Chapter 84: A Place They Call Home ( BONUS GT - )

Chapter 84: A Place They Call Home ( BONUS GT Chapter )

It had been three months since the fall of the Crimson Fire Sect, and Heaven’s Table was no longer an ambitious dream but something much more valuable.

A Sanctuary.

The expansion was finally complete.

That which used to be just one three story building now occupied an entire street block.

Six interlinked sections, all designed in such a way to ensure that the warmth and coziness of the original were retained even though there was an enormous increase in capacity. The largest dining area was able to hold up to four hundred people now. Separate rooms were available on the upper floor for individuals who preferred more privacy during their meals.

The kitchens were enlarged to fit Master Chen’s increasing number of assistant chefs.

The central courtyard was probably the most significant new construction. The carefully selected spirit trees gave shade to the open area, while the musicians played for the clients sitting underneath were they could sit, relax and enjoy their time outside.

Today was the grand opening of the expansion and the whole district came out for the celebration.

Yuan Liang was standing at the balcony of the second floor looking down at the busy courtyard. There was a slight smile on his face.

Beside him, Meihua looked just as pleased as she watched everything come together.

"Look at them," Meihua said with a smile. "Who would have thought this place would become so lively?"

Below, the courtyard had transformed into a festival.

A Qi Condensation cultivator named Wei Ming had volunteered to perform a sword dance. His sword moved smoothly through the air as he went through one movement after another. The watching crowd cheered with every moment, encouraging him like he was performing at an imperial banquet rather than a restaurant opening.

"Wei Ming! The Spiral Cloud Technique! Show us the Spiral Cloud Technique!"

Wei Ming smiled and did as he was told, making loops of energy flow from his sword. The applause when he finished was thunderous.

Immediately, an elderly Foundation Establishment Realm woman stepped forward.

"It’s my turn now! I’ll sing the song of the Wandering Phoenix!"

Her voice, enhanced slightly by spiritual energy, rang clear and true. It was a song about freedom, about choosing your own path despite the world’s expectations. Every independent cultivator in the courtyard felt it by heart.

By the second verse, half the crowd was singing along.

Yu Liang felt a strange warmth in his chest. Looking at the lively courtyard below, he realized this was what he had been building toward all along.

A young poet took the stage next, his words flowed like water as he recited verses about finding home in unexpected places, about strangers becoming family, about small moments of joy in a harsh world. His words were simple but sincere, Then he spoke of shared meals, kind words and the comfort of knowing someone remembers you.

When he finished, several people were wiping tears from their eyes.

Through it all, the staff of Heaven’s Table moved gracefully. Attendants carried trays of food and tea, they smiled genuinely as all laughed at jokes and generously accepted compliments.

Xiao Wen, the former inn attendant now training as an assistant manager was pulled into a dance by a group of celebrating cultivators. He laughed, looking a little embarrassed but clearly pleased, as they spun him around the courtyard while singing an off key drinking song. His face became red, but his eyes shone with happiness.

One of the older attendants, a woman named Auntie Mei, actually sat down at a table with customers to share a pot of tea, listening intently as a young cultivator showed her pictures of his family back at home. She patted his hand gently, told him his parents must be proud and absolutely refused to let him pay for his meal.

"Today is celebration!" she declared firmly. "Family doesn’t charge family!"

The young cultivator’s eyes became moist.

Hidden among the crowd, the five Nascent Soul cultivators kept their cultivations suppressed as they quietly observed everything around them. To anyone who knew their true identities, seeing them here would have been hard to believe.

Yan Ruo stood near a spirit tree, watching Xiao Wen being dragged into another dance. Her usual stern expression had softened into tenderness.

"When was the last time I saw people this happy?" she murmured to the twin brothers standing beside her.

"Before the war," one of them replied quietly. "Before everything went wrong. Back when we forgot what it felt like to simply... exist without fear."

His brother nodded from across the courtyard. Through their mental connection, they understood each other without saying a word. For the first time in years, neither of them felt the need to be on guard.

