Chapter 39: Spices (Please Add to Favorites and Recommend)

As soon as he stepped out of the dimensional space, Wang Liang found himself amidst the bustling crowds on the great plaza. Watching the ebb and flow of players across the square, he was overcome by an unexpected sense of coming home.

He considered whether he should first find a place to settle down, and only then worry about how to make a living in the days ahead. At that moment, an enticing aroma wafted to his nose—a scent reminiscent of spices roasting over a flame, as if someone nearby was working with a special blend. Wang Liang couldn’t discern exactly what spices were involved, but the fragrance was undeniably captivating.

He caught himself, bemused. What was going on? He was a cultivated official who had ascended through the ranks by merit—not quite a Li Bai, but certainly not so unrefined as to simply declare, “That smells good.” Could the aroma have somehow addled his wits?

Curiosity piqued, Wang Liang followed the trail of the scent to an unusual stall at one end of the plaza. Unlike the others, where goods were simply spread on a cloth, this one featured a large cauldron set over a fire, with generous quantities of spice being tossed and stirred. Seated before the cauldron was a young woman, perhaps in her twenties, with golden hair and pale violet eyes. Her long, flaxen locks fell loosely about her, and though her features suggested Eastern heritage—quite unlike the Markos he’d encountered in the game before—the color of her hair lent her an air of peculiarity.

Fortunately, Wang Liang had learned from Zhao Gongming that players, upon entering the game, were given the opportunity to change their hair, skin, or eye color. Many, seeking to express individuality, chose the most outlandish hues—green, for instance, or green with yet more green.

He recalled his reaction to this phenomenon—oh yes, he’d quipped, “What sort of person, with water for brains, would choose to change their hair color?” But now, confronted with the golden-haired, violet-eyed woman, he found himself murmuring, “How beautiful!”

At that moment, the golden-haired woman seemed to notice something amiss. She looked up from her book and addressed a red-haired young man who was stirring the spices in the cauldron, “The heat’s a bit too high. Stir faster, and in five minutes, add a bit more fennel.”

Only then did she turn to Wang Liang. “Are you here to buy spices?”

“Oh, no. I’m interested in purchasing some recipes.”

“Recipes? Please, step over here and we’ll talk.”

With a graceful gesture, she led Wang Liang aside. “Let me introduce myself: I am Divine Tongue, chief chef and head of logistics for the Academy Legion. May I ask your name?”

Wang Liang was well accustomed to such eccentric in-game monikers by now—Divine Tongue was preferable, at least, to the likes of Crying Maiden or Ghost-head Miss. “Versatile Wang Ji Long,” he replied.

“Splendid! I can tell just from your name that you have a passion for the culinary arts. I have three spice recipes, each requiring careful blending. One is an ancient Egyptian formula, one is my own refined version of the Thirteen-Spice Blend, and the last—believe it or not—is a secret of the Elven race.”

Wang Liang listened to Divine Tongue’s performance with composure, offering no comment. She had no idea that he was entirely ignorant of Egyptians, Thirteen-Spice Blends, or Elves; she assumed, instead, that he simply wasn’t impressed.

So Divine Tongue slapped her elegantly pale thigh and declared, “I knew you were a connoisseur! I have a legendary recipe—a formula from the ancient gods themselves, with quality second to none.”

A recipe from the ancient gods? What could that be? Wang Liang was quietly intrigued, though his expression betrayed nothing, as if such things barely registered with him.

He was about to inquire about the price of these four recipes when the red-haired youth at the cauldron suddenly called out, “Miss, a customer’s arrived!”

Divine Tongue apologized to Wang Liang, “Sorry, I have a customer. Please wait just a moment.” She snapped her book shut and hurried to the cauldron.

Wang Liang glanced in that direction and saw, by the cauldron, a man nearly two meters tall. The man wore a black cloak and an ostentatious straw helmet that looked like a bird’s nest. After one round in the game, Wang Liang knew well that, for players, appearance was secondary to the properties of their gear. If this bird’s-nest helmet suited the man so well, it must have excellent attributes.

Behind him trailed two entities that did not appear to be players—more like corpses, bodies shriveled and bound tightly in yellow bandages, clearly without internal organs, each with five small bottles at their waists. Most peculiarly, there was a faint scent of spices emanating from them.

The tall man reached into the cauldron, pinched some spices between his fingers, brought them to his nose, and nodded in satisfaction.

“Yes, this is exactly what I want.” He directed the two ghoulish attendants to fill burlap sacks with the spices, and together they hauled off the entire cauldron’s contents as if transporting grain. Wang Liang could not shake the feeling that something was rather uncanny about the whole affair.

Once the customer had departed, the red-haired youth began scrubbing the cauldron to prepare a new batch, while Divine Tongue returned to Wang Liang with a self-satisfied air. “See? They buy this spice by the sackful!”

Strange as he found it, Wang Liang decided to buy the recipes. He had already discerned that spices were in high demand in this world. After some bargaining, he purchased four spice recipes from Divine Tongue for one hundred coins.

[Recipe learned: Egyptian Spice Blend (for curing meats; blended from twenty-seven ingredients; effect: rapidly dehydrates meat, keeps it fresh and vibrant for a long time.)]

[Recipe learned: Fine-tuned Thirteen-Spice Blend (for savory dishes; made from thirteen ingredients; effect: enhances flavor by 50%).]

[Recipe learned: Elven Secret Spice (for savory dishes; made from three rare ingredients with nineteen spices; effect: completely removes gaminess, increases nutritional effects by 10%, and imparts a vegetal taste to meat.)]

[Recipe learned: Ancient Sacrificial Meat Spice (for ritual meats; blended from nine ancient spices; effect: boosts food effects by 30%, with a chance to receive a divine blessing.)]

Along with the four recipes, Divine Tongue gifted him a yet-unpublished book she had written herself: A Brief History of Spices—the very volume she had been reading earlier.

Wang Liang had a fondness for anyone capable of writing a book, so he perused it carefully. It catalogued over eighty percent of the spices available in the game, complete with illustrations, tasting notes, and detailed blending instructions. While identification and certain answers could be obtained from the system, it was clear the author had poured great devotion into the culinary arts.

The book reminded Wang Liang that he still had a pile of books and gems left unsorted. Clutching A Brief History of Spices, he quickly took his leave from the stall.