The Innkeeper

Chapter 2119: Forced to agree

If things progressed normally, Lex would need to reach the very peak of the Celestial Immortal realm before he could safely learn about matters pertaining to Dao. At that point, his cultivation was no longer a level acquired through absorbing energy or cultivating his technique - it was about the depth of his understanding of laws.

Starting all the way from Foundational Laws, to Relational Laws all the way to the eight Ruling laws, he needed a deep and thorough understanding of each of them independently as well as how they interacted with each other. Only then would he be able to reach the ninth level of the Celestial Immortal realm.

That, then, would serve as the foundation upon which he could learn about Dao, not to mention it would strengthen him enough to allow him to tolerate that knowledge.

Now, however, an external barrier suddenly enveloped his mind and soul, protecting him and allowing him to touch upon the topic of Dao, even if it was ever so briefly.

The laws belonged to the universe, while Daos belonged to cultivators, but they were not independent of each other. There were Minor Daos, Major Daos and Unique Daos. While there were more specific categorisations as well, these were the only three overarching categories that mattered.

Major Daos were limited, while Minor Daos were a lot more abundant. Unique Daos, however, were Daos that had no associated laws before they existed, and it was their very existence that caused the propagation of associated laws!

Lunareth Selaryn’s Dao of Moonlight was one such Unique Dao, which ushered in moons and moonlight as laws of the universe in response to his Dao.

Lex did not learn any of the specific details regarding Minor, Major or Unique Daos. Instead, the knowledge he gained diverted its focus on the relationship between Daos and laws. The actual relationship was complex, and far beyond his current comprehension. What mattered was that Daos and laws were intricately linked.

The Demi-Dao state, this, was not actually one specific state or cultivation realm. There were actually a number of ways in which one could attain the rank of Demi-Dao Lord.

Yet Lex’s question wasn’t about Demi-Dao Lords, but about how he could use a Dao Body to influence the Dao. The specific answer was that he could not. Instead, he could use a Dao Body to manipulate laws with sufficient understanding and comprehension such that their influence approached the state of being equal to a Dao.

The how of it, and the actual requirements, not to mention the depth of understanding of laws required to reach such a state were all missing from the knowledge Lex got. What he did get in the stream of knowledge was the awareness that while theoretically possible, it was incredibly difficult to pull off.

To be more specific, Lex had a greater chance of becoming a Dao Lord than of manipulating laws to the point where the effect reached the point of being equal to a Dao.

While the specific details were all missing, the framework was all there, now safely tucked inside Lex’s brain.

When the stream of data ended, it took Lex several minutes to recover from the mental burden of it even with the protection he had. When he opened his eyes, he looked at Regix with an entirely different look. Alright, so the orb wasn’t a swindler.

"So, how was it?" asked Regix with a somewhat smug tone. "I wasn’t messing with you, was I?"

Lex was about to agree, but then quickly paused.

"Actually, you could still be swindling me," he said. "I hadn’t thought about it before, but you told me about a topic I knew nothing about. Naturally I’ll have to take everything you say as if it’s true. Only if I ask you about a topic I already know a lot about can I verify if you hold real knowledge. Go ahead, talk to me about karma or defensive barriers. I’ll judge whether your knowledge is genuine or fake."

The orb snorted, clearly sensing what Lex was trying to do.

"Don’t mess with me kid. I’ve sincerely introduced myself, now it’s your turn. I have yet to determine whether you can even help me or not, so stop trying to probe me. If you’re not interested, I’ll just send you back and you can forget this even happened," the orb said in an agitated voice.

Lex restrained his requests. There was something in the orb’s tone that just made Lex want to taunt and annoy it, so it was tough to restrain himself when there was an opportunity to annoy and benefit from him. But, faced with that threat, he had no choice. The opportunity to learn more about how to control systems was too valuable.

"Fine, fine, don’t be so stingy," Lex said, waving his hand. "What is there to tell? I’m a human, my name is Lexus Will.I.Am, and I am a habitual overachiever which is what got me here - wherever this is. So what exactly is it that you want or need from me?"

The orb hummed for a moment, as if it was processing some information.

"Ha ha, very funny. An indirect lie is still a lie. But fine, I commend your cautious nature. I suppose you would not have been able to complete a quest to such a high level if you weren’t like this. The problem, however, is that the task I require of you demands, at minimum, a Dao Lord to be able to complete. You, clearly, do not meet that requirement."

Lex raised his eyebrow, feeling curious.

"Why don’t you tell me what you want, and let me judge whether it’s possible or not," Lex countered. "After all, I was able to activate Code Regix, which countless others before me haven’t been able to do. Yet I did it as a Heaven Immortal."

The orb paused for a second, and upon thinking for a moment, was forced to agree.

"Alright, fine. I’ll tell you the details of my request. If you can really help me complete it, I can teach you whatever you want to learn, and this time, in full. Even if you want to learn how to hack systems, it is not out of the question."