Moreover, Gu Zheng knew Song Bai's identity. Song Bai was a cultivator, and a strong one at that. He probably wouldn't do such a thing.
The second challenger soon came to the stage. He was making a famous snack in the capital, Zha Jiang Noodles.
He was also a contestant in this competition, but Zha Jiang Noodles was not his best dish. He was good at more than one kind of food, and he hoped to get a good ranking in the competition. This time, he didn't try his best.
Zha Jiang Noodles was not his best dish, but it was one of his favorite dishes. He often made it himself, and there were very few people who could make it better than him. Many famous Zha Jiang Noodles restaurants in the capital were not as good as him, so he was confident.
He had been making Zha Jiang Noodles for decades. Using the same ingredients, he didn't believe that others could make it better than him.
The ingredients were divided into two parts. He still made the noodles first, kneading the noodles and making the sauce at the same time. He was very fast. Soon, a bowl of steaming Zha Jiang Noodles was ready, and a strong aroma spread out.
The aroma was indeed very strong, but it was a little oily, because he had used ordinary ingredients.
Even so, it was not easy to make such an aroma, which proved that his cooking skills were really good, and he was good at making Zha Jiang Noodles.
After he was done, Song Bai also moved. Gu Zheng had been staring at him, watching him carefully.
What Song Bai did was a little different from what he did, but the whole process was the same, and he did it more carefully and better. Gu Zheng found that Song Bai had removed some unnecessary and complicated steps, and his efficiency was even higher than that of the previous challenger.
The steps were the same, which meant that he had followed the steps of the previous challenger. The way he did it was different because he had made some improvements. It was even possible that he had never made Zha Jiang Noodles before, and just copied what the previous challenger did after watching him do it.
If what Gu Zheng guessed was true, then this person was really amazing. His cooking skills had reached a certain level.
To be able to learn it after seeing it once, and to be able to do it better than others, such a person could definitely be called a genius. In terms of cooking skills, he was even better than Gu Zheng. Gu Zheng's cooking skills were good, but many of them were inherited from the Gluttonous Immortal. The only cooking skill he created himself was the Egg-Fried Rice.
Song Bai's Zhajiang noodles were cooked faster, and the aroma was stronger, which made many people feel hungry.
The ten judges soon finished their noodles. The final verdict was that Song Bai was still the winner.
Just like before, this fighter was still unconvinced and refused to admit defeat. However, after eating the noodles made by Song Bai, his face became even more gloomy. In the end, he admitted defeat and left.
Of the two fighters, both had lost.
Song Bai won two rounds in a row. The people he defeated were not ordinary people, but people who were qualified to participate in this food competition. Such a victory was of great significance. At least, it showed that his cooking skills were much better than those of the other two.
The third person went up on stage. He didn't choose what he wanted to make initially. Instead, he took a shortcut and changed it to making steamed buns.
Making steamed buns might seem simple, but it was actually very unusual. To make steamed buns, the first step was to ferment the flour. Fermenting the flour required a lot of knowledge. Determining the best level of ferment for steamed buns required a lot of experience.
Next was steaming. How long and how well it was steamed was very important. This time, Song Bai didn't wait for him to finish. When he started, Song Bai also started.
Both of their flour fermented for about half an hour. Both of them used the method of accelerating the fermentation, and then put the steamed buns into the pot.
Almost at the same time, both of their steamed buns were out of the pot. Both of them sat in a pot of steamed buns, and there were six steamed buns in each pot.
Before the judges tasted the steamed buns made by Song Bai, the man asked himself. He picked up Song Bai's steamed buns and took a bite. After only one bite, his face showed bitterness. Although he didn't choose his best dish in the end, he still lost because he chose the steamed buns.
He was not bad at making steamed buns, and he was best at making wheaten food. In other words, he still lost to Song Bai in what he was good at.
The third person also lost. No one could win the ten million yuan.
The whole morning passed, and the competition continued in the afternoon. Unfortunately, Gu Zheng couldn't come in the afternoon. His tasting meeting was still in progress, and he had to go back to cook for the invited guests.
On the Internet, on the forum, and on the live broadcast platform, it was all boisterous.
Song Bai originally didn't have any supporters, but after he showed up, he gathered a large number of supporters almost instantly. These supporters were almost all women. It seemed that no matter which industry one was in, appearance was very important.
This made Wang Dong very jealous and unconvinced. When he came back at noon, he urged Gu Zheng to participate in the competition.
He believed that Gu Zheng would definitely win. Song Bai could defeat others, but he definitely couldn't defeat Gu Zheng. Gu Zheng shook his head with a smile. It was not that he didn't want to participate in the competition, but he had scruples. If Song Bai wasn't a cultivator, he would definitely sign up for the competition. If he won, it would be a good opportunity for him to become famous. However, Song Bai was a cultivator, and if he participated in the competition, his identity might be exposed.
Anyway, he and Song Bai would have a competition sooner or later, so there was no need for him to participate now.
