When Barov started the game, the first thing that caught his eye was the fresh and beautifully crafted art style of the holographic world.
As a descendant of the elf race, appreciation for beauty was practically in their nature. Even as a middle-aged elf and a father, Barov was no exception.
“Did this kid go into painting or filmmaking?”
Barov admired the natural countryside before him with curiosity and felt that it was comparable to the scenery of the Elven Forest.
Indeed, as an elf himself, Derqin had drawn inspiration from his homeland’s natural landscapes when creating the game, providing immense artistic guidance to the development team.
As a result, Taoyuan Tavern’s visuals held universal appeal across all demographics. If it had been released as an artbook alone, plenty of people would have gladly paid for it.
But combined with the charm of both a novel and a game, its allure became even more irresistible.
Barov clicked the glowing “Start Game” button and followed the guided plot like watching a movie. To his surprise, he found himself inheriting a run-down restaurant and becoming the rightful owner of the land.
In the character creation screen, players could either use the default Q-version avatar named “Lu Zhen” or customize their own name and appearance, or even directly project their real-life image into a Q-version character via holographic scan.
Barov, however, had no interest in fancy customizations and directly projected his own appearance into the game, keeping his name as Barov.
As an elf, even in middle age, he could still be called a handsome uncle.
“This place is an absolute mess! It definitely needs cleaning up!”
With a natural love for cleanliness, Barov took one look at the land and buildings, both of which had solid foundations, and felt his elven instincts kick in. The almost obsessive compulsion for order in his elven blood activated immediately.
A frenzy of weeding, tidying, moving objects, and sorting followed. His stamina bar drained rapidly, but his experience points soared.
When the surroundings were finally spotless, Barov let out a long breath, a deep sense of accomplishment washing over him.
He had completely lost track of time, and was unaware that he had already been playing for nearly an hour.
After all, each weed he removed triggered a crisp “ding”, [EXP +1]. Pulling out a whole patch resulted in a rapid “ding ding ding”, signaling his experience points skyrocketing, while his collected resources, such as stones and dry grass, also steadily increased.
It was addictive…it was too addictive.
[Ding! Congratulations! You have completed the novice mission. The main storyline is now officially unlocked!]
[There is someone knocking at the door. It seems to be the land developers…]
[Open the door]/ [Pretend not to hear]
Just as Barov was preparing to follow the interface’s guide and start planting vegetables, the game’s novel-based main plot unfolded.
“The land developers?”
After progressing through the plot, Barov found himself staring at a contract that was clearly a trap designed to steal his property. He was just about to wonder if this game was out to scam him.
After finally cleaning everything up, he was now supposed to sell the land and the house, and even let them cut down this beautiful mountain full of peach blossoms to build a shopping mall?
Barov suddenly wondered if his son had lost his mind. As a descendant of the elf race, how could he create such an outrageous plot?
But in the next second, the key plot where the system appeared was triggered.
[Ding… Perfect host detected. “God of Cooking” system successfully bound!]
[First mission: Overcome the crisis.
Initial mission props: One random seed packet and a seven-day usage permit for the basic spiritual spring.]
Only then did he realize that this game came with a mysterious system. Not only did it provide seeds and rewards, but it also helped renovate the yard and upgrade various props, allowing players to progress through the game’s built-in plot step by step.
At present, only four small plots in the backyard of Taoyuan Restaurant were available for farming.
Barov carefully planted the novice seeds, then activated the spiritual spring, watching in fascination as the seeds sprouted at a speed visible to the naked eye.
From fresh green shoots to budding branches and leaves, then to full bloom and fruit-bearing…until finally, the system prompted: [Crop matured. Quality: B-grade. Ready for harvest.]
Watching this vibrant and dynamic process of growth unfold made the elf Barov completely entranced.
Why was this kind of farming so addictive? He could directly see the entire growth cycle of the crops.
With a single tap, he could harvest everything at once, instantly filling his inventory with lovely produce.
But why was it only B-grade? What, as a noble elf, was he not even capable of growing an S-grade crop!?
