The story begins in Food Wars, when Alice took him home.

Just his mere presence alone was enough to create a sense of pressure.

"Look, that's Iron Arm Amu from Chaoweifang. He's really tall and strong, with an iron rod weighing dozens of kilograms. I heard he can swing it thousands of times in half an hour!"

The beef balls he makes are at least top-grade; six months ago, he almost made a dish that glowed, but unfortunately, he failed.

I've had those beef balls once before. One bite and your mouth is filled with juicy goodness; the aroma is wonderfully fresh, and the texture is chewy and bouncy. I never expected he'd show up for the top-level assessment this time!

Because he was so eye-catching, people started discussing his appearance, which led to the discovery of his identity.

Those iron arms, those solid muscles, they could swing any kind of stick with incredible force!

"In the end, it's just that the beef balls are well made; the rest are probably not even top-notch."

Cooking is about holistic development. Only when every aspect, like mine, reaches an above-average level, with no weaknesses, can you truly be considered skilled!

Someone said sourly, since everyone present was a competitor, he naturally didn't want to be inferior to anyone, so he started bragging.

"Come on, you just don't have any special skills, and yet you managed to get in."

"What did you say! This is the traditional doctrine of the mean, what do you know!"

Those around him couldn't help but mock him after hearing his words. It wasn't that averaging was bad, but for him to dare to jump out and mock others was really asking for trouble.

The person who jumped out to wait for praise was suddenly scolded, and became furious, turning into a fighter jet and shouting back at the other person.

Bai Yuan took all of this in stride, without saying a word or interfering, but simply turned his gaze to the other contestants.

Aside from the towering man, a woman who was 1.7 meters tall, dressed in a sexy and alluring way, exuding the scent of a ripe peach, also attracted a lot of attention.

More accurately, it attracted the attention of the men in the room; they didn't know where to look, and it seemed rather lewd no matter how you looked at it.

Except for Bai Yuan, because he neither dodged nor avoided looking, he just looked openly until he had seen enough before shifting his gaze to other contestants.

The woman noticed his gaze, and instead of being shy, she proudly puffed out her chest, clearly feeling proud that she could attract a young man.

Soon, Bai Yuan had sized up all the contestants present. Some of the more powerful ones were the subject of much discussion among those around him, and he learned a little about their backgrounds.

Take that mature woman for example. With her sexy and hot figure, who would have thought that her specialty is actually Huaiyang cuisine, which has a relatively light flavor?

However, it must be said that Guangzhou has many excellent chefs. Most of the twenty-odd chefs present are well-known in Guangzhou restaurants.

A small number of them came from other places, but they had already made a name for themselves in those places before coming here, and they were immediately recognized when they arrived at the scene.

Two blondes with blue eyes also attracted a lot of attention, and everyone was speculating about their identities because the man and woman looked very similar and seemed to be siblings, and they seemed to be formidable characters.

Because everyone is talking about them.

Those in the know naturally stepped forward to explain, mentioning that they had seen it on the front page of a French culinary magazine.

"Those two are twins who are good at cooking new-style French cuisine."

"But didn't I hear they passed the French Grand Chef exam last year? Why are they here again this year?!"

"I once heard a rumor, which I initially thought was too absurd to believe, but now it seems that the rumor is true!"

I heard they don't like the French rooster armband, feeling it damages their image, and want our Chinese dragon armband instead.

"Just for this reason, you gave up your country's top-class armband?"

"Just for that reason!"

At this point, the people present were speechless. They had thought a lot, and even assumed that the two siblings had fallen out with the French culinary world, which was why they refused to accept the title of French master chef.

Unexpectedly… it turned out to be this reason, almost like a joke!?

"Don't be surprised, our Chinese dragon armband is actually very similar to the Dragon Chef's five-clawed golden dragon armband. Except for the color being turquoise and the missing toe, it's exactly the same template."

"Of course, after all, Chef Long originated in China..."

"Speaking of which, the ugliest one is still the Japanese 'foot chicken' (a type of Japanese chicken). In my opinion, it would be better to use cherry blossoms as armbands. At least that would look better than the Japanese 'foot chicken'."

"I really like the brown bears in Russia; they look so powerful..."

The topic shifted incredibly quickly, moving from the blonde siblings to the armbands of various countries, and the atmosphere became much more lively.

The discussion subsided after a few minutes.

"By the way, who is that person? He's been sitting there since the beginning. I've never seen him in Guangzhou before. Is he a newly promoted top chef?"

Perhaps they were too bored, or perhaps they had already discussed it with everyone present, leaving only Bai Yuan unaware of the details.

A small, hastily formed group of three pointed in his direction and began whispering among themselves.

"I don't know. I know all the top chefs in Guangzhou, but I've never seen this person before. He must be from out of town."

A knowledgeable person adjusted his glasses and clearly stated that Bai Yuan was not a local chef from Guangzhou; otherwise, he would have some recollection of him.

"I've never heard of him before; he's probably some unknown chef."

A famous chef from out of town glanced at Bai Yuan, then lowered his head again and said indifferently.

"Tsk, he's participating in the top-level assessment without wearing a chef's uniform. Should we say he's showing off, or that he doesn't even know about this and has no basic respect for the master judges?"

"He must be some third-rate chef from somewhere who wants to see the Guangzhou top-level chef assessment. He should get back home and stop embarrassing himself here!"