More than fifty people participated in the tasting meeting in the afternoon, and the number of people increased a lot. The main reason was that there was a comparison. Without comparison, there wouldn't be any harm. Only after the comparison did they know how good Gu Zheng's dishes were.
Especially those who had participated in both tasting meetings, when they went back, they told their friends that Gu Zheng's dishes were really much better than his. If they were invited by Gu Zheng, they would still go if they could, and they wouldn't regret it.
As for the tasting meeting of the participating chefs, they didn't mind not going.
Because of this result, he increased the number of people he invited today to more than fifty. In the end, these people all went back with satisfaction.
In the afternoon, Song Bai's competition continued. In the afternoon, a total of five people participated in the competition, and all of them failed.
For the whole day, eight people participated in the competition, but none of them succeeded. The ten million yuan reward was still there, but unfortunately, no one could take it away. The five people who participated in the competition in the afternoon were different from those in the morning. One of them was in the top 30 of the previous two sessions, and he cooked his specialty dish, but he still lost.
This result was even more shocking.
That chef's specialty dish was not something that could be seen casually on the street. It was a skill passed down from his ancestors. How could Song Bai lose to someone who used the same ingredients and cooked the same way? Where did this monster come from?
After eight consecutive battles, some people who were observant also noticed the problem.
Obviously, Song Bai hadn't cooked some dishes before. He just watched others cook and then cooked them himself. Surprisingly, he cooked better than others who had been cooking for decades. Although it was hard to believe, after watching the videos of today's competition, they had to admit that this was the truth.
Besides, no chef dared to say that he could cook everything, let alone use the same method and steps. All this showed that Song Bai was a genius in cooking.
When he got home, Wang Dong held his tablet and browsed the forum and the news.
He was reading all the news about Song Bai. Song Bai's performance today had been posted in the forum. Many people had been calling for someone to challenge Song Bai and teach him a lesson.
There were three people who were called for the most.
One of them was Lu Yong, 35 years old. The Lu family used to be imperial chefs in the imperial palace since the Ming Dynasty, the Qing Dynasty, and even modern times. The Lu family had mastered secret recipes that outsiders didn't know. They were a real famous family of chefs.
Lu Yong was 35 years old, but he was even better than his father in cooking. This was his first time to participate in the Chinese Food Competition. In fact, there were calls for him to participate in the competition two years ago. At that time, he was 29 years old and felt that his cooking skills were not good enough. He waited for another six years before he finally joined the competition.
Lu Yong once said that as long as he participated in the competition, his goal was to be the champion.
Lu Yong hadn't participated in any competition, but his cooking skills were indeed recognized as good. He had been to the imperial palace many times to cook. People who wanted to eat the dishes he cooked could line up from the capital to Shen City. Moreover, the dishes he cooked had to be ordered a year in advance, and all of them were very expensive.
Now, seeing Song Bai being so arrogant, many people were calling for Lu Yong to come out and teach Song Bai a lesson.
Lu Yong had not been nominated many times in the forum. Not only ordinary people, but also challengers who had failed before all hoped that he could come out and save face.
In addition to Lu Yong, the second person was also called Yong, Yu Yong.
They had the same name but different surnames, but this Yu Yong was much older than Lu Yong. Yu Yong was already 45 years old, and this was not the first time he participated in the Chinese Food Competition. This was his third time.
Although there was no explicit rule on how many times a person could participate in the competition, generally, after participating three times, they would not continue to participate, leaving the opportunity to more people.
Yu Yong had participated in the competition two years ago and the competition two years ago. He did not participate in the two competitions in between.
The first time he participated, Yu Yong's result was eighth. The second time he participated, he took second place. This time, he also tried his best to win first place. He was also a strong contender for the championship.
Since he had taken second place before, his cooking skills could be imagined. Therefore, everyone was looking for him and asking him to come out.
The third person was called Haitao, Si Haitao, 40 years old. This was his second time participating in the Chinese Food Competition. He was third place in the previous world and was also one of the top three contestants. Si Haitao had a unique skill in cooking that no one else could learn, so they wanted to ask him to come out. Song Bai could learn other people's cooking skills, so they wanted to see if he could learn from Si Haitao.
The three of them did not respond, but a few contestants who had achieved good results were willing to challenge.
On the fourth page of the forum, there was a post that asked Gu Zheng to come out. It was posted by Wang Dong, but unfortunately, it could not be maintained at all and was quickly flipped over. Gu Zheng and the others were also not interested in Gu Zheng. It was better for him not to go.
In their eyes, Gu Zheng and Song Bai were probably the same kind of people who needed to be suppressed.
The next morning, Gu Zheng went to the Kunlun Hotel again. Song Bai's challenge would continue today. There were a few challengers today who were better than yesterday, so Gu Zheng also wanted to see how Song Bai would deal with them.
The first challenger made a very popular dish, Red Braised Pork.
He was from Xiang Province, where the Red Braised Pork was very famous, and he was the descendant of the authentic Red Braised Pork, which was also his specialty. He did not believe that anyone could make it better than him.
