The Glowing Cuisine Conquers the Tongue of God
Chapter 30 - The Crystal Phoenix Reborn from the Flames!

Chapter 30  The Crystal Phoenix Reborn from the Flames!

Li Yang returned to the kitchen once again. In the tea room, Love Hashira, Mitsuri Kanroji, and Insect Hashira, Shinobu Kocho, were whispering to each other.

“Did you see that? Did you see that? His smile just now was so mesmerizing, my heart was racing non-stop,” Mitsuri Kanroji said, her cheeks flushed, acting like a love-struck fool.

Shinobu Kocho, who was beside her, also cupped her face, reminiscing about Li Yang’s earlier words.

“I will help you both, just like a phoenix reborn from the flames, free from the Jiang Gui virus, living freely under the sunlight!”

Such a beautiful, bold statement… I wonder if this young man has a lover! Shinobu Kocho mused.

In the kitchen, Li Yang had completely absorbed all the knowledge of the Phoenix Crystal recipe. Suddenly, the sound of the door opening echoed from the tea room. The group turned to look, and saw Erina and Hisako carrying a large basket of fresh, glistening mung bean sprouts, panting as they entered.

“These are the ingredients that Li Yang requested for his new dish…” Erina explained to Senzaemon before both she and Hisako hurried into the kitchen with the bean sprouts.

Meanwhile, Mitsuri and Shinobu had somehow switched positions, now standing near the kitchen door, eagerly listening for any sounds from inside.

What kind of dish is Li Yang going to make? Why would he use something so simple as mung bean sprouts, a very common ingredient? Erina wondered aloud, surprised.

Erina felt that for a genius Tiger-class chef like Li Yang, using such an ordinary ingredient seemed beneath him. To her, mung bean sprouts were a terribly mundane, uninspiring food. Many ramen shops used them as a cheap side dish because they were so affordable. With just a handful of soybeans, some water, and the right temperature, you could have bean sprouts in a day or two.

In Erina’s eyes, mung bean sprouts were the epitome of commonness, something she wouldn’t even look at unless Li Yang specifically asked for them.

Li Yang had already mentally rehearsed every step of preparing the Phoenix Crystal dish, confident that he could push its score beyond 90 points.

Hearing Erina’s question, he turned around and looked at her seriously.

“Miss Nakiri, you must remember this: in this world, there is no such thing as a mediocre ingredient. Only mediocre chefs who cannot turn the ordinary into something extraordinary!”

“Any ingredient, no matter how simple, can reveal its noble flavor in the hands of a chef who treats every dish with sincerity!”

Erina’s face turned red at Li Yang’s “rebuke,” and she lowered her head, mumbling softly, “I understand, it was my mistake.”

On the side, Hisako was stunned by Erina’s reaction.

Is this really the great Erina Nakiri, the queen of Totsuki Academy?

Erina, the proud and untouchable queen, had actually accepted another person’s advice so calmly?

Oh my goodness, did Li Yang perhaps put something in Erina’s drink?

Before Hisako could entertain any further, less-than-healthy thoughts, Li Yang had already begun giving instructions to both of them.

“Please remove the ends of the mung bean sprouts and only keep the freshest white stems. Be careful not to damage the stems.”

“Got it~” Both Erina and Hisako replied without any sign of dissatisfaction.

Even though Erina had looked down on mung bean sprouts as a mundane ingredient, she willingly helped Li Yang handle the sprouts.

After seeing the once-ordinary mung bean sprouts transformed into glowing crystal-like rods by trimming the ends, Erina was pleased.

“After this, the mung bean sprouts look much more pleasant.”

Li Yang, busy with his work, ground the ginger and garlic into a paste, then strained it, leaving only the juice in the bowl.

Hearing Erina’s praise, Li Yang smiled and explained, “These mung bean sprouts, after being processed this way, are called ‘Ruyi Vegetables’ because they resemble the Ruyi Golden Cudgel of Sun Wukong.”

“Moreover, in ancient palaces, there was a very expensive dish called Fire Bud Silver Thread.”

“This is a very difficult dish to prepare. The difficulty is not in the heat or the seasoning, but in the handling of the ingredients.”

“First, you need to select straight bean sprouts, absolutely no bent ones, with uniform thickness and length, and no dark spots.”

“After selecting the bean sprouts, cut off both ends, and use an embroidery needle to hollow out the inside of the bean sprouts. Then, cut Jinhua ham into thin strips and thread them through the bean sprouts.”

“Finally, stir-fry the bean sprouts with the ham strips in a hot oil pan. Fry on high heat, and the Fire Bud Silver Thread is done.”

“This dish combines the crispy, sweet taste of the bean sprouts with the fresh, rich fragrance of the ham. The two flavors complement each other perfectly, creating an exquisite taste.”

“However, the next dish I am going to prepare is not as complicated. It just requires selecting the right bean sprouts; the difficulty lies in the heat and seasoning.”

Upon hearing Li Yang’s explanation of the Fire Bud Silver Thread recipe, Eri Na, feeling a little embarrassed, stuck out her tongue.

She hadn’t expected that the humble bean sprout, which she had looked down upon so much, could be used to create such an elegant dish that was even fit for royal consumption. Eri Na made up her mind that she, too, would develop a high-class dish using bean sprouts!

With everything prepared, Li Yang began cooking the bean sprouts. The “Explosive Flame” technique was activated. Violent flames surged from the stove, and Li Yang, using his extraordinary senses, controlled the heat to perfection.

A cold pan, hot oil.

Once the oil reached the right temperature, Li Yang quickly tossed the vegetables into the pan, not using a spoon to stir, but shaking the pan so that each vegetable was evenly heated. He then quickly added the pre-prepared sauce.

His hyper sense of smell detected the change in aroma from the pan, while his enhanced vision observed the slight changes in the vegetables. As soon as the vegetables were just cooked, Li Yang swiftly turned off the heat and took the pan off the stove. He then poured the vegetables into a plate. However, the most difficult part was just beginning.

Plating!

Shaping!

Li Yang held a pair of chopsticks in each hand and neatly arranged the vegetables. He then quickly formed the outline of a phoenix. At this moment, he seemed like a master tailor, threading needles and using each bean sprout to construct a phoenix ready to spread its wings. Li Yang had made some changes to the phoenix crystal from the animation.

In the animation, the phoenix crystal had folded wings. But Li Yang’s phoenix crystal had its wings spread wide, with its proud head looking up at the sky, as if it were about to soar. This was the phoenix reborn from the flames!

System Score.

[Congratulations, Master! The Phoenix Crystal you created scores 99 points!]

Li Yang let out a long breath.

He was very satisfied with this score. He also knew where the one point had been deducted.

It was the shaping!

Although Li Yang had been very careful, the appearance of this phoenix crystal still had a slight flaw. This flaw couldn’t be improved immediately and would only get better with more practice.

Beside him, Eri Na and Fei Sha Zi were both dumbfounded. They had witnessed with their own eyes how Li Yang had turned the chaotic bean sprouts into a beautiful, crystal-clear phoenix in a very short time. Moreover, this crystal phoenix was still warm!

“Wow, this is unbelievable!”

“Such a beautiful phoenix, it’s like a work of art!”

“What’s this dish called?”

Li Yang succinctly replied, “Phoenix Crystal!”

Eri Na nodded enthusiastically, filled with admiration for the dish, “Yes, this is a phoenix soaring in the sky!”