Chapter 220 Let the Cooking Contest for Who Deserves Yang Wei's Love, Begin!!
Since Yang Wei had a comfortably spacious courtyard, he thought it'd be a good idea to hold the cooking contest outside.
That way, all three women could cook comfortably.
Huo Yue was thrilled about it and even gave him a peck on the cheek for being so considerate. But truth be told, Yang Wei was actually worried that these ladies might lose their cool while cooking and wreck the whole place. So, he was actually thinking about He Dongmei, not wanting her to have too much cleaning up to do.
Plus, Guo Xiaomei had warned him that Huo Zirou was a terrible cook, but he didn't know just how terrible. So, he figured if anything was going to get burnt down, it'd be better if it happened outside the house.
Mu Lin, Huo Yue, and Huo Zirou each had their cooking utensils and ingredients laid out on separate tables spaced out in the courtyard.
Mu Lin wore a confident expression, as if she already knew she'd win this with ease. "Alright, let's get this challenge started. The one who cooks up the most delicious meal wins," she declared.
Huo Yue remained silent but had a determined look on her face.
Surprisingly, Huo Zirou appeared quite nonchalant for someone believed to lack cooking skills.
Standing in the middle were Yang Wei, He Dongmei, and Tianyi, who rested atop Yang Wei's head, purring softly.
He Dongmei then waved her hands excitedly and shouted, "Let the cooking contest to win Senior Brother Yang's heart begin!" She adjusted her crooked glasses, which were in seriously rough shape, and exclaimed, "Ready, set, go!" And just like that, all the contestants dashed off, like in a race.
Quick as a flash, Huo Yue grabbed a plump carrot and placed it firmly on the chopping block. With precise movements, she diced it in record time. Her speed wasn't just natural; she'd become so one with the kitchen that she could cut with unmatched precision.
He Dongmei, acting as the commentator, squealed with excitement, "Wow! Did you see that? It's like she has multiple hands with how fast she's chopping!" She had literal stars in her eyes, watching Huo Yue with the enthusiasm of a child with a new toy.
Yang Wei let out a small yawn and gave He Dongmei a side-eye. "You're really getting into this, huh...?"
But He Dongmei was too captivated by the cooking to respond.
The more Huo Yue sliced and diced, the more her speed and efficiency increased.
At first, I attempted to dice two small food items at the same time while rushing to cook for Zhenwei and Wei Shuai. I wasn't sure if it was even possible, but I gave it a shot. Surprisingly, I managed to do it. It was surprisingly easy. After that, I moved on to dicing three, then four food items simultaneously, each one getting bigger. And now, I'm a pro at it!
When Mu Lin saw Huo Yue's impressive cutting speed, she didn't want to be outdone. She immediately showcased her own unique cooking skill. She threw up several hard nuts and began punching the air with incredible force, stopping just short of hitting the nuts. Concentric waves of spiritual Qi radiated from her fists, completely pulverizing the nuts into fine particles.
Even Yang Wei was impressed; his eyebrows raised in surprise. "Wow," he murmured.
He Dongmei clapped excitedly as she commented, "Wow, look at this! Just as I thought, being a Spirit Master, she's not using a mortar and pestle. Instead, she's using precise Qi control to grind the nuts into the finest particles! That's going to give whatever she's making an even softer texture!"
The excitement of the cooking contest died down as Yang Wei and He Dongmei turned their attention to Huo Zirou, who hadn't even started cooking yet. She had her hair tied up in a ponytail and wore an apron like her competitors, though she somehow managed to look even more attractive in it.
Glancing at the various cuts of meat in her bowl, Huo Zirou rubbed her chin and said, "Hmm, I'm still not great with knives. It's weird how I'm so skilled with swords but can't seem to get the hang of knives!" She pouted a bit. "Humph! It doesn't make any sense. *sigh* Oh well, I guess I'll resort to the tender cuts to save time.
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After all, this is meat from a Late Core Formation Sky Ripper, so its fleshly cultivation is astoundingly high..." She seemed worried about wasting time but was still taking her sweet time.
