Divine Convenience Store-Chapter 548: Link?

"Boss, what's the plan?" Liu Xiaoyu asked as they both faced the two entities marching towards them slowly.

"Well, what else? We just have to defeat them, no? The meal we ate still had its effect. If our techniques are not enough, then we just have to pummel them until they break, right?"

"Heh. I've not taken you for someone to say that, Boss. But I like it!" Liu Xiaoyu delightfully punched forward, sending arcs of her golden lightning, impeding the Arbiter from getting closer.

"However, brute force is plan B. Plan A is always convenience. Xiaoyu, I'm going to try something stupid. If it works, we win. If it doesn't, be ready to grab me and run."

Lin Mo's gaze fixated on the shimmering, gray tether linking the two entities. The Nihilist ate matter and starlight. The Arbiter nullified kinetic force and lightning.

They covered each other's weaknesses perfectly. But that link… it was a channel. And he found it extremely familiar.

"Remember what the scholar said about the Vindicators? Their link is their strength, but also their weakness. If one falls, the feedback hits the others. These two… You get what I'm saying? They're not just sharing defense but also nature."

He pointed his spear at the Nihilist. "The Void one eats energy to sustain itself. The Static one generates chaotic frequencies to disrupt. What happens if we feed the Void one something it can't digest, something so chaotic it disrupts its own entropy?"

Xiaoyu tilted her head, dodging a lazy swipe from the Arbiter's static-whip. "Like what? A really bad joke?"

"Like your storm," Lin Mo grinned, though he couldn't decide whether to laugh at her joke or not, "It doesn't only encompass your lightning, right? We need the chaos of your storm. The unrefined turbulence you unleashed in the training room. And I… I'm going to give the Static one a taste of order. Or rather, the calming sensation of my Silent Stream."

Liu Xiaoyu blinked her eyes a few times, processing his words, "Are we swapping again, Boss? But the tower will just block us again!"

"How can it block us when it intends for us to fight these two together?"

"Oh… Oh! I understand. Got it, Boss.

The two entities didn't wait for them to finish strategizing. The Nihilist raised its void-greatsword, and the space around it began to collapse, pulling everything towards a singularity of non-existence. The Arbiter vibrated as it emitted a high-pitched sonic shriek that threatened to liquefy their bones.

Lin Mo activated his movement technique, dodging to the side. The void slash passed where he had been, and the stone floor vanished in its wake. It didn't explode but instead, it looked like it was erased from existence, leaving a perfectly smooth, dark trench.

"Okay. That's terrifying," Lin Mo muttered, sweat beading on his forehead.

Meanwhile, Xiaoyu also had to dodge a lash of white static that whipped through the air like a cracking serpent.

She twisted her body in mid-air and used the full might of her Nine Heavens Exquisite Body to kick away the air like she's a video game character doing a double jump. A maneuver that defied gravity and skeletal limitations.

The static whip missed her waist by an inch, but the sonic boom trailing it slammed into her.

She crossed her arms, blocking the vibrating blow which sent a tingling frequency that rattled her teeth and made her vision swim.

"Ugh! Stop screaming!" Lin Xiaoyu yelled, shaking her head to clear the dizziness. She landed on her heels, skidding backward. "Boss, this guy is loud! And my lightning feels like it's being scrambled before I can even throw it!"

"They are covering each other's weaknesses via their link," Lin Mo deduced rapidly, dodging another void slash. "The Nihilist erases matter and energy, while the Arbiter disrupts kinetic force and frequency. As long as that link holds, they are essentially invincible to our current methods."

Once again, they converged on the same spot as they both eyed their respective opponents.

Suddenly, an idea popped into Lin Mo's head.

"Xiaoyu, you want Argent Covenant armor, right? We still have a few Legionary Sets stored in our store's inventory. I can pull it out for you."

Although it would ideally be better to get her another Decanus Set, her father had yet to complete another set that could be given to her. There's only so much Decanus in there, after all. And they drop a part randomly. Completing a ten-piece set will need some luck, even if the patrons are turning over or selling their loot to the store.

"Eh…? Boss, you want me to start with a Legionary Set? Ugh… I like to have the same armor as you but… fine. I'll just level it up on my day off so I can get more benefits from it. Besides, I can't be picky now, can I?"

"If it lets me punch that static-cloud in its non-existent face, I'll wear a potato sack! Hand it over!"

Lin Mo didn't waste a second. He accessed the store inventory, pulling out the crate containing the Legionary Set.

"Put it on quickly and bind it to you. You know the drill. Aether Shard in the chest slot once it clicked onto your body. Don't try to force your storm qi for now, let it do its thing. I'll hold these two off for now.

Liu Xiaoyu caught the crate and immediately opened it. Since it hadn't been bound yet, she had to equip it one by one.

She grabbed the greaves and slapped them onto her legs. They magnetically locked into place with a satisfying clank.

Next came the breastplate, the gauntlets, and finally, the helmet. Then, she grabbed the Aether Shard, slapping it onto her chest.

"Hold them off, Boss! I need ten seconds to bind!"

"Ten seconds is a lifetime in a battle, but for you, I'll buy twenty," Lin Mo grunted, turning his back to her.

The Void-Star Nihilist was already upon him. Its greatsword swept horizontally, aiming to cleave him and the space he occupied in two.

Lin Mo didn't attempt to parry. Parrying a black hole with a spear was a surefire way to lose the spear.

Instead, he channeled the full output of his [Decanus Set] into his legs, followed by his starlight.

He launched himself vertically and became a silver streak shooting towards the artificial ceiling.

The void slash passed beneath him, silently erasing the air currents and leaving a trail of absolute vacuum that tugged at his cape.

However, he wasn't safe yet. The Static-Storm Arbiter, seeing its partner miss, swiveled its formless head. It raised a hand that seemed to crackle with white noise.

[Frequency Disruption]!

A cone of distorted air shot upwards, aiming to intercept Lin Mo's ascent. It was a sonic attack designed to vibrate his atoms apart.

"Ugh. How inconvenient," Lin Mo muttered.

He couldn't dodge in mid-air without a foothold. So, he made one.

Then, he dumped a significant amount of his starlight qi beneath his feet. A hexagonal barrier of solid light materialized, shimmering with the stability of his Perfect Foundation.

The sonic cone slammed into the barrier.

CRACK! SKREEE!

The sound was excruciating, like a thousand nails scratching a chalkboard. The barrier fractured with spiderweb cracks spreading instantly as the dissonant frequency tore at the orderly structure of the starlight.

But it bought him a split second.

Lin Mo kicked off the shattering platform, using the force of the sonic impact to propel himself diagonally downwards, straight towards the Arbiter.

He gripped his spear with both hands. The Aether Shard in his chest burned hot, augmenting more of its energy into him. And likewise, his two constellations revolved at high speed, squeezing more of his starlight qi.

Like that, his figure became like a falling meteor, shooting down the static entity.