Taste a Hundred Flavors: Gourmet Job Requirements

Although he frowned slightly at Zeng Jun standing nearby, Jiang Xuan had no intention of backing down.

Purely in terms of strength, having become a Clear-Heart Sword Disciple and possessing the Sword of the Mind, he had no fear of the other party. Even if Zeng Jun and Guo Shaoshang joined forces, Jiang Xuan still had the strength to fight them.

When Jiang Xuan stepped forward, Zeng Jun also raised his eyes and swept a glance over him. Several deep, shadowy gleams flickered through his gaze, but in the end, he said nothing.

Xie Hanyan was the same. She merely confirmed with Dong Hao, "Are you sure you want to give him your chance at a recommendation?"

"Yes."

"I understand. Gather at the academy gate at noon."

With that, she walked off to one side, sat down, closed her eyes, and regulated her breathing in preparation for morning cultivation.

Seeing this, Jiang Xuan and Dong Hao did not go over to disturb her. They turned and returned to the seats at the side. The moment they sat down, Dong Hao lowered his voice and brought up another matter. "The Dharma lineage assessment is set for the afternoon. Your celebration feast can only be moved to tonight."

"No matter," Jiang Xuan replied blandly.

The peak he would enter after joining the mountain gate had already been decided. Next came Star Daoist Academy's unchanging morning cultivation session.

As usual, before cultivating, Jiang Xuan first cleansed his body, cleansed his hands, cleansed his mouth, and cleansed his heart. After completing the full ritual sequence, he cast the Three Purifications Spell: Truth Communion upon himself. Only when his mind had fully returned to a state of clear, spotless purity did he formally begin cultivating.

This time, however, he was no longer cultivating the One Qi Sword Art, but the Nine-Breath Qi-Absorption Method.

"Exhale, inhale..."

Thanks to the Dao Foundation Contract, Jiang Xuan's cultivation of this technique went remarkably smoothly.

So smoothly that he suddenly discovered he no longer needed to remain seated in meditation!

As his breathing synchronized with the circulation of his technique, whether he sat, lay down, walked, or divided his attention to handle other matters, the technique's operation was not hindered in the slightest.

This was originally a trait that could only be unlocked after a technique reached the third realm, Minor Mastery of Proficiency. Yet with the personalized adaptation of the Dao Foundation Contract, combined with the [Qi Perception] trait unlocked when he became a Qi Refiner apprentice, Jiang Xuan had achieved it ahead of schedule while still in the second realm.

"As expected of the profession system's abilities."

"Mm... this should also be related to the Nine-Breath Qi-Absorption Method's cycle-circulation characteristic. If it were another technique, I definitely could not be this relaxed and at ease."

The only thing Jiang Xuan found somewhat regrettable was that, with his current soul and origin power, he could only adapt to one technique, and he could not change it midway.

"For the second Dao Foundation Contract slot, I either have to wait for an empty slot to unlock when the Qi Refiner profession advances, or wait until the moment I formally forge my Dao Foundation."

That matter was still far away. Jiang Xuan shook his head and cast the thought to the back of his mind.

Then, he stood up.

Since he could cultivate without sitting in meditation, continuing to sit there stiffly would be nothing but a waste of time for appearances' sake.

Jiang Xuan did not want that.

While everyone else cultivated, he planned to complete every prerequisite for becoming a Kitchen Apprentice.

"If I move quickly enough, one morning should be enough to finish all the prerequisites... I wonder what traits becoming a Kitchen Apprentice will unlock."

With some anticipation for his new profession, Jiang Xuan rose and left his seat.

"Rustle..."

Although he had been as careful as possible when standing, he was seated near the front and still drew the attention of some people.

Morning cultivation most feared distractions that disturbed one's state. Jiang Xuan's movements caused quite a few people to frown.

But unlike before, this time there were very few people who spoke up to mock him. The looks directed at him held more scrutiny and curiosity.

The ordinary students in the back rows in particular stared fixedly at his departing figure, the same thought surfacing in all their hearts without prior agreement: Had he found some special cultivation method again?

As long as you were strong enough, others would always voluntarily find good reasons for your unconventional actions. Today, Jiang Xuan understood that point perfectly clearly.

Ignoring them, Jiang Xuan slowly left the training hall and headed straight for the Star General Goods Shop beside the academy.

