Seeing this scene, Zhou Tai couldn't help but sigh, putting down his soup ladle and directly admitting defeat.
The dish Zhou Quan chose was standard and orderly, with no particular merits or obvious flaws; it was a rather Such a soup, even when perfected, was inherently inferior to those truly remarkable dishes, because the flavor was insufficient.
If his dish scored eighty out of a maximum of eighty, then Dylan's dish was ninety-nine out of a hundred. Although the latter didn't have a higher scoring rate than the former, in terms of absolute score, it had already surpassed it, and was also much more difficult to create.
"Food Souls manifesting, battling against the heavens... Your strength should have been enough to break through to Special Grade Chef long ago, why haven't you applied for it yet?"
Looking at Dylan's relaxed expression, Zhou Tai's voice carried a hint of confusion.
Only when the dishes of both contestants reach a certain level will the Food Souls dwelling within the cuisine be drawn out, appearing to battle each other in the sky. The last time such a sight appeared was over a decade ago when he competed with his master, but alas, his master has already passed away.
"They don't want me to advance too quickly, thinking it would attract too much attention, so they told me to wait a couple more years before taking the assessment. There's a buffer. Perhaps I've reached Special Grade Chef now, perhaps not."
Dylan spoke as he scooped the soup from the pot into a large bowl he held, then picked up the small ingredients from the pot with his chopsticks.
This bowl contained lotus seeds, red dates, longan, pigeon egg, and bamboo shoots, paired with two pieces of soft-shelled turtle meat—it was utterly delicious whether you ate the meat or drank the soup!
After ladling the soup, Dylan immediately handed it to Zhou Tai. The opponent's soup still needed forty more minutes to be ready, while his only needed ten minutes of steeping after covering, which was why it could be served so quickly.
Zhou Tai nodded, taking the soup offered by Dylan without hesitation, then opened his mouth to savor its deliciousness. After two sips, he picked up his chopsticks and began to eat the meat, a look of pure enjoyment on his face.
"The soft-shelled turtle meat is delicate; after being stir-fried to remove its gaminess and enhance its aroma, it's stewed with various medicinal herbs and spices, allowing the meat to absorb the fresh aroma of the herbs and the mellow richness of hua diao wine, resulting in a fresh and delicious, yet not greasy, texture."
"At the same time, the soup carries a faint wine aroma and the unique slight sweetness of medicinal herbs, preserving the original deliciousness of the soft-shelled turtle while adding rich layers of flavor."
As the soft-shelled turtle soup entered his mouth, subtle threads of flavor diffused, swirling within his oral cavity, and Zhou Tai began to explain it at this moment.
This was his professional quality as a chef.
"You all give it a try too. Take as much meat as you want, I put a lot of ingredients in, so don't worry about it running out."
Quickly scooping the soup from the pot, he then placed one or two pieces of soft-shelled turtle meat into everyone's bowls, then had them queue up to receive it.
The girls, who could no longer control themselves, quickly formed a long queue, looking at the soup bowls brought by Dylan without a hint of The golden liquid shimmered as it entered their mouths, as if they were savoring divine nectar. Everyone present showed expressions of pure bliss.
This flavor was not intense; the many medicinal herbs lent it a gentle quality, warming their bodies, their faces not.
"Red dates, longan, lotus seeds, goji berries, and pigeon eggs—the addition of these ingredients infused the soup with incredibly rich sweetness and umami."
Closing her eyes, deeper flavors released in her mouth, Erina Nakiri softly exhaled, then spoke her feelings.
The sweetness of red dates intertwined with the slight tartness of goji berries, longan brought a unique fruity aroma, lotus seeds provided a refreshing texture, and the delicate texture and nutrition of pigeon eggs added significantly to this soup.
The fresh sweetness of these ingredients merged with the deliciousness of the soft-shelled turtle, making the soup richer and mellower, making one unable to help but moan!
Erina Nakiri extended her bowl towards Dylan, who stood before the soup pot, her large eyes sparkling. Seeing this, Dylan smiled helplessly, but still helped her ladle a bowl, turning to hand it to her personally.
