Food Wars, my food not only glows!

　Chapter 76 Two rounds of selection, the final four!

　"Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! Let go! Let go now!"

　Large beads of sweat dripped from his forehead. The tall, burly Qin Lie cried out in pain, trying to shake off Bai Yuan's arm.

　However, it was all in vain. Bai Yuan ignored his wails and just looked at him with a half-smile, while increasing the pressure on his hands until he knelt on the ground from the pain.

　"Remember this, if you're going to participate in the competition, then participate properly. Don't try anything underhanded. Consider this a lesson for you. You won't be so lucky next time."

　Bai Yuan shook his head and let go of the person in his hand, letting him collapse to the ground, clutching his right hand and groaning in pain. He encountered this kind of person in every competition.

　Bai Yuan knew better than anyone what this guy was up to. If he were just an ordinary person, he probably wouldn't be able to participate in the knife skills competition if Qin Lie, a strong man who was over 1.9 meters tall, squeezed him.

　This eliminates a competitor, increasing the chances of finishing in the top three. It's a nice idea, but reality is harsh.

　This guy doesn't even consider that how many of those who become master chefs are actually ordinary people? And how many of those who spend their lives in the kitchen are weaklings?

　Using the same tactics against him, Bai Yuan glanced at Qin Lie, who was wailing in pain, found a quiet spot to sit down, and closed his eyes to rest.

　The others watched this scene without offering any help, or even glancing at it. After all, this guy had brought it upon himself, and Bai Yuan had already shown mercy by not crippling him outright.

　"Ah...hiss..."

　Qin Lie clutched his arm on the ground for a long time before finally standing up. He glanced angrily in Bai Yuan's direction, then got up and left the lounge.

　No one paid attention to this little incident.

　As time went on, the staff in charge of the lounge arrived and informed them that the assessment would begin in ten minutes.

　Immediately, the master chefs who were resting in the lounge got up one after another.

　Five minutes later, on the field.

　"Look! Teacher Bai Yuan is out!"

　In front of Daxian Temple in Guangzhou, Kikuchi and her friends found a relatively forward-facing spot where they could see the entire competition field.

　Suddenly, Li Wanwan said excitedly, and the others looked in the direction she pointed and immediately saw Bai Yuan, who was located in the center of the contestants.

　At that moment, Bai Yuan waved to them.

　"The sword-fighting duel before the gods is about to begin, I can't wait!"

　"I heard that the minimum requirement for participating in this Shinsengumi knife skills competition is a Master Chef! The champion will directly receive the title of Master Chef Five-Star!"

　"Look! Those are the Four Heavenly Kings of the Cantonese Culinary Association! Wait, why are only three here?"

　"I don't know. Maybe one of them is busy. It's already quite remarkable that three of them could come. These are all big names in the culinary world!"

　The audience below the stage were chattering away when suddenly someone pointed to the area above the contestants' competition, where several top chefs from the Guangdong Culinary Association slowly walked out.

　Surprisingly, there were only three Heavenly Kings on stage, while the other one was nowhere to be found, and it was unclear whether he was the final performer or had something else to do.

　"Wow~"

　Ignoring the discussions of the audience, the wooden door behind the three kings of the Guangchu Union was suddenly opened, and four monks dressed in monastic robes walked out.

　They marched in unison, each holding a wooden frame with a red cloth wrapped around it.

　The thing that was displayed immediately attracted the attention of everyone present.

　"The legendary kitchen utensils are inside that."

　"I've heard that over the past few centuries, countless knife skills competitions have been held in front of the Daxian Temple in Guangzhou, but no matter how talented the chef, they could never gain its approval!"

　Some people looked at the area wrapped in red cloth, their voices revealing a hint of excitement.

　"Isn't this obviously fake? This knife has been in Guangzhou for hundreds of years, and it's amazing that it hasn't rusted! A chef getting the knife's approval? Do you think this is some fantasy novel?!"

　The rational commentator crossed his arms, his voice unconsciously rising as he scoffed dismissively.

　"Whether it's real or fake is none of our business. It's not like we're going up there to be recognized as masters. The fact that we can witness a top-level chef competition live in person is truly heart-pounding!"

　Spectators who had traveled from afar were filled with excitement. The master chefs were ready and waiting for the organizers to announce the start of the competition.

　"Then the legendary kitchen utensils, the true successor, the knife skills showdown before the shrine of Daxian Temple is about to begin!"

　After glancing at the audience gathered there and the top chefs who were already on high alert, Master Baiyao stepped out from among the three Heavenly Kings.

