Chapter 323: Zhang Yu's Appetite

Chapter 323: Zhang Yu's Appetite

Over the past month, due to physical depletion, Zhang Yu's cultivation progress had slowed. He had invested more resources in consolidating his foundation and strengthening his physical constitution.

Now, a month later, although his progress had slowed considerably, he had reached the level of Dao Heart 13 (98.5%), mana 573.4, physical strength 14.65, and mana quality 159%.

After mastering the Biwo Qi Gong, Hunyuan Taixi Sutra, and Tianfu Longevity Gong, Zhang Yu had completed the breathing technique required for the fourth Qi Meridian Long Flow.

At this moment, he was sitting cross-legged in his dormitory, practicing the technique needed for the fifth Qi Meridian Long Flow.

A milky-white gang qi surged from his mouth, swirling around his body like layers of mist, forming a grand external circulation.

This technique, called the "Gang Qi External Circulation Breathing Method," used the external circulation of martial gang qi to assist in gathering spiritual energy.

Through this method, while breathing, he could also refine his control over martial gang qi.

Zhang Yu chose this breathing technique because, after reaching physical strength level 15, the conduction of gang qi through physical strength would become particularly important, greatly enhancing work efficiency. Thus, he needed to start practicing related gang qi control early.

Zhang Yu estimated in his heart, "In another month, my physical depletion will be almost replenished, and my physical strength should break through to level 15."

Just as Zhang Yu was diligently cultivating, a message popped up in his eye socket. It was an invitation from Gongshu Jin.

Gongshu Jin: A senior from the Artifact Refining Department has newly forged a magical treasure and is hosting an appraisal banquet. He invited Senior Mo Xuanjin, and Senior Mo asked us to come and see.

Since his last meeting with Director Gao, Zhang Yu realized he seemed to have been grouped into the faction of Director Gao and Tu Lishan.

Mo Xuanjin, who had already mastered the Tiankunlun Mountain-Moving Divine Power, was also part of this faction.

Gongshu Jin, whose class ranking was one place below Zhang Yu, had joined this faction even earlier.

During this time, the two occasionally greeted Zhang Yu and intermittently informed him about internal matters within the Civil Engineering Department.

Looking at the invitation from Gongshu Jin, Zhang Yu felt a stir in his heart: "An appraisal banquet?"

He asked: Is there food?

Gongshu Jin: Of course, there's food at a banquet hosted by a senior from the Artifact Refining Department. It's even a buffet.

Hearing this, Zhang Yu was first startled, then overjoyed.

In the Ten Thousand Techniques University City, food was a standard luxury. The poor survived on pills daily, while the rich had the opportunity to eat. The richer one was, the more one could eat.

A buffet here was clearly something only the wealthiest among the wealthy could afford.

Upon hearing the news, Yu Xinghan beside him exclaimed in amazement: "A buffet? It's actually a buffet?! And they're treating us to a buffet?!"

"This is... blatant flaunting of wealth!"

Zhang Yu nodded with emotion, unable to resist swallowing his saliva. He thought to himself, "The people in the Artifact Refining Department are really rich. I hope they succeed in forging magical treasures every day and host banquets."

Yu Xinghan looked at Zhang Yu: "Brother, can you take me along?"

Zhang Yu shook his head helplessly: "If I could bring others, I'd definitely invite everyone in our dorm. But even I'm going as someone else's guest."

Yu Xinghan sighed inwardly: "Ah, Li Xiao was right. These wealthy people above us can just let a little benefit slip from their fingers, and it's enough for us to feast."

"But to enter such wealthy circles, groveling is useless."

"Only by relying on one's own abilities, like Zhang Yu, can one break in."

Under Yu Xinghan's envious gaze, Zhang Yu continued to cultivate diligently, finally waiting for the appraisal banquet the next day.

...

Ten Thousand Techniques University City, 568th Floor.

Zhang Yu followed Gongshu Jin into a restaurant.

This was Zhang Yu's first time entering a restaurant in the Ten Thousand Techniques University City. Inside, he found the restaurant was about the size of a classroom, but the decor was exquisite, and the air was filled with a strong aroma of food, causing Zhang Yu's mouth to water profusely.

In the restaurant, over a dozen people had already gathered. The three leaders, with rankings glowing above their heads like shining lights, stood at the center of the crowd.

One of them was Mo Xuanjin from the Civil Engineering Department, whom Zhang Yu had met before.

Another woman had skin that shimmered like a starry sky, with hair as white and dazzling as gemstones. All around her, brands and models of magical skeletons appeared, enough to make most university students tremble with fear and retreat, afraid of accidentally offending her and going bankrupt from compensation.

Seeing the ranking of 15th in the Artifact Refining Department above her head, Zhang Yu knew this woman was Ye Xingli, the host of the buffet.

Gongshu Jin, looking at Ye Xingli, felt his heart racing uncontrollably.

"All these top-tier magical skeletons are custom-made, limited editions... What I have on me is practically trash compared to hers."

"So beautiful... This woman is truly stunning. If I could dual cultivate with her once, I wonder how much money I could get."

As a top student from the fourth floor who had studied diligently and focused on cultivation all his life, Gongshu Jin had never been interested in dual cultivation—after all, he wasn't one of those art students from the Hehuan University.

But seeing someone as wealthy as Ye Xingli, he couldn't help but want to be cultivated by her once.

After all, she was incredibly rich, and that sense of wealth emanating from within exuded a fatal attraction, making it impossible for him to look away.

Zhang Yu turned his gaze to the last man among the three, Cang Lanyu, ranked 9th in the Talisman Department. As Zhang Yu's eyes swept over him, he could see dazzling light shimmering on the man's clothes, face, hands, and even every strand of hair.

