"Honey?" George called out, confused. From his angle, he couldn't see into the room very well, so all he knew was that she simply entered the room with a look of reverence. He exchanged looks with the other couple, who were just as confused.
Synchronously, they got up and walked towards the door, intrigued, and the moment they smelled the scent wafting through, they entered a trance almost. Their tired bodies, aching muscles, exhausted mind all gave in at the same time, and surrendered to the pleasant aroma.
When they arrived, they didn't go through the same surprise as George's wife, mainly because they were already hooked. They did not notice at all when the door closed on its own behind them, and the entrance from the hall mysteriously vanished.
Absentmindedly, they approached the hot tub, and all got in, one by one, all forgetting to remove their clothes.
A collective groan could be heard as they all got in, and the hot, healing water began working on their injured bodies. The two families could not be blamed for their state. They had just exited an incredibly high stress period, so not only were they high strung, but their bodies had undergone exertion they were completely not used to.
The only reason the situation was not worse, and they had suffered no fatalities, was because the foul creatures formed early in the darkness were weak - relatively speaking.
Moreover, this was no ordinary hot tub. How could it be, when this was one of the services offered by the system?
The hot tub was not a replacement for the recovery room or recovery pod, but it would definitely help the body relax and speed up its natural recovery. Moreover, the waters were mixed with healing and soothing concoctions that not only helped the body, but the spirit as well.
The waves of pleasure that were washing over them was actually all the knots in their muscles being untied, and their bodies rapidly recovering. While this would not drastically help them recover, for example, it won't fix broken bones, but it would bring the body into the optimal state to recover on its own.
As if that wasn't enough, small dark waste started washing out of their pores, instantly evaporating under the waters purifying effects. While it could not perform the process thoroughly, the hot tub could purify the toxins they had accumulated in their bodies throughout their life. Once they were done, not only would their health improve, so would their cultivation.
For one hour, the two families sat in the water in silence, letting their bodies be nourished by the magic waters. They reached a point, however, when they all suddenly felt that whatever process had been happening was complete, and staying in the water any longer would no longer help them.
It was a subconscious thought, and they could not source where it had originated from, but they all had it at the same time.
One by one, they exited the hot tub and took short, wobbly steps towards the door. Their wet clothes dried in a few steps, the water evaporating magically, as if it could not exist too far from the hot tub.
When they exited the room, both the couples somehow exited into their respective rooms. It was magical, but for some reason, at the moment, none of them questioned it. The gentle aroma of the hot tub room seeped into their bed rooms, relaxing the numerous kids sleeping on mattresses, and pushing them into a deeper sleep.
The parents, once again without changing, climbed into bed - amongst the youngest of their children, and fell asleep instantly. It was a deep and dreamless sleep, letting their mind and body recover.
The hot tub room disappeared as magically as it appeared, and there was no indication on whether the families would even remember it or just consider it a strange dream they all shared.
*****
In front of the chamber of secrets, Anakin, Larry, Rafael and Noman once again gathered. Although Anakin had informed them about the function of the chamber, they were not completely satisfied.
Each of them tested the room by depositing and recollecting small, inconsequential memories and testing each other on it. Once all of them had tried it out, and were satisfied with it, they decided on forming an agreement via the guild room that they would honestly answer each other's questions, and then deposit each other's secrets in the chamber, leaving only the memory of the surety that their own secrets or matters were secure.
That left the matter for why Anakin was still amongst them. While he had no secret to share, for he truly was just an ordinary person adept at finding and using opportunities, he had convinced Noman that he would benefit greatly by following Anakin from then onwards.
How he had done it was unknown to the rest, but Noman completely believed Anakin, and involved him in this matter as well.
Thus the four of them signed the agreement and arrived at the chamber. Since it was so secure, they decided to exchange their secrets right inside the chamber. First up was Noman.
Everyone was staring at him intently, making him slightly uncomfortable. He was also nervous because he had never shared his secret with anyone before, but at the same time, it also filled him with a strange sense of relief.
"I was born with a special power," he said, scratching his cheek. "Whenever I hear or read a lie, I can instantly detect it. That is not to say that I automatically know or understand the truth. It just means that whenever I come across anything that has the intention to communicate anything so that it is perceived as anything but the truth, I can detect it.
