The European Emperor’s character remains standing

Chapter 202 I am a fish, I want to fly higher
Qingxuan shouted and jumped: "I am a fish, I want to fly higher."

A circle of tiny blue fish-shaped stars was spinning above his head. He spread his non-existent flying fish wings, trying to embrace his illusory mudskipper brethren. The next second, he fell from the sky and landed on his back.

There is no doubt that his personal system panel has a Deep Fungus Poisoning buff.

Beside her, Qiye treated the land as the seabed and began swimming.

One of them wanted to be a flying fish, soaring through the sky like a mudskipper leaping, but he wasn't a mudskipper with that ability, and then he crashed to the ground.

Another person mistook the land for the seabed, swimming freely on the ground with their arms constantly swinging. To onlookers, this appeared as constant convulsions, as if they were poisoned.

These are two patients with severe mushroom poisoning, and there are two others with moderate and mild poisoning in the vicinity.

The scene was a chaotic mess, and the surrounding players quickly stepped aside, leaving the center of the square for them to "perform" on the stage.

It all started after the Summer Food Competition began.

Because the deer cub's expectations were too strong, it triggered its passive talent attribute, and the luck attribute played a big role, making each encounter a close call.

Time flew by as Lin Shilu eagerly awaited the day of the competition.

They hadn't expected them to pass the preliminary rounds, and everyone agreed that it was Lu Zai's luck that had played a crucial role once again. After all, with their cooking skills, it was simply impossible!

Hua Hua and her friends learned their lesson over the past two weeks. They found the deer that had been hiding from them by using the list of contestants published on the forum, and arrived at the competition venue on the day of the competition.

Through the publicly available competition list, they also discovered Ling Xia, who was teamed up with Lu Zai and Fold Ear, but they didn't pay much attention to her because something terrifying was about to happen.

If they cannot stop it, then a nightmare awaits them.

Due to the large number of participants, in addition to the 12 judges taking turns, the organizers specially introduced a double-stage process involving reviews on Dianping (a Chinese review platform) and tasting sessions for friends and family.

Furthermore, players are limited to 10 minutes of entry time after the start of the competition, after which the system closes. If they want to get closer, they have to wait until the next competition starts. Of course, players can also teleport to the target venue in advance. On the day of the competition, the venue is packed with people. The system will adjust the size of the venue according to the number of players, which is a blessing in disguise in this hot summer.

Rejection? Do you think they haven't considered it?

The two went to great lengths to get them to eat their culinary disasters, employing all sorts of methods. There was only one way to stop them: to stop them before they even tried it. After each attempt, they had only one thought: "The sky is so blue, the flowers smell so good, it's wonderful that I survived today."

After the three of them collected all the ingredients and selected their entries, they practiced tirelessly for several days and nights before submitting their team list to the system. With Ling Xia's help, they successfully passed the competition's entry requirements and registered for the preliminary round.

Because they signed up for the Summer Desserts and Summer Food categories, which slightly conflicted with the competition schedule, they split into two groups to compete. With luck and special training, they successfully passed the preliminary rounds.

In the summer cooking competition, contestants can freely choose 3 to 5 dishes to participate in and create a summer menu. If interested, they can also collaborate with various inns and hotels to launch dishes.

In the hot weather, many contestants chose to make ice cream or herbal tea to cool down.

Although there are cooling and heat-relieving plants like ice crystal flowers in the game, if the weather is exceptionally hot and you haven't replanted after the previous day's seeding, there will still be a shortage of seeds, leading to extremely hot weather. In particular, Sky Island is a veritable heatstroke hotspot, where players will immediately suffer from heatstroke within 3 minutes of arriving.

It's not that no contestant has launched their own unique barbecue skewers in this sweltering summer, but after eating them... well, it's safe to say that more people are suffering from heatstroke, many of which are caused by the heatiness from eating barbecue skewers.

The summer cooking competition does not conflict with the official competition, so they have plenty of time to prepare.

Delicious food first, dessert later.

The competition lasted for a week, with each day featuring a morning session of cooking and an afternoon session of desserts.

Lu Zai and her team were incredibly lucky; they were among the first to register and their competition was also early, on the very opening day of the tournament.