Star Daoist Academy had more than three thousand students. Of those, only one or two in ten had been born into immortal sects. The rest came from major imperial dynasties and immortal cities scattered across the land. These students had no residences in the Divine Firmament Sect's outer sect, and most lived in the academy's student dormitories. Where there were many people, shops selling daily necessities naturally followed.

The Star General Goods Shop Jiang Xuan visited was just such a place. Its stock was quite complete, from pills and talismans used in cultivation down to ordinary daily goods.

Jiang Xuan bought two hundred cucumbers, one hundred eggs... as well as an iron pot, charcoal, and a kitchen knife.

Jiang Xuan had originally intended to carry these things alone to a secluded place, but before he could do anything, a respectful voice sounded at his side. "Young Master Jiang Xuan, leave such rough work to this lowly one."

The one who spoke was Cheng Xiu. His sudden appearance surprised Jiang Xuan slightly.

"You do not need to attend morning cultivation?"

"This lowly one can cultivate at any time. Young Master's affairs are what matter most."

Cheng Xiu's deferential manner, treating Jiang Xuan as his highest priority in all things, left Jiang Xuan somewhat speechless and made him certain once again that he could never take up the profession of servant—the servants in this world were simply far too absurdly competitive.

Still, having someone lend a hand did save him quite a bit of trouble.

Cheng Xiu was especially quick and efficient. In mere moments, he found a secluded patch of open ground, set up the iron pot, lit the charcoal fire, and arranged a wooden table and chopping board. He handled every trivial matter perfectly, leaving Jiang Xuan free to focus solely on preparing the ingredients.

Before using the knife, Jiang Xuan followed his usual cleansing ritual, cleansing his hands and heart and returning his mind to a state of clear, spotless purity.

When he picked up the kitchen knife, he did not cut immediately. Instead, he ran his fingertips inch by inch over the cold blade.

"Hum..."

A faint tremor rang from the blade. As Jiang Xuan's heart aligned with his intent and his intent aligned with the blade, the knife's construction, balance, and sharpness all became crystal clear in his mind.

This was precisely the application of the Clear-Heart Sword Disciple's core trait—Heart: Sincerity.

As for why an ordinary kitchen knife could trigger a sword cultivator's trait, the reason was simple: in Jiang Xuan's understanding of the sword, all things beneath heaven and earth could be swords.

Anything with an edge was naturally a sharp sword. A blunt, unsharpened staff was likewise a heavy sword without an edge. Even flowers, grass, flowing water, clear wind, sunlight, and even the human heart and worldly affairs could all become swords in one's hand.

"Since it is a sword, it can naturally stir my sincere heart!"

"Hum..."

Once the kitchen knife and Jiang Xuan had completely achieved the unity of man and "sword," everything that followed came as naturally as water flowing into a channel.

Without needing even the slightest adjustment, he casually slapped a cucumber onto the chopping board. His hand rose, his blade fell, and he began cutting.

Swish! Swish! Swish!

Sharp blade-light rose and fell like the wind, so fast it nearly dragged afterimages behind it. Under the edge, the green cucumber became even slices in an instant. Three breaths later, Jiang Xuan sheathed his knife and stood still. The cucumber slices on the board were as thin as cicada wings; held up to the daylight, they clearly revealed the scenery on the other side.

Almost simultaneously, two system notifications rang out from the depths of his sea of consciousness.

[You prepared one portion of vegetables. The finished product reached the standard of "thin as cicada wings." Kitchen Apprentice knife skill proficiency +1. Current progress: 1/100]

[You completed one swordsmanship cultivation session. Clear-Heart Sword Disciple profession experience +1]

The first notification was nothing much. What truly made even Jiang Xuan, currently in his purified state of mind, pause slightly was the second notification that followed.

"This counts too?"

The moment a trace of surprise surfaced in Jiang Xuan's heart, he immediately found the answer.

"Of course it counts."

"Since all things beneath heaven and earth can be swords, how could swordsmanship cultivation be restricted to merely wielding a sword and striking?"

"Swinging a sword against enemies is cultivation. Calming one's heart to comprehend the blade is cultivation. Even chopping firewood and slicing vegetables, so long as heart and blade unite and intent aligns with the Dao, are naturally cultivation as well."

"As long as my heart is sincere, I can cultivate at every moment."

With that thought, Jiang Xuan, whose heart was as still as water, gathered away every distracting thought. He swept the sliced cucumber aside and brought down his knife again, beginning on the second cucumber.

"Swish, swish, swish..."