As he handed over the soup, his hand unintentionally rested on her body, and he immediately felt a surging, boiling energy.
At this moment, the girl was suppressing and restraining this energy, but she was completely unaware of it, her attention entirely absorbed by the soft-shelled turtle soup.
In such a situation, if this energy were to suddenly erupt, it's estimated no one on site would be spared; an explosion suppressed to the extreme would definitely be incredibly fierce!
Fortunately, Dylan resolved it in time.
"It's so warm and comfortable!"
Hisako Arato's pink tongue gently licked her lips, her voice sounded from the side, stating the medicinal ingredients added to the soup.
Adding medicinal ingredients to the soup provided energy to the body, which was the source of its warmth.
"Clam essence, green bamboo shoots, and dried scallops can be said to be the highlights, elevating the soup's flavor significantly, harmonizing with the soft-shelled turtle's own flavor."
"Not only the soup, the meat tastes wonderful too!"
"The pigeon eggs are thoroughly cooked, soaking up all the flavor of the soft-shelled turtle soup!"
Zhou Yuyu spoke with a face full of happiness, the pigeon eggs even burst with juice when eaten, the flavor was exceptionally rich, feeling even more delicious than the meat!
Zhou Tai spoke, stepping forward to pick up the Shokugeki Roster Dylan had placed on the table, reading through the names recorded on it, then turning to the unsigned page, signing his name with a flourish.
0 for disgrace 1
T have have
Seeing Zhou Tai's actions, Zhou Quan and Zhou Yuyu couldn't help but exclaim. His soup wasn't even out of the pot yet, how could he just pick up the pen and admit defeat?
"No need to say more. Although my soup isn't out of the pot yet, the outcome of this match is already clear. I know the taste of my soup better than anyone."
A dish that has lost its Food Soul is destined to stop at Flowing Light. When facing Five-Circle Soft-Shelled Turtle Soup, which possesses a Food Soul and far surpasses it, there's truly no comparison.
Admitting defeat now is far more dignified than waiting for the vote and everyone choosing Dylan's soup.
Glancing at the soup still simmering over a low flame on the stove, Zhou Quan opened his mouth as if to say something, but the words caught in his throat.
Since Zhou Tai had already voluntarily conceded, anything he said would be useless. Better to stand silently and peacefully be a spectator.
"You are formidable. To be able to create dishes of such caliber at your age, even in ancient times, you would be hailed as an unparalleled genius."
"If I had some doubts when you first spoke of becoming a Dragon Chef, then now, I believe this task is yours alone."
Returning the Shokugeki Roster to Dylan, Zhou Tai looked at his face and spoke these words, his tone revealing immense expectation.
Young, immensely powerful, and proficient in every culinary field.
If such a person cannot become a Dragon Chef, then who can? Who can surpass him?
Zhou Tai couldn't imagine anyone more outstanding than Dylan in the world, reaching Special Grade Chef at the age of twenty, a realm ordinary chefs, even if they spent every day in the kitchen, could never attain.
"You don't need to doubt that I will become the Dragon Chef."
Hearing Zhou Tai's heartfelt praise, Dylan looked at him in return, and as their eyes met, Dylan stated his determination word for word.
"If I'm going to do it, then I'll become the strongest in the world."
"Come with me for a moment. I have something I want to tell you. It should be said that with your current strength, it's time you were privy to these matters."
Seeing Dylan's shining demeanor, Zhou Tai's expression uncharacteristically turned serious, then he said this to him, motioning his head towards the outside of the villa.
"Matters to be privy to at my level of strength..."
These perplexing words left Dylan somewhat bewildered, but Zhou Tai was an Eight-Star Special Grade Chef and a Chief National Chef, so he wouldn't speak idly.
After a moment's thought, Dylan quickly followed. Soon, the two arrived on the lawn outside the villa. The surroundings were empty and quiet, and Zhou Tai stopped and turned around.
