Food Wars!: Delicious Food of the Heavens

Chapter 59 Gold in the Pot

The towering flames startled the onlookers.

"Fire!"

"What a huge fire! It almost reached the ceiling just now."

"It's not that exaggerated, but it has at least shot up a meter or two high."

"What a huge fire! Could it be that a mistake caused the oil in the pan to ignite?"

The crowd in the classroom, including Soma Yukihira, instinctively gasped in surprise.

"It wasn't a mistake! You just don't understand how superb Lin Yu's fire control skills are!"

Hearing that the students around him seemed to have misunderstood, Soma Yukihira quickly spoke up to explain for Lin Yu.

But neither Yukihira Soma's voice nor the whispers of the other students could affect Lin Yu.

Lin Yu's expression remained unchanged from beginning to end, as calm as ever, as if the flames that had almost reached his face had never existed.

The next moment, Lin Yu picked up the rice and poured it into the raging flames.

After the rice was put into the pot, the flames burned even more fiercely.

Lin Yu also began to increase the speed and force of his tossing motions in the wok.

At this moment, Lin Yu entered a state of absolute concentration, and the surrounding sounds seemed to disappear from his ears.

His mind was completely focused on the wok in front of him. All external distractions were nothing but bubbles and illusions in Lin Yu's eyes at this moment.

Flames, temperature, distorted air, scalding airflow...

Oil, rice, chopped green onions...

Despite facing such raging flames, Lin Yu's heart remained as calm as a deep, still pool, without a ripple on its surface.

The firelight illuminated Lin Yu's face, making his features glow, but also highlighting his serious expression and the focus in his eyes.

From the moment the flames were lit, Lin Yu's movements of tossing the wok never stopped, maintaining a steady rhythm throughout, while the whispers around him never ceased.

"With that kind of fire, the rice would burn, wouldn't it? It would definitely burn!"

"Moreover, there are eggs, which are very delicate ingredients."

"This is utter chaos!"

"That's right, this guy is definitely messing around! Let's see what he does when the eggs burn and taste bitter!"

"You have no sense of proportion!"

"That's just how transfer students are; they especially love doing all sorts of fancy things."

"It's just showing off skills; all that effort will inevitably be wasted!"

Amidst the whispers around him, most of the voices were derogatory and slanderous, which made Yukihira Soma clench his fists, feeling extremely annoyed.

He wanted to argue with those rude people on Lin Yu's behalf, but he was worried about Lin Yu, who was focused on his work.

Yukihira Soma was afraid that he was too close to Lin Yu. If he started arguing with those guys and his voice was too loud, it would disturb Lin Yu who was focused.

However, not all the students who were watching were making rude remarks.

"What a bunch of idiots who only know how to gossip behind people's backs!"

"What did you say?"

In the classroom, a small number of sensible students also saw the truth.

"You won't admit you're idiots. Did you see even a hint of panic on that guy's face?"

"What? He deliberately started the fire?"

"Of course, this is what Chinese chefs excel at: their ultimate control over fierce flames!"

The students watched as Lin Yu remained calm and composed in the face of the raging flames, his expression unchanged, and even the rhythm of his hand movements showed no sign of panic.

A sense of awe arose spontaneously in their hearts.

"Absolutely stunning!"

"Lin Yu's classmate's fire control skills are just too amazing!"

"As far as I know, no senior member of the Chinese Cuisine Research Club can control such a raging fire."

"No way?!"

This statement caused a gasp from the crowd.

"I remember the head of the Chinese Cuisine Research Club, isn't he the eighth seat of the Ten Masters, Terunori Kuga?"

"You mean that even Kuga-senpai is not as good as Lin Yu in terms of the skill of controlling the heat?"

'

"What nonsense! I never said anything like that!"

Upon hearing this, the student quickly offered a defense, but the next moment, he began to doubt his own words.

"However... well... it's hard to say..."

"1

The student who said this stared intently at Lin Yu, who was frantically tossing the wok, not wanting to miss a single detail of his movements.

Amidst the towering flames, a figure stood resolutely, letting the firelight and heat beat down on his face.

