"That's wonderful! Lady Erina, Okabe, congratulations on winning the match!"
Watching Erina Nakiri and Okabe walk toward her after leaving the competition area, Hisako Arato, who had been waiting below, handed them hot towels.
"Hisako, what are you doing here? I thought you were cooking in the North Courtyard area."
Erina Nakiri asked curiously upon seeing Hisako Arato appear.
"Something this big happened here, and word spread all the way over there. Naturally, I wasn't in the mood to continue cooking, so I put my things down and came over to watch."
Hisako Arato answered truthfully in response to Erina Nakiri's question.
"I see. Thank you for your hard work."
Feeling the warmth of the hot towel in her hand, Erina Nakiri thanked her sincerely. Preparing hot towels was a small matter, but it was proof that she was thinking of them.
"It was no trouble at all! Compared to Lady Erina and Okabe fighting for the sake of the Light Cuisine World, what I did was nothing!"
The sudden show of concern made Hisako Arato's face flush. She then waved her hands, averting her gaze, clearly not used to being praised.
"It's because we have support staff behind us that we can fight on the front lines without any worries. It might not be the most fitting analogy here, but I think you understand what I mean."
Watching Hisako Arato, who was as startled as a fawn, Okabe thought to himself how cute she was and reached out to gently rub her head.
The girl's hair was fluffy and felt silky and soft to the touch, carrying a faint warmth and fragrance that stirred a peculiar feeling in him.
And what about Hisako Arato?
Suddenly subjected to such an intimate gesture from Okabe, she clasped her hands in front of her chest, her cheeks redder than before. But she didn't dislike the feeling.
"So you like head pats, Hisako? Then I want in too!"
Seeing Hisako Arato's shy expression, Erina Nakiri's own spirits lifted, and she reached out to gently stroke her head as well.
Being petted on the head by two people at once, and with such gentle movements, Hisako Arato felt it was a bit surreal; happiness was about to overflow. White steam seemed to rise from her head, making her feel dizzy.
"Master, me too."
Looking at Hisako Arato, who seemed on the verge of breaking down, Ikaros, who had been standing beside her waiting for Okabe to finish cooking, spoke up.
She was also holding a towel, but because she hadn't been as proactive as Hisako Arato, she had been forgotten.
"Of course. Thank you, Ikaros."
Okabe had noticed Ikaros long ago. Without needing her to ask, he placed his hand on her head. Seeing her look of enjoyment, his already good mood became even better.
After patting her head, he used the towel she offered to wipe his hands and then looked toward the center of the two cooking stations.
The members of the Dark Cuisine World had gathered there at some point, bowing their heads respectfully to the man in the middle, displaying the utmost humility.
"Master."
Qingfeng bowed respectfully to Zhu Shiyi. Although he had won the match, he had no intention of claiming credit, as his opponent was utterly insignificant.
"You did well, securing a victory. When we get back, I will request a commendation for you. Barring any surprises, you'll be a Qilin Chef by tomorrow."
Looking at Qingfeng standing before him, Zhu Shiyi patted his shoulder encouragingly, then walked over to Li Wuque and said, "Senior Li, I trust you've been well."
"Why are you only showing your face now, kid? I thought you weren't planning on coming."
Looking at the tall man before him, Li Wuque's voice was laced with teasing.
Hearing his words, Zhu Shiyi also laughed. "I thought my appearance wouldn't be necessary, but I didn't expect them to be so useless. In the end, I still have to clean up their mess."
"Their performance was quite good. Don't be so harsh on the young ones."
"I stand corrected."
Despite his words, there was no change in Zhu Shiyi's eyes. It was clearly just a verbal agreement; his true thoughts remained unknown.
Li Wuque looked at him and could more or less guess his thoughts, but he didn't say more, only sighing inwardly.
Although he had been a member for quite some time, he had never liked the Dark Cuisine World's way of doing things.
Members with average skills were discarded after a single failure. The powerful ones, because of their strength, could be forgiven even if they failed.
This Gu-style cultivation method, a brutal culling process, caused powerful chefs in the Dark Cuisine World to spring up like bamboo shoots after a spring rain. After all, no one wanted to be discarded.
"I thought you were too scared to come out. You do have some nerve."
Seeing Zhu Shiyi chatting with Li Wuque, Lan Tianqiu strode to the front of the cooking station.
"Brother Lan jests."
Zhu Shiyi spoke slowly and methodically. "I was merely waiting for the right moment to make my entrance. After all, the main event is always saved for last."
For a moment, many eyes fell upon the two of them.
"Master Lan is on stage! And based on what that mysterious man just said, could he be one of the Dark Cuisine World's Five Tiger Stars?!"
Someone exclaimed, finally putting the pieces together.