Finally, Huo Zirou was moving. She poised her knife to cut the breast part of the Sky Ripper, but then she noticed Mu Lin using unconventional cooking methods, like her water spirit root path to purify the meat quickly and fire to cook at just the right temperature.
Her eyes narrowed a bit. "It seems we're allowed to use our cultivation base to leverage our cooking skills. I thought we'd only need to spirit-refine our utensils," she muttered. She glanced at the knife in her hand, which she'd spirit-refined fifteen times. "Well, this is a waste then..." With a flick, she tossed the knife away, and it soared into the sky like a missile.
Both Yang Wei and He Dongmei stood there in shock as they heard the distant sound of a hill collapsing in the Boiling Rock Forest.
"Th-that wasn't a hill, was it?" He Dongmei stammered.
Yang Wei and Tianyi sighed tiredly. "It was spirit-refined at least ten times, what did you expect?"
And yet, Huo Zirou didn't seem bothered at all. Funnily enough, she didn't even realize her knife had torn down a nearby hill.
Who knows what would've happened if she actually tried to cut anything with that knife. She might've split the entire residential sector in half... Yang Wei dreadfully thought.
With a quick jerk of her fingers, the large piece of meat was transformed into perfectly thin slices. Then, she used her index finger to levitate about three cups worth of soybeans and created a stream of water that soaked them deeply in just seconds.
He Dongmei couldn't contain her excitement. "Wow, what usually takes overnight soaking, she's done it in seconds!"
Huo Zirou tried to hide her excitement at the praise and simply cleared her throat. "Well, what else would you expect from a Nascent Soul cultivator?" Using her wind spirit root, she drained all the water from the soybeans before hovering them close to the wheat flour. With a thorough spin in midair and a small stream of water, she expertly mixed them together.
It was like the clueless Huo Zirou, who couldn't even handle a knife, was gone. Utilizing her cultivation to her advantage, her movements resembled those of an experienced chef.
Wow, she might actually cook something good... Yang Wei thought.
While Mu Lin and Huo Yue were busy cooking, Huo Zirou's unexpected kitchen prowess stole the spotlight.
But then she did something that shocked He Dongmei and Yang Wei to their core.
She brought out a big pot and poured the mixture into it. Then, she added a huge cup of salt, an entire jug of soy sauce, and even more water until the pot was overflowing.
Yang Wei stepped forward, looking concerned. "Um, Zirou?"
Huo Zirou responded with an affectionate smile, "Yes, dear?"
Yang Wei pointed at the pot. "Are you sure you're doing it right? I-I mean, soy sauce isn't supposed to be... and the pot shouldn't be so full because... and the salt is just..." He struggled to find the right words to tell her she'd gone from doing it right to completely messing it up. It was like she was drawing a circle and ended up with a straight line.
Huo Zirou chuckled proudly and shook her head.
"Dear, it's two hundred years too early for you to understand how a woman cooks in the kitchen. You see, just like measuring cups, a pot should be filled to the brim, otherwise, you'd be wasting space, which would make the meal lack flavor. Why else would the pot be so big?"
Speaking of flavor, she added two more huge cups of salt to the pot, and just looking at it made Yang Wei feel like he'd get high blood pressure.
"Eh, Zirou, but..."
He Dongmei stood in front of Yang Wei with her hands spread out. "I'm sorry, Senior Brother, but I can't let you help her any more than you already have!"
Yang Wei's eyebrows twitched as he looked at He Dongmei.
Then, he turned his gaze back to Huo Zirou and watched as she performed a double-handed mudra, summoning a powerful burst of fire that engulfed the entire pot in flames. This was her unique way of boiling it.
"Cooking is all about logic, efficiency, and excellence! So the most logical and efficient way to excellently cook this sauce would be to super-heat it with my fire!"
She looked like a crazed witch brewing a potion.
He Dongmei may have thought Yang Wei was trying to help Huo Zirou, but actually he thought differently.
Help her? I'm trying to help myself here... after all, I'm the one that's going to have to eat this thing!