Volume 2 - Chapter 39: Attaining Spiritual Resonance
By the time Ren Qianqian had fetched several large cauldrons, Li Hao beckoned with a casual gesture, and the Longxiao Sword soared into the air. Sword qi pierced the heavens, streaking toward the Black Bird Demon King.
Under the sharp edge of this divine weapon, the Black Bird Demon King’s body was sliced apart.
Li Hao severed its neck, causing its blood, brimming with vibrant life essence, to spurt out. However, with his Object Manipulation Ability, he encapsulated the blood and guided it into the cauldrons.
During this process, he used the same ability to extract moisture from the precious blood, refining it into a viscous, sticky ichor.
The enormous bronze cauldrons were filled to their capacity—nine cauldrons in total.
Li Hao then sealed the cauldrons with molten iron and set them aside temporarily.
Next, following Feng Lao’s instructions, Li Hao removed the golden feathers from the Black Bird Demon King’s back.
The feathers, shimmering in radiant gold, still glimmered faintly with a golden glow, even though the Demon King was already dead.
Li Hao collected all seven of these golden feathers and then extracted the Demon King’s heart.
The heart of this Dao Heart Realm demon was inscribed with divine patterns and exuded a vast and majestic aura. Natural markings formed by the forces of heaven and earth adorned its surface.
If one could comprehend these markings, they might gain insight into the Dao Heart that this Demon King had cultivated.
Li Hao retrieved a massive white jade tray to hold the heart, which measured half a meter in diameter.
The dark gold divine patterns flowing across its surface still carried immense power and could remain unspoiled for a century even if left untouched.
Besides these, the rest of the Demon King's body was also extremely valuable, but Li Hao planned to share it with all the martial artists in the city.
The other black feathers, while unsuitable for forging divine weapons, could still be crafted into formidable arms effective even at the Heaven and Man Realm.
The flesh and blood of this creature were similarly invaluable; consuming them raw would provide immense medicinal benefits. However, the overwhelming demonic aura within made it more suitable for refining before absorption.
After all, the constitutions of humans and demons were inherently different.
The little white fox, on the other hand, could eat the flesh raw. However, having been raised by Li Hao from a young age, it had developed a picky palate and now only ate cooked food.
“The task of preparing the stove and starting the fire will be left to Feng Lao,” Li Hao said with a smile, rolling up his sleeves as he prepared to cook the Black Bird Demon King.
Even Feng Boping grew intrigued; such a spectacle was unheard of. Tonight, the martial artists of the entire city were in for a treat.
Li Hao wielded the Longxiao Sword and began plucking feathers and slicing meat from the Demon King.
Ren Qianqian assisted Li Hao, searching for various containers to hold the ingredients.
When Li Hongzhuang learned of the events and arrived, she was stunned to see Li Hao not only wielding a sword to carve meat but also organizing a massive outdoor setup with a towering pile of firewood and an enormous iron pot.
“This is the flesh of a Dao Heart Realm Demon King,” she exclaimed, her astonishment evident. “Its value is incalculable—it could be worth its weight in gold! And you’re just going to cook it like this?”
Li Hao glanced at her. Earlier, this little aunt had joined the fray outside the city walls, fighting alongside him. Smiling, he asked, “What flavor do you prefer? Spicy or steamed?”
“…”
Li Hongzhuang was speechless.
Having defended the borders for over a decade, she never imagined she would one day taste the flesh of a Demon King—a dream too absurd to even entertain.
Seeing Ren Qianqian struggling to find containers, Li Hongzhuang stopped hesitating. As a spirited daughter of a military family, she was straightforward and unrestrained. She immediately called for the deputy of the Blood Fiend Army.
Soon, the army’s long-serving cooking unit arrived, bringing bowls, utensils, and a variety of seasonings.
When these soldiers witnessed Li Hao processing the Demon King's carcass, they exclaimed in amazement, feeling as though their horizons had been expanded.
They wanted to assist, but Li Hao declined, only asking them to help with basic tasks like sorting and storing the ingredients.
