Feast to Their Hearts' Content: Cafeteria Delicacies

The third dish: Iced Soul-Bewitching Clam Sashimi.

The clam meat, thin as cicada wings, lay spread over crushed ice. Every slice was crystal clear, as though one could see straight through it.

Soul-Bewitching Clams were Mental Attribute soul beasts. Their flesh could nourish spiritual power and was immensely beneficial to a Soul Master's brain.

These clams were exceedingly rare. Only a single ancient book in Zhengtian Academy's library had ever mentioned them.

The fourth dish: Golden Thread Bird's Nest Soup.

It was not ordinary bird's nest, but the nest of a Golden Silk Soul Swallow.

Golden Silk Soul Swallows lived upon sheer cliffs ten thousand meters high. Their nests were formed from condensed saliva and Soul Power, and a single bowl of soup was worth as much as a low-grade Soul Tool.

There was also Ten-Thousand-Year Spirit Honey Roast Duck, Jade Spirit Vegetable Platter, Dragon Blood Rice...

Every dish emitted rich Soul Power fluctuations, as if they were not eating food, but cultivation resources.

The cafeteria was so quiet that a pin dropping could be heard.

Zhao Mingyi's chopsticks froze in midair, his lips trembling faintly.

He had spent twenty years at Zhengtian Academy and attended countless banquets hosted by its dean. He had even toured Shrek Academy's cafeteria during exchange events.

Shrek Academy's food was already considered among the finest on the continent. It was said that core disciples' daily meals included century-old soul beast meat and spirit-planted vegetables.

But the food before him...

Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Dragon Meat, Red Blood Shrimp, Soul-Bewitching Clams, Golden Silk Soul Swallow's Nest... Even Shrek Academy's inner court disciples probably could not eat such things more than once a year.

Yet at Martial Soul Academy, they were merely an ordinary meal.

"Teacher Zhao, why aren't you eating?"

Shen Zhou picked up a piece of Earth Dragon meat and put it into his mouth. After chewing twice, he revealed a satisfied expression. "The chef got the heat just right today."

Zhao Mingyi took a deep breath and picked up a piece of Earth Dragon meat.

The meat melted the moment it entered his mouth. Dense Soul Power flowed down his throat and into every part of his body, and he could even feel his Soul Power limit rise ever so slightly.

The medicinal power contained in the meat seeped into his not-yet-healed wounds, bringing a warm, pleasant tingling sensation.

He closed his eyes and savored it carefully.

"How is it?"

Yu Mengdi asked softly.

Zhao Mingyi opened his eyes, which had reddened slightly.

"I've lived for more than fifty years, and I've never eaten anything this good."

Tang Ya had long since lost her patience. She picked up a Red Blood Shrimp, peeled away its shell, and stuffed the snowy-white flesh into her mouth.

Her eyes instantly went round, her cheeks puffed out, and she shouted indistinctly, "Bei Bei! This shrimp is so delicious! I've never eaten anything this good before!"

Bei Bei also tried a piece of Soul-Bewitching Clam Sashimi. A cool stream of spiritual power rushed into his mind, sweeping away the fatigue of recent days and leaving his thoughts clearer than ever before.

"This meal... must be incredibly expensive."

He spoke quietly to Tang Ya.

"Who cares how much it costs? Eat first, talk later!"

Tang Ya grabbed another shrimp, eating until her mouth gleamed with oil.

The Zhengtian Academy students had been somewhat restrained at first, but when they saw Tang Ya eating with such abandon, they too began picking up their chopsticks.

After one bite, everyone's expressions changed from "being polite" to "shocked," then from "shocked" to "ecstatic."

"This meat is so good!"

"This soup tastes amazing!"

"Oh my god, I can feel my Soul Power rising!"

Zhao Mingyi watched his students' excited expressions, his heart filled with complicated emotions.

He lifted a bowl of Dragon Blood Rice. The grains were crystal clear, each containing a faint trace of Dragon Qi—it was spirit rice irrigated with the blood of Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Dragons.

He took a bite. The rice burst between his teeth, and warm Soul Power poured into his dantian.

Then another bite.

And another.

Before he knew it, he had finished three bowls.

"Teacher Zhao has quite the appetite."

Shen Zhou smiled.

