CHAPTER 709: CHAPTER 708: TRIO OF TOFU (PART 2)

In fact, Xia Yu had completed the recipe improvement task several days ago.

During his free time these past few days, he often sorted out the information on the new recipe, "Tofu Trilogy."

Thus, Xia Yu developed his own insights on the research:

The supreme tofu recipe, judged by the system to be of Golden Rank, was actually a pseudo-gold. Its cooking difficulty was almost on par with the "Great Magic Panda Tofu."

Think about it.

No matter what, according to the plot of the original Chinese work, Liu Maoxing’s "Great Magic Panda Tofu" defeated Shao An’s "Tofu Trilogy" in a direct competition. Therefore, if you follow the storyline, both recipes should be of Purple Quality.

So why the discrepancy between reality and the original?

At this point, Xia Yu had something to say:

The recipe provided by the system was, more accurately, the ultimate original version full of the Shell Fairy’s flavor!

To put it bluntly,

this "Tofu Trilogy" recipe also carried its own food righteousness.

Thus, the difficulty in replicating the dish lay in how to recreate the truest essence of the recipe’s mystery.

Xia Yu was troubled by this. Otherwise, he could have started right away instead of having to practice in the Chef God Space at the last minute.

It was still not very stable.

"The ’Tofu Trilogy’ has three key points!"

In the mysterious space, Xia Yu could talk to himself without any pressure.

"The first point, tofu!"

"The second point, dried tofu!"

"The third point, tofu noodles!"

There wasn’t much to say about cooking tofu. Thickening and juice collection—Xia Yu was confident he could achieve perfection in this part. After all, he had diligently practiced his cooking skills for the past year, starting with the blue recipe "Magical Mapo Tofu" to today’s Golden Rank "Tofu Trilogy."

The elevation of the recipe’s rank, in a sense, represented his progress in culinary skills.

As for "dried tofu."

Hey, remember the black tofu residue pancake? These past few days, every morning, Xia Yu rose to make a fresh and delicious tofu residue pancake precisely to practice for the new recipe. To put it clearly, one layer of the "Tofu Trilogy" was composed of "dried tofu" made by deep-frying tofu residue.

Of course, this "dried tofu" had many subtleties. Even if an amateur saw the recipe and knew the cooking process, it was hard to replicate.

This was the principle of knowing easily but doing with difficulty.

As for "tofu noodles," it was the same logic as "dried tofu." It seemed simple but took considerable effort in practice.

Like taking an exam on the spot, locking himself in the mysterious space, Xia Yu went through the recipe data several times. That sense of unease in his heart grew even stronger.

"Damn it!"

"Am I falling into a trap of my own making?"

Xia Yu ruffled his hair.

He had experience in hosting Food Tyrant Chefs and filling their empty demon stomachs!

Once, he used the fulfillment of the Chef’s Heart Mark and gourmet world to satisfy Principal Mars’s spiritual level.

This time, he planned to continue using the method proven effective in the past.

And now, with the preliminary application of food righteousness, he could construct a stronger, more realistic gourmet world to immerse Lei Zhe.

The previous "Shuangjiang Magical Mapo Tofu" was just a small test, and the results were decent.

But... far from enough!

"Not enough!"

"The Food Tyrant Chef’s appetite is far more terrifying than a top chef’s!"

He chose a somewhat unstable new recipe, "Tofu Trilogy," to form the three-tofu set for a simple reason—

Buying insurance.

Xia Yu gambled on the Shell Fairy’s flavor.

And he intended to try to carry the Shell Fairy’s flavor across historical time and bring it to the modern dining table, truly shattering the Lin Chef’s spiritual world and the so-called ’Food Tyrant’s Stomach.’

This wasn’t about satisfaction!

With this thought, a rare cold glint flashed in Xia Yu’s eyes.

Ding!

The system timely popped up with a new task:

"The Initial Interpretation of the Trilogy: Please use the ultimate tofu dish to thoroughly defeat Lei Zhe’s ’Food Tyrant’s Stomach.’ The host is required to cook the ’Tofu Trilogy’ dish with at least 80% completeness containing fragments of food righteousness."

"Rewards: 5 Talent Points, [Extreme Enhancement Pill] (Gold)*1."