The specially invited host of the competition took the stage on time and, without wasting any words, concisely and clearly introduced the general rules of the competition to the audience before gracefully departing.

After Hua Hua and the others teleported to the venue, they looked around, trying to find the whereabouts of Lu Zai and the others. However, when they looked up, they found that they had already gone up on stage.

There was no way to stop it. There were dedicated bodyguards around the square to prevent anyone from causing trouble. Anyone who caused trouble during the event would be imprisoned and sent to a labor camp.

The timing was perfect. The competition had just started, and they had just been teleported to the competition venue when Lu Zai and her group, as the third participating group, went on stage.

That's not entirely accurate.

Because the map of this food court was newly created by the official team, contestants need to cook on a platform set up in the center of the court. There are a total of 4 platforms, plus a rich food inventory provided by the official team. Contestants can also bring their own ingredients, as long as they pass the test.

In each round of the competition, the four participating teams will compete to determine the winner. The winner will advance to the next round, while the loser will receive a participation prize. Each team can have a maximum of seven members.

The three judges sat firmly on the high platform. After they finished eating, they would be replaced by the next round of judges. The audience was separated by barriers.

Each group can only have one winner; if the scores are tied, an additional match will be played. The food competition and the dessert competition are separate; even if a food contest loses, a dessert contest still has a chance to compete.

After seeing Lu Zai and the others, Hua Hua sent a message through the team channel. It wasn't that she didn't want to call for help directly, but there were too many people at the scene, and it was too noisy to hear them.

They finally managed to squeeze to the front row, near the stage where Lu Zai and his group were sitting, when they heard someone next to them pointing at the Folded Ears group and commenting, "Wow, their movements are so fluid and beautiful, they're clearly experts."

"Don't you guys think this venue looks a lot like the anime/manga series 'MasterChef'?"

"I see through it but I won't say it. Besides, have you ever seen a food storage room built underground? I can understand fish arrows being underground, but all your ingredients are stored underground, and the chef has to go in to get them. On top of that, there's a surveillance camera to zoom in on the selection of ingredients and the cooking process. I just want to say there are too many things to complain about, I can't even begin to describe it."

Contestants have special privileges for their friends and family. If your friends or family members are also contestants, you will have the opportunity to watch from the front row. If not, it doesn't matter. As long as you are strong enough or lucky enough not to be squeezed out, you can also stand in front on your own.

Lin Shilu and Ling Xia were mainly in charge of desserts, but they also had some knowledge of the dishes selected by Zhe Er. Therefore, the head chef was An Zhe Er, and the two of them assisted him.

After seeing that some contestants had uploaded entries featuring grilled skewers, she decided to let loose and allow all contestants who passed the preliminary rounds to upload their entries. Viewers would then give "anticipation points," which would become unique rewards and titles awarded to the contestants at the end of the competition.

The competition lasts seven hours, and contestants can choose to prepare 3 to 5 dishes. If a contestant is exceptionally skilled, they can prepare 10 dishes or even more within the seven hours.

Contestants only need to complete their dishes within a limited time, but they should note that since there are now unlimited audience judges, they need to make large, satisfying dishes.

Under the system allocation, for dishes with small quantities, a lottery mode will be selected to ensure that every audience member has food in the following competition schedule.

Of course, you can also upload the recipe and the entire production process to the system, which will then produce the products in batches and distribute them to the audience.

After countless practice sessions and countless sleepless nights playing games, drinking stamina recovery potions when his stamina was depleted, and taking fasting pills or nutrient solutions when he was hungry, Fold Ear's confidence soared.

Just between you and me, the system shop has a lot of fasting pills and nutrient solutions, but they're a bit expensive, so many players manually list them on the trading house, leading to fierce competition where only the lowest price is available.

The only downside is that untested products are cheaper, but the quality varies greatly, and you might accidentally buy a culinary disaster. They may have some effect, but how effective they are is uncertain.

Since everything is now holographic, even if you eat your fill in the game, a digestive pill or hawthorn slice will make you hungry again, and you can also lose weight. So, the sales of these two items are only so-so, far less than red and blue potions, and stamina recovery agents. These three are the top-selling giants.

As for the flavors, there are Kung Pao Chicken flavored fasting pills and the same nutritional liquid, as well as fruit flavors.

