Leveling Up Through Eating

Chapter 1176

The God of the Directionally Challenged was delighted.

‘At this point, it’s obvious that I’m not bad at directions, right?’

It only took over 200 days, but he could still meet the next generation Battle God, Minhyuk. When they met, these notifications rang in his ears:

[You are the first God of the Directionally Challenged in history to meet the person you want to meet.]

[This is a miracle.]

[You have obtained the skill: Guiding Toward Monsters.]n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

[You have obtained the skill: Never-ending Path.]

The Guiding Toward Monsters skill was a skill that would continue to guide the target to all of the strong boss mobs nearby.

As for the Never Ending Path, it was a skill that could only be applied to a single target. It was a skill that could drag the chosen target to a never-ending maze-like path. Surprisingly enough, the skill did not involve true and real paths. The skill would drag the desired target into a world created by the God of the Directionally Challenged and force them to wander around inside forever until they died.

With this skill alone, the God of the Directionally Challenged could be considered the most outstanding god out of the greatest gods of all time. He might even be promoted to an Absolute God if he let everyone know about this power.

Alas, he just had one fatal flaw.

“Where… am I?”

He had lost his way once again today. He did not know if he would be able to find Minhyuk again. Nevertheless, it was a regular occurrence for the God of the Directionally Challenged.

***

Minhyuk was left dumbfounded.

‘What the hell? I obviously emphasized that he should use his skill and stay where he was, no?’

He was speechless when he realized that the God of the Directionally Challenged would no longer return to the Gorodis Kingdom. Minhyuk remembered the man's back, who smiled widely and said, ‘Trust me,’ before turning around.

Minhyuk would not be able to find the God of the Directionally Challenged even if he wanted to.

‘After all, he came to the Gaia Continent after getting lost…’

He felt a bit attached to the man, but there was no helping it.

Meanwhile, the chefs in the capital were trembling and shaking as they waited behind closed doors. They could not believe the man's nonsense.

–The Gourmet and the Slaughter Squad will not even be able to reach this place.

–And we’re not going to fight a battle with them either.

–They will disappear as if they did not exist in the first place.

Balvark, who was hiding inside his restaurant, opened his door slightly. Many people were doing the same thing as him, peeking through the door crack. 𝖗

The capital remained silent. By this time, the people realized that the Gourmet had indeed disappeared. The owners of the restaurants began to come out one by one and gather together. The truth was, just the fact that the food torture had disappeared was enough to make them happy. But now? They no longer had to serve food to the Gourmet.

The gathered chefs hurriedly ran to the inn where Minhyuk was resting.

Minhyuk sat on his bed and turned to stare at them as if he were waiting for them. A whisper of a name escaped his mouth: “A…

It was the name of the God of the Directionally Challenged.

“???”

“???”

“ABARA!!!” Minhyuk screamed, his hands stretching toward the direction from which the God of the Directionally Challenged disappeared. He even burst into tears.

The running chefs screeched to a halt.

With tears in his eyes, Minhyuk said, “In the end… In the end… Did you choose to lead them to a faraway place just to save the people here…?”

It was only then that the chefs realized how willingly the two had taken them under their wing and even jumped into danger to save them.

“Abara, you said you will return safely… so, why? Why are you wandering like that… Sob!”

Minhyuk’s words were half true. Abara was wandering around, but he was not in danger.

Meanwhile, the chefs, especially Balvark, began to cry. At that moment, Balvark recalled the words that Abara, the friend from before, told him before he left.

–Can you give me two servings of fried rice when I return?

He never expected that those would be his last words to him!

“What has happened has happened. He chose to lead them to the fire pit to save us…” Balvark consoled the crying and screaming Minhyuk.

Minhyuk fought back his tears and stood up slowly. Then, he said, “Hoo… Even so, I believe that he will never regret it.”

Minhyuk’s words deeply moved all the chefs. Even the owner of the Black Moon Restaurant was feeling the same.

[Balvark’s favor has increased.]

[Andrej’s favor has increased.]

[Gondolo’s favor has increased.]

[Baraccas’ favor has increased.]

Delight bloomed in Minhyuk’s chest as he listened to the notifications.

[You have reached a high level of favor with the most outstanding chefs in the Gaia Continent.]

[Your Exploration Rate has increased by 5%.]

With this, the areas in the map that the players could explore had increased.

