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Chapter 745 Letter

The envelope only read 'Lex' and had a smooth texture to it. After concluding that there was nothing amiss with the letter, Lex tore open the pale white packaging and revealed within it an off-white textured paper filled with a very pleasant handwriting. Lex once again found it odd that it was handwritten when it could have easily been printed, but ultimately chalked it all up to a quirk of Alexander's noble upbringing.

'<nulli >Lex,

<nulli >Were it that I would be writing to you in better circumstances, I would have thanked you profusely for your help. You not only saved my life, surely, but that of countless others as well, and that deserves no shortage of gratitude, especially since it was not your duty to begin with.

<nulli >Unfortunately, circumstances are not pleasant so I must end the flattery here. I do not know if you were present during the final moments of Polebitvy, but the situation went drastically out of hand. It quickly became clear to us that there was something amiss with the insects, for towards the end their blood directly started warping and tearing space. The more insects we killed, the more fragile space became.

<nulli >When the order to retreat came, it was already too late. Only those I had distributed the keys to managed to escape when the night sky itself was torn asunder. What I am about to reveal to you now is confidential, and I have been informed that I will soon have a soul lock placed on me so that if I ever try to reveal it, I will be killed. Fortunately, they have not placed the lock yet, and there is a convenient loophole for me to use.

<nulli >The soul technique works on my memory, so I am writing this letter to you in the Chamber of Secrets, and once I finish, I will erase the memory of ever revealing it from my memory. That way, you will gain the relevant knowledge, and I will be safe from the consequences of the lock.

<nulli >The final tear that opened large enough to swallow Polebitvy did not open on its own, but a massive creature the likes of which I have never even imagined was on the other side of the rip, pulling space apart.

<nulli >It then pushed forth more arms from the tear, and seemed to grab the planet itself, before pulling it within. I, of course, did not stay long enough to see the event happen for myself, but one can imagine.

<nulli >I do not know what is actually happening, but I know enough to conclude that whatever is happening is far outside the capacity of even the Empire to handle. In this universe, one cannot rely on others for security, or at least not rely on others completely - that is the conclusion I have come to.

<nulli >My new goal will no longer be to hunt down the terrorists, especially since the empire no longer seems interested, and they claim that others are on the hunt now. Instead, my new focus will be on growing my strength.

<nulli >I have a confession to make. My family is not originally from earth, and instead we arrived there hundreds of years ago, escaping from an already long forgotten conflict. We brought along various secret heritages, one of which I managed to awake at a very young age, which is the real reason my family so carefully nurtured my growth. That is also why I was able to control six flying swords even before I unlocked my spirit sense!

<nulli >I am revealing this to you to let you know that while I am pursuing my own path to strength, I have every confidence that you, too, will do the same. However, should you ever find your path blocked, and need a heritage or technique to guide you along higher cultivation realms, my family's library is always open to you.

<nulli >By the time you read this letter, I will already be inside the mysterious tower that the empire is guarding. That tower has many secrets as well, and can serve as a shortcut for my growth. If you have time, you should try to practice there more as well. Who knows, we might just partner up again someday.

<nulli >Regards,

<nulli >Alexander Morrison'

Lex read the letter several times to ensure there was no secret message or code written within that he was missing, but there seemed to be none. Despite that, the information shared in the letter was very significant, and seen through a certain lens, Alexander even risked his life to share it with Lex.

Although it did not directly influence Lex to know that there was a creepy space monster able to tear space and then pull planets in - planets that it grabbed with its hands - it was still good to know. After all, what if one day he had such a guest? What if his guest ate planets for food? What was he supposed to do? Lex did not have any spare planets on hand to feed hungry guests.

On a serious note though, it reinforced Lex's motivation to get the hell out of the Origin realm and get far away from this ridiculous war. As for whether someone was able to find his new realm, and then start a war with him over it, were topics Lex was doing his best not to worry about. After all, there was little he could do in such a situation but fight back.

Taking in a deep breath, Lex calmed himself down and then looked at the spatial ring. Alexander had not mentioned it at all.

He channeled his spirit energy into the ring and discovered only a couple of things. One was a token that had a massive 'M' on it, likely representing the Morrison family. The other was a commendation letter for ACA Lex for discovering the poison early, and warning the empire about it. The letter stated that Lex had proven he had the ability to perform certain tasks where the empire failed, and that his stellar performance would be marked and speak in his favor with the empire in all his future endeavors.

