"Senior sister, how long do we have to wait?" Nessa asked, frowning.
What caught her attention even more were the bright, moving arrays of light woven into the sign, moving in a pattern she had never seen before in her life. It was so novel that, for a fleeting moment, she almost believed Tiana and Kafla's words.
"I'm not certain. We forgot to ask when the store opens and closes," Tiana said with a slight shake of her head.
Her brows furrowed as she recalled how they had been too absorbed in the benefits they received to even think about asking such an important question.
After all, the entire evening after their visit had been spent testing their newfound abilities and spreading the news among their fellow sect members.
Nessa narrowed her eyes at her two sect sisters, her irritation growing.
The morning sun had already risen, and they needed to return to their assigned posts before noon; otherwise, they would anger the elders. Being reported to the sect for disobedience would guarantee severe punishment.
At this point, Nessa couldn't help but suspect they had dragged her here to share in their punishment.
"Even though we're not sure, the store should definitely open early," Kafla said, her tone hopeful. "We should just wait patiently and be glad we're the first ones here."
She remembered vividly how they had met that old man exiting the store just before they went in the first time. That meant there were already other people who knew about this place.
And given the kinds of products sold here, it was only natural that customers would visit at different times. To her, being early was a blessing.
But Nessa wasn't convinced. From her point of view, they were just trying to stall her. She couldn't let that continue.
"Senior sister, you said the items are inside this store, right?" Nessa asked coldly.
"Yes," Tiana replied, frowning as she noticed Nessa stepping toward the door. "What are you planning to do, Junior sister?"
"Nothing serious," Nessa said with a faint smile. "I just want to see if I can open this door myself. Since you claim this store is so unique, it shouldn't be easy to open, especially for an Early Rank Vein Transformation Ascednant, right?"
"If it does open, and we meet the store owner, we can just compensate him. We'll say we didn't think the door could actually be opened, given how special this place supposedly is."
Tiana was stunned by Nessa's words. She hadn't expected her junior sister to take such a fierce approach. But before she could speak, it was already too late.
Nessa stretched out her hand, channelled her mana into her palm, and struck the door.
Boom!
The blow reverberated through the wooden frame, sending a shockwave in every direction. Dust swirled and grass bent from the force. Nessa quickly stepped back, eyes narrowing in disbelief.
"It didn't bulge..." she muttered, surprised.
The door stood completely unharmed. She hadn't used her full strength, but the strike was still powerful enough to stun a Rank 2 Vein Transformation Realm Ascendant with ease.
Her gaze sharpened. She gathered more mana, her hands flashing with icy blue light. Instantly, the projection of a crystallised seal formed above her palm. Without hesitation, she thrust her palm forward again.
Frost Seal Palm!
The moment the frosty energy touched the door, it vanished, dispersed into thin air as though swallowed by nothingness. Not even a trace of frost remained.
Nessa's expression twisted. "What…?"
Just as she prepared to strike again, unwilling to accept that a shabby-looking building could withstand her attacks, Tiana and Kafla's panicked voices rang out from behind her.
"Junior Sister, that's enough.."
"Senior Sister, please stop.."
Nessa halted her actions. Her doubt wavered. The fact that the door hadn't shattered under her strike could only mean one thing: it was inscribed with a powerful protective array beyond her understanding.
Suddenly, she realised that maybe… maybe they weren't lying after all.
"I didn't bring you here to cause trouble, junior sister. Neither we nor the Sect Master can risk angering that expert by breaking into his store. So, why don't we wait for the store to open?" Tiana said, narrowing her eyes at Nessa before she could do anything more foolish.
Suddenly, a voice resonated from behind them.
"Ahem! I think you should listen to your fellow sect sister. Although the expert won't likely waste time dealing with you, I don't think I can sit back and watch you desecrate his stay in the mortal world."
The three women immediately snapped their heads backwards, their eyes widening in surprise and fear.
Before them stood a man, seemingly in his middle age, with rough, black hair streaked with white that reached his waist.
Recognition flickered in Tiana's and Kafla's eyes. They remembered this was the man they had encountered earlier, the one who had piqued their interest in investigating the store.
Although they had only seen him briefly, albeit much older, it was enough to imprint his image in their minds, along with the aura he had released that day, which they could not forget. Beside him were two young boys and two girls, all looking to be in their early teens.
While the youths stared at them and the store with curiosity, the middle-aged man regarded them with a calm yet overwhelming gaze, exuding an intense vitality, as though he could take on the world with nothing to stop him. And at this moment, his eyes were fixed upon them.
Though they could sense that the youths' ascension realms, none of them could sense the middle-aged man's realm. Moreover, they had no idea how they had approached them without a single sound or trace of presence.
Without hesitation, Tiana and Kafla bowed toward him.
"Greetings, Senior!" they said at the same time.
Nessa looked between them and the man, wariness and hesitation in her eyes. But seeing that Tiana and Kafla seemed familiar with him, she stepped forward, bowed, and greeted, "Greetings, Senior."