Chapter 1347: Second Store Upgrade Quest(15)
Laney exhaled a deep breath and stood up, stretching her body. She had lost the naivety she had once displayed when visiting the store for the first time and replaced it with maturity.
Considering her age, she was only a teenager in her race, but the situations she had gone through in Panagea made her intelligence and wisdom no less than those of an adult.
Her eyes had an excited glee since she finally stepped into the peak Divine Lord level. She didn't just meet the expectations her father had of him; she surpassed them.
"Laney, it's time," The Yellow King suddenly appeared and said.
Laney nodded and walked out of her room. Her maid was already waiting at the door with a new set of clothes.
Laney had long given up the practice of allowing the maids to help her take a bath because she didn't want her father to learn about the scars on her body.
Laney not only adventured in Panagea but also trained hard in reality. The event with the beast was a tragedy that should have never happened if she were stronger, so she began to work even harder.
Laney took the set of clothes and entered the bathroom. The Yellow King stood at the door, not letting any maid sneak in.
Time flew by, and after everything was done, Laney stepped out of the residence. When she walked out, she saw many others like her walking out of their houses.
Laney nodded toward her neighbors and walked in the direction of the store. The sky was still dark, and the sun had yet to rise. Laney and the people who came out of different residences were the store's customers living in the rented residential clusters.
Everyone was in a competition to enter Panagea, so all of them tried to be ahead of others.
The sunrise arrived in Thorr and its nearby cities. As the first ray of light pierced through the cover of darkness, excited expressions appeared on the crowd's faces, and they looked at the store's closed door simultaneously.
Whoosh!
The next moment, a sliding sound rang, and the excitement in the eyes of the customers grew even further.
After opening the store's door, Aakesh was greeted with the familiar sight of a large crowd outside the store. He didn't let them wait any longer and turned around, returning to his chair.
After he walked away, the crowd on the street entered the store like a raging tide. No one tried to push anyone since it could come under the umbrella of harm and might cause severe repercussions.
In no time, the overcrowded area around the store turned into an empty space, while the empty store was filled with customers.
The familiar scene of golden lights covering a fixed number of customers appeared, and those who weren't in that ambit were disappointed, but not for long, and went to the waiting corner.
Those who owned store cards and were inside the golden lights walked toward the portal room. Maria, Laney, and a few others were exceptions to that, as they first came to Aakesh and left after greeting him.
Laney was the one who had the longest conversation with Aakesh. Many customers had noticed that the store owner treated Laney differently than other customers. Many even thought that something was going on between Aakesh and Laney, making Laney a star for some time since everyone loved gossip.
But the issue died on its own after a while since Aakesh never went out of the store, and neither was Laney allowed inside the store after sunset.
Laney had a smile on her face as she walked toward the portal room. Hearing appreciation from her big brother made her feel good, and she was excited to continue her quest in Panagea.
After entering the portal room, Laney's lips curled into a beautiful smile when she saw her name in the top three on the ranking board. There were only a few levels of difference between her and the first position, and Laney was confident she could bridge that gap in the next three years.
***
Laney appeared on the tree where he had exited Panagea the day before. Laney's strength inside Panagea was weaker than her strength in reality, so it was always uncomfortable to see her strength regress.
Laney then jumped down the tree with her knife already in her hand. The armor she wore at that time had a glowing gem embedded near her right palm.
Laney tapped on it, and the next moment, a projection erupted from it.
"The material Destrun can be found..." The one saying it was none other than Laney herself.
Around a month ago, during the morning conversation with her big brother, he suggested she find Destrun. Destrun was a valuable material used in the making of weapons due to its smooth energy transfer capability.
Destrun was rarely found in the Sacred Dimension, but its quantity was higher in Panagea. Aakesh had told her the specifications of the areas where the material could be found in abundance.
If Laney found an abundant source of the material, she would not only be able to make a great weapon for herself in Panagea but also sell it for money to help her exchange some great things from Panagea to reality.
Laney went there because it was the closest place to her in her search for items that fit the environment's requirements, according to Aakesh.
Even in Panagea, Destrun was a valuable item, so there was bound to be intense competition.
Laney had been here for a week at most and had already battled three teams. Aakesh's help in getting great items at the right time and her hard work made her immensely powerful.
Even the team of seven people at the same level as her was handled instantly by her. Her greatest feat of strength was surviving against a beast five levels higher than her.
***
After the message was complete, the projection disappeared. The gem dimmed down, and the existing cracks on it got slightly bigger. It would take a week in Panagea time for it to get charged so that she could listen again.
Laney then took a deep breath and proceeded forward since she needed to find the material before others could.
Laney hadn't walked very far when she sensed several live presences a few miles ahead of her.
At the same time, they also sensed her. Laney's face grew slightly solemn since the other party was unlike the previous three teams she had faced over the past week.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The next moment, the sound of something flying through the air rang, and soon after, Laney found himself surrounded by a group of nine people.
Laney couldn't help but frown since even the weakest of the nine was one level higher than her.
"Oh, an adventurer! I've always wanted to kill an adventurer.
"Since you can always revive, you would not mind, right?" One of the men suddenly commented, licking his lips.
A hint of killing intent passed through Laney's eyes as she looked at the owner of the voice. She was ready to attack, but before she could, someone had already attacked the man.
"Forgive my friend; he has a habit of making bad jokes," The man, who seemed to be the leader of the nine, suddenly punched the former and apologized to Laney with a sincere expression.
Laney looked at the leader, and her face grew solemn. While punching the man, he released a hint of his energy. The leader of the group was seven levels higher than her.
Laney didn't fear death since that wasn't possible, but she feared the obstruction of the man. Laney had the intuition that she had a limited amount of time to reach the True God level of cultivation. There was no reason for her source of intuition, but for some reason, she had never felt anything that intensely.
"Friend, we have no bad intentions toward you," The leader suddenly raised his hand and said.
"If you have no bad intentions, then why have you surrounded me?" Laney coldly responded, pointing at the group surrounding him, cutting off her ways of escape.
The leader only smiled in response to her question and then walked toward Laney.
Even though Laney believed she had no chance against the man in front of her, she wasn't going to give up on fighting and let the man go easy.
The man stopped a few meters from her and extended his right hand for a handshake.
"I am showing my intention to be your friend; now it's up to you," The man smiled and commented.
Laney didn't move but stood there. The leader didn't take his hand back but kept at it, ignoring the awkwardness in the air.
Boom!
Suddenly a loud explosion rocked the area, and both Laney and the leader were taken aback by the scene.
Since the source of the explosion was near, and it was the man who had taunted Laney, they also faced the brunt of the explosion.
The leader's expression didn't look good, and there was a hint of anger in his eyes as he looked at Laney, while Laney looked at the scene with a stupefied expression.
Boom!
Before the shock could even disappear, another explosion rocked another member of the team.
The leader's eyes breathed fire in anger. In no time, he had lost two of his team members. At the same time, he also grew cautious since Laney's shocked expressions were too good to be considered acting.
***
A/N: I have started a new book, 'Temple of Sequences'. Please give it a go if you have time.
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