Chapter 746 Refugees

Lex observed the two items. The commendation letter and the approval of the empire could possibly be useful in the future. After all, the empire spanned many galaxies so who knew when and where he might encounter their influence. But, at the moment, it served no real purpose.

Similarly, the token served no purpose for him right now, but the gesture it represented was very valuable. Besides possibly giving him access to the Morrison family's library of spiritual techniques, it also served as a token of Alexander's gratitude. That, to him, was worth more than the actual techniques he would likely encounter. After all, his own technique was nothing short of the best in the entire universe!

He smiled, and teleported them away to his study in his own apartment. If he ever needed to use either of the items he would have them, but otherwise they would enter his private collection.

Now it was time to turn his attention to other matters - specifically, the refugees. A quick scan revealed that roughly four thousand people who counted as such refugees could be found at the Inn - including Gisele and two very familiar kids.

There were supposed to be more, but they had already moved into the Minor realm that the empire was incharge of protecting. The ones who were still here were the ones still recovering from the effects of the poison that had infected their bodies.

Charles had been very effective in treating the incredibly dangerous poison for some reason, and his treatment didn't even include chocolate this time - or leeches! In his own words, while he was not too familiar with the human body, he was well versed in the habits and behavior shown by nature, plants, small animals and insects. He could use just that understanding to manipulate nature in certain ways, and even the most toxic poison was still a part of nature.

He sounded a lot like an elf or a druid to Lex, but as long his methods worked, who was he to question him? As much as Charles wanted to continue to enforce his methods on the remainder of their treatment, he couldn't manage that, alongside all the other numerous tasks he had to perform in the little time he had. Lex slightly suspected the man had ADHD for he was delving into too many unrelated matters. Still, his incredibly high competence in each field made it so that Lex did not mind too much.

Lex explored various options that the system gave him, and even consulted Mary on what he could do. He even considered the possibility of hosting a very specific event, but it was all for naught. The only way for the refugees to escape to another planet was if their prestige level rose and then they chose to teleport to another planet linked to the Inn. Speaking of which, it also needed to be mentioned that the connection to Polebitvy still existed.

That meant that the planet had survived being ripped out of its star system, and whatever else it had been exposed to during its time in its first ever field trip. He sighed and scanned the Inn to search for whichever Jotun officer was incharge of the refugees, and was surprised to find that it was the very senior Alexander had taken him to. The man seemed to have lost a lot of weight in the past two weeks, and looked pale and sick, yet he was still attending to some paperwork. Lex recalled that the man was called Radamei.

Instead of summoning him, Lex teleported over himself, and knocked on the man's door.

"Come in, come in!" he said in a somewhat hoarse voice. It was clear that he had suffered some kind of injury to his throat since he last saw Lex, and his voice had been affected.

"Excuse me for interrupting you, dear guest. I am the Innkeeper, owner of this humble establishment," he introduced himself as he entered his room. There were piles of paper everywhere, and temporarily set up computer screens all over, making the small bedroom appear quite messy.

Radamei was startled, and immediately stood up, revealing various bandages all over his body.

"Innkeeper! It is an honor to meet you! Your Inn has saved a lot of lives! A lot of lives I tell you!"

"Yes, I heard of your plight. It is fortunate that you were able to get your hands on the keys to the Inn. If only command had listened…" Radamei's voice faded out as his thoughts seemed to drift off. Clearly, the man had not yet completely recovered from the trauma he suffered.

Lex could not even blame him. Watching a massive monster grab ahold of your planet and then suck it into a tear must have shaken up a lot of people's minds.

"Unfortunately, there is a small issue," the Innkeeper said softly, waking the man up from his thoughts. "Everyone who escaped is stuck here unless they attain a prestige level and teleport to another planet. Though I wish to help, I cannot break the rules of the Inn, or else how can I expect others to follow?"

"Having a way out is already good enough, not to mention the empire is preparing camps within another Minor realm to relocate everyone. With time, everyone will get a chance to leave eventually."

"I'm glad you have a positive outlook on this matter. The survivors are lucky to have someone like you keeping an eye out for them."

Radamei only shook his head, as if he disagreed, but did not say anything. Clearly the man needed some rest as well, though it did not seem like he would be getting any in the near future.

Lex left the room, and was finally free to do his own tasks, when an idea suddenly came to him. He changed out of his Host Attire and put on his Clark Kent glasses before approaching Charles as Leo. He thought of a good way to test the extent of Charles' unique insight.

