Divine Convenience Store

Western Sacred Lands – Violethaven Temple

Deep within the temple's violet halls, a projection of Mu Wuyan materialized and knelt before a shrouded statue. Its silver eyes glowed with an unsettling intensity as it locked onto him.

At a glance, the Grand Elder's robes remained tattered as they had been hours since they left Fanling City. Losing the heaven-grade artifact was an astronomical loss for him, making his projected face ashen from the defeat.

Nevertheless, his voice carried a desperate edge as he recounted the battle.

"Exalted One, your servant is inadequate. I ran into a tall wall while acquiring the Nine Heavens Exquisite Body. She is under the protection of an establishment backed by another divine being," He started, his hands trembling. "They wield a divine artifact with a mortal's cultivation, and they have a divine construct that my current cultivation cannot cope with. Moreover, the girl with the physique came from that disgraced Liu Family, and the Eastern Abyssal Domain's sects backed them, forming a coalition. I'm afraid that the Nine Heavens Exquisite Body is beyond our grasp."

The statue's eyes flared and the grinding voice filled the chamber, shaking the sturdy walls. "Beyond your grasp, Mu Wuyan? You lost a heaven-grade artifact and half your elders to a mortal? The Violethaven Temple's prestige will bleed and you offer excuses?"

Mu Wuyan pressed his forehead against the floor as his sweat beaded under the divine pressure. "The establishment appeared to have been a nexus of Taihao's will, Exalted One. They wield artifacts that defy the First Heaven's limits. And its patrons possessed artifacts, pills and talismans that outmatch anything we can make ourselves. There's a secret within that store, one that must've been circumventing the limitations of our realm."

The voice paused, its tone shifting to a cold curiosity. "A nexus… Taihao. The Divine Pantheon is mounting its return. Intriguing."

Mu Wuyan's trembling intensified. Even if he's merely a projection, he could feel the pressure from miles away. His fate had long been tied to the divine being the statue portrayed. Even his cultivation was treading the same path 'They' took.

"What would you have me do, Exalted One? Eastern Abyssal Domain's coalition may grow stronger, and the Liu Family's patriarch is a storm unbreakable. Shall I rally the temple's remaining forces?"

The statue's eyes dimmed, "No, Mu Wuyan. Brute force has failed you. Subtlety will be our blade. The Violethaven Temple will not storm Fanling City again. Instead, you will weave a net. Contact our allies in the Western Sacred Lands. The Jade Sovereign Sect, the Celestial Flame Order, the Mangrove Covenant. The divine beings they worship all walk the same path as I. Whisper them of this establishment, its divine artifacts, and its untapped potential. Let greed do what your broken staff could not."

Mu Wuyan lifted his head slightly, his eyes glinting with renewed purpose. "And what of the Towers and Anchors you ordered to find?"

"Keep at it. Monopolize the towers appearing within the temple's sacred lands and make contact with the foreign entities inside the Anchors. The Divine Pantheon and its allies still think they carry the mandate of protecting our realm, but we're going to fish in this troubled water. The Nine Heavens Exquisite Body is but one piece of a larger game. Secure the anchors, and we'll turn their divine network against them."

Mu Wuyan's lips curled into a grim smile, his earlier despair giving way to cunning. "As you command, Exalted One. That insolent mortal and the Liu Family will rue the day they defied the Violethaven Temple."

The statue's silver eyes pulsed once, then dimmed, its presence retreating into the altar's violet inscriptions.

Mu Wuyan rose, turned to the side and nodded to the only other person inside before his projection flickered as he vanished from the chamber.

—

In the Divine Pantheon, Taihao stretched from his seat as the empty bucket of [Golden Popcorn Puffs] was set aside next to the empty jade flask of [Celestian Peach Wine].

He had been watching the First Heaven since Xiaoyu's minor tribulation. He followed the view of the Liu Family, who called for him through the divine talisman, and enjoyed his time as his divine senses projected the earlier chaos in Fanling City like a cosmic divine screen.

The Violethaven Temple's retreat, Lin Mo's revolver shot, and the coalition of sects rallying to the store's defense played out in vibrant detail. Not only that, Lin Mo's roping in the Ancestors was given a thumbs up by him.

