Qin Huai had just left the dreamscape when the game notification sounded in his mind.
"Ding, congratulations to the player for discovering the new main quest ’Strive for Excellence’. Please check the quest panel for details."
Ah, right. After completing the previous main quest, theoretically, the next main quest should be triggered directly. It had always been that way before, but this time the quest was a bit delayed. Qin Huai was too excited to see the memories of the spirit that he hadn’t touched for too long, and almost forgot there was a new main quest.
Without any hesitation, Qin Huai clicked the game panel to check the newly acquired main quest.
1. ’Strive for Excellence’: As a renowned snack master, how could you not have a real signature snack? B-level signature snacks are too low, A-level is not enough, A+ level is just right. Please produce at least three different A+ level snacks that can trigger buffs, striving for excellence.
Quest Reward: [An Youyou’s Dreamscape] (Claimable: Yes/No)
The quest reward is once again An Youyou’s dreamscape.
Qin Huai briefly studied the main quest and realized it can’t be completed in a short time.
Qin Huai had previously made A+ level snacks, Xu Cheng had once eaten a remarkably successful guo’er (which Qin Huai thought mainly depended on Huang Shengli’s exceptional performance).
However, after receiving the quest, the quest progress remained at 0/3, indicating that the exceptional guo’er was not up to standard.
Qin Huai speculated that this main quest required A+ level snacks that he independently produced, without anyone’s help.
This requirement was quite high.
Given Qin Huai’s current level, he thought only the Crab Dumplings might have a chance to outperform as A+ level. Unfortunately, Crab Dumplings are seasonal dishes, and it’s not yet the season for savory crab roe, so it’s impossible to make it now.
As for the remaining snacks, not even Qin Huai was hoping for Four Happiness dumplings to miraculously reach A+ level.
Through this main quest, Qin Huai saw only four golden flashing words.
Practice more dishes.
Highlighted and bolded like that.
It’s as if most of the tasks issued by the game system flash these four words.
He stopped thinking about the main quest. After all, thinking doesn’t produce anything, and incomplete is incomplete. It’s a technical problem that can only be solved through practice, not just thought. If dreaming could make good dishes, chefs wouldn’t need to painstakingly practice—just sleep more and dream.
Qin Huai scrolled down the game panel to the illustration to check the newly acquired recipe.
An Youyou’s illustration had some changes.
Species: Three-legged Golden Toad
Dishes: Vegetable Meat Bun (Click to view details)
Discovering An Youyou’s species was displayed made Qin Huai pause.
Three-legged Golden Toad, he knew this spirit!
Often seen in TV dramas, especially in fantasy and demon-like films, acting as a money-gathering tool for various villains, a giant money-loving toad that glitters.
Out of caution, Qin Huai opened the browser to search for the Three-legged Golden Toad.
He found it was much like he remembered—in legends, the Three-legged Golden Toad was originally a demon but later subdued by Lv Dongbin’s disciple Liu Hai, helping with charity for civilians, thus barely qualifying as an auspicious beast, believed to attract wealth and prosperity, symbolizing fortune and luck.
As for why the auspicious beast ended up ...
Qin Huai could only say that maybe An Youyou’s mentality differed from other spirits—she seemed quite capable of fighting, and even though theoretically, a Three-legged Golden Toad should have decent defense, An Youyou just loved to beg for food.
From the dreamscape, An Youyou’s begging seemed rather successful, with decent income.
Perhaps at that time, An Youyou viewed begging as just another job, no different in dignity, with earning money being the real reason.
After all, in An Youyou’s understanding, a job that earns two British Pounds a day was either begging or robbery, the latter of which An Youyou wanted but lacked the capacity for.
Qin Huai planned to call Luo Jun after viewing the recipe to ask why the Three-legged Golden Toad is so fond of begging—is it a frog spirit tradition?
The immediate priority is to view the recipe.
Qin Huai clicked on the recipe.
[Vegetable Meat Bun C-level]
Creator: Jiang Weiguo
Dish Details: State owned Restaurant retired head chef Jiang Weiguo, during his youth, was displaced due to war, and while being a beggar, made a snack not worth mentioning. Jiang Weiguo, though perplexed by the mindset of the big boss during their begging days, out of gratitude for saving his life, never shirked when cooking for the boss. Whether making salted fish porridge or vegetable meat buns, Jiang Weiguo gave it his all, aiming for the big boss to dine happily and stop persuading him to be a beggar instead of a chef. Consuming this dish after nightfall can yield double satisfaction and happiness. As the big boss would say, a day of begging was all to enjoy a tasty bite of vegetable meat bun at night.
Times Can Be Made Per Day: (0/999)
C-level vegetable meat buns are easy to make. Qin Huai saw Jiang Weiguo’s culinary skills clearly in the dreamscape. His knife skills were far superior to his, his seasoning skills were not lacking either, but his dough handling was not great—the very level expected when a pure meat Chef attempts pastry.
Not to mention the memory showed Jiang Weiguo looking only about thirteen or fourteen years old, just a youth.
Cooking is a profession that requires experience and accumulation. Even the most talented youth can’t match a seasoned middle-aged person.
Of course, excluding those extremely gifted individuals who seem to cheat at life.