Ninth In the World

Jing Xihua nodded. “That’s right. The fella I offended this time is indeed quite powerful. As I mentioned previously, if you are concerned, I will leave and will not implicate you.”

Upon saying that, Jing Xihua looked at Lightning calmly. The reason he said this was because he had guessed that the owner of this hotel was not simple. This hotel would not have been built there if it was going to chase customers away because of fear. He thought this way because he did not know Di Jiu’s true goal for opening a hotel there.

Lightning made a sound of assent. “We are afraid of no one.”

Jing Xihua was delighted upon hearing that. However, Lightning said immediately, “It’s just that the rent here is not cheap. The best rooms cost one supreme-grade divine spirit meridian for a year’s rent.”

Jing Xihua gasped. He was rich but not that rich.

“You can stay in a slightly worse room, but listen to me. The defense measurements in place are not as good,” Lightning informed him casually.

Jing Xihua felt that Lightning was laughing at his misfortune, as though it knew he dared not leave the hotel. Gritting his teeth, he said, “I have something better than supreme-grade divine spirit meridians. However, I need to stay for 50 years.”

Lightning chuckled, not bothering to reply.

It had learned this from Di Jiu. Jing Xihua sensed some disdain, so he cupped his fists and said, “I have Five-Element Chaos Qi. I am willing to use that as payment.”

Lightning’s eyes lit up immediately, as it knew very well just how valuable the Five-Element Chaos Qi was. Its boss owned neutral Qi and Yin Chaos Qi, but this was the first time it had heard of the Five-Element Chaos Qi. As it seemed, it should not have treated the man this way.

“Deal. You can stay for 50 years. Hand it over.” Lightning agreed without hesitation.

Jing Xihua instantly took out five jade bottles and said, “I have used restrictions to seal the Five-Element Chaos Qi and place them within these five jade bottles. You must be careful. Others will covet it if it accidentally leaks out.”

He was warning Lightning not to open the restrictions for no reason while subtly telling it to inform its owner about this matter.

“Rest assured. I am very careful.” Lightning did not understand Jing Xihua’s implied meaning. Grabbing hold of the five jade bottles, it wished that it could immediately open them up to take a look.

Jing Xihua sighed and did not harp on about this matter. He had obtained the Five-Element Chaos Qi on the Five-Element Planet, although it had been all thanks to someone else.

Upon seeing Lightning put the Five-Element Chaos Qi away, Jing Xihua asked, “Owner, may I know where I am staying?”

Lightning chuckled and waved its claws in the air. “Follow me.”

Jing Xihua dubiously followed Lightning to the courtyard outside. With a wave, a very big cave abode appeared beside the main cave abode. Lightning pointed to this new cave abode and said, “This is yours. What do you think? Very worth it, right? Everyone lives in a room, but I’m giving a whole cave abode to you.”

Jing Xihua looked at Lightning speechlessly. “Owner, I want to stay inside the hotel, not outside.”

Lightning waved in dismissal. “I know what you’re worried about, but don’t worry since you’re here. Our Defense Array covers this entire area. Anyone who dares to cause trouble here will be killed by me…”

Then, Lightning threw out several array flags. A huge Defense Array was created, enveloping the new cave abode.

“Look, who would dare attack this Defense Array? Also, this is a high-grade divine weapon cave abode. You should be proud of being able to stay in it. Alright, let me give you some Starry Sky Tea.” Lightning threw a jade box to Jing Xihua.

This pleased Jing Xihua, as he loved Starry Sky Tea. In truth, he had already been convinced to live in this cave abode when he had seen the Defense Array Lightning had activated. This Defense Array was most definitely a Divine Array above level seven, which was something no ordinary cultivator could set up.

The owner of this hotel would definitely do something should anyone attack this Defense Array while he was living there.

“Thank you, Owner. May I know how to address you?” Jing Xihua changed the topic.

“Call me Second Head,” announced Lightning. “Hurry up and recuperate. All problems will be insignificant when you arrive at the Mountain Gaze Hotel. This hotel has been open for many years, and we have a great reputation.”

“Thank you, Owner.” Great reputation? Jing Xihua scoffed. No one knew where the Mountain Gaze Forbidden Zone had come from, so what was this great reputation worth?

Jing Xihua walked into the cave abode and entered reclusive cultivation to recuperate. Lightning could not help but take out the five jade bottles again. While playing with them for a while, it really itched to open them.

Fortunately, it did not do that at the end of the day. It did not possess the right capabilities to prevent the Five-Element Chaos Qi from leaking once the jade bottle was opened. It would not be good if the Five-Element Chaos Qi attracted experts over.

It was not scared, but it was worried that this would disrupt the Head’s reclusive cultivation, which would not end well for it.

Jing Xihua’s arrival seemed to trigger the flow of visitors. Only a few days passed before new visitors arrived. This time, it was a couple who had come to drink tea, not to stay in the hotel.

When the two of them met Lightning’s demand and explained the origin of the Mountain Gaze Forbidden Zone, Lightning took the Starry Sky Tea out again. The tea’s appearance shocked the couple. What kind of tea was this? How could it cleanse the soul? It could even dispel poison.

The two of them originally had not intended to stay in the hotel, but because of the Starry Sky Tea, they booked two rooms. Since Di Jiu was not around, Lightning added one more request: Any customers staying at the hotel had to hand in divine crystals and tell some interesting stories about the universe. In other words, it wanted them to keep it company and have a chat.

The Starry Sky Tea’s name spread like wildfire because of this couple. As a result, an increasing number of cultivators came to the Mountain Gaze Restaurant.

In one year, more than 20 cultivators came to stay because they had heard of the tea’s name.

Lightning was experienced and had already built a row of middle-grade divine weapon cave abodes. These cave abodes were inferior to the one Jing Xihua was living in and were also located outside the Defense Array Di Jiu had set up. Due to the increasing number of customers, Lightning decided to set up a Defense Array in the outer region. It was only a level-one Divine Array, whereas the one Di Jiu had set up was a level-eight Divine Array.

Anyone who wished to stay at the hotel had to narrate the origin story of the Mountain Gaze Forbidden Zone, the start and end of the Creation War, and the story of the Jia Liang Mountain.

Lightning welcomed everyone and listened aptly, no matter who the storyteller was, how many times the story was repeated, or which version it was.

These people were aware that Lightning liked to hear such things. If they narrated the stories well, Lightning would not ask for divine crystals. An old man did not even have to pay rent because he told Lightning some secrets regarding the Mountain Gaze Forbidden Zone.

The first thing these people would do every day was seek Lightning out and drink tea with it. This was because the Starry Sky Tea was free for everyone at the Mountain Gaze Restaurant.

At first, Lightning would use one tea leaf to boil one pot of tea and pour each person a cup. Half a year later, however, it felt that it should stop operating in this manner, as Di Jiu had only given it several hundred tea leaves. Therefore, it decided to use 10 tea leaves to boil one huge cauldron and add in some Dao fruits. At the same time, the tea was no longer free and had to be bought using divine crystals. There were no exceptions even if one was to call it Second Head.

Even so, the number of cultivators coming to the Mountain Gaze Restaurant continued to rise.