Barov looked at his achievement panel, which displayed a grayed-out collection of crops before. Now, he had just unlocked his first crop entry, “Chili Pepper”.
In the upper left corner, a bold letter “B” indicated that the highest quality of this crop harvested so far was B-grade.
Rubbing his chin, Barov subconsciously started planning: at this rate, if he planted one plot a day and harvested one batch, how long would it take to collect them all?
More importantly, why were there only four plots of land?
How could he unlock more farmland to achieve the vast fields shown in the game’s promotional images?
Before Barov could figure out a strategy for farming, the next tutorial on cooking dragged him on the path of grinding step by step.
Although the biggest culprit behind all this was obviously the insidious system that constantly provided instant feedback.
Each successful dish of “Spicy Chicken” grants +10 proficiency points, followed by a cheerful golden star and celebratory chimes.
Even failures awarded +2 or +4 proficiency points, depending on the severity of the mistake.
Barov stared at the proficiency bar for “Spicy Chicken”, wielded his spatula so vigorously that it was practically smoking.
Not enough…this was far from enough!
He needed to buy better cookware!
He needed to upgrade to a bigger kitchen!
Of course, Barov wasn’t the only one having this kind of gaming experience.
All the other elf descendants who had received the game package from Derqin were all drawn in by the stunningly exquisite visuals. Before they knew it, they too were grinding at full speed, completely hooked on the game’s highly immersive and addictive mechanics.
More importantly, whether it was”Taoyuan Restaurant” or its original novel “God of Cooking”, both promoted a deep appreciation for nature, making the game particularly enjoyable for these elf descendants.
So the Federation Star actually valued lush green mountains and clear waters?
Such places were truly rare in the universe.
But it wasn’t just the elves, after countless residents on the Federation Star downloaded this small game adapted from “God of Cooking”, they didn’t expect it to be this addictive.
Some players become addicted to the process of gathering building materials as they cleaned up their starting areas.
After all, while clearing grass, there was always a chance of finding bonus gold coins or strange little props!
[Guys, I just found an S-grade rare seed: Durian! Oh my god, am I about to surpass everyone? This seed hasn’t even appeared in the novel yet!]
[Fuck, you can actually get S-grade rare seeds as drops?]
[Damn it, let me see! I want to plant rare seeds too! Will Lu Zhen also get durian seeds soon?]
The first player to show off his luck posted a screenshot of the durian seed, which immediately caused an uproar on the forums.
Everyone practically started digging up their land three feet deep, who would’ve thought that the novel and the game could complement each other with hidden story elements?
Some players became completely obsessed with farming.
[Why are there only four plots of land? And why does planting consume stamina? I swear, I just want to max out my experience and stockpile 100 chili peppers at once!]
[Me too! Also, why can’t we buy more spiritual spring water with real money? This is the first game I’ve ever seen with no in-game purchases. Teacher Fish Soup Noodles, does your development team even know how to make money?]
[Hurry up! I want to buy stamina points! I want unlimited spiritual spring access! I want to be the wealthiest farmer in Taoyuan Mountain!]
Many players searched everywhere for a recharge page, only to realize that “Taoyuan Restaurant” had no in-game purchases whatsoever.
Did the developers even understand business? [Heartbroken.jpg]
Derqin was the first to respond, confirming that “Taoyuan Tavern” had no plans to introduce a recharge channel to obtain props for the time being.
After all, while such monetization could generate quick revenue, it would ultimately shorten the game’s lifespan.
Player progression needed some level of differentiation, but not to an extreme degree, this balance was crucial for ensuring sustainable game updates with each new version.
[Also, has anyone noticed how incredibly realistic the in-game holographic sensory data is? It’s even more real than what we experience in the live broadcast room. Did Teacher Fish Soup Noodles personally recreate and record everything one by one?]
At the same time, cooking enthusiasts discovered another delightful surprise in the full holographic version of “Taoyuan Tavern”: every dish they cooked tasted exactly like it would in the real world.
