# E23 - The Limitless Hero
Source: [Crunchyroll](https://www.crunchyroll.com/watch/GMKUXZDJ7/the-limitless-hero)
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(Please feel free to edit the speaker names if incomplete or inaccurate. Names are handled on a best-effort basis depending on the info on the source file. Dialogue is left as is.)
**[00:05] Meili**
Zhu Qi! Even his hair has turned white.
**[00:10] Shirou**
He's breathing, but he's out cold...
**[00:12] Shirou**
What happened to him?
**[00:15] Mao**
Zhu Qi...
**[00:17] Mao**
Why did you do this to him?
**[00:21] Kaiyou**
He betrayed us.
**[00:24] Kaiyou**
He got was he deserved.
**[00:27] Mao**
What do you want?
**[00:29] Mao**
What are you trying to accomplish here?!
**[00:32] Kaiyou**
We are simply trying to
establish righteousness.
**[00:35] Mao**
Righteousness?
**[00:36] Kaiyou**
It's in the name Mount Liang.
**[00:39] Kaiyou**
We inherited the ambition of the
righteous Timely Rain Song Jiang.
**[00:44] Kaiyou**
He entered these mountains
during the Sung Dynasty,
**[00:48] Kaiyou**
seeking to create a utopia
in this rotten land.
**[00:51] Kaiyou**
But he and his companions ultimately
failed to realize their ideals.
**[00:57] Kaiyou**
The remnants of the chefs who served him
**[00:59] Kaiyou**
passed down his story to their descendants
**[01:02] Kaiyou**
and eventually established
the Cooking Underworld.
**[01:05] Kaiyou**
This land is a massive culinary continent.
**[01:08] Kaiyou**
The people follow the hand that feeds.
**[01:13] Kaiyou**
Well, Liu Maoxing?
**[01:14] Kaiyou**
You could hold the lives of thousands
in the palm of your hand.
**[01:19] Kaiyou**
Doesn't that sound marvelous?
**[01:22] Mao**
I don't want to hold people's
lives in the palm of my hand.
**[01:28] Mao**
My mother Bei and Master Zhou Yu taught me.
**[01:33] Mao**
The zongzi you eat as a hungry traveler...
**[01:36] Mao**
The mapo tofu you eat while
surrounded by warm family...
**[01:39] Mao**
The bowl of porridge that gently
helps the sick recuperate...
**[01:44] Mao**
Helping people achieve those
tiny moments of happiness
**[01:48] Mao**
is the greatest joy a chef can experience.
**[01:52] Kaiyou**
I could kill you here and take your map,
**[01:56] Kaiyou**
but there's one man
who wouldn't accept that.
**[01:59] Kaiyou**
Your ideals against ours.
**[02:02] Kaiyou**
Let us prove whose are superior in a battle
for our lives and the utensils.
**[02:08] Meili**
Mao...
**[02:09] Shirou**
Mao!
**[02:17] Mao**
This will be our final battle,
Cooking Underworld!
**[02:20] Chef A**
Wh-What a kid!
**[02:22] Chef B**
He shackled his own leg!
**[02:24] Kaiyou**
Liu Maoxing, you will be facing
**[02:28] Kaiyou**
the Five Tiger Star who has come
closest to achieving perfection.
**[02:31] Kaiyou**
Mainstay of the Cooking
Underworld, revered by all.
**[02:39] Meili**
Could it be?
**[02:41] Kaiyou**
That's right. He is...
**[02:50] Kaiyou**
Flaming Chef Ya Kan!
***SIGN*** True Cooking Master Boy
**[04:27] Mao**
The heavens will never side
with the Cooking Underworld,
**[04:31] Mao**
Flaming Chef Ya Kan.
**[04:35] Yakan**
Our battle will determine that,
Liu Maoxing, son of Lady Bei,
**[04:40] Yakan**
in the most ceremonious
of Mount Liang's kitchen stadiums,
**[04:45] Yakan**
Song Jiang's resting place,
the Protector of Justice Cave!
**[04:55] Like**
Allow me to announce the subjects
selected for this decisive battle.
**[05:01] Like**
The first subject is yakisoba!
***SIGN*** Yakisoba
**[05:05] Like**
Adding color to this first-class battle
is the second special subject...
***SIGN*** Heroes of the Land
**[05:11] Like**
...heroes of the land!
