Ziye sneered from the side, folding her arms with a mocking tilt of her head.
"Do you have any clue how many immortals would give up everything to be accepted as her cooking disciple? And you, a mortal with no cultivation, think you're qualified?"
But Gray didn't even spare Ziye a glance. He just kept his eyes on Matriarch Zareena, voice steady.
"I know I can't rely on cultivation like the rest of you, and I know I owe you far too much." he admitted. "However, I can't repay you if I remain a weakling. I think cooking can be exactly the skill which might help me get stronger, that way I can repay you in the future."
Ziye smirked at Gray's words but didn't say anything.
Hearing his words, Matriarch Zareena's smile slowly faded.
For the first time since Gray met her, this was the first time she didn't look playful or carefree. Her expression turned heavy, as if Gray had touched on something far more important than he realized.
"Your resolve is commendable, little monkey," she said, her voice losing its usual lightheartedness. "The path of advancing through Spiritual Cuisine... it exists. But I'm afraid it might disappoint you."
"Disappoint me?" Gray was confused.
"That's right. It's an incredibly difficult path, and it will only take you so far."
She leaned forward, her golden eyes serious.
"In the beginning, a single bite of a spiritual treasure, like the one you had, can cause a breakthrough. But your body adapts. Your tolerance grows. Soon, you will need to eat an entire spirit beast for the same effect. Then ten. Then a hundred. Eventually, you would need to consume a mountain of heavenly treasures every single day just to advance a single minor realm. It is a path of diminishing returns, and it becomes... unreasonable."
She paused, letting the harsh reality sink in. "Furthermore, the energy you gain from food is not constant. You could use it to power your techniques, yes, but unless you are simultaneously swallowing a demonic beast while you fight, your spiritual energy reserves would burn out in a matter of moments."
Gray fell silent when he heard this, his initial excitement turning cold.
He understood the implications immediately. It was an inefficient, resource-intensive, and impractical path.
A path for the absurdly wealthy, and even then, it had severe combat limitations.
He looked down at his hands. For a moment, his resolve wavered.
But then he thought of the alternative: remaining a cripple, powerless, waiting for his enemies to eventually catch up to him. Waiting to die.
His fists slowly clenched. 'So it's not a perfect solution,' he thought. 'It's a dead-end road. But... it's a road. It's more than the nothing I have now. It's a chance.'
He lifted his head again, the firm, unwavering determination returning to his eyes. "I understand the limitations, Matriarch. But it's still better than being a cripple who can do nothing. I will take this path, no matter how difficult."
Matriarch Zareena studied his expression, seeing his resolve, her heavy expression softened into one of approval.
"I'll give you a test," Matriarch Zareena finally said.
Gray's eyes brightened. A test meant a chance, at least he wasn't rejected outright.
But her next words immediately deflated him.
"Don't be too happy just yet. This test is given to every single person who wishes to become a disciple of my sect. Trillions have attempted it, yet only one hundred thousand have ever passed."
Gray gulped. 100,000 is only 0.00001% of 1 trillion. As for how many trillions there were… he didn't even want to know.
"If you pass," Matriarch Zareena continued, "I can teach you the very basics of my sect's cooking technique. You will also become a nominal disciple of my sect, the Gluttonous Immortal Sect."
Gray blinked. "Gluttonous Immortal Sect? Wait, does that mean I could also cultivate there one day?"
Matriarch Zareena's lips curved slightly. "Our sect has no branch in the lower realms. If one day you somehow ascend, although nearly impossible, then you might come across our sect."
With a flick of her wrist, a slim book appeared in her hand. She handed it to Gray, and he carefully took it like it was made of gold.
"The test is simple," Matriarch Zareena explained. "Inside this book is one of the core cooking techniques of my sect. Some spend decades or even centuries trying to reach Small Mastery, and most still fail. If you can comprehend it and show it to me, you'll pass."
Gray stared at the title carved into the cover: Gluttonous Heaven's Qi Preservation Art.
"Don't worry. It doesn't require Spiritual Energy at all. Even a mortal can perform this technique. But in order to understand it, one must have a certain level of comprehension."
Ziye chuckled coldly from the side, "That 'certain level' of comprehension is the kind only monstrous geniuses in the Dao of Cooking have. You probably have a better chance to burn water than comprehend that."
"Oh? You're that confident? What if I can comprehend it?" Gray asked.
"If you can comprehend that, then I'll grant you a wish. As long as it's within my capabilities and it's not unreasonable." Ziye said with a casual smile. She wasn't worried at all.
"It's a deal then." Gray smiled, however, he wasn't confident at all. He didn't know anything about the dao of cooking.
He traced the letters on the book with his fingers, his jaw tightening.
Somehow, he felt this wasn't just a test of comprehension, this was about proving if he could carve out his own place in this world.
Gray sat cross-legged, and laid the Gluttonous Heaven's Qi Preservation Art across his lap like a sacred scripture.
"Food is the vessel of life, Spiritual Energy the breath of the heavens. To preserve Spiritual Energy within food is to trap the very essence of creation, sealing vitality where decay should reign."
"One grain of rice, if preserved, holds the power of a river. One cut of meat, if refined, surpasses the potency of common pills."
"Cooking is not flame, nor blade, nor spice. Cooking is Dao. To preserve Heaven's Spiritual Energy is to defy time, to resist decay, to immortalize life within taste."
Gray's breathing quickened as the words sank into him.
Each passage seemed simple, yet each was immeasurably vast, like doors opening into infinite worlds.
Halfway through the book, a System Notification flashed in his vision.
[New Skill Book Detected: Gluttonous Heaven's Qi Preservation Art (Low Celestial Grade)]
[Analyzing Skill... Analysis Complete.]
[Would you like to learn this skill?]