The Innkeeper

Chapter 2342: Desperate times

This presented a problem for him. Although Lex had been looting like mad, he was certain that his actual contribution to that 1 unit was infinitesimal. Compared to the ability of Dao Lords to loot, what he took was less than a drop in an ocean. Thus he was certain that no matter what he did, his contribution to the final outcome would be negligible.

What truly mattered right now was the significance of the supposed limit. He was certain that most people would have the mentality of maximising their harvest before the limit was reached. So if, for example, it took 5 years for the Gilded Hollow to reach 1 unit of resources harvested, now with this limit set he anticipated that the next unit would be reached in one year or even less.

Each one of them would do their best to accumulate more resources before the others before the limit was reached, and then exit. Some might even consider challenging or facing the unsurvivable retribution. Being a Dao Lord gave them such liberty. Lex, however, wasn’t so sure he could enjoy the same privilege.

If he estimated it at 1 unit per year, he had 99 years left in the Gilded Hollow. Realistically, though, the time for a unit to be completed would decrease as the deadline came closer and everyone became desperate for greater harvests.

This presented Lex with two issues. The minor, or rather regular retributions he would be facing from now on weren’t his primary issues. The primary issues were that he did not know how to exit, so as the deadline approached he wouldn’t know how to save himself even if he wished to.

The second issue he was most concerned with was maximising his own harvest. With treasures like the Fist of Orion and the Double Yin Death Metal Rose abound, not to mention who knows what else, he’d be missing out if he didn’t get his hands on them.

That was to say, the things he had already harvested were also great. They also had cool or unique abilities. But his own strength was great enough to achieve much of what they did on his own, so he only utilized them as building blocks to create his own fake realm inside his necklace.

He could not hope or pray that the others would be understanding, and offer him more time to harvest anything. If that were the case, there was only one thing Lex could do.

He looked towards Mithon, who was waiting patiently on the side, and asked her a question.

"Can you tell me about the Fortune Lord? What kind of personality or reputation does he have? Is he merciful and forgiving? Open and accepting? Strict and firm?"

Mithon smiled upon hearing the question. She had been afraid the senior would ask her something she could not help with.

"Lord Fortune is incredibly benevolent. He gave life to most of the residents of Fortune stronghold, and is the one who ensures it keeps running. Not only does he protect it from the terror of the retributions, but he also ensures that its day-to-day functionality is never disrupted.

"If someone breaks the law, he punishes them according to the rules. The worst punishment is often like mine - exile. But he himself hardly ever acts against any of the stronghold residents. He is too fond of us all to directly hurt us, even when we break the rules."

Lex nodded, only believing about 50% of everything Mithon said. He couldn’t be certain how much of what she talked about was genuine, and how much was conditioning or brainwashing due to how she had been raised.

Still, her word was the only thing he had to go on. He needed to make a choice right now. The necklace was decently strong, so he could play it safe and try to find resources the slow and steady way. Or he could take a huge risk to his life in the hope of getting access to better resources.

Lex took a moment to think. He genuinely felt like if he screwed this up, the repercussions could doom him. Unfortunately, he also felt like if he didn’t keep moving forward and progressing with every opportunity he got, then he would always remain mediocre.

He took a deep breath and questioned himself one more time. Was he really going to do this?

The answer, without any hesitation or hint of a doubt, was yes. Though his stalker was one enemy, he would not be Lex’s last enemy. If he settled for being just strong enough to beat him, then Lex would become a victim once again when someone new showed up.

Lex straightened out his suit, made himself extremely presentable, and then adopted his humblest tone.

"Lord Romulus Valecar, I am Lex William of the Midnight Inn, and I ask your forgiveness for uttering your noble name. I found your message and bottle, and sought out your city. Unfortunately, dire circumstances have forced my hand into disturbing you," he said, slowly and solemnly.

It was not every day that Lex directionally mentioned a Dao Lord’s name, especially without the Host Attire. Doing so now was a desperate, last resort in the hopes of attracting the Dao Lord and possibly attaining his help!

Although Lex could not be sure if Lord Fortune really was Romulus Valecare, everything seemed to line up too perfectly for him not to be.

Lex had not realized it while speaking, but his eyes had closed while he spoke, as if a great, irresistible drowsiness had suddenly struck him. His knees buckled and he fell to the ground, yet Lex did not feel it at all. The necklace that held his soul trembled, as if a great strain had suddenly been placed upon it for a brief moment.

A massive amount of the positive karma Lex had accumulated disappeared... and then everything returned to normal. He was standing on his feet, his eyes were open, and the necklace was unharmed, almost as if nothing had happened.

A few moments later, Lex realized that he was standing in front of a figure - one he did not recognize at all.