Food Captive: Join the chat group Chapter 056

Giant cacti, air devoid of any water vapor.

A luminous sphere hung high in the sky, radiating heat as intense as the sun.

Tubular structures connected to the glowing, heated sphere seemed to be transporting the energy of this world.

This ingredient was called Hot Planet, an incredible ingredient, even more precious and high-grade than Air Fruit.

Hot Planet itself possessed a powerful gravitational pull, capable of balancing the surrounding gravity. Within the range covered by Hot Planet, gravity seemed to significantly decrease.

The closer one got to Hot Planet, the higher the temperature, seemingly capable of evaporating all moisture from a living organism.

Qin Zhou and Atashino entered the area covered by Hot Planet.

Aside from plants resembling cacti, the land was barren and scorched, not a blade of grass in sight.

Waves of intense heat assailed them, the air before their eyes seeming to burn, taking on a distorted form.

Sweat barely seeped out before evaporating directly into the air, saving them the trouble of wiping it away. It was like being in an oven.

“Atashino, do you know how to cook Hot Planet?” Qin Zhou asked curiously.

“Hot Planet is a rare ingredient in the gourmet world, and there are very few cooking methods for it. It’s said that you just use brute force to cut open its outer shell,” Atashino squinted, the light too dazzling, like staring directly at the sun.

“What kind of ‘great simplicity’ cooking method is that?” Qin Zhou grumbled.

Although he hadn’t touched the sphere above, Qin Zhou didn’t believe Hot Planet’s shell was brittle. Even among the staff of the 0th Bio-Habitat, probably very few could break it.

This method was likely Nitro’s last resort.

“Can’t you listen to the voice of ingredients?” Qin Zhou asked.

“That skill you’re talking about, among the top hundred world-class chefs, fewer than a handful can do it,” Atashino said.

“Sometimes I can hear it, sometimes I can’t.”

In simple terms, it was inconsistent.

That ability was related to Gourmet Luck. Komatsu could do it because his Gourmet Luck ranked among the top few in the world.

Komatsu was the protagonist, so his Gourmet Luck naturally wouldn’t be bad. Atashino, on the other hand, was a supporting character in the manga, so his Gourmet Luck was definitely inferior to Komatsu’s.

However, now that he was partnered with Qin Zhou, a transmigrator, Atashino’s Gourmet Luck might gradually improve.

“You try it first, I’m really curious what a perfectly cooked Hot Planet tastes like.”

“…Alright, I’ll try, but I can’t guarantee success.”

Atashino closed his eyes. Qin Zhou wasn’t in a hurry and didn’t rush Atashino.

Even if he couldn’t hear it, it was fine. They could try again next time.

…

About half an hour later, Atashino opened his eyes and said in surprise, “I heard it this time! It needs a higher temperature to ripen the fruit inside, and then the outer shell will open.”

(This was the slacker’s guess)

“But… how do we achieve a temperature even higher than Hot Planet’s right now?”

Qin Zhou stroked his chin and said, “High-temperature flames, of course.”

“So, it’s my turn to act.”

Whoosh—

A starlight-infused flame ignited in Qin Zhou’s palm. The starfire wielded by Aurelion Sol would certainly not be lower in temperature than this Hot Planet.

Just after consuming the Air Fruit, his strength had improved, allowing him to better control the power of the starfire.

“What terrifying flames,” Atashino exclaimed in shock.

Within that ball of fire, she felt a fatal threat, as if once it landed on her, it could burn her to ashes.

“I just need to envelop Hot Planet with the flame and let the fruit inside ripen, right?” Qin Zhou asked.

“Yes, your flame can ripen the fruit inside. Control the heat well and make sure Hot Planet heats evenly,” Atashino nodded.

Qin Zhou manipulated the starfire, allowing the entire Hot Planet to be scorched by it. Most people wouldn’t imagine that the cooking method for Hot Planet would be like this.

Listening to the voice of ingredients, this ability was truly incredible for a chef, providing a significant boost.

Atashino occasionally offered reminders, while Qin Zhou was responsible for controlling the heat.

Two and a half hours later—

Crack!

A crisp cracking sound echoed, and a sweet, fresh aroma swept out like a storm. Both Qin Zhou and Atashino involuntarily swallowed their saliva, as if they were in a fruit paradise.

The flesh of the fruit was a vibrant crimson, translucent and sparkling like red crystal. The shimmering crimson light resembled burning flames, yet it didn’t give off a scorching sensation.

Although Hot Planet was 30 meters long, its fruit flesh wasn’t that massive, roughly half the size of the outer shell.

“Mmm…”

“It’s not hot at all, delicious. The texture is like soft, glutinous cactus fruit. It doesn’t have the complex, layered flavors of Rainbow Fruit, but its sweetness is superior, sweet yet not cloying.” Qin Zhou savored it with an expression of pure enjoyment.

Bite after bite, it was irresistible. The energy it contained was many times that of beef, no, of Air Fruit.

This sweetness was also very long-lasting, lingering in the mouth for a long time.

Buzz!

Qin Zhou felt his cells evolving. With a thought, his body emitted a strong attractive force, and surrounding pebbles and sand began to converge towards him.

Universal Pull—

“This gravitational pull?” Atashino felt a sudden tugging sensation on her body, nearly being dragged towards Qin Zhou.

“My apologies, this is a new ability I just learned,” Qin Zhou retracted his gravitational pull.

Hot Planet had a strong gravitational pull, and it was an ingredient, so this was likely why he learned gravity.

It made perfect sense.

Since he had just learned it, he definitely couldn’t absorb a powerhouse like Atashino. Ichiryuu’s gravity was like a rotating planet. Qin Zhou would need time to grow to reach that level.

“Phew… I’ve decided!”

“The dessert for the full course menu—Hot Planet.”

“Atashino, this is our commemorative dish for becoming partners.”

Today, he and Atashino became partners. Qin Zhou felt that Hot Planet was a very significant ingredient. If Atashino hadn’t heard the cooking method, he would have just been staring blankly.

Setting aside the improvements it brought him, the sheer delightful, dreamy sweetness alone made it unforgettable. It was very compatible with his Gourmet Cells, and he could feel the pleasure emanating from them.

He had already eaten many delicacies, and the taste of Hot Planet could temporarily rank as No.1.

“Congratulations.”

Atashino said with a smile. She fully supported Qin Zhou’s decision. For them, as newly formed partners, it indeed held commemorative significance.

“By the way, have the other ingredients been decided?”

“Not yet. Hot Planet is the first ingredient I’ve decided on. I just don’t know its specific capture level.”

Qin Zhou tested it with an IGO instrument, and it immediately showed garbled characters, indicating that Hot Planet’s capture level was above a thousand.

Hot Planet’s improvement to him was even greater than Air Fruit’s. Besides being a suitable dish for him, its level was also higher than Air Fruit’s.

“Invincible below a thousand, one for one above a thousand.”

Of course, if he really encountered a beast with a capture level of several thousand, Qin Zhou could only choose to retreat as the best strategy. Better to live to fight another day.

Indeed, ingredients from the Gourmet World had a more significant impact on strength. The increasingly absurd power levels in the later parts of the manga were also related to the increasingly absurd ingredient levels in the Gourmet World.

Placing the unfinished ingredients into his spatial pocket, Qin Zhou and Atashino left the Gourmet World.

They didn’t encounter the large tiger or the monkey, perhaps because the Battle Wolf’s aura made them wary, so they didn’t appear.