The vast lounge was unusually lively.
The overly plain decor and facilities, so ill-suited to the visitors' status, did nothing to dampen everyone's spirits. Laughter came in waves, and the conversation was warm and animated.
"Nice weather."
Lou Guan held Ji Jue's "good tea," politely glancing around while wisely keeping his mouth shut.
"Yeah, yeah."
Tong Ting nodded, his mouth smacking nonstop as the shells of dried fruit on the table piled into a small mountain.
"Honestly, these dried fruits really are different." Old Lin from Wild Bazaar, who had come to join the fun, was practically glowing with excitement as he kept cracking them open without pause. "Give me some more."
Lou Guan joined in as well. "Share some, share some."
"Come on, everyone gets some, everyone!" Tong Ting generously opened his bag, handing each person a big handful. "Nobody came for nothing!"
Yu Shu, who was in charge of receiving the guests, hesitated several times but did not dare say a word.
He silently served tea and poured water.
There was no other reason. Even though everyone was smiling brightly at the moment, their eyes gleamed with wicked light. Whenever they grinned, they looked ravenous.
The bloodthirsty spectators had caught wind of it and arrived.
—Fight! Fight!
In just a few minutes, Tong Ting, whose seat had barely warmed, had already been appointed referee by popular vote...
Now the Ether captain had come calling!
He patted his chest and guaranteed that his refereeing would be absolutely fair and flawless!
In truth, whether there was a referee or not was secondary. After all, both sides and their masters were here. It was impossible for them to get so carried away that they turned it into a life-and-death struggle and refused to accept the result.
But the important thing was,