　"The ingredients are various fresh vegetables. The first round of assessment involves preparing these vegetables into a standard salad according to the requirements."

　You have five minutes to freely arrange the vegetables from the basket on the left side of the counter. Each person must prepare more than fifty salads; otherwise, they will be considered to have failed.

　It sounds like a simple task, but it's actually incredibly difficult. Making a salad isn't hard; the challenge is making fifty servings in a short amount of time.

　Five minutes? Fifty salads? Are you kidding me?!

　"That's outrageous, but the Guangdong Chefs Association won't set unachievable tests. What's difficult for us might be easy for those master chefs. At least... there must be someone on site who can do it!"

　"I didn't expect it to be this exciting right from the start! I'm already looking forward to it!"

　As soon as Master Baiyao finished speaking, a gasp of surprise erupted from the audience, especially the viewers, whose faces were filled with both shock and anticipation.

　Preparing fifty salads in five minutes requires exceptional knife skills; it's simply impossible to do it by chopping vegetables methodically!

　And that's the highlight of the divine swordsmanship duel!

　"Making fifty salads is a bit rushed, but not a big problem. However, starting with this level of intensity right away, isn't that a bit too much?!"

　A two-star chef, wielding two knives, wore a surprised expression.

　Making fifty salads in five minutes is not particularly difficult, but it is definitely not easy either. At least, a chef who has not received special training in this area could never do it!

　However, having reached the top level, their fundamentals must have been honed to perfection.

　"Then, the test begins."

　As the young monks presented stacks of plates to the contestants, Master Baiyao glanced around, then looked at Bai Yuan. Noticing his somewhat nonchalant attitude, he waved his hand and announced the start of the test.

　The next moment, all the chefs sprang into action, including Bai Yuan, who had remained silent until now.

　Suddenly, a 'Wuqu knife' known for its sharpness and cutting speed appeared in his hand, and at the same time, he dumped a basket of ingredients onto the cooking table in front of him.

　"Swift Light and Shadow Slash!"

　With a soft shout, he slammed his hand on the table, and his powerful internal force sent all the ingredients on the table flying into the air.

　Bai Yuan used another secret technique he learned in the world of dark cuisine: the Flowing Light Instant Shadow Slash!

　This technique allows for the rapid processing of large quantities of ingredients, enabling them to meet the chef's cooking requirements in a very short time.

　As Bai Yuan's voice fell, the Wuqu Blade transformed into a streak of light in the air, processing the ingredients that had flown into the sky at an astonishing speed.

　Each flash of the knife was accompanied by a subtle and crisp cutting sound, the sound of ingredients being precisely divided, stems removed, and sliced.

　In the blink of an eye, the originally messy ingredients were transformed into salad toppings that were uniform in size and perfectly shaped.

　The lettuce leaves were meticulously shredded, the tomatoes were evenly diced, and the corn kernels retained their original freshness.

　Everything seemed so harmonious and orderly.

　"Look over there! What amazing skill! The knife flashes through the air, and then the food is perfectly prepared and lands on the porcelain plate below!"

　"How did he manage to make so many ingredients fly into the air at the same time? It's incredible! He has such amazing skills!"

　"Wait, he finished?! He finished fifty salads in less than a minute? That's outrageous!"

　In less than a minute, under the influence of light and shadow, the originally whole ingredients were cut into appropriately sized pieces and placed on different plates as Bai Yuan requested. After adding salad dressing and mixing slightly, fifty salads were completed.

　Such astonishing speed is truly breathtaking!

　"That uncle in blue is amazing! He processed all these ingredients with just a short knife!"

　Although not as fast as that young child, he was still far ahead on the field!

　Suddenly, someone pointed at a man in a blue robe with a stubble beard and exclaimed in surprise. At that moment, the man's mental focus was extremely high, averaging one minute...

　Zhong was able to prepare more than twenty salads, finishing the task in just over two minutes and completing the assessment.

　"Why are all the leaders unfamiliar faces? Those who frequently appear on TV are performing so poorly in this assessment..."

　"The real masters are often found among ordinary people. Those who frequently appear on television, where do they find the time to hone their culinary skills? Won't their skills decline over time?"

　"What you said isn't entirely unreasonable. As a chef, you really should focus on honing your culinary skills. Now look at you, you've shown your ignorance!"

　"It's hard to say, I need to make a living! Participating in a cooking variety show can earn you more money in one go than you can in a lifetime. Would you go?"

　A heated discussion broke out among the audience as they watched the other contestants, some faster and some slower.

　However, as time went by, everything settled down.