Blade-light continued without end, and time quietly slipped by amid the rhythmic sound of falling cuts. In less than the time it took to drink a cup of tea, Jiang Xuan had sliced one hundred cucumbers, completing the Kitchen Apprentice's first job requirement.

The second requirement, heat control, was even easier to complete.

Ordinary chefs might need years of practice to precisely control the shifts between low heat and high heat, but this was the immortal cultivation world, where strange artifacts and spiritual materials were countless. Jiang Xuan spent only a few Spirit Stones to rent an ungraded fire-controlling artifact with markings. Low heat, medium heat, and high heat could all be adjusted at will. In merely a few minutes, he perfectly completed the heat-control assessment.

Next came the third requirement—seasoning.

This had originally been the most difficult hurdle for becoming a Kitchen Apprentice. The system required him to prepare three portions of food rated "delicious." In the mortal world, that would require at least months, perhaps even years, of honing one's cooking skill to barely achieve.

But as before, this was the immortal cultivation world, and he could completely take a "shortcut" with spiritual ingredients.

He did not need any high-end spiritual item. He simply tossed a handful of spirit rice into boiling water, and its naturally sweet, mellow fragrance earned that pot of rice soup a "delicious" rating outright.

At this point, Jiang Xuan had completed three of the Kitchen Apprentice's four job requirements.

As for the last requirement—cooking thirty complete meals—Jiang Xuan directly chose... boiled eggs.

"Eggs should count as a proper meal. If they do not, I can just put a few more on each plate."

The facts proved that boiled eggs did count as a proper meal in this world. However, while carrying it out, Jiang Xuan discovered that he needed to add another step—peeling the shells.

Only peeled eggs, with at least four arranged on a single plate, counted as a proper meal.

"...Fine. If that is what the system thinks, then so be it."

When the final plate of peeled eggs was placed on the wooden table, Jiang Xuan had completed all four prerequisites for becoming a Kitchen Apprentice.

Without the slightest hesitation, Jiang Xuan immediately chose to take the job.

"Hum..."

Just as when he had taken on new professions before, a special energy suddenly surged from the depths of his true spirit and instantly spread through his limbs and bones, giving his body an entirely new cleansing.

This cleansing barely improved Jiang Xuan's physical qualities, but it brought an extraordinarily unusual change in perception. A sharp, spicy, crisp numbness suddenly spread through his nose and tongue, as though tiny currents of electricity had raced through them, or as though his five senses had undergone an entirely new evolution. The strange sensation made Jiang Xuan shudder faintly.

The nose and tongue were already the most densely packed regions of nerves. This sudden upheaval in sensation naturally spread an unusual tingling numbness throughout his entire body.

Before Jiang Xuan could recover from the strange feeling, a string of system notifications had already begun ringing through his sea of consciousness.

[You successfully became a Kitchen Apprentice. Physical qualities slightly improved.]

[You unlocked profession passives: Taste a Hundred Flavors, Smell a Thousand Fragrances.]

[You unlocked profession ability: Cooking: Beginner.]

With that, Jiang Xuan's advancement was complete, and he began examining his abilities after taking the job.

There was not much to say about Cooking: Beginner. It simply gave Jiang Xuan mastery over the basic preparation methods for common dishes.

What he truly valued from this job was the two profession passives.

[Taste a Hundred Flavors: For anything that enters your mouth, whether the five fundamental flavors of sweet, salty, savory, sour, and bitter, the original taste of ingredients, or the subtle flavor differences brought by seasoning ratios, you can distinguish them with precision. You may also use your tongue to accurately assess an ingredient's freshness, ripeness, spoilage, and deterioration, while identifying toxins and abnormalities mixed within.]

[Smell a Thousand Fragrances: You can accurately capture the scents of ingredients and spices. Even if hundreds of aromas are mixed together, you can clearly distinguish the source, characteristics, concentration, and direction of every scent.]

The culinary Dao emphasized perfection in color, aroma, and flavor, with aroma and flavor at its core. These two passives, Taste a Hundred Flavors and Smell a Thousand Fragrances, were like two innate cheating tools. With a light sniff of an ingredient's natural fragrance or a small taste, Jiang Xuan could accurately predict ingredient pairings and the final flavor after cooking.

With these two abilities, he could even avoid in advance the risks of conflicting ingredients, unbalanced seasoning, and discordant textures, reducing the trial-and-error cost of a novice on the culinary Dao to nearly zero.