Beside him, the Ember Saintess Huoling smirked. She only delivered Taihao, one of her new products for the store, but she got interested in what he was watching.

She chugged her own flask of [Celestial Peach Wine] before tossing it aside with a flourish which vanished in a flicker of emberlight. "Well, Taihao, your little shopkeeper's got some fire in him. I should've tried to see him once, but you got me locked up developing all those dishes and products for the store. A Spirit Condensation Stage mortal blasting a heaven-grade artifact to smithereens? How did you send a divine-grade artifact there?"

Taihao's grin was all teeth, his divine aura rippling with amusement as he sat back down on his cozy seat. He glanced to the side where Poison Demon was still standing in attention like a servant waiting for his master.

"Huoling, that can't be a divine-grade artifact. Haven't you heard? Even those immortal-grade artifacts earned me a few strikes of Heavenly Lightning. That was a steep price for my old body."

"Huh? Then how can it handle that divine energy from that celestial child? By the way, who put her there? Shouldn't she be here forging her divine spark?"

"Mhm? Don't ask me. Find Chuang and Lihua for details. Anyhow… everything is progressing smoothly. It's only a matter of time before Lin Mo connects the whole First Heaven through that [Celestial Shuttle Network]. It'll be a bit noisy down there. Keep those immortals in line and prevent them from interfering."

Huoling's ember-red eyes glinted, her fingers snapping to conjure a tiny flame that danced like a miniature phoenix.

"Noisy is an understatement, Taihao. That nasty Violethaven will now figure out where we migrated after leaving the Western Sacred Lands. They won't stop even if Lin Mo kills that Grand Elder. The Liu Family and the rest of those who followed us had gotten their foundation stifled from the migration. They have yet to recover."

Taihao waved a hand, his divine aura shimmering with lazy confidence. "Violethaven? Huoling, they're just seasoning for the show. This is a great opportunity to catch all those rebellious worms who don't know where to stand. I'll visit the Chaos Council soon and offer them the benefit of our store's convenience. As much as they hate our Heavenly Laws opposing their Chaotic Laws, they won't allow our Nine Heavens to be invaded by those from the Outer Realms. You keep cooking those divine dishes, and I'll make sure the kid's got the tools to handle the rest."

—

Back at the Divine Convenience Store, it was close to night when the Spirit Severing Stage Ancestors and the Sect Masters stepped out of the store, their spatial bags and rings filled with a variety of store products, as all of them spent at least 1000 high-grade spirit stones each.

Lin Mo sent them all with his amicable smile, acting very grateful for their patronage. Naturally, all of them became Golden Card Patrons and got themselves their own Viewing Jade.

The reason it took them that long to leave the store was because they got so hooked on browsing the Bulletin Board. Those who liked the anonymity offered by the platform started blasting their way into different threads, acting as haughty as Yan Wei.

Only a few of them actually acted the same way as they do in reality, as they weighed the pros and cons of the Bulletin Board's existence.

On one hand, they're in awe of the connectivity it offered but on the other hand, they pointed out how they're wasting the value of information, especially Ancestor Yu Qingmei, whose Verdant Sky Pavilion thrived on selling information and connecting trade networks.

Meanwhile, several major factions and mortal kingdoms in the Northern Arctic Dominion and Southern Wilderness seemed to have been informed of the Violethaven's invasion of the Eastern Abyssal Domain, as some threads coming from cultivators of those regions popped up. Most of them were asking for independent merchants to pass by their territories to sell them Viewing Jades and other store products.

Lin Mo didn't think much of those posts. After all, they'll eventually find the offerings of the merchants insufficient and will be curious enough to visit the Eastern Abyssal Domain and see the store for themselves.

As for the Liu Family and the old Patriarch, the City Lord had taken them to the Anchor, sharing the knowledge they had unearthed about it a few days ago, and also its current state.

Lin Mo was asked to accompany them, but he made an excuse of having another appointment.

Conveniently, the Sword Fairy also remained and quietly waited on the side. She's been meaning to talk to him regarding their trip later.