Chapter 565: Chapter 564: The Final Frenzy (Part 2)

Two competing teams left at nearly the same time, with the official event coverage providing a live broadcast. Eager audiences already at their terminals could feel the pre-battle public excitement through the scenes of the convoy being escorted along the road.

Along the way, the cheering was non-stop.

The aerial camera captured the scene of the convoy being surrounded by the crowd very well.

Many vehicles voluntarily stopped to give way, with some drivers honking their horns, and some even rolled down their windows to lean out halfway, waving to the convoy in greeting.

“Swoosh”

A red convertible sports car followed the Far Moon Team, and the accompanying guard detail was quite tense. The security team leader, wearing sunglasses, poked his head out the window, whistle in mouth, and waved his hands crossed to signal the sports car to keep distance.

But the car, instead of veering off, accelerated and got even closer. A woman stood up in the back seat and shouted towards the central vehicle dedicated to Far Moon: “Give me strength, hey!”

The red sports car was too conspicuous; everyone in the Far Moon vehicle noticed it.

“Uh…”

Xia Yu recognized who it was; in the driver’s and co-driver’s seats were indeed the Chiben sisters from HOB Foods, also known as the “Curry Queens” of the Japanese food industry. And the woman with the notably loud voice, tanned and exuding a fierce aura, was none other than ‘Black Curry’ Ujou Mamie, the Female Special Chef who advanced with Xia Yu in the summer special grades examination.

After Ujou Mamie shouted, the sports car accelerated, leaving the convoy behind, probably in a rush to get to the venue.

Liangzi Lina drove very steadily.

About half an hour later, the vehicle finally slowly approached the ‘Hokkaido Shrine Pavilion’.

“Wow, it’s huge—”

Looking out the car window, Xia Yu’s eyes revealed shock.

A massive venue sat atop a verdant hill, sheltered by trees, like a giant beast in the forest, delivering a staggering visual impact.

What was even more remarkable was that, unlike the modern buildings where Xia Yu had previously competed, the venue had the appearance of an enlarged shrine, antique and quaint, with a strong breath of Japanese style.

The convoy was eventually stopped by the crowd, unable to move an inch further.

The guards were the first to get out of the car, forcibly clearing a path.

“Get out—”

Liangzi Lina put on her sunglasses and pushed the car door open.

Amid the screams, Xia Yu was the second to exit, and his ears buzzed with the sound of countless people shouting his name.

The bodyguards linked arms and barely held back the surging crowd as they got out of the cars, not daring to linger outside the venue. They quickened their pace into the VIP passage, and the moment the screams behind them were cut off, Xia Yu and Dojima Yin exchanged a look, both silently sweating bullets.

“What if there’s an assassin in the crowd, ready to gift us with a bullet all of a sudden?” Xia Yu said out of the blue.

Smack.

Zhu Qing slapped him on the back of the head, laughing and scolding, “You have paranoid delusions. Could anyone aim a gun in that situation?”

Xia Yu shrugged, “That’s uncertain. Even if they don’t gift us with a bullet, what if they splashed poison on us?”

He pondered seriously, resting his chin in his hand.

“They wouldn’t choose this kind of occasion to assassinate you; there are plenty of opportunities.” Zhu Qing rolled her eyes dramatically, ignoring her suddenly imaginative nephew. The group continued walking and talking and soon, the end of the passage was in sight, leading to the blinding light of the venue!

…

The grand finals still had the same two hosts:

Chiyoda Aichi and Dubian Yuuki.

Before the Far Moon Team and the White Jade Tower Team arrived at the arena, they were already warming up the stage.

The giant screen overhead showed random interviews from outside the venue.

One audience member after another, excited and stumbling over their words, responded to the reporter’s questions and expressed their support. Since the event was set in Neon Hokkaido, the Far Moon Team naturally held the home-field advantage, overwhelmingly outpacing the White Jade Tower Team in support rates.

Support ratings, in the eyes of professional chefs, have no influence on the outcome of a battle; they only add to the atmosphere.

Shanghai Longzhen Restaurant, Tang’s Team.

Tang Yuqiong just kept staring at the passage.

“Aqiong, stop looking!” Tang Jingtiao, her cousin, said helplessly beside her, “White Jade Tower Team will come out from another entrance later. What are you looking at? After all, you and Li Han grew up playing in the mud together; don’t get your loyalties confused, okay?”

“Hmph, who I support is none of your business,” Tang Yuqiong retorted.

“I heard from Li Han that he has thrown down the gauntlet to his opponent, challenging them to a duel with ‘Bursting Flame.’ Although we’re not sure how that Xia surname learned ‘Bursting Flame,’ using it in front of its rightful successor is like playing the lute to a cow, isn’t it just asking for embarrassment…”

Tang Jingtiao had always been bothered by Xia Yu.

It wasn’t just because of Tang Yuqiong’s attitude but also the competitive rivalry with someone from the younger generation.

Hearing this, Tang Yuqiong’s glasses spun round and round, revealing a pensive look.

“A duel between the orthodox Bursting Flame and the offshoot Bursting Flame?” Tang Yuqiong mentally compared the two; she had just eaten the fried rice Xia Yu had cooked with ‘Bursting Flame’ a few nights ago. She already had a rough understanding of the youth’s culinary skills, and she was also well aware of Li Han’s cooking level.

“The odds are probably… fifty-fifty?”

Tang Yuqiong was not certain.

“If Li Han only had ‘Bursting Flame’, that would be the end of it. But how did that guy manage to be reborn with the innate awakening of two major talents in his bloodline, hey, those are the super tactile sense inherited from the once ‘Five Stars’ Ya Kan, and the super taste of Li Ke. One could say he got all of the Li Family’s talents, truly a child of destiny…”

Speaking of his talented peer, Tang Jingtiao’s words were filled with envy.

It’s always daunting to compare one’s goods with another’s.

His own talents were completely blown away when compared to the ‘super tactile sense’ and ‘super taste.’

Da, da, da…

Suddenly, the originally noisy venue fell silent in an instant.

Everyone in the audience, regardless of gender, age, or status, stretched their necks in unison, turning their attention to the two passageways leading to the arena.

On the stage, the warm-up host, clearly having received a notification from the backstage through her mini earpiece, also stopped talking.

“Attention, everyone!”

“Please pay attention! Listen up!”

“Let’s welcome the two competing teams onto the stage with the warmest, most enthusiastic cheer!”

Woah woah woah awooooo!

Oh oh oh!

The ground shook and the mountains trembled.

This time, both teams, with all members, stepped onto the stage together.

Far Moon Team, led by Zhu Qing with Dojima Yin following closely behind, then Saito Chiyokuro, with Xia Yu in third place, followed by Tiqie Zongwei and his wife, and Roland Chapeau taking up the rear.

White Jade Tower Team was led by a male and female Qilin Chef respectively, followed by Li Quan and a Female Special Chef named Luo Ying, with the lazy-looking Li Family scion placing his hands in his pockets behind them.

The two teams lined up on the stage, one on the left and one on the right.

Following that came another round of cheers as the five judges, each with different demeanor, either waved and smiled back at the audience or crossed their arms and remained silent, stood between the two competing teams.

Chief Judge Kogawa Shinyiro took the microphone and said, “I believe there’s no need for me to introduce the famous chefs on stage. So, before we draw for the topic, please allow us to insert a special event—”

The audience held their breath.

At that moment, four staff members, two men and two women, were moving a delicate glass display case into position.

“What’s that…?”

Xia Yu felt a thump in his heart, as if a certain attraction in the dark made him subconsciously cast his gaze and he couldn’t look away anymore.