Divine Convenience Store-Chapter 510 - 510: Sleeping Dragon City

"He's late," Hu Gan grumbled, sounding a little impatient. "Three days, he said. The sun has set. Maybe your 'Senior Ghost' was just a hallucination brought on by hunger."
"Watch your tongue, bandit," Ling Qiumei snapped, her hand hovering over her sword hilt. "The Senior's grace is not something a thug like you who only knows how to chase someone for their legacy, can comprehend. He saved my life. He gave me this sword. He is real."
"What? He also gave me noodles!" Hu Gan retorted, slamming his hand on the table. "Best damn noodles I ever had! And he fixed my cultivation! Do you think I'm here because I like your sour face? I'm here because I want more! I'm just… how long is he going to make us wait? I told the Sect Master about him. Yet he didn't believe me."
"Please, esteemed guests," Luo Lanyi interjected, her voice soothing but firm. She popped a mint into her mouth. Almost instantly, her eyes sharpened as the cooling energy washed over her mind. "The Senior is a being of profound mystery. 'The dragon does not sin, it sleeps.' We must have patience."
Yesterday, as soon as she arrived at the city, Luo Lanyi used all her resources to complete the task Lin Mo had left her. To deliver the message to the Crimson Tiger Sect and remnants of the Silent Rain Sect.
And these two individuals came to her door. Hu Gan, driven by a hunger for power and flavor he had never known, and Ling Qiumei, driven by a desperate hope for salvation. They were natural enemies, forced into an uneasy truce by the promise of a ghost.
Suddenly, a commotion erupted from the street below. Shouts of alarm, the clash of steel, and the distinct sound of bodies hitting the pavement echoed through the open window.
Hu Gan and Ling Qiumei instantly grabbed their weapons, their instincts screaming danger.
"Iron Crane Dojo enforcers?" Hu Gan hissed. "Those bastards have been eyeing this district for weeks."
Luo Lanyi frowned, moving to the window. "No... the sounds are... wrong. It's not a brawl. It's... a beatdown. Uncle Tie, what's happening down there?"
Tie Zha leaned out the window, his weathered face twisting into a grimace of disbelief.
"It's... it's a slaughter, Young Miss. But not the kind we're used to. The Iron Crane enforcers... they're flying. Literally."
"Flying?" Luo Lanyi blinked, joining him at the window. "How? Are their lightness skills already that advanced?"
"No… I mean, look." He gestured for Luo Lanyi to move closer, then pointed.
Below, the street was a scene of comical devastation. Burly men in the gray dojo uniforms of the Iron Crane were being tossed aside like ragdolls by an unseen force.
There was no blood, no screaming of dying men, just the confused yelps of bullies being gently but firmly removed from the path of a single figure walking calmly down the center of the street.
The figure wore strange, pristine green and white robes that seemed to repel the dust and grime of the city. It looked so peculiar and out of place.
He walked with a leisurely pace with his hands clasped behind his back, seemingly oblivious to the chaos erupting around him. Every time an enforcer lunged at him, they would simply... slide away, tripping over invisible obstacles or bouncing off unseen walls.
It was the 'Senior Ghost', Lin Mo. But he looked solid. Real. And he was carrying a crate under one arm as if he were just returning from a grocery run.
"That's… him. Senior Ghost, he's here," Ling Qiumei whispered as she somehow also appeared near the window. "And he's... solid."
"Indeed. Is he not an ancestor? But his skills… I've never seen any martial arts like that." Hu Gan frowned as he tried his hardest to understand what kind of skill Lin Mo was using to be able to effortlessly sweep away those from Iron Crane Dojo.
They weren't even cannon fodder. Most of them are second-rate and first-rate martial artists.
It made him recall the day he was stopped by him with a simple flick of a popcorn kernel.
As they watched him take a few more steps forward, they finally were able to see Lin Mo, who looked exactly as he did in his projection, but with a vibrant, carefree and living presence. His aura, suppressed to match the local 'Peak Stage' but infinitely purer, washed over the area like a cool breeze.
