Reborn in Japan as a Chef God-Chapter 56 - The Threshold of Excellence

It was narrow and cramped, not to mention the lack of central air conditioning.

During cooking, the kitchen doors and windows were shut tight, turning the place into a veritable steamer.

When several stoves were on full blast, the surging heat would make anyone without professional training feel like it was “purgatory.”

For Midori, who was used to the high-star kitchen environment of Beitiao Building, the experience tonight left her both tired and uneasy.

Beep beep.

Glancing at Xia Yu’s figure heading back into the shop, Hozoi Midori took out her phone from the sweat-damp pocket.

It was already a quarter past midnight.

She hesitated briefly before dialing a number.

“Hello…” A steady middle-aged man’s voice came from the other end.

“Father, it’s me.”

“Ah, Midori, I’ve heard from a friend that you passed the IGO one-star chef assessment yesterday; congratulations,” the middle-aged man said with a hint of relief.

“When do you plan to come back to Yokohama?”

“I’m sorry, Father, I intend to stay in Tokyo until Far Moon opens,” Hozoi Midori murmured with pursed lips, pausing before speaking again.

“I had a Food Duel in Tokyo and lost to a peer…”

The person on the other end listened quietly.

“He was incredibly skilled.

I think he could rival the Ten Masters of Far Moon…

Moreover, his cooking possessed a miraculous power.

After eating it, my spirit and soul seemed to undergo a baptism.

Although it sounds unbelievable, this is my most genuine tasting experience…”

As Hozoi Midori spoke, a reverence subtly emerged in her eyes.

“Tell me about it in detail!”

This time, the middle-aged man’s tone turned noticeably surprised.

In Yokohama, Beitiao Building.

The Chinese cuisine restaurant, recently certified by IGO with six stars, still bustled deep into the night.

In the kitchen, the head chef, Hozoi Dahe, paused his work and listened attentively to the recounts from the other end of the phone, a look of incredulity spreading across his face.

He murmured softly, “…Heart of Cooking?”

Hozoi Dahe took a deep breath and said sternly, “Midori, tell me again about your tasting experience.

There’s no need to talk about the taste, just describe what you saw!”

“What did I see?”

Under the streetlamp, Hozoi Midori’s face flushed.

“I ate two special dishes in total.”

“One was stir-fried Qingjiang Vegetable; it felt like I saw rural fields…I saw myself running in the wild…” Hozoi Midori’s sense of shame was about to explode.

“And the other?” Hozoi Dahe frowned.

“The other was Furong Crab Meat Egg.

I saw the light of the dish, like magic!”

The sourc𝗲 of this content is frёeωebɳovel.com.

When she mentioned the glowing Furong Crab Meat Egg, Hozoi Midori savored the memory, a hint of hunger appearing in her beautiful purple eyes.

“The dish…

was glowing?”

Hozoi Dahe remained silent for a moment.

“Midori, since you’ve decided, stay in Tokyo.”

“That boy might have mastered techniques only a special-grade chef can comprehend.

As far as I know, the special-grade chef assessment involves imprinting your own mark on a simple recipe, seizing it and making it yours.

That technique is known as the ‘Heart of Cooking’!” Hozoi Dahe smiled bitterly.

“It’s a divine technique your father, despite his years as a head chef, hasn’t even approached!”

After hanging up, Hozoi Midori stood dazed under the streetlamp, taking around ten minutes to digest the information from her father.

Above the rank of IGO nine-star chef was the renowned special-grade chef in the culinary world.

In Hozoi Midori’s understanding, these special-grade chefs either operated their own restaurants and hotels, teeming with guests, or were recruited by significant culinary industry giants with exaggerated salaries, even offering shares.

After all, the Ten Masters of Far Moon were merely a group of students, yet to influence the culinary world of Neon, let alone globally.

It’s worth noting that among past graduates of Far Moon, perhaps only those who graduated with the identity of the Ten Masters, individuals of extraordinary talent, have a chance at passing the special-grade assessment in the future.

Recent graduates are hard to determine, but Hozoi Midori could be sure that the legendary Ten Seats of the so-called ‘Golden Generation’ of the 69th batch: Dojima Yin, Saito Chiyokuro, and Tiqie Ji…

These people must have long since become special-grade chefs.

“…He might have mastered the techniques of a special-grade chef, in other words, he’s brushed the threshold of that level!”

Her father’s words still echoed faintly in her ear.

Hozoi Midori bit her lip, unwilling to admit defeat, clenching her fists.

“Even if it’s special-grade, I will still challenge you to a Food Duel, until the day I win—!”

…

Xia Yu was unaware of this conversation between father and daughter; otherwise, he would have worn a bewildered expression.

For goodness’ sake, his cooking level was only lv12.

And they were talking about special-grade?

It was another busy day.

After closing at midnight, Xia Yu arranged a room for Hozoi Midori, moving to the old man’s bedroom and leaving his room for her.

Thanks to his good cleaning habits, both his and the old man’s rooms were quite clean.

He needed only to change the sheets and duvet for them to be ready for guests.

Morioka Makki had invited Hozoi Midori to stay at her home, but Midori declined.

Xia Yu left the only bathroom on the second floor for Hozoi Midori to take a bath.

He did not rush to close the store, leaving the door ajar and sitting on a clean chair while browsing the items in the Chef God Store.

“System: Current Fame Points remaining 1,033.”

In the past couple of days, his Fame Points had hardly increased, indicating that the promotion of the shop within the ACG circle had reached its limit.

Unless someone more influential than ‘TAKI-kun’ or ‘Bai Muying’ helped promote it, the cultivation of the ACG circle was essentially complete.

The Chef God Space had too many tempting items filled with allure.

Let’s not even mention the basic recipes.

After maxing out ‘knife skills’ and ‘heat control,’ he figured he should buy an advanced Skill Book to study.

The problem was that after filtering through the options, Xia Yu realized he was genuinely broke.

There weren’t many advanced branches for ‘knife skills.’

‘Fierce Bull Green Dragon Slash,’ specialized in handling meat ingredients, a purple culinary skill, would cost a hefty fifteen thousand points of Fame if purchased directly without completing a task.

‘Arhat Crystal Slash,’ a purple culinary technique for handling seafood, was also priced at fifteen thousand Fame points.

“System, just tell me, what’s the cheapest advanced knife skill Skill Book?” Xia Yu browsed through the options, eventually closing the store panel to avoid getting frustrated by the harsh reality of his poverty.

“Purple, low-tier, ‘Seven-star Breaking Army Rapid Cutting,’ priced at ten thousand Fame Points,” the system responded.

“…”

Xia Yu looked up, tears welling in his eyes.

“I don’t want the lucky purple knife skills, the poor…

Is there an African chieftain version?

Something like a blue budget-friendly type?” he asked insistently.

The system was silent for a moment, seemingly searching.

“I’m sorry, host, please keep striving,” the system finally replied in a mechanical voice.

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