"For example, if a person named Harry says to you that you can call him Adam, he is not lying. You, indeed, can call him Adam. But, if in saying that, his intention is not to say that you can call him that, but to make you believe his name is Adam, I can tell that he is lying.
"This ability of mine has no restrictions. It can detect lies in any format, and it does not matter how high or low someone's cultivation is. I have yet to see anyone who can hide from my ability."
His short and simple dictation was followed by utter silence, as everyone absorbed the weight of everything he had just said. His ability was... absolutely broken. Being able to detect lies, regardless of cultivation. In the right hands, or maybe even the wrong hands, this ability could wreak havoc.
Of course, the premise was that it had to be someone smart enough to use the ability effectively. Anakin's eyes were gleaming as various thoughts ran through his mind, though his expression revealed nothing.
Larry went next. He had none of the nervousness of Noman, and directly began his tale.
"My family was an extremely wealthy family back on Earth, and owned several spirit stone mines. That made me extremely lucky, but I was also extremely unlucky because I was born without the ability to cultivate. Even the tiniest bit of spiritual energy would be poison to me, so regardless of the method or type of cultivation, I could not use it.
"But my fate changed one day when, in one of my family's mines, a unique treasure was born. The birth of the treasure caused a major disturbance in the spiritual energy of the region, and attracted a lot of attention. Many people attacked my family in secret, trying to uncover whatever was found. Many of my family members died to protect it.
"But, the treasure ended up being completely inane to everyone other than me. As such, I got it, and after an expensive and dangerous surgery, my father had the treasure merge with my spine.
"It took a few years, but when my body finally acclimatized to it, I gained the ability to cultivate. But it was no longer ordinary cultivation. I could cultivate by absorbing new and various kinds of metals into my body. The rarer the metal, the greater it would boost my cultivation. But at the same time, the more I absorbed one kind of metal, the less it boosted my cultivation.
"At the same time, my body has developed an incredibly high affinity for metals, to the point where it's almost impossible to harm me with a metal weapon. A while back, I was being hunted on Earth, and I fell into an ambush. Someone shot me in the head. That should have been the end of my life, but instead of my brain blowing up from the bullet, it simply absorbed the bullet. I was still hurt a little, because I couldn't absorb the bullet fast enough, but the more metals I absorb, the stronger my body becomes. I was able to survive the shot, and quickly killed the ambusher.
"But I suspect someone knew, or somehow learned, about this unique treasure, and began targeting my family for it. They ignored me at first, because I was simply a mortal, but eventually they must have realized something was wrong.
"I have been looking into this matter for a long time, but I cannot find out who the person hunting me is. At first, I thought it was someone from the Council of New Order, for only they would have the ability to target my family. But the matter seems more complicated than that."
Everyone looked at Larry with interest and curiosity, but it could not garner the level of attention of Noman's secret. Larry did not regret this, for he was not competing for who had the deeper secret. Moreover, no one other than him understood how amazing his ability to cultivate using metals really was. Soon, he would enter the Nascent level. Then he would return to Earth and get his revenge, on whoever it was that was hunting them.
Then, finally, they all looked at Rafael. It was his turn to share.
Now that Larry knew the truth behind Noman's random murmurs, he was truly anticipating what Rafael had to say. After all, he was extremely suspicious of anyone who tried to approach him randomly, and there was definitely some ulterior motive behind Rafael trying to befriend him.
The man in question, Rafael, kept his cool. He was thinking exactly what and how much to share, as his secret was much wider, and had much more immediate repercussions than either of the other two.
"Before I begin, don't you think you should share a little something as well. If you have no secret to hide, how about a little about your life."
Rafael was looking towards the nonchalant Anakin and, after his words registered, the rest looked towards him as well. It did seem a little unfair if he was the only one who shared nothing.
Anakin only chuckled in response, but did not delay.
"My life is pretty straight forward. I grew up in a town called Springfield. My dad was a plumber and my mom worked at the local post office. We had a pretty good house my dad bought with some of his savings and money he inherited from my grandpa, so we had no debt to speak of - the American dream. I did pretty well on my SATs and even got a scholarship for college. Life was swell… and boring.
"That's when things got messed up. The Council of New Order appeared, the world became strange, cultivators appeared, and I found a golden key to the Inn. Well, since then, I've never looked back. It's an interesting life for me, or nothing at all. Oh and uhh, one day randomly in my dream, some random old dude appeared and claimed I have a great affinity for the dark side- no eh, I mean, I have great affinity for darkness and gave me a cultivation technique which I'm currently cultivating."
