"Lend me a flame."
With a slightly pouty face, Hu Tao directed her Vision at the pile of wood. As the fire lit up, the two of them, sitting in the wilderness, felt a bit of warmth.
"Hey, Sanqiu, why didn't we just stay at Wangshu Inn? Why do we have to rough it out here? Don't you know that skincare is really important for a girl?"
"I didn't expect you to be so conscious of that. Not bad, not bad."
Hu Tao's gaze toward Gu Sanqiu grew increasingly dangerous.
(〝▼皿▼)
Wangsheng Funeral Parlor's director used intimidating glare on Gu Sanqiu!
It was super effective!
"Well, the reason is simple. This stuff—this fine stuff—is best enjoyed by ourselves."
Before they went to deal with the zombie, he had already sent Shadow Eagle to deliver a message to the nearby Millelith, telling them to watch for suspicious individuals around Wuwang Hill. If the mastermind behind this mess was powerful, they would likely jump out to stop him and Hu Tao once they disrupted their plans.
The enemy was probably a summoner type with weak personal strength but strong underlings—like a corpse herder. Otherwise, Gu Sanqiu wouldn't have risked getting the Millelith involved. If not for the identity seal he carried, they wouldn't have even trusted the anonymous letter he sent.
"Caw—"
The Shadow Eagle descended from the sky, fully revitalized after Gu Sanqiu's medicine had healed it.
"Are you sure this thing is edible?" Hu Tao looked skeptical. "Something this ugly—eating it might make me ugly too."
"I don't think that'll happen."
Gu Sanqiu pulled out a large knife and swung it down hard at the half of the creature covered in scales.
Clang!
Gu Sanqiu tilted his head as a fragment of the blade flew off, darting through the air like a throwing weapon.
"Hmm, tough scales. And this was a knife I bought from Cold Edge Forge."
He turned to Hu Tao. "How about your Staff of—"
"San—Qiu!"
"Sorry, sorry, I was just joking."
Gu Sanqiu quickly surrendered. Judging by Hu Tao's expression, if he had finished that sentence, she would've pounced on him right then and there.
"This cheat ability is really useless sometimes. Not even a recipe for cooking this thing?"
Left with no choice, Gu Sanqiu took out a piece of the Hundred-Tempered Iron he had and started scraping the scales off the creature, like one would with fish scales.
The sound of scraping filled the air as the scales fell off rapidly, thanks to the well-tempered iron and Gu Sanqiu's use of elemental energy and skill.
"These growths have traces of elemental energy in them."
Gu Sanqiu swung his knife down and cleanly removed one of the giant chicken's legs. Hu Tao, without missing a beat, hoisted it up and placed it on the makeshift grill they had set up.
"Now let's see what's inside these lumps."
As he sliced open one of the growths, small, colorful gems tumbled out. Despite being embedded in the creature's flesh, the gems weren't stained with blood.
Item: Elemental Gems of the Wasteland
Origin: Grown inside the Ugada Giant-Legged Chicken's body. The number and quality vary depending on the chicken's age.
Note: Now you understand why those two groups of scholars fight over it, right?
"Elemental gems, huh? No wonder these things are valuable. Whether you sell them for money or use them to woo someone, they're pretty nice."
Gu Sanqiu casually tossed all the gems to Hu Tao. "These aren't much use to me, so you can have them."
"If you hadn't said what you just did, I might've actually been grateful for such a precious gift."
Hu Tao stuck her tongue out at him. "But now that I know you'd use these valuable gems for such silly reasons, I guess I'll have to begrudgingly hold onto them for you."
"Don't give them back."
"Nyeh! I'm not going to! Tomorrow, I'll treat the entire staff of Wangsheng Funeral Parlor to dinner at Liuli Pavilion, and you're not invited."
Hu Tao pocketed the gems, then sat with her chin resting on her hands, watching Gu Sanqiu as he expertly seasoned the roasting meat.
"Sanqiu, do you think this will taste good?"
"If I told you I'm not sure about that, would you go running back to Wangshu Inn for a meal?"
"Goodbye."
Hu Tao's face darkened as she pouted and turned away. "Even if you beg me to eat it later, I won't…"
Boom!
The aroma that suddenly burst forth caught both of them off guard. The explosive scent was so intense that they briefly thought they were being attacked by Hilichurls.
But soon after, the unmistakable smell of perfectly roasted chicken overwhelmed their senses. It was as if they could see giant chickens running through an endless wasteland, pecking and scavenging.
It was as if the chicken had been marinated in flavorful spices for years, and Gu Sanqiu suspected that even their clothes were now infused with the scent.
Among the dominant chicken aroma, subtle, diverse notes gradually rose, adding layers of depth to the flavor.
The chicken's powerful leg muscles, built for running all day across vast plains, combined with the protection of the elemental gems inside, had created a truly remarkable flavor and texture.
Gu Sanqiu's body trembled slightly as a rush of vitality coursed through him.
"Just one bite, and my body feels… enhanced."
Gu Sanqiu clenched his left fist, feeling an indescribable force moving through him. It wasn't a massive increase in strength, just a few extra kilograms of power, but it came with improved stamina and more solid physical strikes.
"So, the Wasteland Gems are more than just valuable. The person who writes those notes must really know their stuff."
"Mmmm, so good, so good," Hu Tao mumbled, cutting the meat with precise, practiced strokes. Her knife skills were as sharp as any wandering swordsman's, a testament to Wangsheng Funeral Parlor's fine training.
"That's just one leg. I'm not competing with you. Don't choke."
That last part was what Gu Sanqiu really wanted to say as he handed her a glass of freshly pressed apple juice, made from wild apples he'd gathered. It wasn't the sweetest, but it did a good job of cutting through the richness of the meat.
"Mmm-mmm-mmm!"
Watching Hu Tao dig in, Gu Sanqiu couldn't help but chuckle. It occurred to him that after their time at Wuwang Hill, she was probably starving. Not everyone could carry around as many supplies as he did, after all.
Of course, that didn't include the 2,000 units of junk in every bag.
"Eat up, eat up. Just don't end up rolling down the mountain like a certain coco-goat," Gu Sanqiu muttered playfully.
---
If you spot any mistakes let me know so I can fix them.
Read up to Chapter 30! [P@treon.com/WiseTL]