The Innkeeper

The radiance of the light emanating from Lex's body could not be blocked by stone or walls, nor could it be limited by distance, laws or even realms. Lex himself became a beacon of light, his entire figure drowned out amidst the light itself. Since his mind was overwhelmed, his body acted on instinct to protect itself, and so Domination was released all around him, much like the Dragons Might had once surrounded the dragon he had stolen.

But he was hardly in danger, because the closest to him, the fairies, were all unconscious. But that did not prevent them from being influenced by the golden light. Lex's physique was supposed to help humans evolve, but whether it was due to the influence of the Amber Chaos resin, or because his physique itself was completely unlocked, it began to influence everything humanoid.

It began, first, with the fairy corpse closest to him. Even though it lacked a soul, the body was at least fine, and under the brilliance of the golden light, it began to evolve, and it even used the remaining half drop of soul state blood left in its body. Then came the fairies outside, who had procured freedom, but had no energy left to enjoy it.

Their bodies lay prone on the floor, still holding hands firmly, even while they had no strength to do anything else. The golden light shone down on them, and like the gentle touch of the light of the winter sun, began to provide them with much needed warmth.

Their wrinkles began to retreat, their feeble bodies began to strengthen, their wings regained their lost vigor, and a hint of golden appeared around their eyes.

But though the fairies were the closest to Lex, they were not the only humanoids around. Through endless earth the light traveled, and then illuminated the chaos ridden lands of the sealed domain.

The energy storm up above and wrought more havoc than Lex had estimated. The once regal city above him, considered the center of power and wealth, was brought to ruins, and its inhabitants either dead or gone.

Though, ironically, it was not the energy storm that killed the residents. It had only harmed the buildings. The residents, mostly, had been killed by each other, or by their slaves.

But as the glow of the golden light spread, it eventually reached those who were running away with all their might.

Fueled by adrenaline, caught in the grip of fear, they did not immediately notice the changes in their bodies. They were just grateful for the sudden surge of energy in their limbs so that they could continue to run.

Like a golden dawn, ushering in a new era, the light spread across the entire sealed domain, and affected anything at all that was humanoid, and then it escaped the boundaries of the domain and continued to spread.

Lex Williams, the Leopold who ran a hotel, noticed a strange light on the horizon. He was curious, but could not go and explore, for he had too many problems on his plate at the moment.

Across land and sea and air, the light spread out across Menara, affecting an uncountable number of beings before it finally reached the Midnight Inn. A number of patrols walked across the border walls, ensuring nothing went amiss. They were the first to experience that light, and feel the subtle changes it started to bring within their bodies.

Many of them had experienced something like this before. It was when Lex was bringing them from the Temple of Fasting back to the Inn. They knew not where the light came from or what it was doing, but it had saved their life before, so they knew it wasn't bad.

Slowly but surely, the entire Inn was bathed in that golden glow. The workers there, who had experienced multiple star ranking changes, training at the temple, and the baptism of the energy from a new realm, once again began to grow under the effects of the light, finally crossing a critical threshold.

They did not know it, nor did they feel its effects. Cassandra's clone, who was still cultivating in a corner, would have noticed, but she was occupied with and could not even tell the changes her own clone was undergoing.

Far away in the universe, hidden in an unknown realm, there was a massive city built entirely of stone. Every single inch of it radiated an ancient glory and power, washed in the blood of trillions. Its many statues depicted warriors across the ages, their strength, honor and sense of duty unmatched. Even though the entire city reeked of primeval vicissitudes, there was not a single crack or fault across it.

Once a beacon of power, the city had now become a refuge for the damned and defeated. Countless humans slumbered within its walls, forced to hide when all they wanted was to reveal themselves to the universe, and retake their place on the battlefields. But they had a duty, even if it made them feel like cowards.

They were the most glorious of the entire human race, the ones with the most potential and talent. They were the final flame, hidden away, in case the humans should ever fall, and their race be defeated in the realm wars. But the sound of a crack reverberated through the city, waking up its ancient caretakers. In the city center, the largest statue which was that of a glorious flame had cracked, shocking those who laid eyes upon it.

Despite the ominous nature of what had happened, they knew what it signified was not a bad thing - just unbelievable. Somewhere out in the universe, a new bastian had appeared, with humans with even greater talent and potential than themselves?

But how was that possible? This city was filled with the bloodlines of the earliest humans, blessed by mother Nuwa herself! Who could surpass them? And how? Unfortunately for them, the statue revealed no answers.

In the Origin realm, Belle was soaked in blood, and was hiding in a cave underground. She had returned to the Jotun empire, but the empire was at war and even her immense strength could not protect her if she was against foes too powerful. The Fiery Mammoths had been preparing for this war for too long and held the advantage for now. The humans were retreating. She had been separated from her team, which likely meant that they were already dead.

Even her survival was questionable, until she felt something - something in her very core. A tinge of gold appeared in her blood, and her Angel bloodline began to strengthen.

"Lex," she murmured as worry flashed in her eyes, but she could do nothing in her current state. Anger appeared in her eyes, before she closed them. She had to heal.

Elsewhere in the Origin realm, Liz was running as fast as she could through a crowded city, sweat and grime covering her face. A sudden surge of energy filled her, giving her just the boost she needed to leap through the closing doors of a spaceship, finally granting her a reprieve.

She had not run away from home, and homework, just to be brought back so easily. She wanted to live life and have her own adventures.

At first, Liz did not notice the changes taking place in her body. But her mother had told her too many times for her to remain ignorant for long. A streak of gold appeared in her blood, strengthening her Beast Fusion abilities, if only she could find a worthy beast to fuse with.

A trace of concern flashed through her eyes, but then she remembered her father. Even if Lex was in trouble for now, her old man would eventually save him. She, at least, was not as stupidly gifted as the rest of her family, so it was best if she stayed out of trouble. Liz conveniently ignored that with that new streak of gold in her blood, she had already surpassed even the mythical level for the beast taming cultivation path that no other living human had even reached.

Elsewhere, in a cozy hammock in a palace garden, Moon slept peacefully. She didn't wake up when the change happened, but she did squeeze her eyes shut even harder. No one noticed, for no one was allowed in her lonely palace.

In another realm entirely, a couple was riding a massive wyvern through the clouds, with countless dark shapes chasing them. When the change happened they both suddenly looked at each other, shocked. They both had extremely different reactions.

The woman began cursing oracles as frauds, and the man drew his sword. Even though he was still not an immortal yet, the Earth Immortal figures chasing them trembled just a bit. Then a sword intent that had been sheathed for too long tore through the skies, raining down blood on the boiling sea far below them.

"What are we going to do?" the woman asked, extremely worried.

"For now, we're already doing the best we can," the man answered simply.

In a room in the Midnight Inn, a particular devil was sleeping, but woke up with a startle when he felt the change in his body under the influence of the golden light. At first, he was greatly alarmed, but then, he began to laugh unfettered. His bloodline was evolving!

Somehow, he had to get word back to Garvitz!