The store is divided into two categories: food and fruit, but players usually adjust them to be either delicious or unpalatable.

An Zhe'er took charge of the entire process like a master chef, her movements were fluid and pleasing to the eye, and the viewing experience of her cooking was superb. No wonder the onlookers thought she was a senior chef.

Seeing Lu Zai and Ling Xia assisting Zhe Er while she was the head chef the whole time, this kind of person immediately wanted to escape after Zhe Er finished her work, but she couldn't escape.

Once the dishes are cooked, they need to be placed in a specific area to preserve their freshness and texture. The chefs must then immediately continue preparing the next dish until all the dishes are finished. The audience can only taste the dishes after all four groups of contestants have announced their completion. Only then will the system unlock the dishes stored in the preservation area and distribute them to the audience and judges.

Half an hour later, the Mapo Tofu was ready, and after the same amount of time, the Kung Pao Chicken was ready.

Both dishes looked and smelled very appetizing, and An Zhe'er sped up the preparation of the other dishes. Looking at these two dishes, her confidence increased.

Spicy and flavorful sliced ​​beef and tripe in chili sauce; chewy, refreshing, and savory braised pork hock that you'll want to keep eating; and chopped chili fish head with pickled cabbage, bursting with a rich pickled cabbage aroma that's incredibly appetizing and makes your mouth water just from the smell...

Lu Zai and his friends made a total of eight dishes: Mapo Tofu, Kung Pao Chicken, Sliced ​​Beef and Offal in Chili Sauce, Braised Pork Knuckle, Steamed Fish Head with Chopped Chili, Braised Pig Trotters, Seven-Star Fish Balls, and Poon Choi.

Of the four groups, only the second group could compete with them, both having eight dishes.

The students in Group 1 and Group 4 looked at each other in disbelief. The competition was fierce! Group 1 had done 3 questions and Group 4 had done 5. They all thought that was their limit, but they didn't expect that there were still two who were the most competitive.

In particular, the dish served in a huge bowl, which looked and smelled delicious, and was so appetizing that it gave the dish a head start.

As for the contestants in Group Two, they thought victory was assured, but they didn't expect that someone else had the same idea as them.

The menu features eight dishes, including Braised Pork Belly with Bamboo Shoots and Bamboo Shoots, Fish with Vinegar and Pepper, Big Plate Chicken, Boiled Shrimp, Taro with Braised Pork Belly, Hot and Sour Shredded Potatoes, Steamed Pork with Lotus Leaf and Crab Roe Lion's Head Meatballs. These dishes are chosen for their short preparation time, generous portions, and ability to satisfy hunger. They also require some skill to prepare.

"We should say we lost. We have seven people, and they only have three." The seven people in Group Two whispered among themselves while the dishes were being served. "It would be great if we could have one more dish to taste from the opposing chef. I'm getting hungry while they're cooking."

"Would you like to try some?" The deer carried a plate of dishes that had been set aside. The three kinds of dishes were arranged in separate sections on the plate, and the aroma was enticing.

"Are there rules in the competition that sometimes you can't taste your opponent's food? I guess it's okay not to score it, right?" She walked over with the dishes and said, "Do you want some? You're a spectator, aren't you?"

The enticing aroma filled the air, and as soon as the deer uttered those words, the host's gaze immediately locked onto the dish. "The competition doesn't actually have that rule, but theoretically, it's feasible!"

This move immediately won over the hearts of the host and the second group of contestants. The first and fourth groups secretly thought they had made a mistake, but they didn't sit idle. They sent people out to campaign for votes and also shared the dishes they made with their opponents.

In the first round, almost all the contestants chose to have their dishes copied by the system. Although the copied dishes lacked soul and strictly followed the recipe and cooking process during the competition, including the chef's mistakes, they were still copied.

However, with this arrangement, onlookers can almost all taste the contestants' dishes and freely choose to share and sample them with those around them.

"Please, you really don't want to try it?" Folded Ear looked at Flower and the others who were about to turn and run away, pleading.

After seeing them go on stage, the group did consider leaving, but the passage was closed, so they couldn't leave even if they wanted to.

Not to mention the crowds are so dense that trying to squeeze from the front to the back is simply a pipe dream.

