Akasha stared at Chi Yang for a long mont. Understanding that she couldn't guarantee success in a rescue, she could only nod.
"The Convenience Saint is wise. We will hold and handle the refugees. Introduce them to the store's convenience."
"Great," Chi Yang turned to Xun. "Venom Master, the Shopkeeper suggested using your particular... talents."
"My particular talent? Hmph. That man... he's getting used to ordering . No matter. If he wants a periter, a periter he will get." Xun playfully said as she pulled out a vial of bubbling, black liquid. "My priests have been brewing a little concoction derived from the Crystalweb Tyrant's venom sacs mixed with the [Chitin-Breaker Enzy] formula Sage Danzhu provided. We call it 'The Withersward'."
She gestured to the northwest. "I will have our cult lay a line of this toxin across the border of the badlands. It will seep into the earth, poison the air, and wither any organic matter that tries to cross it. Any insectoid that steps on it will find its carapace lting and its insides turning to liquid. Or at least, those who cannot resist it."
The Spirit Haze Sect Master shuddered. "A cruel thod but… how can it hold those stronger than a Nascent Soul Stage cultivator?"
"It can't. Nevertheless, our High Priest will be returning soon. That old man can deal with them." Venom Master Xun said in confidence. Although she was one of those who would sche her way to power, like how she didn't join the rebellion by the other Venom Masters, she knew she was still inferior to the High Priest.
As for the Great Poison Demon? After hearing from Lin Mo about how the divine being joined the Divine Pantheon, her allegiance had already shifted towards it and the store. Especially, her choice of sticking to Lin Mo beca reinforced. However, she wouldn't vacate her position, as it was the root of her current authority.
"And us?" The Ironbone Warlord asked.
"Your warriors will help the cult patrol the line behind the toxin barrier. Anything that manages to crawl through the poison... you smash it. You can rent a few [Stardust Repeaters] and spirit-grade artifacts. Do not engage in lee if you can avoid it, and do not venture alone. The insectoids are nurous and can easily surround even a group of ten or more."
She then looked at the Spirit Haze Master. "Your sect will set up sensory arrays along the periter. If the ground vibrates or the air shifts, we will want to know about it before it happens. You will be our eyes."
"Understood," The Spirit Haze Master bowed, eager to prove his worth and avoid further 'reparations'.
"Then let's move out," Chi Yang commanded. "We have a quarantine to establish."
—
Back in the Divine Convenience Store, the holographic feed of the war council at the Southern Wilderness faded in front of Lin Mo. He exhaled as he let out a word of praise for his Branch Manager.
Chi Yang was proving to be more than capable. She had taken his directive and translated it into a unified course of action that instantly mobilized every available asset in the region. He didn't even need to tell her what to do. She knew what had to be done right after reading his ssage.
"Mhm. Containnt," Lin Mo muttered to himself, descending the grand staircase of the main store. "It won't be a victory, but it buys us ti. Ti is the one commodity I can't stock on the shelves."
As they reached the ground floor, Wu iyu separated from him as she needed to deal with other Golden Patrons arriving at the store. She took up that role now, giving Lin Mo more chances to tend to more important things.
After rounding an aisle, Lin Mo scanned the crowd, his refined soul perception filtering through the noise.
He was looking for a specific, serene aura amidst the chaotic fluctuations of the cultivators. And it didn't take long for him to find it. And it was right next to the seemingly concealed blaze of the sun that was the vagrant Lia's aura.
"There he is."
Monk Huiyin sat at a corner table, a bowl of [Vegetable Delight Noodles] steaming before him. He had no idea if the broke-ass monk paid for it or Lia treated him for a al, but he's clearly enjoying it. His magnificent bald head shines like gold.
Lin Mo adjusted his uniform and approached them.
"Enjoying the anities, dear custors?"
Huiyin looked up, his golden eyes curving into a gentle smile. "Oh. Benefactor. Indeed. This 'instant' al possesses a simple and honest flavor. It warms the gut and settles the qi. It can be a convenient form of ditation."
