Who gave this heretical practitioner permission to cook?

Chapter 155 Your Old Man Gave Birth to an Idiot! The Top 32 Return, Next Round Opponents (5K First Update)
Among the top 64, Sun Xingyao and Shuai Qixing are considered a good match.

Sun Xingyao, known as "Mad Dog Sun," has gained countless haters in his live streams, mainly due to his terrible temper.

He's the one who queues up for a table at restaurants, and he's also the one who throws pork into exam questions during the rush to buy them. It's not that netizens can't accept this kind of crazy chef.

The main problem is that their performance was just average. Although they advanced in every round, they didn't really show any highlights in the early stages.

Some netizens even jokingly said
Sun Xingyao shouldn't be called "Mad Dog Sun," he should be called "Powder Keg."

They can set anything on fire; they're a total team bomb!
But compared to Sun Xingyao, Shuai Qixing is the other extreme.

The most apt description of him by netizens is "the rich second-generation playboy in a domineering CEO web novel who gets slapped in the face."

Their main trait is that they look down on everyone, but when it comes to a real fight, they can't beat anyone tough.

His best achievement so far is that bowl of "knocked fish noodles." Whenever the camera pans across him, he's either looking down on it or on his way to looking down on it.

Netizens are in an uproar, and some have even gone to Douyin (TikTok) to tag @帅小剑 (Shuai Xiaojian) in the clips.

[The handsome chef looks down on the soldiers he trains; they all seem to have an inflated chin!]

What's even more impressive is that Shuai Xiaojian himself replied.

[Shuai Xiaojian: Young people are ignorant; they'll learn their lesson after a while!]

Thanks to Shuai Xiaojian's reply, netizens didn't attack Shuai Qixing the same way they attacked Sun Xingyao.

Privately, some fans of the new cooking competition call him "brainless," which is a sarcastic way of saying that he always looks at everything with an expression of "you're just lucky," making it seem like he has an underdeveloped brain.
These two players have shown similar theoretical strength so far, and their public image is also quite poor.

Therefore, many netizens are still looking forward to this match.

After all, it's quite rare to see something so seriously funny.

At this moment, the trash-talking between the two on the field is the most unique among all the participants.

Sun Xingyao started by saying one sentence.

"Just submit it directly, I don't want to waste my time."

Shuai Qixing was not to be outdone; he didn't utter a word, but his eyes were full of mockery.

Sun Xingyao almost slapped him when he saw that smug look in his eyes, and immediately went into half-step Zuan mode.

The problem was that the more pointed Sun Xingyao's words were, the more disdainful Shuai Qixing became. Of the six groups of contestants who took the stage, they were the most hostile.

The viewers in the live stream were having a blast.

[If they fight, it would be best if both of them were kicked out of the match, saving them a spot!]

No, Shuai Qixing really does have that typical look of disdain. They say a tiger father has a dog son, and I didn't understand that before, but now I do after seeing him.

[It's a misfortune for the family that such a good person like Chef Shuai has encountered such unhappiness.]

【Don't stop me, I want to see them bleed like rivers!!!】

Netizens have all sorts of expectations, but the competition will ultimately prevent them from doing anything reckless.

After the host gave each of them a symbolic yellow card, the two men quickly calmed down and obediently went into the food storage area.

Because the topic was meat, but not what kind of meat, they didn't get half a pig like Xia Ming, but instead chose the most suitable part for themselves.

In the end, Sun Xingyao took a piece of premium pork belly and only took lettuce as a side dish, while Shuai Qixing took a pork foreleg, water bamboo shoots, and small bell peppers.

Back on the field, they officially began operations.

But soon, the contestants realized something was wrong.

Xia Ming raised an eyebrow slightly as he looked at Shuai Qixing, who was busy working on the side.

"Judging from how this bell pepper was prepared, he probably intended to make it into a container, but the problem is..."

He smiled silently, sensing that Shuai Qixing was about to begin the personal transformation process again.

On the other hand, Sun Xingyao had been sitting in his chair ever since he received the materials, quietly watching Shuai Qixing meticulously carve the bell peppers.

After watching for ten minutes, just when everyone thought Sun Xingyao was about to fall asleep, he stood up and spent three minutes cutting the pork belly, then added soy sauce, sweet bean sauce, salt, shredded green onions, and shredded ginger to marinate it.

Then, the marinating process lasted for more than half an hour.

Only after Shuai Qixing finished stir-frying his pork and water bamboo shoots and arranged them like works of art did Sun Xingyao stand up from the side.

He glanced at Shuai Qixing across from him and snorted coldly.