Hei Lang sat at a corner table, his massive frame somehow became unthreatening as a small child climbed into his lap to get a better view of the performances. The bear-kin’s single eye was bright as he steadied the child with one enormous hand while the parents smiled gratefully.

"Thank you, honored cultivator!"

"No trouble," Hei Lang said softly. "Little ones should see and enjoy when they can."

The middle aged man, who revealed his name as Chen Lu only last week leaned against a pillar, watching everything with that usual slight smile. But for once, the smile reached his eyes meaning he was genuinely happy.

"Strange," he said to Yan Ruo as she passed. "I spent twelve years as a slave believing I would never feel anything but anger again. But now..."

"Now?" she asked gently.

"Now... I’m standing in a restaurant courtyard watching strangers dance badly and feeling something close.... Something close to hope."

Yan Ruo’s expression softened with understanding. She had felt it too. For the first time, a thought she had never dared to entertain crossed her mind.

Maybe Yu Liang really could change things.

She had once been a sect elder, respected by everyone around her. She had power, status, and a bright future.

Then she lost it all.

She became a slave, nothing more than someone else’s property. She had been treated as if she were less than a human.

And now she was... what? A guard? An employee?

No.

She was part of something. Part of this strange and beautiful chaos.

She felt like she was at home.

The new attendants, former slaves who had requested positions serving customers rather than just guarding them, moved through the crowd with attentiveness.

They were nervous at first, unused to surroundings and expecting customers to lash out whenever they made a mistake.

Instead, they found courtesy and patience. The customers treated them with respect, even when they made mistakes. They used words like "Please" and "Thank You."

A young rabbit-kin woman named Yue Ling, her damaged meridians now fully healed, carried a tray of tea to a table of Qi Condensation cultivators. Her hands trembled slightly as she expecting rejection.

"Miss Yue!" one of the cultivators called cheerfully. "You’re looking well! How are your studies progressing?"

She blinked in surprise and pointed at herself. "You... you remember me?"

"Of course! Why are saying like that? You mentioned briefly about relearning the Thousand Leaves Movement Art last month. How’s it going?"

Yue Ling’s eyes filled with tears. "It’s going well, honored senior. Thank you for asking."

"Woow, don’t cry Miss Yue and please none of that ’honored senior’ nonsense!" The cultivator laughed. "We’re all just people here. How about this call me Brother Lin?"

She nodded, unable to speak as she felt lump in her throat, and hurried away before she started crying in front of customers.

But they were tears of happiness.

Yu Liang watched everything with satisfaction. Maybe this was what wealth was really meant for.

He saw a Body Tempering cultivator deep in conversation with a Foundation Establishment elder, both of them laughing at some shared joke.

He Saw a beast-kin family eating peacefully while human cultivators at the next table complimented their daughter’s adorable appearance.

Heaven’s Table had become something he never expected it to be, a place where cultivation, background, or species didn’t matter.

He had started all of this for the system rewards. That had been his only goal in the beginning.

But now, seeing everyone here, Yu Liang had to admit... Maybe it wasn’t so bad after all.

"They really seem happy," Meihua said, looking over the courtyard.

Yu Liang watched Wei Ming getting dragged into another round of applause.

"He’s going to regret agreeing to perform," he said.

She shook her head, still smiling. "You really can’t take anything seriously."

"I take food seriously though."

Remembering what had happened at the warehouse, Meihua gave him a look. "That, I believe."

"Why do I have this nagging feeling that they are starting to treat this place like home?"

"Because it is home. Well, For most of them." He smiled slightly. "When you give this much of an experience it has to be."

Below, the celebrations continued. More performances, more laughter, and more people simply enjoying themselves.

They had become dependent on Heaven’s Table as in a world that treated people as resources, as stepping stones, as convenient tools, now even emerged a new term "Harvesting" only Heaven’s Table dared to treat them as people

And they loved it with a fierce, loyal devotion that no amount of money could buy.

"I hope this lasts," Meihua said quietly.

"It will," Yu Liang said with certainty. "Because it’s what we have built. And it’s our first project so we have to protect it."