Chapter 217: Drafting Laws, Indebtedness

Laidun's joining brought a new opportunity for the development of Daxia Territory; Xia Duo kept asking Laidun about the situation at the Temple, hoping to dig up a few more Divine Magic spellcasters through him.

Of course, they must be believers of the Lord of Radiance.

In the parlor of Lady Patti's home, Xia Duo and Priest Laidun chatted happily; even in front of Lady Patti and Yarman, Xia Duo said quite straightforwardly:

"Having the help of Priest Laidun is just like a fish getting water!"

Although it was difficult to connect a lord-subject relationship with fish and water, the keen Perception that Priest Laidun had honed by being with the god at all times still allowed him to feel Xia Duo's sincerity and trust.

Laidun was very moved and very delighted, not only because the Dao of the Lord of Radiance would be practiced on the ground and his authority expanded, but even more so because of Xia Duo's trust in him.

"Lord, Laidun will surely defend the laws you have created with his life!"

Xia Duo nodded with satisfaction; in fact, as for how much he trusted him, he didn't necessarily trust Laidun that much—how could the relationship between people be so easily drawn closer? He was merely making a judgment based on reason.

Rather than saying he trusted Laidun, it was better to say he trusted the Lord of Radiance, and trusted the tacit understanding between lords and the Temple that had existed in Netheril for so many years.

"Laidun, where are you living now?"

"I am an orphan and have always lived in the Temple."

"In that case—" Xia Duo thought for a moment and looked at Lady Patti, "Please prepare a few houses for me near the port, Madam, so that the people who have already been recruited can move in first."

"No problem, the Liyadun Chamber of Commerce has two warehouses at the port; they can be lived in after a little renovation," Lady Patti promised immediately.

"Good!" Xia Duo continued to instruct Laidun, "Lady Patti has recruited 20 new residents for me; you move over there and recite the *Proverbs* to them."

Reciting the *Proverbs* was naturally to strengthen his rule; now that he stood in the position of a lord, the more he looked at the *Proverbs*, the more he liked them.

And this was exactly to Laidun's liking, "Lord, I will certainly do this well!"

Being able to personally practice the Doctrine of the Lord of Radiance—what could make him happier than this!

After giving these instructions, Xia Duo arranged for Laidun to organize the relevant laws of Netheril and Savile Territory for his reference.

He could not change the general laws of Netheril, but when it came to a specific territory, the lord had absolute authority and could formulate any local laws that did not conflict with the Empire's laws.

Now that he was about to possess a territory, Xia Duo naturally wanted to transform it according to his own wishes, letting his will permeate every aspect of the Territory.

……

After Laidun left, Xia Duo chatted with Yarman for a while, and after leaving his Arcane Mark on the back of his hand, Xia Duo returned to the Mage Tower.

In the few days that followed, Xia Duo would leave the Mage Tower for a while every noon; besides going to the Liyadun Chamber of Commerce to understand the situation, Hans, Shanjin, and the Silaiwen Chamber of Commerce also needed his attention.

This day, just after he returned to the Mage Tower from seeing the first batch of residents of Daxia Territory at the port warehouse, Niya sent a message asking Xia Duo to come to her residence.

Only then did Xia Duo realize that this afternoon was the time for Niya to teach *Intermediate Arcane Geometry*; he immediately returned to his room to get the book and came to Niya's place.

"Mentor."

"Mm." Niya did not engage in small talk and went straight to the topic, "*Intermediate Arcane Geometry* is a required course for low-rank Mages at the Pure White Tower; do you know why?"

"Is it to cultivate Arcanists?" Xia Duo answered casually according to his own understanding.

"Correct. Even Mage Apprentices at the Pure White Tower have studied the primary course; this is the will of the Great Arcanist. Although the Tower of Time does not have such a rule, I hope you can do it. From now on, I will require you to meet the standards of the Pure White Tower."