[You have completed the Quest: Saving the Chefs from the Gourmet and the Slaughter Squad.]

[You can now use all of the Gorodis Kingdom’s Chef Union restaurants for free.]

[You can obtain the Gorodis Kingdom’s specialty products.]

Minhyuk saw the chefs of the Chef Union bring small boxes.

At that moment, Andrej, the owner of the Black Moon Restaurant and an executive of the Black Merchant, nodded.

Andrej was a greedy man. It was why he kicked out Minhyuk, who had asked for food. On top of that, he also hated the Azure Leaf Restaurant. But Minhyuk’s friend, Abara, had sacrificed his life for their safety. Even though he was greedy, he knew how to repay the grace and kindness he had received.

“Bring that here.”

“By that, you mean…? But…”

“It’s fine.”

“I understand.”

Balvark looked at Andrej in surprise.

“Andrej, wasn’t that ingredient something that has been with your family for generations?”

“As a chef, I turned away from him when he was hungry.” Andrej smiled bitterly. “Even so, he still saved all of the chefs of the Gorodis Kingdom. Of course, we still don’t know how they will react and what they will do to us in the future. But we still have to deal with it in the end. I believe it’s a very reasonable and fitting reward for him, who helped us do it.”

Balvark nodded silently. Then, he turned to his men and gave them his orders. “You too, go and bring that here.”

“...Yes, sir.”

“You’re going overboard, too, huh?”

“The Black Moon Restaurant has offered their most precious ingredient. I believe I should also do the same. After all, he’s the benefactor who saved my life.”

Like the Black Moon Restaurant, the Azure Leaf Restaurant had extremely precious ingredients passed down from generation to generation.

Not long after, the chefs brought out a box decorated with azure leaves and a golden box decorated with a black moon. Andrej was the first to open his box containing a shiitake mushroom.

“This is a shiitake mushroom that has been dried and aged for 10,000 years. This is called the Ten Thousand Shiitake. This ingredient is worth more than the Thousand-year-old Ginseng and is a treasure considered as one of the Continent’s Ten Treasured Ingredients.”

Andrej smiled faintly.

“This treasure has been passed down in our family from generation to generation. I can confidently say that no mushroom is more precious than this mushroom in the world.”

[You have acquired the Ten Thousand Shiitake, one of the Gaia Continent’s Ten Treasured Ingredients.]

Minhyuk was in awe.

This time, the box presented by the Azure Leaf Restaurant was opened. And what greeted him was a dried carrot.

[You have acquired the Ten Thousand Carrot, one of the Gaia Continent’s Ten Treasured Ingredients.]

Minhyuk checked the two ingredients, starting with the Ten Thousand Shiitake.

‘The world’s greatest mushroom.’

This was what stood out the most from its description. This shiitake mushroom, which was around 400 grams in weight, could be used as a seasoning. Of course, mushrooms could be eaten raw or boiled. But the fact that it was dried meant that it was meant to be used as a seasoning. According to the description, using ten grams monthly would increase his STR and STM by 1.

‘Wow…’

Minhyuk was truly in awe. Since there were 400 grams of the ingredient, Minhyuk could use it 40 times. This meant that he could gain 40 STR and 40 STM in total.

He could gain 80 stat points permanently just by using this ingredient. Of course, it would take him almost three years to consume all the ingredients. Nevertheless, it would still be a massive boost to his power.

And the same was true for the Ten Thousand Carrot. The Ten Thousand Carrot was 600 grams in weight. And for every 20 grams consumed in a month, his total MP and HP could increase by 10.

‘Isn’t this crazy?’

It was no longer possible to find any named ingredients that had the effect that could increase their stats permanently in the existing continents. Most of these ingredients were used either as medicinal herbs or for elixir production.

But the moment Minhyuk arrived on the Gaia Continent, he was able to obtain ingredients that could increase his stats permanently.

‘Maybe it’s because I’m the only member left of the Exploration Team, and that’s why I can monopolize them?’

At this moment, Minhyuk realized he was not the only member of the Exploration Team. He was not just here to explore the new continent; he could also obtain huge rewards from this expedition.

Both Andrej and Balvark had proud expressions on their faces.

“How is it? It’s great, isn’t it?”

“It’s amazing! It’s really amazing!”

