Chapter 2007 - Nine Crane Pavilion

While Long Yuanxiong headed east, Liu Wuxie headed west. He stopped as he passed a grand restaurant rising several stories high. Its brilliant lights and lavish decorations announced that it served wealthy or influential people.

Sorting through the four interspatial rings taken from the Heavenly Alliance's envoys had recently yielded more than forty million immortal stones, along with numerous pills and artifacts. Resources would pose no concern for the foreseeable future. He was only disappointed that even the Immortal Lord's ring held nothing that could help him achieve his next breakthrough.

"Young Master, are you here for a meal?" a waiter asked warmly before Liu Wuxie reached the entrance. Despite Liu Wuxie’s plain clothing, the man showed no trace of disdain.

"That's right," Liu Wuxie replied, nodding.

"We require a minimum expenditure of fifty thousand immortal stones at the Nine Crane Pavilion. Would you still like to be seated?" the waiter asked courteously.

Fifty thousand immortal stones bought only the cheapest dish. A full meal could cost several hundred thousand or even millions. Such prices were well beyond most ordinary cultivators, so the reminder was understandable. Moreover, Liu Wuxie's aura identified him as a Profound Immortal. Even though that cultivation did not place him at the bottom of the Celestial Weave Domain, he was still far below its upper ranks.

"Show me to a table," Liu Wuxie replied. Spending a few hundred thousand immortal stones hardly concerned him.

"Please, come this way!" The waiter escorted him inside, into a refined, serene setting far removed from the rowdiness of taverns.

"Will you be eating by yourself, Young Master?" the waiter asked, guiding Liu Wuxie across the ground floor, where evening guests already kept the hall busy.

"Just me."

"This table beside the railing should be just right for you," the waiter said, leading him to the hall's western side. From there, he could enjoy a pleasant view of the side street. The eastern tables offered the better prospect of the main avenue, but such distinctions mattered little to Liu Wuxie.

He took his seat and opened the menu. The prices were steep, yet the dishes warranted them. Raw Immortal Snails, for instance, cost ten thousand immortal stones. In the hands of the Nine Crane Pavilion's chefs, they became Steamed Immortal Snails priced at one hundred thousand a serving.

Nothing about these snails was ordinary. Each was as big as a washbasin, and only the finest specimens qualified. Eating the dish could lengthen a cultivator's lifespan, fortify the dantian, and purify immortal energy, with benefits comparable to those of a sixth-grade immortal pill. Given that such pills readily commanded more than one hundred thousand immortal stones, the price was quite fair.

"I'd like the Steamed Immortal Snails, a plate of Eight-Extreme Pearl Fish..." Liu Wuxie ordered several delicacies, running his bill up to four hundred thousand immortal stones.

"Please give the kitchen a moment to prepare your meal," the waiter said. He bowed, then hurried off.

Patrons kept arriving until they filled every table, with people queuing outside to be seated.

A disturbance broke out by the entrance. "Young Master Ran, there really isn't a table free! The moment one becomes available, I'll let you know!" an attendant said.

Ignoring the staff trying to stop him, a young man strode inside with a woman at his side. Waiting outside alongside the other guests was clearly out of the question for him.

Several diners looked up, irritated. Recognition soon silenced them, and they returned to their meals.

"Young Master Ran, you can see that every table in the hall is taken. Would you please wait a little longer?" the waiter asked, wearing an anxious smile. He dared not provoke the youth.

As he scanned the room, he saw Liu Wuxie. "That brat over there is still waiting for his food. Have him give up his table, and I'll pay his bill," he said.

Having only just placed his order, Liu Wuxie had yet to be served his food. He occupied a table for two, and no one else in the establishment had cultivation as low as his.

The weakest of the other patrons was a peak Divine Immortal, while most guests were Golden Immortals and Great Golden Immortals. As the sole Profound Immortal among them, Liu Wuxie presented an easy target.

"Young Master Ran, we can't do that... The Nine Crane Pavilion values everyone who comes through its doors..." the waiter said, his expression troubled.

"Young Master Ran, I have my heart set on the Eight-Extreme Pearl Fish today. Please find a way... I'm so hungry!" the woman coaxed, clinging to his arm.

"All right, all right. I'll take care of it," the youth replied, savoring her coaxing. To soothe her, he gently patted her cheek.

He no longer wasted his time arguing with the waiter. "Brat, take these two hundred thousand immortal stones and give me your table," the youth said, striding straight up to Liu Wuxie.

He tossed a spatial pouch filled with stones onto the table, as though the arrangement were already settled. He meant to pay for Liu Wuxie's order as well. After all, every dish the Nine Crane Pavilion served was a delicacy.

Liu Wuxie looked up in displeasure. He had barely taken his seat, so why should he give it up? He had come to savor the Nine Crane Pavilion's renowned cuisine while gathering information about the Tigerwood Blacksmith Pavilion.

