Chapter 247: Mysteries and Flavors in Mingsha City

“Okay, Brother Hao!”

Upon hearing the instructions, Zhu Qiang and Luo Peng immediately joined him.

Two hours later, Xu Hao left the Forum Hall, leaving only Zhu Qiang and Luo Peng behind.

“General Zhu, I always thought the Demon-Locking Tower was the pinnacle of Brother Hao’s abilities, but it turns out the Forum Hall at Jixia Academy is the true summit.”

Watching Xu Hao’s retreating figure, Luo Peng couldn’t help but sigh in admiration.

“Forum Hall?”

Zhu Qiang glanced at Luo Peng.

Strangely, he felt that the Forum Hall might just be the beginning—Zhaixing Pavilion and even Wuzhuang Temple could mark the real peaks.

Especially Wuzhuang Temple!

Aside from the walls, the buzz from the preparations there was even greater than at Taiyi Hospital.

“And…”

After a pause, Luo Peng looked around to make sure no one was listening and whispered, “What’s next?”

“Did you notice that when we saw Brother Hao, he exuded a transcendental aura—as if he were removed from the mortal realm?”

“Transcendental aura? Ha, General Luo, if you stepped out of a celestial hall, you’d feel it too.”

Upon hearing this,

Zhu Qiang waved his hand, signaling Luo Peng not to overthink it.

“Really?”

Luo Peng scratched his head.

“Of course!”

“Oh.”

“Don’t let the ‘celestial aura’ of the Forum Hall send your mind racing. Keep it in check, or else soon Wuzhuang Temple might actually be planting real ginseng trees.”

“Uh…”

“Enough. Get some security over here to guard the main gate—there must be no mishaps before the Traditional Culture Project performance.”

“Understood, General Zhu!”

“Yes, Brother Hao mentioned that Mingsha Academy must be completed by the end of October, so we need to speed things up.”

The night passed without another word.

The next day

At 8 a.m., Mingsha City was already alive with voices—especially in the newly opened Traditional Snacks Street.

Many tourists came out of curiosity, and since it was breakfast time, they seized the opportunity to grab a meal.

However, as soon as they entered the food street, many stopped in awe.

Unlike other attractions in the Long Kingdom, Mingsha City’s food street featured not only vibrant flags but also ancient fabric signboards reminiscent of bygone eras, evoking the grand feeling of legendary duels among powerful alliances.

Coming back to reality,

they continued walking until they encountered traditional Yan City cuisine: roast duck, stewed meats, fire-baked buns, glutinous rice rolls, candied fruit skewers, noodle soup, stir-fried tripe, liver stir-fry, and more—dozens of shops in all.

Moreover, each shop specialized in one unique dish, with no duplicates in sight.

“So this is Yan City’s traditional cuisine?”

Snapping back, many tourists headed toward the food stalls that caught their interest.

Although Yan City is the capital of the Long Kingdom and draws masses of tourists each year, many locals have never had the chance to visit.

Further down the street lay Su Province’s traditional food district.

Leading the charge were shops offering Lanshi beef noodles, mashed potato dumplings, lively noodles, hand-pulled mutton, stuffed pancake, fish noodles, donkey meat noodles, soup-soaked noodles, candy-coated potatoes, and milk egg rice wine—dozens of stalls in all.

Beyond Su Province was Yun Province’s realm of traditional cuisine!

Due to its geographic diversity, Yun Province boasted far more specialty food shops than Yan City or Su Province. There were offerings like crossing-the-bridge noodles, wild mushroom hotpot, Xuanwei ham, black pork, oil cakes, mung bean soup, Zhaotong cold noodles, copper pot fish, Jiangchuan saltwater fish, cold rice noodles, chicken tofu, lemongrass grilled fish, chicken porridge, sour meat with flatbread rolls, Basang grilled dishes, dried pickles, and large slices.

Altogether, the district featured well over a hundred stalls!

After Yun Province’s section came Haishi’s own traditional food area. Initially, tourists were content to wander to the end of the food street before deciding on a meal, but many couldn’t resist stepping into a stall that looked enticing.

By 10 a.m., the food street was packed, with long queues forming outside several shops.

In the Yan City section, at a stall selling Aiwo Wo, a table of tourists chattered away as they sampled the treat.

“Is it any good?”

“Pretty good! I never expected to find Yan City’s special snack in Mingsha—though I can’t say if it’s truly authentic.”

One tourist nodded in agreement.

“I’ve been to Yan City several times and never had Aiwo Wo. This is a first for me!”

A neighboring tourist echoed his sentiment.

“Even if you’ve visited Yan City often, we locals rarely get to try Aiwo Wo.”

At the other end of the table, a middle-aged man smiled.

“Oh? You’re from Yan City?”

The other three turned to look at him in surprise.

