Fortune Lord sama sekali tidak menyangka bahwa Lex mungkin telah merancang situasi ini. Apakah orang-orang di belakang Lex turut berperan, dia tidak tahu. Secara logis, hal itu seharusnya tidak mungkin.
Tidak peduli seberapa kuat seseorang, mereka seharusnya tidak bisa memengaruhi Gilded Hollow dan cara pengaturan sumber dayanya. Jika demikian, ini bisa jadi kebetulan murni, atau tebakan yang sangat bagus. Apapun halnya, dia tidak keberatan membantu, apalagi jika itu memperbaiki hubungan dengan Innkeeper.
Dia belum kembali ke alam semesta, tapi sudah punya musuh. Meski dia tidak memahami detail apa yang terjadi pada kekaisaran qilin, jelas bahwa mereka ditargetkan karena keberuntungan mereka.
Qilin seharusnya tidak punah, tapi nyata bahwa mereka menderita luar biasa. Saat dia kembali, siapapun yang pernah menargetkan qilin akan jadi musuhnya mau tidak mau. Fakta bahwa alam semesta sedang dalam perang justru memudahkan seseorang menargetkannya dengan hambatan minimal.
Dia yakin beberapa senior dari masa dia masih aktif di alam semesta masih hidup, dan bisa mengandalkan mereka untuk menolong. Tapi dia ingin menyiapkan cadangan. Dia sadar waktu mengubah banyak hal, dan tidak ada jaminan senior-seniornya sendiri tidak terlibat dalam kejatuhan qilin.
Dari keberuntungan Lex, dia pasti bahwa Lex maupun organisasinya tidak terlibat, sehingga dia nyaman membahas kemungkinan bekerja sama dengan Innkeeper.
Lagi pula, tidak ada konflik kepentingan. Romulus tidak butuh bunga yang dicari Lex, apalagi bunga itu... Lex bisa menilai sendiri saat melihatnya.
"Senior, apakah menurutmu aku sebaiknya hindari mengejar bunga itu?" tanya Lex tanpa ragu. Dia yakin tempat tujuan Fortune Lord jauh terlalu berbahaya baginya. Dia sudah dikelilingi material Dao berkualitas tinggi tapi Fortune Lord tidak berkedip. Lex tidak bayang apa yang bisa menggoda tapi juga membuat dia waspada.
"Belum waktunya," kata Romulus sambil menggelengkan kepalanya. "Aku punya perasaan kesempatan akan muncul bagimu untuk mencoba memetik bunga itu. Dengan kecepatan sekarang, butuh tiga tahun lagi sampai sana. Kamu harus bersiap."
Dengan kata-kata terakhir itu, Romulus menghilang, meninggalkan Lex dengan pikirannya sendiri. Dia tidak tahu Romulus mencurigai Innkeeper mungkin sudah meramal semua ini sebagai dasar mengatakan dia mungkin dapat bunga. Dia pikir Romulus-lah yang memberinya kesempatan.
Lex tidak terlalu memikirkannya. Karena diberi tiga tahun, dia tekad menyelesaikan semua pekerjaannya pada kalung dalam waktu itu, serta menyelesaikan tugas tertunda di sini. Selama berserta Fortune Lord, dia tidak perlu khuatir balas dendam, jadi bisa bertindak tanpa terburu.
Tugas pertama adalah mendekati Pelagor dan menyerahkan barang yang dia inginkan. Inti binatang Primordial World Shell Turtle bukan mainan, dan dia ragu Pelagor bisa menyerapnya sebentar lagi. Lex justru lebih khawatir menyelesaikan kesepakatan mereka.
Meski Lex tidak kekurangan kuda atau teman tempur, Pelagor menunjukkan potensi besar jadi layak dijadikan sekutu secepatnya.
Tapi hal tidak selalu berjalan seperti prediksi - dan itu bukan hanya untuk Lex. Pelagor sudah lama bersiap menerima inti, jadi begitu menerimanya dia bilang ke Lex akan memulai proses penyerapan.
Proses itu tidak akan memaksa dia ke pengasingan lama karena dia sudah menyempurnakan teknik mengubah rasnya, jadi prosesnya stabil dan bertahap. Yang terpenting, tidak akan mengganggu kehidupan sehari-harinya begitu proses benar-benar dimulai.
Sampai tiga tahun berakhir, Pelagor siap mengikuti Lex ke mana pun - bukan berarti Lex yakin mau bawa pengikut. Dia cuma menciptakan target lain untuk pengejarnya.
Untungnya, itu urusan masa depan - atau yang dia kira. Romulus benar mengira dengan kecepatan sekarang, mereka sampai dalam tiga tahun.
Yang tidak dihitungnya adalah anomali yang memaksanya mempercepat.
Di realm Tyranum, Alexander, Giselle, dan yang lain akhirnya sampai di lokasi yang dituju pedang roboh itu. Secara luar, terlihat seperti gunung acak di tengah pegunungan gersang masif.