Because the previous match between the juniors had been so spectacular, they had almost forgotten that this was a crucial competition for a Legendary Cooking Utensil, and the real star was Lan Tianqiu!
"I wonder which of the Five Tiger Stars has come. I've heard that to inherit the title of a Five Tiger Star, one must not only be a superb chef but also possess a type of extrasensory ability."
Someone voiced their confusion, looking at Zhu Shiyi.
Because the Dark Cuisine World maintained extreme secrecy about its upper echelons, unless they saw them in person, it was impossible to know the age or appearance of the Five Tiger Stars.
If anyone tried to take photos or videos on this occasion, they would be dealt with by lurking members of the Dark Cuisine World. Not only would their camera equipment be smashed, but the person themselves would be seized.
There were no high-tech security measures, just fists and force. A single punch would make a disobedient person's eyes clear up instantly if they tried to argue.
"You possess considerable skill, but it's a pity you've chosen the wrong side. When the Dark Cuisine World reigns over the culinary world in the future, you will all be purged sooner or later."
As he spoke, Zhu Shiyi looked in the direction of Okabe's group, his gaze lingering on him and Erina Nakiri for a long time, his voice tinged with a hint of regret.
"Reign, you say? Aren't you afraid of biting your tongue? I'm telling you, as long as I, Okabe, am here, you will never reign over the culinary world!"
Noticing the clear unease in Erina Nakiri beside him and feeling the gazes from all around focused on him, Okabe met Zhu Shiyi's eyes calmly.
"In a place like yours, filled with exploitation and violence, where a single failure means being utterly abandoned, no one who truly understands the essence of light cuisine can ever be born!"
Since they were already enemies, Okabe had no intention of being a fence-sitter.
His roots in the Light Cuisine World were deep, and his growth was only a matter of time. It was naturally impossible for him to abandon a bright future to join the darkness.
"A naive fellow. The culinary world is a place where the strong prey on the weak. This applies not only to the Dark Cuisine World but to the Light Cuisine World as well.
It's just that, compared to the straightforward Dark Cuisine World, the Light Cuisine World's method of abandonment is more hypocritical. They like to use 'rest' as an excuse to completely shelve someone."
Upon hearing this, a cold sneer tugged at the corner of Zhu Shiyi's mouth.
This world isn't black and white. Some who appear bright on the outside become darker than anyone else once their hypocritical masks are torn off.
"You don't need to tell me that.
The world operates under rules, and these rules restrain the vast majority of those with malicious intent.
While it's true some people do bad things in the name of justice, to put it another way, if they weren't even willing to abide by the rules, the final outcome would be even worse.
You want to tear down the rules of the culinary world and turn it into a paradise of pure survival of the fittest, reveling in the essence of natural selection. That is, without a doubt, wrong!"
Okabe's voice was clear and firm, echoing through the silent arena.
The cold sneer on Zhu Shiyi's face faltered slightly. He hadn't expected such words, so sharp and articulate, to come from a child's mouth.
He narrowed his eyes, re-examining the young man before him as if trying to see right through him.
"Wrong?"
Zhu Shiyi slowly repeated the word, his tone laced with amusement. "The wheels of history have always been turned by the victors. When we control everything, what we establish will be the new rules. At that time, who will be able to say we were wrong?"
"Even if you gain power for a time, an order built on fear and tyranny will never last!"
Erina Nakiri stepped forward, completely suppressing the unease in her heart to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Okabe.
"The essence of cooking is to bring people happiness and warmth, not to become a tool of oppression.
By violating this principle, by turning cooking, which should bring joy, into a tool for power, you will one day be reviled by everyone in the world!"
Okabe had told her when they were young that "cooking is meant to bring people happiness," and now, unexpectedly, she was saying it herself.
"As expected of the Nakiri family's young lady, your words are so naive.
Once you've hit a few more walls in the real world, you'll understand that without absolute power, you can't protect the happiness you desire!
You were born into the Nakiri family, with endless resources since childhood. Your biggest worry on any given day is probably what you're going to eat.
We're different. We were born at the very bottom; some of us were even orphans. Cooking that brings happiness? We've never experienced such a thing!"
Before Zhu Shiyi could speak, Himeshima Kou shouted. She despised the high-and-mighty elites who had everything, telling them from their lofty positions not to fight.
She hoped Erina could say the same thing with a calm face when she couldn't get enough to eat or wear, and her cooking skills became the only weapon she had for survival.
"Exactly! Your condescending attitude is nauseating! If our positions were reversed, I could also say with a relaxed face that cooking is something that brings happiness. But unfortunately, there are no 'ifs' in this world."
Kannoyama Hikorintarou also spoke up at this moment, his voice dripping with sarcasm.
As a duo who started with nothing, the only thing they possessed was their culinary skill.
