Gan Lan got up just as the sky was beginning to brighten. She had gone to bed early the night before, and today’s competition was taking place in the morning, with a hundred examination venues operating simultaneously.
Everyone would be working on the same topic. Considering the personality of whoever designed this competition, she was slightly curious about what the topic would be this time. Since the first two rounds had used common, ordinary ingredients, she wondered if they would be using special ingredients today.
Although she had some understanding of special ingredients, she had never actually cooked with them. She thought, "What should I do if that happens?"
Gan Lan frowned in deep thought. After pondering for a while without coming to any conclusions, she simply gave up. It didn’t matter; she could adapt to whatever came her way.
She took out the steamed buns she had made yesterday and ate them for breakfast. Then, she browsed the Star Network forums to see if anyone was guessing the competition topics. Getting up so early left her with nothing else to do.
[Prediction! What will be the topic for the top-ten advancement round of the culinary competition?]
[Prediction! The first two rounds of the culinary competition featured common ingredients, so this time it might be special ingredients! Here are the predicted special ingredients that will appear.]
Gan Lan was drawn to the second title. She clicked on it and saw that the list consisted of all the special ingredients she had already guessed. Since she already knew their effects and uses, the post wasn’t of much help.
It was already eight-thirty, so she decided to just head to the competition venue early.
"Gulu, are you going to watch the competition today? If not, I’m heading out on my own!" Gan Lan picked up the temperature-controlled box she had borrowed from the venue robot last time and called out to Gulu, who was currently playing a video game.
"I’m going too. There will definitely be a ton of beautiful women today. Can’t you see I specially changed into these sparkling clothes?" Gulu put down his gaming console, walked in front of Gan Lan, and struck what he thought was a handsome pose. "Well? Doesn’t my outfit look super cool and full of personality!?"
Gan Lan gave Gulu a deadpan look and turned her head away, unwilling to look at him any longer. What on earth was this taste? It was even more blinding than a mishmash of neon colors.
He was covered in sparkling green sequins and even wore a light green hat on his head. The green glare was extremely piercing to the eyes. Did he not realize the scandalous cultural implications of wearing a bright green hat?
"You better not go. Standing next to me looking like that will attract way too much attention, and I won’t be able to handle it." Gan Lan shielded her eyes from the blinding green glare, opened her door, and walked out.
Seeing her expression and actions, Gulu pouted. "Hmph! You just don’t know how to appreciate fashion! I don’t want to walk with you either, you’re so incredibly tacky!"
With that, he ignored Gan Lan and marched off toward the competition venue on his own.
Gan Lan also took out her hoverboard Flying Car and leisurely drove toward the venue. The place she was staying at was quite close to it.
There was still an hour before the competition started. Along the way, the two of them indeed attracted quite a few eyeballs, especially the dazzling Gulu. Some fans who recognized Gan Lan also greeted her and cheered her on.
"Yo! Quite the grand entrance with all those fans, huh?" Seeing Gan Lan looking so radiant and smug, Ge Feng couldn’t resist coming over to mock her. Just as he reached out a hand to block her path, Gan Lan nimbly dodged him.
"Gulu! Protect me! This guy wants to hit me! Come over here and protect me, quick!" Seeing Ge Feng’s outstretched hand, Gan Lan thought he was actually going to strike her. She dodged instinctively and shouted loudly at Gulu.
A gust of wind messed up Gan Lan’s hair as Gulu suddenly materialized in front of her. He stood there with an even more arrogant posture than Ge Feng and stealthily scanned the guy, who currently had one hand in his pocket and a disdainful expression on his face. "You’re saying this weakling wants to hit you? He’s so weak, and you actually can’t beat him?"
He turned his head to look Gan Lan up and down, propping his chin on his hand. He nodded thoughtfully. "I forgot, you’re an even bigger weakling than he is."
Gan Lan’s face darkened with exasperation. She thought, "Whose side are you on? How can you even roast your own people?"
Given Ge Feng’s explosive temper, could he possibly endure hearing someone call him a weakling?
