Dragon's Origin

To put it immodestly, Wang Sheng could distinguish the different tastes of what's commonly known as colorless and odorless water. Due to varying natural conditions in different regions, the mineral content in the water differs, and Wang Sheng could clearly taste these differences.

It's not that Wang Sheng knows the taste of poison because he's ingested it before. Rather, Wang Sheng's taste buds are so sensitive that the slightest contact with poisonous substances results in an incredibly clear sensation of numbness. This isn't the kind of stimulation from normal food or chili peppers. With Wang Sheng's meticulously trained alertness, his first judgment is that it's poison.

The amount isn't large, likely for fear of Wang Sheng's detection, so the poisoning is slight. But this toxicity can accumulate. If Wang Sheng didn't notice, consuming it over the years would likely lead to poisoning.

Moreover, Wang Sheng discovered that this poison accumulates to a certain point, causing immense suffering. To alleviate the pain, one would have to beg for an antidote, though it wouldn't be immediately fatal. In other words, the person poisoning him doesn't want to kill him but wants to control him through the poison.

As for the current dosage, it's not enough to affect Wang Sheng significantly. Besides, Wang Sheng only ate a mouthful of the fish, not even enough for a full dose of poison.

But this has already raised his警惕. Who wants to deal with him?

If it's about directly poisoning him, Wang Sheng would definitely suspect the chef at Yu Bao Hall. The second most suspected would be the two serving girls at Baoqing Surplus Hall.

However, both the owners of Yu Bao Hall and Baoqing Surplus Hall are sharper than devils, the shrewdest of merchants. With their intelligence, they wouldn't do something so thankless. If they want something, they can discuss it openly with Wang Sheng. He believes the ideas he's given them have already earned them tenfold or a hundredfold returns.

With this foundation of cooperation, thinking of foolishly controlling Wang Sheng would be truly idiotic. If the female owner and Lu Wenhou were only at this level, they could just hang themselves. It would be a huge joke if Baoqing Surplus Hall and Yu Bao Hall could achieve their current scale.

But if it's not them, then who could it be? Wang Sheng didn't hesitate and immediately thought of the City Lord of Worry-Free City.

To Wang Sheng, Worry-Free City used to be a safe haven where he didn't have to worry about being hunted or his head being worth a certain amount of gold. But now that various families have abandoned their pursuit of Wang Sheng and even collectively declared that past events would be forgiven, Worry-Free City is no longer essential to Wang Sheng.

To keep Wang Sheng on the City Lord of Worry-Free City's side for the long term, some necessary measures are needed. For someone who's long been in a high position, nothing is more reassuring than being able to control Wang Sheng's life and death. Wasn't that the case before? Wang Sheng stood on their side because Worry-Free City could decide his fate, right?

Only the City Lord of Worry-Free City could subtly poison the ingredients bought by Wang Sheng's chef and know what Wang Sheng likes to eat, specifically choosing to poison the dishes with the least detectable flavors.

It's not that other families couldn't do it, but within Worry-Free City, the most convenient and likely person is the City Lord of Worry-Free City.

These big figures like to use such methods, which, frankly, are no different from the heads of various families. When the families knew that Wang Sheng's mediocre Yuan Soul could be upgraded, wasn't their first reaction to send people to control him? If they couldn't control him, they'd hunt him down! They're all birds of a feather!

That's the guess, but Wang Sheng isn't certain it's the City Lord of Worry-Free City. As Wang Sheng said, being able to do this subtly at this time is impossible for small families or forces. All the major families are suspects. Wang Sheng isn't worried and will wait for them to reveal themselves.

What kind of person is Wang Sheng? A veteran sniper who doesn't flinch even when Mount Tai collapses before him, who can stay on a snowy mountain for three days and three nights just waiting for a chance to shoot, and who can also hide in a latrine for a day and a night just to get a shot. Even if he discovers poison, he won't show any clues.

"Today's fish, the preparation and taste don't quite match," Wang Sheng said with a smile to the little serving girl who was puzzled by Wang Sheng spitting out the fish. He then ordered, "Call Lao Liu over."

Lao Liu is the chef. After Wang Sheng called him over, he casually asked where he bought today's fish and then began to point out his shortcomings in technique.

The method for making chopped pepper fish head was learned from Wang Sheng, and the same goes for various stir-fry methods. In terms of culinary skills, Wang Sheng can be called Lao Liu's master. Does a master need a reason to guide his disciple?

Wang Sheng pointed out more than a dozen small oversights in Lao Liu's technique and seasoning, and even had Lao Liu personally taste a few bites to confirm them himself.

Lao Liu didn't hesitate at all and went up to eat a few bites. His comprehension is extremely high, and he immediately understood the problems Wang Sheng pointed out. Not only was he not discouraged by being reprimanded by Wang Sheng, but he was also overjoyed.

If other chefs who came from Wang Sheng knew about this, they would only be envious and have no other emotions. How many opportunities are there to be personally guided by Wang Sheng? Lao Liu caught up with one, serving for several months.

Clearly feeling Lao Liu's initial apprehension turning into joy at being guided, with not a trace of guilt, Wang Sheng nodded and then pointed to the fish head: "Make another one, the taste is actually not bad."

No matter how good the taste is, Lao Liu has already tasted it, so without saying a word, Lao Liu took the half-plate of fish head and left to redo it.

"Soldier! Person!" With no one serving behind him, Wang Sheng muttered two of the nine-character mantras to himself.

In the nine-character mantra, 'soldier' represents energy, longevity, and rejuvenating life force. 'Person' represents restoration, the power to freely control one's own body and the bodies of others.

The resonance of these two mantras may have special effects for healing and dispelling poison. Wang Sheng had been feeling his body getting stronger, but he hadn't had the opportunity to get injured or dispel poison. Now, he only tasted a bit of poison, which happened to be a good opportunity to test it out.

As soon as the two words were spoken, a surge went through Wang Sheng's body. An energy more advanced than spiritual energy surged wildly, already taking away the almost imperceptible numbness on Wang Sheng's tongue. In Wang Sheng's perception, it went to the liver and kidneys and circled around, and Wang Sheng could no longer feel anything unusual.

Sure enough, it successfully dispelled the poison. In the end, all that's left is the simple matter of going to the bathroom.