He pressed his hands together like he was praying to the noodles rather than a deity. "For the clarity it brings, the price is negligible."
Beside him, Aurelia sat stiffly. A half-empty can of [Spirit-Infused Fruit Sorbet] sat before her. She seed to be trying to lt into the background, observing everything with the sharp, critical eyes of a spy who realized she was standing in the middle of the enemy's headquarters.
"And you, Miss Lia? Is the sorbet to your liking?" Lin Mo turned his gaze to her with his usual amicable smile without any hint of suspicion.
Still, to her ears, it felt like a probing question from the man helming this revolution in the Eastern Abyssal Domain.
"It is... cold," Aurelia replied curtly. "Refreshing."
"Good. I haven't tried that one myself but I know that refreshnt is the first step to open-mindedness," Lin Mo took the empty seat at their table, ignoring the surprised glances from nearby patrons who recognized him as the Shopkeeper.
"I won't beat around the bush. Monk Huiyin, I seek your opinion. You are known as the Towerbreaker and you've accompanied us when we ventured inside that dormant Anchor outside the city. This relates to that. And Miss Lia, I may not be aware of your true identity or who's behind you, but you're certainly here to seek understanding. Or perhaps, the truth behind my establishnt. You're free to listen."
Aurelia tensed, her hand twitching beneath the table. However, she sensed that even if she denied what he just said, it would still be akin to playing into his hand.
"I… am rely a traveler who has heard much and seen little. If you are willing to share your insights, I would be a fool to refuse." Aurelia finally replied, her voice regaining its steady cadence. She decided to play along. If he knew, he knew. If he was bluffing, she wouldn't reveal her cards first.
Lin Mo put on a aningful smile but didn't pursue it any further. He turned to the monk and said, "Monk Huiyin, you ntioned that you're planning on visiting the Conduit Tower that appeared in the Abyssal Tower. Are you planning on climbing it? You have yet to finish the one at the Jade Hollow Plains."
"Amitabha. That tower can wait. This monk has taken up the task to guide Benefactor Lia to see the wider world. The Abyssal Forest tower is indeed a destination, but how does this relate to what you're about to discuss, Benefactor?"
Hearing his words, Aurelia also perked up. She was curious about the Conduit Tower and since she had been blocked from entering the one at the Jade Hollow Plains, she was slightly looking forward to that trip. However, now that Lin Mo approached them by ntioning it, she could sense that sothing big was about to co. Sothing that was not within her expectations.
"Oh. Nothing much. Like I ntioned, I am here to seek counsel. You see, our monitoring 'artifact' had detected a Stabilized Anchor down at the Southern Wilderness near our Branch Store. If you've been reading about it at the Bulletin Board, the foreign creatures from that Anchor were a swarm of intelligent insectoids."
At Lin Mo's ntion of insectoids, Aurelia's eyebrows twitched. After all, the Anchor that she and her fellow paladins had been fighting back in the Western Sacred Lands was also of the insectoid variety.
Massive beetles with shells harder than steel, swarms of flying stingers, and burrowing horrors. The Supre Sun Church had created a defensive line inside the Sun's Anvil Anchor itself but it was a difficult path to reach the Anchor's core. The creatures bred too fast, consud too much, and seed to possess a collective consciousness that adapted to the Paladins' tactics.
Now, she's hearing that there was a stabilized hive in the South... it ant the invasion was far more advanced than the Church realized.
"Insectoids..." Aurelia repeated, her eyes narrowing slightly as she looked at Lin Mo. "Did you say they are intelligent?"
"In a manner of speaking," Lin Mo replied, his deanor a picture of relaxed authority. "They seem to operate under a hive mind. A collective will driven by a Queen or a similar alpha entity. In the South, we dealt with a Crystalweb Tyrant, an arachnid overlord. We ascertained that it ca from the sa place. But the swarm erging after it seems to be a different caste. More aggressive. And they lean towards expansion…"
User Comments
0 comments from readers