But he did not back down in the slightest, and is conquering that flame all by himself!

The firelight illuminated the entire classroom, and the scorching air emanated from the cooking station where Lin Yu was located, spreading outwards and hitting the faces of every student watching the battle.

That's right, this isn't cooking, it's a battle!

A battle for humanity to conquer fire!

At this moment, what illuminates this classroom is not only the light and heat of the flames, but also Lin Yu's burning will!

The student who initially defended Lin Yu nervously swallowed and exhaled.

The more he watched this scene, the more terrified he became!

His inner surprise made it difficult for him to maintain his composure. He subconsciously raised his hand to wipe away non-existent sweat from his forehead, and muttered in a voice only he could hear, "Maybe I'm going crazy..."

""

"I even think that some chefs in the Chinese cuisine department probably don't even reach this guy's level in terms of [fire control]..."

'

"Lin Yu!"

"This guy... is amazing!"

This student used to look down on transfer students, believing that they had taken a shortcut.

But now, as he watched with his own eyes, the transfer student he looked down upon was standing less than ten meters away from him.

All by himself, he conquered such raging flames!

All by himself, he accomplished something they wouldn't even dare to imagine!

In fact, he wasn't the only one.

A raging inferno of flames reaching the sky, and a person's resolute back.

Whether they admit it or not, this breathtaking scene, like an oil painting, though simple in its elements, is deeply imprinted on the hearts of every student in this classroom!

Absolutely stunning!

难以忘怀！

It wasn't just the students watching that felt an indescribable shock.

On the podium.

The usually listless and drowsy instructor, Ando, ​​was now serious and watching Lin Yu's cooking intently.

No one knew that a terrifying scream was erupting within him at that moment.

Is there a fire?

Hey Hey hey!

It's too exaggerated!

I just took a nap, and look what the world has become!

Why is there such a big fire in that pot?!

Hey! Watch out! The fire's about to hit your face!

The expression on this kid's face... is far too calm, isn't it?

Facial paralysis?

No, this should be called confidence...

But the key point is, this terrifying fire control ability, you're telling me this is a first-year student at Totsuki Academy!

Are you kidding me?

This is almost better than mine!

When the thought popped into his head, Ando was instinctively startled by it.

But looking at the towering pillar of fire that shot out of the pot, more than a meter high, and then at Lin Yu's calm expression and the perfectly steady rhythm of his movements, he was impressed.

Ando asked himself, if he were in Lin Yu's position, facing a ball of flames so close and fierce, could he still be as calm and composed as Lin Yu?

Do not!

It's impossible!

As someone who knows his own situation best, Ando almost immediately gave himself the answer.

If he were in Lin Yu's current position, he probably wouldn't be able to control such a raging fire.

Not to mention someone like Lin Yu, who remained calm and composed even when the fire snake was just centimeters away from his face, his movements perfectly steady.

Realizing this, Ando felt an indescribable sense of frustration.

Wow!

These first-year students are a bit too scary!

When Dojima Gin was invited to the Totsuki Resort, he confidently told himself that it was just a regular training camp and he could slack off as much as he wanted.

But now, this situation... let alone slacking off, even he's scared!

Senior Dojima, I'm reporting someone here is cheating!

Wow, that's amazing!

Everyone, including Soma Yukihira, stared intently at the breathtaking scene, not daring to look away for a moment, afraid of missing even the slightest detail.

Do not!

Strictly speaking, watching such a cooking performance is like watching an art performance.

This is a dance between man and fire!

This is humanity's conquest of fire!

Looking at Lin Yu's back, Yukihira Soshin couldn't help but feel a sense of longing.

For Yukihira Soma, who is obsessed with cooking, he sincerely felt that even if he could learn two or three tenths of Lin Yu's level of fire control, it would be enough for him to make rapid progress in his skill of controlling the heat!

It wasn't just Soma Yukihira who had this idea; many of the students watching in the classroom also shared this sentiment.

"What amazing skill!"

"It's simply a masterpiece of nature!"

"If only I could be as good as him, wouldn't I be able to do whatever I want on campus?"

"Then you should just give up. You'll never be able to do it."