Chapter 747 Energy crystal

Charles was taking down notes in a notebook he was holding, while looking up at the sleeping Mountain-man. From time to time he would mumble to himself, as if he was speculating about the effectiveness of certain treatments.

It was only when 'Leo' approached him and coughed, as if clearing his throat, that Charles realized that someone had arrived.

"I hope I'm not disturbing you, but I thought I'd introduce myself. My name is Leo, I'm the owner of the Gamer's Den store. It's a pleasure to meet you. I've heard excellent things about your expertise in medicine."

"I still have much to learn," Charles said humbly, though it seemed like he really meant it. The conundrum of how to treat the Mountain-man really had him stumped, as its size was a major factor in every treatment method he could come up with. Ultimately, without any cultivation, his methods were extremely limited.

"Well, now that you're one of us, you can just list down whatever you need to help you grow and the Innkeeper will take care of it. It wouldn't be such a bad idea to start cultivating now, either. After all, the stronger you get, the more your capabilities will grow."

"If the Innkeeper can help, that would be great, but I'm afraid it's not so easy for me to cultivate due to my unique physique. I can't absorb normal spirit energy. I need highly concentrated spirit energy found only in extremely pure Crystals. That's not the same as spirit stones as…"

Before Charles could continue to describe what he needed, Lex was reminded of something and summoned out an energy crystal from his spatial bangle. In the Crystal realm, this was a very valuable energy resource used for cultivation by Earth Immortals and the Crystal race. The energy stored within was even more dense, as well as more pure than even the highest grade spirit stone that Lex had ever seen, not that he really used those for cultivation anymore. After all, the environment at the Inn was more than enough to meet his needs.

Charles, though, was stumped when he saw the crystal in Leo's hand! This was not something he expected to find any time soon, as these energy crystals were only formed in the early years of a realms life. They were available in limited amounts in any realm, and could not typically be replenished even across the remainder of a realms lifespan.

"Is this what you need?" Leo asked quite casually, waking Charles from his stupor.

"How… how did you get that? They're unbelievably rare! In fact, they should have all been used up billions of years ago!"

"I wouldn't say they're common, but in one of the realms that the Midnight Inn is connected to, they can be easily accessed by a person with a certain level of connections. At least, that's the case in the one other realm I've been to. It's possible that it's even more common in other realms."

Charles was dumbfounded. When he heard that the Inn catered to guests from across the universe, he took that as more of a spiritual saying or mantra than something literal. How could he imagine that the Inn is actually linked to other realms?

But he quickly suppressed his shock and focused on the matter at hand. If he could get his hands on these crystals, it would be possible for him to quickly raise his cultivation. He was confident of becoming an immortal within a decade, if not sooner. But, the problem right now was that he had no collateral with which he could bargain, and no resources with which he could purchase these crystals.

"How can I get my hands on some of these crystals? With them, I can begin cultivating immediately!"

"Well, the Inn will pay you a salary in MP, and you can use that at the Guild room to request these energy crystals. But that may take you some time, Or… you can get them from me. I don't really need MP as repayment, though. Do you have anything else you can pay me with?"

Charles clenched his fists as he racked his brain, trying to come up with a solution. The only thing of value he had… was his knowledge. Was that something Leo would be interested in?

"The only thing I can pay you with is certain knowledge. Or maybe I can treat you if you're ill."

Lex paused. Both options weren't bad. He wanted to know about Charles' secrets, but at the same time, treatment was also something he was looking forward to.

"We can come up with an arrangement. I do seek treatment, but I'm not entirely sure you're able to address what ails me. If that's the case, you can trade an interesting secret. If I think it's worth it, I'll give you the crystal. Don't worry, I won't be unfair on purpose."

Charles agreed all too quickly. At first, when he had no hope of cultivating anytime soon, he had all the patience in the world. But now that the prize was dangling in front of his eyes, he could scarcely control himself.

What Lex wanted treated were the inscriptions hidden within his body, but he had doubts that Charles could even detect them at his current stage. That's why he was so interested in having Charles cultivate and improve his capabilities.

Feeling fairly confident, Charles inspected Leo's boy and discovered nothing. He did not recognize Leo as Lex despite having treated him before, because the effects of the Clark Kent glasses were quite thorough.

Charles frowned, and investigated for a while longer, before eventually giving up.

"I can't discover anything wrong with you," he admitted, feeling slightly tense.

"In that case, an interesting secret it is. Though I advise you to choose carefully. Revealing a mundane secret, like your current crush, will not really be worth an energy crystal."

Charles felt like Leo was teasing him on purpose. How could he possibly have a crush on anyone? He'd hardly met any elves so far.

