Chapter 217: Prosperity

Fushan Restaurant occupied a vast area; Old Master An, to show Mo Hua goodwill, bought three adjacent buildings and merged them into one restaurant.

Its location was excellent, situated along the north-south thoroughfare, with constant foot traffic.

Because it was on Nandajie, the land was cheap, so the amount of Spirit Stones spent wasn't much—at least not to the An family.

Fushan Restaurant had two floors: the second floor housed private rooms, the first floor was the main hall, and outside, additional tables and benches were set up under the open sky.

The entire restaurant could accommodate many diners, and it also offered meat snacks for takeaway.

The menu used by the restaurant was provided by Liu Ruhua, containing cooking methods for various demonic beast meats, refined over a long period by Liu Ruhua's research and improvements—flavorful and unique to this establishment.

The restaurant's stoves were Grade-One stoves, large in size, inscribed with Grade-One Repeating Arrays, providing strong, controllable heat capable of cooking many ingredients simultaneously.

Thus, many dishes at the restaurant were priced cheaply.

This was precisely Mo Hua's original intention: using large stoves to reduce costs and improve cooking efficiency.

In this way, most cultivators in Xiancheng could enjoy better meals for fewer Spirit Stones.

Cheap and delicious, the restaurant naturally drew crowds and heavy foot traffic.

The restaurant could also achieve high volume with slim margins, earning no shortage of Spirit Stones.

Operating such a large restaurant required many staff members.

Injured demon hunters or female cultivators without talent in Dao arts could find employment here, earning Spirit Stones to supplement their households.

With all preparations complete, Fushan Restaurant chose an auspicious day to open.

After opening, Fushan Restaurant never lacked customers; business thrived.

Mo Hua watched with delight and finally exhaled in relief.

But An Xiaofu grew tense.

A whole restaurant, so many diners, bustling and noisy—he didn't know what to do.

The key was, he was still the junior Shopkeeper; according to Mo Hua's words, he would have to manage all this in the future.

An Xiaofu's head ached.

Although the An family had people who could help him, they could only help temporarily—he still had to learn and do it himself.

But he didn't know where to start or how to learn.

Mo Hua said, "Don't think of yourself as a junior Shopkeeper. Just act as you did in the food stall—eat and chat with diners; don't be overly formal."

With Mo Hua's words, An Xiaofu relaxed.

He began running up and down, greeting familiar demon hunters, offering them drinks, handing out snacks, and introducing the restaurant's signature dishes.

He loved food to begin with, and when talking about these things, he spoke effortlessly and with authority.

In his free time, he still liked joining others at their tables, listening to their cultivation experiences or strange tales; if someone told a good story, he would gift them a pot of wine.

The restaurant sometimes invited storytellers to perform.

When stories grew too old, An Xiaofu would invent new ones based on his own observations, hiring storytellers to tell them—often earning thunderous applause.

Gradually, An Xiaofu knew more diners, spoke more, and his demeanor grew much brighter.

Old Master An and An Yonglu came to visit, seeing An Xiaofu running up and down, drenched in sweat but full of energy.

This demeanor was completely different from how he was in the family.

An Yonglu sighed, feeling reassured.

Old Master An glanced at him, his expression somewhat resigned.

He had never wanted the An family to continue running restaurants, but his son and grandson seemed to have no talent except for operating eateries.

They lacked the ambition to run alchemy shops or artifact workshops.

They lacked the cunning to compete with the Qian family.

Under these circumstances, the An family would probably spend their entire lives running restaurants…

But An Xiaofu thought running a restaurant wasn't bad at all.

He could feed himself, feed others, and ensure everyone ate well.

Yet occasionally he hesitated, and asked Mo Hua:

"If I run this restaurant my whole life, will people look down on me…?"

Mo Hua thought for a moment and said, "In cultivation, countless trades exist, each with its strengths; mastering any craft to its utmost is remarkable. If you can open restaurants across all Nine Provinces of the cultivation world, ensuring everyone has meat to eat, who would dare look down on you?"

An Xiaofu froze—he had never imagined so far.

"The Nine Provinces are so vast—can you really open restaurants everywhere?" An Xiaofu asked doubtfully.

