"Nom nom nom..."
"Not bad, Ryan, you're keeping up with me!"
After finishing another plate, Paimon looked at Ryan, whose score was about the same as hers, and couldn't help but nod, a few grains of rice still clinging to the corners of her mouth.
"You too, Xiao Pai. You're the biggest eater I've ever seen."
"Besides Senior Apprentice Ganyu."
Ryan picked up a napkin to wipe the rice from Paimon's mouth, adding that silent thought.
"...Since that's the case, how about another serving?"
The sudden intimate gesture made Paimon a little embarrassed, so she quickly suggested this to divert attention.
"Alright, Xiangling, we need to order more at this table."
Ryan nodded and immediately turned to call out.
"Coming right up!"
"..."
Lumine looked at her Mora, then at Xiangling, who was walking over in response.
"Xiangling, does your restaurant buy ingredients?"
Before Ryan and Paimon could order more, Lumine quickly asked Xiangling.
"Yes! Of course, we do! Traveler, you've been to so many places, you must have a lot of good ingredients. If they're the same quality as the wild boar meat from Mondstadt last time, I can even pay more!"
Xiangling's eyes lit up, and she immediately leaned close to Lumine, almost pressing herself against her.
"Then how much Mora can I get if I sell Paimon to you? She eats too much, I can't afford her."
Lumine raised her hand and pointed at Paimon.
"Huh? Why me? Why don't you sell Ryan instead!"
Hearing Lumine's words, Paimon immediately protested.
Ryan, on the other hand, pricked up his ears with great interest.
Once Xiangling named her price, he could offer a higher one. That way, he could buy Paimon and win her favor. Wouldn't that be a great deal?
"Eh? It's not that bad, is it? Besides, Paimon doesn't look very tasty."
Hearing Lumine wanted to sell Paimon, Xiangling instinctively recoiled.
If it were her, she wouldn't sell Guoba just because he ate too much.
"?"
Paimon wanted to retort, but she opened her mouth and then felt something was off.
"Exactly! Traveler, you can't dislike her. She's your good partner."
Ryan also immediately spoke up for Paimon.
"Ryan..."
"Exactly, exactly! Traveler, you're going too far."
Seeing Ryan support her, Paimon was a little moved. She then immediately flew to Ryan's side, hands on her hips.
"?"
"Alright, I won't sell her for now. I'll wait until she fattens up a bit."
"Xiangling, check please. They've eaten enough."
Finding no one on her side, Lumine could only sigh helplessly and said to Xiangling.
Although Paimon and Ryan weren't completely full, seeing Lumine's expression, they reluctantly gave up the idea of continuing to eat.
"Alright, that'll be fifty thousand Mora in total. Traveler, since you're a regular, I'll give you a ten percent discount. Will you be paying in cash or by bank..."
Xiangling had long known that the little Paimon by Lumine's side was an exceptionally big eater, so even though they ordered far more food than a normal person's appetite, Xiangling didn't stop them, as long as no food was wasted.
But before Xiangling could finish speaking, she saw Lumine covering her head with both hands, curling her body up.
"?"
...In the end, Xiangling gave Lumine a friendship discount, and Lumine successfully paid all the Mora.
Although fifty thousand Mora wasn't a lot, how long had it been since the Osial crisis was resolved? Her bounty had only been lifted a few days ago, and her income had only just started to recover.
"Lulu~"
As the three of them left Wanmin Restaurant together, Guoba suddenly followed, holding something in both hands and placing it into Ryan's hand.
Ryan raised his hand and saw that they were two warm spicy meat steamed buns.
"Thank you, Guoba."
Ryan took the spicy meat steamed buns, then stroked Guoba's head with one hand.
"Lu~ Lu~"
Guoba happily nodded, then waved to Ryan, before trotting back to Wanmin Restaurant to continue helping out.
"Paimon, here, we'll split them."
Ryan then handed one of them to Paimon.
"Wow, thank you, Ryan!"
Paimon quickly took the warm spicy meat steamed bun, and the two of them ate as they followed Lumine back to Wangshu Inn.
Lumine was a little dejected along the way. She felt that Paimon wasn't as close to her anymore. Usually, when she took her out for a big meal, Paimon would be so sweet-mouthed.
Now, she just kept following Ryan around... And so, back at Wangshu Inn, Ryan bid farewell to Lumine and her companions. Lumine and her companions also had to go back to check on that magical Serenitea Pot, so they returned to their respective rooms.
Ryan took out the qiankun bag and the teacup, placing the teacup on the table.
The teacup had the exact same effect as the qiankun bag; one could enter the qiankun bag through the teacup, but the access permission was in the hands of Ryan, who held the qiankun bag.
Normally, he could place the teacup outside and enter the qiankun bag himself to refine elixirs. This way, the teacup would absorb the elemental energy from the outside world and send it into the exterior realm, while unauthorized people would not be able to enter through the teacup.
"Not bad, not bad. As long as it's not allowed, you can't get in. Even if it's really used to pour tea, it won't be affected."
Ryan filled the teacup with water, but the water didn't decrease at all.
Then, Ryan tried to reach out and touch the water in the teacup. The next moment, he was immediately sucked inside.
When he could see clearly again, Ryan appeared in front of Osial's head, immediately smelling the strong scent of seafood.
The interior of the qiankun bag was a cave-heaven with an island environment, featuring several independent islands. Osial's head was on one of them.
On another island, there were many outdoor furnishings, such as shelves and tables, filled with Ryan's pills, medicinal herbs, and various bottles and jars.
Since Ryan never lived inside, only using it as a warehouse, there was no teapot spirit to manage it.
Next, he just needed to organize a space for alchemy. Ryan immediately got to work when he thought of this.
Unlike Lumine and her companions, who would live in the Serenitea Pot, he had no intention of staying overnight here, so he didn't need to prepare a resting place; he just needed to clear an area to serve as an alchemy site.
Therefore, when Ryan finished his work and emerged from the qiankun bag, Lumine and her companions were still busy in the Serenitea Pot.
He knocked on the door and found no response, so Ryan didn't disturb them and left Wangshu Inn alone.
It was just two hours past noon, still early in the day. Ryan directly turned to Chihuo Rock's fruit stand and bought some fresh fruit.
He also stopped by Wanmin Restaurant to ask Xiangling for directions, and then Ryan headed straight for Granny Ping's house.
Although Granny Ping was an adeptus, in Liyue Harbor, she generally presented herself as an ordinary old woman, much like a certain Wangsheng Funeral Parlor Guest Elder.
Ryan searched for a while before finding Granny Ping's house in a residential area. It looked like an ordinary private residence.
Knock, knock-knock!
"Who is it?"
Ryan tried knocking on the door, and soon Yaoyao's inquiry came from inside.
"It's me, Yaoyao."
"Senior Apprentice Yun Xu!"
Ryan responded, and Yaoyao, hearing his voice, immediately opened the door...