**[05:13] Like**
Please use yakisoba to represent
**[05:15] Like**
the heroes of China you
picture in your hearts!
**[05:21] Like**
Lastly, the rules require the loser
of this battle to pay in blood.
**[05:26] Like**
Just as Lord Song Jiang did 700 years ago,
**[05:28] Like**
they must drink a cup of poisoned wine.
**[05:33] Shirou**
*What?!*
**[05:35] Like**
Let the Protector of Justice
Cave battle begin!
**[05:44] Yakan**
I shall crush you, Liu Maoxing!
**[05:48] Yakan**
I swear on my honor as the Flaming Chef!
**[05:55] Mao**
Ya Kan.
**[05:58] Shirou**
He cut an entire cow in half
with his bare hands!
**[06:01] Wuyong**
That single blow is the beacon signaling
the start of his flaming cooking.
**[06:05] Ludaci**
Those skills and that spirit were born
and bred in Mount Jiang.
**[06:10] Ludaci**
Always leading the charge,
**[06:12] Ludaci**
he is the great protector
deity who inspires us.
**[06:16] Kaiyou**
*Impressive as always, Ya Kan.*
**[06:18] Kaiyou**
* He truly is the brave leader who will*
* shake the culinary world to its core.*
**[06:22] Kaiyou**
* The spirits of the Kirin Chefs*
* will be lifted to the heavens.*
**[06:29] Like**
*Lord Ya Kan is taking this seriously.*
**[06:32] Like**
* Though he gracefully withdrew*
* on the Yangtze River that day,*
**[06:36] Like**
* Mao's shadow must have grown*
* unbelievably large inside Lord Ya Kan.*
**[06:43] Like**
*That's the kind of chef Mao is.*
**[06:53] Shirou**
*H-He really did it!*
**[06:54] Shirou**
* He turned the holding pond*
* into a sea of fire!*
**[06:57] Shirou**
*That water buffalo and boiled fish...*
**[07:02] Shirou**
*That's it.*
**[07:03] Shirou**
* Ya Kan's cooking a hearty yakisoba*
* with fish and meat in a thick sauce.*
**[07:12] Shirou**
*What is Mao doing?*
**[07:14] Shirou**
* He's spending an awfully long*
* time choosing his ingredients.*
**[07:24] Shirou**
*Should he be cooking so calmly?*
**[07:28] Kirin**
There's an unspeakably fragrant
aroma coming from the holding pond!
**[07:33] Ludaci**
He's begun cooking his
noodles in the lake of fire!
**[07:38] Kaiyou**
Only a man so fascinated by the god of fire
could achieve such divine techniques.
**[07:46] Meili**
Mao...
**[07:47] Meili**
What kind of hero of the
land will he represent
**[07:49] Meili**
with so many ingredients available to him?
**[07:53] Shirou**
Mao, he's incredible!
**[07:55] Shirou**
They don't call him
the Flaming Chef for nothing!
**[07:59] Mao**
You're right. He is amazing.
**[08:02] Mao**
But ultimately, he hasn't changed
since our battle on the Yangtze River.
**[08:07] Shirou**
Huh?
**[08:09] Mao**
He's just doing the same thing.
**[08:12] Shirou**
But don't forget, Mao.
Ya Kan still has a mysterious power.
**[08:18] Shirou**
The wondrous power he used
on the Yangtze River
**[08:23] Shirou**
to grill those fish without charring them.
***SIGN*** Great Heavenly Grilled Black Carp
**[08:25] Shirou**
He'll use that same hellfire to overcome
**[08:28] Shirou**
the greatest hurdle of cooking
yakisoba, uniform browning.
**[08:33] Mao**
Shirou, I'm not the same
chef I was back then.
**[08:38] Mao**
I figured something out through
my battle against Zhu Qi.
**[08:41] Shirou**
What do you mean?
**[08:43] Mao**
Ya Kan, Zhu Qi...
**[08:45] Mao**
Every Five Tiger Star has exceptional senses
**[08:48] Mao**
far greater than the common person's.
**[08:51] Mao**
Ya Kan's power is most likely
his sense of touch.
**[08:56] Mao**
His extraordinary skin accurately measures
the temperature of all parts of a fire,
**[09:01] Mao**
allowing him to make optimal
use of it at all times.
**[09:06] Shirou**
Can you beat him, Mao?