Cooking, Li Hao insisted, was something he preferred to handle himself.
He meticulously dismembered the Demon King's legs and wings, cutting them into smaller portions.
The Longxiao Sword, one of the Ten Famous Swords, was now serving as a kitchen knife. Under Li Hao’s deft control, it effortlessly dismantled the Demon King's body.
As he worked with such high-quality ingredients, Li Hao felt a pang of regret. If he could break through his culinary bottleneck, cooking a Fourth Pillar Realm Demon King might yield a few thousand experience points, if not tens of thousands.
Though this was his first time preparing such a massive meal, Li Hao was anything but careless.
Possessing a Culinary Dao of the sixth stage, he aimed for every dish to be as refined and delicious as an individual masterpiece.
Thus, cooking a large meal presented an even greater challenge.
Fully engrossed, Li Hao realized the ordinary flames from the wood couldn’t soften the Demon King's flesh adequately for stewing, let alone stir-frying.
He resorted to his Immortal Purple Cloud Palm to increase the heat when necessary.
Now that he had reached the pinnacle of martial arts mastery, many of his techniques had evolved into their celestial versions, enabling even greater power.
The Immortal Purple Cloud Palm, transformed through celestial energy, could generate intense heat capable of melting Heaven and Man Realm demons and inflicting severe damage on even Three Immortals Realm demons.
When applied to cooking, it was as if divine intervention aided Li Hao.
During the cooking process, remnants of the Demon King’s will occasionally surfaced within its flesh and blood. Each time, Li Hao shattered them with his divine sense.
The lingering thoughts trapped within the pores and apertures of the Demon King’s body were gradually dissipating.
At first, Li Hao barely noticed this, but soon he felt an inexplicable sensation arise.
The ingredients themselves seemed to carry an extraordinary quality.
Having achieved the sixth stage of the Culinary Dao, Li Hao’s culinary skills had already reached their peak—allowing his palate to experience unprecedented refinement.
Even in the Holy Capital’s most exquisite restaurants, Li Hao could easily take charge as head chef.
But this wasn’t the ultimate boundary of the Culinary Dao.
There was a higher realm—Spiritual Resonance.
At that moment, Li Hao realized that attaining Spiritual Resonance wasn’t merely about cooking the ingredients.
...
It was about cooking something beyond physical sensations—drawing out the soul of the ingredients themselves.
Li Hao’s Culinary Dao had long reached the sixth stage, but he had never considered the possibility of using it to achieve Spiritual Resonance.
Now, through this seemingly casual cooking session, inspiration struck him, and he suddenly felt as though he had touched the elusive bottleneck.
Li Hao became entirely absorbed in his craft.
Rather than eradicating the remnants of the Demon King’s will within the flesh, he began to pacify them with his own intent. From an enraged, screaming state, they gradually became serene.
These remnants, no longer hostile, lingered within the ingredients.
At this moment, he was no longer simply cooking flesh and blood but rather the fragmented soul of the Black Bird Demon King.
The Black Bird Demon King’s divine soul had already been obliterated; these residual soul fragments were little more than unconscious emotions and impressions.
As such, most of the remnants radiated brutality and bloodlust.
But under Li Hao’s manipulation, they softened and merged into the ingredients, becoming like vessels—similar to the pores of flesh, absorbing the flavors of spices and broth to enhance taste.
Likewise, these remnants became conduits for Li Hao’s emotions. He infused them with gratitude toward the martial artists who had defended the city alongside him, embedding these feelings into the food.
Unnoticed by Li Hao, translucent notifications began appearing before his eyes.
[Cooking Experience +2712…]
[Cooking Experience +2539…]
[Cooking Experience +2934…]
He had crossed that threshold—the Culinary Dao had entered the realm of Spiritual Resonance.
The bottleneck that had constrained his progress for so long was shattered, allowing him to once again accrue cooking experience.
However, Li Hao remained wholly immersed in his cooking, ignoring these notifications.