"Do you have a death wish!?" Ge Feng demanded aggressively, his face flushed red as he pointed at Gulu. If it weren’t for his master specifically instructing him not to cause trouble today, he would have already rushed up to fight this complete eyesore and shown him who the real weakling was!
Noticing the arrogant and domineering atmosphere over here, nearby onlookers quickly gathered around the scene.
"Are these two going to escalate things into a physical fight this time? Tsk tsk, it feels pretty good to have a show to watch before the competition even starts."
"Yeah, yeah. In previous years, the competitions were always so strictly regulated with nothing interesting to watch. It’s really lively this time."
"I know one of them is Ge Feng, but who is that little girl? Why do the two of them look like they have a vendetta against each other?"
"Before the competition even began, the two of them were already at each other’s throats. That little girl talked tough right from the start, calling Ge Feng her defeated opponent. She’s incredibly arrogant!"
"Hey! That’s not a fair thing to say. The little girl was clearly minding her own business watching the competition. Ge Feng was the one who suddenly came over to pick a fight. The girl couldn’t stand it anymore, which is why she talked tough. However, this girl is actually quite skilled; she placed first in both of the previous rounds."
Seeing the crowd of onlookers growing larger and knowing that there were only forty minutes left until the competition, Gan Lan tugged at Gulu. "Let’s go, the competition is about to start."
Gan Lan tugged hard, but Gulu didn’t budge. He didn’t even spare Gan Lan a glance. Facing Ge Feng, who was still pointing at him with anger and agitation, Gulu spoke with contempt. "If you no longer want your finger, keep pointing it at me."
"I’m pointing at you right now. What are you going to do, cripple my finger?" Ge Feng scoffed, his finger almost poking Gulu in the face.
Gulu simply raised his hand, grabbed Ge Feng’s finger, and prepared to snap it.
Gan Lan was shocked by this scene. Her body reacted faster than her mind, and she immediately grabbed Gulu’s hand as well. "Gulu, there’s no need to go that far. Let go! If you really break it, this will blow up into a huge mess!"
As soon as Gan Lan finished speaking, Gulu loosened his grip. He wasn’t stupid; how could he actually break the guy’s finger? He was just trying to scare him. He would secretly teach him a lesson next time. Breaking it now in front of everyone would make the situation too difficult to resolve.
"Stop! Stop right there! If you really break it, I’ll turn you into a piece of scrap metal! And don’t even think your master will be able to stay on Banan Star to continue the competition!" A loud, furious voice came from nearby, carrying a clear threat.
"Heh! You, a culinary master of Banan Star, are indeed quite powerful, but our Mingzong isn’t full of pushovers either!" Dean Chu pushed through the crowd, walked up beside Gan Lan, and gave her a reassuring nod.
"What’s wrong, Huang? Have I given you too much face lately? Are you really going to push your luck?" Chu Yuanyi spoke in a stern tone, his face expressionless as he addressed the equally deadpan Huang Xingyan.
Huang Xingyan’s lips twitched. "It is our Banlan that has given your Mingzong face. I didn’t pursue the matter from last time, but this time, she actually wanted her robot to snap my apprentice’s finger! It just shows how malicious her intentions are, and now you have the nerve to play the victim?"
Gan Lan was speechless. She thought, "When did I ever tell Gulu to break his apprentice’s finger? Didn’t he see me immediately step forward to stop it? The one trying to turn the tables here is this old man, right?"
"We all know what the facts are. You’ve really got some nerve. If your apprentice hadn’t come over to pick a fight with Gan Lan, would this have happened at all? Heh! Even if it really got broken, so what? The instigator deserves what he gets! And whether or not we can participate in the competition is not up to you!" Chu Yuanyi replied calmly.
When Chu Yuanyi said these words, the atmosphere at the scene began to rapidly heat up. It felt like a single spark was all it took for everything to explode, but then...
The venue broadcast announced: [Would all contestants please enter the venue and prepare for the competition.]