**[09:09] Mao**
Take a look, Shirou.
**[09:11] Shirou**
Huh?
**[09:18] Shirou**
The noodles are falling like a waterfall!
**[09:22] Mao**
This is my chance
to root out the Underworld.
**[09:32] Wuyong**
Such a vivid color!
**[09:36] Wuyong**
The noodles are becoming a golden
brown right before our eyes!
**[09:39] Shirou**
Ya Kan uses his exceptional sense
of touch to detect the heat of the fire
**[09:43] Shirou**
and the wind pressure generated
by his arms to control the heat.
**[09:48] Like**
Chinese cuisine is about cooking with fire.
**[09:51] Like**
Lord Ya Kan's control over fire makes
him the greatest chef in the land!
**[10:02] Shirou**
What's he doing?
**[10:03] Meili**
He's steaming it so that
the flavors will blend.
**[10:09] Shirou**
He uses a knife so delicately
despite his size.
**[10:13] Shirou**
Damn! His skills with both fire
and knives are perfect!
**[10:17] Shirou**
He's a flawless chef!
**[10:19] Shirou**
Will you be okay, Mao?
**[10:27] Mao**
All done.
**[10:27] Shirou**
Huh? What?
**[10:30] Mao**
I carved up a carrot. Cute, right?
**[10:32] Shirou**
Why are you wasting your time doing that?!
**[10:35] Shirou**
Why can't you take this seriously?!
***SIGN*** Mogao Caves, Dunhuang
**[10:43] Xielu**
That's odd. It should be
around here somewhere.
**[10:53] Leien**
This wall looks like it was built later.
**[10:57] Xielu**
Huh? All right. In that case...
***SIGN*** Spirit Storehouse
**[11:06] Leien**
This is the sixth utensil!
**[11:08] Xielu**
All right!
***SIGN*** Daxian Temple, Guangzhou
**[11:52] Like**
Time's up!
**[11:54] Like**
We'll now move onto the judging!
**[11:56] Like**
Lord Ya Kan, who shall judge this contest?
**[12:03] Ya Kan**
Mei Li of Yang Spring Restaurant, you do it.
**[12:06] Meili**
What? Who, me?
**[12:09] Shirou**
He's choosing someone on our side
just like he did on the Yangtze River.
**[12:13] Shirou**
He's as fearless as ever.
**[12:15] Yakan**
You don't object, do you, Liu Maoxing?
**[12:20] Mao**
I do!
**[12:21] Mao**
Jade Arrowhead Li Ke,
I'd like you to judge, as well.
**[12:24] Like**
What?!
**[12:27] Kaiyou**
He hates losing just as much as Bei did.
**[12:31] Yakan**
You just pulled the rug out
from under yourself.
**[12:35] Mao**
Did I?
**[12:42] Like**
First, Lord Ya Kan.
**[12:47] Meili**
Wow, so thick.
**[12:49] Like**
*The subject was heroes of the land.*
**[12:52] Like**
* Which hero did Lord Ya Kan choose*
* to represent with his yakisoba dish?*
**[13:03] Shirou**
Mao, something's not right.
**[13:05] Shirou**
I don't see the beef or fish he was cooking,
**[13:09] Shirou**
and his noodles aren't in a thick sauce.
**[13:20] Shirou**
What was that?
**[13:24] Like**
I-Incredible!
**[13:26] Like**
He wrapped the noodles into spirals
**[13:28] Like**
and fried them so they'd harden
into a cylindrical shape.
**[13:30] Like**
And inside the noodles is a thick
sauce as intensely hot as lava!
**[13:35] Wuyong**
What? He didn't pour his
sauce over the noodles?
**[13:39] Ludaci**
He hid it *inside* the noodles?!
**[13:43] Like**
* The sauce contains flatfish,*
* sea bream, bamboo shoots,*
**[13:46] Like**
* Chinese cabbage, wood ear mushrooms,*
* and chopped vermicelli.*
**[13:49] Meili**
The powerful flavor of
the noodles ties together
**[13:52] Meili**
the textures of the various ingredients
that spread throughout your mouth
**[13:55] Meili**
and their light and elegant taste.
**[13:58] Meili**
It's powerfully delicious.
**[14:00] Meili**
I can't believe he tied together
so many different ingredients.
**[14:04] Meili**
What's his secret?
**[14:05] Like**
Could it be that the rich
flavor of these noodles is...