"He's telling the truth," Noman murmured absentmindedly.
Anakin's history was both surprising and unimpressive. Rafael had not heard of him in his previous life, so it was likely he never made any great achievements back then. But things were too different this time around, so it was hard to tell if it would be the same.
Not bothering to comment on his story, Rafael cleared his throat and began.
"My name is Rafael Carter Bravi and many years ago, I was struck by an accident. It destroyed my entire body. But that is only what happened on the surface, the truth of the matter is entirely different."
He paused for a moment, as he thought back on the memories of his previous life. He remembered everything so vividly; every emotion, every ache, every hope, every moment of despair, all of it. It was that level of clarity that brought some doubt, for none of his other memories were so clear. The truth… was something he would most likely never know, nor that it mattered, but for the first time, he could voice his suspicions.
"The truth is, I've actually traveled back in time from the future. My original life… my original timeline was vastly different from this one, yet at the same time, it was so similar. Everyone who existed in my original life exists now, and I was able to live and witness the history of Earth for a total of 134 years.
"The Earth in my original life was very different, and the war between the Council of New Order and the five Nascent heads was also very different. When all was said and done, Earth was almost destroyed, and humans were brought to a fraction of their current population."
He paused again, this time paying attention to Larry's disbelieving reaction. He waited for the subtle 'he's telling the truth' murmur before he continued.
"So far, many of the things that were supposed to happen in my original timeline have already changed. Although I don't know why they changed, I strongly suspect it has something to do with the appearance of the golden keys for the Midnight Inn on Earth. But, while immediate disasters have been averted, there are more dangers ahead. I've already checked by various means that this timeline is mostly identical to my original one, and so I strongly believe that the troubles that lay ahead will still come, especially since they don't originate from Earth itself.
"So, to fight against these dangers and prepare for the worst, it has been my goal to find the strongest people in the future, and band them together so that we can work together to solve the situation. That is why I approached Larry, because he is supposed to become one of the strongest people on Earth in the future."
He finally stopped, for the amount he had shared was enough to cover the contract they had signed. But, he knew, or rather, anticipated something, and it happened immediately in the next moment.
"He's telling the truth, but he's also hiding something. The truth is incomplete," said Noman, his voice filled with genuine wonder. Even with his vast experience, this was beyond anything he had ever encountered.
Rafael sighed and said, "Well, actually, the thing is, I've been having some doubts lately - though whether they are true or not changes nothing, for now. I am not so sure if I actually traveled back in time, or just had a vision of the future. At first, I thought I had traveled back, but there are certain things that make me think that instead of me traveling back in time, I just had visions of the future. As for what those things are, and why I think that, I believe I don't need to share them as our contract doesn't cover it. I've already revealed the matters that pertained to Larry and why I was searching for him."
Everyone looked towards Noman, who simply nodded to confirm he was telling the truth. They were all reeling from what they heard, but neither of them was more devastated than Anakin. Because of how apocalyptic the future Rafael witnessed was, he had no opportunity to learn any lottery numbers or know the leading stocks! Valuable investment opportunities were lost! The shame! Oh, the shame!
What he did not know was that he should have been rejoicing that the future was different from what Rafael knew, for Anakin had been one of the many casualties in the war that had covered the globe. That was why he never had a chance to reveal his stunning skills and capabilities in that future.
"There's no need to share more…" Larry said slowly. "At least according to the old contract. But we can make a new deal. If you can answer some of my questions about the future, I'd be willing to help you out in whatever you need."
Rafael took a moment to think, but then shook his head.
"There's no need for another contract. I'll tell you what you want to know, since you'll already remove the important bits of my secret from your memory."
Actually, Rafael was taking a risk. He was betting that while Larry would forget other things, he would not forget his sense of goodwill developed by him answering honestly, because there was no reason to deposit that.
"In the future you saw… did I have a family?" he asked, barely keeping his voice from wavering.
Rafael shook his head.
"I didn't know you personally, so I don't know the details of your life. I did, however, know that you didn't seem to have any family or friends."
He paused, to let him absorb that information, and then continued.
