10: Chapter 10 Since things have come to this, let's eat first.

Mortals have places for Mortal recreation, and Cultivators naturally have places for Cultivator recreation.

Li Fan wandered along the bustling street outside the apartment for a while, his gaze eventually landing in front of a Secret Realm entrance.

Although this place was called a Secret Realm entrance, it was completely different from the primitive, newly formed entrance of the Shi Shui Secret Realm.

It was wrapped in a gaudy, carved door frame, with swirling Spiritual Qi patterns engraved upon it, resembling a tall portal as a whole.

Above the portal hung a plaque reading 'Restaurant', which was exactly the place Li Fan was looking for.

Li Fan remembered from his textbooks that the recovery of Spiritual Qi in the Xuannü Civilization did not mean that the concentration of Spiritual Qi was increasing on every inch of land.

All Spiritual Qi originated from within the Secret Realms; outside the Secret Realms, the world's Spiritual Qi remained pitifully thin.

Cultivators came to such Secret Realms nominally to eat, but in reality, it was to absorb the Spiritual Qi within the Secret Realm to replenish their own consumption.

And such Secret Realm restaurants were usually those where the Secret Realm Administration Bureau had completed full exploration and confirmed no danger, after which they auctioned off the usage rights of the Secret Realm entrance to private merchants to operate.

The Qian Family's industries were related to this.

Li Fan followed a few patrons who seemed to be regulars and stepped into the portal together.

Upon entering the Secret Realm, Spiritual Qi rushed towards him; it was much denser than the outside world, yet far inferior to the Spirit Rank Shi Shui Secret Realm, and even slightly worse than an ordinary Mortal Rank Secret Realm.

"As expected, it's all been picked clean by the Secret Realm Administration Bureau."

Li Fan curled his lips, but didn't complain much; this was his first time coming to a Secret Realm for Cultivators to eat.

Looking up, the scenery inside the Secret Realm was completely different from the high-rise buildings outside.

It was all brick and wooden buildings with flying eaves and upturned corners, terraces and pavilions arranged in an orderly manner, full of an antique charm.

A waiter hurried up to greet him, his face full of smiles.

"Guest, just one person?"

Even the address had changed to "Guest", which Li Fan found novel and couldn't help but ask.

"What style is this? I've never seen it before."

The waiter, who had been welcoming him with a smile, heard this and assumed Li Fan was an outsider.

He calmly sized Li Fan up, muttering to himself,

'This kid doesn't look old, and he's wearing the standard Yan High School uniform; I hope he's not someone who can't afford Spirit Stones.'

The waiter didn't answer his question first, but instead probed,

"This young brother, may I ask if you have Spirit Stones to spend?"

Seeing Li Fan nod confidently, the waiter's suspended heart finally settled, and he slowly began to explain.

"Guest, you may not know, but this decoration style has been popular on the Main Planet for many years."

"I heard it was also passed down from other Star Domains where the Dao of cultivation has long been developed."

Li Fan understood.

Before the recovery of Spiritual Qi, the Xuannü Civilization was already a multi-planetary civilization.

As the origin of the Xuannü Civilization, the Main Planet was the most prosperous and the first planet to come into contact with the cultivation culture of other Star Domains.

And the Baigong Planet where he was located was the third pioneering planet of the Xuannü Civilization; compared to the Main Planet, it lagged behind somewhat.

"Lead the way, find a seat."

Li Fan waved his hand, not asking any more questions.

In the middle of the restaurant was an open atrium, with a stage suspended in the air, surrounded by compartments divided by Rank.

Walking to the floor junction, the waiter stopped and asked respectfully.

"Guest, which Rank of room would you like to sit in?"

"We have Grade A, B, and C here. Grade A has the best view, and the Spiritual Qi is relatively denser."

This Rank was naturally linked to the cost of Spirit Stones, but Li Fan wasn't worried about not having enough Spirit Stones at all and directly waved his hand.

"Arrange the best room for me."

"Alright, Guest! It's a coincidence, there's only one Grade A room left!"

The waiter was overjoyed and hurriedly led the way.

But just as he finished speaking, a System prompt sounded in Li Fan's mind.

[The strongest slacking afk system has been taken off the shelf, the strongest face-slapping system has gone online]

Li Fan's mouth twitched. Looking at the scene before him, he could guess what would happen next with his toes.

"Forget it, change to Grade B..."

Before he could finish his sentence, a commotion suddenly came from the entrance of the restaurant.

A man dressed in a gorgeous brocade robe, with two heavily made-up, beautiful women in his arms, strode in, his tone arrogant.

"The last Grade A room, I want it!"

Li Fan was speechless inside; this really was a standard face-slapping plot.

However, he had just slept for a day and a half and was now so hungry his stomach was sticking to his back; he really had no interest in playing along with the System.

"Change it to a Grade B room for me."

"Alright, alright!"

The waiter breathed a sigh of relief, glad that no trouble had started, otherwise he would have been caught in the middle, in a difficult position.

But the two women beside the man in the brocade robe deliberately raised their voices and began to boast in a coquettish manner.

"Young Master Liu is mighty! One word and this brat was suppressed, obediently giving up the room!"

"That's right, that's right, he at least has some insight, knowing that you, Young Master Liu, are not to be trifled with!"

These words made Li Fan, who was waiting on the side, furious. I didn't want to argue with you, but you're pushing your luck, aren't you?

"Look at him, wearing a ragged school uniform; he looks like a poor kid who snuck in from who knows where. Does he deserve to compete with Young Master Liu for a room?"

