The light flashed and then was gone.
The instant Adventurers stepped into Gourmet Town, they were enveloped by a warm, pleasant, futuristic yet incredibly comfortable electronic soundscape that gently embraced all the Adventurers who came to this place.
This music had no clear beginning or end; it flowed like a neon sky curtain in the air, an integral part of the environment.
The music style was Chillhop.
That is, Chillhop music, a genre of electronic music.
It permeated the entire main thoroughfare and most areas of Gourmet Town, serving as the rhythmic foundation for the entire Gourmet Town.
This type of music leans towards positive, warm, pleasant, and urban emotions.
It also wasn't noisy, filling the environment with relaxed and pleasant urban energy while not interfering with conversation or enjoying food.
Enveloped by this gentle electronic soundscape, the Adventurers' emotions calmed down, and the original thought of quickly spending their happy coins and leaving here vanished without a trace.
Their state of mind gradually became peaceful.
Immediately after.
The recently calmed state of mind became restless again as their sense of smell perceived something new.
An Adventurer took a deep breath.
His pupils involuntarily constricted.
"What is this... fragrance? How can it smell so good?"
A faint smoky scent from charcoal or fruitwood burning, mixed with a rich aroma of meat fat, complemented by the enhancement of various compound seasonings.
This was the smell the Adventurer perceived at that moment.
However, with his limited knowledge, he couldn't distinguish between charcoal and fruitwood, nor could he identify seasonings like cumin, chili powder, salt and pepper, or garlic.
He only knew...
"It smells too good, and it's too fragrant, isn't it?"
The Adventurer followed the scent with his gaze.
What appeared before his eyes was an entire row of barbecue and grilled meat restaurants.
The barbecue robots inside the shops were already busy; some were skewering meat, others were grilling freshly skewered meat, and the barbecue grills emitted waves of heat.
This caused the temperature of the street to rise by several degrees.
Enticed by the aroma, the Adventurer couldn't help but swallow, unconsciously taking a few steps forward, feeling as if his soul was drawn by the scent to a barbecue stall.
"Welcome!"
The grilling robot gave a standard polite response.
The Adventurer had never seen a robot before, and a brief moment of confusion flickered in his mind, but this hint of doubt was completely fleeting.
His mind was entirely focused on the skewers flipping up and down before him.
Under the searing heat of the flames, the fatty meat on the skewers sizzled, the sound of burning fat, which in the Adventurer's ears, was like the most beautiful music in the world.
Then he saw three iron cans appear on the barbecue robot's steel arm, uniformly spraying tiny, unknown particles onto the skewers, which, as they were seared by the flames, emitted an extremely strong aroma.
"Holy moly!"
The Adventurer greedily inhaled, his eyes wide with shock.
"...What in the world is this?"
"I want to eat it so badly..."
The Adventurer swallowed again, then fixed his gaze on the barbecue robot in front of him, his eyes revealing an incredibly strong desire.
"Hello, esteemed guest, these are xinjiang lamb skewers. How many would you like?"
"How many..."
The Adventurer couldn't help but widen his eyes, "You mean, I can have several skewers?"
"Of course you can."
A smiling expression appeared on the barbecue robot's LED screen.
"As long as you have happy coins."
"happy coins?"
Only then did the Adventurer remember that the system had given him 100 happy coins before he entered Gourmet Town.
So he hastily asked.
"I have happy coins... How many do you want?"
"One lamb skewer is 20 happy coins."
"Only 20 coins?"
The Adventurer was stunned. Is it that cheap? "Give me 5 skewers, oh no... 2 skewers."
After a moment of hesitation.
He still suppressed the restlessness in his heart and only asked for 2 skewers.
Because he saw many more similar stalls and numerous shops ahead, stretching as far as the eye could see.
He only had 100 happy coins...
If he used them all here, what would he use later?
"Alright, please wait a moment."
After the barbecue robot finished speaking, the Adventurer saw that his account showed an expenditure of -40 happy coins.
His balance also changed to: 60.
He didn't know why, but at that moment, he felt a tiny pang of heartache.
But this tiny bit of heartache vanished into thin air as the two xinjiang lamb skewers were handed to him.
What remained in his eyes.
Only the longing for the two lamb skewers in front of him.
So big.
So long.
So tender.
The Adventurer found his vocabulary suddenly a bit lacking at that moment.
Especially when faced with that incredibly wonderful aroma, he didn't know how to describe the taste, as if such a taste had never existed in this world before.
He couldn't resist and took a bite.
In an instant.
The tender and juicy lamb exploded in his mouth, the juices locked deep within the meat, squeezed by his teeth, became like a high-pressure water gun spraying onto his tongue.
The umami and gamey flavors of the lamb enveloped his entire palate from top to bottom in that instant.
The most incredible part was.
Several unknown spices, mixed with the meat juices, surged forth at that moment; these never-before-tasted spices were filled with an incredibly rich culinary essence, making the Adventurer in this Gourmet Town feel as if his entire head was about to explode.
Such deliciousness.
Such tenderness.
It made the Adventurer's pleasure threshold climb wildly, as if there were no end to it.
This one bite of lamb skewer.
He chewed it in his mouth for a long time, unwilling to swallow, until the very last bit of flavor was extracted.
Only then did he reluctantly swallow.
Following that.
When he looked at the remaining lamb skewers in his hand, his eyes were filled only with longing for the food before him.
The Adventurer from Gourmet Town could no longer suppress his craving to eat, swallowing large mouthfuls, and in a few quick motions, he stuffed both skewers of lamb into his mouth.
"...An-another skewer..."
"Please wait, guest."
"Another..."
"Please wait, guest."
"I want more, please give me two more!"
"I'm sorry..."
The barbecue robot said with a smile: "Dear Adventurer, your balance is insufficient."
"What?"
At that moment, the Adventurer suddenly realized, seeing that his balance was only 20 happy coins.
For some reason, he felt a little panicked.
When he first stepped into Gourmet Town, his original intention was to quickly spend all 100 happy coins.
But...
When it actually came time to spend them all, he was a little scared.
If they were all spent...
Did that mean he had to leave?
【Insufficient balance, please recharge!】
【Dear Adventurer, would you like to use one attempt to exchange for 500 happy coins?】
【Yes / No】
"One attempt, can actually be exchanged for 500 happy coins?"
"That's so cheap!"