Yan Shaozhe rose to announce the end of the competition, telling them to go back and rest and to return here as a group the next day to hear the results.
This had been a free-for-all, so they needed to evaluate each team in several areas.
On top of that, Ji Siyuan was frankly a bit of a monster, so the teams that had fought him needed to be reassessed.
Though he hadn't done much in the final, either.
Still, there were more than half a day left after the competition ended, and everyone was in high spirits.
Wang Dong'er immediately grabbed the two of them. "Don't even think about running off. We agreed on a victory banquet. You can't skip it."
She turned to Xiao Xiao. "Xiao Xiao, do you want to join us? These two are great cooks. Their food is delicious."
Xiao Xiao had just been about to head back to her dorm. Hearing Wang Dong'er's invitation, she asked, "Can I stay, too?"
She was asking Ji Siyuan, since he was the one in charge.
At this point, it would be awkward to refuse. They'd come to her aid when she was down, after all, so sharing a meal was no problem.
"Of course. Do you want your teammates to come?"
"They've already gone to celebrate with someone else."
Her teammates weren't exactly geniuses, and aside from this competition, they hardly ever spoke.
With Xiao Xiao left on her own, it was only natural for them to gather together.
At their usual open space, Huo Yuhao had already set up the grill, waiting for Ji Siyuan to return and light it.
Ji Siyuan came over from the shops with four more tagalongs behind him, all looking for a free meal.
Wang Dong'er introduced Xiao Xiao. "This is Xu Sanshi from the Outer Court, Senior Jiang Nannan, Senior Bei Bei, and Senior Tang Ya."
"Hey! Why didn't you call me 'senior'?"
When Tang Ya saw Xiao Xiao, her eyes lit up. "Junior, want to join the Tang Sect?"
A pitch-perfect sales pitch.
After Bei Bei and Tang Ya pitched the Tang Sect to her, Xiao Xiao joined.
Wang Dong'er said, "If you don't know how to do something, ask me. If I don't know, we'll ask Ji Siyuan! He definitely knows." Just like that, she'd sold Ji Siyuan out.
Wang Dong'er asked, "Xu Sanshi, by the way, how did you end up here?"
"Obviously, young Siyuan's too young to buy alcohol. They wouldn't sell it to him, so he had no choice but to come find us."
Xiao Xiao asked, "We're drinking, too? What if I can't hold my liquor? Can I skip it?"
"Don't worry. Ji Siyuan's a master mixologist. He makes the drinks really mild, and they taste great, too."
Ji Siyuan chimed in from the side. "I'm a God Rank mixologist. Too bad we don't have an ice-type Soul Master here. Then I could make even more things."
Huo Yuhao's heart skipped a beat. He made up his mind to obtain an even better ice-type Martial Soul. He had to be a good match for Ji Siyuan.
Sky Dream Ice Silkworm: ???
After all that talk, one sentence from Ji Siyuan had done more than anything else. Tian Meng had it rough.
"You guys won the championship, right?"
Xiao Xiao said bashfully, "I wasn't on their team. I came in second."
After they explained, the four of them understood why Xiao Xiao was there.
Bei Bei said, "In a little while, the academy will organize a group hunt for Soul Beasts. So we might be gone for a few days."
Xu Sanshi said, "Don't worry. We'll be back soon."
Their levels were high enough. All they needed was a Soul Ring to become Soul Ancestors.
"Young Siyuan, once Brother Sanshi gets his fourth Soul Ring, I'll come settle the score with you."
The feast was in full swing, with laughter and cheer all around.
The eight of them sat together and enjoyed the food.
Meanwhile, Yan Shaozhe and Qian Duoduo were still sorting out the core disciple assignments.
"Are you really going to give Huo Yuhao core disciple status? How can the champion not get it?"
Yan Shaozhe said, "His Soul Power really is too low, and with Ji Siyuan's influence, his greatest strength—his ability to coordinate the team—doesn't stand out."
"Even the championship team can be denied?"
"It wouldn't be the first time we've made an exception."
"Old Yan, are you looking down on him because he's my student? The Soul Tool Department is claiming him! Put simply, he has to be a core disciple."
"I truly didn't know he was your student." Yan Shaozhe felt he was being treated unfairly. One core disciple's status wasn't worth a fight with Qian Duoduo. "Fine. I'll do it as a favor to you."
"You didn't know? He's the one you gave me."
The two of them even went over it again, only to realize they had to thank Ji Siyuan for finding Qian Duoduo such a good student.
Du Weilun, meanwhile, went to prepare the prizes for the top three.
Their work was drawing to a close.
Ji Siyuan and the others, however, received an unexpected visitor.
"Why's that old man so filthy?" Wang Dong'er looked uneasily at the old man who had inexplicably wandered over.
Bei Bei lowered his head and greeted him. "Elder Xuan."
The newcomer was none other than Xuan Zi.
He spent his days idling about, no one knew what he was doing.
Whenever he went out to handle something, there was a good chance of a minor mishap and a small chance of a major one.
Take students out with him, and there was a good chance of a catastrophic disaster.
The food smelled so good that Xuan Zi had followed the scent.
"Mm, Bei Bei. That smells delicious. How can you let your junior drink? I'm confiscating this." He picked up a jug and took a couple of hearty swigs. "Good stuff."
After drinking, he naturally wanted meat.
Xuan Zi reached out his claws to grab a skewer.
Ji Siyuan simply turned up the heat.
But there was no way that could stop Xuan Zi.
"Ultimate Fire. A fine Martial Soul." After saying that, Xuan Zi didn't leave. He found a patch of grass to lie down on, then came over for meat whenever he was hungry and went for a drink whenever he was thirsty.
Every so often, he even complained that Ji Siyuan's drinks were so weak they might as well be water.
"You old freeloader, are you eating here for free?" Ji Siyuan immediately scolded the shameless old man.
"This old man doesn't eat for free." Xuan Zi pulled out a piece of ten-thousand-year-old Soul Beast meat. "This is the real deal: ten-thousand-year-old Earth Dragon meat. I killed it a few days ago and kept it in my Space Soul Tool. Let's see if you can make it taste good."
It was top-grade meat, enough to match the food and drink they'd prepared for the victory banquet.
Tang San said, "He's a level 98 Titled Douluo, very powerful. This must just be a disguise. Maybe he's a reliable person?"
"Reliable? Don't make me laugh." Ji Siyuan nearly burst out laughing at Tang San's assessment.
"If he's reliable, then nobody in this world is unreliable. Just look at the consequences—his enemies are probably more reliable than he is."
Tang San had no idea what would happen. "Is he really that ridiculous?"
"So, Uncle, don't judge people based on your own experience."
Tang San was getting a little dizzy. "This world's too bizarre. I'd better take a moment to process it."
When Xuan Zi saw that Ji Siyuan wasn't moving, he asked, "What is it, kid? Can't do it?"
"I can, of course!" That was no challenge for Ji Siyuan.
Someone else might have struggled with it, but with his Ultimate Fire, it was easy for him to prepare.
"No more skewers. I'll roast the whole thing over the fire."
They didn't have a proper rack, but Ji Siyuan could control the flames directly, and it worked even better.
Xuan Zi had brought meat they could use, but not the alcohol. Only he could drink that.
They shaved the roast meat off with a small knife and shared it. It tasted incredible, and it was packed with nutrients.
As the banquet neared its end, Xuan Zi stood up, brushed off his backside, and left. "You can keep the rest of the meat."
The little bit of roast meat left was soon finished off by the others.
Aside from Xuan Zi crashing the party, everyone had a wonderful time. The victory banquet had been a blast.