Just as Hua Hua was about to refuse, she noticed the death stares from the people around her, their eyes conveying a sense of "you're lucky, kid."

He made a bold decision, picked up his chopsticks, and took a bite. To his surprise, it was delicious in color, aroma, and taste. A wicked thought crossed his mind: "You should try some too."

Immediately, Hua Hua grabbed her companion and shoved a chopstick into her mouth, saying, "You have to eat it whether you want to or not. I've already eaten it, so how can you not eat it?"

He didn't spare a single person. In the end, he even ate all eight dishes that Zhe'er had brought for her relatives and friends and then airdropped them to feed the people around her.

The portions were generous, enough for everyone to try.

Mapo tofu is slightly cool when you first taste it, and only when you chew it slowly will the numbing and spicy sensation sweep over your entire mouth. It has a unique crispy aroma and a slightly chewy meaty flavor, but the texture is not very similar to meat.

After taking a couple of bites, Qingxuan and Qiye felt that the Mapo Tofu was particularly delicious. Without saying a word, they took two more plates from Zhe'er and started eating.

Eating it on its own, spicy and crispy, paired with steamed buns or pancakes, brings an indescribable sense of happiness.

"Did you add meat to your Mapo Tofu? It tastes meaty and savory." Qi Ye asked after adding the Mapo Tofu to the pancake and taking a big bite.

"How could that be!" Folded Ears waved his hand nonchalantly and said, "You know I'm a complete novice when it comes to cooking. I don't even know when the meat is cooked. If I stew it for too long, it will be tough, and if I stew it too tender, it will still be bloody."

Qingxuan asked curiously, "What is that? Gluten or soybeans?"

"Neither," Folded Ear said mysteriously. "I had a sudden inspiration and changed it to mushrooms, the same mushrooms from the chicken stew with mushrooms last time."

When cooking, one should never act on a whim, which led to the scene at the beginning.

Not far away on the other side, some of the contestants from the second group also came up to ask Lu Zai and the others, all of them curious about why this Mapo Tofu had such a unique flavor.

"If it's one of your secret cooking techniques, then you don't have to tell me."

"Actually, it's not some secret recipe." Lu Zai smiled shyly. "Before the competition, we couldn't think of any outstanding dishes that could beat the others. Then, Zhe Er had a brilliant idea and thought of chicken stew with mushrooms, and made some slight modifications."

"And that's how we got the mushroom version—a modified version of Mapo Tofu."

She said, "Some people add beef to Mapo Tofu, so I added mushrooms. They say there are three kinds of delicacies: fish and lamb are one, and mushrooms are another. I can't handle the first two, but the third one will never burn."

After listening, the person in Group Two gave a thumbs up and praised, "Great idea! Creating dishes requires passion and innovation, and the mushrooms really don't burn in the pan; they get savory the longer they're cooked."

Not long after returning, he noticed that his teammates were each wearing an animal headgear. He said, "Why are you guys suddenly wearing animal headgear?"

The teammates had different expressions. One of the girls said, "I also want to ask you, how come you managed to lead the team?"

The next moment, they heard someone in the crowd shout: Someone poisoned the food.

After the two fish emerged, the surrounding audience members, including the "Sleeping Dragon" and "Phoenix Chick," shouted: "Someone poisoned it!"

Many people reacted to the emergency, but some thought more clearly: so what if I'm poisoned? There are antidotes. Why would I vomit something so delicious and ruin my mood?

Zhe'er and his accomplices proved their innocence: "We didn't poison them!"

The host took on the important task of testing the dishes and found that only one of the eight dishes, Mapo Tofu with mushrooms, had a problem.

Some of the mushrooms in the dish were undercooked and may have caused hallucinations. This is the only one. Although oyster mushrooms are also added, the large number of mushrooms used in the dish strangely neutralized the drowsy reaction after eating oyster mushrooms, leaving only a lot of hallucinations.

The consumers are all players. Checking their system panel, it was indeed found that they only experienced hallucinations, the duration of which varied depending on the amount consumed, and they ended when the hallucination ended.

Because of this mistake, Lu Zai and his team were eliminated, receiving only a participation award. The three judges were also forced to leave the stage, as they were all under the influence of hallucinations and could only return after the negative effects were neutralized.