"You're such a noob, you can't even stir-fry pork and water bamboo properly!"

As he spoke, he took the sesame oil and rubbed the marinated meat a few times. Then he turned the stove up to the highest setting, and with the hot oil sizzling, the temperature in the pot rose rapidly. As the hot oil bubbled up, Sun Xingyao poured the meat slices directly into the pot.

The moment the meat hit the pan, he used a spatula to ignite the flames. Instantly, flames rose from the pan, illuminating his face in an orange-yellow light.

Shuai Qixing, who was on the other side, felt the flames and looked up, only to find that Sun Xingyao was actually cooking in the pot that was completely on fire!
"Won't it burn?"

Just as he was surprised, Sui Wubai on the judges' panel and Xia Ming in the lounge spoke at the same time.

"Sizzling meat."

After saying that, Xia Ming glanced at Sun Xingyao again.

In Xia Ming's memory, the so-called "fire-fried meat" was the signature dish of a chef named "Yan Weixing" in the city, and it was also a manifestation of the Chinese chef's skill in using fire.

The ingredients are easy to prepare, and the cooking process is not complicated. The only difficulty is that after the fire is lit and the pot is put into the pan, the meat slices need to be stir-fried in the pan while keeping the fire burning continuously for one minute, so that the meat slices are cooked and also charred.

"Stir-frying the meat slices is to ensure their texture, while searing the meat slices is to give them a slightly seared flavor."

Xia Ming knew that this was different from wok hei (the smoky aroma imparted by a wok). Essentially, it was a layer of charred crust that formed on the outside of the pork when it was scorched by flames.

From a scientific point of view, it is unhealthy.

Xia Ming just smiled at this, saying that if you really judged it by urban standards, braised pork wouldn't be healthy either.

"To ensure the taste, you should only listen to this stuff and not worry about it."

As he spoke, Xia Ming stroked his chin. In his opinion, there was actually a big difference between Sun Xingyao and Shuai Qixing.

In the same situation, Shuai Qixing cared more about things that were unnecessary. Perhaps he had a misunderstanding about fusion cuisine. He wore his superficiality and opportunism on his face.

Conversely, although Sun Xingyao is not very bright, her skills are decent, and her control over the heat is comparable to that of Qu Yuyu.

But as for other aspects...
Just as Xia Ming shook his head, Sun Xingyao had already plated the dish. The golden-brown slices of meat had a slightly charred aroma, paired with lettuce—simple yet sophisticated.

He cooked the whole thing in just 58 seconds, and by the time he finished plating it, Shuai Qixing hadn't even finished plating it yet.

He glanced at Shuai Qixing's plating, a look of discomfort as if he were looking at an idiot on his face, then pressed the notification button twice, and carried the dish to the judges' table.

The seven judges understood the key points of this "spicy stir-fried meat" dish and tasted it while it was still hot.

Judging from his expression, he did a pretty good job.

Shuai Qixing appeared after him, but the judges looked serious when they saw his exquisitely prepared pork with water chestnuts.

Xia Ming blinked upon seeing this.

"It's fine to divide the stir-fried water bamboo and shredded pork into small portions for plating purposes, but if the container is too deep, the water bamboo on top will press down on the bottom, causing the bottom to become soft. As for the bottom layer that is in contact with the bell peppers, it will lose all the flavor of stir-frying."

"You know, bell peppers aren't on a hot plate. They haven't been preheated at all; they're still moist inside. Who taught you to use this to hold stir-fry?"

Just as Xia Ming had expected, the seven judges completely ignored the top and started picking up the food from the bottom with their chopsticks.

With just one bite, they made their judgment.

In the end, Sun Xingyao scored 88.9 points with "Spicy Stir-fried Pork", but Shuai Qixing's "Shanghai-style Vegetable and Water Bamboo Pork" only scored 74.5 points.

He even hadn't made a mistake with Zhu Wuneng.
The moment he saw the rating, Shuai Qixing was stunned. He still didn't realize what went wrong with his cooking.

More importantly, he had no idea why Sun Xingyao was able to score 88.9 points in just one minute!
In his view, the preparation method of "fire-roasted meat" is highly random, and the way the flame treats the meat is basically a matter of guessing the heating environment in different parts of the pot.

He felt that even if the "One-Star Dragon Mark" Chef Yan Weixing himself were to do it, he might not be able to perfectly replicate it!

Looking into Shuai Qixing's eyes, Sun Xingyao knew what he was thinking.

He scoffed and walked towards the lounge with the staff without looking back. Even if Shuai Qixing had objections to the result, he could only follow.

