Due to Lu Yang’s appearance, the five-star spirit chef category attracted immense attention. Even many spectators who had originally wanted to watch the seven-star spirit chef category were drawn over.

“I never expected Lu Yang to be a spirit chef with the legacy of the immortal chef!” Xie Qi stared intently at Lu Yang, mimicking his every move.

So what if he has the immortal chef’s legacy? I will prove to the world that not only can I imitate the dishes of the immortal chef’s successor, but I can also take them half a step further!

Xie Qi touched the bottles and jars tied around his waist, a meaningful smile curling at his lips.

This was his secret weapon. Inside were spices he had gathered while traveling the cultivation world, with most of them obtained from the Buddhist Kingdom.

The spirit chef community disregarded the Buddhist Kingdom’s existence, excluding it altogether. But Xie Qi discovered that though the Buddhist Kingdom’s dishes were hard to describe—or rather, hard to stomach—its spices were unrivaled anywhere else.

By harnessing the power of these spices, I can make any dish even more delicious!

An Tong also wanted to compete with Lu Yang on the same stage to determine who was superior. The world called her “Undefeated” An Tong precisely because she had never lost since her debut.

Lu Yang will be no exception!

As the center of attention, Lu Yang felt that everyone didn’t need to stare at him so intensely.

I’ve only practiced knife skills for a few days and learned about some peculiar spirit plants from the Everlasting Immortal Fairy, the latter of which I haven’t even used.

As for cooking, I can’t cook at all. What can I possibly rely on to win?

I might as well just go through the motions and let Xie Qi and An Tong compete for first place. After all, I don’t care whether Jin Tan’s side wins or not. This is an internal struggle of the Spirit Chef Alliance, and I’m merely a bystander.

Liu Xing spread his arms. The outermost walls of the examination venue collapsed, revealing rows upon rows of ingredients—fowl, beasts, spirit beans, spirit rice, and everything imaginable.

He announced the final challenge. “For the five-star spirit chef category, the final test requires you to make a dish with tofu!”

Lu Yang was speechless, and he massaged his temple in distress. At the mention of tofu, the first thing he thought of was his early cultivation days, when Yun Zhi made him train his sword techniques with tofu every day. The amount of tofu he chopped during the training was the amount he had to eat during his meals. At night, the Tofu Heavenly Sovereign haunted his nightmares. For quite a while afterward, eating tofu caused him to feel nauseous.

Does your Spirit Chef Alliance still want good press or not?

“Go, Xiao Yangzi! This immortal’s cookbook has a dish called Yin-Yang Tofu. Show them what I’m capable of!”

Lu Yang’s eyelid twitched. As he had translated the entire Comprehensive Culinary Compendium, he remembered the preparation method for every single dish recorded within.

It’s hard to defy an imperial command. As a subject, what right do I have to resist Her Exalted Majesty’s decree?

Bracing himself, Lu Yang began to prepare the Yin-Yang Tofu.

As the name suggested, the Yin-Yang Tofu was a tofu with black and white colors. To achieve the two distinct hues, it required over a hundred black and white ingredients, respectively, which would be blended into a composite sauce to color the tofu.

The black ingredients included cuttlefish, soy sauce, and so on.

The white ingredients included salt, sugar, and so forth.

“Immortal Fairy, won’t this be a bit salty?”

“Don’t worry. Just add chili at the end, and it will neutralize the saltiness!

“This Yin-Yang Tofu embodies the Dao of Yin and Yang, encompassing the endless cosmos and mystic wonders. If you can comprehend this level, you will be considered to have reached the entry level in the Yin-Yang Dao...” The Everlasting Immortal Fairy prattled on about the philosophy behind her creation of this dish.

Meanwhile, Xie Qi synchronized his movements with Lu Yang’s, pouring together ingredients from over a hundred bottles and jars, stirring them until they were well mixed.

Watching the black-and-white liquid undergo unknown reactions and bubble profusely, Xie Qi began to doubt whether Lu Yang truly was the Successor of the Immortal Chef.

