Yu Qingyan's steps faltered as her sharp gaze flickered between Lin Mo and the crimson-robed woman leaning over the counter. Her brows gradually furrowed as a faint scowl formed on her lips.
"Shopkeeper," Yu Qingyan called as she strode forward, the young disciple, who entered with her, followed behind with a curious grin. "It seems you've been busy 'entertaining' customers. Is that a thing now?"
"Welcome back, Miss Yu. It's always a pleasure to see a loyal customer. How can I assist you today?"
Lin Mo didn't miss what she was trying to imply but he ignored it and kept his professional smile, meeting Yu Qingyan's gaze. Unfortunately for him, Chu Yueying had a different idea.
Having recognized the newcomer, she turned slightly, meeting her gaze with a smirk, "Oh? If it isn't the Emissary of the Verdant Sky Pavilion… A loyal customer, huh? Are you attempting to acquire this store? Just like how you took over many small merchant groups?"
"Old Vixen, I should be the one asking you. What brings you here? Have you changed your taste in men? You're now going after those a generation younger than you?"
Hearing their exchange, Lin Mo couldn't help but be intrigued. Can the Aura of Harmony also affect a catfight ? It seems not.
Despite the sharpness of their words, both women were smiling at each other as if it were a mask.
"Dear customers, the Divine Convenience Store welcomes everyone equally. I'm sure we can all appreciate the unique products we offer without unnecessary disputes." He said, a simple attempt to crack down on the brewing conflict between them.
Chu Yueying chuckled, leaning back with a flick of her crimson sleeve. "Relax, Shopkeeper. We're merely exchanging pleasantries. Isn't that right, Miss Yu?"
Yu Qingyan's smile didn't waver, though her gaze remained sharp. "Of course, Elder Chu. It's always enlightening to cross paths with you."
'Yeah, right.' Lin Mo thought. Women are always such complicated creatures. They don't like each other and it shows but the words coming out of their mouth were wrapped in layers of civility. Lin Mo had no intention of being caught in the crossfire of their verbal sparring.
"I see. In that case, I won't say anything else."
Zhou Rui and the rest of the Crimson Vale Sect disciples already took a step back. Also afraid yet intrigued at how their Elder was acting at the moment.
On the other hand, the young disciple behind Yu Qingyan had her eyes sparkling at the moment.
Lin Mo could see Liu Xiaoyu from a distance, she was already coming back with the girl who traded the mushrooms earlier but after seeing the standoff, she acted like it was not her place to interfere while looking on with obvious interest.
What a great assistant.
Lin Mo's lips twitched, ignoring them as he continued to ring the items Elder Chu brought to the counter.
Inside the door behind Lin Mo, Yangyang who was still monitoring the store through the cameras found that situation confusing. As someone who's focused on working hard to forge her divinity, such matters were foreign to her.
Her reading of the situation was that they were two acquaintances who had some differences with each other meeting after a long time. And to settle that difference they were having a standoff which could potentially disrupt the store's operation.
Since the customer hotline was silent for a while now, Yangyang stood up from her workstation and approached the door.
"Lin Mo, do you require some help?"
The moment her voice spread out as she called Lin Mo, Yu Qingyan and Elder Chu of the Crimson Vale Sect shifted their gazes to Yangyang's direction. Both of which was intrigued at the identity of another woman coming out of what could be understood as the Shopkeeper's living quarters.
And she's not just an ordinary woman, her body exuded an aura that the two women's senses couldn't pierce through. It's like looking at someone veiled by a mystical curtain, obscuring her identity and attainment.
"Shopkeeper, is she your wife?" Still sounding a little flirtatious, Elder Chu eyed Yangyang with great interest before shifting her gaze back to Lin Mo who, no matter how many times she looked into him, was nothing more than a Spirit Gathering Stage cultivator.
Another day, another order. Luhan, along with his two companions, walked across the streets of Fanling City. Their destination was the obscure corner where a peculiar store was said to appear that became a hotbed of interest for the mortals and cultivators alike.
It wasn't their first time coming to the store. Yesterday, they already used their fake identities as the spy of the Poison Demon Cult to infiltrate the store, traded herbs for store credit, and bought those samples that they sent to the High Priest who was preparing for the invasion.
Last night, despite not missing out on their report about what they found out about the store and the customers visiting it, the acidfang spider familiar with the Acolyte managing them gave them another order from the High Priest. Continue monitoring the store by posing as customers and sending more samples while preparing for a takeover.
Luhan and his fellow spies were perplexed by the order, especially the last one.
How could they even think about taking over the store when its customers alone are mostly cultivators from the forces in the surrounding area? Not to mention, that cheerful assistant was stronger than them.
They were merely Poison-bearers. The lowest position within the cult. They're mortals that were lured to take the baptism which required them to dip into a pot of boiling poison.
That baptism tempered their bodies, pushing them to the 5th level Body Tempering Stage right away. But that's the extent of their strength. With their spirit roots too poor and the poison forcefully drawing out their bodies' latent potential, there was no hope for them to advance anymore.
Poison-bearers like them were nothing more than grunts of the cult, doing odd jobs and mostly sacrificing themselves from the experiments of the Acolytes or Priests alike.
Running was out of the question as they were bound by some kind of contract when they got enticed to join.
They were already lucky that they were chosen as spies and were granted divine protection, preventing city guards or lower-level cultivators from seeing through their identities.
And now, they've been given this absurd order. But to keep themselves alive and not another food for the acidfang spider, they had to act like they were following the order.
Luhan decided to just continue sending the samples and hope that either they capture the city soon or fail at it. That way, they can keep living like a normal citizen of the city while sending information, no matter how useless, back to their cult.
However, Luhan never thought they'd catch something so interesting the moment they stepped into the store.
The Shopkeeper who Luhan couldn't measure the depth of cunningness was actually surrounded by beauties. But that's not the most important thing.
All of them were emitting an oppressive aura while staring at Luhan and his companions.
"W-what's happening, Luhan? Did we get caught?" One of his companions asked while stuttering.
"I… I don't know." Luhan replied as he found themselves unable to even take a step back.
Then, he heard one of the women speak; the bespectacled one standing behind the Shopkeeper.
"I'm sensing a whiff of divine energy. Those three. They bore divine protection from a divine being. And it's from a Chaotic Deity!"
Upon hearing that, Luhan only had one thing in his mind, "I knew I should've just gone home when I stole my mother's purse. Now it's all over…"
His vision dimmed before his consciousness graces faded away. He couldn't even check on his companions.
But before his mind blanked out, his ears picked up the voice of the Shopkeeper and the other two women who subdued him and his companions with just a flick of their sleeves.
"Are you not mistaken, Miss Yangyang? They were mortals who traded items for store credit yesterday."
"Interesting, even I was fooled. Look underneath their clothes. Their body is burnt from the neck down. They're Poison Bearers from the cult."
"The Poison Demon Cult was already sending spies to infiltrate this store? Shopkeeper, who is she? How could she easily identify their… divine protection? Is she one of the proprietors of this establishment? A divine being?"