"Did you enjoy the meal?"
"I did!" Huang Mengzhu wiped her little mouth and nodded her head furiously.
"That's good."
The Spiritual Food on the table had been completely devoured by the two of them, without a single scrap wasted.
After paying the bill, Fang Yun led Huang Mengzhu out of the Smoke Cloud Pavilion.
Before leaving, he saw Wu Junxin dining with another Inner Sect senior brother and gave them a simple greeting.
This was his way of responding to their earlier overture.
When others showed an intention to befriend him, he would always try to connect with them. As long as this senior brother's character was decent, making friends would be beneficial for him.
After walking out of the Smoke Cloud Pavilion, Fang Yun didn't leave Smoke Cloud Peak right away.
After asking for directions, he brought Huang Mengzhu to the Spirit Feeding Institute.
Fang Yun's purpose for coming here was simple: to get rid of the Wasted Pills he had accumulated from Refining Qi Nourishing Pills.
Now that he was experienced in Refining Qi Nourishing Pills, given his Alchemy Talent, he rarely produced Wasted Pills unless something unexpected happened.
The Spirit Feeding Institute on Smoke Cloud Peak was a place that collected Wasted Pills.
Wasted Pills could be ground into powder to make Spiritual Feeding, which was one of the food sources for the captive Demon Beasts.
"Steward, how much are these Wasted Pills worth?"
Fang Yun piled the Wasted Pills from his Qi Nourishing Pill Alchemy on the table.
It was just a small pile; he hadn't accumulated many Wasted Pills from Refining Qi Nourishing Pills.
"Is this all?"
"Yes."
"Let me see." The Steward inspected the Wasted Pills, then gave them a quick sniff. "These are all from Qi Nourishing Pills. They aren't worth much. You can exchange them for eight pounds of Clear Water Rice."
Not even a single Lower Grade Spirit Stone.
"Alright, thank you, Steward."
After the trade, Fang Yun had an extra eight pounds of Clear Water Rice in his Storage Pouch. He no longer had any desire to eat Clear Water Rice, as he now exclusively ate Purple Corn.
He would wait until he had collected enough Clear Water Rice to exchange for Spirit Stones.
Later, when he started Refining Cyan Jade Pills, he would definitely produce some Wasted Pills in the beginning.
The more valuable the pill, the more valuable its Wasted Pills and dregs were as well.
After leaving the Spirit Feeding Institute, Fang Yun said to the little girl.
"See? Your Brother Fang Yun here doesn't even produce many Wasted Pills when I do Alchemy. What does that tell you?"
"It means Brother Fang Yun's Alchemy Talent is amazing!"
"That's right. Next time we have a chance, we'll come back to the Smoke Cloud Pavilion for another great meal."
"Yay!"
Seeing the little girl jump for joy, Fang Yun nodded in satisfaction.
'This should completely relieve Huang Mengzhu of any psychological burden.'
'She isn't even fifteen yet; she doesn't need to be so sensible all the time.'
Some of his modern ideas, Fang Yun hadn't yet managed to change.
If Huang Mengzhu were a spoiled brat, he wouldn't be treating her this way.
There was still a lot of time left in the day.
After leaving Smoke Cloud Peak, Fang Yun walked and chatted with Huang Mengzhu, holding her hand. They moved at a leisurely pace, in no hurry to rush back. When the time was right, he could just carry her on his back and quickly return to the Outer Sect's D Zone.
Spiritual Food personally prepared by a Spirit Chef retained its energy well after being eaten, so it was fine to refine and absorb it later.
After consuming a pill, however, its medicinal power would slowly begin to dissipate. Therefore, it was best to cultivate immediately after taking one.
「Dusk fell.」
Fang Yun, carrying Huang Mengzhu on his back, entered the D Zone where the Outer Sect disciples lived.
During their walk and talk earlier, Huang Mengzhu had spoken more than she had in a long time. Because of this, Fang Yun got a better understanding of her situation within the Celestial Cloud Sect.