"Exactly, it's good he knew his place and tucked his tail to admit defeat, otherwise he'd be in for a rough time!"

Veins popped on Li Fan's forehead, and his fists hardened. Enduring for a moment only makes you angrier; taking a step back only makes you angrier!

"Young Master Liu, he's glaring at me! How scary..."

"Wuwu, Young Master Liu, he's so fierce, I'm scared..."

The man in the brocade robe was flattered by the two women and swept a contemptuous glance at Li Fan, his tone arrogant.

"Get lost, don't disturb the mood of me and these two beauties, or you'll be in for a rough time!"

If this can be tolerated, what cannot? Li Fan called out to the waiter who was preparing to slip away.

"That Grade A room, I want it!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the air instantly froze.

Li Fan could clearly feel the rising anger on the man in the brocade robe opposite him, but he didn't care at all.

Judging by the aura on this guy, his cultivation might not even be as high as his own.

Just grabbing the room wasn't enough. Li Fan was no refined gentleman; he was an expert at surfing the internet, and the words came right out of his mouth.

"What are you looking at, your dad? Finding two sluts, you'd better watch out for your manhood getting warts."

The man in the brocade robe was trembling with rage and made a move to rush up and deal with Li Fan, but the two women beside him were now holding his arms tightly.

Seeing this, Li Fan continued his verbal assault.

"No, what are you holding him back for, pretending to be your mother? If you have the guts, let him go! Still putting on a show here?"

He knew clearly in his heart that although this was a Secret Realm, the laws of the Xuan Gui Department still applied.

Li Fan didn't believe any young master would dare to go against the Xuan Gui Department.

Sure enough, hearing Li Fan's words, the three people who were still pulling at each other stopped instantly.

The man in the brocade robe, who had just been burning with anger, suddenly turned pale and green, glaring at Li Fan through gritted teeth.

"You're courting death! Accept my duel! I'm going to teach you a lesson!"

The two women also hurriedly echoed.

"Young Master Liu is a [Talented] Aptitude Cultivator. You, a poor kid, are you worthy of dueling with Young Master Liu?"

"That's right! Just wait and see how Young Master Liu will trample you later, letting you know what a gap is!"

Li Fan sneered upon hearing this, feeling only amusement in his heart.

Just [Talented] Aptitude, only a little better than the most ordinary Mortal Root Aptitude. In the Aptitude Rank, it's Mortal Root, Talented, Elite Talent, and then it's Li Fan's [Outstanding Talent].

"Fine, if you don't initiate the duel today, you're my son!" Li Fan said provocatively, not afraid in the slightest.

The man in the brocade robe roared in anger, immediately raising his hand to operate the terminal on his wrist, intending to initiate a duel with Li Fan.

But the next second, the prompt interface that popped up on the terminal made him break out in a cold sweat instantly.

[Aptitude Rank gap is too large, cannot initiate duel]

The Xuan Gui Department stipulates that duels can only be initiated against Cultivators of similar Aptitude Rank.

For [Talented] Aptitude, one can only initiate a duel against Cultivators of the two adjacent Ranks above or below.

Between Li Fan and this man in the brocade robe, there was still an [Elite Talent] Aptitude in between.

"What? Stuck?" Li Fan looked at him with a half-smile.

The man in the brocade robe was full of shock, his eyes full of disbelief, and his voice was trembling.

"Ho... how is this possible? How could you be [Outstanding Talent] Aptitude?!"

Even if he were any stupider, he could deduce Li Fan's Aptitude Rank at this moment.

Instantly, he felt like he was sitting on pins and needles, his whole body stiff. This kind of person who likes to bully others by relying on power is most afraid of encountering someone more ruthless than himself.

In the Yan Region, how rare are [Outstanding Talent] Aptitude Cultivators? Even a real wealthy young master would have to be polite upon seeing one, let alone a fake young master like him who relies on a little family connection to put on airs.

"Now that you know, why aren't you rolling away yet?"

Young Master Liu knew clearly in his heart that an [Outstanding Talent] Aptitude Cultivator, with the connections and resources behind them, could make a fake young master like him disappear completely by just using a little bit of them, turning him into a wisp of Spiritual Qi in the world.

"K... know it, I'll roll now, I'll roll now!" The man in the brocade robe felt as if he had been granted amnesty and hurriedly turned to run away.

"Hmm?" Li Fan raised an eyebrow, his tone cold, "Did you not hear clearly what I said?"

The man in the brocade robe froze, instantly understanding Li Fan's meaning.

He gritted his teeth, hardened his heart, bent down and hugged his knees, curled into a ball, and really rolled out of the restaurant door.

Seeing this, the two women were also scared out of their wits, and following suit, they rolled out behind him.

When the three of them completely disappeared from sight, Li Fan not only felt no pleasure from the face-slapping, but instead looked full of helplessness.

"What kind of day is this? Can't you just let me have a proper meal?"

[Detected successful face-slapping, reward has been sent to the System mailbox, please check it, Host.]

Li Fan didn't even lift his eyelids; his mind was full of food.

"Since things have come to this, let's eat."

The waiter on the side, looking at Li Fan at this moment, was as respectful as could be, bowing his waist.

"Gu... Guest, this way please, I will take you to the Grade A room now!"

The surrounding patrons who were watching had different expressions; some were surprised, some were in awe, and some were curious.

And in the crowd, a woman dressed in simple and elegant clothes, covered up tightly, took a faint look at Li Fan and whispered a sentence.

"[Outstanding Talent] Aptitude?"

Then she just chuckled, as if she were not surprised, and turned to enter the Grade A room she had already booked.