Chapter 16: Divine Skill! Golden Doughnut Cake!
Huo Yuhao followed a believer toward the kitchen in the rear courtyard in a daze, clutching the weighty advance of half a year's wages and several packets of medicinal herbs—supposedly capable of nursing his mother back to health—that Neuvillette had just pressed into his arms. His steps felt buoyant, almost floating. It was all going so smoothly it barely felt real.
The kitchen of the Church of the Water God was larger than he'd imagined, but just as bare and simple. A few middle-aged women helping in the kitchen were busy preparing lunch for the believers—mostly plain noodles and vegetable soups. When they saw the unfamiliar face of Huo Yuhao, they cast curious looks his way.
The believer who had led him there gave a brief explanation—this was the new cook personally recruited by the Pope herself, everyone was to look after him—and then left. Huo Yuhao and the women were left staring at one another.
One blunt woman swept her eyes over him a few times and muttered, "A little lad like this? Has the Lady Pope made a mistake? Those skinny arms and legs—can he even lift a ladle?"
Huo Yuhao said nothing. He merely, and with great care, set his things down in a corner, rolled up his sleeves, and went to the water vat to scoop water and wash his hands thoroughly. His movements were unhurried, yet they carried a steady composure that belied his age.
After washing up, he surveyed the ingredients on hand at the stove—a few common bluefish, freshly caught from the nearby river, and some basic seasonings. There wasn't even a decent spice to speak of.
"Aunties," he spoke, his voice not loud, yet clearly reaching every ear, "could I borrow a burner and one fish? I... I'll make something for you all, as a greeting gift."
The women exchanged glances. Dubious but curious, they cleared a burner for him. They wanted to see just what this kid the Pope had singled out was actually capable of.
Huo Yuhao said no more. He picked up a fish, and with a flash of his knife, scraped the scales, gutted it, and cleaned it—his movements as fluid as if rehearsed a thousand times, carrying a strange, almost rhythmic grace. The fish, once prepared, seemed transformed into a work of art in his hands, its body scored with delicate, precise cuts.
Then he lit the fire. He used barely any oil, merely rubbing the bottom of the wok with a slice of ginger. The fish went in, searing over a gentle flame, the iron wok shaken lightly from time to time. He didn't use any flashy seasonings—just a sprinkle of salt, a pinch of dried spice powder he'd brought from home, and finally a dash of cheap fruit vinegar to lift the freshness.
Before long, an indescribable, scorched fragrance mingled with pure umami filled the kitchen, pulling at everyone's appetite. The aroma was layered and complex—it didn't mask the fish's natural sweetness, yet drew out an irresistible, smoky savor and spice that was worlds apart from the women's usual braised fish, which was either fishy or salt-caked.
When the fish finally came off the heat and was plated—skin golden and lightly crisped, flesh snowy white and tender—the women's eyes went wide.
"Th-this... this came from our river's bluefish?" One auntie sniffed the air in disbelief. "How can it smell this good?"
Huo Yuhao pushed the plate forward a little. He was still a boy of few words. "Please, try it."
The women hesitated, but couldn't resist raising their chopsticks. The moment the fish touched their tongues, their expressions changed. The skin was crisp, the inside succulent and bursting with juices. The seasoning was simple but brought the fish's true flavor to its absolute peak. The heat had been mastered to a miraculous degree; there wasn't a trace of fishiness, only a mouthful of pure, savory delight.
"Good heavens... this is too delicious!" "I've cooked half my life—all for nothing!" "Young brother, your skill... it's divine!"
The blunt woman from before turned beet red. She raised a sincere thumbs-up to Huo Yuhao. "I'm convinced! This old auntie is convinced! The Lady Pope truly has eyes of flame! You're the real deal in disguise, kid!"
Word spread quickly. The new young cook had used the most ordinary river fish and created a dish that could practically knock your tongue out with pure flavor! From then on, no one doubted Huo Yuhao's culinary skill. Instead, their admiration for Pope Furina's "keen eye for hidden gems" reached new heights—just look! Even a randomly recruited cook turned out to be a concealed master! The Water God (they automatically credited the Water God) was indeed all-powerful!
And this rich, dense aroma of grilled fish seemed to drift, faint but unmistakable, toward the front courtyard as well.
Furina, who had been pondering how to get closer to Huo Yuhao and secure her mission reward as quickly as possible, suddenly felt a tremor run through her entire body. A vast, surging energy erupted without the slightest warning from somewhere deep inside her!
[Ding! Mission "Destined by Heaven" complete!]
[Rewards disbursed: Soul Power +5, Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Ring x1!]
In an instant, her four soul rings blazed to life beneath her feet—purple, purple, black—and then a fourth, unfathomably deep black ring blazed into existence. The powerful energy fluctuations warped the air around her!
Rank 40! Soul Ancestor!
Furina forcefully suppressed the cheer that nearly burst from her lips and hurriedly slipped back into her room, unable to wait a moment longer to explore her newly acquired power and soul skill.
The fourth soul skill was a cake with three doughnuts, giving off a vanilla fragrance. A Golden Doughnut Vanilla Cake?
The shape... why did it look so odd? Didn't it bear a passing resemblance to the hairstyle of the protagonist from JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 5: Golden Wind?
She focused her mind and attempted to release it.
A cake radiating a warm golden halo appeared in her hand—its shape as distinctive as a doughnut, yet exuding a rich vanilla aroma. The soul skill's information flowed naturally into her mind: Golden Doughnut Vanilla Cake. Effect—flesh and bone regeneration, repair of severe physical damage, including severed limb regrowth and nerve and meristem restoration.
Furina held the cake and stared, blankly, for a very long time.
Severed limb regrowth? Nerve restoration?
The effect really did bear a resemblance to Giorno's Gold Experience, just not quite as strong. Honestly, upon seeing this, she'd been tempted to just rename it Gold Experience outright.
But here on the Douluo Continent, losing an arm or a leg essentially meant you were crippled. Aside from a tiny handful of top-tier healing-type soul masters who might have some way to deal with it, ordinary injured people had no hope at all. This soul skill of hers... in this place, it was practically a heaven-defying, divine-grade healing ability!
Sure, it seemed pretty useless in a fight... she could hardly count on an enemy munching a cake and surrendering. But put it on the market... this was absolutely something that could cause a sensation!
"I'm rich, I'm rich..." Furina clutched the golden, enticingly fragrant cake, her eyes frighteningly bright. "What cake? This is a walking gold mine!"
She could already see countless nobles and wealthy magnates waving gold soul coins, begging her to treat their chronic old injuries or some unlucky family member's severed arm or leg.
Of course, the most important thing right now was... how to better tether that Child of Destiny to the Church of the Water God? Perhaps... she could help cure his mother's lingering illness? But what could be treated had already been treated; what remained would need to be slowly restored with supplements and tonics.
Perhaps she could give him some pills—like the Profound Water Pill, the Soul Ascension Pill, or even the Qi Gathering Powder from the world of Battle Through the Heavens—to help him advance sooner and gain the aid of Tianmeng and Electors.
After all, Huo Yuhao was the sort of person who, if you showed him even a little kindness, would return it in full—and then some.
Furina rubbed her chin, looking at the glimmering golden cake in her hand, then thought of the heaven-defying cook working in the kitchen—the Child of Destiny himself. She felt the future of her Church of the Water God growing brighter and brighter.
As for Lei Bao, far off in the City Lord's Manor... he probably wouldn't be getting much sleep tonight.