The Innkeeper

Chapter 2426: The woman she had become II

The two armies were not large - especially when considering that they were about to raid an entire realm. The entire population of that realm, according to the data Velma had collected, was around 3 billion.

Of that, there were around 600 million combatants, most of them in the mortal levels. Naturally, as the cultivation level rose their numbers dwindled, but quantity had its own advantage.

Apparently, the population of the realm used to be far greater, well over 20 billion. However, the realm had suffered from a prolonged war between countless tribal warlords, from among whom the Grand Conqueror had emerged. By the time he unified the realm, the population had dwindled severely.

This 3 billion now was a result of active efforts to regrow the population.

The Midnight Inn wasn’t short of people either. Since they handled billions of guests, the number of workers naturally had to be increased.

Before she became an immortal, Velma never questioned these things. However, after becoming an immortal, and especially after reaching the Celestial Immortal realm, Velma became clear of many things. She and many of the workers of the Inn hadn’t been born naturally.

They had been born directly from the Innkeepers power, even if she did not understand the specific details of how it was done. Whether it was through the DNA of people who were long gone, or through some esoteric spirit or Dao techniques, none of it actually mattered.

What mattered was that most of the workers of the Inn were like her. Such things weren’t entirely uncommon inside the universe. However, the extent of freedom of expression they had been given was very unlike what most organizations did after specially creating workers like them.

Typically, a specific training routine would be followed to indoctrinate them and mould their personalities to the specific needs of whoever had created them. Nothing like that had been done at the Inn, so even though the Inn too had hundreds of millions of workers by now, they had all sorts of personalities.

Since they grew up in a stable and safe environment, most of them were actually not very combative either. They, instead, usually focused on cultivating so that they could be better hosts!

Thus, the number of workers at the Inn, despite also being massive, could not make an army nearly as large as the ones to be found in the realm they were about to invade. In terms of quality, though, there was no equal.

Velma knew that for a fact. Across the entire universe, there was no collection of humans with as much potential as the Midnight Inn. That potential simply needed to be tapped. The Innkeeper chose to tap into that potential for the sake of hospitality. Today, however, they would, of their own violation, channel that potential towards a different kind of hospitality.

"It’s time," she said, her voice carrying a certain kind of power that infected the very bones of all who heard it. "We have all lived our lives for the sake of welcoming the guests of the Inn, and showing the universe the boundless graciousness and hospitality of the Midnight Inn. We have lived that life, and we have shown the universe our character. In return, so many of our guests have aided us in our time of need - as you all have already seen."

The members of the armies nodded subtly, thinking back to everyone who had aided them in preparation for this event.

"But the universe is a vast place, and alongside those with wisdom, there are those who lack it entirely. The hospitality of the Midnight Inn has been tested. One of our own was taken from within our very homes. It was taken for granted that we, as gracious hosts, would say nothing while others come in and make a mockery of our hospitable nature. Well, now is the time to show the universe what we are like... when we are crossed! No mercy!"

Velma’s last two words thundered across the Midnight Inn, carrying within them the anger and grievance of one who had been accosted.

"We go to those who took advantage of us, to those who took one of ours and enslaved them. We are not marauders or bandits, but we are also not lambs who will only bleat while we are slaughtered. To those who have harmed the houses of Midnight, we will show no mercy! Do not hesitate. Do not hold back. Today, we march with purpose, and the universe needs to feel the depth of our purpose!"

As Velma’s words echoed, the armies were filled with an unbreakable resolve. There was no hooting, no screaming, no war cries just yet. They were not acting in the heat of passion - no, they were about to carry out a highly strategic and precise set of actions, and that required cooled heads and clear minds.

They were marching today for a purpose, and everything they did now was in service to that purpose.

"It’s time," Velma whispered, repeating the words once more as she sent a signal to the devils awaiting her command. She was the first to vanish, but she was hardly the last. One by one, all the soldiers began to disappear as they were carried over by the devils to the realm they were about to invade.

Luthor, who was standing in one corner, suddenly discovered that... Velma was actually pretty scary. No one else had felt it as clearly as him, simply because he was the one most familiar with Conceptualized Torment - the seed of a hell. The torment itself was irrelevant in this situation. What was more relevant was that Luthor had an in-depth understanding of the deep, more esoteric versions of things like killing intent and bloodlust.

When Velma said ’no mercy’, he could feel the extent of her anger, and he realized that while everyone was incredibly impressed with everything she had achieved so far, in truth she was holding herself back. The moment she stopped doing that and unleashed her anger, they would truly realize what it meant that hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. Or, well, in this case a woman whose younger brother was kidnapped.

Her own nature was that of a friendly, chirpy, happy young girl. It was the universe which had forced into the woman she had now become - and someone was going to pay the price for that dearly