There was one thing Elder Wei hadn’t been wrong about. After stepping into Tier Three, Zhao Tiansheng was truly like a tiger with wings, a dragon entering the sea.
Many things that had previously been a struggle now went off without a hitch.
He placed the iron wok on the roaring stove flames. Soon, a SIZZLING sound rang out—the shriek of the last drops of water on the wok’s surface.
Then, he poured a ladle of cool oil into the iron wok, swirling it continuously until the entire surface was coated in a glistening sheen. He waited as the high heat quickly caused a wisp of bluish smoke to rise from the wok, a sign that it was perfectly seasoned.
He poured out the oil and added a little Mushroom Oil. At this stage, he couldn’t add too much oil, or the finished dish would be too greasy.
But he couldn’t add too little either, because eggs need oil to become fragrant.
The ideal amount of oil was just enough to scramble the eggs.
Zhao Tiansheng added more cool oil. He then casually broke two eggs, whisked them, and quickly poured them into the iron wok. With his other hand, he began stirring with an iron ladle, intending to rapidly scramble the egg into fine pieces. The finer, the better—the size of a grain of rice was the ideal state.
At that very moment, three large bowls of day-old rice were dumped directly into the iron wok. As if provoked, the stove’s fire, already roaring due to the flowing air, flared up and burned with even greater intensity.
WHOOM! WHOOM! WHOOM!
The residents of Jinning Town were astonished by the vigorous flames, which were now licking at the handle of the wok.
Many couldn’t help but take a step back, afraid the flames might burn them.
Only Zhao Tiansheng seemed unfazed. He grabbed a cloth, took hold of the scorching handle, and began tossing the wok furiously. The sound of the iron ladle striking the iron wok—CLANG! CLANG!—rang out, and in just a moment, the clumps of rice broke apart.
The rich aroma of rice mingled with the fragrance of egg and Mushroom Oil, wafting through the air.
The grains of rice were becoming plump and translucent, and the egg was turning an ever-deeper shade of gold. However, the Sacrificial Priests present all realized something: if he continued to cook at this temperature, the rice and egg would surely burn. But if he interrupted this continuous burst of cooking, the fried rice’s aroma would plummet.
Just as everyone was wondering how Zhao Tiansheng would solve this problem...
Chi Xuan’s gaze, however, fell upon the two bowls of broth Zhao Tiansheng had prepared earlier.
One bowl contained a concentrated carp broth, while the other held more carp broth with many ingredients soaking in it. It was then that she finally understood how Zhao Tiansheng planned to gather the essence of spring into a single wok.
All the components needed one medium: broth!
...
The flames surged like churning waves, threatening to engulf the ingredients in the wok and sear them with the brand of a fiery char.
At that very moment, Zhao Tiansheng flicked his ladle, scooping up half of the concentrated carp broth that sat ready and waiting. He steadily poured it in a circle along the inner wall of the wok. At the same time, his other hand kept tossing the fried rice,
allowing it to evenly absorb the flavor of the carp broth while simultaneously using the thick liquid to suppress the raging flames.
The rice and egg, which had started to dry out, now thirstily drank in the flavor of the carp broth, absorbing the essence of this new ingredient.
"So that’s how it is!!"
"Brilliant!"
Uncle Changshu’s sudden shout riled up the surrounding residents, who started cheering and celebrating.
They didn’t really understand the purpose of Zhao Tiansheng’s actions, but it looked amazing and spectacular, and that was enough for them. However, his move did give many people a sudden jolt of realization.
It was as if they had been reminded of something, and they all understood Zhao Tiansheng’s intention: to use the broth to control the stove’s intense heat while also allowing the fried rice to absorb its flavor.
’What a formidable person!’
’I have to record this. I have to record all his movements.’
Among the Traveling Merchant Priests, the young man with the surname Tian seemed to have a premonition. He eagerly took out a leather scroll he kept close to his body and aimed it in Zhao Tiansheng’s direction, wanting to preserve everything he was seeing.
Seeing this, before Elder Wei could even move, Chi Xuan had already acted. She sealed the special leather scroll, and the young man’s spirit felt a sharp, piercing blow!
"Recklessly imprinting the scene of another’s Sacrificial Decree," Elder Wei warned from the side, even though he hadn’t been the one to act. "Is that what your elders taught you?"
The warning made the young man surnamed Tian from the Divine Land stiffen. He quickly put away his precious leather scroll and apologized to Elder Wei with a sheepish, clasped-hand salute.
Nevertheless, the look he gave Zhao Tiansheng grew even more serious.
...
The translucent grains of rice and bits of egg seemed to be exuding the savory freshness of fish. But under the high heat, amidst the clanging of the wok and ladle, the moisture was once again rapidly evaporating.
At this point, the remaining rice and egg began to release their unique aromas once more. The only difference was the addition of a mellow, rich, savory note. And with that, the rest of the concentrated carp broth was added.
He repeated the same process, but this time, Zhao Tiansheng didn’t cook the rice until it was perfectly dry. Instead, while it was still slightly moist, he scooped out the ingredients that had been soaking in the other bowl of carp broth and added them to the fried rice.
From there, everything seemed to accelerate. The flames once again rose high enough to swallow the rim of the wok. Zhao Tiansheng’s ladle stirred frantically within until the chopped baby greens were also added.
Only then did Zhao Tiansheng decisively deactivate the Kitchen God Talisman. Using the residual heat of the wok, he tossed in wild scallions and stirred a few times. Then, just before plating, he scooped a large spoonful of the braised Yan Cong Mushrooms from the prepared Cone Mushroom Oil and mixed them into the fried rice.
He allowed them to disperse into every corner of the rice, to be completely reawakened by the fried rice.
An intense aroma swirled like a whirlwind above the fried rice.
A dish that seemed to redefine fried rice, the Spring Breeze Pot of Perfection, was now presented before everyone!
It also made everyone present swallow hard in unison.
GULP!