The Innkeeper

Liz did not fall off since Lex was keeping an eye on her. Little Blue also did not mean for her to fall off. It was just like a little baby, throwing a tantrum and being mischievous at the same time.

As they flew above the landscape of the Inn, and Liz laid her eyes on entire mountain ranges made entirely of spirit stones, her brain ceased functioning. She could not imagine such wealth. Even seeing it before her, she could not entirely comprehend what kind of immense monetary value a mountain of spirit stone would end up being.

But then again, when one literally had a mountain made of spirit stones, what was the point of money? Money was probably what they burnt to fertilize the ground with ash. She saw lakes of liquid spiritual energy… no that would be called spiritual elixir in this form. She saw natural steam vents, blowing out heated, misty spiritual mist.

She saw trees and insects straight out of legend, which had become extinct in most realms according to her academy, and she saw beasts that she didn't even know were real, and imagined as old stories.

"Do you mind if I ask you a question?" Lex asked, waking her up from her gawking state. Liz was too stunned to be embarrassed, so she simply nodded.

"I heard you went to the Ventura academy. How come you didn't end up getting a decent Beast from them to use for your cultivation."

Liz pursed her lips as she recalled some unpleasant memories.

"Have you ever been to Ventura?" she asked before answering the question.

"Nope."

"Well, it truly lives up to its title of being the best academy in the universe," Liz said. "But that doesn't just mean that they only take the best students. No, they take geniuses, talented, untalented and even complete failures. As long as one is willing to work hard, they'll take you. As long as you're willing to grind, they're willing to show you the way to become stronger, become smarter, or achieve whatever your goal is. They can take a cripple and help him reach the very peak of the immortal realm, if that's what he wants, and is willing to work for it.

"But at the same time, everything comes at a cost. Taking just their tuition is manageable cost-wise. Taking their unique and specific resources costs more. Overcoming your limitations, or in the case of people like myself who have very high potentials, even meeting your potential is so expensive that it's often impossible to meet.

"There are a few ways to resolve the issue. The first is to just pay up. If you pay, then you can continue to get what you want. But realistically speaking, it's not possible. So then comes the option that most people actually opt for, which is to work for the academy. This is when things get tricky.

"There are levels to joining the academy. At the first level, you can be a regular employee, but then your pay and benefits are limited. That'll work up until the Nascent realm - at most - but if you want to continue using the academy for growth at a reasonable pace, beyond that level you have to more closely tie yourself to the academy. It never really gets to the level of slavery, but at the highest levels, your life is basically all just about the academy and nothing else. In exchange, they invest in you and allow you to become stronger.

"So then you can imagine my situation. To make the most of my Beast Master cultivation path, I need to fuse with a Mythic Beast. The cost for that was not something I could afford, nor was it something the William family wanted to pay. In the end, all I could do was rely on myself. I could have, of course, gone for an easier or weaker option but…"

Liz paused, not completing her sentence, but Lex could guess what she was feeling. She was not satisfied with her life, and unless she became as powerful as possible, she had no hope of escaping Damian or those who wanted to marry her. The fact that someone might rescue her and save her from this predicament was not something she considered at all.

In that case, if she couldn't reach her utmost potential, the life she would live would be one of constantly running away, or as someone else's prisoner.

If that was the alternative, she preferred not cultivating at all and accepting death rather than compromising.

Lex resisted the urge to sigh, and instead pointed to the planet visible above them.

"By the way, since you're so afraid of a mountain, I thought I'd let you know that up above us that is not a planet, but a Beast… actually, I don't know if it counts as a Beast yet. That's an egg called a World Eater and it evolves into a Jorlam. I would have recommended that to you, and I have a spatial ring which allows you to carry a planet with you so it wouldn't be a problem bringing it around… but the World Eater is set to become an employee of the Inn so I can't really just give it away."

By saying he couldn't do such things, Lex made it look like he was just an employee, working under restrictions. But in truth, he did not need to take such considerations, mainly because Liz's brain had stopped working.

That mountain was a beast? Sounds good. The planet right above us is a Beast. No problem. She was certain she could take anything.

"I wouldn't even be surprised if you told me this realm itself was a Beast," Liz said, showing the expression of cracking a joke.

"Oh no, it's not a Beast - it's a plant, and I'm already fused with it, so that's off the list as well," Lex said casually.

Liz finally fainted, and almost fell off Little Blue.

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