Chapter 19: A High-Risk Profession

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Since it was her first time competing, Chi Sui felt more curious than nervous.

At this moment, Chi Sui was standing in front of the stove at the competition venue, waving her hand to greet Mr. Shi and Mayor Aila in the audience.

As for Momo, he stayed by her side to “help”—though “help” might be a stretch, since Chi Sui didn’t expect anything from him; as long as he didn’t slow her down and acted as a mascot, that was enough.

There were eight other contestants besides her. Among them, two ranch owners stood out the most, each accompanied by a large, muscular magical beast.

This competition wasn’t exactly formal—it was more of an entertainment event during a small festival, with low stakes and few rules. In major festivals on Purple Island, participants were required to bring their magical beasts along; some events even specified the type, attribute, or number of beasts allowed.

Purple Island was rich in magical creatures, and had always emphasized harmonious coexistence between humans and beasts. Ranch owners who frequently took part in competitions were used to bringing their beasts for assistance, while ordinary residents, lacking such habits or resources, either found someone to help or handled all the cooking alone.

Among the contestants, another female ranch owner was particularly striking—not only because of her stunning beauty but also because of the golden-fleeced sheep standing next to her.

Just past noon, the sun hung high in the sky, its rays turning the sheep’s golden wool even more dazzling. The shimmering gold made Chi Sui a bit envious. She reached out and patted Momo beside her. “Tell me, is your quill more valuable, or is its wool worth more?”

Momo couldn’t help but roll his eyes at the blunt question.

Receiving no reply, Chi Sui continued, “Judging by your sizes, the golden wool’s definitely worth more. Hector said her ranch’s wool business alone can compete with three others. When will you give me more quills so I can get rich off you... ow!”

The moment he heard about plucking his quills again, Momo flared up, diving into Chi Sui’s arms.

“I’ve told you, I’m going bald! That sheep’s wool grows back after a summer, but my quills take one or two years to regenerate. If you keep pulling, I’ll really be bald.”

“Get ready quickly. Everyone else has started; you’re the only one dragging your feet.”

To Chi Sui’s surprise, Momo had just scolded her. She laughed helplessly, “No rush—it’s plenty of time.”

Though she said that, seeing Momo’s anxious expression, Chi Sui obediently took out the ingredients she had prepared from her bag one by one.

First and foremost were the freshly pulled white radishes from the field today. Next were the prepped shiitake mushrooms, dried shrimp flakes, and a small bag of flour.

Salt was an indispensable seasoning, and to make the final dish look appealing, she had also brought some wild scallions. Of course, lard for frying was a must.

Just as she had arranged the ingredients, Chi Sui couldn’t help but peek at another ranch owner.

The magical beast paired with this rancher wasn’t the horse-like creature Chi Sui expected but a bull-shaped beast with a metallic blue sheen, its ancient appearance marked by the passage of time—somewhat reminiscent of the bronze artifacts Chi Sui had read about in her previous life.

At the moment, this bronze bull was harnessed to... a millstone?

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Seeing the device made of two huge cylindrical stones, Chi Sui’s eyes widened.

This tool hadn’t been seen for a long time in her world before crossing over. Could it be that they were making tofu on the spot?

The bronze bull’s large size blocked her view, preventing her from confirming her suspicion, which made her a little anxious.

“Momo, do me a favor. Walk over there and see if what they’re putting into that stone grinder is some kind of round yellow bean.”

Though irritated that Chi Sui was still distracted at such a critical moment, Momo obediently went to check.

Soon, the little hedgehog returned with plenty of information.

“It’s a kind of yellow bean. After they put it into the stone, some bean residue mixed with juice flowed into the bucket beneath.”

Satisfied that it was the ingredient she suspected, Chi Sui grew excited, silently planning to approach this ranch owner for purchasing arrangements once the competition ended.

Soybeans! A treasure trove of beans: soy milk, tofu pudding, tofu, soy sauce, and even bean sprouts from simple cultivation. Especially soy sauce—every kitchen used to have a bottle of it.

Chi Sui took a deep breath to calm her excitement and picked up her knife to start slicing the white radish into thin strips.

Her knife skills were excellent; each radish strip was consistently thin, neatly piled, and pleasing to the eye.

She diced the shiitake mushrooms, minced the shrimp flakes, and cut the scallion leaves into small segments to set aside.

Only after preparing all these ingredients did Chi Sui start a fire to boil water.

Once the water boiled, she blanched the radish strips, then drained and rinsed them in cold water before squeezing out the excess moisture.

She stir-fried the shiitake and shrimp flakes in oil until fragrant. Feeling stronger lately, Chi Sui showed off her skills a bit, flipping the pan expertly as the flames flickered.

No one among the residents of Sky Island had seen such a scene in a cooking contest before, and a chorus of surprised exclamations broke out.

Chi Sui intended to ignore the noise, but Momo was so frightened he jumped up and down.

“Ahhh, fire! Fire! Chi Sui, don’t be scared. I’ll get water to put it out right away!”

Hearing this, Chi Sui hurriedly finished stir-frying and poured the contents into a pre-prepared basin. She shot Momo an amused but exasperated glance. “There’s no fire—it’s normal. Stand back, or the oil might splash on you.”

“Oh.” Attracted by the aroma, Momo leaned in to sniff, then reluctantly backed away.

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Chi Sui continued working, mixing the well-drained radish strips and flour in the basin, adding a pinch of salt for seasoning, and stirring evenly.

By the time she finished this step, the surrounding air was already filled with a mix of enticing fragrance and... a burning smell?

Burning smell?

Momo, who had ventured away, covered his nose and hurried back.

“Why does a competition like this smell so bad?” The irritated Momo’s eyes welled with tears.

He had only come onstage to smell the delicious food.

“Well... this,” Chi Sui was momentarily at a loss for words and looked toward the source of the smell.

Windbell Town, a garden village, was abuzz with bees and butterflies. The town’s specialty was honey, so sweet treats were popular. At the food stalls, Chi Sui had seen many sweets, like the hawthorn berry cake she had wanted to buy. The sour-sweet flavor always appealed to her.

The ingredients offered by Windbell Ranch mainly featured honey.

Chi Sui could think of many honey-based pastries, but ordinary Sky Island residents mostly thought of bread and cake.

The kitchen equipment here was not advanced; the old-fashioned oven used for baking bread couldn’t regulate temperature precisely, making it easy to ruin the bake.

Watching an unknown contestant pull out a charcoal-blackened loaf from the oven and discreetly slice off the burnt crust before plating it...

Another contestant was stuffing sunflower seeds—wherever he’d found them—into his cake.

He might have washed them, but he hadn’t shelled them...

For a moment, Chi Sui was dumbfounded.

After a while, she muttered, “Momo, judging food on Sky Island really is a hazardous profession.”