Chapter 10: The Book Within the Star Vein

“Alright.” Qin Lang nodded in cooperation, though his heart was still stirred with waves of emotion.

Was he finally about to witness the extraordinary side of this world?

Guided by the staff, he took a deep breath and slowly closed his eyes.

The surroundings seemed to brighten slightly, and in the next moment, Qin Lang clearly felt a warm current descending from above, converging onto the crown of his head.

It felt somewhat like warm water pouring down his scalp, yet it brought no discomfort—instead, it instantly invigorated his spirit.

Then, that warm current flowed down from his crown, tracing along his spine all the way to his tailbone, causing Qin Lang to shiver involuntarily, nearly letting out a sound.

“Alright, you can open your eyes now.”

After a moment, the staff’s voice brought Qin Lang back to himself.

He slowly opened his eyes; the secret chamber looked no different than before, but everything in his sight had changed.

Countless tiny points of light diffused throughout the space, omnipresent.

This was…

Seeing the astonishment on Qin Lang’s face, the staff member smiled knowingly and began to explain, “What you’re seeing now is Star Force.”

“This is the extraordinary energy that exists in every corner of the Food Spirit world. Only after activating the first Star Meridian, the Celestial Pivot, can one perceive it.”

“Since you just activated it, your perception of the Star Force will affect your normal vision, but this will ease within a few days.”

Qin Lang nodded in realization, then instinctively touched the warm spot on his crown. “This is where the Celestial Pivot Meridian is located?”

“Yes,” the staff member nodded. “Let’s leave the Star Meridian Awakening Chamber and move to another room for the introductory guidance of the newly appointed Spirit Chef.”

“Understood.” Qin Lang nodded, suddenly remembering he had yet to ask the staff’s name. “May I ask your name?”

“I’m Chen Yu.” The staff member smiled.

“Brother Chen, thank you for your help.” Qin Lang spoke politely.

“Follow me.” Chen Yu opened the chamber door and soon led Qin Lang to a spacious room. A row of bookshelves lined one wall, neatly arranged with teaching brochures for new Spirit Chefs.

“Take these; we’ll discuss them as we go.” Chen Yu picked up two brochures casually, handing one to Qin Lang before speaking slowly.

“Food Spirits don’t just appear out of thin air.”

“They require the Spirit Chef to bring them into being because within an activated Star Meridian, there naturally exists something called a Spirit Embryo.”

“You can think of it as the egg of a Food Spirit.”

“The Spirit Chef infuses the power generated during cooking into the Spirit Embryo, breathing a soul into the blank embryo, thus giving birth to the Food Spirit.”

“So, each time a Star Meridian is activated, you gain one Food Spirit.”

“To give birth to a Food Spirit, you must first sense where the Spirit Embryo is located, which requires a small ability called Inner Sight.”

“Inner Sight?” Qin Lang’s interest piqued. “How do I do that?”

“Close your eyes.” Chen Yu smiled. “Keep your breathing steady, clear your mind of all thoughts…”

Before he finished, his voice gradually lowered.

Because Qin Lang had already closed his eyes, the Celestial Pivot Meridian glowed faintly, and he entered the state of Inner Sight.

“Pretty fast,” Chen Yu chuckled, shaking his head and murmuring to himself in a voice only he could hear, then stood quietly by.

From his experience, most first-time users of Inner Sight would soon lose focus.

Meanwhile, within Inner Sight, Qin Lang felt as if he were inside a spherical space thick with Star Force.

The space wasn’t large; at its center, where countless points of light converged, was a translucent golden sphere resembling an egg.

This must be the Spirit Embryo.

Curiously examining the orb about the size of two fists, Qin Lang’s gaze rose and ultimately fixed on an object suspended in midair.

It was a closed book. The cover bore no text, only a faceless silhouette of a walking figure, with a winding road and various landscapes in the background, and behind them, the light patterns of the sun, moon, and stars.

How could there be a book inside my Star Meridian?

A sense of puzzlement welled up in Qin Lang’s heart.

Chen Yu hadn’t mentioned anything like this, and no matter how he thought about it, a book appearing inside a Star Meridian was unusual.

Fixing his eyes on the book, Qin Lang thought, “I wish I could pick it up and take a look,” and to his delight, the book smoothly flew toward him and settled before his eyes.

Cautiously, Qin Lang reached out and gently brushed the cover, and a simple piece of information suddenly flooded his mind.

[Traveler’s Book]

This book with no words on its cover was called the Traveler’s Book.

I want to see what this is.

His eyes flickered slightly as he carefully turned to the first page.

Then, a look of bewilderment spread across his face.

The first page of the Traveler’s Book was also devoid of text.

Taking up the entire page was a landscape painting of a flower garden and a stone sculpture shaped like a homing pigeon.

What message does this painting hold?

Qin Lang studied it carefully but could not decipher its meaning, so he flipped to the next page.

Then, once again, he was stunned.

This Traveler’s Book, about three fingers thick, could only open the first page; all other pages were stuck and impossible to turn.

After studying the painting on the first page for a while longer, Qin Lang reluctantly closed the Traveler’s Book.

Better to set it aside for now.

Returning the Traveler’s Book to its place, Qin Lang glanced once more at the Spirit Embryo, then suddenly felt a mental jolt as his Inner Sight state instantly ended.

“You kid… you’ve Inner Sighted for that long?” Chen Yu’s voice sounded, surprised.

He had expected Qin Lang’s first Inner Sight to last only a few seconds, but it had nearly reached ten minutes.

“Ahaha…” Qin Lang gave an awkward laugh. “First time Inner Sight, I was just curious, so I stayed a bit longer.”

Chen Yu: “…”

Is it really that easy to just stay longer?

Inner Sight requires a state of clear, undistracted mind. Upon first entering, one quickly becomes distracted by thoughts when seeing inside the Star Meridian.

Qin Lang’s case could only be described as a rare talent.

“By the way, Brother Chen,” Qin Lang casually said, “It seems the Star Meridian is a rather large spherical space?”

“Yes.” Chen Yu nodded. “Once the Food Spirit is born, this Star Meridian space becomes its place to recover and rest.”

“Then… can this space be used to store items?” Qin Lang’s eyes flickered slightly as he asked.

“Store items?” Chen Yu gave him a strange look. “No way!”

“Alright then.” Qin Lang shrugged. “Just my wild imagination.”

So…

That Traveler’s Book definitely has something unusual about it!