The Innkeeper

Chapter 2201: Falling into place

Abroar had spent many years inside the Midnight Inn, living as a spirit. The irony of the situation was not lost on him, yet it had allowed him to experience so much, and broaden his horizons incredibly. Previously, the extent of his knowledge and experiences were limited to the Origin realm.

Perhaps the seniors of his race had knowledge of what lay beyond that realm, but they were long gone, and he could not ask them about it. He could merely continue on living, hoping to somehow fulfill his mission.

The Cthulhu race had been almost wiped from the Origin realm in their war against the spirit race, but that did not mean that they were by any means weak. In fact, the only reason they had lost the war was because of how many allies the Spirit race had.

After all, unlike the Cthulhu race, which had few members, spirits were abundant and varied in shape and form. They were relatively weak, and the conditions for their growth were strenuous, but they had their advantages too. Natural spirits were especially close to nature, and could nurture countless treasures and promote the growth of cultivation holylands.

Thus, with their many allies their abilities granted them, they turned the tide of a war they never should have been able to survive. Well, if there was one thing he learned from defeat, and death, it was the power of allies.

Even powerful races could be brought down by the right connections, and even weak races could rise through them.

It was with this thought alone that Abroar sought out a worker of the Midnight Inn.

"Hey Abby, how can I help you today?" asked Mrs. White, a really old worker. She was not an original worker of the Inn, and had joined after coming here as a refugee from Earth. She was introduced to cultivation pretty late, so even though she now had the cultivation of a Nascent soul, her appearance remained that of an old grandma.

She was one of the workers who spent the most time in the spirit area of the Midnight Inn, where other guests who escaped death in the form of spirit usually resided. Thus, she knew Abroar and the others quite well.

She was much too familiar and friendly for Abroar’s liking, but he usually didn’t say anything about it.

"I have heard that the Midnight Inn is having troubles with the Dream realm - having lost some guests and workers too. I wish to extend my services to the Inn. In the field of dreams, I can offer some insight," Abroar spoke slowly and in a deep voice.

He missed his old voice, capable of driving anyone who heard it insane. Now, he was stuck with this oddly pleasant and relaxing voice, soothing whoever heard it. Almost every other day, he was approached with offers to voice an audiobook or two.

Mrs. White was taken by surprise by the offer, especially because Abroar usually had trouble playing with the other kids. Alright, even with a higher cultivation level, and introduced to the concept of immortality and the fact that many of the guests were older than her, she was much too used to thinking of everyone as a kid, so she just kept doing it.

"Look at you Abby, playing nice and trying to make friends. It warms my little old heart. Let me just send in a report that you want to help, and I’ll let you know what they say. It might take a while since-"

Before Mrs. White could even finish her sentence, Lex appeared with his clone in front of the two.

"Mrs. White, Abroar, it’s been a while," he said, addressing both of them. "I heard you can offer some help with the Dream realm. I wasn’t aware that Cthulhu’s were knowledgeable in the field of dreams."

Lex was not exactly sceptical of Abroar. If he said he could offer some help, Lex would hear him out. However, the Dream realm was a place that confounded the whole universe. He didn’t think he’d find a solution talking to someone who had never left the Origin realm in their life.

Typically Lex would not think so cynically of anyone, however at the moment he was just too tired. Trying to maintain a positive outlook took energy he was lacking.

"You would be correct," Abroar said, suppressing the shock he got looking at Lex again. When they first met, Lex had been so weak and fragile. Now, though, he was not someone that could be easily crossed.

Contrary to normal expectations, Lex’s somewhat cold aura and questioning tone was not offputting for Abroar. Instead, he respected him even more. This was exactly how the powerful should act - at least according to what the Cthulhu believed.

"We do not have any extensive knowledge regarding typical dreams. However, in the aspect of nightmares, we are absolute masters. It is knowledge that we inherently have from birth, and I have especially mastered the subject of nightmares beyond my cultivation realm. I wish to offer my insight to the Midnight Inn, so that they may overcome their current predicament with the least amount of friction."

Lex raised his eyebrow. The claim was believable, and he didn’t sense any deceit from him either.

"What do you want in exchange for this help?" Lex could not help but ask.

Abroar chuckled, the feeling of being questioned by a higher power being oddly reminiscent of his youth.

"Nothing really. I only want to be of service. If that is unacceptable to you, you can pay me whatever you deem sufficient for my services - I don’t mind."

Lex could not sense any malice, and the Security room didn’t pick up anything either, so for the moment, he stopped thinking about it. He would listen to what Abroar had to say. Maybe it could help him out after all.

"I’ll take over things from here, Mrs. White. Thanks for the help. Send Mr. White my regards," Lex said with a polite nod, and teleported himself and Abroar away.

The two of them appeared in the mountain cabin, far away from everyone else. Lex already prepared a number of refreshments that could be enjoyed by spirits, so he took a seat while Abroar made himself comfortable.

"One of the primary ways in which we Cthulhu grow stronger is by devouring the minds and spirits of our targets," he said without the slightest bit of hesitation, as if it were the most common thing in the world.

"But directly devouring a mind is not as fruitful as doing it slowly, squeezing out every bit that a mind can offer. For that, nightmares are especially useful. Through them, we can not only infect our targets, but we can weaken the mind and deprive it of sleep to the point where the target keeps falling asleep during their normal life, allowing the nightmare to seamlessly mesh in with their everyday lives.

"But the nightmare itself is just the medium. The focus is on the mind, or the spirit, and so the nightmare itself can become a target to be devoured. I have heard that the Dream realm is very difficult to traverse, but I think that may not be the case for races that can naturally devour dreams and nightmares alike."

Lex paused to think about it. It did sound like a plausible suggestion. If they could interact with the dream without getting pulled into it, avoiding having their life extinguished in place of the dreams that hope to come to life, then one of the greatest obstacles of the Dream realm would be resolved.

While that was far from the only obstacle the realm presented, it was one of the core issues at least for mortals and immortals.

As the cthulhu revealed more about his insight into nightmares, and how they fed on them to personally grow stronger, Lex finally began to see a ray of light in the darkness that had been his life lately. He had an idea that was so absurd and unrealistic that it might just work. If that was the case...

Lex asked some questions, discussing various possibilities with Abroar to see the limits of how his ability could be stretched. Once he gained a deeper understanding, Lex was certain.

The exhaustion that had been infecting his mind and soul began to wade, replaced instead by purpose.

Soon after, a message was sent to the Midnight Battalion. The Dream realm had attacked and infringed upon the sovereignty of the Midnight Inn. Such blatant disrespect could not be overlooked, thus the Inn had prepared a fitting response.

For that, however, the Battalion would need to undergo emergency training to master a new technique that had been created for this very purpose. At the same time, Lex also sent a message to Charles, updating him on specifically what to look for. He also contacted Z.

While Z was weak in terms of cultivation, he was versatile enough, and had enough experience in manipulating space that he could also play a role in Lex’s plan.

Things started to fall into place.