From a country cook to a master chef

After walking about two miles south along the frozen stream, the torches burned out, and the surroundings were plunged into darkness.

Fortunately, the valley was covered in snow, so we could still barely see the way we came.

Lin Jue took a deep breath, just as he was about to go back and meet up with his fellow disciples, when he suddenly heard a strange sound coming from ahead.

Pfft!

The same sound came again.

It looked like something had fallen into the water.

Lin Jue frowned. The world was frozen over. Could it be that there was an unfrozen pool of water in Wolf Smoke Valley?

"Hehe, to catch fish well, you have to use plenty of bait."

"A fisherman?"

Just as Lin Jue was hesitating whether to go over and see what was going on, he suddenly heard a slightly aged voice.

Now he was certain that there were people ahead of him, and...

He's a fisherman!

But what kind of good person would come to this desolate wilderness so late at night instead of sleeping?

I reckon only a fisherman would do something like that.

Following the direction of the sound, Lin Jue saw a man digging a nest in the distance.

Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be an old man wearing a straw raincoat, with white hair and a youthful face. He was quick and nimble, carrying a large basket of things and pouring them down with a gurgling sound.

When Lin Jue saw what was in the old man's frame, he was stunned and stood there.

crucian carp?

Live fish.

He stepped forward, clasped his hands in a respectful greeting, and asked with puzzlement, "Sir, why are you fishing here all alone in this freezing weather?"

The old man, good-natured, chuckled and said, "Young man, you just don't understand!"

"You're in luck tonight, running into this old man fishing here. You're in for a treat!"

As the old man spoke, he poured another basket of fresh crucian carp into the pool below.

Lin Jue stood aside watching with a suspicious look on his face. Speaking of fishing, he was a semi-expert, but this was the first time he had seen such a strange way of baiting.

However, he was more curious as to why the pool below had not frozen.

Asking questions leads to abundance, while self-reliance leads to mediocrity.

After a moment's hesitation, he clasped his hands in a respectful greeting and asked, "May I ask, sir, with the heavy snow falling, why hasn't the pool below been sealed off?"

The old man didn't respond. Under Lin Jue's astonished gaze, he took out a chain with a sharp fishhook, hooked a piece of mutton onto the hook, weighed it in his hand, and gestured:

"Young man, why are you just standing there? Come and lend a hand."

"oh."

Lin Jue responded, assumed a horse stance, and as the old man instructed, swung the hook chain twice before throwing it out, where it landed with a splash in the center of the pool.

Seeing that everything was ready, the old man leisurely went to the side and started a fire.

Lin Jue thought he was just starting a fire to keep warm, but the next second, the old man pulled an iron pot out of the bushes next to him.

He heated the iron pot, first adding snow, and after it melted, he took out a small bag of coarse salt from his pocket and sprinkled it in, then dipped his index finger in it to taste the saltiness.

Feeling the taste was still lacking, the old man reached into his chest and searched for a long time. Under Lin Jue's incredulous gaze, he actually took out a stack of pickled vegetables wrapped in oil paper and tore them into the pot with his bare hands.

Just when I thought that was the end of it, the old man somehow produced a piece of white tofu, broke it into pieces, and placed it on oiled paper for later use.

"Old sir, who exactly are you? Judging from your demeanor, you don't seem like an ordinary person."

Lin Jue curiously inquired about the old man's identity. Just as the old man was about to speak, he suddenly heard the iron bell at one end of the chain ringing. He immediately went to the edge of the pool, rolled up his sleeves, and pulled it up.

"Hurry up and lend a hand, or this good stuff we just got our hands on will be gone."

The old man was locked in a stalemate with his prey on the other end of the chain, so he quickly signaled Lin Jue to come and help.

As the fishing hook emerged from the water, Lin Jue was stunned; the fish that had taken the bait was not a fish at all.

It is nearly two meters tall, has short limbs, a long tail, and a round body...

It's clearly a shrewish dragon!

Judging by its appearance, it probably weighs around 70 or 80 pounds.

"Young man, this is a real gem, a hundred times better than deer antler or goji berries. Eat it, and I guarantee you'll..."

The old man chuckled and quickly cleaned the piglet, carefully selecting the best parts to cook directly.

