James was in the middle of taking the rich masters and mistresses into the Dark Forest. As there was no wide road for carriages, they all had to walk. Luckily someone was attentive enough to clear the path making walking very easy.
They were halfway there when the aroma hit their nose, James was so excited as he knows that this was a new product as the last time he was in this forest, the steamed buns didn't emit such an enchanting aroma.
"If we walk this slowly, I am afraid that by the time we reach there, all the food will be gone!" a chubby young girl from one of the prominent families swallowed her saliva as she made an excuse.
She was a food lover and loves going places to just eat gourmet food. At the age of seventeen, she didn't have any cultivation talent, it was a huge blow actually and in order to relieve that stress, she began to eat food.
Her family didn't reprimand her and let her be, they all understood how much pain she was in. she was the only child in the whole family who didn't awaken her spirit root, how can they let her be more upset?
The other four knew that she was a food radar, so if they see her like this, it means the food must be very good.
"Okay, let's speed up, we wouldn't want to miss a single thing!"
After agreeing, the pace surely increased and when the tuck-shop came into sight, the aroma was just too much and enticing. There wasn't any customer around but they could see a human head perfectly inside and strings of spiritual energy were in the air.
Most of the people in this group were cultivators so they were sensitive to spiritual energy and finding it hidden in such a forest, they began to doubt life.
"How is this possible?" the oldest among the five asked with shock.
He was around twenty-two and currently a martial master. He was attending a popular school and was currently on vacation. Back there in school, the restaurants rarely even sell food with such spiritual energy and if there is one being sold, it will be very expensive.
He was so excited that he rushed forward and what he saw even shocked him. The woman in the shop had just eaten the last dumpling and was drinking her tea to wash down the food.
"You_"
"Oh, there are people here! Welcome everyone, before you ask about anything, read the rules board outside and the price lists. When you make up your mind, tell me what you want to order!" with a polite smile, she told the group.
The young man has never been treated this way before but sensing a dangerous aura scanning over them, he calmed down and did as ask.
Alayna looked at the fat sheep with a smile in her eyes, she also saw James whom she had not seen for ages, and her eyes lit up.
"I thought something happened to you. How have you been?" Alayna asked James directly in a friendly manner as she only knew him among all these people he had brought.
James was very happy to see that the shop lady recognized him, so he went forward to have a chat with her, "thank you for asking. I was away with work and brought some customers for you. It was thanks to your food that my life changed for the better. I wanted to thank you in person."
She felt very touched listening to this, if in the future the system brings some free rewards or something similar, she was not going to forget the person who made her life the way it is right now.
"As long as everything is okay then I am happy for you. I wish you well," she meant every single word.
James was also happy as last time he didn't get to speak with Alayna as he left in a hurry but now, they were like old friends.
"Boss, give me every serving! A customer can only buy one serving of each item in a day, right?" the chubby girl was the first to order.
Just reading the rules and price list was getting on her nerves and she wanted to just eat and satisfy her hunger.
"Sure. Are you paying in silver or spirit stones?" she asked.
The chubby lady answered with a smile, "silver."
"Okay, that will be 2,5 silver coins for the whole set."
"No problem."
Alayna took the 3 silver coins, gave back the change, and gave the chubby lady her paper bag. After that, she also began to serve the other four and they gave her 2 level 1 spirit stones.
She was so happy as she served these rich people. With the rich people served, the servants also bought some but didn't buy all as they couldn't afford much by themselves.
James bought a serving of dumplings and a jug of water. She made quite a lot of money and she was very happy. As they couldn't buy more or send other people for it, the group left with their food to eat when they reach the inn.
The chubby lady had been salivating and the torture she went through by touching and not eating her food, made her lose her composure and began to eat the second she reached her room.
She started with the steamed buns as she wanted to savor the dumplings later. As a waste that had been laughed at and mocked by people every single day, she hungered for a miracle.
But when she started eating it wasn't for a miracle, she just wanted to eat some food. And when she ate the steamed buns, she felt her body heat up. She didn't think much about that and kept on eating and that's when it started getting serious.
To check her theory, she ate a dumpling and a burst of energy spread throughout her body, and for the first time, she sensed it. It was like a dream so she kept on eating and ended up getting choked.
She drank some water and this time the place on her body just below the navel where her spiritual sea should be if she is a cultivator and where her spirit root should be located, exploded.
The change was so serious that she screamed. The others were in the middle of experiencing different emotions and experiences so when they heard the scream, they threw that aside and rushed to the chubby's room.
"Dear what's wrong?" the oldest asked worriedly as he didn't want anything bad to happen to this ancestor.