"Zhou-senior, what is your guidance?"
Looking at Zhou Tai, who had turned around, Dylan's mind was full of questions at this moment.
Although the opponent lost the match, Zhou Tai was older than him and had studied cooking longer. He completely deserved to be addressed as "senior".
"Before I tell you this, I want to ask you a question. I wonder, have you ever heard of the rumored Fantasy-grade Ingredients?"
"Fantasy-grade Ingredients?"
Looking at Zhou Tai, who was asking him this seriously, a hint of confusion flashed in Dylan's eyes, because it was indeed the first time he had heard of it.
"It's normal that you haven't heard of them, because these ingredients are extremely rare. Even decades ago, they only circulated among chefs who were Special Grade Five-Star and above."
In modern times, because Fantasy-grade Ingredients have become extinct, younger chefs basically haven't heard of them, and older mentors also wouldn't specifically mention them.
Looking at Dylan's talent, Zhou Tai already had the answer in his heart, but he brought this up first to set the stage and plant a seed, so he didn't expect Dylan to actually know.
"Fantasy-grade Ingredients, rare, uncommon, only found among Special Grade Five-Star chefs."
"Not only that, in modern times they've basically become extinct, so very few new chefs know about them."
Taking a bold guess, the so-called Fantasy-grade Ingredients were those that possessed flavors not found in this world, better tasting than ordinary ingredients.
In his previous life, he had read many novels, plus he was particularly sensitive to the three words "Fantasy-grade," so he immediately grasped the core of the matter: what Fantasy-grade Ingredients were.
"You guessed correctly. Fantasy-grade Ingredients possess flavors that ordinary ingredients don't. Used well, they can easily elevate your dish further."
"However, because cooking with them demands very high skill from the chef, even giving them to lower-star chefs for training would just be a waste of ingredients. Therefore, they usually only circulate among Five-Star and above chefs, because only they can truly unleash the deliciousness of Fantasy-grade Ingredients!"
Hearing Dylan's guess, Zhou Tai was somewhat surprised, marveling inwardly at how sharp young minds were. It had taken him several days to fully grasp these concepts.
"So, by suddenly bringing up an ingredient that's already extinct, what do you want to convey?"
Looking at Zhou Tai's face, Dylan voiced his confusion. The other party's sudden mention of this couldn't be a simple casual remark.
For some reason, Dylan felt that the other party was about to say something earth-shattering.
Earth-shattering, Zhou Tai spoke what Dylan had been thinking. But then again, only something of this magnitude would make the other party cautiously call him out.
Otherwise, if it were just common knowledge, he could have just announced it to everyone.
"Can you explain in detail what happened?"
Dylan humbly inquired. He was indeed very curious about this, and also highly anticipated Fantasy-grade Ingredients; cooking with them would surely be very innovative!
"This matter is of great importance. You must promise not to tell anyone else, at least not for now."
Zhou Tai said as he walked out of the courtyard, his face growing more serious.
"Don't worry, I know how to distinguish between what's important and what's not."
Seeing this, Dylan quickly reassured him; he was just too curious.
"This begins with the opening of the Food Realm, which happens once every hundred years..."
A hot spring resort somewhere in Tokyo.
Hot water poured over her head. Liu Yu exhaled, then shook her hair, tying it up before stepping to the edge of the hot spring pool.
"You're so slow, I'm almost dried up from waiting."
The surrounding water rippled lightly, indicating someone had entered the water. Wang Jing opened her eyes, then saw Liu Yu entering the water, and couldn't help but quietly complain.
"Don't you have to properly wash yourself first? I haven't showered in days. By the way, is it a bit bad that just the two of us snuck out?"
She leaned against the rock at an odd angle. Because it was a weekday, the surroundings were extremely quiet, and the entire hot spring only contained the two of them.
Comparing the two, she
"That's true. What about you? How is it going? Your opponent this time isn't the Leader's student, so their strength shouldn't be too strong. Congratulations on making it to the semifinals."
