"Young man, I’ve told you many times now. Hurry up and make a few small dishes. The three dishes and one soup you have listed on the wall will do just fine," the old man said with a wide grin.

Mo Qi was about to say something, but Yang Ming and Yu Liang stopped him.

"Junior Brother, you should just do as he says," Yang Ming transmitted, watching the old man cautiously, terrified he might get angry.

"That’s right. If he gets upset, we won’t be able to protect you," Yu Liang added via transmission.

Mo Qi was shaken. His curiosity was piqued.

’What kind of person could scare Yang Ming and Yu Liang this badly?!’

He turned and went back to the kitchen. A few short minutes later, the three dishes and one soup were served.

The old man inhaled the aroma, his face a mask of pure bliss. His eyes narrowed to slits, and he gulped repeatedly, his Adam’s apple bobbing.

He looked nothing like a lofty master. He was more like a starving wolf, just short of wagging his tail with his tongue hanging out.

"Can you let him go now?" Mo Qi demanded, slamming the dishes down on the table.

The old man just smiled and waved his hand. Liu Hui was free again.

"Young man, don’t be so grumpy. I came here today with good news for you," the old man mumbled, stuffing his face with his bare hands without a shred of decorum.

"I’m not interested," Mo Qi snapped. He had no goodwill for this old man who had broken his rules.

"Heh!" The old man chuckled. "I was going to introduce you to a young lady, but what a shame... Tsk, tsk. Don’t you come crying to me later."

Mo Qi rolled his eyes, his tone resolute. "Don’t worry. Even if I stay single for the rest of my life, I will never beg you for anything."

The old man gave him a strange smile and said no more, turning his full attention to the delicious food before him.

Just then, a graceful figure appeared at the entrance of the restaurant.

Her slender, curvaceous figure was enough to set one’s imagination racing.

However, as the figure drew closer, everyone saw that it was a young girl with a filthy face and dressed in rags.

Yang Ming and Yu Liang were startled once more, their gazes darting between the old man and the young girl.

Finally, as if they had realized something, they both clapped their hands over their mouths to stifle their gasps.

’Am I dreaming? Is that personage really going to introduce his granddaughter to Mo Qi?’

’This is explosive! But then again, with that kid Mo Qi’s culinary skills, is there anyone he couldn’t win over?’

Yu Liang and Yang Ming exchanged glances, communicating in silence.

Mo Qi noticed neither their strange behavior, nor the fact that the previously nonchalant old man was now fidgeting restlessly.

Upon seeing the girl, a genuinely doting smile spread across his face.

"Ruyan, long time no see."

The girl was none other than Liu Ruyan, whom Mo Qi cared for like a little sister.

"Brother Mo, Ruyan missed you," Liu Ruyan said with a sweet smile, jogging over and throwing herself into Mo Qi’s arms. She wrapped her arms tightly around his waist and snuggled her head against his chest.

As she passed the old man, she "discreetly" stomped hard on his foot.

The old man’s face froze. He sucked in a sharp breath, the corner of his mouth twitching uncontrollably.

Mo Qi, used to Liu Ruyan’s affectionate behavior, just smiled and patted her head.

"We haven’t seen each other in over a month, and you’ve gotten taller."

"Really?" Liu Ruyan beamed. "Do you like it, Brother Mo?"

"Hahaha, of course I do!" Mo Qi said, naturally taking Liu Ruyan’s small hand and leading her to a seat.

"You must be hungry. I’ll go make you something delicious."

"Mhm," Liu Ruyan nodded obediently, even puckering her lips and swallowing cooperatively.

Her adorable display swept away all of Mo Qi’s earlier frustration.

"Hey, you’re not playing fair, kid," the old man suddenly grumbled. "When I wanted to eat, you hemmed and hawed, but as soon as this little girl shows up, you rush to the kitchen yourself?"

Mo Qi shot the old man a look. "She’s my sister. Is that any of your business?"

"Sister? Heheh." The old man’s eyebrows rose, and his smile turned mischievous.

Liu Ruyan turned her head away from Mo Qi and shot the old man a ferocious glare, grinding her teeth threateningly.

"How weird," Mo Qi muttered, ignoring the old man. He gently pinched Liu Ruyan’s cheek and smiled. "Don’t mind him. Just wait a bit."

With that, he walked into the kitchen. Liu Ruyan gently caressed the cheek he had just pinched, her heart fluttering.

Yang Ming and Yu Liang’s jaws dropped, their faces a mask of utter disbelief.

’What in the world is going on?’

’Mo Qi has known Liu Ruyan all along, but he doesn’t know her grandfather, Liu Hong.’

’And this grandfather-granddaughter pair, Liu Ruyan and Liu Hong, are pretending not to know each other in front of Mo Qi.’

’This is... City folk sure are something else.’

"Should we give Mo Qi a heads-up?" Yang Ming transmitted.

"No, no, no! We shouldn’t get involved in this. We can’t afford to offend them," Yu Liang transmitted back, shaking his head frantically. "Let’s just act like we know nothing."

Soon, the table in front of Liu Ruyan was laden with all sorts of dishes.

It wasn’t just the standard three dishes and a soup from the wall; there were also many new creations that even Yang Ming and Yu Liang had never tasted.

Liu Hong’s eyes widened.

He could tell at a glance that the dishes in front of Liu Ruyan were leagues better than the simple three dishes and a soup he had received.

Inhaling the fragrance wafting through the air, he desperately wanted to leap over and snatch it all for himself.

"Grandpa, if you dare try to steal any, I’ll pluck out your entire beard and confiscate all your snacks when we get back!"

