I use my future dreams to prove immortality.

Chapter 18 Old Acquaintances

Zhou Qiuyuan recorded his understanding of the four tonics, and after he reached the Body Tempering Realm, he would conduct another screening to ensure that every penny was spent wisely.

He had plenty of spare money and, after trying medicinal supplements, wanted to try dietary supplements to compare their advantages and disadvantages.

After leaving the inn, Zhou Qiuyuan went to a restaurant called Tianxianglou.

"Sir, what would you like to eat?" A waiter who looked like a young man stepped forward to serve, but when he looked Zhou Qiuyuan up and down, he exclaimed in surprise and delight, "Brother Yuan!"

"Xiao Lei, what are you doing here?"

Zhou Qiuyuan looked at the somewhat familiar person and it took him a while to recognize him. He smiled and replied, "It's been so many years!"

Gong Lei mistakenly believed that Zhou Qiuyuan had learned the news from an acquaintance and had come to find him on purpose.

"This isn't the place for you to chat idly, Xiao Leizi. Are you itching for a beating?" A cold voice came from behind the counter, and the shopkeeper stared at them with hostile eyes.

Gong Lei was about to say a few more words when he heard the shopkeeper's words. He forced a wry smile and quickly said to Zhou Qiuyuan, "Brother Yuan, I still have to attend to the guests. Let's talk again when we have time..."

Those who sell themselves into slavery have little freedom.

The shopkeeper waved impatiently at Zhou Qiuyuan and said, "Go back to where you came from. Don't interfere with Tianxianglou's business here."

Zhou Qiuyuan stared coldly at the manager and sneered, "Does Tianxiang Restaurant really enjoy turning away its customers?"

The shopkeeper snorted coldly, too lazy to say anything more, and was about to tell his staff to kick the person out.

A guy wearing an ill-fitting brown coat must be a poor wretch who also wants to come to Tianxiang Restaurant for some fancy food.

Zhou Qiuyuan pulled out two gold beans from his pocket and threw them at his head. "What's the signature exotic beast meat of Tianxiang Restaurant? Give me one of each, I'll refund any overpayment and charge any underpayment."

The manager of Tianxianglou nimbly grabbed the two gold beans in his hand, his eyes gleaming.

Unexpectedly, this person was a big spender; he wanted to eat the meat of exotic beasts, so he was definitely a body cultivator!

"Honored guest, it's all my fault for being so blind and looking down on people. I'll slap myself for it." The manager of Tianxiang Restaurant lightly patted his face and said ingratiatingly, "Little Lei, quickly take our honored guest to a private room on the third floor."

Gong Lei stood there, stunned, staring at Zhou Qiuyuan with an incredulous expression.

His family and Zhou Qiuyuan's family used to be neighbors. Gong Lei was a year younger than Zhou Qiuyuan, and the two had a very good relationship. However, due to unforeseen circumstances in the past, Gong Lei's family had no choice but to move away from their home.

Gong Lei also had some understanding of Zhou Qiuyuan's family background.

Unexpectedly, the Zhou Qiuyuan family has become wealthy?

Gong Lei put on a humble, ingratiating smile, walked ahead to lead the way, and said, "Master Yuan, please follow me!"

The two entered a private room on the third floor, which was close to the street.

Gong Lei skillfully opened the window to ventilate the room and was about to get hot water to make tea.

Zhou Qiuyuan waved his hand, telling him not to bother, and inquired about his recent situation, "It's been many years, how come you're working at Tianxiang Tower?"

Gong Lei glanced down at Zhou Qiuyuan carefully, making sure he wasn't there to show off but genuinely cared about him, before sighing and saying, "After the Black Swamp City shrank, taxes and rents skyrocketed. My family couldn't afford much money, so they sold me to the Qi family of Tianxiang Tower."

"My parents and brother only stayed in the city for half a year before disappearing without a trace. It is said that they were expelled from Black Swamp City."

At its peak, Black Swamp City had a population of over one million. After the city was shrunk, the population plummeted to less than three hundred thousand... This is a painful memory that many people are unwilling to recall.

