The Innkeeper

Chapter 2488: No need to mention money between friends

Mary looked at Lex’s casual attitude and understood better than anyone just how big a deal it was. As someone who was constantly on alert for threats from stronger entities, as someone who was always suspicious, and as someone who was so used to seeing a darker side, to empower someone else beyond themself was the greatest display of trust that could exist.

"They basically don’t exist anymore," Mary said as she looked down at Autumn Rain. "Over billions and billions of years, many Dao Lords have suffered, and items which can heal damaged Daos are exceptionally rare to the point where a Major realm might not even produce one in its lifetime.

"A Dao item, and a Dao item which can heal Dao injuries are two entirely different concepts in terms of rarity. Certain Dao items still have predictable and stable environments in which they can be created, but Dao items which can heal Daos are basically all accidents. I’ve never heard of one being created under stable circumstances.

"That’s because each Dao, specifically referring to the Daos belonging to Dao Lords, is unique in its own way. To find an item which can generically heal Daos is... it’s too hard. Something like this Autumn Rain might be a unique item not just now, but throughout the history of the universe."

Mary’s words did not make Lex feel any regret or temptation. Regardless of how rare an item was, its worth and value only came out of its use. If it was never used, then the distinction between useless and priceless was in mere perception. Since he had decided to help Mary, he would not regret it regardless of what happened.

Besides, it would be good to have a genuine Dao Lord backing up the Midnight Inn for once. His greatest fear since starting the Inn would go away.

"Hurry up and use it," said Lex, not responding to her explanation in the way she expected. "Or do you think using it will occupy you for a time? If that’s the case you can delay it a bit because I need to consult you on a very important matter."

Mary shook her head, and then tossed the unique and one-of-a-kind orb back at Lex. It was so sudden that he almost crushed the orb due to the urgency with which he grabbed it.

"This thing is great, but it’s useless for me. When I designed this body, I did so with a specific goal in mind. I do not want to simply heal my fractured Dao, I want to evolve it into something far greater. The fact that my Dao was fractured means it wasn’t as great as I thought it was. Evolving it will be far harder if that thing is restored, which is why I’m fine the way I am for now."

Lex was surprised by Mary’s words. She was usually very laid back about things unless there was an emergency or Lex made a big mistake. To see her like this, filled with such immense ambition, was a first time for Lex. It was a new side to her he’d never seen before.

"Don’t tell me you’re making up a bad excuse to turn down the orb because you feel guilty?" Lex asked suspiciously.

Mary rolled her eyes and snorted.

"Who do you think you’re talking to, mister? The one who stands before you is no longer a mere holographic assistant. The system you’re so dependent on was something that gained its rank because of me. I am a queen among queens, a leader among leaders, a champion among champions!

"You’ve done a lot of big stuff, but you haven’t earned the right to look down on me yet little man. Think of all the things your system has done for you - all the rewards it gave you, and items it brought you. Now try to imagine what the system was capable of at its peak rank, in the hands of a Dao Lord. Now realize you can’t even imagine what that must be like, and then bow down at my greatness."

Mary rested both her arms at her hips as she stood in a mighty pose, showing off her incredible profile. Lex, meanwhile, rolled his own eyes. Okay true, he couldn’t imagine what that must have been like. But there was no way he was going to bow down.

"Fine, fine, you don’t need the orb. You’ll deal with your own recovery on your own. By the way, I’m facing a huge money shortage so I’ll just treat every resource I donated towards your new body as a loan at a 1% interest per century. Take your time to pay me back, I don’t mind. I’m sure a super powerful Dao Lord like you won’t have any issues paying me back."

Mary clicked her tongue. Now that was just petty.

"You can adjust the bill against the fee for my tuition. Let’s see, a Dao Lord level tutor, available 24/7 for X many years to guide you on your cultivation journey, adjusting for inflation, overtime and holidays, totals to about all the money you’ll ever make for the next billion years, and that’s just the interest."

Lex clicked his tongue. Mary had learned the ways of capitalism fast. It would not be so easy to scam her in the future.

"Okay, okay, what’s all this talk about money between friends? Even jokes can foul relationships sometimes so we should put that kind of talk behind us. Now, we have actual, real problems to talk about. The universe-wants-to-eat-the-Midnight-realm kind of problems. If you have any advice, oh queen of queens, now would be the time to get it."

Mary smirked, and willed her clothes to change, but they didn’t. She remained in her patient’s outfit. She sighed internally. She just couldn’t get used to how weak she had become. Unable to spawn new clothes into creation upon a whim? If anyone found out, she’d never be able to show her face in public again.

"Start from the beginning," she said as she sat down. "When you lost contact with the system, what happened next?"