"With this ability, if I wanted to, I could become a famed master chef at any time," Jiang Xuan secretly laughed.

Unfortunately, he had become a Kitchen Apprentice not to be a chef, but to "eat."

Therefore, the first thing Jiang Xuan did after taking the job was open the profession panel and look at the Kitchen Apprentice's advancement branches. At a glance, he locked onto the Gourmet's job requirements.

Once he looked, Jiang Xuan discovered that, like the Wandering Daoist among the Daoist Acolyte advancements, the Gourmet was also an absolute outlier among culinary Dao advancements.

For orthodox culinary Dao advancement, he needed to hone the three fundamental skills of knife work, heat control, and seasoning one by one, raise his cooking realm to the third realm, Minor Mastery of Proficiency, and master the preparation methods for one hundred ingredients. Those hundred dishes all needed to be cultivated to the proficiency realm before he could unlock the Kitchen Apprentice's second-stage advancement—Master Chef.

Some special advancement paths, such as the Heart-Healing Food Physician, required one to comprehend intentions such as happiness and protection, infuse one's heartfelt intent into meals during preparation, and create food that could soothe souls and heal wounds of the heart.

"The steps are cumbersome, but they are reasonable. Without such tempering, one truly cannot become a qualified Master Chef." Jiang Xuan understood inwardly, then smiled. "Fortunately, I do not need to take that road."

Among the Kitchen Apprentice's many advancement paths, two branches were completely unorthodox.

The first was the Gourmet Hunter. The core philosophy of this path was that the upper limit of cuisine never depended on skill, only on the rarity of the ingredients. "Top-grade ingredients need no cooking to become the finest flavor in the world." This statement was the Gourmet Hunter's central creed.

Yet the rare ingredients of the Celestial Immortal Realm were mostly guarded by powerful exotic beasts. Many top-tier ingredients were even the flesh and blood of powerful exotic beasts themselves. To advance along the culinary Dao, chefs who walked this path would madly hone their bodies and martial skills. Once strong enough, they would venture deep into dangerous lands to hunt exotic beasts and seize top-grade ingredients.

"...This path is rather wild."

If he could only take one or two professions, Jiang Xuan would definitely choose this road. Unfortunately, he could take many professions, and that meant that when it came to profession advancement, he did not seek to be all-encompassing, only to specialize.

"Once a hundred or so professions specialized to the utmost are combined, I will naturally become a person capable of everything."

This time, he intended to take the matter of "eating" to its absolute extreme.

It was precisely because the Gourmet's core philosophy was "tasting," rather than "cooking," that this path required no improvement in knife work or heat control. He could even completely ignore his cooking realm.

[Gourmet advancement requirements

①: Taste all Eight Mountain Treasures and Eight Sea Treasures. Every category consumed must reach rare grade. Comprehend the supreme flavors of mountains and seas.

②: Taste rare-grade dishes centered on seasonal grains from spring, summer, autumn, and winter. Comprehend the principles of nourishing the body in accordance with the seasons.

③: Taste rare-grade dishes embodying the origins of the five flavors—sour, sweet, bitter, spicy, and salty. Comprehend the way of harmonizing the five flavors.

④: Taste dishes prepared through every technique: boiling, stewing, steaming, pan-frying, stir-frying, deep-frying, roasting, braising, baking, simmering, red-cooking, smoking. At least three must reach rare grade. Comprehend the ever-changing methods of culinary art.

⑤: Taste and appraise nine famed waters under heaven. At least three must reach rare grade. Comprehend that water comes before food.

⑥: Identify thirteen cooking spices. At least three must reach rare grade. Comprehend the wonder of fragrance drawing forth a hundred flavors.

⑦: Taste eighteen fine wines of the world. At least three must reach rare grade. Comprehend the pleasure of wine and food complementing one another.

⑧: Seek out five rare and extraordinary grain varieties of the world, and taste each in its original flavor. Comprehend that the five grains are the root of nourishment.

⑨: Taste one delicacy-grade dish.]

"..."

After reading that long list of requirements, Jiang Xuan fell completely silent. Only after a long while did he say, "As expected of a Gourmet. One really has to eat every delicacy under heaven to successfully take the job."

The only thing that relieved Jiang Xuan was that he was becoming a Gourmet, not a glutton. He only needed to taste a bite of each dish and understand its flavor; he did not need to eat all of it.

And that gave Jiang Xuan the possibility of completing the requirements quickly.