Chapter 389: Uninvited Guest

Functional facilities like the Arcane Garden, Alchemy Bench, and Spell Laboratory, as well as Tower Spirit functions such as internal Protection, vigilance, and response, have all been fully restored.

Basically, there is no difference from before the Midsummer Festival; just like this, energy reserves are still rising steadily, which is already quite good.

And now, once the consumption of the overall Protection drops, there will be too many things Xia Duo can do; for instance, what he wants most is—to open a Portal connecting the Tower of Time to Linshui Village.

Of course, for things like a Portal, he still needs to ask Aiboke for help, utilizing the Tower of Time's Portal (facility) to fix the Portal in place, similar to the one the Tower of Time currently uses to connect to the Savile Territory.

Now the only thing he needs to do is wait, wait for the influence of the Elemental Channel to gradually expand, and wait for good news from the Tower of Time; and in the process of waiting, researching Magic is the best way to kill time.

……

Starting from the small lake, heading west along the Linshui River, and walking on the small path trodden out by the river workers, Xia Duo's pace was very slow. Watching the water waves rushing westward on the river surface and constantly overtaking him, Xia Duo suddenly smiled and slightly quickened his pace.

Returning to Linshui Village, Xia Duo discovered a small flat-bottomed boat docked by the river; it was not his "Lucky Owen," nor was it any boat he had seen in the Savile Territory.

The boat was colored in red, orange, and yellow overall, with a golden, face-bearing burning sun pattern painted on the gunwale, and a team of warriors clad in golden armor stood on the deck.

Judging by the direction of the bow, the boat came from the north; perhaps it was a Priest of the Lord of Radiance heading to the Basin Lake in the south for a vacation. It is said that the scenery of the Basin Lake in the south is beautiful and famous throughout Netheril.

Xia Duo had seen boats pass through Linshui Village heading south before, but this was indeed the first time one had docked like this.

Laidun is very obedient, and Bishop Anbulier of the Savile Territory is also easy to talk to, but Xia Duo does not believe that Priests of the Lord of Radiance in other places are all like this.

There is a saying in his hometown: "Each serves their own master." The Lord of Radiance is the common master of the priests in the heavens, but on the ground, the local lords are their true masters.

This is both a compromise of reality and a constraint of the Doctrine.

Of course, even for a priest from another land, Xia Duo does not believe he would dare to harm him; harming a ruler already violates their core Doctrine.

A Priest of the Lord of Radiance who upholds order would certainly not do such a thing, but it is certain that their interests and stance do not stand on Xia Duo's side.

……

When Xia Duo walked to the small square of the Altar, he no longer needed to ask anyone; he had already seen the strange priest standing next to the Altar chatting with Laidun.

Laidun's attitude toward him seemed respectful, but Xia Duo had spent quite a long time with Laidun and could still see the hidden hostility beneath that respect; it seemed their conversation was not going smoothly.

He also did not know what they had actually talked about.

"Laidun!" Xia Duo shouted from afar.

Hearing Xia Duo's voice, Laidun immediately abandoned the priest he was talking to, trotted over to Xia Duo, bowed, and whispered: "My Lord, that is Priest Ke'er from the Rodney Territory in the north; he wants to become your Chief Advisor."

Chief Advisor? Does he have such a position under his command? Looking at it purely from the literal meaning, that Priest Ke'er wants to defect to him, but the problem is that he knows nothing about the Rodney Territory or that Priest Ke'er.

Xia Duo displayed a look of confusion at the right time, and Laidun immediately explained, "My Lord, Priest Ke'er came in a private capacity; he actually still takes orders from the Rodney Lord. If you were to order it, I could also go to other territories to serve as a consultant in a private capacity."

Hearing this explanation, Xia Duo immediately realized that there is still a very significant distinction between the Temple system and the Territory system's clergy; at the very least, the Territory system should allow for "the heart being in Cao Ying while the mind is in Han."

As for the Temple system, it is akin to an affiliation of Faith, which is not easily shaken.

But Xia Duo has also thoroughly read the "Sacred Proverbs of the Lord of Radiance"; from the perspective of the Doctrine, doing this is actually skirting the rules, using a private capacity to cover up a misinterpretation of the Doctrine.

Of course, then again, if all believers could completely follow the Doctrine, then there would be saints everywhere.

Thinking of this, Xia Duo looked toward Priest Ke'er by the Altar. Just then, Priest Ke'er also looked at him and gave a slight bow, his demeanor carrying a trace of arrogance and self-importance.

Xia Duo smiled slightly, did not pay it any mind, whispered a few words to Laidun, and then walked toward the Altar.

"Priest Ke'er, welcome to Daxia Territory. I heard from Laidun that you want to become my Chief Advisor?"

"Lord Xia Duo." Priest Ke'er bowed again, "I heard in the north that there is a Yong Zhe Kai Tuo Zhi Di in the south, and the lord is a genius Mage with extraordinary talent."

"I feel that a genius Mage should not be trapped in worldly affairs, but should instead focus on the field of Magic; therefore, I recommend myself to be your Chief Advisor, willing to handle worldly pioneering affairs for you."

These words—

No matter how Xia Duo listened, he felt it was awkward; he always felt that these words should be said by a Mage to a member of the clergy, for shouldn't Mages be the ones dealing with worldly matters! And members of the clergy should be focused on the God's Domain.

Besides, even if he wanted to be a hands-off manager, he would hope to delegate Permission Level actively, rather than having his subordinates actively seize power!

Xia Duo did not answer immediately, and Priest Ke'er continued to display his capital, "I have personally presided over the pioneering of the southern forests of the Rodney Territory and am rich in experience regarding the pioneering of forest territories. Additionally, I have extensive connections in the north and can introduce sufficient labor for Daxia Territory, as well as corresponding supplies; I can also develop local specialties suitable for Daxia Territory."

Eh? Speaking of this, Xia Duo was actually only interested in the "sufficient labor" mentioned by Priest Ke'er; the rest could just be listened to. And for the sake of this "sufficient labor," Xia Duo wanted to try one last time: "Priest Ke'er, I am very interested in what you said, and I also recognize your ability; I am willing to build a Temple for you in Daxia Territory."

"This—" Ke'er hesitated.

Seeing this scene, Xia Duo also got his answer; this Priest Ke'er was indeed not genuinely defecting. Otherwise, with a Temple right in front of him, how could he hesitate? Theoretically, a Temple has nothing to do with the achievements of the clergy; one only needs to practice the Doctrine in body and deed to obtain the recognition of the god and have Holy Power bestowed as a benefit.

But limited by their understanding of the Doctrine, very few members of the clergy can level up all the way to become existences comparable to a Great Arcanist.

And possessing a Temple, thereby expanding the scope of the influence of order, is another way to level up, especially since the Lord of Radiance is fair and selfless; as long as order is promoted, even if it is only a negligible amount, Holy Power will be bestowed.

This is somewhat similar to "civilizing a region" in Xia Duo's hometown. An individual can also "civilize a region," but it is not as convenient as having a Temple.

Therefore, even if not for their own leveling up, for the sake of their Faith, members of the clergy would not refuse to possess a Temple.

(End of chapter)