He cooked first, and Song Bai would cook after him. Before the judges went to eat, he went to taste the Red Braised Pork made by Song Bai.
His face changed greatly and his body trembled slightly when he tasted the Red Braised Pork.
He had been cooking for his whole life and used the same ingredients, but he could not beat a young man. At his age, he was old enough to be this young man's father. He had been cooking this dish longer than this young man.
He really couldn't believe it, but the fact was in front of him. Without the judges' evaluation, he could taste that Song Bai was indeed better than him.
The impossible had happened just like that.
He didn't leave, but he looked very lonely and sat there motionless. He didn't leave, and Song Bai's people didn't force him to admit defeat, as long as he admitted defeat in the end. After the judges tasted the Red Braised Pork, they unanimously judged that Song Bai was the winner.
In fact, just by looking at his appearance and the result of this comparison, one could tell that this person had obviously suffered a great blow.
The next three people went up, but all of them failed without exception. Gu Zheng had been observing Song Bai. Indeed, Song Bai was doing exactly what the others were doing, using the same raw materials. However, Gu Zheng noticed that Song Bai's hands would tremble every time he was cooking, and some powder that was hard to see with the naked eye would fall into the food.
If it weren't for the reminder of the device spirit, even he wouldn't have noticed it.
"Ordinary Flavor Enhancement Flower, no wonder he can win every time!"
After the device spirit's investigation, Gu Zheng finally learned the name of that thing. It was an ordinary raw material called Flavor Enhancement Flower, which, as the name suggested, could enhance the taste of food.
This discovery allowed Gu Zheng to heave a sigh of relief.
Song Bai didn't win completely by his cooking skills. He used a trick, or even cheated. He added ingredients that the others didn't use in the food, and they were ordinary raw materials that could enhance the taste.
But even so, his cooking skills were not bad. It was not easy for him to cook the food made by others after only seeing it once, and he won.
The Flavor Enhancement Flower did help him, but it was not omnipotent. If the food didn't taste good, no matter how much it enhanced the taste, it would be useless. The Flavor Enhancement Flower could play the role of icing on the cake, but it was not absolute.
After understanding this, Gu Zheng left.
Song Bai's cooking skills were not as horrible as he thought. If Song Bai could cook the food better than others after only seeing it once, Gu Zheng didn't have the confidence to win.
If he could cook the food after only seeing it once, he was already a genius. If he could cook the food better than other experienced people after only seeing it once, he was not a genius, but a monster. Anyway, Gu Zheng couldn't do it.
Gu Zheng also asked the device spirit. The current Gokusen could cook the food better than others without any tricks, but that was the current Gokusen. At the beginning, Gokusen didn't have any power, so he couldn't do it.
Talent was not omnipotent, and in many cases, proficiency was also very important.
In the afternoon, more than 60 people came to Gu Zheng's place. The food he cooked was well-known, so many people were willing to come. Among these 60 people, more than 20 had participated in the Chinese Food Competition. They also told Gu Zheng about their experiences in the competition.
These experiences were also very helpful to Gu Zheng.
On the third day, the number of people who challenged Song Bai increased to ten. In the past three days, a total of 27 people challenged Song Bai, but no one defeated him. Song Bai's fame became even more terrifying. Not only people in the food industry knew him, but also many people outside the food industry now knew that there was such a great chef.
Song Bai was even more famous. In addition to his cooking skills, his appearance also won him a lot of female fans.
On the fourth day, a heavyweight contestant finally went to challenge him. This person was not a contestant in this competition, but had participated in three Chinese Food Competitions. His best result was the third place.
Anyway, he was a top three contestant. After he went to challenge Song Bai, many people said that Song Bai's 10 million yuan was finally going to be taken away, and Song Bai would definitely lose this time.
Wang Dong also shouted to Gu Zheng that Song Bai was going to lose. Only Gu Zheng knew that as long as he continued to use his flavor-enhancing flowers, he would not necessarily be the loser.
The result was the same as Gu Zheng's prediction. Song Bai won again. Still, no one could defeat him that day. He won all his matches in the arena.
On this day, even President Gou went to the competition. Song Bai's performance was really amazing. Even President Gou was shocked by him. With Song Bai there, the possibility of Gu Zheng winning the championship was not so high, but it was still not small.
President Gou also sighed. The young people in this year's Chinese Food Competition were better than the other. Both of them were in their early twenties and were so good at cooking. Even those old chefs in their forties or fifties who had been immersed in cooking all their lives were no match for them.
Generally speaking, the peak of cooking skills was between the ages of 30 and 40. Cooking skills were the best in this period, but the quality of the modern human body was getting better and better. Even when one was 50 years old, his cooking skills would not fall behind. With the accumulation of experience, he could still have very good cooking skills when he was 50 years old. Therefore, there were many people in their fifties who participated in the food competition.
However, there were very few people over the age of 50, especially 55. Age and physical strength did not allow them to participate in such competitions. Many people after 55 years old were teaching their apprentices. When they were 65 years old, basically no one continued to work. Even if some people were rehired, very few people would do it.