Now that the thing they were most proud of had been defeated, it meant they had completely lost their value, their ability to survive. At this moment, they naturally had nothing left to fear.
"Sigh…"
In the crowd, Okabe let out a sigh after hearing the words of Kannoyama Hikorintarou and Himeshima Kou.
He too was once born in the mud; how could he not understand their hardship? It wasn't that he'd never had the thought of destroying everything, but in the end, he endured.
He had his own two hands and could obtain everything he wanted through what he was good at.
Rather than pessimistically believing he was abandoned by the world, it was better to accept it—accept everything he currently had, and then go acquire new things to make himself better.
Romain Rolland once said: "There is only one heroism in the world: to see the world as it is and to love it."
Okabe's gaze swept over the unwilling and resentful faces of Himeshima Kou and Kannoyama Hikorintarou, finally settling on Zhu Shiyi's inscrutable eyes.
He wanted to speak of his past life, but in this life, as a vested beneficiary, he no longer had the standing to say such things.
However…
"Don't you find it absurd?
Because you came from the bottom, shouldn't you understand better than anyone that dragging others into the same mire you once struggled in doesn't solve the problem? It only creates more people who are just as miserable as you used to be!"
"Who cares about them! We can barely survive ourselves, so why should we care if others live or die? If we held onto that kind of thinking, we would have become nameless corpses in a garbage heap long ago."
Himeshima Kou shrieked, her voice filled with intense indignation at Okabe's incredibly naive words.
"You got lucky and latched onto the Nakiri family, so of course you can speak so glibly from your high horse! What about us? Besides grasping the straw offered to us by the darkness, what else could we do?"
Kannoyama Hikorintarou chimed in. At this moment, they had to seize this glimmer of hope. Otherwise, if they lost the competition and returned, only a purge awaited them.
If they were branded with the Dark Cuisine World's "Mark of Bad Taste," their lives would be over. Everything they owned would be taken by others in an instant.
As for escaping?
Throughout history, it wasn't as if no one had tried, but the only one who truly succeeded was Lei En, and even he only managed to do so under the protection of the legendary Super Chef Liu Mao Xing.
Ants like them, while not at the very bottom of the Dark Cuisine World, were still targets of exploitation. Right now, they could only do their utmost to please Zhu Shiyi.
"With your own two hands."
Okabe's reply was decisive. "Use the culinary skills we rely on for survival to fight for it honorably.
The Dark Cuisine World gave you power, but it also stripped you of your dignity as chefs and your freedom of choice. A single failure means eternal damnation, all previous efforts wasted, and you end up in a state even worse than before. Is this truly the strength you desire?"
"Of course, I won't judge your choice. After all, I am not you; I haven't experienced the suffering you have. But you have committed many sins for the Dark Cuisine World, and I certainly can't ask the victims to forgive you. That would be an injustice to people just like them."
Kannoyama Hikorintarou's eyes flickered violently. His lips moved, but no sound came out.
After joining the Dark Cuisine World and successfully taking their revenge, their culinary skills were already enough for them to survive in society, but they could no longer leave.
They knew, of course, that the Dark Cuisine World was no good place, but it was their only sanctuary. Without its protection, they would immediately be hunted down by so-called righteous figures, and the Dark Cuisine World would never let them leave so easily.
"Slick talk! Dignity and freedom—in the face of absolute power, these are nothing but the meaningless cries of the weak!"
Zhu Shiyi snorted coldly, breaking the brief silence.
"Brother Lan, it seems a war of words is pointless. Let's settle this with our skills!"
As he spoke, he turned his gaze to Lan Tianqiu, who had been waiting for a long time. His body grew uncontrollably hot as his fighting spirit began to surge.
As a chef, no matter how skilled one was with words, it meant nothing. The only weapon they could use was their own cooking.
"That's just what I was thinking! Let me see for myself what the current generation of the Dark Five Tiger Stars is truly capable of!"
Lan Tianqiu nodded slightly, quite satisfied with the performance of Okabe and Erina Nakiri. In the next moment, his resonant voice echoed throughout the entire courtyard.
"Today, I will let you witness our Dark Cuisine World's way of survival!"
Zhu Shiyi's gaze swept over the crowd of onlookers, especially Okabe and Erina Nakiri, his voice suddenly rising a few notches.
As his words fell, he violently tore off his black robe, revealing a pitch-black chef's uniform underneath. His bare arms were exposed, and shockingly, they were covered in a dense network of scars.
Some looked like knife wounds, others like burns from some kind of tool. They were all old injuries, gruesome to behold. The surrounding crowd gasped in unison.
"Japan is a maritime nation with abundant marine products, earning it the beautiful name of the ocean's jewel box.