It was akin to the state of enlightenment he achieved upon reaching the Grandmaster Realm in martial arts—seeking nothing yet attaining all.
The most precious things in life are often obtained not through pursuit but through natural course.
Just as life is nurtured in the womb without need for intervention...
Just as the sun and moon follow their cycles without requiring prayer...
Mountains and rivers exist because of natural laws. To seek them would be like forcing water uphill—possible through great effort, but ultimately unsustainable.
True mastery lies in achieving harmony with nature.
Li Hao had hoped for enlightenment in the Painting Dao or the Fishing Dao but never in the Culinary Dao. Yet here he was, unexpectedly attaining Spiritual Resonance through a spontaneous act of cooking.
...
By the time the sun set and the evening sky turned the color of a maiden’s blush, the martial artists of the entire city had gathered in the town square.
The aroma wafting from the cooking spread across all of Cangya City. Even the astrologers and scholars carving formations on the city walls caught the scent.
“What is that smell?”
Xia Xianglan, startled, lifted her delicate nose to take in the aroma. She glanced toward the city, her low cultivation level preventing her from seeing clearly.
“It seems that young master is cooking the Demon King to host a feast for everyone,” said a scholar whose divine soul hovered above the city. His typically stoic face betrayed a trace of astonishment.
“Cooking a Demon King?”
The others were dumbfounded. Even the astrologer elder narrowed his eyes slightly and muttered, “That young master is truly eccentric.”
Xia Xianglan, recalling the gentle and refined youth she had met in the courtyard, was momentarily dazed. It was hard to reconcile that image with someone undertaking such a wild endeavor.
...
In the city, tables and chairs had been set up en masse. Soldiers from the cooking unit brought out dish after dish, each made from the Black Bird Demon King’s flesh.
There were stir-fried meat slices, steamed foie gras, braised tendons, and more.
From the Demon King’s body, Li Hao had crafted over fifty distinct dishes. None of the preparations were repeated.
The spread included hot dishes, cold appetizers, and even pastries and snacks made by combining tendons and other ingredients.
A total of over a hundred tables had been arranged, each holding more than fifty servings.
As the last rays of sunlight faded, Li Hao wiped the sweat from his brow and joined Feng Lao at one of the tables to eat.
There were no formal speeches or thanks; every ounce of emotion had been poured into the meal.
Nonetheless, Li Hongzhuang took it upon herself to say a few words of gratitude on Li Hao’s behalf before inviting everyone to eat.
When the first bites were taken, and the flavors burst across the diners’ palates, the remnants of the Demon King’s will, imbued with Li Hao’s heartfelt gratitude, were also conveyed.
In that instant, everyone understood the young man’s deep appreciation. The sensation was like a soul-to-soul connection, surpassing anything words could express.
Some of the more sentimental women even found themselves tearing up as they ate.
The only sounds remaining at the banquet were the clinking of bowls and chopsticks.
“You brat…” Feng Boping began as he chewed on a slice of stir-fried meat. But before he could finish his thought, the taste transported him into an indescribable state.
It felt as if an intangible essence had directly touched his heart, delivering a profound emotion without the need for words.
This was no ordinary dish.
...
Li Hao had Ren Qianqian prepare food boxes to deliver meals to the Si Tianjian scholars stationed on the city walls.
As he enjoyed the meal with a small cup of wine, Li Hao mused. While he couldn’t absorb the Demon King’s essence for strength like others, he still found the taste exceptionally satisfying.
During a rare moment of respite, he opened his status panel. Seeing that his Culinary Dao had progressed from the sixth stage to the seventh, a faint smile appeared on his face.
It wasn’t a feeling of surprise, but rather one of natural fulfillment.
Attaining Spiritual Resonance in the Culinary Dao had also given Li Hao insight into achieving similar breakthroughs in the Painting Dao and other disciplines.
However, it would require more experimentation, as understanding and execution are two entirely different things.
Regardless, Li Hao had finally unlocked the potential for further growth.