System S.E.X. (Seduction, Expansion, eXecution)

Chapter 649: A Taste of the High Life

The second-floor pavilion of the Sovereign Dragon’s Feast was a world away from the chaotic, dusty streets of the lower peaks. Polished mahogany tables were separated by translucent silk screens, and the soft, elegant melody of a spiritual zither floated through the air. Every single patron in this room wore the luxurious robes of an inner court candidate, their eyes sharp and their auras radiating the heavy presence of formed Spiritual Cores.

The light-blue-robed hostess guided Ethan, Mary, and Louisa to a semi-private alcove overlooking the glowing commercial district below.

"Here is our premier menu for our distinguished Spiritual Core guests," the hostess said with a graceful bow, placing a heavy, golden-trimmed jade scroll onto the table. "Whenever you are ready to order, young master, you need only infuse a thread of your qi into the scroll."

Ethan slid smoothly onto the cushioned bench, his massive frame comfortably filling the space. Mary and Louisa sat closely opposite him, their hands neatly folded over their gorgeous silk dresses. Now that they were seated in a calmer environment, the sheer elegance of their attire was undeniable—the crimson fabric beautifully highlighted Mary’s mature, dignified grace, while the emerald silk made Louisa look strikingly radiant.

Yet, despite their beauty, their eyes were wide with a quiet, suppressed panic.

As free-born plebeyas from the outer borderlands, they had never been property, but they had certainly never been wealthy. They knew the exact value of a simple spiritual stone; they knew how many months of back-breaking manual labor it took a commoner family just to afford basic winter rations. Looking at the gold-embossed script on the jade scroll, even without reading the exact prices, they could feel the crushing weight of a lifestyle they had only ever viewed from a terrified distance.

"Master Ethan..." Louisa whispered, leaning across the table and keeping her voice incredibly low so the surrounding cultivators wouldn’t hear. "Are you absolutely certain we should be here? This... this place is meant for the high clans and young lords. A single dish here must cost more than our entire winter savings back in the village."

Mary nodded frantically in agreement, her fingers tightly clutching the silk of her skirt. "Louisa is right, Ethan. We are incredibly grateful that you wanted to treat us after your hard work, but as plebeyas, we feel completely out of place. If the bill is too high, it might affect your medical pavilion’s budget."

Ethan looked at his mother-in-law and his young wife, a soft, genuinely amused smile breaking across his handsome face. He reached out, placing his large, warm hands over theirs, his touch instantly grounding their racing hearts.

"Do not worry about the finances," said Ethan, his deep baritone carrying an absolute, unshakeable confidence. "The stones inside my spatial ring is more than enough to buy this entire building ten times over if I so desired. You are no longer living in a vulnerable, forgotten border village. You are the family of Ethan Brightsword, and it is my absolute duty to ensure you enjoy the finest luxuries this mountain has to offer. Now, let us see what the Sovereign Dragon considers a feast."

Ethan unrolled the jade scroll, his eyes scanning the menu with complete indifference. To a medical powerhouse who had just secured the exclusive commercial backing of the entire frontier branch, the prices listed were nothing more than arbitrary numbers. He smoothly infused a thread of his qi into the matrix, systematically selecting the most opulent, energy-dense dishes available on the second floor.

"Bring us the Braised Fire-Tiger Ribs, two portions of the Spiritual Jade-Grown Rice, the Ethereal Lotus Blossom Soup, and a pitcher of their finest Century-Old Bamboo Dew Elixir," Ethan commanded calmly when the hostess returned.

The young woman’s eyes flashed with a mix of surprise and immense greed. "An excellent selection, Senior Brother. I will have the kitchens prepare it immediately."

As the hostess glided away, Mary and Louisa stared at Ethan as if he had just signed their death warrants. They hadn’t been able to read the qi-encrypted prices on the jade scroll, but the sheer atmospheric density of the spiritual ingredients he had just ordered told them everything they needed to know.

It didn’t take long for the feast to arrive.

Dish after dish was systematically laid out across the mahogany table. The Fire-Tiger ribs practically radiated a warm, crimson essence; the jade rice gleamed like raw gemstones, and the aroma alone was enough to make their baseline mortal meridians hum with a rapid rush of vitality. Ethan gently encouraged them to eat, and despite their intense anxiety, the sheer quality of the culinary mastery quickly won over their palates. For the next hour, they dined like royalty, filling their bodies with a level of pure, concentrated spiritual nutrition they didn’t even know existed in this world.

But the true, reality-shattering blow fell when the dinner drew to its absolute close.

The light-blue-robed hostess stepped back into the alcove, carrying a small, silver tray containing the finalized billing talisman. She presented it to Ethan with an exceptionally deep, reverent bow.

"We hope the meal was entirely to your magnificent satisfaction, Senior Brother," the hostess purred softly. "The total amount for the evening’s selections comes to exactly 100,000 mid-grade spiritual stones."

Crunch.

Louisa accidentally bit down so hard on her golden chopsticks that they nearly snapped in half. Beside her, Mary’s face turned an absolute, translucent shade of white, her breath completely catching in her throat as her hands began to violently tremble against the crimson silk of her dress.

100,000 mid-grade spiritual stones.

To a commoner family living in the outer borderlands, a single low-grade spiritual stone was a luxury that could fund an entire household’s groceries for a month. A single mid-grade stone was worth a hundred low-grade ones. And Ethan had just casually consumed a casual Tuesday dinner that cost a staggering, unimaginable one hundred thousand mid-grade stones.

True, Ethan had already completely transformed their lives over the past weeks. He had used his vast wealth to purchase entire, complete wardrobes of custom-tailored, special spiritual silk that felt like liquid heaven against their skin, providing them with a level of opulent comfort far beyond their wildest, most desperate dreams. But those clothes were permanent assets—investments in their status and protection. This single, solitary meal was nothing more than temporary food that would be entirely gone by tomorrow morning.

To their fragile plebeya minds, this wasn’t just wealthy living; this was a completely absurd, mind-melting level of pure, unadulterated financial derroche. They looked at the towering youth, thoroughly convinced that they were living alongside a literal, terrifying god of wealth who didn’t belong to the mortal realm.

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From this moment forward, to avoid confusion regarding cultivation ranks, I will include this footer with the current established levels.

Note: These are only the ranks mentioned so far to avoid spoilers.

Body Refinement Realm

Skin Refinement / Bone Refinement / Organ Refinement

Spiritual Gathering Realm

Spiritual Perception / Spiritual Mist / Spiritual Condensation

Spiritual Core Realm

Core Solidification / Core Awakening / Spiritual Collapse (Half-step Spiritual Core)

Spiritual Soul Realm

Spiritual Soul Awakening / Soul Nourishing / Soul-Core Fusion

Golden Core Realm

Prime Fusion / Core Perfection / Core Destruction

Spiritual Sea Realm

Stage 1 ?? / Stage 2 ?? / Stage 3 ??

Dao Manifestation Realm

Stage 1 ?? / Stage 2 ?? / Stage 3 ??

Spiritual Transcendence

Stage 1 ?? / Stage 2 ?? / Stage 3 ??

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Sword mastery levels

Sword Intent.

Sword Aura.