They were astonished to see a true Yan City native enjoying Yan City snacks here in Mingsha.

“Yeah!”

The man chuckled again.

“Well, you know—”

“I’ve simply never had it before. I’m not lying! I can’t vouch for its authenticity, but it’s clear that Mingsha City put in the effort. To bring Aiwo Wo into the Yan City section shows they’ve covered every base.”

The middle-aged man couldn’t help but feel a touch of nostalgia.

I’m definitely going to post about this on my social media later.

“Full range? I still feel it’s missing something!”

A young man, hearing this, couldn’t help but ask,

“What do you mean?”

The man paused.

“I had heard that Yan City’s Douzhi was quite famous. I planned on trying it today, but after scouring the Yan City section, it was nowhere to be found.”

The young man remarked.

“Douzhi? Oh, really!”

The middle-aged man nodded eagerly. If not for the young man’s reminder, he might have completely overlooked this delicacy.

“Folks, it’s not that Mingsha City’s food street offerings are incomplete—the flavor of Douzhi is just a bit unusual, so Mingsha Tourism placed it in the challenge zone!”

Coincidentally, the Owner happened to approach and overheard the conversation.

“Challenge zone?”

“Yes! On the east side of the food street, near the city wall, there’s a designated area featuring stinky tofu, snail noodles, moldy amaranth stems, stinky mandarin fish, blue mold tofu, stinky gluten, stinky winter melon, and moldy tofu, among others. Their bizarre aromas earned that spot the nickname ‘challenge zone’ among the staff at Mingsha City Tourism. I heard that during a tasting session yesterday, a staffer couldn’t last more than three minutes before bolting out!”

The Owner laughed in a distinct Yan City accent and said,

“Less than three minutes? Really?”

At this,

the group’s curiosity surged.

“Truly! Some can stomach stinky tofu but not the moldy amaranth stems. Honestly, if you’re not mentally prepared, you’d best avoid it. I even heard they set aside several single restrooms specifically for vomiting!”

“Vomiting restrooms?”

Their interest only grew.

It was the first time in years they had heard of vomiting restrooms—especially one built right in a food district.

“If you can’t locate them, just ask one of the patrolling guards in the food street.”

“Thanks!”

Unbeknownst to them, early visitors to the ‘challenge zone’ had already shared their experiences on various forums.

As a result,

posts about Mingsha City’s food street began to multiply in an instant.

“Mingsha City Food Street is now open! Although only a few provincial zones and specialty areas are available, the experience is fantastic! I can’t wait to see what other regions offer.”

“Totally authentic! The prices are reasonable and the flavors are amazing!”

“This is exactly what the Traditional Food Performance at the Cultural Expo should be like!”

“I recommend that any food lover with some free time visit Mingsha City. Here, you can taste every traditional dish—even the most obscure ones.”

On the forums, while most comments were filled with praise, the most active thread was titled “Mingsha City Food Challenge Zone – Did You Last Three Minutes?”

“Ha! Three minutes? I barely made it past the second stall!”

“The second stall? I pushed on until the sixth stall with the stinky winter melon before I had to give up!”

“Not bad at all!”

“Damn it, don’t even mention it—it just puts me in a bad mood!”

“What’s wrong, brother?”

“I had a bowl of Lanshi beef noodles, and as soon as I heard about the challenge zone, I rushed over. In the end, I ended up vomiting most of the noodles!”

“Haha!”

“Seriously? I’ve never seen anyone turn food into such a wild challenge. I want to try it too!”

“Really, I’m not kidding! It’s the first time I’ve seen someone play with food like this.”

Time flew by, and before long, dusk settled.

In Yan City,

Ding Xiaoping stared at the trending topics and comments on his computer screen. Frustrated beyond measure, he finally shut it down.

Across from him, Bai Ming sat in gloom. Neither had expected Mingsha City to suddenly trend—and in such an odd, inexplicable manner.

The trending topic was:

“Mingsha City Food Street Challenge Zone: No One Lasts Three Minutes.”

Clicking on the comments revealed that many were eager to take the challenge, while others warned visitors not to attempt it due to insufficient restroom facilities. The comment section was pure chaos.

“Leader, Mingsha City’s approach is wild. I’m worried if H Country can keep up—don’t let Mingsha City’s breakthrough ruin them!”

After a pause,

Bai Ming couldn’t help but add,

Initially, when they saw Mingsha City’s early online opening of the food street, their first thought was that the project had been abandoned.

But then, the very next day, it exploded online like this.

To an outsider, it was simply unbelievable.

“Abandoned? Mingsha City’s approach might only draw in tourists for now, but if H Country starts copying it, nothing’s stopping them. I bet H Country is already brainstorming their own challenge zone!”

Ding Xiaoping raised an eyebrow.