"Since three of us are all from Earth, I'll share a bit more with all of you. After all, it has to do with our futures, and I'm hoping we can work together on this. After all, even if you remove your memories, the sense of belief or trust should still stay, so I'm hoping you'll help me."
Anakin and Larry both nodded, though Larry was visibly upset right now. Anakin, though not taking things too seriously, did, after all, live on Earth, so he wanted to know what was going to happen.
"Earth has a huge secret that no one knows, though many suspect. If you've heard of the original 5 Nascent cultivators who used to rule Earth, you might be familiar with the fact that one of them went from being a mortal to a Nascent cultivator overnight. Larry himself found an incredible treasure, and I encountered something that allowed me to view the future. Anakin had dreams telling him about cultivation techniques. There are many, many more examples of people becoming way too lucky on Earth. You may think that it's all just coincidence, but if a coincidence repeats too often, it starts to seem suspicious.
"And the truth is, it really isn't a coincidence. Earth… Earth is not as it seems. The planet is actually a prison for an evil goddess named Bastet, and many others. This is because Earth, and its surrounding region in space, are in what is known as a deadzone in the universe. I don't know much about these, just that they are severely suffocated of spiritual energy. But I do know that in the year 2025 something happens, and the deadzone changes, and Earth, along with the solar system, becomes flooded with spiritual energy much more concentrated than the normal universe.
"The flood of spiritual energy causes the goddess to break free of her restraints, and that's when…"
There was pin drop silence as everyone listened to Rafael very seriously, even Noman. This was because… he had heard of Bastet before.
*****
Origin realm, Planet Hozath
The entire world was filled with a deathly silence as every living being, from single-celled organisms to sentient lifeforms, were under the coercion of a black furred cat.
"I have returned, you wretched traitors," her voice echoed over the planet. "Know this, and live in fear. The moment I break through my shackles, your end shall be nigh."
There was nothing more that Bastet wanted than to decimate this entire planet, but as someone who had touched upon the Dao, she was under heavy restrictions. Even she did not dare flaunt Henali's rules, but hopefully soon, that would no longer be a concern.
Lex was extremely pleased with how satisfied his guests were with the hot tub room. They only woke up around 2 pm the next day, and when they came down to the hall, they were extremely refreshed. And hungry.
They were so energetic that they were having no trouble handling their kids, and for once, they sat at a few tables like a civilized family, chatting and laughing together.
Betty was hard at work in the kitchen, making sure they didn't run short of food, and his delinquent helpers were also hard at work, doing whatever they could. Strangely enough, though, the triplets had not shown up to work as of yet.
Considering their disciplined behavior so far, Lex was a little concerned at their absence and sent Big Ben over to investigate. He had been gone a while now, and should be back any time now. In the meantime, Lex leaned back in his chair and listened to the new musician he had temporarily hired. His performance and popularity would determine if Lex kept him, but so far he and his accordion had delivered a splendid performance.
A short while later, Big Ben returned with the three girls, but the expressions on their faces warned of grave news. Lex quickly got up and checked if the girls were alright before asking what happened.
"Their neighbors were killed," said Big Ben gravely. "Almost all of them. It was the serial killer. The bodies were discovered last night by accident. The constables suspected their family, since they were unharmed amidst all that, and arrested them. But the entire family works, so they all had alibis and had to be let go."
The hair on Lex's back stood up as he imagined discovering all your neighbors had been killed in their own homes. That was genuinely horrific, especially when one considered that it could easily have been them instead of their neighbors who had been murdered.
"Where's your family? Do they have a place to stay? If not, bring them to the tavern and we'll figure something out."
"They're at the town shelter, along with Dino and his wife. They lived nearby as well, and they're too scared to go back."
Lex hesitated, but then nodded. He didn't know what the town shelter was like, but at least it would be more secure since it was being overseen by the town. He told the girls again that they could bring their family to the tavern if needed and offered them a holiday. But the girls refused and said that they were fine and wanted to work.
They tried their best to seem normal, but anyone could see the absence of the usual mirth they carried with them.
Lex, too, was perturbed by the situation. He had been taking the serial killer lightly, as he completely expected that he or she would be caught soon. But the situation was becoming drastically worse, and the constables seemed incapable of handling the situation. The security here was worse than he expected.