"Don't push your luck, brat. I'm giving you a way out. Do you know who you're dealing with?" the youth asked, his face darkening. Nobody in Azure Cloud City had ever dared subject him to such humiliation.

The diners nearby set aside their meals and turned their attention to the confrontation.

Liu Wuxie heard someone whispering. "Ran Chenghua again. He knows nothing but bullying the weak." Clearly, the youth enjoyed considerable standing in Azure Cloud City. Otherwise, he would never have dared display such arrogance.

"Chenghua, I'm so hungry. I want my food now," the woman coaxed, fueling his anger. Her revealing attire and seductive manner marked her as anything but a respectable lady of noble birth.

"Who you are makes no difference to me. I have this table. If you want it, you can wait until I finish my meal. Once I'm done, I'll leave," Liu Wuxie replied evenly.

He had just reached Azure Cloud City and wanted no trouble, but he didn't fear it either. Spoiled young men such as Ran Chenghua could squander their endless leisure. Liu Wuxie had pressing matters that demanded his attention.

"If you won't accept a courteous offer, I'll throw you out myself!" Ran Chenghua growled. He lunged to seize Liu Wuxie's shoulder, intending to hurl him over the railing beside the window and into the street below.

"Keep your hands off me!"

Liu Wuxie moved with astonishing speed. Before Ran Chenghua's fingers reached his clothes, he caught the youth's wrist in a clamping grip and stopped it in midair.

Rage surged through Ran Chenghua. How could a Golden Immortal like him be restrained by a mere Profound Immortal? He raised his left palm and struck at Liu Wuxie’s head with lethal force.

A murderous gleam crossed Liu Wuxie's eyes. Had that ruthless blow landed, it would have shattered his skull. He leaned back, dodging it, then thrust his left palm into Ran Chenghua's abdomen.

With a loud bang, Ran Chenghua hurtled backward like a cannonball and slammed heavily onto the floor. Several diners scrambled aside in alarm.

Liu Wuxie never meant to cause a scene, but Ran Chenghua's relentless harassment had exhausted his patience.

"Someone's being murdered! It's murder!" the woman shrieked, her cries ringing through the Nine Crane Pavilion.

"Shut up!" Liu Wuxie snapped, shooting her a sharp glance.

His chilling gaze silenced her. An aggrieved look settled over her face as she hurried to help Ran Chenghua up.

"Now you've really made me angry, brat! I'm going to kill you!" Shoving the woman aside, Ran Chenghua rushed at Liu Wuxie again with bloodshot eyes.

The waiter who had followed him inside slipped away quietly to inform the management. Events had escalated beyond his control. The other patrons remained unbothered, as disputes over dining tables were familiar spectacles to them.

Ran Chenghua unleashed the full strength of a third-level Golden Immortal. As he struck, his aura burst forth like rolling thunder, shaking the nearby tables and chairs and threatening to tear them into splinters.

Coldness settled in Liu Wuxie's gaze as he summoned the Bloodthirst Blade into his hand. If Ran Chenghua was determined to die, only he could be blamed for the consequences.

"Enough!"

The sharp command carried unquestionable authority. Ran Chenghua stopped abruptly, a split second before Liu Wuxie's blade would have ended the fight.

An elderly man came out of the inner corridor and placed himself between them, his majestic bearing lending him an imposing presence.

"Elder Guan, this brat hurt me! Keep out of it!" Ran Chenghua demanded without a shred of respect. A Profound Immortal had sent him flying in front of an audience, and the humiliation was more than he could stomach. Nothing would satisfy him until Liu Wuxie was dead.

"I know exactly what happened. If you want to eat here, wait outside for a table. Status, high or low, makes no difference in the Nine Crane Pavilion. Our guests are served in the order they arrive," Elder Guan replied coldly.

Elder Guan showed Ran Chenghua no favoritism despite his background and remained resolutely impartial. With so many guests watching, the Nine Crane Pavilion could not allow a petty quarrel to tarnish its longstanding reputation.

"Elder Guan, do you realize who my father is?" Ran Chenghua hissed, invoking his family’s influence as a threat.

"It doesn't matter who you are here. Anyone who enters must follow our rules. Your father would have to obey them too," Elder Guan replied sharply.

Ran Chenghua's identity was no mystery to him. He would have already thrown an ordinary troublemaker into the street for acting this way.

"You'll regret this, brat! Nobody crosses me and gets away unscathed," Ran Chenghua spat. He took a deep breath to suppress his fury. With no other choice, he retreated to the entrance and waited outside.

The Nine Crane Pavilion's immense authority in Azure Cloud City could compel even Ran Chenghua to submit. He knew Elder Guan spoke the truth. His father wouldn't dare cause a disturbance here either.

A slight frown touched Liu Wuxie's face. Ran Chenghua's threats didn't frighten him, but the commotion had thoroughly spoiled his appetite.