Perjalanan mereka tidak cepat atau mudah meski pedang roboh sangat membantu. Di akhir, mereka sadar pasti diikuti, tapi pengikut itu tidak lagi menyerang. Mereka hanya mengikuti ke mana pedang membawa.
Itu jelas merepotkan, tapi mereka tidak punya waktu untuk melarikan diri. Jadi tidak bisa selain mengikuti jalur pedang dan menerima fakta diikuti dalam jumlah besar.
Semakin lama, Rafael semakin termenung dalam. Setiap masa depan yang dilihatnya mengarah ke kematian mereka, tapi sekarang dia hanya bisa percaya pada pedang. Dia sadar jika tingkat kultivasi atau kekuatan orang/barang tertentu cukup tinggi, penglihatan masa depannya gagal memperhitungkannya.
Kelompok itu memandang dinding gunung di hadapan, lalu ke pedang yang diam begitu sampai di sini. Mereka menyentuh dan memeriksa dinding, tapi tidak merasakan apa-apa aneh.
"Bersiaplah," bicara Rafael nada rendah tapi serius sambil menarik senjata dan langsung memasang formasi perlindungan. Separuh detik kemudian, hantu menabrak dinding formasi, seolah lari ke arah mereka penuh kecepatan dan tidak duga formasi dipasang begitu cepat.
Rafael tidak terkejut, yang lain juga. Meski mereka tidak bisa melihat masa depan seperti dia, mereka tahu diikuti. Serangan hanya soal waktu.
"Kau lebih baik bantu kita cepat atau kita kacau besar," kata Alexander ke pedang sambil bersiap. Pedang bersinarnya muncul di udara di belakangnya, masing-masing penuh kekuatan luar biasa. Yang lain bersiap juga, tapi sepertinya tidak terlalu berpengaruh karena jumlah hantu di luar formasi terus bertambah masif.
Di antara hantu, tipe roh berbeda mulai muncul, beberapa lebih etereal. Kabu abu mulai memenuhi gunung sekitar mereka, membatasi visibilitas - tapi untuk saat ini masih cukup jelas untuk menemukan selusin atau lebih anggota ras Tyrannis mengamati mereka dengan congkak dari udara.
Rafael hendak memberi perintah, tapi dinding gunung di belakang mereka berkedip, dan sesaat berkedip-kedip, membiarkan satu orang melewati. Lalu orang lain, dan lagi, semuanya berseragam armor berat seperti tidak pernah dilihat kelompok itu.
"Jangan khawatir, teman-teman. Kalian boleh mundur ke Mountain Home tanpa cemas. Terlalu lama kami menunggu pedang suci. Akhirnya kalian bawakan ke kami, dan kalian dipuji sebagai pahlawan."
Kelompok itu saling memandang, lalu ke Rafael yang hanya mengangkat bahu sebelum masuk ke gunung. Karena pilihan lain hanya mati, masuk ke ketidaktahuan gunung tidak terlalu menakutkan.
Tapi nyatanya ini urusan besar. Saat pedang roboh hancur itu menyentuh dinding gunung, Jack membuka matanya kaget.
Setelah bertahun-tahun persiapan, dia akhirnya merasakannya. Hitung mundur acara Nexus telah dimulai, dan kurang dari satu tahun!
Alam semesta sendiri belum tahu, karena mereka baru merasakan acara Nexus saat terjadi. Jack satu-satunya yang tahu sudah dekat.
Dia ingat percakapan dengan Vera dulu. Kalau dia tahu kapan acara Nexus, dia bisa memanfaatkannya untuk menghilangkan keadaan negatif atau takdir yang dikumpulkan selama ini.
The Fortune Lord did not, in any way, think that Lex might have orchestrated this situation. Whether those behind Lex may have had a hand in this, though, he did not know. Logically speaking, it should not have been possible.
No matter how strong one was, they should not be able to affect the Gilded Hollow and how it arranges its resources. In that case, it could either genuinely be a coincidence, or it could be a very good guess. Whatever the case, he didn’t mind helping out, especially if it put him on good terms with the Innkeeper.
He had not yet returned to the universe, but he already had enemies. While he did not understand the intricacies of what had occurred to the qilin empire, it was clear that they had been targeted for their fortune.
The qilin should not be extinct, but it was obvious that they had suffered tremendously. Thus, the moment he returned, anyone and everyone who had previously targeted the qilin would become his enemy whether he wanted revenge or not. The fact that the universe itself was in the midst of a war would make it even easier for someone to target him with minimal obstacles.
While he was certain that some of his seniors from the time when he was still active in the universe were still alive, and that he could rely on them to come to his aid, he wanted to prepare contingencies. He was well aware that time could change many things, and there was no guarantee that his seniors themselves weren’t involved in the fall of the qilin.
From Lex’s fortune, he was certain that neither Lex nor his organisation had any involvement in this matter which is why he was quite comfortable discussing the possibility of working together with the Innkeeper.
Besides, there was no conflict of interest. Romulus had no need for the flower Lex was searching for, not to mention that the flower... well, Lex could judge the situation for himself when he saw it.