Seeing that Niya did not seem to be joking, Xia Duo hurriedly said, "Mentor Niya, wait a moment; what are the standards of the Pure White Tower you mentioned?"

The mentors at the Pure White Tower were certainly stronger than those at the Tower of Time, and using their standards to require himself was fine, but what about the mentor?

"Mastery of *Intermediate Arcane Geometry* before Intermediate Rank, and mastery of *Advanced Arcane Geometry* before Advanced Rank—this is almost the only way to become an Arcanist."

Seeming to see Xia Duo's worry, Niya added, "I have already finished studying *Advanced Arcane Geometry*; there is no problem at all in teaching you!"

"Hehe." Xia Duo did not speak again.

What followed was Niya's teaching time; perhaps Niya had really finished studying *Advanced Arcane Geometry*, but her teaching level was still stuck at the primary stage.

Before long, Xia Duo discovered that what Niya was saying was very similar to the book *Intermediate Arcane Geometry*; thinking of how the *Primary* course had a Magic Book, perhaps the Intermediate one had a Magic Book as well.

And Niya was just reading from the content of the Magic Book; the content in the Magic Book was more detailed than ordinary books. If Xia Duo hadn't read the *Primary* Magic Book before, he might not have noticed it at all.

Recalling that the *Primary* Magic Book clearly stated that it was compiled by Great Arcanist Savil based on Iolum's lectures.

Perhaps Netheril simply did not have systematic pedagogy; Xia Duo could clearly feel the improper balance of detail in the *Primary* course.

The *Intermediate* one was perhaps the same.

With this thought, Xia Duo placed his hope on tomorrow's Q&A session; the Q&A session was the time to show the mentor's true strength, as the lecturing was still somewhat unsatisfactory.

While listening, Xia Duo compared what Niya said with the content of the ordinary version of *Intermediate Arcane Geometry*, occasionally recording some key points in his notes.

The afternoon passed in a flash; just as Xia Duo was about to leave, Niya suddenly stopped him, "The territory is about to be developed; is there anything you need help with?"

Xia Duo didn't react for a moment, but then he realized that the territory development Niya mentioned referred to Savile Territory. Xia Duo was overjoyed—did this mean the Elf Mages outside had been dealt with?

As for the help Niya mentioned, Xia Duo hesitated but still refused, "Thank you, Mentor, but the Lord has already provided me with a batch of supplies and a squad of soldiers."

Under the current circumstances, satisfying the initial development was no problem. If there was indeed a need, Xia Duo certainly wouldn't mind seeking help from others.

Xia Duo felt that Niya probably felt a bit indebted to him because of the Nether Scroll, but this was a mutually agreeable transaction between him and the Lord of Savile Territory; it would indeed be inappropriate to obtain benefits from Niya again.

However, although Xia Duo did not want substantive benefits, he had already obtained some implicit ones. Xia Duo thought of Niya saying earlier that she would require him to meet the standards of the Pure White Tower; perhaps a responsible mentor was a good harvest.

……

After returning to his residence, Xia Duo immediately sent a message to Yarman, asking him to send people to keep an eye on the Lord's development team, such as how many people there were and whether there were any spellcasters.

Afterward, Xia Duo organized the Magic Scrolls he had made during this period, totaling 45 copies, the vast majority of which were 【Magic Weapon】 and 【Magic Alarm】.

These were spells needed for territory development, but Xia Duo was not prepared to use these scrolls for Daxia Territory; if sold for money, one copy could sell for more than twenty Gold Coins—using them directly was too extravagant!

Xia Duo prepared to exchange these for Gold Coins, and then exchange them for personnel and supplies. As for Magic, he himself was enough.

In order to increase his Permission Level in the Mage Tower later, Xia Duo prepared to sell these scrolls directly to the Mage Tower, waiving the task quotas he hadn't completed for his previous promotion.

After this matter was finished, Xia Duo's scrolls would have to be used to pay off debts.