The Innkeeper

Lex felt slightly confused as he did not understand the purpose of the crown, though he did however inherit some knowledge pertaining to it when it appeared. More specifically, he learnt how to control it so that he could make it appear or disappear. The crown also had some kind of ability which he could use at will, though he did not know what the ability did. He tried using it immediately, but noticed no change.

Putting his thoughts about the crown aside, Lex observed the space within the domain. It did not appear as if he was underground at all. Instead, it seemed like he was floating in the sky amidst the clouds, and far below him was the ground.

His eyes followed the natural contours of the land below, and found it more familiar than that of the Midnight realm. Although the plants were still that of the realm, this place seemed more similar to earth than not.

He spread out his spirit sense to get a feel for the area, and detected an abundance of wildlife in the lands below, most of them below the Foundation realm.

He also, for the first time in this realm, saw humans. Within the scope of his spirit sense, there were just two of them, and though he sensed that they were quite young, their builds were much greater than those of humans from earth.

The two humans, a boy and a girl, seemed to be fighting each other within a forest. Both were nearly seven feet (2.1 meters) tall and had extremely large muscles. Though they were nowhere near as muscular as Marlo at his peak, compared to normal humans it looked like they had been injecting steroids day and night.

"Pel you told me you had a shape shifting technique for humans? Although I am a human already, do you have a technique that will allow me to change my body shape?"

He did not want to deal with the hassle of coming in front of other humans looking like a baby. It would be much easier if he could return to his former appearance.

Without a word, Pel passed on the desired technique. Considering this was a kind of technique he had never used before, his monstrous comprehension would only be able to reduce his learning speed to a couple of minutes instead of making it instantaneous.

Lex did not mind as he brought himself towards the ground so he could get a better look at the humans, and figure out why they were fighting. Considering that both of them were in the Qi training realm, and seemed to be body cultivators rather than spiritual energy cultivators, Lex was not concerned about being discovered. Even without a stealth suit, the difference in their realms would allow him to stay hidden.

"Give up, wench, and make this easier on yourself," the boy said, wearing an ugly scowl. "Whether it's by my hands, or someone else's, your death warrant has already been signed. At least I'll make it quick!"

The girl did not respond. She was stronger than the boy, but he had better technique and a better weapon. She could not allow her attention to slip even the slightest.

Lex sat on a nearby tree branch and looked down on them, and read the behavior of their souls. The boy's thoughts seemed to be extremely chaotic, whereas the girl was under a lot of pressure, but was extremely focused.

There was some kind of warrant out for her? Was she a criminal?

He continued to watch as he hoped to learn more about this place from the two of them. He also found it interesting how he could see so many flaws in each of their movements. He actually felt like a true expert, watching some kids play.

The fight had already continued for a long time, and both of the fighters were beginning to get tired. Even as body cultivators, it wasn't as if they had unlimited stamina. While neither of them were able to take advantage of each other's exhaustion, a few wild animals who had been watching them for a while now would not let the chance slip.

A snake with wings that had wrapped itself around a tree suddenly lunged at the girl, intending to bite her neck. The boy saw the attacking snake and felt glee, as he swung his sword, intending to get the girl to dodge in the direction of the snake.

Yet while he saw the attack aiming for the girl, he missed the signs of the animal attacking him. From the ground a small creature suddenly burst out and bit into the man's foot.

He screamed and lost his balance, which gave the girl the opportunity she needed. She stabbed forward, coincidentally moving out of the way of the snake at just the right time.

She managed to stab the boy's neck, killing him, but instantly realized that her situation was not great.

A three way standoff appeared as the snake, the half buried creature and the girl warily looked at each other.

Lex felt that the opportunity was perfect for him to act like a mysterious and unknown powerhouse. He'd always been the one receiving help from those stronger than him, which is why now that he had gained a bit of strength, he had been feeling the urge to do the same.

Using his spirit sense, he transmitted an image as well as information about a sword attack to the girl.

The girl did not know what was happening. She just had a strong feeling, and visualized an attack in her mind that would end the standoff. She did not know where the thought came from, but her gut told her that it would work, so she did not hesitate.

She took a step forward, and just as she had visualized, the snake and the ground creature both lunged at her. Her hands moved with precision she never knew she had as she recreated the attack perfectly, managing to behead both creatures in one move.

Then she froze as disbelief gripped her. Had she really done that?