The Innkeeper

When the command carrier appeared close enough to the battlefront, Ragnar retreated to his private chambers and enabled all the security measures the room came with. Soon he heard the sound of a notification he was waiting for and sat down on a throne in the center of his room.

When he sat, his surroundings seemed to change, and he was no longer in his room, but instead he found himself in a cave, facing several other men sitting in similar thrones. This was not holographic projection; the throne had special enchantments that only he could activate which would lead him to a nearby Minor realm, temporarily formed just for the purpose of holding secret meetings.

Only other generals of the Jotun empire had access to such thrones, or those with authority even superior to the generals. This was because every word they spoke had major repercussions on the entire empire, and no chances could be taken for their conversations to be overheard. Even their casual conversations required sufficient authority for one to hear.

"Oh my, we have the honor of Hell's butcher joining us today. Don't tell me the Devils have decided to interfere here as well," said one of the six other men in the hall teasingly.

"You must remember, he is not just a butcher," said another one. "When his rank was raised to general, his Highness Serafol called him Son of the Empire. Where the empire has a need, the son will appear to fulfill it. But that does not bode well for us."

Ragnar only smiled mildly while the other generals joked about. Even the youngest of them were tens of thousands of years older than him. He, at a mere three and a half thousand years, was one of the youngest generals in the entire empire. Furthermore, he always had a soft spot for other humans. His ferocity would usually be reserved for demons and devils, or any of the other races that targeted humans. Now, among his peers in rank and strength, Ragnar did not mind filling the role of being the younger brother.

"This is no time for joking about," a harsh voice cut through the cave. A man walked in from the darkness, his face locked in a stern expression even as he spoke. All generals recognized this being, for it was no man but the spirit body of a sentient treasure that was stored in the center of the Pendal Galaxy.

"Now that Ragnar is finally here, I can begin your briefing. Things have changed, and drastically. While it seems that everything has been as usual on the battlefront, we've gotten reports of anomalies. Within the last five years, over 300 star systems just outside the quarantine zone have mysteriously been destroyed."

The battlefront was actually a specific zone just at the border of their galaxy, where this war was fought. What was happening beyond this border, or in the galaxy opposite to them, was none of their concern, their only job was to ensure their so called 'enemies' did not sneak into their galaxy. It was not easy, but at least it was not complicated since their enemies would only come from a specific region of space, so there was no threat of being backstabbed.

Outside the battlefront was a quarantine zone, which was a no development zone, in case the battle ever spread to those regions. Yet now there was trouble right outside the quarantine zone. Typically, it should not have been possible for anyone to sneak past them. Which meant there were two most likely possibilities: either their 'enemies' had somehow gotten reinforcements which were gearing up to attack the generals from the back and front, or that they had discovered a method to sneak past them. Whichever one it was, it was bad for them.

"It gets worse," the man said, his expression somehow becoming even more grave. "We suspect… they're nurturing a Jorlam."

All six generals stood up from their thrones, shock and a hint of fear showing in their eyes, Ragnar included. A Jorlam was an absolutely massive creature born in space such that the average star would be smaller than its eyeball. They were so extremely, ridiculously rare, that in the entire history of the Jotun empire, let alone encountering one, even rumors of a living one had not been heard. If the enemy was 'nurturing' one that meant it had already been born, and that was already too dangerous. The entire Pendal galaxy was at risk of being destroyed.

"We need proof of the Jorlam before we can ask for aid from the Henali alliance, but not only do we have no idea where it might be hiding, we have no way to get close without being detected."

A heavy silence filled the cave while everyone absorbed the information, and were waiting for the spirit body to continue, when suddenly, Ragnar had an idea.

"I may have a solution," Ragnar said, attracting disbelieving looks not only from his peers but from the spirit body as well. "News has probably not spread to you all, so first let me update you on my most recent assignment. There is an Inn…"

*****

Escaping from the battlefield was actually harder than Lex expected, though it was mostly due to the difficult terrain. Towards the edge of the battle, the ground turned soft and malleable, but his foot didn't actually sink in. The ground itself would stretch under the weight of his body. It was like running on elastic rubber.

In the end, he didn't even bother avoiding attacks because they did next to no harm. He just focused on maintaining his balance and getting away. This Minor realm was extremely desolate, even away from the battle. He had yet to see any vegetation of any kind, and so he could only imagine what the imps and trolls used for sustenance. Instead he saw unusual landscapes and terrains that made no sense. Currently he was standing at the base of a mountain range, except, unlike a normal mountain range that would extend across the land, this one… was shaped like an upside-down pyramid and rose into the sky.

Out of one mountain, grew three that rose vertically, and out of those, three more grew out and so on. The strange thing was that the base of each mountain was extremely small, and instead grew wider the higher it rose into the sky. Stranger still was that, considering the massive structure filling up the sky, it should be extremely dark where Lex stood - but it wasn't.

Each of the mountains was covered in crystals that refracted light so perfectly, sending beams of light to other crystals which then spread the light even further, that it was as bright as midday. He did not even try to understand how this formation came about, or whether it was natural or artificial. He just identified his path towards the energy source, which was somewhere in this range. To be clear, he wouldn't have to climb the mountains vertically. There were roads carved into the mountain sides just like one would see in any mountain that suffered from a flow of traffic.

Once he got a good idea of where he was headed, he didn't embark immediately. Although he had confidence in his defense and other abilities, there was nothing wrong with being fully prepared. Which brought his attention to the crown hanging by his waist. He held it in his hands and observed it.

As far as appearance was concerned, it was wholly unremarkable. There were no gems or intricate designs. It was a simple gold band with a few ridges throughout. But the function mattered more than appearance. He channeled his spiritual energy into it, but nothing seemed to happen. The energy circled through the crown and entered back into his body. The fact that the energy was able to seamlessly reenter his body was unusual, but not enough to be of any use. The Crystal man he had met earlier told him those following the True path could use it, so maybe he had to wear it to actually use it.

He hesitated for a moment, then carefully set the crown on his head. A gentle current of spiritual energy flowed around him as it was absorbed into his body, then directed towards the crown. A few moments later, the crown vibrated and activated.

Lex's senses merged with the crown as if it weren't a piece of jewelry but rather a part of his body. He could feel the crown act as an external meridian wrapped around his forehead with a stream of spiritual energy constantly flowing through it. But, most importantly, Lex felt a familiar, yet somehow foreign sensation overcome him. He entered a state of 'flow'.

It had been a long time since he naturally entered that state of 'flow', and he could immediately tell the difference between the state induced by the crown and the natural one. He had not yet entered the flow since he entered the Foundation realm, but he suspected that the benefits it had on him would have increased manifold. Comparatively, this artificial state still calmed his mind, accelerated his thoughts and helped him gain remarkably precise control over his body - more than he used to back when he was in the Qi training realm at least - but he was all too aware that it was artificial.

This would be extremely helpful to him in forming arrays quickly, as well as boost the effects of his instincts as well.

However, Lex was not focused on the benefits he had gained. Instead, he began to wonder what this state of flow really was. After all, he assumed this crown was an incredibly special tool based on the emphasis it received in the chamber they took it from. It was a great piece of equipment that could only be used by the Crystal race and those on the True path, and yet, it could only provide a pale imitation of something Lex had achieved naturally, albeit, he could not turn it on as and when he wished. It must really be something special. He would have to put it to the test.