Chapter 135: Worth It
Shui Ruo'er felt her heart race like a startled deer upon hearing Wang Hong's invitation to have a meal together, but she forced herself to remain calm.
"I haven't eaten for a day as well," she replied.
After saying this, she felt it might sound too forward. Standing at the doorway, she hesitated whether to enter or not. Eventually, she followed Wang Hong into his courtyard.
Little Peng was still venting its grievances against a pile of Green Onion Pancakes on a stone table.
Wang Hong shooed it away to eat on its own. He couldn't let a guest dine with a bird, after all.
Wang Hong moved all the food from the stone table to Little Peng's spot.
He then went back to the kitchen, fetched a plate of steaming Green Onion Pancakes, and arranged them on the stone table.
"It's a bit simple. Shui junior sister, please don't mind. Would you like Spirit Wine, tea, or spirit fruit juice?" Wang Hong asked.
Shui Ruo'er thought for a moment and said, "If it's not too much trouble, I'd like to have spirit fruit juice."
Wang Hong went into the kitchen, took out several juicy red spirit fruits, and a fragrant green one with a slightly sour taste. He skillfully peeled and seeded them, enveloped them in Spiritual Power, squeezed out the juice, and then mixed in some Spirit Honey.
While Wang Hong occasionally experimented with juices when studying food, he preferred alcohol and tea.
He poured the juice into a glass made of colored glass and placed it in front of Shui Ruo'er.
Pretending to be reserved, Shui Ruo'er took a small sip of the spirit fruit juice. The taste was complex, with a predominant sweetness, accompanied by a hint of sourness and a touch of bitterness, creating a harmonious blend that elevated the overall flavor.
As a food enthusiast, she couldn't resist the aroma of the Green Onion Pancakes. She had already secretly swallowed saliva several times, tempted to snatch a bite like a hungry bird.
Picking up a Green Onion Pancake, she took a hearty bite. So delicious! Another hearty bite...
As for her initial purpose, who cared? She'd deal with that after satisfying her appetite.
Wang Hong accompanied Shui Ruo'er in eating a pancake, noticing her joyful expression.
He said, "Junior sister, enjoy your meal here. I have an Alchemy task to finish; I'll go brew some elixirs."
"Sure, go ahead. Don't worry about me!" Shui Ruo'er, with a Green Onion Pancake in hand, focused on the table full of treats, not bothering to lift her head.
"Alright, I'll take my leave then."
Wang Hong took out more spirit fruits, Three Yang Melon Seeds, and other snacks, placing them on the stone table for Shui Ruo'er to pass the time.
He then entered the Alchemy room. He used to make a furnace of elixirs every day, but lately, his fascination with runes made him forget about it.
Now, with a 70% Pill Success Rate, he needed over 800 elixirs for his task of a hundred and twenty.
Checking his Storage Bag, he found around four hundred Condensing Qi Pills. He needed over four hundred more.
Taking out twenty Spiritual Herbs, he began the Alchemy process.
After crafting three furnaces of elixirs, he obtained five hundred elixirs.
However, he noticed a problemthere were too many mid-grade elixirs in his refined batch, with a few high-grade ones.
As an Alchemist, Wang Hong had never seen high-grade elixirs before; they were legendary. High-grade elixirs had stronger effects and fewer impurities, making them highly sought after.
Exiting the Alchemy room, he found Shui Ruo'er playing happily with Little Peng.
And in just a few short hours, Shui Ruo'er unexpectedly advanced to the ninth layer of Qi Cultivation from the eighth layer.
Wang Hong speculated that it might be because of the Spirit Meal he prepared. After all, as a Foundation Building cultivator, consuming a meal could add a few drops of liquid Spiritual Power to the sea of dantian.
Shui Ruo'er realized that she might have damaged her own image earlier and felt a bit embarrassed.
"Wang Senior Brother, has the Elixir Refinement finished? If not, I have over ten Condensing Qi Pills here. You can use them to make up the numbers."
"Thanks for your kindness, Shui junior sister. The refinement is already done."
Saying this, Wang Hong handed a Storage Bag to Shui Ruo'er, containing over eight hundred Condensing Qi Pills.
After checking the quantity, Shui Ruo'er found no reason to stay longer and bid farewell to Wang Hong.
"Wang Senior Brother, I'll help you submit the task. If you need anything, feel free to send me a message!"
As Shui Ruo'er walked out of the courtyard, she once again put on her veil, obscuring her face.
At that moment, Elder Brother approached from a distance and witnessed the scene.
After Shui Ruo'er left, he approached Wang Hong with a teasing expression.
"Junior Brother Wang, you're doing well! It's only been a few days, and you're already on a date with a female cultivator. Judging by her voice, she must be an unparalleled beauty!"
"Elder Brother, didn't you see it clearly?"
Wang Hong felt that Shui Ruo'er indeed had a pleasant voice, but terms like unparalleled beauty didn't quite fit.
"My discerning eyes can't be wrong. Are you saying she's a bit on the chubby side? Don't you think it's more cost-effective this way?"
"What does that have to do with being cost-effective?" Wang Hong asked, puzzled.
"Of course, it matters! Look! When finding a Dao Companion, others' Dao Companions weigh only a hundred catties. But your Dao Companion weighs two hundred catties. Isn't that like gaining an extra hundred catties? It's like finding two Dao Companions at once. Isn't it cost-effective?"
Wang Hong thought about it and found some logic in it. Apparently, being a bit chubby was cost-effective.
"Junior Brother Wang, what do you think? Are you smitten?"
"I don't have such thoughts now. Until the Dao is achieved, how can one think of settling down?" Wang Hong said with determination.
"Alright, I'll give you credit for having aspirations, or should I say, pretending to have them."
"Elder Brother, let's go inside."
Wang Hong invited Elder Brother into the house.
Entering the courtyard, Elder Brother grabbed a Green Onion Pancake from the stone table and stuffed it into his mouth.
"Delicious! Junior Brother Wang, you make the best Spirit Meal among all the Alchemists."
"You're too kind, Elder Brother. It's just that I used to be afraid of hunger as a child. Every time I saw a Demonic Beast, my first thought was whether it could be eaten and how to cook it."
"Hahaha! Junior Brother Wang is quite similar to an elder in our sect. His Lifebound Magical Treasure is a large black pot. No one has seen him use it for battles, but he's often spotted using it to cook meat and vegetables."
"That elder once secretly killed a Spirit Beast nurtured by the Beast Spirit Sect for hundreds of years to eat its meat. He was chased by a thousand-year-old monkey for a month, all for stealing Spirit Wine."
Upon hearing this, Wang Hong thought of Sloppy Old Daoist.
"Oh! Is the senior Brother mentioned by Elder Brother the one who looks unkempt?" Wang Hong asked.
"Yes, Junior Brother, have you met him?"
"I have indeed seen him a few times. Honestly, Elder Brother, the Five Elements Formation in my courtyard was modified by that senior."
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