Hunter: I became stronger even after I died.

Chapter 291 A Crane Standing Among Chickens

Chapter 291 A Crane Standing Among Chickens
Menchi's test question was about sashimi.

Compared to the sushi in the original work, the difficulty level has been reduced considerably.

Nevertheless, the test takers were completely clueless and had no idea what sashimi was.

Only one bald ninja was secretly amused.

Looking at the bewildered examinees, Menqi walked straight to the center of the neatly arranged kitchen counters.

"Here's a hint: the utensils and ingredients on this counter are all used for making sashimi. And here's the biggest hint: the ingredients for this dish are limited to aquatic animals."

Menqi held up her index finger with a smile on her face.

The candidates looked at the cutting board and utensils on the kitchen counter, as well as the seasoning bottles and a small amount of vegetables, still with blank expressions.

Even with so many hints, it's difficult to arrive at a general conclusion when faced with a completely unfamiliar dish.

Among the examinees, Hanzo clenched his fists, struggling to suppress his excitement. But seeing the other examinees sweating profusely, he couldn't help but feel a surge of smug satisfaction.

The other candidates were all staring at the kitchen counter and didn't notice his reaction yet.

"Then, the test will begin. When I'm full, the test will end. During this time, you can do it as many times as you like."

After giving the biggest hint, Menchi simply announced the start.

Unsure what sashimi was, the test-takers could only follow Menchi's clue about aquatic animals and run towards the nearby stream.

Hanzo was among them, leisurely making his way to the river.

Although he knew what sashimi was, he couldn't help but feel sorry for the students who were all running towards the river with such a clear goal in mind.

He realized that if Mencius hadn't given such an obvious hint, he might have actually come out on top, or even become the only one to pass this test.

If that were true, he'd probably be laughing in his sleep.

"This is a traditional Chinese dish, I must pass this test!"

Hanzo consciously avoided crowded places and headed towards a more secluded river.

Near the warehouse venue.

Xiao Jie and his group did not take immediate action.

Because Kurt knew what sashimi was.

"I once ate this kind of dish in a small island country called Ryuo-koku. It involves slicing fresh fish and shellfish raw and then dipping them in sauce."

Kurt did not reveal his relationship with Menchi, but only mentioned his experience of going to Ryuo Country.

Leorio was stunned. "It's that simple?"

"Correct."

Kurt remained calm.

A glint of light flashed in Barbara's eyes. She hadn't expected that her shameless attempt to squeeze into this small group would bring such an unexpected surprise.

"I'm pretty lucky, maybe I'll be able to get the license this time."

She thought to herself.

In the forest near the warehouse meeting place.

Moro carefully checked the direction and then headed towards the Gorge Snake River.

Although the second test changed from sushi to sashimi, it did not affect his pre-planned strategy of catching migratory fish.

He felt that given Menchi's personality and style, even if the difficulty of the test was lowered, the candidates would probably not pass the test easily.

The suggestion that only aquatic animals should be used as ingredients may seem to point the way for test takers, but it is actually a big trap.

After all, both sashimi and sushi are usually made primarily with seafood.

"Without needing to fly, you can quickly reach the middle and upper reaches of the Xiashe River."

Moro looked straight ahead, consciously gathering more energy in his legs.

However, before he could even officially set off, he sensed Hisoka's undisguised aura again.

This time, however, he didn't wait for Hisoka to appear. The Nen he had gathered under his feet suddenly exploded, and he shot out like an arrow, darting through the forest and disappearing in the blink of an eye.

Hisoka had just appeared when he only caught a fleeting glimpse of a blur at the edge of his vision.

Instead of relentlessly chasing after him, he stood still, gazing in the direction Moro had gone, savoring the fleeting glimpse of the burst of Nen energy he had just witnessed.

Everyone is moving forward with great strides.

Hisoka noticed from the subtle details that Moro's strength had improved again.

This discovery made the excitatory factors in his body even more restless.

When Moro returned to the warehouse venue with a migrating sea fish, many candidates were already busy at the cooking station.

Menqi sat upright on a single sofa, with a square table in front of her.

She held chopsticks in her hand, her brows furrowed, and her right foot impatiently tapped the ground.

There were many pieces of tableware scattered on the ground next to the table, but no food was seen.

Presumably, a number of candidates have already presented their dishes, but perhaps due to poor presentation or improper preparation, Menchi overturned them without even tasting them.