Turning her head to look at Wang Jing, and thinking of her own opponent this time, a rare look of seriousness appeared on Liu Yu's face.
Although Huang Mei was only a Second-Class Chef, she possessed an incredible talent like Super Sense of Touch and was constantly growing stronger, capable of challenging opponents beyond her rank.
In contrast, Wang Jing's opponent was clearly much easier to deal with. Although not weak, they had no special talents, their strength barely reaching First-Class Master Chef.
Against such an opponent, normally, Wang Jing's chances of losing were very, very low.
"Still, we can't underestimate them. After all, they joined at the same time as us, and they're quite close to the Leader. They must have received a lot of guidance from him, so their strength shouldn't be underestimated either."
"You have a point there. That person is the Leader, after all. Even just a casual word of advice from him can make one immensely benefited."
Thinking of Dylan's power, a fervent look simultaneously appeared on Liu Yu's and Wang Jing's faces. He was an existence they were willing to follow for a lifetime.
Attracted by his charisma, attracted by his cooking, they willingly submitted, ready to become his followers.
"I remember the theme for your match was 'rice'. That's a subtle theme, and you're also in the first round."
Thinking of the theme given by the Summer Selection Office, Liu Yu looked up at the sky. Her theme was 'fish', while Wang Jing's theme was 'rice'.
"Simply put, it's a dish primarily based on rice. It's quite easy to make, I just don't know what would be most suitable."
"According to common sense, making fried rice would be the most appropriate solution, but my control over heat isn't strong. To play to my strengths and avoid my weaknesses, I can only choose something else..."
Also looking up at the sky, Wang Jing sighed lightly. Her stir-frying skills were truly not good. She had lost to the outsider precisely because of her stir-frying.
Her fair, slender feet emerged from the hot spring and then re-entered, splashing large amounts of water. Liu Yu's voice was faint, yet she was counting on Wang Jing.
"That's too demanding on technique. I prefer steamed or stewed dishes; you just put the ingredients in the pot, then calculate the time."
"That's true, you're just that kind of person. You only need to focus on what you're good at. If not for that, the two of us wouldn't have gotten along."
Wang Jing shrugged, her words pulling Liu Yu back to reality, then a bitter smile appeared on her face.
The reason their relationship was so good was because they were both quite laid-back. If one of them suddenly became very diligent, one would have to suspect if they had been possessed.
"These next few days, let's train well here. After cooking, we can also relax in the hot spring. As official members of the Dark Cooking Society, we must show some real skill this time and not be looked down upon by outsiders!"
"I know. This is a critical time, we can't let the Leader down!"
Cramming at the last minute, Liu Yu and Wang Jing had done this many times. Because of their high talent, each time they were able to overcome the challenge well.
This time, it probably wouldn't be an exception.
"Okay! We'll taste each other's dishes then!"
"Precisely to 0.01 grams!" If you hadn't seen it with your own eyes, it would be truly hard to imagine this was done by human hands. Super Sense of Touch is indeed a terrifying talent!"
Looking at the gram display on the high-precision electronic scale, only a tiny bit was left to reach the set target, a tiny bit in every sense of the word.
One person Ar
Looking at the gram display on the high-precision electronic scale, only a tiny bit was left to reach the set target, a tiny bit in every sense of the word. Li Wanwan's small mouth was slightly agape, not bothering to hide the shock on her face.
"Still off by 0.01 grams? If it were the Leader, he should be able to get it exactly right, no deviation. It seems I"
Meanwhile, Huang Mei, across from her, sighed. After numerous attempts and refinements, she had inexplicably entered a mysterious state just now. What was originally a difference of 0.03-0.05 grams was now only 0.01 grams.
"If it were the Leader, there would definitely be no problem, but we are just novice birds. Reaching this point is already quite remarkable."
Seeing Huang Mei's expression, Li Wanwan could only sigh inwardly, "Comparing oneself to others is infuriating." The other person had such high talent and still wasn't satisfied, while a mere mortal like her was eliminated in the very first round! !
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