"That's going too far!"

Amidst countless astonished gazes, in the flaming wok, the rice grains coated in egg had already undergone a phoenix-like rebirth in the flames.

Each grain of rice is evenly coated with egg liquid, and its surface is a dazzling golden yellow, just like countless tiny gold nuggets that have been roasted over a high fire, rolling and colliding in the iron pot, making a pleasant sound.

"So beautiful!"

"It's a dazzling gold!"

"Anyone who didn't know better would definitely think that what's being fried in the iron pot is real gold!"

"It's simply a work of art!"

The sounds of shock and admiration came like waves, one after another.

However, as time went by, everyone's mood plummeted, like falling from a mountaintop, and they all became tense.

"The problem is, even if you keep tossing the food in the wok to keep it moving, won't the surface of the eggs dry out quickly in such a fierce flame?"

"It's already a perfect work of art! Lin Yu, stop right now! Don't ruin this fried rice!"

The crowd began to stir. As chefs, no one wanted to see such a work of art destroyed in front of them.

Even Soma Yukihira, who trusted Lin Yu implicitly, began to tremble with fear.

Finally, he couldn't hold back any longer and asked Lin Yu his question.

"Lin Yu, if you keep frying like this, won't the rice become dry and hard, or even burnt?"

"Of course!"

"So now, it's time for the broth to make its appearance."

Lin Qi remained calm as he answered Xingping's question, his hands moving with perfect rhythm while his eyes carefully observed the changes in the pot.

"Now!"

Lin Yu suddenly exerted force in his hand.

As the rice was tossed into the air, Lynch seized the opportunity, scooped out a small spoonful of chicken soup, and flicked his wrist to spread the soup.

The chicken soup was tossed into a uniform fan shape and poured onto the still scalding hot iron pot.

"Sizzle!"

The chicken soup evaporated instantly, turning into a rising cloud of mist.

But before the steam could escape from the pot, it was covered by the falling golden rice, which blended its own flavor with the rice.

Most students didn't quite understand what was going on, but Ando, ​​who had been watching Lin Yu's cooking progress closely from the podium, widened his eyes immediately upon seeing this and couldn't help but applaud, silently cheering for Lin Yu.

If he wasn't afraid of startling Lin Yu and ruining the dish with trembling hands, he really wanted to jump up and shout.

Lin Yu kept tossing the wok with one hand while using the other to put the bowl of shredded chicken leg meat into the wok. Then he added a second pile of chopped green onions from the cutting board and sprinkled in some salt.

"Although chicken broth was added, the seasoning only included salt and scallions..."

'

"Lin Yu, I know chicken soup is very delicious."

"But this fried rice has absolutely no other ingredients or seasonings, relying solely on the umami flavor of the chicken broth... Won't the dish be too bland?"

Soma Yukihira was like a curious child, constantly asking his own questions.

"Yukihira, you're overthinking things!"

Lin Yu was clearly in a good mood today; even after being asked so many questions, he didn't seem impatient at all.

While maintaining a fast pace and high level of difficulty in his cooking, he even managed to squeeze in time to answer Soma Yukihira's questions.

"A good chef can tame countless ingredients and seasonings, but will not become overly obsessed with their power."

"Cooking is an art, not just a matter of piling up elements, understand?"

"To make delicious food, you not only need to learn how to add ingredients, but sometimes you also need to learn how to subtract ingredients, or even more advanced multiplication and division."

Although Lin Yu spoke in a calm tone, Soma Yukihira could sense a strong sense of confidence in him.

"Take my dish for example."

"The wok hei (wok aroma) created by raging fire is the soul of the entire dish."

"And in this pot, the four flavors of chicken oil, chicken broth, chicken leg, and egg work together to form a foundation, which is the base flavor of the whole fried rice."

"Upon the foundation, there is a trio of aromas: rice, eggs, and scallions. This is a building constructed on a foundation; what should be emphasized is the balance and harmony among the three."

"And the final touch of a pinch of salt is the finishing touch."

"It is a constant flavor that connects all the flavors I have mentioned before."

"Do you understand what I'm saying?"