"Senior, do you think it’s best I avoid pursuing the flower?" Lex asked without holding back. He was absolutely sure that whatever place the Fortune Lord was heading too would be absolutely too dangerous for Lex. He was already surrounded by full, high quality Dao materials all around him yet the Fortune Lord did not even blink. Lex could not even imagine what it would take to tempt him but also invite caution.
"It’s too soon to say," said Romulus, shaking his head. "I have a feeling that an opportunity will present itself for you to attempt harvesting the flower. At our current rate, it will take us three more years to reach it. You should prepare yourself."
With those final words, Romulus disappeared, leaving Lex to his own thoughts. He was unaware that Romulus suspected that the Innkeeper might have predicted all of this as the basis for saying he might get the flower. He thought that Romulus was the one who might give him an opportunity.
Lex did not over think it. Since he was given three years, he resolved to finish all his work on the necklace within, as well as complete any lingering tasks he had left here. While he was with the Fortune Lord, he did not have to worry about retributions, so he could act without any reservations.
The first task was to approach Pelagor and deliver the item that he wanted. The beast core of a Primordial World Shell Turtle was not something to be taken lightly, and he doubted that Pelagor would be able to absorb it any time soon. Lex was, instead, more concerned about finalising their agreement.
Although Lex was not lacking in a mount of a combat partner, Pelagor had shown great potential so it was worth it to rope him in sooner rather than later.
Yet things did not always go as predicted - and that wasn’t just true for Lex. Pelagor had been preparing to receive the core for too long, so the moment he received it he told Lex that he was going to initiate the absorption process.
It wouldn’t actually force him into a long seclusion for he had already perfected the technique by which he would change his race, so the process would be stable and gradual. Most importantly, it would not interfere with his daily life once the process had actually started.
By the time the three years would be up, Pelagor would be ready to follow Lex wherever he needed - not that Lex was so sure about keeping a follower with him for now. He would only be creating another target for his stalker.
Fortunately, that was a worry for the future - or so he thought. Romulus was right in assuming that at their current pace, they would reach in three years.
What he had not accounted for was the occurrence of an anomaly that would force him to speed up.
Within the Tyranum realm, Alexander, Giselle and the rest finally reached the location that the crumbling sword had been leading them to. On the surface, it looked like a random mountain within a massive, barren mountain range.
Their journey had not been quick, or easy despite the crumbling sword helping them tremendously. Towards the end, they could tell for a fact that they were being followed, but the followers were no longer attacking them. Instead, they were simply trailing them to wherever the sword was leading them.
That was obviously quite troublesome, but they didn’t have the time to try to lose them. Thus, they could do nothing except to follow the path the sword laid out and accept the fact that they were being followed in large numbers.
The longer they went on, the more Rafael fell into a deeper and deeper silence. Every future he saw led to their deaths, but at this point he could do nothing but put his trust in the sword. He was well aware that if the cultivation level or power of certain people or items was high enough, his future sight would fail to account for them.
The group looked at the mountain wall in front of them, and then at the sword which seemed to have gone silent upon reaching here. They touched and probed the wall, but sensed nothing unusual about it.
"Prepare yourselves," Rafael spoke in a low but solemn tone as he drew his weapons and immediately employed a protective formation. A split second later, a ghost crashed against the formation wall, as if it had been running towards them at full speed and hadn’t anticipated that the formation would be set up so quickly.
Rafael wasn’t surprised in the least, and neither were the others. While they couldn’t see the future like he could, they at least knew that they were being followed. An attack was only a matter of course.
"You better help us quickly or we’re going to be in great trouble," said Alexander to the sword as he too prepared himself. His shining swords appeared in the air behind him, each one filled with a tremendous amount of power. The rest prepared as well, but it seemed not to make too much of a difference when the number of ghosts outside the formation kept growing and growing in massive numbers.
Between the ghosts, different types of spirits began to appear as well, some more ethereal than others. A grey mist began to fill the mountains around them, limiting their visibility - though for now they could still see enough to discover a dozen or so Tyrannis race members watching them arrogant from up above in the air.
Rafael was about to give some orders, but the mountain wall behind them shimmered, and for a brief moment it flickered, allowing a single person to pass through to them. Then came another, and another, all of them fully garbed in heavy armor the likes of which none in the group had ever seen.
"Do not be concerned, friends. You may retreat into the Mountain Home without worry. For too long, we have been waiting for the holy sword. At last you have brought it to us, and you will be lauded as heroes for it."
The group stared at one another, and then at Rafael who only shrugged before walking into the mountain. Since the only other option was death, going into the unknown of the mountain did not seem like such a big deal.
Except that it really was a big deal. The moment the broken, crumbling sword touched the mountain wall, Jack opened his eyes in shock.
After years and years of preparation, he finally felt it. The countdown to the Nexus event had begun, and it was in less than one year!
The universe itself did not know yet, for they would only sense the Nexus event when it happened. Jack was the only one who knew that it was approaching.
He recalled the conversation he had with Vera once. If he knew when the Nexus event was, he could take advantage of that to get rid of any negative states or destinies he accumulated in this time.
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