**[14:10] Like**
It's beef!
**[14:12] Like**
He made these noodles by grinding up
that entire water buffalo
**[14:15] Like**
and mixing it into the dough.
**[14:17] Like**
Normally it's the noodles
that are seasoned by the sauce,
**[14:20] Like**
but in this case, it's the noodles
that are powerfully seasoning the sauce!
**[14:23] Wuyong**
I've never seen anything like this.
**[14:26] Ludaci**
The power of these noodles
will allow us to bring together
**[14:29] Ludaci**
the culinary worlds of this land!
**[14:35] Ludaci**
If we follow this man,
our success is guaranteed.
**[14:38] Ludaci**
Hurrah! Three cheers for Panther Head Ya Kan!
**[14:42] Like**
Lord Ya Kan, your dish is perfect.
**[14:42] All**
Hurrah! Hurrah! Hurrah!
**[14:45] Like**
How does it connect to the theme
of heroes of the land?
**[14:51] Yakan**
Not even you can tell, huh? This is—
**[14:54] Mao**
This land was once divided
into seven kingdoms.
**[14:57] Mao**
It was split amongst the lands of
Qin, Han, Wei, Zhao, Qi, Yan, and Chu,
**[15:04] Mao**
known as the Seven Warring Kingdoms.
**[15:08] Mao**
However, two thousand years ago,
**[15:12] Mao**
there was a man who unified China
for the first time in history.
**[15:16] Mao**
His name was Qin Shi Huang.
**[15:21] Yakan**
*Th-This boy...*
**[15:22] Mao**
The six ingredients: flatfish, sea bream,
bamboo shoots, Chinese cabbage,
**[15:28] Mao**
wood ear mushrooms, and vermicelli
represent the six other kingdoms,
**[15:32] Mao**
and the water buffalo noodles
holding them together
**[15:35] Mao**
represents the kingdom of Qin
and Qin Shi Huang.
**[15:38] Mao**
Am I wrong, Ya Kan?
**[15:41] Yakan**
*He saw through everything. In that case...*
**[15:48] Mao**
Now, it's my turn.
**[15:50] Yakan**
*What did he make?!*
**[15:56] Kirin**
What's that?
**[16:00] Ludaci**
There's nothing special about it.
**[16:02] Like**
He's right. It's ordinary yakisoba.
**[16:04] Like**
I'm a little disappointed.
**[16:06] Meili**
You don't know Mao.
**[16:08] Meili**
There's no way he'd cook ordinary
yakisoba for such an important battle.
**[16:16] Yakan**
It certainly looks like ordinary yakisoba.
**[16:20] Yakan**
But what have you hidden
behind it, Liu Maoxing?
**[16:25] Both**
N-No...
**[16:30] Like**
*It's just one dish.*
**[16:32] Meili**
* But with each bite, a completely different*
* flavor spreads throughout your mouth.*
**[16:37] Both**
*That's right!*
**[16:41] Both**
* It's like eating thousands*
* of different types of yakisoba!*
**[16:49] Yakan**
*What...*
**[16:51] Yakan**
*What in the world did he do?!*
**[16:56] Wuyong**
Li Ke's still eating Liu Maoxing's
yakisoba without slowing down.
**[17:01] Ludaci**
The capricious and fickle Li Ke,
**[17:04] Ludaci**
whose strict tongue has earned her
the title of God's tongue?
**[17:06] Like**
*I... I can't stop eating!*
**[17:09] Mao**
This is Liu Maoxing's
special Henghesha Noodles!
***SIGN*** Henghesha Noodles
**[17:16] Ludaci**
H-Henghesha?
**[17:18] Kaiyou**
Henghesha...
**[17:21] Kaiyou**
A numerical value far greater
than 100 million, or even one trillion.
**[17:25] Kaiyou**
A term derived from the number
of grains of sand in the Ganges River.
**[17:30] Kaiyou**
Is he saying it contains that many flavors?
**[17:33] Like**
Wait.
**[17:34] Meili**
What?
**[17:35] Like**
I'd like to confirm something.
**[17:37] Like**
Cut, braided, folded, twisted.
**[17:41] Like**
Though the noodles are of uniform thickness,
**[17:43] Like**
different techniques have been applied
to each individual noodle.
**[17:47] Meili**
That's why the textures are so diverse.
