Chapter 535: Determining Victory and Defeat
Snow Bird Duel Arena.
In the spectator room, Mei Lan Du mused, “Who would've thought this culinary duel would actually come down to preparing a gold level dish in the end?”
Such an outcome was uncommon.
Typically, contests are decided at the iron or silver level.
But Da Dou and Ci Hai Shen possessed comparable skills. The only pivotal factor, the big guy, was seized by Ci Hai Shen, causing Da Dou to gradually lose his points advantage.
It wasn't that Da Dou's choice back then was wrong.
Even if he had kept the big guy, Ci Hai Shen would still have risked creating a gold level dish.
For a magic chef, crafting dishes of the same level is inherently risky.
Creating transcendent cuisine differs from crafting potions or equipment. The latter two may require lengthy refinement periods, whereas cooking often demands swift execution.
Within a short time frame, the chef must rapidly achieve magic equilibrium among all ingredients.
Consumption must also be prompt. Should this magic balance be disrupted, the transcendent dish risks self-destruction, or even explosion.
For Da Dou and Ci Hai Shen, the success rate for crafting gold level dishes is far lower than for silver level. As for the even higher saint level, it completely exceeds their capabilities.
Gold level fluttering boat fried rice!
Da Dou added gold level ingredients, tossing the silver level wok vigorously. Soon, golden grains of rice appeared.
“So swift!” Mei Lan Du exclaimed excitedly in the observation room. "I finally saw the recipe Lord Da Dou used. Though this recipe only produces one type of fried rice dish from start to finish, it allows for fine-tuning. More importantly, it prioritizes quantity over quality, significantly boosting the output speed and success rate of high-level fried rice dishes! "
“No wonder Lord Da Dou possesses such unwavering confidence in defeating Lord Ci Hai Shen!”
Da Dou's pace in crafting gold level dishes far surpassed Ci Hai Shen's.
Moments later.
Two bowls of gold level fried rice were presented before Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and the Sea Bird Bishop.
Both had been eagerly anticipating this moment. After finishing their portions, their eyes shone brightly as they praised the dish lavishly.
“Damn it!” Ci Hai Shen couldn't help but feel a surge of tension.
Only two gold level diners were present.
With both having consumed their bowls of gold level fried rice, Da Dou had secured a massive advantage.
For whatever dishes Ci Hai Shen prepared next, the city lord and bishop might not finish them.
Gold level Butterfly Petal Magic Salad!
The salad's main ingredient was butterfly petals, blended with night-glow lotus root, then combined with frosted giant lizard leg meat, and a sauce of magic cardamom and pearl pear vinegar.
Finally, it was drizzled with refreshing olive oil.
Ci Hai Shen's dish was also submitted.
He nervously gazed toward the observation room.
Moments later, word came down.
Both the city lord and the bishop had eaten a portion of the butterfly petal magic salad.
Hearing this, Ci Hai Shen finally exhaled a slight sigh of relief.
He glanced at the scoreboard and saw his points were once again neck-and-neck with Da Dou's.
Ci Hai Shen dared not slack off, burying himself in preparing the second gold level dish.
Unsurprisingly, Da Dou took the lead again, crafting the second wave of gold level fried rice.
However, when his fried rice reached the observation room, news arrived: the city lord had eaten half a bowl, and the bishop had eaten a third before both could eat no more.
Simultaneously, both declared they would consume no further gold level dishes.
“Hmph, those two!” Da Dou grumbled discontentedly.
Ci Hai Shen breathed a sigh of relief.
Da Dou's advantage was overwhelming, and Ci Hai Shen found it hard to believe the bishop and city lord had truly reached their limit.
Da Dou and Ci Hai Shen's suspicions were correct.
The bishop and city lord had voluntarily abandoned the feast, primarily out of political considerations for the kingdom.
For the Ice Sculpture National Ceremony, the royal family had personally invited Da Dou, Ci Hai Shen, and other magic chefs. As hosts, they couldn't intervene in the personal grudges between Da Dou and Ci Hai Shen. If things went wrong and affected the Ice Sculpture Festival, they'd be the ones to suffer.
“What a waste. Could this end in a draw?!” Da Dou gritted his teeth, glaring at his rival Ci Hai Shen. He was unwilling to accept this.
But just then, his gaze shifted back to the big guy.
The big guy had awakened.
He stretched lazily, then followed the irresistible aroma to the iron wok in Da Dou's hands.
Within the pot lay gold level fried rice grains.
“Oh no!” Amidst Ci Hai Shen's darkened gaze, the big guy leapt to his feet and dashed toward Da Dou, showing not a shred of reluctance to leave Ci Hai Shen's side.