Another task providing talent points!

Xia Yu was even more motivated.

...

Real World.

Lei Zhe finally escaped the trance and fully regained consciousness.

Clang!

The spoon fell onto the empty plate. Lei Zhe ignored Tiqie Xianzuowen, surrounded by the crowd, and abruptly stood up, but after taking two steps, his face blushed as he tried to suppress the pain and stopped.

"Hu—"

"Hu—"

The breath of his stomach was like a furnace.

The tofu he hastily swallowed earlier seemed to turn into fuel for the flames.

"This level of aftereffect... is nothing!" Even with his neck veins showing, Lei Zhe still whispered.

"Hmph, thinking you can destroy my appetite with just this spice and flame?"

He started moving again, quickly reaching the cooking station.

Just as Lei Zhe stood firm, the young head chef, who had his arms crossed as if resting, slowly opened his eyes.

Meeting these newly awakened eyes, Lei Zhe felt a mysterious chill down his spine, but he quickly dismissed it, convincing himself that a mere special chef couldn’t pose a threat. What a joke!

"I want more!"

Lei Zhe suddenly said in a deep voice, attracting a bunch of gazes.

"You want more?"

Xia Yu’s mouth curved slightly.

Being able to make diners say these three words indicated the chef’s initial success, but it wasn’t enough!

"Was it delicious?"

He shrugged and asked.

Unexpectedly rebutted by Xia Yu, Lei Zhe held back for a moment before saying stiffly, "Barely... At least my ’Food Tyrant’s Stomach’ doesn’t reject it!"

"For something ’barely’ acceptable, you’re still planning to have a second serving?" Xia Yu slightly widened his eyes.

Annoyed by the veiled sarcasm.

Bang!

He slapped the kitchen counter, having already thrown Lin Chef’s demeanor to Java. He roared, "Stop wasting words and serve the dish—exactly the same tofu dish as before, as much as you have!"

Xia Yu reined in his smile, "Sorry, I have my own rules. Each person gets three dishes. If you want a fourth, you’ll have to come back tomorrow night!"

Upon hearing this, Lei Zhe’s eyes seemed fierce enough to eat people. Just as he was about to grow irritated over hunger not being sated, the young man’s next words surprised him:

"By the way!"

"Don’t forget, there’s still the third dish as the finale!"

The third dish?

Realizing this, Lei Zhe immediately said in a hurry, "What a joke! I don’t need any third dish. Isn’t it three dishes per person? Fine then, just repeat the previous tofu dish. Really, just one more of that same tofu dish!"

Lei Zhe was really urgent.

Pff, someone nearby chuckled.

He angrily glared at Andrea, who approached with a teasing grin.

"Andrea, what are you laughing at?!"

"Very straightforward. I’m laughing at someone who’s not being honest. Clearly, it’s delicious beyond words, yet you’re pretending." Andrea giggled, "Is it so hard for you to admit you’ve been captivated by a dish prepared by a special chef?"

Lei Zhe choked, and his face turned various shades—one moment blue, the next moment red.

Andrea, however, had no intention of taunting Lei Zhe further. She peeked at the young man behind the counter, "I say, what kind of dish is the third tofu one?"

"As the finale, the quality shouldn’t be too bad, right?"

"But let me warn you, if it’s not as delicious as the second ’Great Magic Panda Tofu,’ I will take back that gold card!"

She seemed to be smiling, yet subtly threatening a "dine and dash."

"It’s impossible to have a more impressive tofu dish!"

Before Xia Yu could answer, Lei Zhe firmly declared, "The second ’Great Magic Panda Tofu’ was already an ultimate masterpiece. I don’t believe there’s anything stronger or more impressive!"

"Is that so?"

At this point, not caring to fuss over Lei Zhe’s attitude, Xia Yu turned to ask the two female assistants:

"Is it prepared as I instructed?"

Yuchuan Ayaka and Hozoi Midori nodded.

Not far away, Yuchuan Meisha poured white flour into a clean mixing bowl and said crisply, "Boss Xia, I’m ready too!"

"Ahem!"

So, Xia Yu smiled at the crowd of onlookers in front of the counter, "Now, let me correct your perception of tofu dishes!"