484: Chapter 484 Waiter: A bunch of refugees actually asked for a private room!

The group walked along the bluestone streets of the Immortal Realm.

They walked very slowly, every step feeling as if it were weighed down by lead.

It wasn't that they didn't want to go faster; they simply couldn't.

Here, breathing itself was a form of cultivation, and walking was a type of weight-bearing training.

Su Chen walked at the very front, his back straight and his steps steady, as if he were taking a leisurely stroll in a garden.

Wang Baobao followed closely at his right hand like a little tail, her large eyes curiously scanning the surroundings. As they passed a row of jade railings carved with Immortal Runes, she would quickly lean in and take a "crunchy" bite when no one was looking, then continue her journey like a hamster that had successfully stolen food, her cheeks bulging.

Jian Buping and Monk Jiese stood on either side, their expressions tense, like two guards ready for battle at any moment.

Although the power within their bodies was suppressed to a mere trickle, the instinctive vigilance of the strong was etched into their very bones.

Hua Nongying trailed half a step behind Su Chen. Her soul-stealing fox-like eyes had retracted all their charm, acting like a highly efficient scout as she silently memorized the shops along the way, the clothing of the pedestrians, and even the material of a plaque on a street corner.

At the rear of the group was Qian Duoduo, who was practically being carried.

His fat face still bore the dazed expression from being slapped away by the broom, but his small eyes were already uncontrollably peering into the shops along the street.

"Skyfire Immortal Gold, sold by the pound?"

"Dragon Blood Grass, used as a potted plant?"

"That... is that a door curtain made of emperor weapon fragments?!"

Qian Duoduo's heart throbbed, not from excitement, but from pain.

These supreme treasures, which could stir up blood and gore in the Lower Realm, were piled up here like common cabbages in a Mortal market.

His merchant instincts screamed wildly, urging him to rush forward and buy everything in sight.

But reason told him that he couldn't even understand the units of Immortal Stones on the price tags.

Su Chen was also observing.

Every time the hands of a street vendor selling flatbreads pressed down on the dough, it caused ripples to appear in space.

Every time a blacksmith's hammer fell, the sound contained the Law's roar of clashing armies.

Su Chen silently withdrew his gaze.

He didn't dare use his Divine Thought to probe further.

This place was eerie in every way.

After walking for about the time it takes an incense stick to burn, a quaint three-story restaurant appeared at the corner.

Four large characters were written on the plaque in a flamboyant, flowing style.

[Yingxian Restaurant]

Su Chen stopped.

"This is the one."

His voice was flat, devoid of emotion.

"Let's go in and fill our stomachs first. Whatever else there is can wait until after we've eaten."

The group behind him had long been exhausted by the omnipresent pressure and silently nodded at his words.

They now just wanted to find a place to sit down.

And then properly reflect on whether they had truly achieved Ascension or if they had all collectively reincarnated into the wrong lives.

In this completely alien environment filled with unknown threats of death, they had developed an almost pathological dependence on Su Chen.

Because as far as the eye could see, only Su Chen still seemed like a normal person.

...

"Please come in, honored guests!"

Just as Su Chen stepped over the threshold, a Waiter with a white towel over his shoulder greeted them with a wide smile.

He was nimble, but his eyes were like oiled knives, quickly scanning Su Chen's group.

When his gaze swept over Wang Baobao's tattered immortal dress, which had seven or eight patches, the curve of the smile on his face faltered.

Seeing the moaning Qian Duoduo being carried, the smile faltered even further.

Finally, that professional smile vanished completely, replaced by a blatant look of disdain and impatience.

Su Chen saw it all.

The internal commentary in his mind instantly flooded his thoughts.

[Great, the universal chain of contempt—better late than never.]

[This Waiter's speed at changing faces is quite something.]

[But it's no wonder; with our appearance, anyone would believe it if we said we'd just been dug out of some ancient battlefield.]

[Qian Duoduo is the main culprit; he's really dragging down the team's image!]

Su Chen couldn't be bothered with the Waiter's silent judgment and calmly scanned the restaurant's main hall.

The hall was spacious, with tables and chairs crafted from some kind of Immortal Wood that contained spiritual charm; even the tea stains on the tabletops glowed faintly.

At this moment, three or four tables of guests were scattered about.

Without exception, their auras were all far above those of Su Chen and his companions.

Su Chen even saw a burly man in the corner with a vertical eye on his forehead, legs crossed, picking his teeth with the thigh bone of some unknown Immortal Beast in a bold manner.

Su Chen's eyelid twitched imperceptibly.

He withdrew his gaze and spoke calmly to the Waiter.

"Are there any private rooms on the second floor?"

The Waiter was clearly taken aback.

He hadn't expected this group of "refugees," who looked like they might not even be able to afford tea in the main hall, to ask for a private room the moment they opened their mouths.

He scrutinized Su Chen again, his tone becoming more testing.

"Honored guest, we do have private rooms on the second floor, but... we have a minimum spending requirement here."

"How much?"

"Ten thousand Low Grade Immortal Stones."

When the Waiter announced this number, his chin tilted high, and he looked like a peacock with its tail spread, full of superiority.

He was waiting.

Waiting to see the embarrassed expressions of these country bumpkins from the Lower Realm as they were stunned by the price and then scurried away in shame.

He enjoyed watching this kind of drama several times a day.

However, Su Chen's face remained as calm as an ancient well.

"Lead the way."

Two words.

Clean, concise, and brook no argument.

The Waiter's expression froze for a second time.

The disdain in his eyes receded like a tide, replaced by a look mixed with surprise and confusion.

He couldn't see through him.

The Youth in White Robes before him had cultivation fluctuations that were clearly pitifully weak, not even matching his own as a mere Waiter.

Yet that calm and composed aura seemed to spring from the depths of his Divine Soul; it didn't seem faked at all.

"Right, right away! Honored guests, this way please!"

The Waiter no longer dared to put on airs. He immediately bowed low, his face once again plastered with a fawning smile as he eagerly led the group to the second floor.

The private rooms on the second floor were far more elegant than the main hall.

Opening the window, one could see a small river in the city formed from Immortal Qi, with fine points of Law light floating on the water's surface like a shattered galaxy.

As soon as everyone sat down, the terrifying gravity that had been crushing their bones since they landed was mostly blocked by the Formation within the room.

"Crack! Crack!"

Jian Buping's knees and shoulders even let out crisp sounds as they finally relaxed after being overburdened.

Everyone let out a long, heavy breath of turbid air.

Their bodies finally felt a bit more at ease.

"What would you honored guests like to eat?"