It seemed the little girl was adapting well to sect life.
"We're here. Hop off."
In front of residence number 137, Fang Yun crouched down, and Huang Mengzhu immediately slid off his back.
"Goodbye, Brother Fang Yun."
"Yeah, goodbye." Suddenly remembering something, Fang Yun took a small porcelain vial from his Storage Pouch and handed it to Huang Mengzhu. "Here, take this. You have to cultivate even harder from now on."
"Okay, thank you, Brother Fang Yun!"
After watching the little girl go back into her house, Fang Yun left.
The small porcelain vial he gave Huang Mengzhu contained Middle Grade Qi Nourishing Pills.
He still had some Middle Grade Qi Nourishing Pills on hand, which he planned to exchange for Spirit Stones later.
Before entering the Celestial Cloud Sect, he had promised Uncle Datong he would look after the little girl, Mengzhu.
A promise was a promise.
As long as it didn't negatively affect him, he would do his best to take care of Huang Mengzhu.
Her Three Spirit Roots were different from his Five Spirit Roots. Cultivation during the early and middle stages of Qi Refining was easy for her. The Middle Grade Qi Nourishing Pills would be a great help to her at the Qi Refining Second Layer, making her cultivation even smoother.
If Huang Datong knew Fang Yun was caring for his daughter to this extent, he would regret his words. The cost of Fang Yun's support was simply beyond his imagination, especially since it hadn't even been a year since they both joined the Celestial Cloud Sect.
Back in her room, Huang Mengzhu opened the small porcelain vial Fang Yun had given her.
"It's Middle Grade Qi Nourishing Pills!"
The Qi Nourishing Pills in the vial were different from the ones distributed by the sect.
The pills provided by the sect were all Lower Grade, and disciples normally stopped receiving this benefit three years after joining.
Thanks to Fang Yun's earlier reassurances, Huang Mengzhu felt no psychological burden in accepting these Middle Grade Qi Nourishing Pills.
'Brother Fang Yun is an Alchemy Master with amazing talent.'
'When I grow up, I'll definitely treat Brother Fang Yun to the best food and drinks!'
The little girl secretly swore an oath in her heart. This was the best way she could think of to repay him.
And in the future, she would definitely eat and drink well herself.
Her future goal was to become a Spirit Chef, a goal she had set for herself half a year after joining the sect.
To become a Spirit Chef, she first had to raise her Cultivation. Otherwise, getting tired after just cooking a few dishes would be pathetic.
Back at his residence, Fang Yun didn't take an Upper Grade Qi Nourishing Pill to aid his cultivation today.
He still hadn't fully digested and absorbed the Spiritual Food he had eaten. Using a pill to aid his cultivation on top of that would be a waste.
Digesting and absorbing Spiritual Food was different from a pill's effects. Trying to do both at once would require splitting his focus.
Cultivating while splitting one's focus was especially taxing on the mind.
「The next morning.」
After tending to his five acres of Purple Corn in the Spirit Fields, Fang Yun hurried to Dan Cloud Peak.
Today, he was going to officially start Refining Cyan Jade Pills.
"Steward Zhou, I need to rent an intermediate-level Alchemy Room this time." Fang Yun stated his request the moment he arrived.
If he hadn't spoken up quickly, given Steward Zhou's swift hands, a token for a basic-level Alchemy Room would have already landed in his palm.
Hearing this, Steward Zhou stopped what he was doing and put away the basic-level Alchemy Room token he was holding.
"Moving on to a different pill?"
"Yes, I plan on Refining Cyan Jade Pills."
"Hmm, Cyan Jade Pills are a good choice. Quite suitable for you." As he spoke, a different token appeared in Steward Zhou's hand. This one was marked with "Intermediate Three".
"Intermediate Alchemy Room Number Three. The daily rental fee is different from a basic-level room. An intermediate room costs two Lower Grade Spirit Stones per day."
"Alright."
Placing two Lower Grade Spirit Stones on the counter, Fang Yun took the token and entered Alchemy Room Number Three.