Da Dou's heart shook: "Inside the gold level fried rice, I added the supplementary ingredient, dragon might black pepper. Logically, a low level transcendent shouldn't... He's clearly only iron level. Could it be..."
The thought struck him, and Da Dou hastily shook all the gold level rice grains onto the plate.
Just as before, the big guy picked up the plate and began shoveling it into his mouth.
This scene immediately drew gasps from the crowd.
An iron level individual being force-fed gold level fried rice? This could be deadly.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord urgently ordered care for the big guy.
The bishop also dispatched clerical healers to surround him.
The big guy could only manage half the fried rice before collapsing, falling asleep instantly.
It was the same silver level priest who had intercepted him earlier. Approaching the big guy, he cycled through several divine spells for monitoring and examination.
The results left the priest's face twisted in a peculiar expression.
“He's fine!”
“He's actively digesting the fried rice now. He'll wake up soon.”
This announcement sparked even greater commotion.
The crowd buzzed with discussion, utterly fascinated by the big guy's true lineage!
“He only ate half the fried rice,” Ci Hai Shen felt a chill run down his spine. “Once he wakes up, finishing the other half won't be difficult!”
He had already greatly overestimated the big guy, yet the strength the big guy displayed made him realize that his previous “overestimation” was actually an underestimation!
“Big guy!” Tripleblade was the first to burst into the duel arena.
Soon after, Chi Lai and the others who had been running alongside him also arrived at the scene.
Tripleblade was intercepted and hastily declared his identity: “I'm a member of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps!”
Chi Lai's arrival saved Tripleblade from the predicament.
Not everyone recognized Tripleblade, an iron level mercenary, but Chi Lai, as a key figure in the Dragon Lion Corps' branch, was well-known to many.
On the way here, Tripleblade had received the latest intel on the big guy, learning of the uproar he'd caused in the arena.
Though the silver level priest assured him the big guy was in good condition, Tripleblade remained furious.
He glared at Da Dou, showing no regard for the latter's status as a gold level powerhouse: "You know full well he's only iron level, yet you still fed him gold level fried rice. Are you so desperate for victory that you'd risk a patron's life?"
Da Dou shook his head. “It's not like that...”
He began to explain but quickly stopped speaking of his own accord.
Tripleblade's heart skipped a beat.
In full view of everyone, Tripleblade's earlier rebuke had been merely a test.
Now, the test result was already out.
Da Dou could explain but he chose to keep quiet. Why would he do that?
"Bring the big guy and go back first!" Tripleblade gave orders to the rest of the mercenaries.
“Chi Lai, after fighting this long, you must be starving, right?” Tripleblade gave Chi Lai a knowing look, then led him and the others over to stand beside Ci Hai Shen.
They had been in constant combat, their bodies bearing the marks of battle.
In contrast, the transcendents inside the arena were all stuffed to the gills, unable to eat another bite. Even if they refined their battle qi to aid digestion, such behavior had its limits.
The transcendents of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps became the decisive force in this culinary duel.
Earlier, the big guy had eaten the gold level fried rice, but it was only half a portion and hadn't counted toward points.
Should they choose Ci Hai Shen or Da Dou?
For Tripleblade, the choice was clearly the former.
On one hand, he held deep apprehension and distaste toward Da Dou. On the other hand, he had placed substantial wagers on Ci Hai Shen.
The points continuously earned by Tripleblade, Chi Lai, and others eating Ci Hai Shen's dishes allowed him to pull ahead of Da Dou.
When Men Shi arrived and joined the feast, this lead persisted right up until the very last moment.
The city lord announced, “The ultimate victor of this duel is Ci Hai Shen!”
The entire crowd erupted in cheers.
The city lord then publicly presented the wager, Preservation Knife and the Meat Eye, to Ci Hai Shen.
Ci Hai Shen roared with laughter, his heart brimming with triumphant joy. He taunted Da Dou.
The latter stood arms crossed, expressionless.
After a few sarcastic remarks, Ci Hai Shen’s expression shifted abruptly as he launched an attack.
Da Dou made no attempt to dodge. After being struck, he dissolved into a shimmering mist and vanished.
Ci Hai Shen sneered coldly, "You lack even the courage to face defeat! Da Dou, how dare you ever show your face before me again?"
The audience murmured in discussion.
Tripleblade frowned, a growing sense of unease spreading through him. “Let's head back first.”
Before he could finish speaking, a wounded mercenary stumbled back, panting. “Lord Chi Lai, it's bad! The Magic Chef Da Dou suddenly appeared and snatched our giant!”
"What?!" The group gasped in shock.