But recalling Lu Yang’s various legendary feats, he gritted his teeth and decided to trust him, continuing to follow along.

Looking at the spherical black-and-white tofu drizzled with the sauce, Xie Qi’s appetite was whetted. Although the preparation process was inexplicably bizarre, the finished product smells exceptionally fragrant!

“Let me taste this tofu and find its flaws.”

Xie Qi took a spoonful and tasted it. He clutched his throat in disbelief, letting out muffled sounds.

Two extreme flavors clashed in his mouth. His sense of taste was far keener than ordinary people’s, and now that the flavors were amplified many times over, they tormented him to the point that he wished he were dead.

Thud.

Xie Qi collapsed to the ground, foaming at the mouth, unconscious.

Without lifting a finger, Lu Yang had eliminated Xie Qi. This was truly the art of subduing the enemy without battle, the highest level of strategies!

The final match was between Lu Yang and An Tong.

“Time’s up!” Liu Xing announced loudly.

“In view of Xie Qi’s withdrawal due to unexpected circumstances, after discussion among our alliance’s higher-ups, we have decided to change the evaluation method for this contest!

“The format will be changed to both parties tasting each other’s dishes and giving scores!

Lu Yang presented the Yin-Yang Tofu drizzled with crimson chili oil, while An Tong presented her tangerine-shaped tofu.

“Now, the tasting will begin.”

Lu Yang examined An Tong’s tofu. Its outer layer resembled a sugar glaze. He gently tapped it with his spoon, and the coating dented, revealing the white, springy tofu within.

He scooped up some of the sugar glaze and tofu and put it in his mouth. The bland tofu was enhanced by the tangerine flavor, becoming rich and complex. The tofu also contained diced bamboo shoots, giving it a refreshing crunch.

This flavor leaves the Everlasting Immortal Fairy’s cooking in the dust!

While Lu Yang tasted An Tong’s tangerine tofu, she studied his Yin-Yang Tofu.

She had lost her sense of taste due to a high fever as a child, but this had led to her sight, touch, smell, and hearing becoming exceptionally acute.

“The layer of red chili oil on this Yin-Yang Tofu is visibly striking yet doesn’t overpower the tofu’s aroma. The black and white tofu carries not only the fragrance of tofu but also the scents of the sea, the sky, and the earth.”

I don’t even need to taste it to know that this is an ultimate tofu dish that completely surpasses my tangerine tofu.

It can truly be called the perfect culmination of tofu cuisine!

Although she had no sense of taste, An Tong still had to take a bite. It was a sign of respect for Lu Yang.

Just as Lu Yang was about to advise An Tong not to eat it, as he would simply admit defeat, he saw her take a spoonful of the Yin-Yang Tofu. She clutched her throat, opened her mouth wide, and her voice echoed through the entire venue as she shouted an evaluation she had never made in her life.

“So spicy, so salty!"

“Why is it this spicy?!”

An Tong frantically gulped down water, finally easing the heat in her mouth slightly. Once she calmed down, she could think more clearly.

“Wait, I’ve regained my sense of taste?!

“I-I can taste again?”

An Tong ate the Yin-Yang Tofu in large mouthfuls, tears dripping onto her plate. Laughing and sobbing, she couldn't stop saying, “Delicious, truly delicious...” 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

After a while, An Tong gradually calmed her emotions. She bowed deeply to Lu Yang. “Fellow Daoist Lu Yang, you have won. I voluntarily concede.”

Although I’m on Jin Tan’s side, I have my own principles. Lu Yang restored my sense of taste with his tofu. How am I qualified to judge his Yin-Yang Tofu?

Disregarding Lu Yang’s reaction, she walked straight off the arena, leaving him utterly bewildered.

Even when Liu Xing announced the result and Lu Yang’s armband was replaced with five golden stars, signifying that he had become the strongest five-star spirit chef, he still hadn’t snapped out of it.

Wait, how did I win with this level of skill?