Chapter 86 Making Tofu

Gu Ye's lips curled up slightly, his eyes looking at him playfully: "Fine, then I'll wait and see. Don't go crying about being tired or having weak legs later."

"Start grinding the slurry!" Gu Ye stopped teasing, his tone turning serious as he announced.

Yan Dinghan walked quickly to the stone mill, gripped the mill handle tightly with both hands, his expression solemn, ready to exert force.

Gu Ye picked up the soaked soybeans and dropped them into the mill's opening bit by bit, while slowly adding clean water, his movements skillful and composed.

"Go!" At Gu Ye's command, Yan Dinghan immediately gritted his teeth and exerted force. His muscles tensed, his face turned bright red, and he used every ounce of his strength just to barely budge the stone mill.

The stone mill slowly began to turn. Gu Ye was very satisfied with the speed. The secret to grinding raw soy milk is: add few beans, add water frequently, push the mill slowly, and the slurry will be fine.

Yan Dinghan's speed was just right; the raw soy milk ground this way was white and thick.

Luo Yuerou walked up curiously, looking at the slowly turning stone mill, and asked Gu Ye in confusion: "Why is he pushing so slowly? Given his strength, it shouldn't be this strenuous for him."

Gu Ye, while leisurely putting soybeans into the mill opening and adding water, patiently explained: "This stone mill is no ordinary tool; it counts as a treasure of heaven and earth. When grinding soy milk, the Card Master pushing the mill will have their spirit energy temporarily sealed, forcing them to rely solely on their own physical strength to push it. In return, the stone mill nourishes and tempers the Card Master's body, improving their physical fitness."

No wonder Gu Ye said everyone would have a turn; it turned out this stone mill was a treasure capable of tempering the body! For a Battle Card Master, physical strength is crucial, and this stone mill was more practical than any cultivation resource.

Compared to the elusive and ethereal [spirit sealing cauldron], the stone mill before them, which could tangibly improve their strength, was clearly more attractive.

The look in Luo Yuerou and the others' eyes as they watched the stone mill was full of curiosity, but they harbored no greed.

The reason Gu Ye explained it to them was that he wasn't afraid of them becoming greedy; his strength was right there, and he had the confidence.

Half an hour later, Yan Dinghan could no longer hold on. His legs were weak, he was drenched in sweat, and he was gasping for air. Only after his desperate pleading did Gu Ye let him down and have Chang Qi take over.

Over the next two hours, the group took turns.

Yan Dinghan, Chang Qi, Chang Guan, and in the end, even Luo Yuerou couldn't help but step up to try. Everyone gave it their all, exhausted to the point of collapse, yet they could all clearly feel their physical strength improving bit by bit.

It wasn't until sunset that the group finally finished grinding all the soybeans into thick soy milk.

When they stopped to rest, they were pleasantly surprised to find that their physical fitness had improved by at least a quarter.

One can imagine that this was only the effect of the stone mill in its basic state; if it were restored to its prime, its power would certainly be even more astonishing.

Afterwards, Gu Ye led the group through a series of steps one by one: stirring the slurry, boiling the slurry, curdling the tofu, and pressing the tofu, with every step carried out methodically.

After four full hours, from grinding the slurry to shaping, blocks of white, tender, and fragrant tofu were finally freshly made.

Gu Ye packed up all the finished tofu and put it into his storage card.

He led the group toward the vegetable market.

Arriving at the vegetable market, it was still bustling with noise, with shouts of vendors rising one after another. Luo Yuerou walked in front, familiar with the route, leading the way: "I know where Grandma's stall is; it's at the very back of the vegetable market."

But as they approached the stall, a fierce shout reached their ears: "You old hag, hurry up and hand over the money from selling tofu! Otherwise, I'll beat you to death today!"

The expressions of Gu Ye and the others darkened. They walked up quickly to see that in front of Grandma's tofu stall, a Guai Monster covered in pustules and emitting a foul stench was kicking and punching Grandma.

Grandma was advanced in age and unable to resist at all. She could only curl up on the ground, holding her head with both hands, letting out painful groans. Her clothes were torn to shreds, and there were clear bruises on her face.

The surrounding Guai villagers and Card Masters all watched coldly, none daring to step forward to intervene, but their eyes held a clear trace of surprise.

The village had clear village rules prohibiting random fighting, yet this Guai Monster not only attacked someone in public but also received no punishment; this was truly too abnormal.

"Stop!"

Seeing this, Luo Yuerou trembled with anger. She rushed forward, used all her strength to push the Guai Monster away, and quickly knelt down to carefully help Grandma up, gently brushing the dust off her, her tone full of heartache and rage.

She looked at the Guai Monster angrily and demanded: "Who are you, and what right do you have to hit Grandma?"

The Guai Monster stumbled from Luo Yuerou's push. After steadying itself, it revealed a hideous grin, the pustules on its body wriggling slightly with anger and emitting an even stronger stench.

It stared fixedly at Luo Yuerou, its tone sinister: "Where did this little girl come from, daring to meddle in my business? If this old hag doesn't hand over all the money today, you're all going to die."

Before the words had even faded, the Guai Monster suddenly swung a punch. Its fist was wrapped in pitch-black Guai energy, carrying a bone-chilling cold, and it smashed straight toward Luo Yuerou's chest.

It didn't put this seemingly weak young girl in its eyes at all, intending to finish her off with one punch.

Luo Yuerou's expression turned sharp. Without time to think, she immediately dodged to the side while raising her hand to condense spirit energy. A long whip appeared and collided with the Guai Monster's fist.

With a muffled "bang," the spirit energy and Guai energy violently collided. Luo Yuerou was shaken back three steps, her arm numb, while the Guai Monster was also forced back one step. A flash of surprise crossed its eyes; it clearly hadn't expected Luo Yuerou's strength to be quite so formidable.

"You've got some skill, but it's not enough!"

The Guai Monster sneered, flashed forward, and lunged at Luo Yuerou again. Its hands elongated by three inches, and its nails gleamed with a pitch-black, chilly light, aiming directly for Luo Yuerou's throat with every move meant to kill.

Gu Ye's eyes turned cold. Just as he was about to step in to help, Yan Dinghan rushed out first, shouting: "Dare to bully my Sister Luo? You're looking for death!"

He circulated his spirit energy, clenched his fist, and smashed it fiercely toward the Guai Monster's back with full force.

The Guai Monster sensed the attack from behind, turned abruptly, and swung a palm to block. With a "crack," Yan Dinghan's fist collided with the Guai Monster's palm.

He felt a sharp pain in his arm and couldn't help but groan, yet he still didn't retreat, gritting his teeth and exerting force again.

Chang Qi and Chang Guan also immediately stepped up, drawing their weapons. The two coordinated tacitly, attacking the Guai Monster from the left and right. Although their strength wasn't high, they could barely manage to restrain the Guai Monster's movements.

For a moment, beside the vegetable market stalls, spirit energy and Guai energy intertwined and collided. The sounds of fighting, shouting, and breaking objects were all mixed together.

"What is going on? Why can they all fight, and yet not be punished by the village rules?"

The villagers looked puzzled, but no one dared to test why, just watching as the group fought.