Descending from the judging platform, Jun Qing tidied up his belongings at the Wangyue Zhai competition zone.
"Do you still have that rice bowl? Could you get me one?"
Turning around, Zhang Wei appeared beside him with a grin.
Without hesitation, Jun Qing immediately fetched one.
"The ingredients were plentiful, so I made an extra one. It was originally for my partner."
"How shameless of me."
"It's nothing. It's the dish's honor to be shared with a chef as skilled as you."
Looking at the rice bowl, Jun Qing felt a sense of loss.
He had sacrificed so much for it.
It contained no less than ten precious ingredients, each requiring immense effort to procure. His sole aim was to win the championship at the Northern Chefs' Grand Feast!
Alas...
He had ultimately lost.
If it wasn't first place, then everything he had done beforehand became completely meaningless.
"This rice bowl is made terribly."
"Mm."
Jun Qing didn't react at first. He suddenly turned around and asked, "What did you say?"
"I said your rice bowl is made extremely poorly."
Seeing Jun Qing's disbelieving look, Zhang Wei emphasized, "It's just plain bad, not delicious, utterly pathetic... If I were a judge, I wouldn't give you a single point. Purple is your ultimate destination!"
"You... You're going too far!"
As a chef, the most unbearable thing was to have one's work defamed!
Jun Qing said angrily, "I didn't expect you to be this kind of person!"
"I've always been honest." Da Feng Novel Network.
Jun Qing chuckled bitterly, "Alright then, tell me. Where exactly is my cooking lacking?"
"It lacks that you want to win too much."
"Nonsense, what does that have to do with the taste!"
"Gathering ingredients wasn't easy, was it?"
Zhang Wei smiled. "This dish uses only high-level ingredients. From the main ingredient to the seasonings, nothing is below level thirty. Even the condiments used a large amount of rare items."
"Salt essence, caramel honeybees, aged vinegar from the distant mountains... these are all precious items worth a fortune."
"Roughly counting, there are at least twenty types of these."
"It must have taken a lot of effort to blend all these miscellaneous things together, right?"
Jun Qing was stunned by the question and then fell silent.
But Zhang Wei didn't stop, continuing to ramble at the doorway.
"Let me think. A young chef, obsessed with victory, scours the mountains and fields to assemble a luxurious dish."
"But he was lucky, obtaining one delicious ingredient after another. Any one of them alone would be a treasure of immense value... This young chef couldn't bear to discard any of them."
"Then he racked his brains, wondering what cooking method could combine all these ingredients?"
"But at this point, the young chef fell into a misconception. His goal in choosing a cooking method was no longer to explore the extreme deliciousness of the food, nor to do his best to make it tasty..."
"But rather, to throw a bunch of clashing ingredients into one pot... In fact, hot pot might have been better than a rice bowl."
...
"Stop talking!"
Jun Qing said through gritted teeth!
By now, sweat had begun to bead on his forehead.
Zhang Wei's words were like a relentless onslaught, each one a critical hit and a cleave, shattering Jun Qing's mentality!
At this moment, Zhang Wei finished his last grain of rice, wiped the oil from the corner of his mouth with his sleeve, and tossed the bowl to Jun Qing.
"I was just speaking hypothetically, spouting nonsense. Gotta go..."
Zhang Wei turned to leave.
"Wait a moment."
"What is it?"
"Thanks!"
"Consider it payment for the meal I ate."
Zhang Wei and this Jun Qing had a certain fate. They had met by chance near the Overlord Tree, and Zhang Wei had even obtained the Eight Lightning Control techniques from them.
That old man Jun from Wangyue Zhai was also an interesting fellow.
Having received his gift earlier, teaching his grandson a lesson was just returning the favor.
At the judging seats, Xiao Quan's score had been revealed.
Red: 7!
Exquisitely delicious and incredibly impressive!
Orange: 18!
A rare delicacy, savored but once in a lifetime.
Yellow: 61!
A classic masterpiece, a paragon of chefs!
Green: 14!
His score even surpassed Hei Chengze, successfully claiming the championship title of this grand event!
In the audience, Tang Zhihun had collapsed onto the ground, his eyes filled with regret and self-blame.
"Master Tang, don't give up hope! There are still two contestants whose scores haven't been announced!"
A total of 32 contestants!
Gangze Xiaoquan was the thirtieth.
The remaining two were Zhang Wei from Wine and Beauty, and Lou Ming from the Black List.
Of course, Tang Zhihun and the others were unaware of their true identities.
Tang Zhihun looked at the remaining two and said despairingly, "One is Wine and Beauty, the other is Exquisite Makeup. Two unknown minor figures, how could they possibly defeat Gangze Xiaoquan!"
Xifeng nodded. "This Gangze Xiaoquan defeated Hei Chengze. This year, the rankings of those old famous establishments are so low! In my opinion..."
"What do you think?"
"Let's run."
Xifeng said, "At worst, we'll break our promise and be criticized for our lack of credibility. It's better than abandoning our chef identities and losing our hands and feet!"
Tang Zhihun choked back a sob. "But what about the association's reputation?"
"It's not a big problem. Your reputation was lost the moment you lost the bet. It doesn't matter if you run or not. At least I can protect myself!"
Xifeng, as expected of his cunning nature, had a clear line of reasoning.
The bet they made had already put the Century Treasure Association on the spot. In front of those wicked black media, they had lost all their face long ago.
Since that was the case, they had to protect Tang Zhihun well.
Even if the World Treasure Association's business declined, it didn't matter. Their goods were stored in the Century Glacier, and the longer they were kept, the more valuable they became.
Once the public outcry subsided, business would resume as usual.
Tang Zhihun shot up. "Then what are we waiting for? Let's pack up and go!"
"Your apprentice, that Zhang Wei, hasn't returned yet."
"Don't worry about him. He won't starve with his skills. He can find a job anywhere to earn the travel expenses back to the Great Glacier."
...
...
The red sun rises in the east, its great light shines!
After a day and night of fierce competition, the audience looked exhausted.
On the stage, only the last two contestants remained.
"Countdown, one hour!"
Two strong men flipped the hourglass, and the fine sand began to flow...
If the contestants did not finish before the sand ran out, they would be disqualified.
At this moment, the attention of the entire audience was focused on Zhang Wei and Lou Ming.
On the stage, the two faced each other from a distance.
"It's just you and me left."
Zhang Wei walked closer and said in a low voice, "Your apprentice is very good."
Lou Ming was not surprised. Qianxue could reveal information about the Black List, so she could also reveal information about Xiao Quan and Hei Cheng.
"Saying these things now is meaningless."
"What we need now is to look forward to the final result of this competition! Zhang Wei, I hope you... won't disappoint me!" Lou Ming emphasized the last sentence word by word.
Zhang Wei chuckled.
"You too."