The Innkeeper

Chapter 1873: Wrong questions

Lex, of course, knew better than to expect an answer. Honestly, the frequency with which he encountered secrets that remained unexplained even after all these years was so high that he could more or less guess how this would go.

The difficulty of this tribulation was surprising. Lex was fairly confident in himself, and he had even done his research before the tribulation began, acquiring one of the most recommended techniques to resist corruption. But even so, he discovered that without the aid of the obelisk, he would likely be in great trouble.

To be fair, this Spiritual tribulation was probably much more difficult than the average one, but he had no frame of reference.

So, regardless of the actual mystery of the obelisk, as long as he could use it to help him dispel the corruption and get him through the tribulation, he didn’t mind if the secrets remained hidden.

Of course, if he could learn the secrets, and somehow take the obelisk, or perhaps learn how to make one of his own for... for research purposes, then he wouldn’t mind at all.

Reginald did not immediately reply, making Lex think that maybe conversing more than twice was not possible, or that it required some other trigger than just knowing the name. Fortunately, it turned out not to be the case.

"I am merely an imprint of a man that once existed in a land far, far away," Reginald finally said, once he had recovered from his shock. This was the third time he was speaking, and this time, Lex actually felt the corruption burning away inside of him. Unfortunately, that burn did not spare his spirit either. "I cannot say for certain why my name is here, or anyone else’s for that matter. What I can say is that you are the first to call my name."

Smoke came out of Lex’s ears, and it wasn’t from the burning corruption, but from his burnt off spirit. The experience was especially painful, but the actual damage was manageable. It seemed that talking to the characters twice was the best option, for while the third exchange cleansed the most corruption, the damage it did was not worth the exchange.

Lex quickly turned his gaze to another character, and came across an unusual name.

"Bob II, what can you tell me about yourself and this obelisk?" he asked, not wasting time. He had already devised the best way to get the maximum results from the obelisk. It was to talk to the characters, and have them talk for a longer period in the second exchange. The longer they talked, the more corruption they would eradicate.

While he could not get two characters to talk at the same time, he had already considered the best way to extract information from the characters as well as eradicate his corruption. After all, he didn’t need to figure out the secret of the obelisk during his first visit. He would be coming here a lot, especially during the Celestial realm where even the minor tribulations would be accompanied by Spiritual tribulations.

"I was the first human in history to be named Bob, which is why I thought it would be hilarious if I changed my name to Bob II," the character answered with a chuckle. "This obelisk has been around for a long time, aiding humans in passing the Spiritual tribulation. None have used it for any other purpose, but then again, none have read the names on the characters either."

Lex nodded, as he quickly went over all the information he already had about the obelisk. Others had talked to the characters before, and tried to extract information about it as well, to little success. The only real difference between him and them was the ability to read names, and ask a second question.

"Do new names appear on the list, and if so, where?" he asked.

"Yes, of course new names appear, though there is no clear designated spot based on the time of arrival," Bob II said. "The positioning seems to be quite random as far as I can tell. But then, what do I know? Not like I can walk around the obelisk. I’m stuck here with my neighbors, and we only wake up when someone undergoes a tribulation."

Lex nodded, and then turned to a different name.

"Shelly, have you ever heard of anyone with the name Sephore on this obelisk?" he asked.

"What? Do I look like a search engine to you?" Shelly retorted angrily. "Go ask someone else."

"Why are you upset? Is there something else you wished I had asked?" he asked, unperturbed by her attitude.

"I’m upset because the first human to ever be able to read our names is an idiot who is asking all the wrong questions! Yes, I wished you would have asked smarter questions. The obelisk has secrets waiting to be revealed, but we cannot give you the answers. Only by asking the right questions do you have a chance to figure out the secrets on your own."

Lex raised an eyebrow, but he couldn’t afford to dwell on the answer for long, or even at all! He could already feel his focus slipping away, and his mind beginning to feel woozy. The absurdity of this tribulation astounded him, and yet, there was nothing he could do about it.

"Kelly, can you tell me about your life?" Lex asked another character, changing the line of questioning. "What is your favourite memory?"

"I had a very good life, all things considered," Kelly answered, her voice quite pleasant to hear. "I was a chef, a mother of four, and best friends with a capable woman. My life was ordinary, all things considered. But, learning about how vast the universe really is, and all it contains, I suppose living a peaceful, ordinary life is the most unordinary thing in itself."

Lex continued to ask questions, learning a bunch of random facts about a bunch of random people who, as far as anyone could tell, should have actually existed in the history of the universe.

Even as he spent hours in front of the obelisk, he could not figure out the secret of the obelisk, or even get a hint for that matter. More importantly, he had no idea when he could exit! Generally, the first Spiritual tribulation lasted only an hour, but he had already spent a day there!