Chapter 59

Two years later
The year Su Ling turned eighteen.
In two years, the tavern had developed into a renowned restaurant known far and wide.
Su Ling owned a hundred acres of land. Part of it was dug into a pond for aquaculture, while the rest was filled with various fruit trees, vegetables, and fruits.
Every day, Su Ling would patrol the land, infusing it with spiritual energy to help the plants grow better and supply the restaurant's customers.
The restaurant had also expanded from a single building to several connected ones. Even so, during mealtimes, there were never enough seats, and none were ever vacant.
Because of its widespread reputation, even in this ancient era where travel was difficult and relied on horses and carriages, people still came from far and wide just to eat the food here.
Some had once considered kidnapping the chefs here, but Su Ling never strictly controlled them. If they wanted to leave, they were free to go. After all, once they left, they would never attain her level of culinary skill, as the natural enhancement of the ingredients was more powerful than any technique.
Sure enough, apart from initially poaching the chefs, later on, no one paid any attention to the chefs at all. Instead, they all set their sights on Su Ling’s vegetable patch. However, with the protection of the formation, no one could actually do anything, they would end up on the ground, either with broken arms or legs.
Over time, even if others offered more money, no one was willing to come and steal the vegetables anymore.
This allowed the restaurant to operate smoothly and steadily.
As days passed, initially, the customers came for the taste. Later, they discovered that the food in the restaurant made people look younger and improved their health, it was practically a miraculous elixir!
Moreover, compared to those elixirs, its price was exceptionally cheap. With a little effort, almost anyone could afford a meal there.
As a result, more and more people flocked to eat there, even attracting the attention of the royal family at one point.
However, Su Ling had no intention of moving, and no one could make her do so. Even the royal family could only send messengers to quickly purchase some long-lasting dishes or come in person to get them. Thus, even though the name Su Ling chose was completely out of place for that era, the restaurant still became a paradise in everyone’s hearts.
With her reputation established, Su Ling simply sat back and collected money. The rest of her time was dedicated to studying various culinary techniques and practicing the cultivation methods Yi Heng had taught her.
Meng Jin remained by her side as the manager, though occasionally he would look at Su Ling with a resentful gaze.
Because he wanted to leave but couldn’t.
Every time he ventured a little too far, he would wake up to find himself back again. It was truly frustrating, but at least there was an endless supply of delicious food to soothe his soul.
However, his ability to eat voraciously without gaining weight aroused envy and jealousy among the restaurant staff.
Su Ling was generous to her own people, and everyone knew it. When it came to food, she freely gave it to the employees.
Although spirit food was beneficial to the body, not everything in the restaurant was spirit food, for example, cooking oil and other ingredients. Moreover, while spirit food could cleanse the body, it didn’t directly help with weight loss. As a result, the restaurant staff gradually gained weight over time from their daily consumption.
Except for Meng Jin, who maintained his perfect figure from the beginning.
Thanks to his other body, which helped digest all that fat.
Among these people, there was one other person who didn’t gain weight: Su Ling.
She ate a lot every day, but she didn’t gain weight because she was cultivating.
However, after the restaurant stabilized, Su Ling rarely made appearances. After all, she was a cultivator. Sometimes, she would close her eyes for a moment, and by the time she opened them again, ten days or half a month might have passed.
As her cultivation level increased, the duration of her seclusion also grew longer.
Contrary to Yi Heng’s expectation that she should go to a righteous sect, receive systematic training there, reach a certain level, and wait for him to bring her back, Su Ling took a path no one had anticipated from the very beginning.
Originally, it was planned for her to build her foundation within half a year. However, due to the sparse spiritual energy in her location, building a foundation required a sufficient amount of spiritual energy; otherwise, it would fail. Thus, through gradual accumulation, it took her a full year to complete her foundation establishment.
Now, two years after parting ways with Yi Heng, her cultivation level remained only at the early Foundation Establishment stage, progressing more slowly than she had anticipated.
If she didn’t leave the mortal world soon, she might even be stuck at this stage for the rest of her life.
But Su Ling had always maintained a laid-back attitude about it. In the mortal world, the Foundation Establishment stage was more than enough for her needs. As for anything beyond that, she didn’t dwell on it. Settling in this place, she would emerge from seclusion from time to time to stroll around, check on her shop, and indulge in all kinds of delicious food. To her, this kind of life was already quite good.

Two years passed in the blink of an eye. The once small and obscure Shuangxi Town had expanded three to four times in just two short years. A county magistrate had been stationed there, and the town began to take shape as a proper settlement.
It was mealtime, and a long queue had formed outside Shuangxi Town’s biggest attraction: the Hao Chi Restaurant.
If it were merely a place famous for its delicious food, in an era where travel was inconvenient, it would likely have faded into obscurity long ago. But this restaurant gained fame for serving spiritual foods with mystical properties.
No one was willing to give up on it.
Knowing that there was a place where eating more could cure illnesses, the wealthy and powerful never shied away from the trouble. Many even relocated their families here just to indulge a little more.
And the rumors held true.
It was said that the previously infertile empress had traveled here for half a year and returned pregnant.
Initially, many had tried to dissuade her from leaving the palace, but bearing a child had become an obsession for the empress. Even if there was only a sliver of hope, she had to try, and her attempt succeeded.
Then there was the mother of a local gentry in Shuangxi Town, who had suffered a stroke. After regularly eating at this restaurant, she gradually recovered. A year later, she was even healthier than before her stroke.
