Chapter 5 The Golden Knife and Silver Fork, Food God Altar

　　"Sixteen years old and I've never heard of anyone possessing such an extraordinary ability, even more powerful than the legendary Great Appraisal Technique..."

　　Before entering the cave, John Smith calmly experimented several times.

　　Whenever he locked his gaze onto a zombie within ten meters, a detailed attribute panel would reflect in his pupils.

　　What was even more bizarre was a mysterious golden knife and silver fork pattern that appeared out of nowhere on the back of his right hand.

　　John Smith tested Emily Jones and found out that she couldn't see the pattern at all.

　　It seemed that only he could see it.

　　"What is this?" John Smith gazed at the golden knife and silver fork pattern, lost in thought.

　　Suddenly, a faint voice echoed in his ears, "Do you want to activate the Food God Altar?"

　　John Smith jumped in surprise and looked around.

　　 Everything seemed normal and there was nothing out of the ordinary.

　　"Do you want to activate the Food God Altar?"

　　The voice sounded again, and John Smith carefully identified the source.

　　 It seemed to be coming from the golden knife and silver fork pattern on his hand.

　　"Food God Altar... Food God..."

　　John Smith muttered the unfamiliar words a few times before suddenly realizing, "Before Jack Davis died, he was fixing a game glitch called 'Food God'..."

　　"No way... Could it be that, just like in Jack Davis's memory, every Earth-crosser has a cheat program, and it originally belonged to Jack Davis but now I've intercepted it?"

　　John Smith's heart was pounding with excitement and shock.

　　He took a deep breath and reminded himself to stay calm and not act impulsively.

　　 He looked up and saw that Emily Jones was fast asleep and wouldn't wake up for a while.

　　John Smith then tiptoed to the cave entrance and surveyed the area.

　　Occasionally, a few hungry zombies passed by, but they didn't notice the concealed cave.

　　Once he confirmed that it was safe, John Smith's gaze returned to the golden knife and silver fork pattern.

　　"Do you want to activate the Food God Altar?"

　　"Yes..." John Smith silently replied in his mind.

　　Endless darkness enveloped him like a tide, and suddenly he couldn't see anything.

　　The next second, his vision cleared and John Smith found himself in an abandoned palace.

　　The ground was littered with debris and broken pillars, and the walls were cracked with a mysterious ancient past.

　　This abandoned palace covers an area of more than 300 square meters and presents a neat circle.

　　Thirteen pure black statues surround the outermost layer, some humanoid, some with insect-like appendages, and even some resembling dragons.

　　 In short, they all have bizarre shapes.

　　After scanning around, John Smith's gaze turned to the center of the palace.

　　 There stood a huge bronze square tripod, covered in rust and filled with the patina of time.

　　Just as John Smith was about to approach the bronze tripod for a closer look, he suddenly realized that something was off about himself.

　　 "Why do I feel so light..."

　　Looking down, he realized that his body was semi-transparent.

　　 He squeezed his arms and thighs, still possessing physical touch but lacking sensation.

　　"This is probably not my physical body, but rather my consciousness or some sort of spiritual entity entering this space. How do I get out?"

　　Just as this thought emerged in his mind, John Smith's vision went dark and bright again, and he opened his eyes in the real world.

　　 Looking left and right, there were almost no changes in his surroundings, indicating that time flowed at a similar pace to the outside world.

　　After confirming this, he entered the altar of the Food God again and came to the center of the abandoned palace.

　　Upon closer inspection of the bronze tripod, John Smith discovered that the height of the tripod was equal to his own height.

　　It had two ears and four feet, with a simple and dignified form.

　　On the outside of the gray-green body of the tripod were engraved countless miniature carvings, including the legendary three-legged golden crow that blotted out the sun, the worldly python that dominated an entire mountain, and the ancient giant with fifty heads and one hundred arms...

　　 There were thousands of them, all creatures from myths and legends.

　　"What kind of tripod is this? It looks so ancient and mysterious..."

　　John Smith circled around it but found no more discoveries, so he tried to stand on his tiptoes and peek into the tripod.

　　It was pitch black inside, distorting all light, and no matter how he looked, he couldn't see anything.

　　Staring for too long, he even began to feel palpitations, as if the dark and deep interior of the tripod was an abyss without a bottom, and the next second, a gaping mouth would appear to swallow him whole.

　　 Frightened, John Smith quickly averted his gaze.

　　"It's clear that this bronze tripod is placed in the center of the altar of the Food God and must be the most important item.

　　 What is its purpose? How do I activate it, or rather, how do I use it?"

　　After hesitating for a while and finding no solution, John Smith tentatively touched the body of the tripod with his finger.

　　The texture of the bronze tripod was completely different from what John Smith had imagined - it was scorching hot to the touch, as if it had just been burned by flames.

　　Suddenly, something seemed to trigger a change, and the bronze tripod began to rumble and shake, getting louder and louder until the entire palace began to quake.

　　Startled, John Smith instinctively tried to let go of the tripod.

　　To his surprise, however, a powerful force pulled his entire right hand, as well as the tripod, together.

　　No matter how hard he struggled, he could not break free.

　　[Diagnostic malfunction... Previous owner Jack Davis deceased... Triggering re-binding...]

　　[Target authentication... John Smith... Judgment result... Sole host of this altar...]

　　[The God of Food Altar is activating... 30%... 60%... 100%... Activation complete!]

　　Rows and rows of small characters floated across John Smith's eyes, leaving his mind reeling.

　　"Is this... a system? Or something else?"

　　Drawing from his experience with Jack Davis, John Smith quickly regained his composure.

　　The suction between his palm and the tripod had disappeared, and John Smith withdrew his right hand, only to see a burst of colorful flames pouring out from the depths of the dark bronze tripod.

　　 The radiant lights reflected off the abandoned palace, creating a dream-like, dazzling scene.

　　[Judging the current host as the first person to activate the altar. Additional rewards triggered - "The Food God's Gift." Receive a level one God of Food treasure chest.]

　　A white porcelain-like treasure chest, about the size of a backpack, materialized out of thin air from the colorful flames and floated in mid-air.

　　"A God of Food treasure chest? Does that mean I get to draw a prize?"

　　Just as he was wondering, the small characters in John Smith's eyes began to move again.

　　[Note: The God of Food treasure chest contains special God of Food items that can assist the host in their growth.]

　　[The God of Food treasure chest is divided into ten levels, with level one being the lowest and level ten being the highest. The higher the level, the rarer the items obtained.]

　　[The chance of obtaining level one God of Food treasure chest items - 98.9% for extraordinary recipes, 1% for God of Food tools, and 0.1% for God of Food secrets.]

　　"This is amazing! It seems like this thing can read my thoughts and answer my questions directly..."

　　With that in mind, John Smith tried to shout in his mind:

　　"Hello, how should I address you? System? God of Food? Or something else?"