However, no matter how young they were, they had to be like Lu Yong, who was in his thirties. It was really rare for two monsters in their early twenties to appear at the same time.
On the fifth day, another heavyweight contestant appeared. Si Haitao, who had been silent all this time, suddenly appeared. He was also ranked third, but he was ranked third in the Upper Realm. The forty-year-old Si Haitao.
Si Haitao's appearance made many people cheer. Unfortunately, the final result did not go as they wished. Si Haitao also failed.
These days, he hadn't been idle at all. His tasting meetings had been going on, and more and more people were participating in them. His culinary skills were also getting more and more recognition. Although the Artifact Spirit didn't announce his current ranking, it did tell him that his fame was constantly rising, and his progress was very obvious.
After these days of tasting, many people's impression of Gu Zheng had also changed.
Gu Zheng was also a young man, but he had always been sincere. He used his own delicacies to conquer others. Over the past few days, many of his peers who were participating in this year's Gourmet Food Competition had also come to taste his delicacies. They were full of praises for him, and finally understood why President Gou would make such a post.
Although there were not many people, only less than 50, Gu Zheng's external influence had changed greatly. One was humbly cooking his own things, while the other was arrogantly setting up a ring. Gradually, people began to compare Gu Zheng and Song Bai.
At least, they would not treat them as the same kind of people, which was a good thing for Gu Zheng.
On the sixth day, Yu Yong finally participated in the challenge under the crowd's provocation. He went to fight with Song Bai in the afternoon. After ten temporary judges argued, he finally lost to Song Bai.
Although he lost, it was not as obvious as before. Gu Zheng's cooking skills were indeed unique, and the ingredients were also very good. Even Song Bai couldn't completely imitate his cooking skills. If it weren't for the flavor-enhancing flower, Gu Zheng believed that Song Bai would have lost this time.
Yu Yong also lost, which made many people feel sorry for him, and more people called for Lu Yong.
On the other hand, Gu Zheng continued to expand his influence, and more and more people praised Gu Zheng. Song Bai was very famous, even more than Gu Zheng, but people in the gourmet circle did not like him. On the contrary, more and more people liked Gu Zheng. Both of them were becoming more and more famous. The difference was that one was good, while the other was bad.
At the same time, more and more people called for Gu Zheng, and they were all in the circle.
Even President Gou called to ask if Gu Zheng wanted to challenge Song Bai. He wanted to know which one of the two young people was better.
On the eighth day, Lu Yong finally showed up at the Kunlun Hotel. The food he was cooking was very complicated. It was a palace delicacy. It took him and Song Bai four hours to cook this dish, which took up half of the day.
The ten judges were not professionals. In the end, they failed to judge who was better and who was worse. They found another ten professional judges and finally judged Song Bai as the winner.
Song Bai won again, but this time it was a narrow victory. Lu Yong lost, but he was convinced.
He had cooked this dish many times and was good at it. He was sure that Song Bai could not cook it, but Song Bai could cook it after watching it once. This alone made him admit that he was not as good as Song Bai.
Song Bai's dish was as delicious as his. In fact, he lost.
He was willing to admit that he was not as good as Song Bai. He also said that Song Bai had already decided the champion of this year's China Food Competition. He believed that Song Bai would be the final winner.
He also said that Song Bai was the best and most outstanding cooking genius he had ever seen.
This time, Song Bai also spoke. He directly said that the first place would be his and no one else could win. Many people were disgusted by his words, but they could do nothing about it. Even Lu Yong had been defeated by him. Who else could beat him?
Wang Dong was so angry that he instigated Gu Zheng again. Unfortunately, Gu Zheng did not pay attention to him at all. At present, he already knew the ranking of his fame. At present, Song Bai was the first, and he was the second. However, Song Bai had a bad reputation, and he had a good reputation. The influence of a good reputation was much greater than that of a bad reputation. If he continued, he would definitely surpass Song Bai and become the most famous contestant.
Fame was also divided into different levels. Just like scoring, there were scores of one, two, three, four, and five. Now there were many people scoring for Song Bai, but most of them were one or two points. Fewer people scored for Gu Zheng, but most of them were four or five points. Therefore, Gu Zheng might eventually surpass Song Bai in fame.
The day of the China Food Competition was getting closer and closer, and the time of the test was getting shorter and shorter. Gu Zheng sent out more than a hundred invitations again. He invited almost all the people in the capital. Now he invited all the famous chefs from other places. Fortunately, there was a food competition in the capital recently, and many people were willing to come.
"He can't be the first. A cheater dares to claim to be the first. He is too shameless!"
Wang Dong had just finished telling Gu Zheng about what happened today, Song Bai's words, and Lu Yong's evaluation of Song Bai, when the device spirit shouted in Gu Zheng's heart, looking very angry.
"The successor of Gokusen has triggered a temporary test. The test cannot be refused. Lord Gokusen admires talented young people with high cooking skills very much, but cooking skills should be taken the right way. Crooked ways should not be touched. It is cheating, and he still boasted shamelessly. It is really a disgrace to chefs!"