Chapter 748 Cosmic Dark Age

Charles eyed the energy crystal greedily and his mind raced as he considered various things. He did not know Leo's character, and although he was inclined to believe in a colleague, it was best to be sure.

"What are some topics that interest you? If you provide me with some guidance, I can better choose what to reveal."

What interested him? There were truly too many things, but none of them were topics ordinary folk could come into contact with. But then again, since he was testing Charles to begin with, there was no point in mentioning something simple. He thought for a moment about what topics he had been considering lately.

"I have many random interests, so I'll just list them out. Hmm, these days I've been wondering a lot about how a realm is formed, and what happens after it is created. I've also been wondering… what is 'space' really? If space itself is torn, how can there be something behind it? Hmm, I've also been thinking about deities, and how they come to be. Why do they need worshippers? Can anyone become a deity if they're worshiped enough? Oh yes, I was also wondering where lightning tribulations come from, and why they're the same across multiple realms. Is it a coincidence? I've also…"

"Alright, alright, that's enough," Charles said, before Lex really began listing out all the random thoughts he'd had recently. To Charles, these really could only be random thoughts, for how could they be relevant to someone at Lex's cultivation level? These were extremely high-level concepts that not even immortals had the right to ponder.

Fortunately, Charles was in the unique position to answer not just some of them, but all of them! Of course, he would not so easily reveal these answers, for that would present problems of their own. After all, how could a mortal know the secrets of the heavens?

"I cannot say how a realm is formed, but as luck would have it, I coincidentally learned some information about the early years of a realms existence," Charles said, as he cleared his throat. He also looked around to ensure they were alone, and once he was satisfied, continued.

"Each realm is different, but what they have in common is that they are born with a massive burst of energy. This initial energy is the purest form of energy in the universe, chaos energy. But because of its potency, it is also too dangerous and is akin to poison to most beings. Only the strongest of immortals, as well as some unique beings, can tolerate this form of energy.

"The first phase of a realms life is converting that extremely pure and powerful energy into various more tolerable and gentle forms of energy. This period is known as the Cosmic Dark Age, as hardly any life can exist during this time. But any being and anything that is born or formed during this time are exceptionally powerful or valuable. That is because they undergo the tempering of the foremost energy in the universe, so it is only natural."

Charles knew much more, but he stopped speaking at that point. He had already revealed a lot, and surely it was already worth more than just a single energy crystal. Lex had been listening closely. Although he could not confirm if what Charles said was true, the information he had revealed was very important.

If the energy when the new realm was formed was poisonous, how could he host guests? Although he was fairly certain that the system itself would manage to keep guests from being passively harmed by the environment, as it did with cultivators' natural auras, he also had to take precautions. After all, he clearly remembered being told to 'be prepared' when he was told that the new realm would be born in two years' time.

He nodded to Charles, as if saying he accepted this little tidbit of information, and calmly handed in 10 energy crystals. Although he did not have many on hand, he had more than enough to cater to Charles' needs for the moment. After all, Pvarti wasn't the only one who had received a lot of gifts during the wedding.

"If you need more in the future, you can reach out to me. We'll have the same deal," said Lex, before he teleported away. Now that he was done with this, he was heading towards the emporium to pick up a package he had been anticipating for a while.

*****

<nullb >Cosmic Cloud

A furious battle was taking place in what was once a natural paradise. The burnt and crisp remains of some kind of orchard could still be seen here and there, though mostly all one would see were corpses.

This was a battlefield where the Henali forces had been losing badly, and for once, even the arrival of the Midnight battalion did not change that. But how could it? The battalion consisted only of Foundation level cultivators, but the enemies were the absolute elites of the Golden core realm.

On one side was a massive army that the battalion was reinforcing, and on the other side only a few dozen bipedal beasts, yet the favor of the battle seemed to be on the beasts' side.

More reinforcements were due, but they would have to survive long enough for that to happen.

Fortunately, despite the dire situation, none from the battalion had died, though this time the credit remained solely with their formidable attire.

In the midst of battle, Z made use of his space affinity to disrupt an attacking beast, but for some strange reason, instead of forming a barrier in space, space itself was torn. Though that was not his intention, it seemed to serve the purpose as the beast quickly retreated to avoid the tear.

His allies breathed a sigh of relief and continued the fight, but only Z frowned as he kept looking at the tear that was already healing.

'<nulli >That was not supposed to happen,' he kept telling himself, as he wondered what had happened.