Chapter Five: The Miraculous Effect

  Baek's expression was exaggerated, and after swallowing a piece of meat, he couldn't stop. He ate the meat while drinking the soup, and even though the stewed meat was scalding hot now, it couldn't stop him from inhaling air while gobbling down his food.

  Others saw Beck's performance and couldn't help themselves. The flesh of the demons wasn't eaten, not because it was toxic enough to kill people, but simply because most demon meat tasted terrible and had some adverse effects on humans. Now that they saw how ecstatic Beck was while eating, it would be a waste if they didn't try some for themselves!

  Then, including the cold beauty Aileen, everyone present praised the big pot of stewed meat without exception.

  "This can't be the meat of a Red Tail Wolf! This freshness... I've never tasted anything like it before! Even those so-called high-class dishes I had in the past can't compare to this!" Lays exclaimed as he ate, while the others nodded in agreement with a look of deep emotion.

  Seeing these people eat with relish, Ji Ran also had a smile all over his face. He wanted to survive in this world, and he must integrate into human society. And if he had a special skill, the integration speed would naturally be much faster. Moreover, it seemed that this was his own unique craftsmanship! This world was similar to the Western world in reality, and cooking techniques seemed to be surprisingly lacking. With just this, he estimated that he could live quite well...

  Others rushed to eat the big pot stewed meat, while Ji Ran strung the rabbit meat and mushrooms together and roasted them over the fire. This barbecue wasn't some cooking skill from a game, but rather something he had come up with on his own. He had even worked at a barbecue stall before, so his technique was quite skilled. With the addition of these special mushrooms and wild seasonings, the flavor was also quite good. Even without any additional effects, it could be considered a delicacy.

  A single Red-tailed Flame Wolf yielded a considerable amount of meat, but the adventurers in this world - especially those warrior types - had enormous appetites. A pot of meat was quickly devoured by several people, leaving not even any soup behind. Ji Ran only ate two bowls and let others have the rest - after all, the effect could be obtained from eating just one bowl, so saving his stomach for other things wasn't bad either.

  The braised meat was all gone, and the barbecue had also been eaten up. Ji Ran opened the bonfire and scooped out the "Phoenix Chicken" from inside. This "Phoenix Chicken" was also a cooking formula in the game, but it required a magical beast chicken, whereas this was just an ordinary mountain chicken, so it couldn't produce the original properties of the "Phoenix Chicken". However, the aroma of this "Phoenix Chicken" still made everyone sniffle.

  "How can this mud-wrapped chicken be so delicious! Ahhh, I've eaten too much of the Red Tail Wolf meat and now I'm full!" Beike smelled the aroma of the Beggar's Chicken, drooling with desire, but his stomach was already full, so he could only gaze longingly.

  While the beautiful woman Aileen in a cloak hummed coldly: "Everything must be done with restraint, otherwise you will lose more things." Then, she stretched out her hand and picked up a chicken that had been peeled by Ji Ran, eating it herself while feeding an eagle called Hualuo.

  After eating for so long, Ji Ran was somewhat familiar with these people. Uncle Leis, Ban and Beike two brothers didn't need to be said, but this cloak beauty wasn't a human!

  After taking off the hood, Ji Ran discovered that this cloak beauty had two particularly pointed ears. And her slender figure and athletic physique were also rare among human women. So the answer was already obvious, she was an elf.

  It's completely normal for a Western fantasy world to have elves! Ji Ran accepted this setting without any obstruction.

  However, this elf named Aileen wore a mask on her face. The mask covered the upper half of her face above her nose, making it impossible to see her true appearance. But from that beautifully lined half-face and chin, one could tell that she was an elven beauty - not to mention those bright eyes. Although there was a hint of indifference in them, they still had the power to captivate people's hearts involuntarily.

  Out of politeness, Ji Ran naturally wouldn't stare at someone wearing a mask. However, this spirit didn't seem to mind and continued eating its own food while also feeding the eagle named Hualuo.

  The little girl magician Lydia is still young, and it seems that her adventure experience should not be much, or maybe this is her first adventure... Otherwise, when she was attacked before, she would not have been flustered and unable to help Jiraiya.