The device spirit said quickly. Gu Zheng was stunned. Temporary test? What was that? He still had one test that he had not completed. Why was there another one? And it was another test that could not be refused.
"Wait, device spirit, didn't you say that I can't take two tests at the same time?"
Gu Zheng asked anxiously. The device spirit immediately said, "You can't take two formal tests at the same time. The temporary test is not counted. Usually, the temporary test will not affect the current test, and may even be helpful to the current test. So it is allowed!"
After saying that, the device spirit continued, "The content of this test is to defeat Song Bai and expose his tricks on the spot. If you win, you will be rewarded handsomely. If you lose, you will be deemed to have failed the current test!"
Gu Zheng was speechless. He did not expect that there would be a temporary test.
He did not know that the device spirit was now forcing him to increase his strength and enter the Untainted Land as soon as possible. It would not let go of any opportunity to test him. If Song Bai had just secretly cheated, this test would not have been triggered. However, after he cheated, he talked nonsense, which made the device spirit feel that he could trigger the test, so it told Gu Zheng about it.
To Gu Zheng, he did not expect that after going one round, he would still have to go.
In fact, Gu Zheng did not want to go. He was not used to Song Bai's cheating, but he did not look down on him. He suddenly felt that he was also cheating, but in a different way.
He cheated because he could improve the quality of the ingredients and make more delicious food. Others did not have this ability and could not find good ingredients, so they were inferior to him in terms of ingredients.
Song Bai cheated because he secretly used the powder of the Flavor-Enhancing Flower. Although they were different in nature, the result was the same.
"You idiot, idiot, dummy, why did I choose you?"
Gu Zheng told the device spirit his doubts, which made the device spirit scold him.
"You can improve the quality of the ingredients. That's your ability. What does it have to do with cheating? It's like the athletes here. Some people are born with long legs and can run faster. Does it mean that they are cheating when they beat those who run slower? Some people are more flexible and have a strong explosive ability, so they are better than others on the court. Does it mean that they are cheating when they are more flexible than others? "
The device spirit scolded Gu Zheng fiercely, but Gu Zheng just stood there in a daze.
The device spirit was right. It was his ability to improve the quality of the ingredients. In this world, there were many people who were born with stronger abilities than others, so it could not be called cheating.
Even if it was cheating, it was God who was cheating.
"Look at that Song Bai. What did he do? He said he would use the same ingredients, but he secretly added something else. What is this? This is real cheating. It's just like you athletes who drink stimulants. This is not allowed!"
The device spirit continued. It now knew a lot about this world, and even knew about stimulants.
"I see. Thank you, device spirit!"
Gu Zheng laughed foolishly. In fact, he had been thinking too much. After being scolded by the device spirit, he found that although the end result was similar to Song Bai's, the process was indeed completely different.
He did it fair and square. It was his ability to improve the quality of the ingredients. He did not violate the rules by bringing better ingredients to the competition. Song Bai said he would use the same ingredients as others, but secretly added something else, which was a shameful behavior. Gu Zheng thought that he was the same as Song Bai, which was an insult to himself.
"Wang Dong, check how to register for Song Bai's competition. See if you can register tomorrow morning!"
Gu Zheng suddenly ordered Wang Dong. Wang Dong was stunned for a moment, and then jumped up happily. Gu Zheng finally agreed to participate in the competition. He believed that as long as Gu Zheng went, Song Bai would definitely lose.
The reason why he had to go in the morning was that Gu Zheng still had a tasting meeting in the afternoon, which he could not delay.
Not many people had registered for Song Bai's competition, mainly because Song Bai's performance these days was too eye-catching. Even Lu Yong and Yu Yong lost. Other people would only bring shame to themselves if they challenged him. Those who knew their own strength would not go.
In addition, Song Bai also limited the registration. Only those who had participated in the China Food Competition or this year's contestants were qualified to challenge him.
There were not many people like him, which meant that he had rejected the challenges of many ordinary chefs.
Wang Dong quickly contacted the Kunlun Hotel. Now they were the ones accepting the registration. After learning that it was Gu Zheng's challenge, they quickly replied and allowed the challenge. Gu Zheng said it would be in the morning, so it would be in the morning, and it would be the first match.
Early the next morning, the driver took Gu Zheng to the Kunlun Hotel.
After registering yesterday, Wang Dong posted on the forum, saying that Gu Zheng would fight in the arena this morning, and that Gu Zheng would definitely win.
After Lu Yong and Yu Yong lost, only Gu Zheng had a chance to beat Gu Zheng. President Gou had a very high evaluation of Gu Zheng, saying that if the others did not work hard, the championship would fall into Gu Zheng's hands.
Song Bai, on the other hand, was a new force to be reckoned with. He directly set up the arena and challenged all the heroes. After so many days, no one could beat him, which showed how strong he was.
There were more people in the Kunlun Hotel today. More than two hundred of the three hundred contestants in this year's competition, and more than two hundred contestants from the previous competitions were present. Many people from the Food Association were also present, and even President Gou came again.
