Chapter 420: Chapter 268: The Use of the First Pot of Gold (Part 2)

These people were all formerly high-ranking members of Biyou Palace; it had been a very long time since they had worried about "money."

Now that they were at the Pinnacle Celestial Immortal Sect, their treatment wasn’t bad, but they had suddenly become "paupers." Who could stand that?

It was especially agonizing that they could see all the good things in the Sect but couldn’t afford any of them.

Now, this predicament had finally been alleviated to some extent.

"Younger Brother Zou, if another opportunity like this comes up, don’t forget about us old brothers!" Liang Shunan said, clasping Zou Feng’s shoulder.

Zou Feng, however, gave an honest, wry smile. "I’d love to keep earning like this, but the problem is, I’m afraid it’ll be difficult to get anyone to face me on the Dao Discussion Platform from now on..."

Yang Haoyu was no weakling among the Outer Disciples.

He might not have been in the absolute top tier, but he was certainly a notable figure.

Since he had defeated him without paying much of a price, it naturally wouldn’t be so easy to coax others onto the Dao Discussion Platform in the future.

But to his surprise, Liang Shunan immediately shook his head. "I looked into it. That Yang Haoyu doesn’t even rank in the top thousand on the Outer Disciple potential list!"

"..."

Zou Feng immediately felt that Liang Shunan was getting a bit ahead of himself.

Zou Feng had looked into the potential list before.

The Pinnacle Celestial Immortal Sect had hundreds of millions of Outer Disciples.

The potential list only ranked a thousand people, so one could imagine how difficult it was to get on it.

Of course, there were also many disciples in the Outer Sect who kept a low profile, breaking through to the Spiritual Energy Realm and ascending directly to the Inner Sect as soon as the opportunity arose.

And while Yang Haoyu hadn’t made the list, he was clearly considered to be one of the strongest Outer Disciples outside of the rankings.

In short, if Zou Feng wanted to face someone on the Dao Discussion Platform in the future, his opponent would likely have to be someone who could make the potential list before they’d dare to accept the challenge.

But the question was, why would he go out of his way to offend the geniuses on the list, who either had powerful backing or were trying to build up their foundation before entering the Inner Sect?

Once the profits were divided, the group quickly dispersed, as everyone had their own affairs to attend to.

Before she left, Su Qingyu hinted that Zou Feng could visit her at Celestial Bright Mountain when he was free to receive the "reward" she had promised him in private.

Initially, Zou Feng hadn’t been very interested in that kind of "reward." However, he discovered that Su Qingyu’s Calamity Body had changed again; its toxicity was surely even more potent. It was definitely worth another lick... Ahem, that is, another session of absorption and Refinement.

But he had many other loose ends to tie up at the moment, so this matter had to be put aside for the time being.

On the way back to Courtyard Nine, Zou Feng eagerly purchased the Sha Guiding Art on his Token.

Once the purchase was successful, he could immediately view the Cultivation method for the Sha Guiding Art on his Token.

Of course, this type of encrypted information, which required Immortal Fate to purchase, could only be seen by Zou Feng; Teng County and Gongsun Jinghong, who were right beside him, could not see it.

And with the Celestial Dao Cauldron monitoring everything, it would be impossible for Zou Feng to secretly teach it to the two women.

Of course, there was no need to do so anyway. The Sha Guiding Art was not suitable for Teng County and Gongsun Jinghong.

"Brother Feng, what kind of Elixirs are you going to buy?" Teng County asked curiously.

She and Gongsun Jinghong were picking out Elixirs at that very moment.

The Elixirs produced by the Pinnacle Celestial Immortal Sect were on a completely different level from the shoddy goods of the Great Yan Dynasty.

For new disciples like them, choosing the right Elixirs could help them avoid many pitfalls in their future Daoist Art Cultivation.

In fact, if one was wealthy enough, they could even force their way into the Inner Sect simply by gobbling down Elixirs.

However, relying solely on Elixirs without cultivating diligently was a surefire way to prematurely exhaust one’s potential and was not recommended.

In response to Teng County’s question, Zou Feng said, "I’m not buying any Elixirs for now. My top priority is preparing a gift."

"A gift?" Teng County looked puzzled.

"That’s right. Even though I took out Yang Haoyu within the bounds of the Sect’s rules, you don’t actually think the matter is over, do you?"

Teng County, however, had a different opinion. "But at the end of the day, Yang Haoyu was just a dog the Purple Cloud Association kept in the Outer Sect. Maybe their next move will be to have you join them to replace him, Brother Feng."

Zou Feng shook his head slightly. "I’ve looked into the Purple Cloud Association’s past behavior. They aren’t that reasonable. After losing face this time, they’ll most likely keep applying pressure to force me to submit to them."