Then those dishes that Menchi was very dissatisfied with went into Buhara's mouth with a fresh, clean texture.

Moro speculated that his gaze swept over the busy examinees and he could see expressions of frustration and anger on their faces.

Ignoring the atmosphere in the venue, Moro chose a nearby unused cooking station and began processing the raw fish.

Mencius saw Morrow, and her furrowed brows slowly relaxed.

She noticed the migratory fish that Moro had brought back, and a sense of anticipation immediately arose in her heart.

In fact, given the Gourmet Hunter's digestive capacity, she didn't necessarily require the examinees to serve a sashimi dish made from sea fish.

Even if you don't care about the taste, you should at least make full use of all the ingredients on the counter when cooking.

This was the initial hint given.

As a result, none of the test takers understood the hints, and there was even a clueless bald test taker who caused trouble.

This made Menqi a little irritated, but her review standards remained professional and were not affected by personal emotions.

On one of the cooking counters in the warehouse.

Hanzo seemed to sense the targeted gaze from Menchi and shivered slightly.

"Damn it, why can't I pass this level!"

"Isn't sashimi just fresh fish cut into chunks?"

Looking at the few remaining fish pieces on the counter, Hanzo racked his brains but still couldn't figure out why he couldn't pass the test.

the other side.

Because Hanzo revealed his sashimi preparation method, and because Kurt and his group were eliminated by Menchi in their first round of cooking, they lost their first-mover advantage.

But the problem is no longer about how to cook the food.

Like Hanzo, they couldn't figure out the reason and could only try to keep adjusting.

However, the result was the same.

At first, Menchi would try a few bites, but after that, she would only glance at the food before throwing it to Buhara behind her to eat.

Two hours passed, and not a single person qualified.

The test takers became increasingly anxious.

But this atmosphere did not affect Moro.

Holding a cleaver similar in style to the Red Jade Chef's Knife, he deftly removed the bones of the migratory fish with the aid of his spiritual energy, then sliced the fish meat into paper-thin fillets following the grain.

The parts with more fat are cut into chunks.

Even the fish roe was not wasted; it was placed in a bowl for later use.

"Having gotten used to the Red Jade Bird Knife and with the added power of my spiritual energy, I can handle food without much difficulty, though not with ease. But that alone probably won't satisfy Menqi."

Moro pondered this, his gaze falling on the various condiment bottles on the counter.

The fact that Menchi's table didn't have any dipping sauce provided like in the original story suggests that they were to use the available ingredients to create their own dipping sauce to complement the sashimi.

But it's still not enough.

Moro bent down and opened the cabinet under the kitchen counter.

There were several kinds of plates piled up inside, but he immediately spotted the larger sashimi plate.

I took out the sashimi plate and opened the refrigerator next to it. Sure enough, crushed ice had been prepared in advance.

“As long as we make good use of all the tools and materials on the counter, we should be able to meet the acceptable standard, unless Menchi insists on using taste as the criterion for judgment…” Morrow began to plate the food, his eyes glancing at a bundled headlamp on the cabinet shelf, a thought suddenly occurring to him.

This headlamp seems to be for the convenience of the test takers when they are diving to fish.

Therefore, based solely on this device's prompt, the option of aquatic animals in the stream can basically be ruled out.

However, many test takers are unaware of this.

While this performance is largely due to a lack of basic culinary knowledge, insufficient observation and judgment are also undeniable facts.

Moro painstakingly prepared the sashimi platter, covered it with a lid, and carried it towards Menchi.

At this point, all the candidates in the room had already completed the first round of cooking.

Only Moro, who returned last, is serving the dishes now.

Immediately, many eyes were focused on Moro.

Menqi had straightened up and her eyes were shining with anticipation.

She had just witnessed Morrow preparing the ingredients.

However, during the final plating stage, other candidates successively presented their dishes, so she only had time to glance at them and did not get a general idea of what the finished plating would look like.

Even so, she felt it was enough to get Moro through directly.

After all, of all the candidates, only Moro brought back a sea fish.

But that factor wasn't that important. What was important was that Moreau perfectly understood her instructions and used the tools and ingredients on the counter just right.

Moro approached the dining table, and under Mencius's eager gaze, placed the sashimi platter on the table before slowly lifting the cover.

The miniature iceberg, made of crushed ice, exudes wisps of cold air, with colorful vegetable strands peeking out from within.