Liu Ruyan’s warning made Liu Hong deflate like a punctured ball, and he slumped back into his chair.

"Go on, try it," Mo Qi said with a smile, setting down the last dish and sitting across from Liu Ruyan.

"Then I won’t hold back!"

Liu Ruyan was no stranger to Mo Qi’s cooking, but this was her first time trying his Medicinal Cuisine.

With just one bite, the blissful flavor seemed to melt her very heart.

"Wow, this is so delicious!" Liu Ruyan exclaimed, then began to wolf it down.

As she ate, she deliberately described the texture, unique qualities, and flavor of each dish of Medicinal Cuisine in a loud voice.

For Liu Hong, who loved good food more than life itself, this was nothing short of torture.

"I’m leaving!" Liu Hong shot to his feet and, in a huff, jabbed a finger toward the spot between Mo Qi’s eyebrows.

Yang Ming, Yu Liang, and Liu Hui were aghast. They never expected Liu Hong to attack so suddenly, and it was too late to stop him.

Though Mo Qi reacted thanks to his exceptional Spiritual Power, his movements were slower than a snail’s pace compared to Liu Hong.

Only Liu Ruyan’s expression remained unchanged, as she was completely lost in a sea of Medicinal Cuisine.

ZZT!

Liu Hong’s finger tapped Mo Qi’s forehead. A dazzling light flared for an instant, then vanished.

When the light faded, Liu Hong was nowhere to be seen in the restaurant.

Yang Ming, Yu Liang, and Liu Hui rushed over, looking at Mo Qi anxiously.

"Are you okay?"

Mo Qi snapped out of a daze and shook his head, feeling as if something new had been added to his mind.

Just then, the long-dormant Chaos Scripture suddenly flared with a brilliant light, absorbing the new information in Mo Qi’s mind and quickly providing feedback.

"Array Outline. The fundamental principles of Arrays. Incomplete version has now been supplemented and completed."

’Array Outline?’

Just as Mo Qi was trying to make sense of it, another voice echoed from within the Chaos Scripture.

The voice belonged to the old man. "Kid, consider this my payment for the meal. Once you’ve learned it all, I’ll pay you again."

’This...’

Mo Qi didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. ’What a character.’

Still, Mo Qi wasn’t opposed to this method of payment.

Arrays. Mo Qi had heard of them before; they were a truly wondrous art.

It was said that a powerful Array Master could fight a hundred men at once, battle opponents far beyond their own level, and even construct Arrays with special functions.

’I wonder if there are any Arrays that can enhance one’s cooking skills,’ Mo Qi mused, stroking his chin. A smile crept onto his face.

"Mo Qi, say something! What’s wrong? Don’t scare us!"

Seeing Mo Qi just standing there with a foolish grin, not answering their questions, everyone’s hearts sank.

’Could that one finger poke have scrambled his brains?!’

Mo Qi snapped out of it and smiled. "I’m fine, I’m fine. Sorry to make you worry."

"You’re really okay?" Yu Liang asked again, still worried.

"Really, I’m fine."

After Mo Qi’s repeated assurances, and after Yu Liang gave him a thorough inspection, the others finally relaxed.

By now, Liu Ruyan had nearly finished her meal.

She leaned back in her chair and patted her full, round belly without a care for her image. "I wish I could eat so many delicious things every day," she said wistfully.

Mo Qi laughed. "Then come every day, and I’ll cook for you." 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

"Oh, I couldn’t possibly." Ruyan blinked playfully. "Are you looking for a waitress? I could come help out, serve dishes, wash plates, that sort of thing."

"Alright," Mo Qi agreed after a moment’s thought.

He’d always assumed Liu Ruyan was like him—born into poverty, with the status of a servant. He’d much rather have her with him than see her suffer working for someone else.

Besides, he really did need a hand serving dishes. The thought of them working together as a brother-sister team was rather appealing.

Yang Ming and Yu Liang, however, were terrified. They knew who Liu Ruyan was.

Making her a waitress, serving food and washing dishes... they wondered if Liu Hong would flip the entire Void Sect on its head.

...

「The next day」

Before the restaurant had even opened for business, Mo Qi’s mountain peak was already crowded with people.

Some were returning customers who had come to cause trouble the day before, only to be won over by the Medicinal Cuisine.

Others were curious disciples who had come to see what the fuss was about, not believing in the Medicinal Cuisine at all.

And more still were spies with ulterior motives, sent by various powerful figures to gather intelligence.

Mo Qi took his one hundred twenty-thousand-plus contribution points to the Void Sect treasury and exchanged them for a huge pile of Second Level and Third Level Spirit Medicines.

The Elder guarding the treasury had been absolutely flabbergasted.

Such an extravagant expenditure was rare even for Elders, let alone a mere disciple.

’I really should thank Xu He. He shortened my path to the Essence-Refining stage by at least half a month.’

The Spirit Medicines he’d bought with his 120,000 contribution points were enough for him to break through to the Essence-Refining stage; now all he needed was time.

Mo Qi stepped outside the restaurant, his calm gaze sweeping over the crowd that had been waiting for a long time.

"This establishment is small and can only serve one hundred people at a time. Anyone else will have to wait in line outside. I have a few rules that I expect everyone to follow."

"First, no troublemaking. If you have a problem with someone, take it to the bottom of the mountain. Anyone who dares to start a fight on my territory gets one warning. A second offense gets you blacklisted, and you will never be served here again!"

"Second, no Medicinal Cuisine is to be wasted or taken away. The only exception for take-out is if you purchase it for ten times the normal price."

"Third, in my restaurant, what I say goes. If you have any doubts or complaints, you are free to leave. This establishment is under no obligation to provide any explanations."