The Innkeeper

Chapter 2443: From bad to worse

The tribulation was doing funny things. Lex didn’t know exactly what was happening, but he could tell for certain that something was going awry. At the same time, his system was going haywire, his divine energy was running out, Mary was screaming in his ear and Daekol was getting away. Oh, and his healing had also slowed down due to whatever was happening with his tribulation.

It was all a bit overwhelming, and yet... Lex adapted quickly. He was injured, weakened, borderline overwhelmed, but most of all, he was incensed. It was all those damn Phoenix’s fault... no wait, it was all that damn Sovereigns fault.

No matter what happened, he would not let him get away. But at the same time, this system absorbing Primordial energy was also not something he could ignore.

In truth, Lex was severely underestimating the seriousness of the issue, mainly because the malfunctioning system was not informing him that a Universal Mandate was on the verge of being disobeyed. While Lex himself did not know what the Universal Mandates were, his experience inside Abaddon where even the system gave him a notification proclaiming its adherence to the mandates let him know that it was not the kind of thing he could overlook.

Within the Primary realm, the stele upon which the mandates were written trembled, and that was enough to cause a universal emergency far beyond the scope of even what the ongoing war had caused.

Asux, the Primal Monarch, along with a few of the Primal Kings who were still around, immediately arrived around the mandate, trying to peer into who was on the verge of breaking a mandate! There was no question that as soon as they discovered the identity of the perpetrator, they would unleash any weapon they needed to so that he could be stopped.

The Primals exchanged no words, nor did they glance at one another. All their focus was on the stele as Asux tried to connect with the stele to learn the identity of whoever was about to break a mandate.

In a situation like this, even Nuwa dared not interfere, nor could she even if she wanted to. When Eclipse brought Lex into the Primordial Garden, she had made sure to give him the privacy he needed, which meant that Nuwa had no idea what was happening.

Eclipse did not have her powers which is why she could not see into the issue Lex was having, nor could the others who were with her. Yes, some of them, such as Nulli, sensed that a mandate was about to be broken, but she could not tell who was causing it. Naturally, she could not connect it to Lex since there were no signs just yet that he was the source of this trouble.

The more urgent the situation, the more calm Lex became. He reassessed his priorities, and barely placed addressing the system issue above hunting down Daekol, though he did not stop that either.

He connected with the system and, for the first time in so many years, sensed the condition of the Midnight Inn. Contrary to the mess his notification tab was filled with, the Inn itself seemed entirely and utterly calm, though he noticed many key members missing. He could not spare any thought to investigate their whereabouts right then, though.

A projection of the Innkeeper appeared within the Midnight Inn. He appeared without any fanfare at all, so at first no one sensed him - at least within the Inn.

Asux and the other Primals, however, locked on to an image of the Innkeeper who seemed to appear out of the darkness. He wasn’t quite the cause of the mandate break, but he was certainly connected to it.

"Who is that?" Asux asked, even as he prepared to launch an attack across the universe itself.

"The Innkeeper - a mysterious Dao Lord, with little to no information about his identity or past being leaked. Even his race is not entirely confirmed," responded one of the Primal Kings. "Even if he is not the culprit, the target is surely nearby. I say we eradicate the very realm he’s in for safety."

Asux did not respond to the suggestion just yet, although he was preparing to act as soon as he needed to.

From the moment Lex unlocked his system till now, half a second had passed. The liquid from the tribulation pool, which was until now healing him, suddenly became thick and viscous, trapping Lex within instead of healing him.

The tribulation was investigating, trying to understand what the cause of the anomaly was. Lex himself did not understand what was happening, but he could roughly guess that this had something to do with the Primordial energy.

He clicked his teeth, more annoyed than concerned by the situation. A mere system, one that was connected to him and largely under his control, could not cause him to be worried. Instead, he had another idea.

"Mary, the system is not obeying its own rules right now," said Lex, his tone entirely calm despite the situation. "I think this may be the perfect moment for me to remove your soul from the system itself. Guide me on how to do it."

Mary, who had been building her body for all this time, paused. Lex was right. This really was the perfect opportunity, but the danger...

"Be at ease," said Lex, his presence and visage spreading the calm and confidence that had so long been associated with the Innkeeper. The difference was, this time, it wasn’t just the Host Attire causing that feeling. Lex himself had the confidence to deal with this situation. "Just tell me what to do, and leave the rest to me."

As he spoke, Lex also unleashed his Sovereign realm, tightly wrapped around his main body so as to affect his body, soul, and most importantly, the system that resided within.

By now, one full second had passed by, and the tribulation was probing inside Lex’s body, yet seemed to be blocked by the Sovereign realm. Lex could not allow the tribulation to sense the system - his instincts told him that would lead to a very bad outcome.

Yet even if the tribulation itself could not directly probe him, the universe itself was in search of the criminal who dared even attempt breaking a Universal Mandate. While the culprit remained hidden, for now, much like Asux himself, the universe locked in on the appearance of the Innkeeper.

Suddenly, every Dao Lord in the universe, asleep or awake, free or imprisoned, learned of the Innkeeper as the universe spread the information in the hopes that someone could find him, and the criminal acting against the mandates.

This was no longer a projection in the sky or a vision from a tribulation - this was a direct message being sent into the minds of all Dao Lords! Unfortunately, since Lex himself was not a Dao Lord, he was not aware of the situation, and he continued to act as normal.