The Innkeeper

Already familiar with the Innkeeper somewhat now, Sophia put a great deal of stock in whatever he had to say, which is why all her attention was now focused on the Innkeeper. She did not find it strange at all that the Innkeeper teleported so abruptly, or that he immediately started speaking without any preamble. Everyone who spent some time at the Inn knew that the Innkeeper had a tendency to appear and disappear as he wished.

Lex observed Rafael's status one more time before he spoke.

Name: Rafael Carter Bravi

Age: 37

Sex: Male

Cultivation Details: crippled

Species: Human

Midnight Inn Prestige Level: 1

Condition:

Because a majority of the patient's body is newly constructed, or is still undergoing reconstruction, it is taking time for the soul to adjust to the new vessel. However, the soul is being quickly replenished and strengthened by an artifact within the patient's heart. Letting the patient stay in the ORR until the rest of the body undergoes reconstruction is recommended.

Remarks: If it is one's destiny to die, the universe itself cannot stop it. If one is destined to live, then the universe itself will bend itself around you to provide the conditions for you to live.

He felt like he should leave the matter about the artifact out, as he should afford the man some privacy at least. After all, although he himself was not aware, he was also a guest at the Inn. Not to mention, an artifact that not only keeps him from dying for 15 years but also heals the soul was ridiculously rare as far as Lex knew, so the fewer people that knew about it, the better.

"As your son's body is being reconstructed, his soul is also automatically healing itself. Although it's unexpected, it's not unprecedented. So, congratulations. Your son should recover completely soon."

Sophia trembled as heard the news, and couldn't stop tears from falling from her eyes. Despite all the resentment that had built up over the years, she instinctively hugged Marlo and squeezed with all her might as she tried to control her emotions.

"Thank you for the news," was all Marlo said, as he held his wife in his embrace. His voice was just as even as when he was telling Lex his son's story. He was a strong man, in more ways than one.

After checking up on the situation one more time, Lex left to give the couple their privacy. He had many things to take care of.

*****

Xeon was tired. Not physically, although that drain was also there, but his exhaustion was mental. As a preeminent celebrity, exceptional artist, and all-in-all genius in the way of crafting and refining, he never got a moment's rest. Everywhere he went, he would be swarmed by a crowd of admirers, asking for autographs or requesting him to make jewelry or equipment.

For goodness sakes, all he did was craft a crown that made its wear 10,000% more likely to encounter an epiphany under the Nascent realm, and a necklace that absorbed harmful radiation and released it as gentle spirit energy for the wearer to absorb. Was that any reason to overwhelm him? As far as he was concerned, it was not even his best work - visually speaking, of course.

The exhausted drake opened the window of his 30 story castle, but was immediately inundated by the cheers of endless crowds. Immediately, he closed the window again. This is what he got for accidentally being discovered for hiding his identity and helping ordinary people by crafting them Gold grade equipment.

What he wouldn't give to get away from it all. As if an answer to his prayer, a magnificently carved, golden door appeared in front of his eyes, hovering midair. He felt a welcoming call from the door, as if freedom lay just a step away.

He didn't even care how suspicious this was. He needed to get away from all females, and some males, who kept hurling themselves at him in the heat of lust. So, without any planning or precaution, the drake stepped through the door.

Half an hour later, a suspiciously dressed man sneaked into the room where Xeon had left from, and searched. After ensuring the drake was not hiding, the man called someone.

"Team leader, the target has disappeared. He is not at home."

"Continue hiding. If he doesn't reappear in a week, we can only applaud the Dimitri family for being exceptionally cautious."

"Understood," the man replied before retreating into the shadows. He was not here for an assassination, but to kidnap his target. He did not often fail his missions, but in the scenario where the target disappeared, there was nothing he could do except wait and hope for his return.

*****

When Xeon stepped through the door, he received a prompt asking him if he wanted to hide his identity. Although he did not know where he was going, his deepest fear was being recognized once again, so he selected 'Yes' and wore the glasses that appeared in front of him.

The drake found himself standing in front of a manor, surrounded by vast open fields and a clear blue sky. The air was so clean, breathing felt like he was partaking in a delicacy. As a drake, with much sharper senses than many other species like humans, he was extremely sensitive to noise and air pollution. It was also for this reason that he enjoyed the atmosphere at the Inn more than others as well.

This wasn't even considering the concentration and purity of spirit energy in the air, that made him feel like each of his scales absorbing the energy in the air and growing stronger naturally.

Two humans stood in front of the manor, and it seemed like they had been talking before Xeon's arrival, but now he had attracted their attention. He silently lamented in his heart. Such was the burden of a genius. Even with his identity hidden, he became the center of attention. It seemed gold would always shine.

"Welcome guest, to the Midnight Inn. I am the Innkeeper, owner of this humble establishment. You look… tired. Would you like to rest by our lovely and peaceful lake? It is most… relaxing."

Xeon was surprised. Firstly, he was not expecting to arrive at an Inn. Secondly, he did not expect this Innkeeper was so insightful as to be able to immediately guess what he needed.

"Why yes, that sounds lovely," Xeon said happily. "You said this is an Inn? Can you tell me more about it? I desperately need a vacation."

Lex walked side by side with the massive, five feet tall and eight feet long drake, completely undeterred by the sharp contrast in the appearance and personality of his guest. He looked like a living, breathing war machine, with talons so sharp they could pierce through bones like butter and glossy but heavy looking scales. Along his spine and all the way to the edge of his tail ran some kind of exoskeleton, black, with sharp grooves and ridges. His eyes were that of an apex predator and his fangs looked like they had come out of a horror movie.

His personality, however, was like that of a child. Of course, Lex had barely talked with him and so it was too soon to judge, but he had a strong gut feeling about him.

He recalled the drakes status.

Name: Xeon

Age: 112

Sex: Male

Cultivation Details: Golden Core

Species: Drake

Midnight Inn Prestige Level: 1

Bloodline: Volcanic Drake

Condition:

Suffering from severe mental exhaustion from being worshiped for too long. Rest and relaxation are recommended.

Remarks: It is not without reason that dragons look down on drakes, but some try harder than others to shame their lineage.

As they walked, Lex introduced the Inn to the drake, giving him the usual spiel about catering to the whole universe etc.

The more the drake heard, the happier it became. In the grand scheme of things, his popularity was probably infinitesimal. There was probably no other guest in the entire Inn who knew about him, which meant that he would no longer be endlessly hounded so long as he was here.

He had not even reached the lake yet, and already the drake was feeling good. Lex, however, was thinking about something else. He either had to get Gerard a new vehicle, or he seriously needed to find someone to upgrade it according to his requirements. If more drakes showed up, they could not chauffeured around in a tiny cart as they simply would not fit, and if they had to be walked everywhere, it would take forever.

Speaking of Gerard… Lex had just been talking to him in front of the manor. The old looking man had started showing signs of his age regressing BECAUSE HE WAS ALREADY AT THE PEAK OF QI TRAINING!

Lex wanted to rip his own hair out. Not that he wasn't happy for Gerard, but he was the one with the system, so wasn't he supposed to be the fastest in cultivating? If compared to the standards on Earth, his cultivation was increasing like a rocket. But when compared to Gerard, Lex felt like he was barely moving.

To give reference to Gerards incredible speed of cultivation, it must be remembered that it took Alexander two years to break into the Foundation realm, and he set a world record. Gerard, technically speaking, had barely been cultivating for two months! Not only that, Gerard informed Lex that he felt like his bloodline was about to have a breakthrough, and requested a small break so he could focus on that.

Lex really needed to step up his own game.