Divine Convenience Store-Chapter 538: Not As Challenging

The Mire King didn’t wait for him to finish his analysis. It roared with a wet, gurgling sound and unleashed a torrent of pressurized acid into the air, raining it down.

Lin Mo narrowed his eyes and clicked his tongue. "What a nasty ability."

He said as he raised his left hand, palm facing outward.

"I need an umbrella."

With that, he activated [Qi Solidification] again and wove it into the shape of a useful tool.

The starlight qi flowed from his fingertips, weaving into a complex, concave barrier that shielded him from the acid rain.

It hissed and popped as the acid tried to eat through the solidified energy.

But the starlight qi, refined by the primordial dew, was conceptually higher than mere toxin. It held firm despite continuing to sizzle from the acid’s property.

He had to continuously provide starlight qi and circulate his spiritual energy to keep it firm.

Before long, either the acid raining down on him turned to steam or slid off ineffectively down the slimy ground.

"Mhm. This one doesn’t deserve to be a training target."

Putting away his spear, Lin Mo pushed forward as his [Stellar Domain] expanded violently. The serene silver light clashed with the Mire King’s toxic green aura.

Usually, domains clashed for dominance, but Lin Mo’s domain didn’t fight. It simply existed, enforcing a rule of order upon the chaos. The sludge within his ten-meter radius suddenly lost its cohesion, turning watery and sluggish.

The Mire King shrieked as it felt its control over its own body slipping. It tried to lash out with tentacles of muck, but they fell apart before they could reach him.

"Found you."

Through the thinning sludge, Lin Mo’s [Stillwater Perception] locked onto a dense, pulsating knot of energy deep within the creature’s chest area. A solid core of crystallized venom.

The [Starfall Judgement Revolver] materialized in his hand. It was the much higher-quality gun that was exclusively for him compared to the mass-produced Stardust Repeaters.

The intricate silver and sapphire patterns on the cylinder softly glowed as they resonated with the starlight qi flowing from him. It formed the necessary bullet in one of the revolver’s chambers.

After recalling its three abilities, he didn’t need the devastating power of the [Stellar Flare] or the world-breaking cost of the [Void Breaker]. Against a target this stationary, stripped of its defenses by his domain, a simple, precise application of force was all that was required.

He pulled the hammer back and aimed straight at the Mire King, pulling the trigger in a heartbeat.

[Stardust Shot]!

BANG!

A sharp, high-pitched crack of silvery condensed energy broke the sound barrier.

In the blink of an eye, the bullet tore through the thinned sludge of the Mire King’s body.

It encountered no resistance, striking the pulsating, crystallized venom core with unerring accuracy.

CRACK! SHATTER!

The sound was like a glass vase being dropped in a silent room.

The wriggling Mire King froze as its gurgling roar died.

The green toxic aura that defined its existence flickered violently, then became snuffed out.

Without its core to hold the chaotic sludge together, the monster simply... collapsed. It lost its form, splashing down into the swamp as a wave of inert, foul-smelling mud.

[Floor 2 Cleared.]

[Time Elapsed: 8 Minutes 45 Seconds]

[Rating: S]

[Rewards: 1 Green Chest, 700 Dimension Essence, Access to Floor 3 Unlocked.]

Lin Mo spun the revolver on his finger before blowing on the muzzle and holstering it with a smooth and practiced motion as though he were an expert gunslinger.

He didn’t even look at the mess he’d made. Instead, he walked over to where the core had shattered.

Amidst the dissolving mud, a Green Chest appeared.

He opened it, revealing the spoils of the battle.

[Item Acquired: Corrosive Sludge Sample x5]

[Item Acquired: Venom-Crystallized Heart (Damaged)]

[Item Acquired: Sludge-Walker Boots (Low Spirit-Grade)]

"Boots that allow movement on liquid surfaces without sinking... Not bad," Lin Mo couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow as he inspected the muddy footwear. "Though I prefer my own shoes. I’ll toss this into the Professional’s Foundry or maybe into our artifact shelves. I’m sure some patrons would kill for this."

He stored the loot and stepped toward the portal while popping another candy in his mouth to recover what he used.

Floor 2 was done but he still had two more floors to clear before reaching that waiting room where Xiaoyu was waiting.

[Floor 3: The Razor-Leaf Thicket]

[Objective: Survive the ambush and reach the clearing.]

At the same time the environment shifted instantly, the system panel appeared before his eyes.