As previously decided, the theme for this round is 'Seafood.' The time limit is two hours, with no restrictions on the type of dish."
Shifting his attention from Okabe's group, Zhu Shiyi looked toward Lan Tianqiu and stated the rules formally.
"Understood. There happen to be plenty of ingredients left on-site. Let's just start."
Hearing Zhu Shiyi's words, Lan Tianqiu couldn't help but flex his wrists. As he spoke, the corners of his mouth turned up unnaturally, and his eyes burned with a clear fighting spirit.
It had been a long time since he'd had to go all out.
"I couldn't ask for more!"
Placing the nearby Demonic Bronze Sacred Vessel on his station, Zhu Shiyi did not refuse.
"Then, both contestants are in position."
Although both were ready, neither made the first move. Instead, they cast their gazes toward the judges' table, looking at Senzaemon Nakiri seated in the center.
"Let the cooking begin!"
Senzaemon Nakiri rose and announced the start of the match. Both chefs moved simultaneously.
Okabe's group and Kannoyama Hikorintarou's group stood on opposing sides, silently watching the two men in action on the stage, their hearts filled with trepidation.
One was a top master of the Light Cuisine World; the other, a new-generation Five Tiger Star of the Dark Cuisine World.
The two had never crossed paths before; who was stronger and who was weaker was still unknown.
"Who on earth will win the final victory?"
"Dad will definitely win. I've never seen him lose since the day I was born!"
Hearing Okabe's soft murmur, Lan Kexin had appeared by his side at some point. She watched Lan Tianqiu's figure on the stage, her voice filled with absolute confidence in his ability.
Growing up, she had watched Lan Tianqiu compete in many matches, and he had never lost a single one.
"He's that strong?"
Hearing Lan Kexin's words, Okabe showed a surprised expression. What kind of protagonist template was this? Even Liu Mao Xing back in the day wasn't this formidable, was he?!
"Of course. Just look at whose dad he is."
Hearing Okabe's emotional words, Lan Kexin spoke with a proud expression.
"It's hard to argue with someone who has a legendary dad."
Looking at Lan Kexin's expression, Okabe was momentarily silent, finally managing to squeeze out that sentence after a long pause.
Others say, 'My son, Wang Teng, has the makings of a Great Emperor.' For you, it's become, 'My father, Lan Tianqiu, has the makings of a God of Cookery,' hasn't it?
"By the way, isn't the theme for this round seafood? Why is that guy making chicken soup? And there's not a single piece of seafood on his station. What on earth is he up to?!"
Erina Nakiri pointed at Zhu Shiyi's station, her brow furrowed.
She was certain she hadn't misheard just now; the theme for this round was indeed seafood.
"Making chicken soup?"
Hearing Erina Nakiri's words, Okabe and Lan Kexin both turned their gazes.
They then saw Zhu Shiyi holding a properly prepared Sanhuang chicken, cutting it into pieces to stew a soup. Judging by the chicken's size, it was at least three years old, falling into the category of an old hen.
If it were just that, it would at most indicate his dish required an old hen. But his station had no ingredients related to seafood at all, making it look as if he wasn't cooking a seafood dish, which was quite baffling.
In contrast, Lan Tianqiu's station was filled with various kinds of seafood.
Sea bass, fresh shrimp, scallops, and clams—all common household ingredients. Besides these, there were also tofu and pumpkin on his cutting board. The total cost of everything was no more than three thousand yen worth of ordinary seafood.
Although it's true that a dish isn't made better just by piling on high-end ingredients.
But high-end ingredients certainly offer many advantages in a culinary duel, because their inherent flavor is already excellent. A little cooking can rival a dish made with painstaking effort using ordinary ingredients.
"What dish is Senior Lan preparing? There are so many high-grade ingredients available…"
Hisako Arato muttered to herself, puzzled. The Nakiri family had prepared extensively for this competition, including many high-grade ingredients. For seafood, there were prized items like Ise lobster, wild yellow croaker, natural eel, and Kippin abalone, yet he had chosen the most common shrimp, scallops, and clams.
Truly, two people who don't follow the beaten path.
Perhaps this is the unique mindset of a master.
Not only were Okabe and his group perplexed, but so were the surrounding spectators, who couldn't help but whisper among themselves, a hint of doubt creeping into their gazes as they watched the two chefs.
"Are these two really culinary masters?!"
"There's nothing wrong with the ingredients. Ordinary ingredients, if properly combined, can still create a top-tier dish. If high-grade ingredients don't match the flavor profile of a dish, adding them is just a waste."
Watching the two chefs at work, Okabe spoke softly, explaining.
To look at ordinary ingredients with prejudice, to believe that they are destined to be inferior to top-tier ingredients, is itself a form of arrogance.
For a chef, such an attitude is clearly unacceptable.
_____
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