He was also very curious about which one of the two young people was better. He had tasted the dishes cooked by both of them. In terms of taste, Gu Zheng seemed to be better, but Song Bai was not an ordinary person. He cooked other people's specialties, and he could cook them well. No one knew how his specialties tasted.
In the whole restaurant, more than six hundred people from the gourmet circle came, forcing the Kunlun Hotel to close the restaurant and not open to the public except for some media.
This time, it was equivalent to an internal competition.
Gu Zheng was the first and the only one this morning. Originally, there were not many participants today, but after Gu Zheng's appearance, the other challengers were all scheduled for the afternoon.
"It's a battle between a dragon and a tiger. I don't know whether the dragon or the tiger will win!"
An old senior sighed, and his companion beside him joked, "Then tell us first, who is the dragon and who is the tiger?"
"Of course, Song Bai is the dragon, and Gu Zheng is the tiger!"
"Why do you say so?"
"Song Bai is the dragon that crossed the river, and Gu Zheng is the local tiger. Although both of them are not from the capital, Gu Zheng is a member of the Food Association and has participated in the Hangzhou Food Competition. His father is Gu Ming, and he is one of our internal disciples. Who is Song Bai? He is neither a member of the Food Association, nor has he participated in any competition. I don't know where he came from. A strong dragon can't defeat a local tiger!"
The old senior said slowly. In fact, he was not the only one who had this thought. Most of the people present had the same thought.
Gu Zheng was not a local, either, but he was indeed a member of the Food Association. He also owned a restaurant and had a pot of century-old soup. In addition, he came from a family of chefs and had won good results in the Hangzhou Food Competition, so everyone had a certain degree of recognition for him.
However, this recognition was also relative. Song Bai had no reputation, but he was so arrogant. In the case that they were not satisfied with Song Bai, everyone naturally changed their view of Gu Zheng, the challenger.
When Song Bai came out, Gu Zheng also walked forward. He had seen many people compete here before, but at that time, he didn't expect that he would also come.
The ingredients he brought were very simple, eggs, sesame oil, salt, and water. He didn't want to compete with Song Bai in other things, except for fried eggs. Although fried eggs were simple, they were Gokusen's cooking skills. It was impossible for people to learn Gokusen's cooking skills after seeing it once.
Gu Zheng walked to the front and divided the ingredients into two.
Eggs, sesame oil, water, and salt were all very simple ingredients. Gu Zheng's fried eggs had been famous for a long time. Many people were not surprised to see Gu Zheng take out these ingredients. Some people who had eaten Gu Zheng's fried eggs couldn't help but nod their heads.
Gu Zheng's fried eggs were very unique. That kind of fried eggs were like works of art, which couldn't be imitated by others. Many people were speculating whether this monster Song Bai could make fried eggs as good as Gu Zheng's.
Not to mention the same taste, even the same appearance was very scary.
"Gu Zheng, I know you!"
Song Bai looked at Gu Zheng and whispered. He was supposed to be the youngest contestant, but he didn't expect that someone who pretended to be Gu Zheng was even younger than him.
The title of the youngest contestant was taken away by someone else.
"Can we start?"
Gu Zheng smiled and didn't talk nonsense with him. He came here with a test. This time, he not only wanted to win, but also expose him on the spot.
It was not easy to expose Song Bai. He was a cultivator, but fortunately, he was only at the middle stage of Level Three, which was a little lower than Gu Zheng's. Therefore, Gu Zheng didn't need to worry that he would be angry and beat him after he exposed him.
If they really fought, he was no match for Gu Zheng.
"Please!"
Song Bai stretched out his hand to Gu Zheng. Gu Zheng picked up his frying pan and began to fry eggs. He was doing it in front of many people, so many people saw him frying eggs, including Song Bai.
Pouring oil and beating eggs, there was no difference.
Gu Zheng's hand began to move with the frying pan, but Song Bai frowned. Song Bai was very observant and very careful. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to see what others were doing. Gu Zheng's hand shook like frying eggs, but the frequency was very fast, which was not something that ordinary people could do.
Not only that, Gu Zheng's hand strength was also very strong, which was not something that ordinary people could do.
Song Bai narrowed his eyes. Although it was just a small detail, it had made him realize that Gu Zheng was different from others, and that Gu Zheng was very likely to be a cultivator like him.
Only a cultivator could have such a frequency and strength.
Gu Zheng's fried eggs were cooked very fast. In one minute, the whole fried eggs took shape. The eggs, which were white as jade and yellow as marrow, were displayed in front of everyone again like a piece of art.
Gu Zheng stood aside and made a gesture to Song Bai.
After he was done, it was Song Bai's turn.
Song Bai stood over and washed the frying pan with the same oil, the same eggs, and the same water that Gu Zheng had used before.
His eyebrows suddenly twitched. He was recalling the process of Gu Zheng's fried eggs, but he found that the process was somewhat incoherent, which was something that he had never encountered before.
