The Innkeeper

The gift giving ceremony was just one of many. Some might consider the process to be unnecessarily complicated and tedious, but such an assumption was lacking in perspective. Excluding special situations, such as the ongoing war during this wedding, most of the time the nobility tried to make everything as long and detailed as possible. Even if most members of nobility never reached the immortal realm, it was completely normal for them to reach the Nascent realm.

The average Nascent realm cultivator could live up to 500 years, give or take a few. With such long lives to look forward to, most of their activities were slow paced and would take a long time. This phenomenon became more obvious the greater the cultivation level a person had.

Society would, similarly, adapt and hold events according to the life spans and expectations of the longest or most important being. Even in the Origin realm this was the case, with the 'upcoming' Tourney being organized by the Henali. It would be another decade before the tournament even began, and Lex did not even want to consider how long the actual tournament was likely to be.

Regardless, it was completely normal for there to be many ceremonies during a wedding, but among all of those, the gift giving ceremony was a favorite not only for the bride and groom, but all the spectators as well.

The gift did not have to be publicly revealed, although many did so in a display of their own wealth or the close relationship to the newlyweds. In a high profile wedding such as this one, the gifts would surely be great so everyone watched with great expectations.

The first to give a gift would be close friends of the bride and groom. Moreover their gifts could not be too spectacular, and should be equivalent to their status as a person from the younger generation. The reason for this was that the following guests to give gifts would be the ordinary guests or distant acquaintances. Naturally one could not forcefully expect them to give extremely expensive gifts, so by starting off at a low or moderate level, they would not be embarrassed to give ordinary gifts.

Of course, ordinary here was also relative as the number of spirit stones of valuables treasures being given at this level even as 'ordinary' gifts were beyond what truly normal people could afford.

As impatient as Lex felt, he had to ensure the wedding went well so he patiently watched each moment to ensure everything progressed as planned. Several hours later, it was finally time for the parents to give gifts.

Pvarti's parents handed over the deed to a very profitable spirit mine, effectively removing it from the 'Noel' family name, and handing it to Pvarti. For now nothing would change, but in the future if Pvarti ever wanted to start his own family, he would no longer start from scratch as he would have an astounding level of wealth to support him.

Jasmine's parents did not hand over a mine, but gave each of them something extremely personal yet useful. They gave both of them custom made swords, refined using Etherium ore. Etherium was used in the manufacturing of treasures appropriate for immortals, so the weapons they received were exorbitantly expensive, not to mention powerful. They could also accompany them for many years to come, if not the rest of their lives!

With such magnificent gifts given, everyone turned to look at King Cornelius. As the person of highest authority here, he should give the last gift. But what surprised everyone was that he did not make a move. Instead, one of the workers from the Inn stepped forward.

"Upon hearing of this auspicious event, Lord Sabr, ruler of the Varn, took the liberty of sending a gift for the newly wed couple."

The worker opened a small chest that he lay on the ground in front of him. It was filled to the brim with some fruit that looked like grapes, yet the gasps and reaction it received was too great for mere grapes.

These were a unique fruit that could be cultivated only by the Varn, and was one of the items they traded with the Hum nation most often. There was no market price for it, for no one who had ever received one thought to sell it.

It was called Purple Poison Berry, because it was extremely poisonous to the Varn, yet to humans it was the most exquisite tonic. If taken in normal health, a single berry could cure the body of any and all accumulated hidden injuries and diseases through their cultivation journey. That included injuries to the meridians, and to a very small degree, even the Golden Core!

This was a mighty gift indeed, and all the guests who did not know about what was happening behind the scenes began to speculate on what this meant. Did the two families have a secret relationship with the Varn?

Just as everyone was lost in thought, another worker stepped forward.

"Lord Kritter, founder of the new Poliod nation, sends his regards." He too took out a gift that blew away all spectators, the newlywed couple included.

Before they could recover, more workers stepped forward.

"Lady Elena of the Trelops…"

"Edward of the new Monster nation…"

"Abras the Sentinel King…"

"The divine bird of flame, Firin…"

"The divine bird of ice, Aizel…"

From mere shock to astonishment, ultimately to extreme horror, the emotions of all the observers were going through a rollercoaster. Who didn't know the current situation in the realm right now? What were all these leaders doing sending gifts instead of worrying about the war? There was definitely something going on behind the scenes that they didn't know about.

Cornelius finally stepped forward to give his gift, berating no truth of what was really going on. He wore a soft smile, as if looking down fondly at some kids he knew personally.

"The younger generation is our future, and only if they succeed will our future be secure. Once, when I was young, someone gave me a chance that changed my life. Now, for you, I will do the same. Take these cards and use them when you are ready. If you pass the test, you can receive the guidance of a Heavenly Immortal."

The cards Cornelius was giving… were actually invitation cards to Ventura! But Ventura was a secret he could not openly disclose, so instead he titled it an opportunity to receive guidance from a Heavenly Immortal. This time, guests were too shocked to even gasp, and just froze.

What did they just hear? WHAT DID THEY JUST HEAR?

Just as everyone was reeling from what they heard, another figure came forward, this time from within the tavern. By now, everyone was too fatigued to continue to feel surprised. They just looked at the person and wondered who was worthy of presenting a gift after the King?

It turns out it was the tavern owner. Shouldn't he have gone before? Why was no one bothered that he went last, which was usually reserved for the most honored guest?

"Pvarti, when you first entered my tavern, so long ago, with the intention of partying with the locals, I never would have imagined you were actually hiding the depression of an engagement broken. Yet now, here we are, at your wedding to the same girl. As your friend, I could not be happier for you.

"And Jasmine, you have the great fortune of ending up with my good friend Pvarti. From afar one might assume that he is too casual about life, but I know no one else who would face the pressure of a great noble family such as yours based solely on their principles and morals. You have with you a man who would rather give up on his life of comfort than compromise on his beliefs, and that takes great courage and dedication.

"To build your new life together, especially in these times, will also require great courage and dedication. As such, I hope my small gift can help you in your journey of life."

As much as it hurt him, Lex used up his Tea cup containing the law of femininity in exchange for this item. He considered it an investment in his own future, as he really needed the quest to get a good evaluation.

From within his spatial bangle, he produced a single apple. Though it looked exceedingly ordinary, every single immortal in the vicinity suddenly honed their gaze onto it, for they could feel their very soul aching for that fruit!

"This is called an Apple of Creation. It fell prematurely from the Tree of Creation, but that is enough to meet your needs. If you divide it amongst yourselves and eat it, it will aid you greatly in your comprehension of laws. It does not matter if you've reached the immortal realm or are in the nascent, the benefits of it will not be wasted. My recommendation is to have it as soon as possible."