Chapter 2305: Emotions
Getting Rose to join the crew was a random idea that occurred to him, and he didn’t mind doing it since it didn’t interfere with his personal plans whatsoever. The Henali had arrived, and Jack had told them that he needed to be securely and discreetly transported to the Folklore realm alongside his crew.
Remunerations and such could be discussed between the Henali and the Innkeeper the next time they had a meeting. Seeing as how their own meeting was occurring inside the Midnight Inn, and the Innkeeper had not reacted to being mentioned so directly, the Henali concluded that Jack truly was working for the Innkeeper.
As such, they told him that they would assist him, but preparation would take some time. After all, traveling through the Void was tough enough. Doing it discreetly, and to a spot such as the Folklore realm was far from easy.
Waiting inside the Midnight Inn, while the realms laws upgraded, under the eyes of so many forces, was far from ideal. However, since there was nothing he could do about it, Jack just pretended as if everything was normal.
His interaction with the paladins, too, continued as if routine. They weren’t surprised by the existence of a fairy paladin, which could only tell Jack that they were used to paladins of other races.
However, that was the extent to which their interaction went. They asked Jack which battalion and regiment he was from, but he could not give an answer. He was not a part of their empire.
Thus, while they did not shun him for being an external paladin, they did not reveal any of their secrets to him either, or even explain what was happening. Previously, when he had approached them using an identity from the Inn, not only had they welcomed him with open arms, they even explained their history to him.
The difference in treatment was clearly a result of the difference in their background. Lex was first introduced to the universe with a prestigious background. It was only now, due to certain difficulties, that he was able to see the other colors of the universe that he hadn’t seen before.
He didn’t mind though. Even if he couldn’t learn their secrets, he basically understood that the paladin path was his most promising path to progress past his current realm. The laws of the universe, for some reason, restricted fairies from growing stronger beyond a certain realm.
The paladin path, however, seemed exempt from those restrictions. Perhaps it was because, in essence, most cultivation techniques and power systems relied on the resources of the universe itself to grow stronger. The path of paladins, however, relied on the self, the recognition of the universe, and continuously overcoming challenges.
In a sense, it relied more on feedback from certain laws rather than resources. It was just that, even now, Jack could not accurately gauge what those laws were.
Thus, Jack waited inside the Inn, doing his best to avoid attracting attention and causing any kind of scene. Besides, just staying inside the Inn was tremendously rewarding these days.
It wasn’t just the Primordial Sunlight which strengthened their body and improved their souls. No, the very upgrade to the realm also provided all of them with some feedback.
For example, Pebble’s fur became extremely luscious, its color deepening to golden-brown. Even the elasticity of his cheeks improved, allowing him to attempt even bolder acts than fitting an entire tree in his cheeks. It wasn’t just his body - even his ever changing prosthetics were of improved quality. For example, on days he had eyepatches, the patches no longer had worn stitching and faded leather. Instead, there was neat needlework, and an appearance of quality about them. Or on days when he had a wooden peg for a leg, the color of the wood was richer, and the work on the prosthetic more refined.
Longbeard’s beard improved, avoiding the many natural tangles he had to brush out regularly. Tiny-Sparkle’s sparkles became shiner.
Everyone got something, and they also understood that the Midnight Inn was not a place they could mess about, which is why they all remained at their best behavior. Thus, the days passed in relative peace. At the same time, Jack paid special attention to the news and rumors spreading around these days - especially concerning Eden and the sudden invasion by the Sage races.
Comparatively, the years that passed in the Upper Battlefield were much busier, but nothing truly concerning happened. At least, nothing that aroused Lex’s attention. For the young couple, the two years were extremely exciting, and for various reasons.
First off, Pearl entered the Nascent Soul realm. She used the formation to go back to sea and retrieve the vine and submit it to Cliff.
In response, Cliff rewarded her heavily, guiding her in any field and aspect she wanted. As such, she not only became a notable master of formations, recognised across the Upper Battlefield, she also became a master of arrays!
Her fighting strength improved drastically, which allowed her to follow up leads regarding her ancestor, Karev. Cliff, naturally, helped her by giving her a technique that allowed her to track anyone with her bloodline - and also warned her that things might get troublesome if she actually found him.
Even so, she insisted. As her strength grew, so too did her desire for vengeance. Although her personality had been quite docile back when she began cultivating, the hate that had been suppressed in her heart came roaring out when she became a Nascent Soul cultivator.
It was only natural - her own parents had been killed by these people. Why wouldn’t she harbor resentment?
River, throughout this period, did his best to support her. Yet the more and more her anger started to emerge, the more and more River started to become quieter. His charisma slowly became suppressed, and on most days he simply focused on helping and supporting Pearl.
These past two years, where they had become stronger than ever before, had seen less laughter and joy among the two of them than any period since Lex had joined them. Yet such was the nature of humanity.
Emotions, often enough, were the source of the greatest beauty humans could create, as well as the source of much of their ugliness.
For the most part, Lex focused on developing the necklace, and only observed the young couple. He did not interfere with their actions at all. How they would handle this obstacle would determine how they spent the rest of their lives. At the same time, Lex wanted to see their true nature.
Thus, he only responded to their requests, never telling them right from wrong.
This continued until, one day, a major event occurred within the Upper Battlefield!