There were many such examples, which only fueled the restaurant’s booming business.
Countless people couldn’t even get a spot in line, and even the imperial family had to wait like everyone else.
But at that moment, a girl in pink, around seventeen or eighteen years old, walked straight into the restaurant, immediately drawing discontent from some. Among them, Qi Ming, a pleasure-seeking young master with a particular fondness for food and drink, grumbled angrily, “How come she gets to go in directly? Didn’t you say there were no seats?”
Meng Jin, who had been promoted from manager to the restaurant’s behind-the-scenes accountant and now only needed to tally the daily earnings, snapped his fan open and replied with a smile, “That’s the owner of this restaurant.”
Qi Ming immediately fell silent.
After Meng Jin left, Qi Ming curiously asked the person in front of him in line, “So Manager Meng isn’t the owner? That girl is the real boss?”
“That’s right,” the person replied. “Those of us who eat here regularly all know that above Manager Meng, there’s a female boss. She doesn’t make public appearances, so she lets Manager Meng handle things.”
“A female boss? Could she be Manager Meng’s wife?”
“Haha, maybe. Otherwise, with Manager Meng’s talents, why would he be content running a restaurant here? He could easily take the imperial exams.”
“Who knows? Many high-ranking officials and nobles come here just for this restaurant.”
The crowd chatted and laughed, not taking the matter too seriously.
Su Ling walked straight to the backyard.
Meng Jin fanned himself, the breeze tousling his hair. Despite it being November, he didn’t seem to mind the cold. He asked, “What would you like to eat today?”
“Hmm, you decide. Are there any new dishes recently?”
"Yes, the hotpot you mentioned before, I've sent people to gather all the ingredients, and it's now a new item on the menu. But it's only available to Gold Members," Meng Jin said.
Su Ling's eyes lit up. Sichuan-style hotpot was her favorite, but it required a lot of ingredients, many of which were unavailable in the place she currently lived.
After all, it wasn't the same era.
Su Ling had set the idea aside.
Half a year ago, she suddenly craved it and tried making it herself, but the taste was nothing like what she remembered. So she gave up and just described the flavor she recalled to Meng Jin. She never expected he'd actually manage to find everything.
She smiled and said, "Quick, bring me the hotpot."
"Right away!" Meng Jin instinctively responded, waving his hand. "One hotpot, serve it up!"
"Coming!" came the waiter's brisk reply as he brought over the charcoal and pot, setting up the table for her.
In ancient times, hotpot could only be heated with charcoal. The reason it was limited to Gold Members was mainly to prevent ordinary customers from getting injured and blaming the restaurant. Gold Members, on the other hand, were loyal patrons who wouldn't deliberately cause trouble for the establishment.
Su Ling wasn't afraid of trouble, but she didn't want to invite it either. Meng Jin knew her temperament, so he minimized potential issues as much as possible.
And so, things had remained peaceful and steady up to now.
While she was enjoying her hotpot, elsewhere, someone else finally felt a weight lift.
Yi Heng had spent two years reforming the demon realm and reaching an agreement with the righteous faction. They now kept each other in check, but large-scale conflicts no longer erupted.
The previous war had inflicted heavy losses on both the demon realm and the righteous faction. The righteous side paid a steep price in their attempt to kill Yi Heng but failed. Similarly, the demon faction sacrificed countless prodigies to aid him.
Those who fell into the demon realm were all individuals with extreme temperaments.
Their hands were stained with countless lives, but the same could be said for the righteous faction, those who sought resources also had blood on their hands. No one achieved cultivation success through mere words.
Thus, both sides were in favor of this cooperation.
The few who disagreed were dealt with by Yi Heng. Over the two years, he faced countless assassination attempts. Even as the Demon Lord, there were those who wanted to overthrow him. But being overthrown meant death, that was the price of being the Demon Lord.
Yi Heng no longer wanted to die, so it was his opponents who perished.
During those two years, he collected countless spiritual pills and elixirs and secluded himself for a long time. A month ago, he finally healed all his hidden injuries and restored his strength to its peak. Seizing the opportunity while he was in top form, he decisively eliminated all the dissenters, thus accomplishing what he had set out to do.
On the very first day after finishing his tasks, he ordered his subordinates to find Su Ling.
Perhaps it was the anxiety of nearing home, Yi Heng, who usually commanded the wind and rain, felt a bit uneasy when giving this order. "Don't disturb her. Just find her location, learn about her situation over the past two years, and return immediately."
The swiftest serpentine-moving witch, Snake Princess, accepted the order and set off.
Since Su Ling had never hidden herself, Snake Princess found the tavern Su Ling ran in the mortal world within just three days and inquired about her situation.
Qi Ming, who had temporarily settled nearby specifically for the tavern’s delicacies and visited without fail every day, grew wary upon seeing the stunningly beautiful woman asking about the tavern. He scrutinized her, suspecting she had an interest in the tavern’s manager.
He had heard that the tavern’s ingredients were all sourced by that young girl. This woman was being so secretive, could it be that she saw the thriving business and wanted to cozy up to the manager?
Qi Ming evasively replied, "The owner doesn’t come by often."
Snake Princess was surprised. "The owner? Is she married?"
Qi Ming shook his head. "Judging by her hairstyle, she doesn’t seem to be. But everyone knows she and the manager are a pair. They’ll probably marry soon, their relationship is really strong."