaven Dou Empire and the Star Luo Empire."

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

Meanwhile, at the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.

Ning Fengzhi stood before the sect's newly completed Golden Spatula Pavilion, watching the endless stream of people with a satisfied smile on his face.

Although this pavilion was slightly smaller in scale than the one in Spirit City, it also utilized the god-tier materials provided by Yi Chen. The entire structure was silver-white, shimmering with iridescent light, and shone brilliantly under the sun, making it the most eye-catching building within the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's territory.

"Sect Master, the number of people who have come to experience it today has already exceeded three hundred."

A deacon hurried over and bowed to report. "Many have traveled specifically from nearby towns; some even traveled through the night just to be among the first to experience the Battle of the Golden Spatula."

Ning Fengzhi stroked his beard and laughed. "Good, very good. Send word: extend the pavilion's operating hours until the Hour of the Rat so that more people have the chance to engage with this game."

He paused, then added, "Also, select a group of disciples with excellent aptitude and talent for the Golden Spatula to cultivate as a priority. I have a premonition that this game will become a vital industry for our Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect in the future."

"Yes, Sect Master!"

In Heaven Dou City, Dugu Bo's actions were equally swift.

In his capacity as a guest of the imperial family, he held a grand demonstration of the Golden Spatula in the largest plaza of Heaven Dou City.

He personally entered the fray, engaging in a public match against an invited Spirit Emperor-level powerhouse. The result was beyond everyone's expectations: the Spirit Emperor lasted less than a quarter of an hour against Dugu Bo before being utterly routed by a sophisticated assassin lineup.

This demonstration caused a sensation throughout Heaven Dou City.

"Did you see that? That Spirit Emperor was a level 63 powerhouse! He actually lost to a game?"

"It's not about the game! Didn't you see? That thing called the Golden Spatula seems to genuinely train tactical thinking!"

"I heard that both Spirit Hall and the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect are promoting this game heavily. Rumor has it there's a Limit Douluo pulling the strings behind the scenes!"

"A Limit Douluo? Is that for real?!"

The news spread like wildfire, and within a few days, the name "Battle of the Golden Spatula" had spread like wings to every street and alley in the Heaven Dou Empire.

Whether they were noble youths or commoners, spirit masters or ordinary people, everyone developed a keen interest in this magical game.

Those who received the first batch of experience cards and registered their accounts became the envy of their friends.

They described the wonders of the Golden Spatula vividly—the lifelike chess pieces, the myriad of lineup combinations, the tense and exciting battles... every detail left their listeners itching to try it themselves.

The number of registrations began to grow explosively.

One hundred.

Two hundred.

Five hundred.

One thousand.

Behind Shrek Academy, Yi Chen sat cross-legged under an ancient tree, eyes closed in meditation. His consciousness was immersed in the system panel, watching the constantly jumping numbers, and a satisfied smile slowly curled the corners of his lips.

[Current Registered Players: 1047]
[Phase One Mission: Open Beta (Completed)]
[Mission Rating: S-Rank]
[Rewards Calculating...]

A golden light burst forth from the system panel, transforming into lines of gold-embossed text:

[Congratulations to the Host for obtaining the following rewards:]
[1. Golden Spatula Sanctuary (Super Divine Artifact · Palace Class): A mobile sanctuary containing the origin power of the Golden Spatula, which can serve as the Host's exclusive dojo. The interior of the sanctuary forms its own space, capable of accommodating a thousand people for simultaneous cultivation or combat. Features include automatic defense, stealth flight, and spatial teleportation.]

[2. Second stage main quest unlocked]

Yi Chen opened his eyes and flipped his palm, causing a palm-sized golden palace phantom to emerge. The palace was incredibly exquisite, with flying eaves, arched beams, and painted pillars; every detail was lifelike, radiating a vast and sacred aura.

"Golden Spatula Sanctuary..." Yi Chen toyed with the miniature palace, feeling the immense energy contained within, a look of satisfaction flashing in his eyes. "Good stuff. No more teaching in the open air from now on."

He withdrew the sanctuary into his body and continued to examine the newly unlocked quest on the system panel.

[Second stage main quest: Sweeping the Continent]

[Quest Objective: Reach 1 million registered players]

[Current Progress: 1,047/1,000,000]

[Time Limit: One year]

[Quest Rewards:]

[1. Unlock 8-player battle mode (Classic Ranked)]

[2. Open rank system (Iron → Bronze → Silver → Gold → Platinum → Diamond → Master → Grandmaster → Challenger)]

[3. Rank reward mechanism: Players reaching specified ranks can obtain corresponding rewards, including but not limited to spirit power infusion, age-based spirit rings, top-tier spirit bones, rare items, etc.]

[4. Host exclusive reward: Additional god-tier rewards issued based on final completion rating]

Yi Chen narrowed his eyes slightly after reading the quest description.

One million players?

This goal was neither too big nor too small. Given the current spread of Golden Spatula and the joint promotion by Spirit Hall, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, and Dugu Bo, reaching one million registered players within half a year was not impossible.

What truly interested him was the rank reward mechanism.

"Spirit power infusion, age-based spirit rings, top-tier spirit bones..." Yi Chen muttered to himself, a meaningful smile curling his lips. "Now, the spirit masters of the entire continent are going to go crazy."

He could easily imagine the reaction of those spirit masters who had been stuck at bottlenecks for years once this news got out. For those ordinary spirit masters lacking talent and resources, this was undoubtedly a chance to change their destiny.

And the craze for Golden Spatula would reach a new height because of it.

"But before that..." Yi Chen stood up, his gaze turning toward the direction of Shrek Academy at the foot of the mountain. "I need to get the training of those three girls under control. They are my best living advertisements."

His figure flickered and vanished from the spot.