Zhao Mingyi set down his bowl, his old face flushing red.

When he was young, he had studied at Shrek Academy for a year. He remembered that Shrek inner court disciples ate century-old soul beast meat with spirit-planted vegetables every day, with millennium-grade ingredients occasionally given out as rewards.

At the time, he had thought that was the ultimate enjoyment in the mortal world.

But compared with Martial Soul Academy now, Shrek's meals were practically pig feed.

It was not that he meant to disparage Shrek.

The gap was simply too vast.

So vast that it drove one to despair.

"Dean Shen."

Zhao Mingyi put down his chopsticks and looked seriously at Shen Zhou. "I want to ask one question—just what is Martial Soul Academy's background?"

Shen Zhou paused his chopsticks and glanced at him.

"What does Teacher Zhao think?"

"There is more than one Titled Douluo, an ancient structure like the Spirit Pagoda, and all this..."

Zhao Mingyi pointed at the food on the table. "Using ten-thousand-year soul beast meat as everyday ingredients—even the royal families of the two great empires could not manage such extravagance."

Shen Zhou smiled but did not answer directly.

"Teacher Zhao only needs to know that Martial Soul Academy lacks neither resources, experts, nor inheritances."

He paused. "The only thing it lacks is students."

Zhao Mingyi nodded thoughtfully and did not press further.

He knew that some questions would yield no answer, even if asked.

Er Ha darted over from the corner, planted his two front paws on the edge of the table, and stared fixedly at the plate of Red Blood Shrimp.

"Lao Da, This Emperor wants shrimp too."

"Didn't you just eat half a basin of meat?"

"That was an appetizer."

Shen Zhou could not be bothered arguing with it. He picked up a shrimp and tossed it over.

Er Ha caught it in one bite, crunched twice, then swallowed shell and meat together. Its tail wagged furiously.

"Awesome! These shrimp taste better than Phoenix Tail Snakes!"

"Yesterday, you said Phoenix Tail Snake meat was a great tonic."

"Times change."

Tang Ya doubled over laughing as she watched Er Ha eat shrimp.

The more she laughed, the more interesting she found this place—there was the best food, the strongest Soul Masters, the most miraculous Spirit Pagoda, and a dog that could talk, fight, and had skin thicker than a city wall.

Tang Ya doubled over laughing as she watched Er Ha eat shrimp.

As she laughed, she suddenly sighed and lowered her voice to Bei Bei. "Bei Bei, if Shrek had food like this, I wouldn't slack off from cultivation even if you paid me."

Bei Bei picked up a slice of Soul-Bewitching Clam Sashimi and placed it in his mouth. Feeling that cool spiritual power flow into his mind, he was silent for a moment before speaking. "Shrek's conditions are already among the best on the continent. It's just that this place... truly exceeds all imagination."

Tang Ya puffed out her cheeks and glanced regretfully at the Red Blood Shrimp on the table.

Of course, she had considered staying at Martial Soul Academy.

But she and Bei Bei were now Shrek Academy students. Shrek had treated them well, their teachers taught them diligently, and their classmates got along harmoniously. They could not simply pat their backsides and leave just because they had seen better conditions.

Yu Mengdi could stay because Qian Daoliu was her master and the inheritor of the same Angel Martial Soul lineage.

As for Tang Ya and Bei Bei, they were merely passing guests, when all was said and done.

"Forget it, I won't think about it."

Tang Ya picked up a piece of Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Dragon Meat and stuffed it into her mouth. Speaking indistinctly, she said, "Enjoy each meal while it lasts. The more we eat, the more we gain!"

Seeing her attitude of wanting to eat enough to bankrupt them in one meal, Bei Bei shook his head helplessly, though the corners of his mouth curved upward slightly.

Shen Zhou heard Tang Ya's quiet words. He glanced at her but said nothing.

Martial Soul Academy did not mind taking in anyone with ambition, but it would not forcibly poach someone else's people.

Tang Ya and Bei Bei had their own paths to walk. Nothing could be forced.

Still... they could invite them over as "guests" more often in the future.

At the very least, it would annoy God King Tang.

The meal was enjoyed by hosts and guests alike.

After Zhao Mingyi finished the last bite of Dragon Blood Rice, he set down his bowl and let out a long breath.