Reborn in Japan as a Chef God-Chapter 989 - 988: Kirin Child (Part 2)

"Kirin Child?"

Xia Yu raised an eyebrow.

The letter was delivered under the name of Dragon Head Zhu Ji, and the content could be summed up in one sentence—congratulations on being selected as the 12th generation Kirin Child of the Chinese Realm.

He couldn’t help but sigh emotionally.

Time had unconsciously arrived at the beginning of May, with the weather transitioning from the cool and slightly warm spring season to the beginning of the hot summer.

It seemed like the last time he boarded the Loulin Ship and learned about the ’Kirin Child’ was during the New Year’s Hunt in January, wasn’t it?

In the blink of an eye, nearly half a year had passed.

The title of "Kirin Child," once thought unattainable and not even dared to hope for, now crowned him, adding a more dazzling halo to his name, a title that only 11 outstanding individuals had been chosen for since its inception.

Xia Yu felt emotional about this, but at the same time, his mood was relaxed. He had defeated Huang He, leaping over the Dragon Gate and transforming into a dragon, leaving the younger generation far behind on the ground. If this "Kirin Child" title were not awarded to him, there would likely be an uproar and turmoil throughout the vast Chinese land.

As a Dragon Chef accepting this "Crown Prince’s Crown," Xia Yu felt no pressure.

"What did the old guy say?" Zhu Qing noticed Xia Yu, after reading the letter, showing a refreshing smile on his face.

Folding the letter and tucking it back into the envelope, Xia Yu lowered his eyes and said, "He wants me to quickly wrap things up and head to the Imperial City, to the White Jade Tower."

"Details?"

"To discuss the Kirin Child matters with the Dragon Head..."

Xia Yu took the letter and left, leaving behind a wide-eyed and surprised Zhu Qing.

Makki and Eriina gathered around; among them, Sen Tian Makoto had long been able to speak fluent Mandarin, while Eriina was lagging a bit in progress. Though her speech carried a strange accent, her listening comprehension was basically unhindered.

They had heard of the title ’Kirin Child’ even back in Japan, as the Chinese Cuisine World and the Neon Food World shared a close connection.

"Aunt Qing, Yu is going to enter the Qilin Pavilion?" Makki exclaimed joyfully.

Tiqie Eriina’s expression was complicated.

The gap between her and him hadn’t narrowed due to her vigorous pursuit, but instead, it had widened... What ’Far Moon Queen’? It seemed now she could only look up from the earthbound throne at that dragon soaring in the sky, as the dragon had already ventured into the realm of freedom...

That night, the news of Xia Yu being selected as the 12th "Kirin Child" spread throughout the Juxia Building.

At the same time.

The word was also intentionally released from the high levels of the White Jade Tower, spreading from the solemn Forbidden City.

The wind was rising.

**********

"Plop..." A pebble was thrown into the small pond in the Juxia Building courtyard at night. Tiqie Eriina was curled up next to a stone chair, with a complex expression on her face, filled with confusion about the future.

When she lost the confidence to chase her inner goal, and her strong facade was shattered by the overwhelming gap, what ’Far Moon Queen’? Beneath that proud mask was just an elegant, fragile high school girl.

"Ugh!" After wrestling with herself for a while, the young girl suddenly bit her own fair wrist. As the teeth marks and red welts appeared, the pain also awakened the confused and lost girl.

Eriina gently slapped her delicate cheeks, muttering to herself, "Didn’t you come all the way to the Chinese Realm to improve your culinary skills? Even if the possibility of chasing him is gone, the steps in advancing my culinary skills must not stop... The first seat of the Ten Masters of Far Moon? No, my goal has long exceeded that... Very soon, I’ll have to battle with those Five Talents..."

A chuckle suddenly broke the silence by the pond: "That’s right, that’s the Eriina I know."

The visitor was none other than Tiqie Ailisha, who had undoubtedly been observing for a while.

Eriina immediately put on a "blank expression."

Ailisha’s pretty face displayed a fox-like cunning smile as she sat down on a stone chair behind Eriina and quietly said, "Eriina, how about we join forces?"

"?"

"The instructor is seriously cautious and wary of me, but not of you." Ailisha mentioned the young instructor’s deliberate distance, her tone carrying a hint of grievance and anger.

Tiqie Eriina’s mouth twitched slightly.

"If it were me, I’d keep my distance too," she said bluntly, glancing at her cousin’s charming face and passionate red eyes, feeling a bit envious for some reason.

If only she could express herself so openly...

Her thoughts stopped there, with a blush spreading across her cheeks.

This time, Ailisha didn’t plan to argue with Eriina. Approaching her ear, with a mysterious expression, she whispered a few words like a scheming tactician. Listening, Eriina’s face turned as red as a monkey’s bottom, "You, you... so indecent! Who wants to ally with you for a night raid!"

Clearly, Ailisha was still bitter about the last night’s raid failure. This time, she wanted to recruit a reliable ally to increase the success rate, even putting aside her prejudice against her cousin.

She was both ashamed and annoyed at Eriina’s stubbornness, saying, "If you keep hesitating like this, you’ll never have a chance!"

"Having no chance is better than being unscrupulous!"

"..."

Night.

On the surface, Xia Yu’s life trajectory seemed unchanged from before, but in reality, he had reduced much of his training in the Chef God Space, choosing to relax after the campaign and let himself breathe a little.

So he lay straight in bed and drifted into sleep.

His breathing, like a trickling stream, flowed ever more twisty, long and meandering, towards the unknown and dark realm, not knowing where it would slow down and gather into rivers and lakes.

His consciousness floated in the void.

It felt like his body was placed in the center of a lake, being gradually submerged by the water.

"You have arrived."

A melodious voice, gentle and soothing, warmed his heart with a stream of warmth.

Xia Yu opened the door, then stared in shock; the sky was blazingly bright, and merely facing the sunlight brought a tingling sensation to his eyes. He involuntarily raised his hand to shield it and stepped forward.

In the courtyard, a graceful woman stood with her back to him, placing sieves on the wooden frame.

"Sieve" is a very common drying tool, usually woven from bamboo, flat and round. As his eyes scanned, he saw that in about seven or eight same-shaped sieves, scattered out for sun-drying, were shellfish, abalone, sea cucumber, shrimp, shiitake mushrooms...

"These ingredients?" Xia Yu’s pupils shrank slightly.

In his vision, the brilliant sunlight spilled down onto the ground, and the ingredients in the sieves were bathed in a mystical golden halo.

Indeed, undeniably, the ingredients were basking in the sunlight. Vaguely, Xia Yu seemed to hear sighs and joyful exclamations of "Ah," "So comfortable," "This is wonderful and amazing," as if...

The life-giving, scorching sun had endowed these ingredients with life!

The woman with a full-bodied and gentle personality, standing upright, wiped a thin layer of sweat off her forehead with the back of her smooth hand. Her profile was filled with a soft smile, "...Ingredients, after being fully bathed in sunlight, accumulate the utmost freshness within. Only when soaked with the essence of the sun can they be called the finest dried goods."

"How is it..."

The woman with a mature allure of time, still not turning around, softly asked Xia Yu, "What do you think ’sun’ is in cooking?"

Xia Yu was taken aback.