No matter who it was, no matter what kind of cooking skill it was, he could remember it completely after seeing it once, which had never happened before.
"What kind of cooking skill is this?"
Song Bai couldn't help but ask. If he couldn't remember it in a coherent way, he couldn't copy other people's cooking skills. Next, he had to cook all the dishes by himself in his own way.
This was different from his previous changes. He improved because he had a better way. He didn't learn Gu Zheng's cooking skills at all, so he could only make his own fried eggs according to his own understanding.
"The cooking skill of fried eggs!"
Gu Zheng smiled faintly. He understood that the Glutton Immortal's cooking wasn't something that could be learned just by watching it once. He had made the omelette so many times that he knew how extraordinary it was.
Even if he had already learned it, he wouldn't be able to teach it to someone else. There were many things that couldn't be described or expressed with words. If he could learn it after seeing it once, then he wouldn't be a cultivator anymore. He would be as powerful as the Glutton Immortal.
Gu Zheng believed that Song Bai would never be able to learn the cooking skill of making fried eggs by himself.
Gu Zheng's answer made Song Bai choke. He snorted, poured the oil, heated the pan, and prepared to beat the eggs.
The previous steps were almost exactly the same as Gu Zheng's. However, after the eggs were beaten, they didn't stay still in the pan like Gu Zheng did. Only the pan moved.
When Song Bai flipped the eggs, he didn't have the same sense of beauty as Gu Zheng did. Gu Zheng's eggs were like dancing elves, while Song Bai's eggs were just eggs, which didn't give people any special feeling.
Soon, Song Bai's fried eggs were ready. His hands shook slightly, and a light powder fell on the fried eggs.
Gu Zheng slightly raised the corner of his mouth. He didn't say anything, nor did he stop Song Bai.
"It's different!"
"Yes, it's not as good as Gu Zheng's!"
"The difference is too big!"
Many people looked at the fried eggs made by Song Bai and couldn't help but comment that Gu Zheng's fried eggs were as white as jade. White was white, yellow was yellow, and there was not a single dent on them. They were like perfect works of art. People who didn't know better would treat them as jade.
Although Song Bai's fried eggs were also white and yellow, they were not as artistic as Gu Zheng's fried eggs. His fried eggs were also very flat, but under the calm surface, there was a blur. Unlike Gu Zheng's fried eggs, which were completely transparent, otherwise, people wouldn't mistake them as jade.
In terms of appearance, Song Bai's fried eggs were inferior to Gu Zheng's by a large margin.
"I knew it!"
Wang Dong clenched his fists hard. He believed that Gu Zheng would win. He had always believed that. Now, seeing Song Bai's fried eggs, he was even more convinced that Gu Zheng would win.
Such fried eggs were definitely not as good as Gu Zheng's fried eggs.
"The most important thing about food is its taste. It has to taste good!"
Song Bai snorted. After so many competitions, this was the first time that he took the initiative to speak after a competition. The judges had all eaten Gu Zheng's fried eggs just now. Although they didn't eat much, at least they tasted something.
Song Bai's fried eggs were also sent to the judges. Before they were sent to the judges, Gu Zheng suddenly stopped them. "Can you leave some for me? Just a little will do!"
The staff all looked at Song Bai, and Song Bai nodded slightly. In the past few days, many challengers wanted to taste the food he cooked, but most of them didn't trust the judges. After they tasted his fried eggs and found that they tasted really good, they admitted defeat.
He thought the same of Gu Zheng.
Each of the ten judges had a small bite. Although it was very small, at least they could taste the flavor.
After eating, the ten of them were stunned and looked at each other. Song Bai stood there quietly, looking very confident.
He was very clear that even if his cooking skills were not as good as his opponent's, as long as he cooked well, he would definitely win with the help of the flavor-enhancing flowers, which could greatly enhance the taste of the food.
The simpler the food, the stronger the enhancement. This was a fried egg, which was definitely not complicated. Even if he didn't use the same ingredients, his flavor-enhancing flowers could enhance the taste and make it better.
Unfortunately, he didn't know that his flavor-enhancing flowers were good, but there was a disadvantage of them. The lower the level of the ingredients, the higher the taste. On the other hand, the higher the level of the ingredients, the more limited the enhancement of the flavor-enhancing flowers would be. Gu Zheng's eggs, sesame oil, salt, and even water were all of the ordinary level, which was the same level as the flavor-enhancing flowers. The flavor-enhancing flowers could enhance the taste, but not by much.
The enhanced taste didn't make up for the shortcomings of his cooking skills.
The ten judges all tasted that Song Bai's fried eggs were not as good as Gu Zheng's.
For so many days, they had been there. Song Bai's food always tasted better. Even if there was a dispute, the difference was so great that it was hard for them to judge. As the saying goes, everyone has their own preferences. They had different tastes and preferred different dishes.
But this time, it was different. This time, they all felt that Song Bai's fried eggs were not as good as Gu Zheng's.
"On behalf of everyone, Gu Zheng has eight votes and Song Bai has two. Gu Zheng wins!"