He didn't use the Spirit-Body Projection this time because of its 1-hour time limit. He entered with his physical body but due to the lack of spiritual energy in this Fractured Plane, he had to suppress his cultivation base to prevent his dantian from draining too quickly to compensate for the ambient deficiency.
Even so, his Perfect Foundation acted as a self-contained reactor, allowing him to operate at a level far beyond any martial artist in this city.
He walked up to the entrance of the Pavilion of Drifting Clouds as he had long sensed them, ignoring the groaning pile of Iron Crane disciples he had just stacked neatly against the wall.
"Sorry for the delay," Lin Mo's voice, amplified by a sliver of spiritual energy, drifted up to the second-floor window. "Traffic was... inconvenient. The local welcoming committee seems to lack basic customer service training."
Although he arrived quickly due to there being only one road leading to it, he was stopped by those martial artists from one of the leading factions manning the gates. Due to his peculiar attire and the manner of his arrival, they had attempted to extort him for a 'protection fee' after he had already handed them an [Energy Replenishing Candy] for his entrance fee.
Lin Mo, naturally, had declined. Politely at first, and then with a liberal application of [Qi Solidification] when they tried to seize his crate confirming the effect of the candy.
He looked up, meeting the stunned gazes of his waiting guests. A genial smile spread across his face.
"May I come up? Or shall we conduct our business amidst the groans of these fine gentlemen?"
Luo Lanyi snapped out of her trance first. "Please! Senior! I mean, Shopkeeper! Please come up! Uncle Tie, clear the stairs!"
Moments later, the door to their private room swung open. Lin Mo stepped inside, setting the heavy crate down on the table with a solid thud. The scent of exotic spices and strange, sweet aromas instantly filled the room, overpowering the stale smell of tea and tension. He intentionally brought it out like this instead of keeping it in his inventory. It was just a way to create a greater impact, not just to these three, but also to those who'd be watching him.
He understood that the Fractured Plane, as it is, could never match up to the resources of the Realm of Nine Heavens. Even just the First Heaven had an abundance of it due to the natural spiritual energy existing within.
Still, this plane had its own value. For example, that Star-Forged Iron and the countless patrons that were just waiting to be blessed by his 'convenience'.
Hu Gan stared at the crate, his eyes bulging. He recognized the colorful packaging peeking out from the top. Noodles. Dozens of them. And other things. Shiny cans, colorful bags, small bottles. It was a treasure trove of the unknown.
Ling Qiumei stood up and bowed deeply, her hands trembling slightly.
"Shopkeeper. You… you kept your word."
"I always keep my word, Miss Ling. It's bad for business otherwise," Lin Mo replied, taking the seat at the head of the table that Luo Lanyi hastily vacated for him. He gestured for everyone to sit. "Now. I believe we have a proposal to discuss."
He looked at Hu Gan, who was still eyeing the crate like a starving wolf eyeing a lamb. "Hungry, Hu Gan?"
"Always," the bandit leader grunted, tearing his eyes away from the prize to meet Lin Mo's gaze. "But I'm also curious. You walked through the Iron Crane enforcers like they were mist. You're not from around here. Are you… an Immortal from the legends? One who opened the Ninth Gate?"
"Immortals, huh? I wish. But no. I'm not one," Lin Mo dismissed the title with a wave of his hand. "As for the Ninth Gate… let's just say my gates work a little differently. But enough about me. Let's talk about you. Specifically, the Crimson Tiger Sect and the Silent Rain Sect."
He straightened up as his expression turned serious. "I've done my research. Or rather, Miss Luo was kind enough to fill me in during our journey. This city, no, this region is a mess. While the outside is full of dangers, three factions in this city are still fighting over scraps. Protection rackets, petty theft, and hoarding of old manuals. It's inefficient. It's… inconvenient."
As he said that, he glanced outside the window, due to the spectacle at the gates and on his way here, the Iron Crane Dojo had already been alerted of his disturbance. Droves of them started forming outside. Furthermore, the other two factions also caught a whiff of it. It wouldn't be long before they all climb up the stairs to see who's the troublemaker that dared to brazenly enter the Sleeping Dragon City with no regard for authority.