"Life is unpredictable!" Lin Shilu thought to himself, completely oblivious to the fact that he was the culprit.

The girls from the second team stepped forward to comfort them: "It's okay, sisters, you've already done a great job. You made eight delicious and visually appealing dishes with so few people. It's normal to make a few mistakes, after all, you're not a professional chef."

“Yes!” The second team leader had a strong Northeastern accent. They originally wanted to have barbecue skewers, but the team members strongly objected, so they ended up having eight dishes instead.

Not long after eating Mapo Tofu, Qingxuan and Qiye began their chase after two fish and even recognized each other as brothers.

Although Lu Zai and his friends were eliminated in the food category and only received a participation award, they did not give up. They have not yet participated in the dessert category competition, which will be held in the afternoon of three days later.

Qingyou silently took the antidote pill, clearing away the negative effects.

Turning around, I wanted to ask Huahua, Siyuan, and Shaoshao why they didn't break up the fight and let the two fish fly freely.

But then he heard Hua Hua, who was hallucinating, say in a serious tone, "What are you saying to the great Dark Prince?"

Siyuan struck a childish pose: "I will judge you in the name of glory!"

With a very girlish air, Shao Shao said, "Today, I, the magical girl Su Shao Shao, will act on behalf of heaven and capture the Dark Prince and my teammate Yuan Yuan Jiang, who is stuck in the mud." She was holding a pink magic wand that seemed to have appeared out of nowhere.

Her teammates were too deeply poisoned to stop, and it would only drag her down with them. So, she decided to pretend she didn't know them. After taking the antidote, she pulled a prop mask from her bag and put it on. With the mask on, even if someone was recording, the mask would automatically blur their image, making them unrecognizable.

The only downside is that the mask is too flashy and clashes with her real image, making her stand out, but that's nothing compared to what's about to happen.

The onlookers readily gave up their space to watch and record the unexpected incident during the competition. It is believed that in the near future, when they have fully sobered up, they will see their embarrassing history being widely circulated on the forum.

Zhu Qingyou fell silent as she watched the chaotic scene unfold. The culinary skills of the two little devils and the deer were becoming even more lethal, and her desire to stop them grew stronger. Her hands trembled, but her heart remained resolute.

She recognized Ling Xia's identity from the start, but she didn't realize that she had done the same thing before, cooking with two people to make sure everything was fine, but problems still arose.

Ling Xia is now in the same state as before, caught in a life of doubt and self-doubt as a chef. However, she should wake up soon, since there is a competition waiting for them. Lu Zai and Zhe Er will definitely not let their teammate fall into this state, she knows that very well.

She had also considered whether she could join and try to turn the tide, but unfortunately, once the list of participants was finalized and announced, there was no such thing as a substitute, unless the substitute members and their IDs were clearly filled in from the beginning.

The next step is to wait for your teammates to wake up, and while you're at it, persuade them to go and watch the dessert competition between Lu Zai and Folded Ear, and eat the entries they've prepared for their friends and family.

Only in this way could she escape disaster.

A non-existent conscience was nagging at her, so in order to avoid eating it herself, Sister You decided to drag her teammates into it and have them taste the deer cub and folded ear fungus for her. Although there was a risk of being surrounded and forced to eat by the others, it didn't matter.

I had already come up with an excuse.

The entire production process is transparent and open, and there are no risky foods involved, so it's worth a try.

No mushrooms!

The unexpected incident in the first round was truly unexpected. The safety test was absolutely fine. It's just that some mushrooms might not have been cooked long enough, and eating them beforehand could cause hallucinations. However, there shouldn't be any mushrooms in the desserts, unless it's some bizarrely made mushroom-flavored ice cream or mushroom-flavored dessert with added mushrooms.

She would assure you with her integrity and the virtue of never lying that even if she dragged her teammates down with her, it was better to sacrifice her own life than her own. Sister You was not lying; she had only concealed a tiny bit of the truth and facts, as well as the fact that Lu Zai and the others couldn't salvage their cooking skills no matter what they did.

Alternative title: Deeply trapped in hallucinations, unable to extricate oneself; once you see it, you'll be deeply addicted.

Six thousand words is considered a big update; I feel a bit guilty for not updating for so many days.