The golden carpet shimmered beneath Wu Tianlong's boots as he descended from the Celestial Dragon Ark, the noise of its spirit-engine fading into the murmur of the crowd below.
He looked around and inhaled the air in Jade Hollow Plains. He frowned as it carried a faint tang of foreign energy, something every cultivator had experienced. It was sharp, unfamiliar, and faintly unsettling.
He adjusted the crimson sash across his chest, the weight of the royal insignia grounding him as his gaze swept over the gathered cultivators.
Some who recognized him and the royal insignia stared up in awe, their eyes wide with the reverence due a Crown Prince of the Southern Wu Kingdom. Others stared at him with a neutral gaze, neither surprised nor terrified of his appearance.
Behind him, the Dragon General's heavy footsteps echoed on the carpet. His spirit-grade armor clanked faintly as he followed half a step behind.
His advisors also followed in a neat line, Scholar Weiwei with his ever-present scroll, Captain Ying with her hawkish glare and the rest of his retinue made up of a hundred soldiers with cultivation no less than Spirit Condensation Stage.
The ship construct remained hovering overhead, its sleek hull casting a shadow over the plains evidence of the Southern Wu Kingdom's wealth and ingenuity.
Yet Wu Tianlong's attention wasn't on the spectacle he'd crafted—it was on the strange, obsidian tower piercing the earth ahead.
"How did this come to be?"
He stopped his steps midway and glanced down at the cultivators below.
As he was stationed at the northern border of the kingdom, fighting against the barbarians, a report regarding the sudden appearance of the tower-like structure in the Jade Hollow Plains alerted him.
At first, he set that report aside and delegated the task of ascertaining its risk to a Captain under his command. However, more reports arrived that got his interest piqued.
The wave of foreign creatures spilling out of the said tower-like structure. Faguang City under siege. Cultivators unaffiliated to the kingdom arrived from the northwestern area. A certain store is gradually growing in influence. And her royal sister was sent to that store as an envoy.
With all of that added up, he retracted his first order to scout and decided to come to the Jade Hollow Plains himself, bringing a company of soldiers, the Dragon General serving under him and his advisors.
"General, what do we know of this… structure?" He asked.
The Dragon General stepped to his side, his grizzled face set in a frown as he squinted at the tower.
"Precious little, Your Highness. Apart from the reports we received yesterday. Not much has been gathered. All we know is that this is a tower that appeared overnight. It spilled out seemingly unending waves of foreign creatures. Faguang City would've been overrun if not for the timely arrival of the Emissary of the Verdant Sky Pavilion. And on our way here, more reports mentioned cultivators coming, drawn by rumors of treasures and trials. And as mentioned in the previous reports, it appears to be tied to some store in Fanling City, but details are scarce."
Wu Tianlong raised an eyebrow. "So you mean that store is responsible for this? We have to demand answers from it. What kind of merchant commands such influence?"
Scholar Weiwei coughed politely, stepping forward with his scroll unfurled. "If I may, Your Highness. The reports mention a 'Divine Convenience Store' in Fanling City, operated by a man named Lin Mo, otherwise known as Shopkeeper. It's said to sell artifacts and consumables of extraordinary quality. Talismans, pills and artifacts with craftsmanship that no sect could rival, candies that restore spiritual energy and even lost manuals from centuries to millennia ago. It claimed to be spreading 'convenience' to the realm. An associate of mine informed me of an artifact called Viewing Jade that connects to the store's Bulletin Board. The information is not complete but I believe we can learn more about it from the esteemed cultivators below."
Upon saying that, he gestured to the Core Formation Cultivators standing mid-air while looking up at them.
Wu Tianlong recognized them. Yang Chen of the Azure Gale Sect and Zhao Jianshi of the Crimson Vale Sect. Both of them are upper-grade sects unaffiliated to the kingdom, but their sect grounds and territory are rooted within.
Wu Tianlong's gaze lingered on the stall for a moment, the Verdant Sky Pavilion's banner fluttering lightly in the breeze. The Emissary's reputation preceded her. She was well-known for her work on opening trade routes in and outside the kingdom. If anyone had answers, it might be her.