Unexpectedly, Sun Xingyao spoke as soon as they entered the corridor.

"You don't still think you lost because of my luck with fire control, do you?!"

Shuai Qixing snorted coldly, and then spoke.

"Isn't that right? You don't actually think that you can control such a highly random meat-roasting process to complete the dish, do you?"

Uncharacteristically, Sun Xingyao didn't get angry upon hearing this; instead, she burst out laughing.

The laughter grew louder and louder until even the last group of players could faintly hear it. Seeing Sun Xingyao's actions, Shuai Qixing, not to be outdone, also attacked directly.

"What are you laughing at? You're just a lucky guy, what right do you have to laugh!"

Upon hearing the word "luck," Sun Xingyao shrugged and then stared intently at Shuai Qixing. Just as Shuai Qixing was getting chills from the stare, Sun Xingyao finally spoke.

"How could your old man have given birth to such an idiot like you!"

"Your skills are absolutely terrible, like a pile of dog shit. Whenever you cook something, you just try to make up for the shortcomings with shortcuts. You don't actually think you can win first place just by plating it, do you?"

As he spoke, Sun Xingyao let out two more sarcastic laughs.

"Have you been taught too much by your old man? He doesn't use techniques much because they're his weakness. It's not that he doesn't want to use them, it's just that he's bad at them!"

"Although his skills are lacking, he's learned other things fairly well. What about you?"

"You've learned nothing! All you've learned is plating. Fusion cuisine? You've mastered Chinese cooking techniques and then Western cooking techniques before you even dare to talk about fusion!"

"It's not about learning a little bit of both and then standing there shouting, 'Oh, I'm a fusion chef! I'm innovating!'"

As he spoke, Sun Xingyao even started shaking his head and swaying back and forth.

"Damn it, he's terrible at cooking, but he's number one at bragging!"

"Go back and find a few more teachers. The thought of wasting my time with you makes me want to vomit."

"What are you arrogant about? Did I lie? If you're not happy, come on, hit me!"

Shuai Qixing's face was flushed red. He really wanted to grab a knife and stab Sun Xingyao.

Even though he was trembling with anger, he didn't dare to actually stab him. After a long while, he finally managed to squeeze out the words through gritted teeth.

"I'm mentally challenged, and you're just a mad dog, aren't you?"

"You're just a bully who picks on the weak and fears the strong. What kind of skill do you have to fight me? Go find Bai Heng, go find Han Tianyan, go find Xia Ming!"

"You're just a stray dog, and you think you can show off with a little skill? If you're so great, why don't you take first place?!"

"What's the use of your arrogance? Wei Yan is even arrogant than you, Xia Ming is even arrogant than you, and they're stronger because they're arrogant! What about you?"

"You can only point fingers at others and bark at the wall with your stinking mouth. But when you're actually in front of them, you're nothing but a fart."

Sun Xingyao stopped laughing upon hearing this, her eyes widened, and she was about to pounce on Shuai Qixing.
Fortunately, whenever Sun Xingyao is around, the security guards closest to him are always the most reliable in terms of physique.

Sun Xingyao hadn't even taken a step when she was stopped by staff.

"Sun Xingyao, are you trying to get a red card?!"

Upon hearing the words "red card," Sun Xingyao opened her mouth a few times, but ultimately kept it closed.

"I'm not going to bother with a loser like you. Just watch, Bai Heng, Han Tianyan, Xia Ming... I'll kill them all one by one."

"The kind of work you do until you can't get up!"

Backstage, in the players' lounge

Bai Heng's face turned cold upon hearing Sun Xingyao's words.

She didn't care whether this guy was outspoken or not; whatever he said just sounded like lewd jokes to him.

She took a deep breath and stared coldly at Sun Xingyao on the screen.

"I pray I'm not drawn, or I'll smash your head in!"

Han Tianyan just smiled coldly after hearing his words and didn't say anything more.

Xia Ming simply ignored it.
The game featured a fiery, sizzling meat-filled presentation that was visually stunning, but ultimately failed to reach a score of 90, so there was little point in watching it further.

As time passed day by day, in the blink of an eye, it was the last day of the 64-to-32 round.

In the first three days of the competition, many contestants naturally advanced to the next round.

Xia Ming was somewhat familiar with people like He He, Han Tianyan, Qiao Ruoning, Bai Heng, Sun Xingyao, Zhou Jing, Li Yuan, and Fang Xu.

Of the last eight matches today, the most interesting ones are...
"Zheng Zeqian" VS "Ma Lei"

"Qian Youdao" VS "Chen Sui"

At that very moment, just as the former finished his competition, Xia Ming, in the lounge, looked at the screen and raised an eyebrow at Zheng Zeqian's final score.

