Misty Pavilion
"But first, let's go to eat and drink something. Since this city is near the border of the Dark Forest, a lot of high-quality food is available here.And since we are here, let's try out some. It's a rare chance for me to come out of the sect; I am not going to miss it."
Jiang Hao also got tempted, but he had to take note to not to eat lot of Grade 3 beast meat, or he might break through to the Early Stage of Foundation Establishment here.
Breaking through wasn't a problem for him but breaking through instantly after eating was, because his body would refine the meat instantly.
It wouldn't affect him much if it was Grade 2 beast meat, as even though he was at the peak of the Qi Refinement realm, he still required a lot of qi to break through.
He didn't know such places in the city, but it seemed Ming Yue knew about them. Maybe she had already visited these places when she first arrived.
After walking for a while, they entered an area where the crowd became much smaller. The buildings here were quite beautiful too. After a while, they stopped in front of a big pavilion.
Jiang Hao raised his head and read the name of the pavilion.
It was 'Misty Pavilion.'
It surely lived up to its name because the moment he entered, he saw that all the buildings inside were covered in mist.
"It is one of the most renowned places to eat and drink. In the whole Eastern Region, this is the best pavilion, Junior Brother Jiang," Ming Yue explained.
Jiang Hao was surprised. So this beautiful pavilion was just a branch. How rich was the owner of Misty Pavilion?
Once they made their way inside, they were greeted by a beautiful woman, who appeared to be in her thirties.
"Esteemed guests, follow me," she said.
She led them to a private room, which was quite spacious for just two people.
"What would you like to try?" the woman asked after they settled down.
"What is the best dish for today in the Grade 2 section?" Ming Yue asked her.
"It's a peak-stage Metallic Boar," the waitress replied.
"Then bring us two plates of it," Ming Yue ordered.
"As you wish. Would you like to have any wine with it?"
"Yeah, sure. Bring your best wine," Ming Yue responded.
Jiang Hao just listened quietly and didn't interrupt the conversation.
He was fine with anything. His body could digest anything, and he had a feeling that he could now even devour a Grade 4 beast.
"Junior Brother, would you like to add something?" Ming Yue asked, and the waitress waited for his response.
"No, that will be enough," Jiang Hao replied.
When the waitress heard that, she bowed and left. The walls of this room were covered in mist. Suddenly, the front section of mist cleared, and there wasn't any wall there.
A beautiful scenery entered his eyes. There was a clear pond with many lotuses in it. A woman was sitting on a lotus leaf, and she had a zither in her hand.
A beautiful melody filled the room as she started playing it.
"Junior Brother, is this your first time visiting a restaurant like this?" Ming Yue asked him.
Jiang Hao wasn't surprised when he heard that. They had spent 22 days together and talked about various things. Most of the time, he was just a listener.
He had a feeling that she had already figured out the fact that he wasn't some young master from any clan, but she never asked anything about it. In fact, she explained many things to him that were totally unknown to him.
"Yes, I have never visited expensive places like these," Jiang Hao admitted.
Jiang Hao really didn't care about a lavish life; he might not visit these places ever again after today.
"I have only visited restaurant like this once with my family, and this is my second time. Everything else aside, the food here is really good, and you will love it. But the main point is that it is easily digestible. You will get the maximum benefit from the meat eaten here because it is cooked with special secret skills.
Junior Brother Jiang, you are at the peak of the Qi Refinement realm. You might break through to the Foundation Establishment realm after eating."
When Jiang Hao heard this, he was surprised. Similar to spirit herbs, spirit beasts were also not easily absorbable and could only be partially absorbed.
To think there existed special cooking methods that could help human cultivators digest better. These methods weren't useful for him, though, as he could absorb almost anything. Only his strength was the limit.
So this was the reason why Senior Sister Ming Yue brought me here, to help me break through and reach the Foundation Establishment realm, Jiang Hao thought.
He was touched by her intentions, but he doubted that a peak Grade 2 beast would be enough for him. He might need to eat ten of them.
After a while, the door to the room opened again, and the previous waitress returned, this time with an expensive-looking storage bag in her hand.
She brought out a small dining table in front of them and started placing the dishes.
After she was done arranging the dishes, she brought out two cups and poured their famous wine.
It was clear with a slight bluish tint.
"This is our most famous wine. It is called Spring Jade Nectar.
Esteemed guests, please enjoy your meal," the waitress said.
After bowing to them again, she left.
Isn't it too careless? What if someone wore a mask and came to eat here and, after eating, teleported away? Jiang Hao thought as he observed that she didn't ask for any payment.
He didn't think too much about it and looked at the plate placed in front of him. The cooked meat looked quite appetizing to him.
When Ming Yue saw the eagerness in his eyes, she smiled secretly.
"Junior Brother, let's eat," she said.
He was already eager to eat, so when he heard her voice, he took a bite.
His eyes widened a little. It really was quite tasty. This might be the best food he had ever eaten. No wonder people came to these restaurants even though they were expensive.
The moment the meat entered his body, it got refined instantly. Soon, he devoured the whole plate, and he felt that his cultivation realm had increased slightly, but it really wasn't enough to break through.
Ming Yue looked at Jiang Hao and said, "Junior Brother, drink the wine and start cultivating. It will be helpful."
When Jiang Hao heard that, he looked at the wine, which was slightly bluish in color.
Jiang Hao couldn't tell her that he had already refined all the energy inside his body. It would be truly shocking to hear.
"Senior Sister, I doubt this will be enough for me to break through, but I will do as you say," Jiang Hao said.
He took a sip of the wine, and the moment it entered his body, it also got refined. Jiang Hao felt nothing. He couldn't help but sigh. What a waste.
He knew that the wine might be even more expensive than the food he had eaten.
He entered a focused state and started cultivating.He really couldn't mention his physique to anyone, so he had to keep up the pretense.
After an hour, he opened his eyes and looked at Ming Yue. She was also cultivating. After all, not everyone needed tremendous resources like him to cultivate. The peak Grade 2 food was also good for her.
Unlike him though, she would definitely spend more time refining. He didn't disturb her.
The woman with the zither had already left, but the pond full of lotuses was really pleasing to look at.
After another hour passed, Ming Yue woke up from her cultivation state.
When she saw that Jiang Hao was already awake, she looked at him questioningly.
When Jiang Hao saw her gaze, he shook his head.
"I told you already, Senior Sister, that it won't be enough for me to break through," Jiang Hao said.
When Ming Yue heard that, she sighed.
"Then let's go, Junior Brother. We should head back now," she said.
Jiang Hao nodded.
They left the private room and went to the reception.
The waitress from earlier was there.
"Esteemed guests, your total will be 150 spirit stones," the waitress said.
Ming Yue took out 150 spirit stones and handed them to the waitress.
After that, they left the Misty Pavilion. Jiang Hao was a little stunned at the price tag. Even though he had a lot of spirit stones, wasting 150 spirit stones on just that much meat and two cups of wine felt quite lavish.
After all, it wasn't a full boar; it was only a small part of it.
When Ming Yue saw his expression, she asked, "You think it was expensive, Junior Brother?"
"I think it was, Senior Sister," Jiang Hao replied.
"Hm... actually, the meat wasn't that expensive. It was the wine that was expensive. Those two cups cost us 100 spirit stones.
You must have felt its effect, Junior Brother. It's very helpful in breaking through. It clears the mind and increases focus, so it's worth the price," Ming Yue explained.
Jiang Hao was tongue-tied because he really felt nothing. Everything was refined completely into the most suitable form of qi to be absorbed by his body.
It really was a waste for him to drink that wine. Forget it; he would never drink wine again.