Chapter 393 - 363: Archaeology Competition

Chapter 393: Chapter 363: Archaeology Competition

In the end, the long-haired guy had no idea how he even managed to leave.

After learning the truth, his face turned as red as a monkey’s behind.

He was so ashamed he wanted to find a crack in the ground and crawl into it.

Actually, his results weren’t bad at all.

Aside from Li Qian, his results were enough to tower over everyone else present.

If he hadn’t been so arrogant after opening the Cultivation Room, so certain of himself, so quick to declare himself the champion, he could have been puffing his chest out and proudly accepting his honor.

But now...

He would still receive his due honors, but he was flushed with embarrassment when it was time to accept his award.

The audience’s mocking laughter felt like daggers stabbing into his heart.

Because of this, his gaze toward Li Qian was filled with resentment.

If the organizers hadn’t demanded his presence, he would have just bailed.

However, the Soul Crystal Stone was too valuable, and he couldn’t bring himself to actually leave it behind.

So he could only grit his teeth and accept the award.

His awkward and theatrical display was so amusing that even the third-place winner standing next to him couldn’t help but laugh.

After that farcical episode, the freshman challenge finally drew to a close.

Actually, for Li Qian and Lu Tianjiao, their competition was already over.

In the next three days, there were other competitions, but those were archaeology projects and had nothing to do with them.

Li Qian started to consider what to do for the next three days. Should he head straight back to Shazhou Beast Taming University? Visit his hometown? Or, as Dean Long Jue had suggested, take some time to explore Kansai City?

That was Li Qian’s plan, anyway. But it was soon interrupted.

Because that very evening, all sorts of people started showing up to see him.

The first to find him was Xiahou Lan, the current Clan Leader of the Xiahou Clan and the Vice Dean of the Combat Academy at Kansai Beast Taming University.

Li Qian was not at all surprised that someone from the Xiahou Clan had sought him out.

After all, the Sunbird was the ace Pet Beast of their ancestors.

Li Qian held the Xiahou Clan in high regard.

Their ancestors had made many contributions to Mo Yuan City and to the Human Race.

’Of course, respect is one thing, but business is business,’ Li Qian thought. ’I poured my heart and soul into this evolution method, wracking my brains with a little help from my Golden Finger. I’m not just going to hand it over easily.’

As it turned out, Xiahou Lan didn’t ask for that.

His request was to help the Xiahou Family evolve a few Sunbirds.

The price he offered was also very tempting to Li Qian.

Not only would they provide all the necessary materials, but they also offered a hefty sum of money.

Li Qian had no reason to refuse and agreed immediately.

He would help them evolve three Sunbirds within half a year.

The Sunbird’s evolution was relatively simple, but getting a Golden Crowned Red Feather Chicken to train its Light Absorption Skill to the Perfection Level was not easy.

Chicken Hair was exceptionally talented and had trained relentlessly to master this Skill.

Even so, it had taken a considerable amount of time to train it to the Perfection Level.

As for other Red Feather Chickens, Li Qian wasn’t as confident, but he was still quite sure he could manage it within half a year.

After seeing Xiahou Lan off, a company representative appeared before him less than five minutes later.

Yulan Pet Beast Research Company.

Li Qian found it difficult to refuse this particular company representative.

Yulan Pet Beast Research Company was one of the top companies in the entire Dongxia Federation and had partnerships with many Pet Beast Universities.

His Shazhou Beast Taming University was one of them.

Li Qian politely received the company representative.

Of course, given his achievements, the representative was also quite courteous.

He maintained a professional smile the entire time.

They chatted briefly, and Li Qian acknowledged his proposal for a partnership.

It was all very preliminary, of course—just discussing general interest and a basic framework.

As for the specific details, Li Qian put him off with the excuse that he was short on time and needed to discuss it with his family.

After finally dealing with the man from the Yulan Company, it wasn’t long before another company representative appeared before him.

This time, Li Qian was starting to get genuinely impatient.

After spending ten-odd minutes brushing this one off, he left his room, called Fatty An and Lu Tianjiao, and left the hotel.

They found a night market in Mo Yuan City and started chowing down on some barbecue skewers.

"Fatty, Old Lu, got any ideas? Ever since the competition ended this afternoon, I haven’t had a moment’s peace!" Li Qian complained while munching on a skewer.

"That’s a good problem to have. If it were me, I’d kill for people to be lining up to see me every day..." Fatty An said, a hint of envy in his voice.

"They’re like flies. It is a bit annoying," Lu Tianjiao said with a wave of his hand.

"Why don’t you just head straight for Shazhou Beast Taming University tomorrow morning? Or go back to your hometown?" Fatty An suggested after a moment of thought.

Lu Tianjiao shook his head. "That was a hell of a stunt you pulled. It’s only natural you’d attract a swarm. Right now, I bet there are people waiting to ambush you at both Shazhou Beast Taming University and your hometown."

Li Qian shot him an annoyed look. "What do you mean, ’attract a swarm’? If you’re going to be uncultured, at least don’t misuse idioms!"

Lu Tianjiao chuckled. "Well, I do have a way for you to escape all this harassment for a while."

"What is it?" Li Qian pressed.

"Simple. Join me in tomorrow’s archaeology competition," Lu Tianjiao said smugly.

"The what now?" Li Qian asked, dumbfounded.

Lu Tianjiao explained, "You know about the archaeology competition tomorrow, right? Our university’s Archaeology College is participating. Unlike the combat and cultivation competitions, the archaeology event is team-based. Contestants can recruit three to five members to their team, and the final score is based on what they manage to unearth."

"The archaeology competition takes place outside Mo Yuan City in a designated area. If you join, you should be able to get some peace and quiet for the next few days. No one will come bother you."

Li Qian nodded. "That’s actually not a bad idea..."

Fatty An immediately blurted out the truth. "Don’t listen to his nonsense. This guy’s just got his eye on Bai Bingbing from the Archaeology College."

"And who is Bai Bingbing?" Li Qian asked, looking at Lu Tianjiao with a smirk.

"One of the campus belles of our university’s Archaeology College. This guy went through a ton of trouble to cozy up to her and finally managed to join her team. I think he even name-dropped you to get in..." Fatty An exposed him.

Li Qian was a little stunned. "You’re so fickle. Weren’t you just going after Mo Ziyu?"

Fatty An continued to lay him bare. "It’s only been a few days. He had no chance of winning her over and didn’t even leave a good impression. So this guy sensibly switched targets."

Lu Tianjiao snatched a handful of lamb skewers and shoved them at Fatty An’s mouth. "Can’t all this food shut your trap? You gossip more than an old woman!"

The three of them bantered for a while longer, and in the end, Li Qian agreed.

’It can’t be helped,’ he thought. ’After thinking it over, this seems like the only way to get some temporary peace and quiet.’

By the time they finished their skewers, it was already past eleven at night.

The three of them headed back together. Suddenly, at an intersection, Li Qian caught a glimpse of what seemed to be a familiar figure.

He scratched his head, puzzled. ’Huh, that person... she looks a lot like Mary. But she didn’t participate in the freshman challenge, did she? Maybe she came just to watch, like Fatty An...’

He shook his head, pushing the thought to the back of his mind...

’Probably just a resemblance. I must have seen wrong...’