118: Chapter 118 This meal was quite delicious.

City Lord Pan Hong scrambled away in a panicked rush.

The guards he had brought along supported each other, carrying the unconscious Pan Long, and retreated in utter disarray.

The hall of Wangjiang Tower, which had been tense with swords drawn and filled with a thick Killing Intent just a moment ago, suddenly became spacious and quiet.

There was only a mess left all over the floor, along with a group of diners and shop assistants who had yet to recover from their shock.

Everyone's gazes were focused on that young man in cyan.

Awe, fear, and curiosity were all mixed together.

Zhao Ruoan, however, acted as if he had just done a trivial thing; he looked around, then clapped his hands, breaking the silence.

"Alright, the nuisances are all gone."

He walked over to the terrified restaurant manager and smiled.

"Manager, can you have someone clean this up and start serving the dishes?"

"Ah? Oh! Yes! Yes! Immortal!"

The manager gave a start, came back to his senses, and hurriedly bowed in salute.

The way he looked at Zhao Ruoan now was practically like looking at a deity.

"This small one will go right away! Right away!"

He beckoned to the assistants, who were equally dumbfounded: "What are you all still standing there dazed for! Quick! Clean this place up! Then go to the back kitchen and prepare a portion of every single signature dish hidden at the bottom of our Wangjiang Tower for the Immortal! Use the best ingredients! Whoever dares to slack off, I'll skin them alive!"

"Yes, yes, yes!"

As if waking from a dream, the assistants scrambled to get to work.

Before long, the main hall was cleaned up completely.

Zhao Ruoan found a seat by the window and sat down, while Qiuyin and Xiamo obediently sat by his side.

"Young Master, you were so majestic just now!" Xiamo said excitedly, her eyes sparkling as she lowered her voice.

"Indeed, Young Master," Qiuyin chimed in, sharing in the glory, "that city lord was being unbearably arrogant just a moment ago, but in the end, didn't he still kneel obediently?"

Zhao Ruoan smiled, picked up his teacup, and took a sip.

"When dealing with this kind of person, you can't reason with them. If you are fiercer and more unreasonable than him, he will be afraid."

This was the experience he had summarized from his past life.

To deal with a wicked person, one must be even wickeder than them.

Right at this moment, the rescued father and daughter cautiously walked over, supporting each other.

The two walked up to the table and, with a thump, were about to kneel to Zhao Ruoan.

"Benefactor!"

Zhao Ruoan furrowed his brow, and a gentle force held them up.

"Alright, stop kneeling at every turn," he said somewhat impatiently. "I saved you just on a whim; there's no need to make such a big deal out of it."

"No! To our father-daughter pair, you are our adoptive parents who saved both our lives!" The middle-aged man was so excited that he became incoherent, his eye sockets turning red. "This old man is called Zhoushan, and this is my little daughter, Zhou Ling'er. May I ask for Benefactor's honored name? In the future, our father and daughter will definitely set up an everlasting spirit tablet for you and worship you day and night!"

"Spare me that," Zhao Ruoan waved his hand. "My name is Zhao Ruoan. It was just a small effort, no need to take it to heart. As long as you two are fine, that's enough."

He sized up the young girl named Zhou Ling'er.

Although her attire was plain and her face still bore tear stains, she was indeed a beauty in the making, with an aura of Spiritual Qi between her brows.

A thought stirred in his mind, and his Divine Sense quietly swept over the father and daughter.

"Eh?"

Zhao Ruoan let out a soft exclamation of surprise.

That father, Zhoushan, was merely an ordinary Mortal without any Cultivation Aptitude.

But inside his daughter Zhou Ling'er's body, there was actually a faint Spiritual Root reaction.

"Water-Wood Dual Spiritual Roots; although the grade is not high, only Yellow Rank Grade Five, she can still be considered a piece of material worth molding," Zhao Ruoan muttered inwardly.

With this kind of Aptitude, in a large Sect like Qingxuan Sect, she might not even be able to enter the outer Sect.

But if placed in some small Sects or Cultivator Families, she was already considered a quite decent sapling.

No wonder she was targeted by trash like Pan Long; aside from her beauty, this trace of Spiritual Qi was probably one of the reasons as well.

"What are your plans for the future?" Zhao Ruoan asked casually.

Zhoushan sighed, a trace of distress showing on his face: "We originally came to Wangjiang City to seek refuge with relatives, but who would have thought we wouldn't find our relatives and instead offended the City Lord's Mansion... We can no longer stay in Wangjiang City. Once we get the compensation you, Benefactor, demanded for us, we will leave this place and find a small place to live in seclusion under assumed names."

Zhao Ruoan thought for a moment and said: "Living under assumed names is ultimately not a long-term solution. As for today's matter, although the Pan Family father and son wouldn't dare say anything on the surface, it's hard to guarantee they won't hold a grudge in their hearts. The two of you are Mortals, after all, and you lack power and backing."