“Among Gaia’s Ten Treasured Ingredients, these are the ones that are not difficult to cook. Of course, that also means their power is much weaker than the other Treasured Ingredients.”

Minhyuk was shocked. “These two are considered the most insignificant and the weakest among the other ingredients?”

“That’s right. They’re ranked 9th and 10th among the ingredients, to be exact.”

Minhyuk was astonished. He could not bring himself to imagine how unique the other ingredients were.

Then, Andrej said, “Just imagine it. If you use the Ten Thousand Shiitake to make warm tea, you can taste the deepest and richest flavor in the world. And even if you add some of the Ten Thousand Shiitake to your drink, you will still feel like you have the entire world in your mouth.”

“The Ten Thousand Carrot does not lag either. If you add it to high-grade ingredients, then it will make the ingredients taste more colorful and more alive.”

The two looked at Minhyuk in anticipation. They both wondered what Minhyuk would eat first.

“You’re going to make tea, right?”

“What kind of dish will you add the Ten Thousand Carrot to?”

With an excited expression, Minhyuk answered, “I’m going to put them in ramyeon.”

“...?”

“...?”

“Kihyaaaa~ Just thinking about it is making me happy. The chewy Udong Tongtong, Dongshim Sshin Ramyeon!”

‘What?’

The two were rendered speechless. He must be kidding them, right?

“Hahaha! This friend, you’re good at making jokes. There’s no crazy bastard who will put the Ten Thousand Shiitake and the Ten Thousand Carrot in ramyeon…”

But there was. Minhyuk began to boil the water for ramyeon.

Tik, tik, tik–

The sound of the gas stove being opened rang.

Minhyuk personally liked the Dongshim Sshin Ramyeon. One of the reasons why he liked Sshin Ramyeon was because of the deep flavor and scent of the shiitake mushroom. Of course, Shin Ramyeon also had some carrots in its package.

Minhyuk planned to use just enough of his newly acquired shiitake mushroom and carrots in this ramyeon. Enough that it would not affect the ramyeon’s flavor but would still be felt and tasted. After all, it wouldn’t matter how much he used in one cooking; if he ate that amount in a month, he would still be able to obtain the special effects of the ingredients.

He added an appropriate amount of the Ten Thousand Shiitake and the Ten Thousand Carrot to the ramyeon.

“These two ingredients—dried shiitake and dried carrots—go well with ramyeon. Ah. You have to put them in ramyeon no matter what.”

Minhyuk, who had finished cooking the ramyeon, admired the pot. Now that they were fully hydrated, the shiitake mushroom and the carrots had gained their original form, and they looked spectacular in the ramyeon broth.

He deliberately left out the eggs. Why?

‘Eggs dampen the flavor of the ramyeon.’

Then, Minhyuk grabbed the pot’s lid and transferred some noodles.

“Hoo… Hoo…” He blew on the noodles before taking a huge bite. “Sluuuuuuurp!!!”

The spicy flavor of the broth immediately spread in his mouth the moment he took a bite. Then, Minhyuk’s eyes grew wide.

‘This taste…’

According to some reviews, the current Sshin Ramyeon had lost some flavor. It was said to be less savory than it was in the past. But with the addition of the Ten Thousand Shiitake and the Ten Thousand Carrot, its flavor became more profound and savory than when it was at its peak.

‘This is crazy! This flavor is crazy!’

Minhyuk added more Sshin Ramyeon to his pot lid before grabbing a piece of well-ripened kimchi and adding it to the top. …

“Sluuuuuurp!!!”

Just like that, he ate everything in one bite.

After that, Minhyuk returned the remaining noodles on his lid to the pot. Then, he clamped a considerable mouthful of noodles straight from the pot.

“Sluuuuuurp!!!”

After a huge bite, he grabbed the pot and tried the soup. The strong scent of the shiitake mushroom and the dried carrot wafted in his nose. It was so strong and deep that he wanted to dance in delight.

“Ha…” Minhyuk breathed out. He looked delighted as he finished up the contents of the pot.

Balvark and Andrej looked at the empty pot silently.

‘The Ten Thousand Shiitake that we have passed down in our family for generations was used to cook ramyeon…?’

‘The family treasure that we protected for a very long time…’

But regardless of their thoughts, the two felt the same thing.

“I want to taste it.”

“You too? Me too, I want to taste it too.”