Fine Clothes and Fine Food

Li Yunjing turned his head to look and saw a short, plump young man with a prosperous air about him, smiling warmly at him.

"Pleased to meet you! I'm Li Yunjing. Brother Ma, did you just arrive too? Let's find a place to eat together!"

Li Yunjing nodded and offered a friendly smile.

"Sure! I'll take you to get some food. I ate here last night and this morning, so I know the place."

Ma Xingyuan grinned. At the mention of food, he couldn't help swallowing.

"Brother Ma, judging by that reaction, the food here must be good?"

Li Yunjing chuckled. He was observant and had already noticed that Ma Xingyuan was craving a meal.

"Heh! Brother Li, back in Ming Prefecture, where the imperial city is, I tried every restaurant there was! But I'll tell you this: everything I ate before was garbage. This place is a paradise for food!"

The moment Li Yunjing brought it up, Ma Xingyuan's eyes lit up and he spoke rapidly.

They chatted as they walked, soon entering the hall and finding an empty seat.

The table at the empty spot was square, long, and wide. It was yellowish-white, with beautiful grain and a lustrous sheen. It had an antique elegance, and a faint, fragrant aroma wafted from it.

"Agarwood?"

Li Yunjing was startled. The dining tables were made of precious wood!

In the mortal world, only the imperial family and high-ranking nobles could afford such a valuable wood.

And every table and chair in the entire hall was made of it.

Judging by this alone, Elegant Fragrance Garden probably used more agarwood than the entire Great Ming Dynasty.

"Heh! That's all just worldly stuff. Don't bother with it! Come with me to get food!"

Ma Xingyuan wasn't interested in it at all. He pulled Li Yunjing to the back of the hall, where a row of food boxes sat neatly arranged on a long table.

Each food box held an exquisite meal.

The aroma of the food made Li Yunjing's stomach growl.

"Why does it smell so good?"

Li Yunjing couldn't help asking.

A gray-robed Daoist nearby picked up a food box. At Li Yunjing's question, he smiled and said, "You're new here, aren't you?"

"Yes, we're both new. Greetings, senior brother."

Li Yunjing replied.

"Heh! All the ingredients in the Divine Firmament Dao Sect's dining hall come from the immortal mountains. The meat is from spirit beasts, the vegetables are spirit medicines and materials, and the rice is Spirit Rice grown right here in the mountains! Even the emperor outside can't get a taste of this!"

The gray-robed Daoist explained with a grin, then carried off his food box.

"Huh?"

Li Yunjing was dumbfounded. Could menial disciples really eat food like this?

"Hahaha! Brother Li, don't just stand there. Let's eat!"

Ma Xingyuan laughed twice, picked up two food boxes, and started back toward their seats.

"Brother Ma, you don't have to help me. I can carry mine."

Seeing Ma Xingyuan carrying a food box for him warmed Li Yunjing's heart. He reached out to take it, not wanting to trouble the other man.

"Uh?"

Ma Xingyuan froze, looking startled. He stammered, "These two are... both for me... You should... go get another one yourself!"

"Hmm???"

Li Yunjing's mind filled with question marks. Was this guy eating two meals by himself?

"It's self-service, and you can eat your fill! Have as much as you like, just don't waste any."

Ma Xingyuan seemed to notice Li Yunjing's confusion and explained.

Damn it! I actually thought this fatty was a good person...

Li Yunjing was speechless. He silently turned around and picked up a food box from a nearby table.

Back at his seat, Li Yunjing opened the food box. Inside were four dishes, a soup, and a bowl of rice that gleamed like jade.

The food was still steaming, and the box was some kind of special item that kept everything fresh.

The rich aroma left him feeling refreshed and whetted his appetite.

Li Yunjing picked up the chopsticks that came with the box, grabbed a piece of meat he couldn't identify, and put it in his mouth. As he chewed, its fragrance lingered on his tongue.

"Hm?"

Li Yunjing's eyes lit up. No wonder Fatty Ma across from him was eating with such gusto. This was truly a heavenly delicacy!

Across two lifetimes, Li Yunjing had never tasted food this delicious.

By this measure alone, the treatment of a menial disciple rivaled that of an emperor!

With such delicious food in front of him, Li Yunjing lost all interest in talking. He was hungry, too, and before long he had wolfed everything down. Only then did he feel satisfied.

The food was packed with energy. After finishing it, Li Yunjing felt strength coursing through his whole body.

"Good! Good! Good! These ingredients are incredible!"

Li Yunjing burped. After thinking it over, he asked Ma Xingyuan, "Fatty, I'm going to get another serving. Want one?"

"Forget it! I'm done eating. This food has too much energy. It's hard to burn off if you eat too much!"

Ma Xingyuan looked tempted, but seemed to remember something. With a bitter expression, he turned down Li Yunjing's offer.

"Hahaha! Fatty must've tried eating three servings or more!"

One look at Fatty Ma's expression, and Li Yunjing immediately understood what had happened.

At that moment, Li Yunjing didn't blame Ma Xingyuan. It wasn't that the other man was a glutton; the food was simply so delicious that even he couldn't resist it!

In a hurry, Li Yunjing went and got another serving. Once again, he wolfed it all down.

Then he patted his belly and let out a comfortable burp.

Now this was the life!

But Li Yunjing quickly calmed down. He had come to cultivate immortality, not to indulge his appetite. If he let things like this hold back his cultivation, wouldn't he be wasting a heaven-sent opportunity?

At the thought, a sheen of cold sweat appeared on Li Yunjing's forehead.

On the road of cultivation, temptations arose one after another. Wasn't the appetite before him another kind of temptation?

"Li Yunjing! Ma Xingyuan! You two, right?"

As Li Yunjing and Ma Xingyuan sat in their chairs, resting and chatting, an arrogant voice rang out.

"Hm? And you are?"

Li Yunjing turned to look at the newcomer.

"I'm Yang Chun, the Ten Thousand Laws Society's representative in the Menial Hall! You two rookies, listen up. Starting today, you're joining my Ten Thousand Laws Society. You'll pay three contribution points every month as membership dues."

The man named Yang Chun raised his hand and pointed at them, speaking arrogantly.

Four more gray-robed Daoists stood behind him. Like the five of them, they were all menial disciples.

Looks like we've run into a little clique among the menial disciples! But if they're this brazen, doesn't the sect do anything?

Li Yunjing raised an eyebrow, looking surprised.

In the mortal world, people demanded protection money. Did immortal sects do the same?

Li Yunjing had only just entered the world of immortality and knew little about it.

Cultivating to become an immortal wasn't all serene skies and carefree wandering.