Stove

Seeing Mo Hua's smile, Master Chen and the others were happy along with him.

Master Chen could not help praising him. "Little brother, you're truly remarkable. I've lived most of my life, yet this is the first time I've seen a cultivator as young as you able to draw an Array Technique."

Mo Hua felt a little embarrassed by the praise and said shyly, "Master Chen, let's first see whether the Stove with the Array Technique drawn on it can be used."

Master Chen called out, and he and several strong apprentices reassembled the Stove. They put several Spirit Stones into it, and before long, flames flickered to life within the furnace.

Master Chen nodded. "No problem. Aside from being a little smaller, this Stove is no different from those forged at great expense for the Dining Hall. Its fire is even fiercer."

Mo Hua let out a breath of relief. Afterward, Master Chen had Da Zhu and several disciples deliver the Stove to Mo Hua's home.

After discussing it with his parents, Mo Hua ultimately decided to open the Eatery in their own home.

First, it was convenient. Second, the shops near the market outside were far too expensive. This was originally a small business; if they spent a fortune renting a shop and then lost money, they would truly be stripped bare, house and home.

Moreover, although most of the people living near Mo Hua's home were poor Rogue Cultivators, it was close to the main road and had plenty of foot traffic. It was also quite lively during festivals. As long as the food was good, there was no need to worry about not being able to sell it.

Mo Hua's home was rather small, with only two ordinary rooms and a living room, plus a small courtyard outside. It was the standard layout for a Qi Refining Rogue Cultivator's residence. It was enough for a family of three to live in, but not enough to open an Eatery.

Mo Shan discussed the matter with several neighbors and paid some Spirit Stones each month to lease their courtyards. Then he invited friends from the Monster Hunting Squad to help renovate a kitchen and connect the courtyards together. This left a large open area in the yard where tables and chairs could be placed for customers to eat and rest.

The Stove was a little too large to fit into a Storage Bag, so Da Zhu and several disciples carried it toward Mo Hua's home. When the group arrived, Mo Shan and his wife were still tidying the courtyard, digging earth and building walls. The yard looked somewhat messy.

Da Zhu and the others tirelessly helped install the Stove, then sat down for a cup of tea before taking their leave.

Although Mo Hua had previously sworn with utter certainty that he could do it, and had always been reliable in his work, seeing that he had truly asked someone to forge a Stove—and that the Stove now stood right before them—Mo Shan and Liu Ruhua still found it hard to believe.

Liu Ruhua touched the Stove and said, "It looks much the same as the ones in those large Dining Halls. It's just smaller, but clearly sturdier, and the workmanship is more exquisite too. Still, it must have cost quite a few Spirit Stones, right?"

"I repaired the Array Technique in Master Chen's Artifact Refining Furnace, so he gave me half off. And I drew the Array Technique in this Stove myself, so it didn't cost too many Spirit Stones." Mo Hua was a little smug.

Liu Ruhua and Mo Shan looked at each other. They had only known that Mo Hua possessed some talent in Array Techniques. They had never expected that he could not only help others repair Array Techniques, but could even personally draw Array Techniques onto Spirit Artifacts.

Liu Ruhua pulled Mo Hua into her arms and praised him, "Hua'er is amazing!"

Mo Shan looked at his son as well, his eyes full of gratification.

He had originally worried over Mo Hua's frail body. Now, seeing his talent in Array Techniques, he knew that even if Mo Hua could not practice Body Refining, he would still be able to make a living through Array Techniques alone in the future. And he would not need to risk his life fighting demon beasts as Mo Shan did. Nothing could have been better.

"Mother, I'll tell you how to use the Stove."

Mo Hua took Liu Ruhua's hand and told her how to use the Stove, how many Spirit Stones it required, and how to control the heat. None of it was particularly difficult; Liu Ruhua understood after hearing it once.

Liu Ruhua then used the Stove to make dinner: a pot of clear rice porridge, several simple vegetable dishes, and white, soft steamed buns. It was simple yet delicious.

Eating the meal his mother had made, Mo Hua was deeply moved. Especially since most of the meals at home recently had been cooked by Mo Shan, the taste naturally went without saying.

Mo Hua said bluntly, "Mother, your cooking is so much better than Father's!"

"You little brat!" Mo Shan ruffled Mo Hua's hair irritably. But when he turned and saw the smile on his wife's face, he could not help smiling as well.

After the family of three finished eating, Liu Ruhua asked, "Opening an Eatery is possible, but what should we sell?"

Mo Shan and Liu Ruhua both looked at Mo Hua.

Meeting his parents' gazes, Mo Hua said, "Beef!"

Mo Shan was stunned for a moment, then frowned. "But where would we get beef? Meat containing Lingli is very expensive. We can't afford it, and the people nearby are all Rogue Cultivators. Even if we made beef dishes, we wouldn't be able to sell them."

Mo Hua said, "Father, didn't you kill wild bulls before? We can use that meat."

"Wild Beef... is too tough. It's dry and stringy. No one would be willing to eat it."

"Then stew it for two days and two nights. No matter how tough the meat is, it should stew tender by then, right? As long as it cooks long enough, it will absorb the flavor somehow."

"Stew it for two days and two nights..." Mo Shan could not help turning his gaze toward the Stove. "So you had this Stove forged not only so your mother could cook without using Lingli, but also so it could stew meat..."

"Mm-hmm!" Mo Hua nodded.

"Could that work?" Mo Shan was somewhat hesitant.

"It can." Liu Ruhua's eyes lit up. "Meat with Lingli is eaten for its freshness and tenderness. It does not need to be stewed for too long, or it will lose its Lingli. But that kind of meat is expensive, not something families like ours can afford."

"Meat without Lingli is cheap, but it is dry and tough and needs to be stewed for a long time. Ordinary Rogue Cultivators can afford it, but they do not have the conditions to stew it, so they rarely eat it."

"With this Stove, we can stew cheap but delicious meat. Even ordinary Rogue Cultivators will be able to afford it."

Mo Shan nodded, then added, "But for two days and two nights, the Spirit Stones needed just to keep the fire going would cost quite a bit, wouldn't they?"

Mo Hua counted on his fingers, then said, "It should cost around ten Spirit Stones, but one furnace can stew a lot of meat. If we sell it, we probably won't lose money."

"Alright, then I'll try stewing a pot tomorrow or the day after and calculate the cost." Liu Ruhua said.

Mo Shan nodded. "I'll get some more Wild Beef. We've finished what we had at home, but Old Zhao's family should still have some. If this meat can be sold, then the meat from the demon beasts hunted in the future will have an outlet too. Everyone's lives can become a little easier."

After that, it was already late, so Liu Ruhua urged Mo Hua to hurry off to sleep.

Mo Hua got to his feet, then suddenly remembered a question and asked:

"Mother, logically speaking, forging a Stove shouldn't be all that difficult. But why is it so rare to see ordinary Rogue Cultivators using one?"

"Silly child," Liu Ruhua said with a laugh as she stroked Mo Hua's face.

"Setting Artifact Refining aside, if you hadn't drawn the Array Technique on the Stove yourself and had to hire another Array Master, how many more Spirit Stones would that cost?"

"How difficult is it to become an Array Master? Once someone becomes one, they naturally think of climbing still higher, relying on their Lineage and sects to draw higher-grade Array Techniques and earn more Spirit Stones. Why would they care about poor Rogue Cultivators like us?"

"It's not only Array Masters. All cultivators are the same. When people climb upward, they do not look down..."

Mo Hua's feelings were exceedingly complicated, and for a moment, he could not say a word.