Xie Baomin was also somewhat surprised.

However, seeing his junior brother bustling around enthusiastically and occasionally flashing a confident smile, he said to Shen Jiayue, "Perhaps Junior Brother is preparing a new dish. Don't worry, Jiayue. With his talent, he won't give in."

"Yes, I'm not worried. No matter what rank he gets, he's still the culinary king in my eyes!"

Over at the consultant group, a group of elderly gentlemen were also stunned.

"Old Gao, what on earth is your disciple doing?"

How would Old Gao know? But seeing Lin Xu not giving up or feeling sorry for himself made him very happy.

"No matter what he's doing, it's better than doing nothing, right? After all, he has just as many ingredients as anyone else. Though he has no salt, others don't have sugar either."

Each person had five types of ingredients—no more, no less, perfectly fair.

In Old Gao's view, this was actually quite equitable. This competition was testing the chefs' culinary skills under extreme conditions. Perhaps this really might allow his disciple to find a breakthrough.

"Old Gao, seeing how excited you are, if your disciple really gets through this round, are you going to give him a special reward?"

Old Gao said nonchalantly, "Win or lose, I'll give him a shop. If he wins, it's a reward; if he loses, it's encouragement."

「At the cooking station」

Lin Xu was still busy.

After frying all the pumpkin strips and pumpkin balls, he poured the oil out of the wok.

Next, he added half of the remaining white sugar into the wok, poured in half a bowl of clear water, and simmered it on low heat, stirring slowly and continuously with a spoon.

He continued stirring even after the sugar in the wok had melted. He waited until the sugar thickened and turned dark brown, then turned off the heat. This was how caramel was made. It wasn't overly sweet but possessed a delightful caramel aroma.

After turning off the heat, he stirred for a moment longer to allow the wok's temperature to drop slightly. Then, he added the fried pumpkin strips and tossed them quickly, ensuring they were thoroughly coated with caramel.

Once evenly coated, he took a large plate, placed the caramel-coated pumpkin strips in the center, and then, using his hands, carefully arranged them into a tousled, nest-like shape with a depression in the middle.

After arranging them, Lin Xu switched to another pot. He steamed the salted duck egg yolks he had obtained earlier and then flattened them with a knife.

Then, he poured oil into the wok. Without waiting for the oil to heat up, he added the salted duck egg yolks and stir-fried them. When the mixture started bubbling, he added three small spoonfuls of white sugar to neutralize the saltiness of the egg yolks.

Finally, he added the fried pumpkin balls to the wok. He stir-fried them on low heat, allowing the egg yolk paste to evenly coat the pumpkin balls.

He then removed them from the wok.

By this time, the caramel-coated pumpkin strips had also cooled enough to handle.

Lin Xu took out the almost-set Dragon Beard Candy from the bowl and carefully placed it in the depression in the center of the pumpkin strips. It was surprisingly the perfect size, resembling a bird's nest perched on a pile of dry twigs.

Then, he carefully arranged the egg yolk-coated pumpkin balls inside the nest.

This uniquely styled dish, which ingeniously combined three items—Caramelized Pumpkin, egg yolk baked pumpkin, and Dragon Beard Candy (a snack)—was complete.

"Damn! Boss Lin really went all out this time!"

"What is this dish? I've never heard of it before. Did he create it?"

"It must be his creation. In the nest is the egg yolk baked pumpkin, and below it is the Caramelized Pumpkin; these are different components."

"Holy moly! Is this Boss Lin at full power?"

"I thought he was just fooling around in the first three rounds, but it looks like he was fooling around in all four!"

"Thank the organizers for pushing Boss Lin to his full potential!"

"So grateful! Otherwise, when would we ever get to see this dish?"

"..."

The fans in the live broadcast room felt like they were on a roller coaster. From initially seeing the championship within reach, to the bolt from the blue of having no salt, and now to this dramatic turnaround, everyone's emotions had undergone huge ups and downs.

The audience at the scene was also captivated by the dish Lin Xu had made.

"Ah! It looks so tempting!"

"I have absolutely no resistance to caramel; I really want to try it."

"I'd like to try those egg yolk baked pumpkin balls."

"Everyone else seems to be almost done too. Shouldn't they start the judging now?"

By now, Guo Xinghai's Stuffed Loofah, Wei Qian's Smooth Sautéed Pork Loin, and the other two contestants' Braised Chicken Wings and Stir-Fried Beef were all completed.

It was once again time for the judges to taste and score, and for the audience to salivate uncontrollably.

Geng Lishan stepped down from the judges' panel. Looking at Lin Xu, he inquired, "An original dish? I haven't seen this method before."

Lin Xu nodded. "You could say it's an original dish. It's actually just a combination of several dishes."

Everyone knew it was a combination of several dishes. But while some people could combine dishes to make them look appealing and beautiful, others ended up with a total mess. Lin Xu's creation belonged to the former category.

Geng Lishan then asked, "Have you thought of a name for this dish?"

A judge nearby immediately chimed in enthusiastically, "Since it looks like a bird's nest, why not call it Bird's Nest?"

Another judge remarked, "The name 'Bird's Nest' is too common. How about just 'Nest'? That has more artistic conception."

"I also think 'Nest' is good. It has a poetic feel and is thoughtful."

While they were discussing, Lin Xu said with a smile, "Whether it's called a bird's nest or Bird's Nest, it's a home for the bird. So, I think it should be called 'Home'."

Home?

Geng Lishan stared, dumbfounded, at the dish on the plate. He felt the name was incredibly apt.

It wasn't just because of its beautiful symbolism; the bird's nest, crafted from Thousand-layer Cake, also represented the tenderest part of everyone's heart—the part that holds family, children, and all that a person cherishes.

What a great name!

He had previously lamented that contemporary chefs lacked depth and cultural substance in their cooking. But now, this young fellow before him had thoroughly proven him wrong—a metaphorical slap in the face. This dish was spot on in terms of depth, cultural significance, and even symbolism. One could say this was the best dish he had encountered in recent years.

This young fellow is truly remarkable!

However, Geng Lishan didn't know that while Lin Xu was creating this dish just moments ago, he had wrestled with numerous ideas, exhausted countless brain cells, and also spent 200,000 System Points.

[Excellent Level Plating Technique: Exchange Price 100,000 points]

[Excellent Level Caramelizing Technique: Exchange Price 100,000 points]

Today, he had already spent 400,000 points. He had squandered all the points saved after acquiring the Heartless Iron Hand, and now he didn't even have 5,000 points left in the System.

It was like being back to square one!

Just as he was lamenting how quickly points were spent, a notification from the System rang in Lin Xu's mind:

"The Host has utilized his mastered techniques to create the Perfect Level dish 'Home,' earning a one-time Perfect Level Dish Exchange Reward. The Host can now exchange for a dish from his memory. Exchange immediately?"

A dish from his memory? Which one should he exchange?

Lin Xu thought for a moment, then suddenly remembered a dish his senior brother had made back at the shop...

This is the one!

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A 5,200-word chapter, hope everyone enjoys it! Last day of June, asking for Monthly Tickets, folks!

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