The Innkeeper

Chapter 1990: Keep it secret

Resisting the urge to take deep breaths, or press his eyes, or groan, or twitch his lips, Lex managed to keep a straight face. So it seemed that both Belle and Liz had a lot more potential than they may have realized.

Lex, because of the sheer vastness of his experiences, had more or less narrowed down what other possible abilities he might have. He had an extremely strong affinity for both dragons and phoenixes, and as a result, it seemed like dragons and phoenixes were partial towards him.

That would explain why Vinei was so amiable with him when in reality they had no connection, and why the Golden Dragon King in the Origin realm favored him.

If he had to rely on his own speculation, Lex would say that not only did Liz have the perfect physique to be a Beast Master, but she might even be able to cultivate a few techniques that were specifically designed for other races. After all, the essence of adaptability should allow her to adapt to any situation and technique. No wonder she was able to stay on the run, all alone for so many years.

"So what about Moon?" Lex asked. Out of all of them, it was obvious to anyone and everyone that Moon was the most special. Serene herself had said she had gone all out for Moon.

Lex almost expected Serene to continue as she had, revealing everything instantly. But, this one time, she did not. Instead, it was her turn to scrutinise Lex closely.

"Moon’s been through a lot, I know," she said slowly, after a while. "But as much as it doesn’t seem like it, things can always get worse. Sometimes, the best way to keep someone safe is to not delve into certain matters before time. I think it’s best if we let Moon’s matter be for now. No one besides me, not even Leon knows the details of how exactly I developed her physique. I think the best thing for her would be if we let it stay like that."

Lex did not get angry at the refusal. Even if Serene and Leon were a bit... aloof was the nicest word he could think of. Even if they were somewhat aloof of the consequences of their actions, and had made numerous mistakes along the way, they had at least looked out for their children to the best of their abilities. For Serene to now wish to keep Moon’s matters secret was a blatant testament to just how valuable the resources she used were while working on her physique. Moreover, Lex himself knew that some secrets were better left unsaid.

"Fine. It doesn’t matter much anyway," said Lex. "Moon and Liz will stay with me, and I doubt we’ll need this information anyway. If, for any reason, we do need it, we’ll figure things out on our own."

"I doubt you’ll need it," Serene said, shaking her head. "But there is something else you all need to be on the lookout for. We spent too many years outside before arriving in Arch-Heaven, and even over here, we are not entirely safe from pursuit. Although I have no evidence of this, I believe that certain forces have already started searching for us.

"To make it harder to be located, I devised a technique to make Karmic clones which point away from the real body to protect us. That is just one thing I’ve done, the precautions I’ve taken are many. You all, however, are at grave risk of getting caught in this mess.

"Although I’ve done my best to erase links between us so that you all can’t be used to trace us, and vice-versa, you are not all completely safe. As a result, I’ve prepared a number of techniques for you all. Once used, they will remove any traces between us, and can even be used by you all for your stealth purposes if you wish.

"Besides that, I would like to give you all a sincere piece of advice. Avoid the Humanoid Alliance at all costs. They cannot be trusted."

That was entirely unexpected. Although he trusted no one unilaterally, one would think the Humanoid Alliance would be on the humans side? Especially since Nuwa herself sent Wu Kong to the Inn to protect a certain someone.

"Why would you say that?" Lex asked.

"Although I don’t know the exact details, I have reason to believe that humanity was once a very powerful race in the universe. The reason for their decline is because the Human Dao Lords were betrayed, leading to their death. Although it is hinted that the humans were betrayed, nowhere does it state who did the betraying. The Humanoid Alliance is the greatest suspect.

"Since our mission relates to the fate of humanity, sooner or later, we will be confronted with the truth. I would not want, at that time, for any of us to fall victim to the same event that brought down humanity as a whole."

Lex shook his head. That sounded like a problem far, far away. He had many, much more serious issues waiting for him right in his near future. He could not be bothered by such things.

"Alright, sure. You can give me the techniques. I’ll look them over. If they’re fine, I’ll pass them along," he said.

Serene felt relieved hearing Lex say that. From start to finish, Lex had put a lot of pressure on the both of them, so they weren’t exactly sure that he would cooperate with them. In fact, the truth was that Serene and Leon faced far more problems than they had mentioned to Lex, especially since entering Arch-Heaven. Yet they did not want to pull Lex into their mess. He seemed like he had established a nice, calm life for himself. Maybe he even had a girlfriend or fiance by now. It would be best if he could just continue to live and enjoy a normal life. He did not need to bear the burden of the responsibility they had adopted.