A judge stood up and loudly announced the results. After he finished speaking, many people were stunned.
"Oh, yeah!"
Only Wang Dong held his hands excitedly. He knew it. He knew that Gu Zheng would win. Gu Zheng couldn't lose. The winner this time was really Gu Zheng.
There were so many people in the audience, most of whom were in the gourmet circle. At first, they really expected that Gu Zheng could defeat Song Bai, but when the result was announced, they couldn't accept it. He won, just like that?
"Impossible!"
Song Bai suddenly yelled. He didn't believe that he would lose. Even if he only made fried eggs, his cooking would not be bad, not to mention the flavor-enhancing flowers. With them, he couldn't lose.
"Why is it impossible?"
Gu Zheng suddenly asked. Song Bai suddenly turned his head and stared straight at Gu Zheng.
"You can win, but why can others win?" Gu Zheng asked again. His question was asked quickly, and his words were sharp.
"Of course, I have my reasons. Anyway, I can't lose!"
Song Bai said quickly. He didn't believe that he would lose. It didn't matter that he couldn't learn the other's cooking skills. He couldn't learn everyone's cooking skills. It was good enough if he could learn something similar.
But with the flavor-enhancing flowers, he absolutely didn't believe that he would lose.
"You have your reasons? What reasons?" As soon as he finished, Gu Zheng asked again, very quickly.
"My reasons are my own secret. You don't need to know!"
"Secret, the secret of the flavor-enhancing flowers?"
Gu Zheng suddenly smiled faintly. Song Bai suddenly trembled and looked at Gu Zheng in shock.
Gu Zheng suddenly stepped forward. He was stronger than Song Bai, and he also had the Ethereal Body Illusion. Song Bai was still in shock, and the two were not so close to each other, so Gu Zheng suddenly grabbed Song Bai's arm.
Gu Zheng's hand shook, and a delicate brocade bag fell out of Song Bai's arm.
"Song Bai, I admire you if you can defeat others with your own ability. But since you said that you would use the same ingredients, why did you add this kind of flavor-enhancing flower to the ingredients? Do you really think that no one knows your trick and that no one can do anything to you?"
The temporary test task was not only to defeat Song Bai, but also to expose him on the spot. Gu Zheng didn't want to offend people like this, but he had to do it for the sake of his test.
"You, how do you know about the flavor-enhancing flowers?"
Song Bai was extremely shocked. His secret was the flavor-enhancing flowers, but he didn't expect that Gu Zheng would know about it. Moreover, Gu Zheng didn't mind that he added the flavor-enhancing flowers to the omelets at all. This Gu Zheng was definitely not a simple cook, but a terrible person.
"If you don't want others to know, don't do it!"
Gu Zheng calmly said before continuing, "I know your talent isn't bad, and I also know that you have a photographic memory. You can learn other people's culinary skills. If you really beat others with your ability, we would all respect you and praise you. But you didn't. You secretly added something that others didn't know about. You added flavor-enhancing flowers that greatly increase the taste. This is the key to your victory. You cheated!"
Cheated?
The hundreds of people present were in an uproar, especially those who had challenged Song Bai before and failed.
No one had expected that Song Bai was cheating. In this way, they had lost unjustly. They had said that they would use the same raw materials, but he had secretly added something else to make them lose. Many people felt wronged.
"You. Are. Cultivator!"
Song Bai looked at Gu Zheng, gritted his teeth, and said word by word. His voice was so low that only the two of them could hear it.
"Aren't you the same?"
Gu Zheng smiled faintly. He didn't deny it. He had grabbed Song Bai's arm. If Song Bai was not a cultivator, how could he do that? His identity would have been exposed. However, he was not worried. Song Bai was the same as him. They were the same kind of people.
"This is just a brocade bag, not a flavor-enhancing flower. I have never heard of any flavor-enhancing flower!"
Song Bai suddenly broke away from Gu Zheng's hand, picked up the brocade bag, and said softly. After being caught red-handed, this guy actually began to deny it.
"It doesn't matter if you don't admit it. I have the omelets you just made, and I also took out some of the powder from your brocade bag. President Gou is here. I can give these things to him. Now the technology is very advanced, and it is completely possible to identify whether there are the same ingredients in them!"
Gu Zheng stepped forward, gently picked up a little powder from the table, which was spilled from the brocade bag just now, and then took out a small plastic bag to wrap the powder.
Hearing Gu Zheng mention himself, President Gou walked out, followed by the staff. They quickly went to take back the omelets and powder from Gu Zheng's hand.
"We will do the identification. If what Gu Zheng said is true, we will consider your character and your qualification to participate in the Chinese Food Competition!"
President Gou said slowly. He didn't expect that Song Bai was cheating. If this was the case, then Song Bai was too shameless. It was a pity that he had such a good talent.
President Gou was a sensible person. He knew very well that even if Song Bai really cheated, he still had the talent to learn after seeing others cook once. This person was indeed a cooking genius.
With such talent, cheating was a problem of character.
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