Divine Convenience Store

[The Cult's New Path – ArachnidMistress]

"The Divine Convenience Store's tide has swept through the Melting Meadow. The Venomous Conclave knelt before the High Priest, their rebellion shattered by the store's gifts. Talismans that rend the air, seals that summon might, snacks that burn fiercer than our toxin. Shopkeeper, your wares are rewriting our cult's destiny. It's only a matter of time before the entire Inner Abyssal Circle bows to your 'convenience'."

Lin Mo couldn't help but shake his head as he read the new thread posted by someone from the Poison Demon Cult.

He had no recollection of having met this ArachnidMistress, but she appeared to be someone high ranking enough within the cult. At the same time she posted that thread, another [Field Test Report] arrived that also gave the overview of the battle between the High Priest's forces and the Venomous Conclave of the cult.

However, she's not a Golden Patron, so some of her threads were directly addressed to him.

"Let's see, what's the deal with this ArachnidMistress." Lin pulled up her profile and checked her records.

She had been fairly active, and most of her posts were well received by the other users.

"Arachnid…" He murmured as he recalled the contents of the [Field Test Report].

It listed all the store items they used, as well as the aftermath. It mentioned how five of the seven branches of the Venomous Conclave were pretty paralyzed as they suffered catastrophic losses against the store product-empowered cult members led by the High Priest. The five branches were identified as Scorpion, Serpent, Toad, Centipede and Leech.

"I see. She must be from one of the two branches who didn't rebel against the High Priest. The Spider or Arachnid Branch, maybe? And she's the Venom Master."

Convinced with his guess, Lin Mo went back to her other threads. With more than ten threads just a day after getting her hands on the Viewing Jade, she had already mentioned the 'Shopkeeper' more than twenty times. It was as if she was calling for his attention.

"Weird. Should I… ask the High Priest?"

He swiftly shook his head, pushing down the idea. His curiosity about her identity wasn't enough to warrant contacting the old man, especially after recalling the other bits of the Outcome.

With the High Priest pushing for the cult's direction to spreading the store's convenience, the outcome noted that with the successive capture and conversion done by the Poison Demon Cult, the Divine Convenience Store had been put on the radar of the Evil Faction members like the Bone Ash Syndicate and the like.

At that, he didn't know whether to curse the High Priest or thank him for the free promotion.

But as a result, he might be forced to truly make him one of the store's Official Distributors to ensure that those forces the cult offended wouldn't venture out of the Inner Abyssal Circle to hold the store accountable.

They may be potential customers but with the Towers and Anchors being the looming threat upon the realm, it would be troublesome to deal with them.

Turning his attention back to the Bulletin Board and that latest thread by the ArachnidMistress, he saw the comments below it were a frenzy of speculation, with users from across the Eastern Abyssal Domain chiming in.

Some hailed the store's influence, others questioned the cult's motives, and a few bold voices wondered if Lin Mo himself would venture into the Inner Circle to truly cement his legend.

The title of 'Convenience Saint' appeared in nearly every reply, each mention sending a faint pulse of divine energy to the flickering blue flame in Lin Mo's chest. He grimaced, rubbing his chest as the spark grew warmer. But compared to the divine energy that Yangyang used to activate the immortal-grade artifacts, it was minuscule.

Suddenly, a chime rang in his head, a message from the Divine Pantheon.

[Lihua: Shopkeeper, the Celestial Duel Platform will be released tomorrow. The Celestial Duel Gear will be sold with a Starter Deck. Celestial Duel Cards will be sold in a single 5-card pack or a box containing ten 5-card packs. Premium card packs will be developed at a later date. Additionally, I must inform you that the Celestial Duel System will also be tied to the Divine Interface System. All the relevant information about the platform can be pulled up from it. The changes that I've mentioned are also included in it. Please give it a read. If you have any questions, do not hesitate to ask me.]

Upon reading that, Lin Mo didn't immediately send a reply, instead, he accessed the Celestial Duel System that had recently been uploaded and read through it to understand what had changed and determine if he had to make another showcase before its release tomorrow.

After all, it wouldn't just be for sole entertainment purposes anymore. It will give rise to the new profession of Celestial Duelist. Someone that might be able to use the Celestial Duel System to combat against foreign influences that would come from both Conduit Towers and Anchors.

