Ash had just perfected the "Bone-Soothing Porridge" recipe (now with 30% fewer existential side effects) when a knock came at his humble gate.
A knock… with rhythm.
Tap-tap. Pause. Tap-tap-tap.
He opened it slowly, soup ladle still in hand.
A girl stood there, about his age — eyes sharp, uniform wrinkled like she'd just escaped a library avalanche. She held a stack of sealed scrolls and a glowing jade spoon.
"You're Ash, right? From Green Reed Garden?"
Ash nodded slowly. "Unless I'm hallucinating. Again."
She shoved the spoon toward him. "I need you. It's an official summons. The Hidden Pantry Division has a… situation."
The jade spoon trembled in his palm.
[System Notification]– Special Instance Triggered: The Hidden Pantry– Quest Class: Quiet but Potentially World-Altering– Reward: Unknown– Risk: Minimal. Probably. Hopefully. Maybe.
Ash sighed. "Let me grab my seasoning pouch."
The Hidden Pantry
Under the Sect Library was a kitchen.
Not just a kitchen — The First Kitchen, older than the sect itself.
It smelled like wisdom, burnt rice, and forgotten dumplings. Spirit runes glowed faintly along the walls, and floating recipe tablets drifted through the air like lazy koi.
The girl introduced herself while leading him inside.
"I'm Lin Wuyi. Apprentice Pantry Keeper. I catalog food-type spirit relics, seal ingredient vaults, and monitor ancient kitchen ghosts."
Ash blinked. "Those are jobs?"
"Yes. And one of them is angry."
Anomalies in the Pantry
She showed him a sealed storeroom. A spirit-lock pot inside it throbbed with a low pulse, glowing unevenly. The label read:
"Sourwind Beans – Do Not Unseal Without a Salt Circle and Sunglasses."
But the pot was… cracked. Barely. And the spiritual energy leaked out smelled like armpit resentment.
Lin Wuyi tapped a rune slate. "This shouldn't be happening. The preservation glyphs are going haywire. Someone — or something — tampered with this."
Ash reached forward. The system nudged him.
[System Analysis Active]– Ingredient Degradation Pattern Detected– Origin: Sabotaged Preservation Formation– Suggestion: Create a Stabilization Skill
Ash focused. Thoughts flickered — preservation, dampening decay, encouraging flavor without rot. He imagined it like layering leaves around fresh vegetables in spring.
[Skill Created: "Flavor Lock"]– Tier: Undefined– Effect: Stabilizes volatile ingredients with a layer of conceptual memory– Passive: Adds +1 shelf life to spirit items stored nearby
He activated it.
The pot shimmered, steadied, and gave a tiny appreciative burp.
Lin Wuyi stared.
"You just… made a preservation technique?"
Ash shrugged. "Wasn't that hard. I just thought like a cabbage."
A Bigger Problem
But as they checked the rest of the pantry, more anomalies were revealed:
A spirit fish that had reversed its flavor profile.
A pile of rice that was singing battle songs.
A soup bone that had begun absorbing other soup.
Lin Wuyi looked overwhelmed. "These ingredients are foundational for next month's sect-wide offering! If this gets worse, the elders will—"
The wall behind her suddenly shuddered. An ancient pantry ghost burst out — translucent, furious, wearing a chef's hat three times too big.
"WHO CHANGED MY PICKLING TEMPERATURE?!"
Ash instinctively stepped in front of Lin.
[Skill Panel Opened]
"Flavor Lock" – active"Broth Barrier" – warm"Memory Marinade" – optional
[System Suggestion]– Create New Skill: "Kitchen Pacifier"– Requires: Calm Intent + Comforting Aroma + Verbal Confusion
Ash focused.
He gently waved his ladle, stirred a pot of miso-ginger tea, and calmly said:
"I didn't change your temperature. I upgraded your flavor destiny."
The ghost blinked.
Then nodded slowly.
And phased back into the wall, muttering about thyme.
Lin Wuyi's Stare
They sat afterward, sipping leftover broth on a storeroom crate.
Lin Wuyi still looked dazed.
"You… didn't use talismans. Didn't consult ancient scrolls. You just made a skill."
Ash slurped. "Well, the system lets me… think things into being. Sort of. Not always easy. But if it makes sense in my head, I try it."
"…And it works?"
"…Sometimes."
She exhaled. "You're not normal, you know that?"
Ash grinned, offering her a second helping.
"Soup helps."
System Update
[Special Instance Resolved]– Ingredient Preservation restored– Pantry Ghost appeased– Lin Wuyi's Curiosity +2– New Passive Skill Gained: "Kitchen Sense"
Detects fluctuations in spiritual food within 20m– New Interaction Unlocked: Apprentice Pantry Keeper – Friendly
That night, Ash walked back under a star-filled sky.
He didn't like attention. He didn't seek legacy.
But one skill at a time, one soup at a time… the world was shifting.
And maybe, just maybe, it was starting to taste better.
End of Chapter 10