"Scholar Weiwei," Wu Tianlong ordered, "find out more about this Shopkeeper and Divine Convenience Store. If my royal sister has been sent to Fanling City as an envoy, we're lacking critical information. Captain Ying, deploy a squad down there and prepare a place for us. Do not openly provoke these cultivators but if someone stops you, you know what to do."
Captain Ying saluted crisply, her sharp eyes already scanning the crowd for potential threats. "At once, Your Highness." She gestured to a contingent of soldiers, who followed her without a word as they jumped down to the ground.
The Dragon General spoke again, his voice laced with a hint of cautiousness, "Your Highness, if I may. This tower's energy feels… off. I've faced barbarian sorcery and demonic beasts aplenty, but this is different. The foreign energy it emits clashes with our realm's spiritual energy. It doesn't belong to this plane."
Wu Tianlong nodded, his expression unreadable. "Noted, General. We'll proceed with caution, but I won't let this anomaly fester unchecked in the kingdom's heartland. Scholar, include a request for any records this Shopkeeper has on the tower's origins. I want facts, not rumors."
Scholar Weiwei bowed, his quill already scratching across the scroll. "It will be done, Your Highness. I'll also inquire about this 'Bulletin Board'. It may hold more immediate insights."
As his retinue set to work, Wu Tianlong floated down the golden carpet and stopped before Yan Chen and Zhao Jianshi.
"Greetings, Elders…" Reeling in his regal aura, he clasped his hands and bowed to the two. He may be a royalty, but he knew it would be foolish to offend an upper-grade sect to which the two elders belonged. "Can this Prince inquire you about this tower?"
Back in the Divine Convenience Store, Lin Mo, who had nothing else to do, started reading through the threads as they got updated in real time in place of Liu Xiaoyu.
He's sitting in the dining area. Xiao Ya, who was on break, was in front of him, also playing with her Viewing Jade while eating a variant of Spicy Taihao Noodles.
As he read through numerous threads, he couldn't help but shake his head at how much of a keyboard warrior some of these cultivators were. He couldn't be culture-shocked because most of them were worse than those he had encountered on Earth – especially those glazers of Yan Wei.
Luckily, he didn't need to bother with them at the moment as the hottest topic was the Sword Fairy's Floor 3 challenge.
It's already close to thirty minutes since she entered and many believed she'd clear it without any doubt.
"Wait, what's this?" He suddenly stopped when a new thread popped. He read its title and tapped to read its contents.
[The Crown Prince arrives at Jade Hollow Plains - NeedMorePotatoChips]
"Just now, the infamous Celestial Dragon Ark of the Southern Wu Kingdom arrived. It carried the Crown Prince Wu Tianlong and his retinue. Looking at how things are developing, he appeared arrogant and ignorant at the same time! Elder Yan and Elder Zhao are conversing with him but I just saw him getting pissed. I wonder what they are talking about?"
The face of the First Princess flashed in Lin Mo's mind upon reading that. Since it was a fresh thread, there wasn't enough information about it yet.
"What has gotten him pissed? Does he want to monopolize the Tower? There's no way those cultivators will allow him to do it. It has been proven as a trial ground. He's going to offend every faction unaffiliated to Southern Wu if that happens."
Lin Mo rubbed his chin and refreshed the thread. And sure enough, comments flooded in.
- Anon123: Oh. I'm nearby! I heard them talking about the store. He looked offended when they told him the store wasn't the culprit for the Tower's appearance. He's not buying it.
- SodaIsLife: That's right! What a fool! He thinks he can throw his weight around here and draw conclusions on his own. He's even ignorant about the wonders of the store's products!
- PavilionRat: Emissary Yu joined them! She's the Official Distributor of the Store. She will educate him!
Lin Mo's lips twitched. He couldn't blame that Crown Prince. His ignorance is understandable. Which hole does he come from? Is he not staying at the Royal Capital?
As he thought of that, the Divine Interface System chimed, informing him of a direct message.