【93.8 minutes】

This is the highest score among all contestants over the past four days, excluding Xia Ming.

Xia Ming narrowed his eyes slightly after glancing at Zheng Zeqian's lazy expression.

He always felt that this guy was the complete opposite of "Qian Youdao," who became stronger the stronger his opponent was.

It is highly likely that Zheng Zeqian deliberately controlled his strength to make it easier for him to slack off.

Thinking back to how he had been lying on the seat with a corner of his underwear showing, Xia Ming felt that this was very likely.
As for Mare, he ultimately scored 82.1 points, which wasn't bad, but the draw was unfavorable, which marked the end of his run in this competition.

After advancing as expected, Zheng Zeqian went through four more groups and finally arrived at today's last match, which was also the final battle of the entire 64-to-32 round.

"Qian Youdao" VS "Chen Sui"

Competition Topic: [Fresh Freshwater Eel] [Alcohol] [≤4]

When viewers in the live stream saw Qian Youdao dressed in white and Chen Sui dressed in black, they flooded the chat with comments.

[These two even did a final cosplay of the Fated Battle, which was quite a highlight.]

One of them is an expert in Anhui cuisine, and the other is an expert in both Taiwanese and Cantonese cuisine; the final competition should be very exciting!

However, their questions were incredibly difficult. Live freshwater eels are not easy to handle! They're slippery, fishy, ​​and slimy, and bleeding them is also difficult.

Thankfully, the ingredient was alcohol, otherwise it would have been very difficult to cook!

[The highest score right now seems to be Xia Ming's 98.8. Do you think these two have a chance to break that score at the end?]

[The person upstairs who's hoping for this is better off spending their time thinking about who's second. "Unrivaled throughout the ages," you think that's a joke?]

The comments from netizens in the live stream were not unfounded. After the first day of the competition, Xia Ming was bombarded with fan-made content on Douyin, Short Video, and Bilibili.

Some photoshopped him into "Emperor Xia Ming", some into Thanos, and some even photoshopped the Chef King from the "Sui Wubai pays respects to the Chef King" meme into Xia Ming.

Among the netizens watching the competition, more than 30% assumed that Xia Ming would be the champion this year, and they are already forming groups to discuss how Xia Ming should spend his reward.

Some people also favor Bai Heng and Han Tianyan, believing that they are also very strong and should have a chance to win the championship, except for their skills.

Just as they were chatting and making jokes, Xia Ming noticed that the cooking on both sides had already started.

Judging from the fact that Qian Youdao brought "Taiwanese rice wine," he most likely wanted to make "Three-Cup Eel," a common dish in Taiwanese cuisine.

The so-called three cups are "rice wine", "soy sauce" and "sesame oil or flaxseed oil", one cup of each, and then add "basil" to combine them to remove the fishy smell and enhance the aroma of the eel.

Conversely, Chen Sui also held rice wine, but it was "Huizhou rice wine." This wine has a different production process than "Taiqu rice wine" and is more effective at "removing the earthy taste."

In addition, he brought ham and dried bamboo shoots, probably intending to use the characteristics of Anhui cuisine, "curing and baking to enhance freshness + slow cooking to remove fishy smell," to make a dish called "Braised Eel with Ham and Dried Bamboo Shoots."

As the two continued their work, Xia Ming gradually noticed a problem on Chen Sui's end.

"His method was correct, and his operation was correct, but he seemed to care too much about the taste of the cured meat."

The theme of the competition was ultimately still "fresh freshwater eel". The flavor of the cured eel can enhance the dish, but it shouldn't overshadow the main course.

Ultimately, it was because of this that Chen Sui lost the game by 2 points.

Qian Youdao: 91.4 points

[Chen Sui: 89.2 points]

Just as the competition scores were announced, all the other advancing contestants came from the rest room to the competition venue.

After Chen Sui stood aside with a complicated expression, the top 32 finalists, led by Xia Ming, now stood in the center of the arena.

"Congratulations to everyone for making it to this point after four days of competition. I hope you all keep up the good work."

"Without further ado, the draw for the 32 to 16 round will be completed at this moment, and the process will be the same as before."

"Please welcome Xia Ming to the stage."

As the music played, Xia Ming went on stage again to draw a prize. This time, he drew [16·A].

After waiting for a while, when it was Sun Xingyao's turn to draw a number, he saw the number in his hand and a look of extreme madness appeared on his face!

"What a coincidence, Xia Ming, right? I caught you just now?"

(End of this chapter)