Honestly, there are always one or two guys like that every year, completely clueless.

Some people even went so far as to open their microphones and make sarcastic remarks, quite loudly, clearly intending to let Bai Yuan hear them and thus ruin his mood.

There is a limit to the number of people who can pass the master chef assessment; basically, only one person will pass each year, and it is common for none to pass at all.

Therefore, almost everyone present regarded each other as competitors.

Don't be fooled by their current friendly demeanor; if there's a way to get others out of the picture, they'll do it without hesitation.

Because the title of master chef is just too appealing!

With this title, one can become the head chef in a small restaurant in Guangzhou, earning dozens of times the salary of a first-class chef.

If your culinary skills are even better, you can even open your own restaurant, so all the profits will be yours, and because you have the status of a master chef, your business will usually be quite good.

"The assessment will begin in five minutes. Please come in."

Just then, the door to the top-level assessment slowly opened, and a kind-faced, plump old man walked out, looking at everyone before him with a constant smile on his face.

"It's time to go in. I'm sure I'll pass the top-level assessment this year!"

If all else fails, I'll have to go to Hangzhou next year. It's not a very prestigious program, but who would know if I didn't tell them…”

Looking at the open door in front of him, someone muttered to himself, clearly lacking confidence in passing the top-level assessment.

The others also had different expressions. They no longer had the mind to mock Bai Yuan. They stared blankly at the door in front of them, and then stepped inside.

Many of them had been here before.

"Ouch! Which jerk tripped me?!"

Suddenly, a cry of "Ouch!" was accompanied by an angry curse, but before he could finish speaking, Bai Yuan's foot landed on his face.

"You were the one shouting the loudest just now, weren't you? I don't like to cause trouble, but that doesn't mean I'll let others slander me."

Your cooking is just wasteful garbage, a waste of ingredients. Don't waste your time on the top-level assessment; go home and drink your mother's milk.

Stepping on the man who had just mocked him as a third-rate chef, Bai Yuan rubbed his heel against the man's face, his voice indifferent, his expression revealing neither joy nor anger.

"I'm in a pretty good mood today, so I won't hold it against you."

But next time, I wouldn't recommend taking out your tendons and making them into a delicious, flavorful, and aromatic spicy stir-fried tendon dish. I guarantee it will be spicy, fragrant, crispy, and so good you'll want to come back for more!

Because he was about to participate in the top-level assessment, Bai Yuan didn't want to be delayed by such a trivial matter. He thought, "Let him say what he wants; it won't do anything to him anyway."

"Ah! You...you've...broken...broken! Sir, be gentle, be gentle, I'm sorry, I was wrong! I was really wrong, please let me go!"

Thinking of this, Bai Yuan gave him a whack on both arms, just enough to dislocate them, before moving his foot away.

Finally satisfied, he turned and walked towards the open gate, following the main group into the assessment area.

His ruthlessness and decisiveness made those who had spoken ill of him earlier feel uneasy, some even afraid to look at him, fearing that he would target them and cause them to miss the opportunity for assessment.

Those who hadn't said anything bad about him just glanced at him curiously a few times and then stopped paying attention; the top-level assessment was more important right now.

but…

No wonder people say don't bully those who don't speak up; those are the most ruthless!

Upon entering the gate, Bai Yuan expected to find a kitchen for cooking, but to his surprise, he was met with a towering city wall.

The portly old man and a plump woman of about twenty-eight appeared on the city wall. The procession stopped upon seeing the city wall, as if waiting for something.

"What's going on? Was there this part of the plot when Little Master took the Special Grade Exam? I think there was... It's been too long, I can't quite remember."

Bai Yuan stopped with the crowd, staring blankly at the situation before him, then began to ponder. Fortunately, the two people on the city wall didn't keep him waiting too long.

After seeing that almost everyone had come in…

"Dear test takers, the test is about to begin."

As is customary, we will evaluate the dishes in the order in which everyone completes them, with the time limit ending this evening.

Meanwhile, only five chefs will pass this test. If five chefs pass before the time limit expires, the test will end.

As the many participants entered the venue, the portly old man's powerful voice echoed throughout the area, clearly reaching everyone's ears.

"Five places means the faster the better. That's right, I remember now, the top-level assessment in Guangzhou seems to have two stages."

Bai Yuan stroked his chin, his memories swirling in his mind, and finally recalled the time he watched "MasterChef." The organizers first gave a type of dish, then a cooking theme. The top five who cooked the dishes quickly and well advanced, and then the winner was determined by extending the theme.

This is what they call themed cuisine!

"A good assessment method."

Bai Yuan sincerely praised it, saying that this assessment method could test both the chef's basic skills and their innovative abilities, which was a win-win situation.

And this is only the first hurdle!

"Now, let's announce the topic..."

Two staff members carried over a huge canvas, and the fat old man deliberately kept everyone in suspense, leaving only the sound of holding one's breath in the room.

"beef!"

As the banner fell, the huge characters for "beef" appeared, startling everyone present. They then looked at another banner.

"A vow of eternal love!"

When the second banner fell, everyone gasped. Beef and vows of eternal love? What on earth was that all about?!

"What is this?! Although the questions in previous years were already difficult, this year's is completely baffling! Beef and vows of eternal love, can these two words be combined?!"