He glanced around him and found that the humidity from the previous floors remained. However, the smell of rot was replaced by the sickly-sweet scent of pollen and sap.

Taking in his surroundings, he found himself standing in a dense, claustrophobic thicket of towering plants.

The leaves were not soft greens, but serrated blades of hardened cellulose that shimmered with a metallic sheen. It seemed as if it was sharp enough to cut him.

The vines that hung from the canopy writhed like snakes, their thorns dripping with what looked like paralytic sap.

"A thicket. So, am I about to face some plant-type Pokémon? Wait. Wrong franchise." Lin Mo quipped. "Still, it may as well be like them. That way, it’ll be easier to deal with them, right? Fire."

As if responding to his presence, the jungle came alive.

WHOOSH! WHOOSH!

Dozens of razor-leaves shot from the bushes like chakrams, spinning through the air with lethal intent. Vines lashed out from the ground, aiming to snare his ankles and drag him into the crushing embrace of the undergrowth.

Lin Mo clicked his tongue and drew his spear. Then, in his other hand, a similar type of talisman from earlier appeared. The [Flame-Burst Talisman].

.

"Burn," Lin Mo infused his spiritual energy into the slip of paper and tossed it into the center of the encroaching vines.

The talisman flared, disintegrating into a spark of pure, concentrated fire.

ROAR!

A crimson inferno erupted, expanding outward with the force of a tidal wave.

It was a high-grade talisman designed to incinerate fortified positions, and against a forest of wood and leaf, it was catastrophic.

The metallic leaves shriveled and blackened instantly. The vines that were lashing out at him recoiled, thrashing wildly as the flames ate away at their essence.

A high-pitched, keen wailing echoed through the thicket—the collective scream of a thousand dying plants.

Lin Mo stood in the eye of the firestorm. His [Stellar Domain] acted as a perfect thermal insulator, pushing the heat and smoke away from him, leaving him in a bubble of cool, fresh air.

He watched the destruction with a critical eye. "Efficient. But messy. I hope the loot doesn’t get incinerated."

He walked forward, the flames parting around his domain like water around a stone. The path to the clearing was no longer blocked by dense vegetation but paved with ash and embers.

Occasionally, a charred vine would try to strike him in a final spasm of death, but a simple wave of his hand, solidifying the air into a blade of starlight, severed it instantly.

At the center of the clearing, the source of the thicket awaited.

It was a massive, bulbous flower the size of a carriage, its crimson petals were fleshy and pulsing with a heartbeat that shook the ground.

[Floor Guardian: Blood-Thorn Queen]

[Threat Level: Late Foundation Establishment Stage]

[Ability: Pollen of Confusion, Vampiric Roots, Petal Storm]

The tower’s panel popped up in front of him again, informing him what was in front of him.

As soon as he entered its sight, the Blood-Thorn Queen shrieked at him, spewing a cloud of toxic pollen that ignited instantly in the superheated air, creating a secondary explosion that would have vaporized a lesser cultivator.

Seeing as it’s also not an enemy suitable for practicing his spear arts, he brought out the revolver again.

Just like the previous floor, a standard [Stardust Shot] should be enough.

Bang.

At the same time as the newly formed vines shot out from the flower, the bullet flew past them and pierced the center of the pistil, the core of its being.

The queen’s, wherever its mouth was, let out a shriek that got cut off abruptly. It didn’t have the time to activate one of its abilities. Its fleshy petals went limp, and the entire massive structure began to wither and dissolve into green light.

[Floor 3 Cleared.]

[Time Elapsed: 1 Minute 20 Seconds]

[Rating: SS]

[Rewards: 1 Green Chest, 900 Dimension Essence, Access to Floor 4 Unlocked.]

"Not as challenging as I thought it would be," Lin Mo smiled as he checked the time. "But knowing Xiaoyu, that girl probably finished this in less than a minute. I should ask her to create a more comprehensive guide for the less fortunate challenger later. If they earn Dimension Essence here, they’re more likely to spend them in the Store Beacon or in our store. It’s a win-win for us."

Dusting himself off the ashes that fell on his shoulder after retracting his domain, Lin Mo walked over to collect the chest.

Inside were more spiritual herbs, a wood-attribute core, and a [Thorn-Whip] artifact that looked like it belonged in a questionable dungeon. The kind that those with the tendency would surely love to be hit by.

"Do I know someone who uses a whip as a weapon?" He mused but then he immediately shook his head, storing it in his inventory.