Lin Jue didn't believe the old man's words. Deer antler and wolfberry were genuine Chinese medicinal herbs. How could mere pork belly compare to treasures like Solomon's seal and cinnamon?

The old man didn't argue. Seeing that the meat was almost cooked, he put the prepared tofu into the pot, rubbing his hands and swallowing his saliva.

Looking at the unremarkable pot of pickled mustard greens and tofu before him, Lin Jue remained completely unmoved: "Old sir, do you know any other way out of the valley?"

With a bite of pickled vegetables and meat, the old man looked on with obvious enjoyment. "Delicious, delicious! Young man, you should have a piece too."

Before Lin Jue could react, the old man had already put the meat into his mouth. The salty and fragrant pickled vegetables, paired with the tender pork belly, created a delightful contrast of meaty and salty flavors with each bite, stimulating the taste buds and adding a touch of tangy sweetness.

"Um……"

Lin Jue forced himself to chew a few bites, and suddenly found that this thing was surprisingly delicious. He couldn't help but forget his disgust and started to eat it with gusto.

Before long, the two of them had finished all the delicious food in the pot.

The old man choked on his food, got up and walked to the pool to relax. Lin Jue followed closely behind, but saw him filling the pool with water and couldn't help but take two steps back.

After doing all this, the old man shuddered twice, feeling refreshed, and said with a leisurely smile, "Wolf Smoke Valley is located in a low-lying area, and this place is also known as Black Dragon Pool. It is a place where extreme yin and yang meet, so even if the snow falls heavily, the water in this pool will not freeze."

Hearing the old man's words, Lin Jue was secretly delighted. It seemed this fellow was very familiar with Wolf Smoke Valley and must know other ways out of this place. He immediately clasped his hands in a fist salute:

"I am trapped here. If you, sir, could show me a way out, I will surely repay you handsomely in the future!"

"You're so young, yet you have quite the big mouth."

The old man turned to look at Lin Jue, stretched out his arms and legs and laughed, "Since you and I are destined to meet, just keep walking east until you see a bamboo forest. Remember, you must walk through the bamboo forest with your eyes closed, and you will be able to leave Wolf Smoke Valley."

Upon hearing this, Lin Jue quickly bowed in gratitude, but when he looked up, the old man had already vanished without a trace, and the campfire, chair, and other items from before had also disappeared without a trace.

"An aura master?"

Lin Jue was stunned for a moment, silently remembered the old man's words, and went back to meet up with his fellow disciples.

Not long after he left, the old man reappeared at Wulongtan, shaking his head and sighing, "The person is clever enough, but it's a pity he has no spiritual root, otherwise I wouldn't mind taking on another disciple."

Before long, a golden beam of light flew straight towards the old man from the horizon, transforming into a talisman that traveled thousands of miles: "Senior Brother Sect Leader, I have urgent business to discuss with you. Please return immediately!"

In the woods, Lin Jue met Liu Ruyan, Sun Guo, and others, and told them about their encounter with the strange fisherman. Seeing that his fellow disciples had not found any other way out, they could only try walking eastward, and sure enough, they came across a lush green bamboo forest.

Sun Guo, standing outside the bamboo grove, was filled with confusion. He clearly remembered that there hadn't been such a large bamboo grove here before.

Seeing that his fellow disciples had already closed their eyes and walked inside, he had no choice but to put the wolf meat back on his shoulder and follow them with his eyes closed.

A moment later, the five stood at the entrance of Wolf Smoke Valley, with a narrow passage blocked by ice and snow behind them, and an old horse gnawing on tree bark in the woods next to them.

The group quickly packed the medicinal herbs and meat, then drove back to Yucheng.

The carriage sped forward, Wolf Smoke Valley receding into the distance. Amidst the neighing of horses, the rolling wheels of the carriage left traces of someone passing by on the snow-covered road.

Looking at Lin Jue, who was still lost in thought, Sun Guo patted him on the shoulder: "Junior Brother, could you describe the old gentleman you mentioned to us again?"

Lin Jue nodded, and was about to speak when he suddenly felt a series of violent and abnormal energy fluctuations emanating from his sea of ​​consciousness.

Spirit Summoning Seal...

Under the impact of this energy, his consciousness gradually blurred, and everything went black before his eyes...

"Junior Brother!" ×4