　The first round of selection has ended, and three of the thirteen top-level chefs have been eliminated, including Qin Lie, who had previously targeted Bai Yuan in the lounge.

　Seeing that he had only finished ten salads, a huge chorus of boos erupted from the audience, making him blush with embarrassment. In the end, he covered his face and left in shame and indignation.

　Bai Yuan calmly watched all of this, then turned his gaze to Master Baiyao. The warm-up should be over now; it's time to get to the main event!

　"Okay, the first round of selection is over. Three contestants have been eliminated this time."

　For those who have passed this round of selection, please listen to the question: This round of assessment will test the precision of your knife skills.

　Next, the Guangzhou Culinary Federation will provide each contestant with a one-meter-high block of ice and a kitchen knife of the exact same size.

　Contestants are asked to use their skills to carve a qualified ice sculpture with a kitchen knife.

　The assessment will last one hour, begin now!

　Looking at the remaining ten contestants and noticing Bai Yuan's intense gaze, Master Baiyao clapped his hands behind him.

　Soon, more than twenty young monks carried ice blocks to the competition venue and distributed them to the contestants, placing them on their cooking tables.

　"Ice sculpture assessment? We are chefs, not sculptors. Using ice sculptures to test knife skills will not test anything at all!"

　At the assessment site, a master chef looked at the ice sculpture in front of him, which exuded a chilling aura, and his face showed dissatisfaction. What's going on with the assessments in Guangzhou? Why are the questions so strange!

　Using ice sculptures to test knife skills seems rather strange! Shouldn't they normally present a dish closely related to knife skills and have them cook it?

　"Making ice sculptures requires extremely high knife skills because the hardness and brittleness of ice make the carving process very challenging."

　Chefs must be able to use a knife accurately and smoothly to make precise cuts and sculpts in ice to achieve the desired shape and effect.

　This is the ultimate test of a chef's knife skills, not some useless skill as you say. If you can't do it, you might as well go home and find your mother.

　Bai Yuan's disdainful voice rang out from the side: practicing knife skills by carving ice sculptures is something that people have done throughout history, and it is indeed a very good method.

　Now, the ice sculpture challenge in the divine knife skills competition is perfectly reasonable in Bai Yuan's eyes, and the nature of the person making the fuss is already very clear.

　"What did you say?!"

　The top-tier chef, who had been rebuked, glared at Bai Yuan with obvious displeasure, his voice becoming sharper.

　"This young man is right. The purpose of using ice sculptures as an assessment question is precisely this."

　In addition, ice sculptures often possess a high degree of artistry and visual appeal, which requires chefs to have rich imagination and creativity.

　At the same time, ice sculpting is a delicate and time-consuming process, requiring chefs to have extremely high levels of patience and focus—these are all aspects that will be assessed!

　At the same time, Master Baiyao's voice rang out, briefly explaining the purpose of the assessment to everyone participating in the test.

　Ice sculpting is the best demonstration of a chef's comprehensive abilities, and it's also the best test of knife skills! If an ice sculpture can be made perfectly, it's enough to prove a chef's superb knife skills.

　"So, if you can't do it, get out. If you can, produce results instead of barking here. As a chef, that's very low-class."

　Bai Yuan shrugged as he spoke. It seemed that the intensity of the special-level assessments varied greatly from place to place. It was surprising that someone like him had passed. It really was a case of culinary skills being valued above character.

　In that case, it's no wonder that Guangzhou's top-level assessment is known as the most difficult, because in addition to culinary skills, it also tests the chef's character and spirit.

　"Hmph, I hope your writing is as eloquent as your mouth!"

　Since Master Baiyao had spoken up in support, the chef who had spoken earlier could only swallow his anger, but he still couldn't help but utter some harsh words before the game started.

　"My work? Don't be scared!"

　Upon hearing the man's words, Bai Yuan's expression immediately turned strange. He then chuckled and said no more, deciding to prove him wrong with his work.

　"Then, the assessment will officially begin! This assessment will be decided by the audience, and the four who receive the most votes will directly advance to the final round."

　Seeing that all the contestants were ready, Master Baiyao raised his hand and solemnly announced the start of the assessment.

　This time, everyone was ready to go, watching as the ice sculpture quickly took shape in their minds, aiming to be exquisite and appealing to the audience.

　They knew in their hearts that as long as they could advance in this match, they would be within reach of the top three.

　It's just one step away!

　This is a selection test. The knife skills competition is not officially starting until the top four are announced. This is just a warm-up.

　"Ice sculpture? Isn't that Teacher Bai Yuan's specialty!?"