On one side of the miniature iceberg, crystal-clear sashimi slices are arranged neatly like fish scales, each slice so thin that light can pass through.

On the other side, layers of oily fish chunks are piled up, accompanied by a bowl of plump, round, light red fish roe, and garnished with tender green grass sprouts, making it look even more vibrant.

Next to the caviar was a delicate small dish filled with a simply prepared dipping sauce.

But what's truly remarkable is—

A warm ray of light shone through the iceberg, giving the entire dish a dreamlike, lustrous glow.

Glowing cuisine!

Menchi was momentarily stunned when she saw the sashimi platter that Moro had carefully prepared.

She had expected Morrow's cooking to be quite good, but she never imagined it would be this excellent. He even went to great lengths to embed the LED beads inside the miniature iceberg.

Regardless of the taste, the thoughtful plating alone was enough to satisfy her.

The examinees, mainly Hanzo, who were watching this scene, were stunned when they saw the exquisitely illuminated platter.

What the hell?
The food actually glows?
After a moment of stunned silence, the candidates were surprised to see Menqi smile.

This is as if it has already been announced that candidate number 502 will pass.

"Damn it, they beat us to it!"

Hanzo was as smug as he was before, and now he is just as miserable.

Over at the dining table.

"Suck it."

Suddenly, the sound of swallowing saliva came from behind Menqi.

Buhara stared longingly at the appetizing sashimi platter, wiping the drool from the corner of his mouth.

"There's none for you."

Menchi protectively wrapped her arms around the entire sashimi platter, while turning back to give Buhara a warning look.

Buhara scratched his head in disappointment.

Menqi withdrew her gaze, solemnly picked up her chopsticks, took a piece of fish, dipped it lightly in the sauce, and then put it in her mouth to chew carefully.

The dipping sauce is very light, which is intended to further enhance the sweetness of the fish.

The fish meat was cut along the grain, and the knife skills were excellent, fully showcasing the chewy texture of the migratory fish.

Passed! Absolutely passed!

Menqi's smile widened, and a sense of satisfaction welled up inside her.

She knew that part of her current sense of satisfaction came from her affection for Moro.

However, the evaluation criteria and results are based on absolute impartiality and are devoid of personal feelings.

Instead of giving a result immediately, Menchi ate all the sashimi clean.

The candidates present looked at Moro with either envy or complicated expressions.

"good to eat."

Menqi put down her chopsticks with satisfaction, a bright smile on her face.

This was the first time she had eaten a formal meal made by Moro himself, and even though it was a test, it made her extremely happy.

Moro was infected by Menchi's bright smile, and a slight smile appeared on his lips. He nodded slightly to Menchi and then turned and walked back to his cooking station.

Inside the venue,

All eyes were on Moro, and then Hisoka, carrying a small plate, passed Moro and headed towards Menchi.

Moro returned to the kitchen counter and discovered that some leftover fish scraps were missing.

At this moment, Hisoka came to Menchi, put down the plate, and lifted the cover.

On the plate were small drums made of crushed ice, with scattered fish slices of different shapes attached to them.

In the sparse chill, various vegetable strands were piled haphazardly on top of the crushed ice.

How about it?

Hisoka smiled as he looked at his masterpiece on the table, thinking that if he copied it, he should be able to pass the test too.

Mencius immediately recognized the fish meat on the ice as being the scraps left over from Morrow.

"???"

Menchi gave Hisoka a disdainful look, then picked up the plate and threw it forcefully backward.

Buhara opened his mouth and ate the fish meat, ice and all.

Menchi said expressionlessly, "This is the worst dish I've seen today."

"!!!"

Hisoka was greatly shocked, his face slightly petrified. He mechanically turned back to his work station, then silently squatted down and drew circles.

Moro glanced at Hisoka, wondering why he hadn't noticed before that the guy had a sense of humor.

Testing continues.

"No."

"They didn't even remove the fish bones!"

"It tastes bad."

Menchi reverted to her previous stomping motion.

You already have the answers, yet you can't even copy them correctly!

Mencius persisted for another two hours, but apart from Morrow, no one could catch her eye, so she finally put down her chopsticks.

"I'm full. The second test is over. One person has passed."

Amidst the astonished gazes of the assembled candidates, Menqi announced the results without any pressure.

On a tree outside the warehouse.

Satsuma, who stayed behind to watch the spectacle, saw the results of the second test through the open door.