"Alas, this matter is indeed beyond our control." Zhou Qiuyuan was also deeply impressed by the shrinking of the Black Swamp City and was greatly affected by it.

My grandfather was born into the Zhou family, and after the family split up, he had a small amount of wealth.

The Zhou family helped their relatives when the Black Swamp City was shrinking, but instead of saving their loved ones, they were left destitute.

Most of the families who remain in Black Swamp City today were wealthy ten years ago.

With a fawning smile, Gong Lei subtly swept his gaze over Zhou Qiuyuan's brown robes. "Master Yuan, you've struck it rich lately?"

Zhou Qiuyuan noticed that Gong Lei was constantly observing his expressions and didn't seem to care.

He sold himself into slavery at a young age; without a bit of shrewdness, how could he have survived to this day?

"It was just a stroke of luck; the entire family's resources were used to exchange for a chance to become a body cultivator."

Gong Lei thought Zhou Qiuyuan was pretending to be poor, after he saw Zhou Qiuyuan casually toss out two gold beans. He recalled being sold off years ago, only to receive one gold bean in return.

Who would dare to spend money so lavishly if they didn't have a lot of cash on hand?

Before the two could exchange more than a few words, urgent shouts came from downstairs. Gong Lei could only smile helplessly and hurriedly leave.

Before long, three meat dishes were delivered, all made primarily with exotic beast meat: stir-fried diced barbarian beef, smoked antler deer meat, and winged snake soup.

"These three types of exotic animal meat are all signature dishes of Tianxiang Restaurant. You can't possibly finish all these dishes. Would you like us to return the rest?"

Zhou Qiuyuan nodded in agreement and called out to Gong Lei, "Come and eat too."

Gong Lei forced a smile and said helplessly, "I appreciate Master Yuan's kindness, but I still have to go downstairs to work. If the manager finds me slacking off, I'll get whipped."

Zhou Qiuyuan didn't say much and silently savored the three kinds of exotic beast meat. All three kinds of exotic beast meat were cooked with spices that ordinary people couldn't afford, and were carefully prepared by the chef, so the taste was excellent.

The meat from these three exotic beasts was in no way inferior to the delicacies Zhou Qiuyuan had tasted in his previous life.

Zhou Qiuyuan had a great appetite and quickly devoured the three large plates of exotic beast meat, his belly bulging.

A warm current flowed continuously in my stomach, eventually spreading throughout my body, causing a surge of heat to rise around me, and my breath carried visible white vapor.

Zhou Qiuyuan went downstairs to pay the bill, and the shopkeeper returned a gold bean and 1,400 coins to him.

The meat from the three kinds of exotic beasts cost a total of 8,600 coins?

The nourishing effect of exotic beast meat is much worse than that of medicinal supplements. The combined effect of the three is only slightly better than the Ten-Ingredient Tonic Soup, making it extremely poor value for money.

However, by buying and cooking the exotic beast meat yourself, you can reduce the cost of ingredients by more than half.

Zhou Qiuyuan had just tried dietary and medicinal supplements and had reached a conclusion in his mind.

Dietary supplements are slightly more expensive, and their price increase is far less than that of medicinal supplements.

This does not mean that dietary supplements have no advantages. Compared with medicinal supplements, dietary supplements are gentler and people will not develop drug resistance due to long-term dietary supplementation.

However, given Zhou Qiuyuan's circumstances, he will focus on medicinal supplements for the time being.

After going through all that, Zhou Qiuyuan truly understood what it meant to spend money like water.

The price of a single Bull Bone Strengthening Pill is as high as three thousand coins. If you want to significantly improve your physical fitness, three Bull Bone Strengthening Pills are definitely not enough, and the cost after body tempering will only be higher.

He also wants to improve his family's living conditions and doesn't want his parents to suffer anymore. He needs to prepare money to buy a separate house and Thunder Spirit Tools.

Since Thunder Spirit Tools are out of stock, we can't wait until they become available and then be left disappointed; we must prepare in advance.

The path of a body cultivator is a bottomless gold-devouring pit.