**[17:53] Meili**
*I see.*
**[17:54] Meili**
* Unlike Ya Kan, whose dishes*
* are browned perfectly uniformly,*
**[17:56] Meili**
* Mao altered the shape of his dishes*
* and deliberately produced varied textures.*
**[18:06] Like**
This one is spinach.
This one is century eggs.
**[18:10] Like**
Crab innards, shrimp,
yams, soft-shelled turtle,
**[18:13] Like**
red perilla, and silkie chicken, too.
**[18:16] Like**
Each noodle has a different
ingredient mixed into it.
**[18:21] Kirin**
E-Every noodle?
**[18:24] Meili**
It's like a compilation of all the
ingredients Mao has ever encountered.
**[18:28] Meili**
That's why each bite tastes so different.
**[18:32] Mao**
That's right. For example, the same
longxia noodles taste totally different
**[18:35] All**
when combined with
the salted duck egg noodles
**[18:38] All**
versus the sweet kabocha squash noodles.
**[18:42] Mao**
Furthermore, the shapes of the
noodles themselves are different,
**[18:45] Mao**
so you can enjoy the change in texture.
**[18:47] Mao**
The combinations change
every time you take a bite.
**[18:50] Mao**
The flavors and textures change endlessly.
**[18:53] Mao**
The flavors are truly limitless.
**[19:00] Like**
No matter how delicious
the first bite of yakisoba is,
**[19:04] Like**
the persistent and monotonous
flavor will eventually slow you down.
**[19:08] Like**
But you'd never grow bored
of this incredible dish
**[19:10] Like**
that expands your appetite infinitely.
**[19:14] Like**
So, Maoxing, how does this dish tie
into the subject heroes of the land?
**[19:21] Mao**
Well...
**[19:23] Mao**
Over four thousand years, as many people
as there are stars have appeared in this land.
**[19:27] Mao**
Some found success, while others failed.
**[19:31] Mao**
I think everyone who
lived the best they could
**[19:34] Mao**
was the hero of their own story
who fulfilled their destiny, so...
**[19:45] Mao**
this limitless flavor represents
all the people of China.
**[19:53] Like**
All the people?
**[19:56] Like**
*What a mysterious dish.*
**[19:58] Like**
* What is this feeling? It's like the knot*
* inside my heart is being unraveled.*
**[20:08] Kirin**
The winner gets the utensils and the map.
**[20:11] Kirin**
And the loser drinks a poisoned wine.
**[20:14] Kirin**
Who will they chose?
**[20:16] Like**
* Lord Ya Kan's dish made*
* from six ingredients tied together*
**[20:19] Like**
* with water buffalo noodles*
* represented Qin Shi Huang.*
**[20:21] Like**
*It embodied unification.*
**[20:24] Like**
*Liu Maoxing's dish embodied liberation.*
**[20:29] Like**
*Unification and liberation.*
**[20:31] Like**
*Lord Ya Kan, I...*
**[20:36] Yakan**
Li Ke.
**[20:38] Yakan**
You don't need to pass your judgment.
**[20:42] Like**
Lord Ya Kan?
**[20:45] Yakan**
The winner of the Protector of
Justice Cave yakisoba battle
**[20:50] Yakan**
is Liu Maoxing!
**[20:56] Ludaci**
Impossible!
**[20:57] Ludaci**
The undefeated Five Tiger Star
Lord Ya Kan declared his own defeat.
**[21:03] Yakan**
His dish was impeccable
in both flavor and idea.
**[21:08] Yakan**
Li Ke, your tongue proved it all.
**[21:12] Yakan**
Losing this contest was my destiny.
**[21:21] Kaiyou**
*No! He's going to drink it.*
**[21:24] Kaiyou**
*He's actually going to drink it.*
**[21:28] Kirin**
No way...
**[21:30] Ludaci**
Li Ke, overturn his ruling!
**[21:33] Ludaci**
Why aren't you saying anything, Li Ke?
**[21:36] Yakan**
The rest is up to you, Kai You.
**[21:42] Wuyong**
L-Lord Ya Kan...
**[21:44] Ludaci**
We're going to lose everything...
**[21:47] Shirou**
Is he serious?
**[21:55] Like**
Lord Ya Kan!
***SIGN*** Next Time
***SIGN*** "Creators of an Era"
**[23:56] Narration**
*"Creators of an Era."*