Those lights were projections from the depths of the spirit realm. They gathered and intertwined in Zhang Yu's eye socket, finally forming mysterious patterns and lines of text.

Heavenly Eye Magical Skeleton, making your world clearer!

Locals, the preferred magical skeleton for second-floor Kunxu residents. If you don't wear it, you're not a local.

Watch live streams on the Illusory Realm, experience the fusion of spirit and flesh...

Seeing the advertisements all over the man's body, Zhang Yu quickly averted his gaze, cursing inwardly: "Damn, did I just earn him money by looking at him?"

Beside him, Gongshu Jin glanced enviously at Cang Lanyu. The man had an advertising talisman granted by a true deity, connecting him to the depths of the spirit realm at all times. As long as he was under the spirit realm's coverage, advertisements of all kinds would refresh all over his body, no matter when or where.

The longer one looked, the more customized the advertisements would become, exuding a powerful allure.

"Just by looking at him, he earns money. Just by looking at him, he grows stronger!"

Gongshu Jin thought to himself: "This is a man you dare not look directly at once he becomes an opponent."

Just as Zhang Yu and Gongshu Jin observed the people in the room, the dozen or so men and women present also noticed them.

Ye Xingli, whose skin seemed to flow with a starry river, smiled faintly: "You two are late. As punishment, each of you must eat a bowl of rice."

Looking at the rice placed before him, Zhang Yu felt a rich aroma wafting toward him. Just smelling it made his mouth water, and he even felt a surge of strength within his body.

Beside him, Gongshu Jin watched the scene and thought to himself: "Punishment with rice?"

Gongshu Jin knew the rice before him was no ordinary fare.

"This rice, made from Heavenly Essence Rice, is compressed from high-density food essence. A single grain is enough to satiate a Qi Refining cultivator for three days and nights."

Gongshu Jin thought: "If consumed in excess, it can even cause indigestion, excessive gastrointestinal qi and blood, dizziness..."

He knew that Foundation Establishment cultivators with insufficient appetites would feel dizzy and lightheaded after eating just half a bowl of Heavenly Essence Rice due to the immense digestive burden—this was called "rice dizziness."

Gongshu Jin suspected that everyone in the restaurant was likely waiting to see them suffer from rice dizziness and make fools of themselves.

After all, most students on the second floor couldn't afford food and didn't train their digestive abilities, so their appetites were often small, making them prone to rice dizziness.

In short, Gongshu Jin understood that once appetite was tied to economic status, the larger one's appetite, the more respect one earned, while a smaller appetite was looked down upon. As for rituals like offering rice or punishing with rice, they were all common practices.

Just as Gongshu Jin focused his energy, preparing to eat heartily, he saw Zhang Yu beside him reach out, take the rice bowl, and open his mouth to swallow it in one gulp.

"Stop!" Gongshu Jin reached out to stop him, thinking: "This guy Zhang Yu! Doesn't he even know about Heavenly Essence Rice?"

Zhang Yu swallowed half a bowl of rice in one gulp, feeling the bursts of rice aroma explode in his mouth. The sweet, soft, and glutinous grains flowed over his tongue, releasing endless flavors.

But soon, he realized the rice was particularly tough. Even after chewing over a dozen times with his teeth, it was difficult to break down.

At the same time, a senior student chuckled softly, "Take it easy. This Celestial Essence Rice isn't easy to digest. It's meant to be eaten slowly, bite by bite. No one gulps down so much at once."

The other students also joined in the teasing, seemingly already picturing Zhang Yu's dazed state in a moment.

But in the very next instant, they saw Zhang Yu swallow the Celestial Essence Rice in his mouth without even chewing, then take another mouthful and devour the remaining rice in the bowl.

With the peak Foundation Establishment digestive power brought by his University Saint Physique, Zhang Yu's digestive ability was already terrifyingly formidable.

During his last stint at the wilderness worksite, he had successively integrated Erosion Abyss Membrane and No. 15 Spiritual Secret Steel into his stomach and intestines. It was as if he had armed his digestive system with weapons and armor, transforming it from bare-handed combat to mechanized warfare. At full capacity, he could even digest No. 20 Secret Steel.

Now, as his stomach and intestines churned slightly, they resembled a terrifyingly large millstone, crushing all the Celestial Essence Rice he had swallowed and releasing its rich, nourishing essence.

In an instant, Zhang Yu felt streams of warmth surge from his belly, spreading to every corner of his limbs and body. His body, like parched land receiving sweet rain, greedily absorbed these waves of heat.

After devouring that large bowl of rice, Zhang Yu felt as if he had soaked in a medicinal bath. His physical foundation had strengthened noticeably, and an indescribable comfort washed over his entire being.

"Delicious! Delicious! So incredibly delicious!"

"Aren't you going to eat?" Zhang Yu glanced at Gongshu Jin, who was standing beside him in a daze, and took the other's bowl. "Then I'll eat it for you."

Watching Zhang Yu polish off two bowls of Celestial Essence Rice and still look unsatisfied, a flicker of surprise crossed Ye Xingli's eyes. "What an appetite!"

"Someone, bring more rice for this gentleman."

Seeing another bowl placed before him, Zhang Yu laughed heartily. "Having rice without meat makes for a rather dull meal."

"That's easily fixed," Ye Xingli declared clearly. "Bring him a plate of dragon liver and phoenix gall."

Then, she turned to Zhang Yu and asked, "Can you handle it?"

Zhang Yu replied with bold confidence, "Bring three more bowls of rice and three plates of dragon liver and phoenix gall!"

(End of Chapter)