"Probably not," Mo Hua said, "but how will you know unless you try?"

An Xiaofu nodded, silently resolving himself.

Though his realm was low and the restaurant was only one, he would strive—strive to open many, many restaurants, so everyone could joyfully eat meat and drink wine!

After opening, Fushan Restaurant gradually settled into a steady rhythm, and a month later, the New Year festival arrived.

Half a month remained before the New Year; the alchemy shop was fully completed.

Master Ban settled all Spirit Stone payments, and all craftsmen could happily return home for the holiday.

Before leaving, Master Ban, accompanied by several lead craftsmen, visited Mo Hua and presented gifts for the festival as a token of gratitude.

Without Mo Hua's swift and skillful array designs, such a large cultivation structure would have taken them until after the New Year to finish.

Otherwise, they either couldn't return home for the holiday, or if they did, they'd have no Spirit Stones—making the New Year unbearable.

Master Ban praised Mo Hua; Seeing Mo Shan and Liu Ruhua were delighted, and invited Master Ban and his team to dinner.

Everyone enjoyed a lively meal, drinking plenty of wine.

After the meal, Master Ban and his team prepared to depart.

Before leaving, Master Ban specifically told Mo Hua that if he ever needed craftsmen, he should just call on him—no cutting corners, guaranteed satisfaction.

He also invited Mo Hua to visit Qingxuan City next door when he had time, promising to show him around and introduce him to local customs.

Mo Hua nodded in acknowledgment and waved goodbye to Foreman Ban.

A group of master craftsmen and artisans gradually receded into the distance.

They carried storage bags on their backs and pushed small wooden carts; on the carts were worn storage boxes, and the tools that couldn't fit inside the boxes were piled here and there on one side.

Step by step they walked, over the bluestone streets, out through the gates of Xiancheng, and set off, travel-worn, on the road home.

Mo Hua stood at the gate, watching their retreating backs, and waved once more in farewell.

He hoped they could return home safely and have a good New Year.

He also hoped that from then on, every year, they could all return home safe and sound and celebrate the New Year happily.

Another ten-odd days passed, and every household in Xiancheng was preparing for the New Year.

The streets were hung with lanterns and decorations, a scene of bustling festivity.

This was perhaps the most prosperous, and the most lively, New Year that ordinary loose cultivators in Xiancheng had seen in the last hundred, or perhaps several hundred, years.

The foundational industries of cultivation were already in place.

The Weapon-Forging Hall forged spiritual artifacts, the Alchemy Hall refined pills, and the Fortune Feast Hall could cook meat dishes.

With spiritual artifacts, demon hunters could suffer fewer injuries; with pills, the loose cultivators at the bottom could suffer fewer ailments; with the feast hall, everyone's diet could be improved as well.

Moreover, whether it was the Weapon-Forging Hall, the Alchemy Hall, or the Fortune Feast Hall, all of them could help loose cultivators make a living or earn spirit stones.

Whether one was a demon hunter, a weapon forger, an alchemist, a feast chef, or just an ordinary loose cultivator, everyone could have a steady job and earn spirit stones for daily life and cultivation.

Food, clothing, and daily necessities were all better than before.

So this New Year was especially prosperous, and naturally especially lively as well.

Cultivators on the streets came and went in an endless stream.

Market stalls were everywhere; the goods on the stalls were of every variety, dazzling to the eye—food, drink, play, and amusement, everything one could want.

There were many inventive toys, distinctive snacks, wine brew whose fragrance carried for ten miles, and dazzling buskers competing to show off their skills.

Infected by the festive atmosphere, Mo Hua also grew happy.

Cultivators' pursuit of the Dao was arduous, and making a living was hard.

Other things, Mo Hua couldn't do; what he could do was only, within the limits of his ability, make the lives of loose cultivators in Xiancheng a little better.

Growing up, he had already received plenty of care from the neighbors and uncles and aunties on the street.

Now that he had learned formations, he naturally wanted to help everyone too.

At this thought, Mo Hua couldn't help but feel grateful in his heart.

It was fortunate that he had the Dao Stele in his Sea of Consciousness, and also fortunate that what he studied was formations.

Formations uphold the way of Heaven; only formations could help so many cultivators.