  Lydia was a bit shy and didn't dare to speak too loudly. However, when she looked at Ji Ran, her eyes were filled with an admiring gaze - after all, the strength Ji Ran had shown by standing up for her earlier was far superior to hers.

  Of course, the strength of each member in this adventure team is higher than hers, but Ji Ran's strength is different from others... how to say it, it's just - a bit eerie.

  "By the way, Ji Ran, your move just now to kill that Flame Wolf was really swift! Even for us, it's not easy to take down a Flame Wolf with one hit. Your strength has surpassed level three, right?" After eating and drinking their fill, the group rested in the cave, naturally starting to chat idly.

  Ji Ran rubbed his nose and smiled wryly: "To be honest, I'm afraid you won't believe me, but my actual strength hasn't even reached level two yet."

  He is not lying, his current level is indeed so.

  The hierarchy of this world is naturally different from that in the game. A level 10 in the game would only be a first-level in this world. He also learned about the division of strength levels in this world through previous casual conversations with others. Now at level 18, converted to this world, isn't he still not even at level 2?

  When he said that, everyone else was shocked. Especially Beck, who couldn't keep his mouth shut, and immediately let out a cry of surprise.

  "Impossible! I'm about to break through to the third level right now, and I still can't produce an attack with the power of your one sword. How is it possible that you're not even at the second level?" Beck's eyes widened immediately, looking like he didn't dare to believe it.

  On the other hand, Lais, who was standing beside him, looked at Ji Ran without saying a word. His strength was the strongest among these people, and the realm he had reached before was far beyond his current strength. So, he could see that Ji Ran's true level was indeed not even close to second grade yet.

  "The swordsmanship I've learned has some wonderful aspects, able to burst out with great power in an instant. It's just that this power is hard to sustain, requiring a good grasp of timing and reaction. That one sword today actually also had a considerable element of luck." Regarding this point, Ji Ran had already thought of an explanation.

  "So, it seems that the swordsmanship you've learned, Ji Ran, must be quite strong, at least at the gold level? It looks like the village where you live isn't an ordinary place..." Lais's eyes were full of meaning.

  He smiled wryly and said, "Actually, I don't know what level my swordsmanship is either. I've lived in that village since I was a child, so I didn't even know that swordsmanship had levels. Whatever the elders in the village taught me, I just learned it."

  After hearing his words, Beck let out a strange cry: "So fierce! Your little village shouldn't be an ordinary place, right? Damn it, why wasn't I born in that place, to learn such fierce swordsmanship!"

  Bai Ke's face was filled with envy, and he couldn't help but wish to switch places with Ji Ran. However, despite his usual lively personality, he was actually quite clear-headed and didn't make any requests to learn swordsmanship or the like... why would anyone teach you?

  In this world, the relationship between masters and disciples is also very important. If you want to learn someone else's unique skills, even as an ordinary disciple, the opportunity is not great.

  Moreover, Beck's marksmanship has been honed for over a decade, and now that he specializes in swordsmanship, it's unlikely he'll achieve anything great. The situation is similar for others, who can only envy, resent, and hate Ji Ran.

  At this moment, Ban, the relatively quiet and taciturn older brother next to him, seemed to have suddenly discovered something.

  "Why do I feel so energetic today? It's normal to have this feeling after a day of adventure and a good night's sleep, but why am I having it now?"

  As he said that, the others also felt it. Going on an adventure outside was a physically demanding task, and even if they weren't fighting, just traveling was enough to exhaust ordinary people. Sometimes, even sleeping for a whole night wasn't enough to recover from it. And now, everyone had a feeling of having plenty of physical energy. Although not as full as when they were well-rested, it was still comparable to how they felt when they normally woke up early...

  "Could it be that the stewed meat had an effect?" The thought of the stew made from the Red-tailed Fire Wolf's meat suddenly occurred to everyone. However, this idea was also somewhat shocking and unconventional, and everyone stared intently at Ji Ran, as if they wanted to see flowers bloom on his face.

  "Uh... well, my cooking skills were also passed down by the village elders, and it's true that I can use some of the energy from the monster meat to enhance myself. And the most common and basic ability of monster meat is to restore physical strength." Ji Ran rubbed his nose, with another embarrassed smile.