Universe Infinite Canteen

Ma Lu settled in his residence, with the countdown on his Traveler's Bracelet showing only one hour left.

He didn't bother going out again, just opened the fridge, picked a random can of drink, popped the tab, and took a sip.

Hmm, it was just an energy drink, alcohol-free, but the taste wasn't bad, with a faint hint of jasmine, and the familiar circular logo was printed right on the front of the aluminum can.

This once again made Ma Lu aware of the surprising control the Order Church had over this place; their reach seemed to be everywhere.

But it didn't seem to have much to do with him, a mere passerby.

After finishing the drink, Ma Lu went to bed for a little while, and when he woke up, he was already on the living room sofa.

Old Wang was bustling about in an apron he got for free with chicken essence, cleaning with the new steam mop Ma Lu bought. Seeing him wake up, he asked,

"How was the new plane journey?"

"Not bad, I found quite a few new things over there, no, should say old things, but they looked pretty unique, almost unrecognizable to me."

As he spoke, Ma Lu opened the Collection Bag and pulled out a bunch of vegetables, cucumbers, eggplants, potatoes, enoki mushrooms... and of course, cabbages.

Surrounded by so many vegetables, one could easily feel a sense of harvest joy, akin to that of an old farmer.

But soon Ma Lu couldn't smile anymore.

Vegetables... seemed not to fetch a high price like meat.

Especially these commonly recognized vegetables; even branded as organic or pesticide-free, their markup potential was limited, unlike meat.

Even just beef had expensive-sounding types like Angus or Wagyu that nobody would bat an eye at if sold for hundreds or thousands per pound.

On the other hand, even if you touted, "This is an Alpine radish," people would just think it's on par with Provençal tomatoes, topping out at ten bucks a pound.

Thinking this way, the new plane seemed a bit of a loss, not as profitable as continuing to hunt wild beasts with Boggy.

Ma Lu was regretting it when Old Wang had already put down the mop and came over to inspect the new ingredients.

"Such strong vitality, are these Energized Plants?"

"Yes," Ma Lu nodded, moving his shoulders and neck, "a few of them were quite tough. Right, I remember it was this enoki mushroom that Backstabbed me. I teamed up with two Witches and it took quite an effort to subdue them. If I sell them cheap, it feels like a huge loss this time."

Old Wang didn't rush to speak, he examined all the vegetables Ma Lu had laid out, especially after scrutinizing the Infinite Split Cabbage, then said, "These are all very fresh, they can be made into an athlete's vegetable medley."

"Vegetable medley? Hmm, I don't know, it just doesn't sound appetizing."

Ma Lu stroked his chin, "Besides, Old Wang, you didn't go to university, and you might not be aware, but college students are basically carnivores with little demand for vegetables. If you're thinking of pushing a healthy vegetarian concept, it might be more appealing to those office workers in the buildings. But what's with the prefix 'athlete' anyway?"

"It's a vegetable medley that can improve athletic performance in a short time," Old Wang replied.

"What?"

Ma Lu didn't quite catch on for a moment.

"If the vegetable medley made with that 3-star cabbage is the main ingredient, quantifying it would mean an increase in stamina by 50%, but it would only last for 2 hours."

???!

Ma Lu took a sharp intake of breath, "Damn, I thought we would start with glow-in-the-dark cuisine, but now we've jumped straight to attribute-boosting dishes. Isn't that a bit too fast?"

"It's just a suggestion, according to our previous agreement the daily menu is up to you to decide, and you can change it if you're not satisfied."

"No, no, no, that's not what I mean. Anyway, let me have a look at the recipe first."

Ma Lu opened up the Traveler's Bracelet, and this time he directly searched for Athlete's Vegetable Medley, and instantly, 8 different variations popped up. The names of these eight dishes were all the same, and most ingredients were also the same, except for the main ones; consequently, there were different suffixes after the recipes.

For instance, the dish Old Wang suggested cooking should be called Athlete's Vegetable Medley · Stamina. In addition, there were Athlete's Vegetable Medley · Strength, Athlete's Vegetable Medley · Speed, Athlete's Vegetable Medley · Flexibility, and so forth...

It was like all the attributes needed by athletes had been maxed out.

However, for now, Ma Lu couldn't gather the ingredients for the other seven dishes; he only had enough food materials to make the Athlete's Vegetable Medley · Stamina.

Afterward, Ma Lu glanced at the Deliciousness Index of the dish: ★★★, which made him curious, "Can it really give attributes with 3 stars? But we've made dishes with 3 stars or more before, why didn't they have this kind of effect?"

"Because the Deliciousness Index is only related to taste, it has nothing to do with the effects of the dish," Old Wang explained, "Like green bean soup can cool you down; it's an inherent effect of the ingredient, unrelated to its taste."

"Makes sense," Ma Lu thought for a moment then realized something, "Wait, are you saying that the Energized Plants from the new plane I'm visiting can all boost attributes?"

"Not necessarily all of them. But compared to normal plants, Energized Plants indeed contain more abundant life force, so the cuisine made with them might potentially enhance the consumer's attributes," explained Old Wang.

Hearing this, Ma Lu no longer felt short-changed and got excited once again.

"Then, can this kind of boost be tested for?"

"Energized Plants and normal plants are indistinguishable in their biological composition, so with the biological and chemical methods of this plane, it's impossible to differentiate between the two," Old Wang answered.

"Awesome!" Ma Lu threw up a thumbs up.

Stop saying there's no hope for the national football team. Look, isn't this an opportunity right here? Just serve them a table with the eight dishes before a match, have them eat, then go out and play.

Forget about Japan and Korea, even teams from Argentina and Brazil would be dealt with.

So saying things like changing the coach is just messing around, wanting effective results is more about changing the chef.

Of course, he couldn't contact the football association leaders right away, so Ma Lu could only think about selling this dish to someone else first.

And as he seriously pondered over this, his originally overheated brain also began to cool down.

While boosting attributes is cool, Ma Lu really couldn't find any prospective buyers other than the national football team for the time being.

The main reason is that there are fewer physical laborers in the city now, and those who could use a stamina boost are mostly heavy-duty workers.

Generally speaking, they are not inclined to spend money on stamina attributes, especially when it only lasts for two hours. Plus, convincing them that it works is a significant problem in itself.

Lost in thought, Ma Lu's gaze wandered to the chat group on his phone when he suddenly made an unexpected discovery.

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