He sent someone to find and call Roland over. He really wanted to see what the news had to say about the discovered murders. Everything was happening contrary to common sense. He could still accept that this region, which was supposed to be one of the richest in the realm, showed no opulence. He could accredit it to the excellent management of the Noel family. But if their management and control over this region was excellent, why were so many murders going unimpeded? This was especially the case when the Noel brothers themselves passed through the town as well.
Unless it was the Noel family itself behind the murders for whatever reason. Whatever the case, Lex started to get a bad feeling. He needed to prepare in case things got worse.
*****
Babylon Town, 800 meters below the ground
The murderer licked the blood off the blade, his body trembling as he savored his kills. He was currently in the underground chambers that housed the formation encompassing Babylon. Even if someone knew the supposed 'weaknesses' of the formation, it was not so straightforward to reach it. Weakness was only a relative term, as no expenses were spared. After all, the lives of all the townspeople depended on this formation.
Providing light to the town was only one of the many functions of the formation, amongst a low level spiritual gathering function, a barrier function to lock down the town, and others.
With the importance of the formation, it can easily be guessed how difficult it would be to reach it, yet the killer strolled carelessly through the hall.
"System, how many points do I need to get something that can override this formation?" asked a surprisingly charming and energetic voice.
"No points required. Host has already received a reward for a previous quest that can both upgrade and override the formation."
"How lucky," the killer replied, wearing a handsome grin. "How very lucky."
His system did not comment on his remark, so the only remaining sound was that of steady footsteps walking through the chambers, leaving a trail of bloody footprints behind.
*****
"Try this, it's called hot chocolate. It's perfect for cold weather," said Lex as he slid a mug across the counter to Roland. The young businessman went nowhere without his entourage, and this time it was larger than last, consisting of 15 other kids.
It couldn't be helped, as even though the city was well lit even in the dark, they were, after all, children. They would use 100 excuses to hide it, but they were afraid of the horrors of the dark. Even though they had experienced a period of darkness well over 20 times in their short lives without incident, the promise of monsters hiding in the dark never failed to strike fear.
"I can't. I'm on a budget. Dark times are always bad for business."
Lex shrugged and took a sip from the mug himself. He was tempted to offer it for free, but he had noticed during his daily meditations that he was becoming more and more comfortable giving out things for free. It was a habit he needed to curb, lest it seep into other areas of his life.
"When do you expect to get the latest news?" Lex asked, wiping the whipped cream from his upper lip.
"Like I said, business is bad during dark times. They only compile newscrystals once a week rather than daily, because less happens during dark times. You'll have to wait for 3 more days."
"Well, just make sure to have it delivered to the tavern when it's ready. Treat me like a fixed client, I'll even get a few for some of my tenants so bring a few."
"No problem. Consider it done. But, I'm not here today to talk about that. I have a business proposal for you. You ever get tired of running errands through the town? Of sending someone out every time you need to grab a delivery, send a message, or find someone? Of wasting valuable time on petty chores? Well, with our errand boy service, with a subscription of only 2 silver coins a week…"
Lex was listening to Roland's pitch with amusement when goosebumps covered his body, and his instincts acted up. But the feeling of danger vanished just as quickly as it came. Lex was momentarily confused, not understanding what his instincts were trying to warn him of when he noticed the hall looked just a bit dimmer.
That was strange, none of the lights in the hall had gone out. What could… he looked out the window and looked at Bakers street. It was dark.
Some light was still falling onto the street from the windows of the various buildings, but the various street lights that kept the town as bright as Times Square had gone out.
Ignoring Roland who had not noticed and was still delivering a pitch, Lex quickly rushed to the window and took a look outside.
All the lights on the street that had been put up by the town had shut down, leaving only those being used by people privately. Even that would not last for long, as the people would eventually run out of spirit stones to power the lights endlessly.
Roland and some of the folks in the hall noticed Lex's odd behavior and looked outside as well, trying to discover what happened. The first thought everyone had was another murder, so they didn't immediately notice the darkness as they were looking for bodies. Soon, though, people started to notice the oddity.
But by then, Lex was already gone. Swiftly, he climbed the stairs and reached the rooftop terrace to get a good look at the town. Sadly, the situation was just as he expected. A blanket of darkness had covered Babylon, with faint lights twinkling in the dark like fireflies in the distance.
Lex let out a sigh as his mind started racing. He had a decision to make.