"Besides, even if I did join the Purple Cloud Association, I’d just become a tool for them to exploit the Outer Sect’s Immortal Fate. More than half of whatever I earned would have to be handed over to them. There’s no point."

"Then..."

"Don’t worry, I have my own plan. The Purple Cloud Association can’t lord over everything. Besides, the profits to be made in the Outer Sect are like chicken ribs to them; it’s not worth their while to retaliate in full force."

Hearing this, Gongsun Jinghong understood what Zou Feng was getting at.

"So, Zou Lang, you’re planning to find a patron by giving a gift?"

Zou Feng nodded. "Not so much a patron, just getting my face known will be enough. After all, with Yang Haoyu gone, the Taian Mountain Dining Hall is short a Head Chef, and that position can’t be filled by just any disciple..."

To be the Head Chef in the Dining Hall, things like combat prowess, Realm, background, and character are all secondary.

You have to be genuinely skilled at cooking and, more importantly, be able to turn strange and bizarre ingredients into delicious Spiritual Food.

Even in the dog-eat-dog environment of the Outer Sect, some basic rules still had to be observed.

Even the Purple Cloud Association couldn’t install a disciple with poor culinary skills as the Dining Hall’s Head Chef.

「That evening, at the Rain-Listening Pavilion on Taian Mountain.」

Every day at this time, after finishing his meal, Outer Sect Elder He Wenxuan would lean back in his recliner, taking small sips of tea brewed from freshly picked buds.

Although He Wenxuan was in the Spiritual Energy Realm and had once been an Inner Sect Disciple, he knew his potential was exhausted. With slim hope of advancing further, he had voluntarily stepped down to serve as an Elder in the Outer Sect.

He was primarily responsible for the affairs of the Taian Mountain Dining Hall.

"Elder He, a disciple from the Dining Hall, Zou Feng, requests an audience!"

In the next moment, a subordinate holding a delicate small box bowed to He Wenxuan.

’Zou Feng?’

He Wenxuan grunted softly.

He was, of course, already aware of the duel that took place on the Dao Discussion Platform at Noon.

Normally, such troublesome matters had nothing to do with him, but the problem was that Yang Haoyu was dead, leaving the Taian Mountain Dining Hall without a Head Chef.

He Wenxuan was just now mulling over who should fill the position.

But after much thought, he couldn’t come up with a suitable candidate whose culinary skills would be respected by all.

Therefore, upon hearing Zou Feng’s request for an audience, his expression soured. ’This kid is the one who caused me this trouble, and now he expects me to clean up his mess?’

He was about to tell his subordinate to send him away, but He Wenxuan couldn’t help squinting at the box the man was holding up.

"What is the gift?"

"A box of Purple Dragon’s Beard Tea!"

Hearing it was Purple Dragon’s Beard Tea, the frown on He Wenxuan’s brow eased slightly.

This was good stuff. A single small box cost one hundred and fifty Immortal Fate.

He Wenxuan could afford it, but even if he bought some, he couldn’t bear to drink it every day.

’It seems this Zou Feng is sincere in his visit, at least.’

’Unfortunately, this still isn’t enough to make me clean up his mess.’

"Go tell him I’ve received his sentiment, but he should return," He Wenxuan said with a wave of his hand.

He would accept the gift but couldn’t be bothered to meet the person.

"Elder He, Zou Feng also said that he wishes to cook a dish for you in person. He says he guarantees you won’t be disappointed!"

Hearing this, He Wenxuan’s interest was finally piqued.

’This kid... he takes out Yang Haoyu and now wants to take his place as the new Head Chef?’

Having accepted that he had no hope of advancement, He Wenxuan was content to live out his days in the Outer Sect Dining Hall, which was why he was particularly fastidious about his food.

The previous Head Chef, Yang Haoyu, had often personally cooked a few of He Wenxuan’s favorite dishes to satisfy his cravings.

"Fine, then let him give it a try!"

’Daring to come here and cook for me in person shows the boy is supremely confident in his culinary skills.’

’Oh well. If he can take out Yang Haoyu and his Spirit Chef skills are also outstanding, then he is indeed worth nurturing.’

’But that’s only if his cooking can actually pass my test.’

The subordinate immediately relayed the message. A few moments later, Zou Feng walked briskly into the courtyard of the Rain-Listening Pavilion, carrying his prepared cooking utensils and ingredients.

He had chosen to cook in person, of course, to provide a more direct demonstration of his culinary skills.

Of course, Zou Feng’s greatest ace in the hole was still his "Hand of Poisoning," a pair of hands long since marinated to perfection.

An ancient Demon Insect like the Hundred-legged Ancestor, who had lived for centuries, had burst into a gooey mess after eating his food. Zou Feng simply refused to believe he couldn’t conquer a mere Outer Sect Elder.