—

Meanwhile, Yu Qingyan, who had her caravan set up near the Conduit Tower, had finished packing up. There were still two days before she could challenge the Tower again, so she decided to continue to her original route.

Although there was a huge influx of cultivators arriving to challenge the tower, most of them had already bought their supplies from the Divine Convenience Store. And those few who didn't, they're the ones who were mostly ignorant of the store. They either heard about the tower from someone else, or they're those who got their Viewing Jade from the merchants reselling them after buying a bulk in the store.

Furthermore, there's the Store Beacon inside the tower. If they needed something, they could just convert their spirit stones to dimension essence and shop through it.

Yu Qingyan intended to sell out her inventory and return to the store.

"Convenience Saint, huh? It doesn't suit him." Yu Qingyan muttered to herself, a faint smile playing on her lips as she checked at the last cart of her caravan, filling them to the brim to entice the city her caravan would be visiting.

The title had been buzzing across the Bulletin Board and while she found it amusing, it didn't quite capture the Lin Mo she'd come to know. A man who balanced sharp pragmatism and his intention to spread convenience with an almost accidental knack for stirring chaos – and a bit of a teaser too.

She climbed up her carriage, joining Little Spring and another Verdant Sky Pavilion disciple acting as her assistants.

She glanced at the towering silhouette of the Conduit Tower piercing the sky as it continued to pulsate with the foreign energy.

Its pull was undeniable and she vowed to finish its challenges in the future.

He glanced at the floating ship construct of the Crown Prince of the Southern Wu Kingdom, recalling how much she had ripped them off.

In any case, despite knowing that there was a cooldown of three days before one could challenge the tower again, that Crown Prince remained.

"Elder Yu, we're ready to move," Gao Feng, the Deacon of the Verdant Sky Pavilion serving as one of the caravan guards, called.

"Mhm. Let's go." Yu Qingyan gave the order and the carriage started to move, parting the crowd of cultivators who were camping around the tower.

From the window, Yu Qingyan noticed the young cultivator of Faguang City waving her arm at her.

She smiled and waved back before sending a voice transmission, "We'll be back soon, Qianmeng. Continue with your training. You must progress from your current cultivation before you attempt the Tower again, understand?"

The figure of the young girl nodded and bowed in her direction.

"Oh. That girl… are you planning to take her as a disciple, Elder Yu?" Little Spring spoke up from her side.

"Mhm. She has the potential. But that girl doesn't want to leave her city and family."

"I see. Then, I'll help teach her a thing or two when we return. By the way, Elder Yu, I heard Shopkeeper is becoming a hot topic on the Bulletin Board again… Have you messaged him yet?"

Instead of answering her, Yu Qingyan glared at the young disciple.

However, that had no effect on the girl. Little Spring's teasing smile widened as she leaned closer, "Come on, Elder Yu, don't dodge the question! You've been glued to your Viewing Jade and kept cursing under your breath. Surely you've sent the Shopkeeper a message or two about this 'Convenience Saint' nonsense, right?"

Yu Qingyan shot Little Spring a sidelong glance, her expression carefully neutral despite the faint flush creeping up her neck. "You brat. And what would I say, exactly? 'Congratulations on picking a new title? Is that man even happy about it? For all I know, he's shaking his head upon reading those praises about him while convincing himself that he didn't do anything special."

Little Spring giggled, undeterred. "Oh, please. You ripped off the Crown Prince's entourage for a fortune in spirit stones for Shopkeeper Lin, Elder Yu. Are you not at least a little curious about how he's handling all this attention?"

"... I'm not. Now, be quiet and stop with this nonsense. That man is busy running a store, not chasing titles. Besides, I've got a caravan to manage." Yu Qingyan turned her gaze out the window, watching the Conduit Tower recede into the distance as the caravan rolled forward.

Her hands clamped inside her robes where her Jade Token rested, but she resisted the urge to open the [Distributor Interface] and send him a message. Little Spring's teasing wasn't entirely off the mark. She was curious about how Lin Mo was handling the growing legend around him. But admitting that, even to herself, felt like stepping into a trap she wasn't ready to navigate. Their relationship is strictly that of business partners, right?

This chapter is updated by freēwēbnovel.com.