The faces of Zhoushan and Zhou Ling'er both turned pale.

They also knew this logic, but what else could they do?

Zhao Ruoan looked at Zhou Ling'er and spoke, "Do you want to Cultivate?"

Zhou Ling'er was stunned, then her eyes lit up, and she nodded vigorously: "I do! I dream of it!"

"Good."

From the sumeru ring, Zhao Ruoan took out a blank Jade Slip.

This was a miscellaneous item he had exchanged for in the Sect, originally prepared for recording some insights or maps.

He sank his Divine Sense into the Jade Slip and burned into it a most basic, most ordinary water-type introductory Cultivation Technique called the Drawing Water Technique, which he had stored in the Great Dao Scripture technique library.

To him, this Cultivation Technique was no different from garbage.

But to a Mortal girl who hadn't even touched the threshold of Cultivation, it was no less than an immortal divine skill.

He handed the Jade Slip to Zhou Ling'er.

"Inside this is a water-type Cultivation Technique, along with some of my Cultivation insights. Based on your Aptitude, as long as you diligently Cultivate, stepping into the Qi Refinement Stage within ten years will not be a problem."

"By that time, you father and daughter will have the power to protect yourselves, and you won't need to fear any City Lord's Mansion anymore."

Zhou Ling'er took the warm Jade Slip with trembling hands, too excited to speak.

A Cultivation Technique!

This was something countless people dreamed of!

She and her father were merely two Mortals at the very bottom; by what virtue or ability could they obtain such a heaven-sent Opportunity!

"Benefactor! Such a great grace, we..." Zhoushan no longer knew what to say and was about to kneel again.

"I already said not to kneel," Zhao Ruoan said, feeling a slight headache. "Take the money and find a safe place. Remember, do not flaunt your wealth, and even less should you easily show the Cultivation Technique to others. In this world, human hearts are treacherous; take care of yourselves."

After saying this, he no longer paid attention to the father and daughter.

Soon, the restaurant assistants began serving dishes like a flowing stream.

In less than a quarter of an hour, the table was filled with delicacies from land and sea, sending forth an enticing aroma.

"Wow! It smells so good!" Xiamo looked at the table full of dishes, her saliva almost flowing out.

"Eat." Zhao Ruoan picked up his chopsticks, picked up a piece of roasted meat that looked like some kind of Yao Beast meat, and put it into his mouth.

The meat was tender and juicy, brimming with Spiritual Qi, and the taste was indeed quite good.

"Mhm, this meal tastes quite good," he nodded in satisfaction.

Just as they were gorging themselves, City Lord Pan Hong, who had left and returned, appeared at the restaurant entrance once again.

This time, he came alone, putting his posture even lower, his face piled with a humble smile.

Holding a Storage Pouch in his hands, he cautiously walked up to Zhao Ruoan's table, bowing with his body hunched over, not even daring to raise his head.

"Se... Senior, the two thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones you requested, Junior has brought them for you. Please... please take a look."

Zhao Ruoan took the Storage Pouch and swept it with his Divine Sense.

Not a single one more or less, exactly two thousand.

He casually tossed the Storage Pouch to Qiuyin.

"Senior, Junior also acted on my own accord and prepared a detailed map of the surroundings of the Black Wind Mountain Range for you, as well as intelligence on some factions active in the mountain range recently. I hope it can be of some help to Senior's itinerary."

Pan Hong took out a beast-skin map and a small booklet from his bosom, respectfully placing them on the table.

"Oh?"

Zhao Ruoan was somewhat surprised.

This fellow certainly knew how to handle things.

He was just worrying that he didn't understand the situation over at the Black Wind Mountain Range well enough.

"Consider that you have some situational awareness," Zhao Ruoan nodded. "I accept the items. You can scram."

"Yes, yes, yes! Junior will scram right now! I won't disturb Senior's refined mood!"

As if granted a pardon, Pan Hong scrambled away in a disheveled manner once again.

Zhao Ruoan picked up the map to look at it, and then flipped through the intelligence booklet.

The information inside was much more detailed and timely than what the Sect had provided, recording the latest movements of various mountain bandits, outlaws, and evil Cultivator factions entrenched in the Black Wind Mountain Range. It even mentioned that recently, a batch of mysterious foreign Cultivators had entered the depths of the mountain range with secretive whereabouts.

Come to think of it, it should be that bunch of people from the Blood Fiend Sect.

"This meal was not eaten in vain."

Zhao Ruoan put away the map and booklet, his mood becoming even more pleasant.

Having eaten and drunk their fill, and having obtained a windfall along with important intelligence, the three of them left Wangjiang Tower. Amidst the awe-filled gazes of the city's commoners, they leisurely flew out of the city and continued flying toward the direction of the Black Wind Mountain Range.