The System, a quirky yet omnipotent guide, thrust Lex into an ethereal realm where he, with a thought, began to manifest the Midnight Inn. He meticulously designed a stately manor, an English countryside cottage for the Pro Bono wing, and a recovery hut, spending precious Midnight Points on even the most basic aesthetic enhancements like flora and fauna, all while battling a lingering brain tumor that served as his ultimate motivation. He hired two AI assistants, Gerard and Velma, whose combat prowess was humorously akin to assailing a chicken, underscoring Lex's immediate vulnerability in this new, dangerous universe. The Inn's first golden ticket, inexplicably linked to Earth, soon bore fruit, opening its ethereal doors to two extraordinary guests: Bastet, a Demi-Dao Lord cat, and her powerful bull attendant, Falak. Their arrival, far exceeding Lex's authority to even gauge their power, instantly catapulted him into the higher echelons of universal power dynamics. The System, recognizing the immense prestige of these patrons, awarded Lex an SSS+ rating, a substantial influx of Midnight Points, and a Unique Opportunity Token. This token presented a choice of legendary boons, from an offensive cultivation art to an impenetrable defense technique, or even control over a galaxy. Lex, prioritizing survival and swayed by a sudden, inexplicable disappearance of one option, chose Regal Embrace, a defensive cultivation method that immediately began to transform his mortal body, initiating the first stage of Body Tempering and healing many of his minor ailments, though his brain tumor persisted as a daunting reminder of his journey's true stakes.

Lex, newly emboldened by his nascent cultivation, returned to Earth to resign from his mundane job, only for his enhanced handshake to inadvertently reveal his true nature to his boss, Jessica. Jessica, a high-level cultivator herself and a sub-district head of Bluebird, Earth's cultivator policing agency, immediately recognized Lex as an unregistered practitioner, triggering a tense interrogation. Lex, improvising a backstory about a found cultivation scroll, was forced to undergo registration, learning firsthand about Earth's secretive cultivation society, its strict regulations, and the severe penalties for non-compliance, including the threat of being "eliminated as a suspected threat." This encounter shattered his naive assumptions about a peaceful Earth. His journey then led him to Marlo's self-defense class, a brutal training ground run by an excitable, seemingly mad giant of a man. Marlo, a powerful Body Cultivator with a crippled Golden Core, subjected his students to relentless, injury-inducing drills, emphasizing survival above all else. During this chaotic introduction, the System unexpectedly initiated a "Sudden Quest": hire Marlo as the Inn's first valet within one month, with the terrifying penalty of Lex's immediate death upon failure. This immediate, personal threat, combined with the earlier close call with Bluebird, underscored the perilous reality of his new life, demonstrating that dangers lurked not only in distant galaxies but also in the familiar streets of New York, demanding his cunning and quick adaptation.

Driven by the need for Midnight Points to upgrade his Inn and advance his cultivation, Lex embarked on his first inter-world journey to Vegus Minima, a planet rated "1 Star" for its cultivation environment but plagued by a terrifying zombie apocalypse. Armed with a newly acquired spirit gun and armor from Marlo, Lex found himself immediately thrust into a desperate fight for survival against hordes of slow-moving "regular" zombies and cunning "mini-boss" variants. The experience was a brutal awakening; he quickly lost his equipment, sustained severe injuries, and became infected by a zombie mutagen, only to be saved by the timely consumption of Botlam Dew. Unbeknownst to him, in his adrenaline-fueled, instinct-driven combat haze, he racked up an astonishing kill count, completing multiple "Sudden Quests" and earning a significant sum of Midnight Points. This harrowing ordeal, however, came at a steep personal cost, leaving his body battered, his spirit drained, and his soul slightly damaged, a stark reminder from Mary about the dangers of losing self-awareness in combat. His return to the Inn, still reeking of death and covered in dried blood, served as a dramatic testament to the unforeseen perils of intergalactic travel. The experience, though traumatic, solidified his resolve to grow stronger and better equip himself for the universe's inherent dangers, transforming his initial quest for excitement into a grim determination for survival.

Upon his return, Lex immediately leveraged his experience on Vegus Minima to strategically recruit Marlo, presenting the platinum key as a dangerous "token of fate" that offered a path to healing his crippled Golden Core. Marlo, despite his initial refusal to be a subordinate, accepted a "Trial" – a perilous mission to kill specific tiers and numbers of zombies, including a Tier 5 (Nascent realm equivalent) zombie, on Vegus Minima within seven days, with the promise of full bodily healing as a reward. This cunning move allowed Lex to secure Marlo's expertise without compromising his pride. Simultaneously, Alexander Morrison, the 17-year-old heir to the rulers of Mars, arrived at the Inn, seeking healing for his mentor, Helen. Alexander, impressed by the Inn's capabilities, purchased all the zombie cores Lex had acquired, injecting a colossal 2.6 million Midnight Points into Lex's coffers. This massive influx of wealth triggered a "Hidden Achievement: At Maximum Capacity," which dramatically elevated the Inn's Star Rating, granted a free expansion, and boosted Lex's authority. The surge of "higher and more complex" energy flowing through the expanded Inn catalyzed cultivation breakthroughs for Hugo, Chen, and Blane, while providing Bastet and Falak with enough power to finally leave Earth. This pivotal moment solidified the Midnight Inn's reputation as a universal nexus, dramatically accelerating its growth and Lex's journey from a reluctant innkeeper to a strategic cosmic entrepreneur.