The Innkeeper

Chapter 2239: Nine Swords Sect

Three months passed in the Dream realm, and things had both changed and yet stayed the same. The Dream realm had become increasingly volatile, changing drastically at any given moment. That caused a whole new set of problems.

Previously, the Dream realm was dangerous because the dreams might try to steal a life to come to life on their own. Now, though, the dreams themselves became dangerous, posing danger even to immortals!

As a result, the number of casualties within the Dream realm began to rise, but not just from the actions of the Dream realm alone. Countless races started actively sleeping, hoping that their dreams would get them pulled into the Dream realm.

During the old days, the chances of getting pulled into the Dream realm via dreaming was actually quite low, but it was never 0. Nowadays, the chances were decently high. Although the realm was no longer actively kidnapping people like it did the moment it was opened, it still tried to pull people into it when it could.

Lex didn’t care about any of that. He continued to search, and with the help of the Henali and the Humanoid Alliance, almost 90% of all staff and guests had already been found. By now, over 300 Dao Lords had entered the Dream realm via the taverns, and though the Dao Lords were separated into their own section of the realm, they still played a huge role in finding the people.

But the more people they found, the more Lex was convinced that something was amiss because there was no sign of Almira anywhere. He was the one with the Masterless technique so why had she disappeared?

At least he finally got a lead on Qawain. In all the years that Lex had known him, Qawain was the silent and relatively mysterious one. He kept his thoughts hidden, appeared like a peaceful, suburban dad, taking care of his family and his wife... a suburban dad with a secret past covered in blood.

Now, though, as Lex followed his trail, he saw a side of Qawain that he hadn’t seen before. It went without saying that Qawain was a master of sword intent, and unlike Lex, he was a purist. He did not mix his intent with anything else, nor did he rely on brute strength to make the intent any stronger. He merely acted with intent, and used his intent to carve out the reality he wanted to see.

In this case, the reality he was carving happened to be several bodies, and the reality he wanted to see was the death of whoever those bodies belonged to.

Once Lex found a trail, it became incredibly easy to follow the very obvious trail left behind by Qawain, to the point where even throughout the ever changing Dream realm, it took only a couple of days to track him down.

When Lex finally spotted him, Qawain was standing alone, surrounded by six figures, each one of a different race. However, all six of them had one and only one similarity - all of them were emitting an incredibly strong sword intent!

Lex’s sudden arrival went unnoticed because he had arrived discreetly, and made no moves to intervene. He had no idea what the situation was. Besides, he could always act once the need arose.

"Have you not thought about my offer?" asked the upright lizard standing right in front of Qawain. "The Nine Swords Sect would make a good home for one such as you."

Qawain looked at the lizard, and then the elders.

"Likewise, the graveyard would make a good home for you," Qawain said in an eerily calm voice.

"Fellow cultivator, as a sword, you are incomplete without a wielder. Why the insistence on going solo? One as talented as you, in the hands of the right swordsman, could even hope to see the Dao one day," spoke a monkey wearing a daoists robe.

Qawain looked at the monkey with indifferent eyes, not offended or provoked by his words.

"Persistence is not always a positive trait. Learn to back away when it is good for you," said Qawain, his tone the same as before. However, unlike before, the look in his eyes was no longer so indifferent. His patience was running thin - something Lex hardly ever saw.

"Fellow Daoist, it is clear to me that you are not open to our previous suggestions. However, please allow me to make another proposal. I would still like to invite you to the Nine Swords Sect, not as a sword to be used, but as a powerful Daoist treading the sword path. Allow me to exchange a blow with you to demonstrate the power of our sect, so that you may remember it."

The one speaking this time was from a race that Lex wasn’t too familiar with. His body looked humanoid, but was made entirely of a dark, smooth wood like material. He had no eyes or ears, or even lips, so it was clear that he was speaking via his spirit sense.

Slowly, and carefully, he withdrew a sword so as to show Qawain that he was not attacking in secret. Qawain also unfolded his arms as he readied himself for the attack, while Lex also summoned Naraka. If there was even a hint of foul play...

The wooden guy grabbed the sword with both hands and nodded towards Qawain before launching his attack. There was no strength packed in the attack itself, but the skill with which he controlled his sword intent was telling.

Qawain held out two fingers and clashed against the sword intent as he was wielding a sword himself, and surprisingly, wasn’t able to cut through it so easily. It took quite a few seconds for him to cut through the attack.

Qawain’s expression changed as he looked at the wooden guy, and similarly, the expression of all six swordsmen changed as they looked at Qawain. Both sides had greatly underestimated the other.

"I am already a part of another group. I cannot join your sect," Qawain said directly, rejecting the man once more.

"The Sect doesn’t care about external attachments. Unless you’re a part of an enemy sect or organisation, the sect will not discriminate against you for having a past. The path of swordsmen is not pedantic like that. If you wish to find the sect, you can follow this sword."

The wooden guy threw out a dagger, though Lex supposed it could just be a miniature sword. Not all organisations were blessed with convenient tokens like the Inns keys.

Qawain grabbed the sword, and put it inside his spatial ring. He had no intentions of using it at all, but he wanted to get rid of these guys first.

Some of the six swordsmen looked at him with reluctance, but it was obvious that they were not strong enough to subdue him if they tried. Just as they were about to head out, though, a powerful sword intent suddenly erupted in the sky above them.

All of them reacted instantly, blocking the attack, but how easily was it to block Lex? After all, he was not a sword purist. He had no compunctions about adding small and petty tricks into his attacks.

All six of the swordsmen were pushed back, their bodies infiltrated by a powerful, corroding energy, though fortunately they were not harmed. Qawain, oddly enough, managed to block the attack easily, as if the attack that had struck him was extremely weak.

The Red Moon Devil appeared in the sky and looked down on the swordsmen, and then sneered.

"So much pride for those so weak. Try relying on your own sword instead of the backing of your sect once in a while," he said, his words more lethal than his attack, striking the six right in their hearts. If they didn’t quickly realize that his words were attacks too, and neutralise the effect, then their sword hearts would become compromised, and their sword intent would weaken!

Of course, they could also naturally overcome the verbal attack if their sword heart and resolve was strong enough. If that was the case, they’d become only stronger from this encounter. Whether or not that actually happened, though, only time could tell.

While he spoke to them, he also extended his spirit sense to Qawain and questioned him, telling him about his identity and asking him if he knew why someone might be targeting Almira. Qawain, unfortunately, had no living enemies, and had no idea why someone might want to target her.

In a mere split second, the two of them finished their conversation, and the Red Moon Devil vanished. Qawain looked at the six swordsmen with pity in his eyes, and then left as well. Lex had passed him a compass back to the Inn, but until Almira was found, he wouldn’t be leaving.

Lex was continuing his search while pondering over his exchange with Qawain when something happened that he hadn’t expected at all.