Priestess Zhu Yao also knew Du An.
When she had first introduced herself as a priest from the Myriad Ancient Pagoda faction, Li Ban couldn't be sure if she and Du An actually knew each other.
It wasn't until she brought it up herself that Li Ban realized Zhu Yao was the very person who had told Du An to send Shi Ming to the Unreturning Place.
Du An was still in the Shattered Realm, but he would find out sooner or later that Li Ban had also become a priest.
"Are you Lord Du's guide as well?"
"It isn't surprising that you know Du An, considering you're responsible for escorting Shi Ming. I'm actually curious as to how the two of you managed to simultaneously—"
Zhu Yao stopped mid-sentence and grabbed Li Ban's arm. "We will talk when we get back."
Before leaving, she turned to Shi Ming and told him to have the driver follow the First Prince's convoy.
As soon as her voice fell, Li Ban's vision blurred. A moment later, he reappeared inside a much larger carriage.
Zhu Yao released Li Ban's arm and sat down on a soft cushion beside the table, then pointed at the cushion opposite her.
"Sit," she said.
Li Ban had been dragged here before he even had a chance to explain anything to Shi Ming or the cat girl. The priestess clearly didn't want anyone else listening in on matters related to priests.
He did as he was told and sat across from her.
She poured herself a glass of water, taking a sip before speaking. "When did you discover you had a Wizard Embryo Fragment?"
"Not too long ago. Right after I received the mission to escort Shi Ming to the Unreturning Place."
"Then—are you also a living soul from the Ring World?"
'Also?'
Li Ban took a slow breath.
Since she said 'also,' she had to know where Du An came from.
There was no way he could lie about this.
"Yes. Lord Du and I come from the same place. We should be the only two left by now."
Zhu Yao gave a slight nod, her attitude completely unchanged.
The priests seemed perfectly aware of the unknown infiltrators that the major factions were so wary of, yet they didn't seem to care.
"If you're survivors of the Ring World, then it's not surprising that you have Wizard Embryo Fragments."
"When a world is destroyed, its Wizard Embryo Fragments are far more likely to appear on people connected to it. You and Du An might have each received a portion. However, I still need to examine your fragment to be sure."
Zhu Yao raised her hand, keeping her middle three fingers together as she reached toward the spot between Li Ban's eyebrows.
But she stopped just before her fingertips touched his brow, looking into his eyes.
She was actually waiting for his permission.
Li Ban nodded. "Go ahead."
He then leaned forward to meet her fingers.
The moment her fingers made contact, the image of a half-black, half-white Wizard Embryo Fragment with a pearl-like texture immediately flashed before Li Ban's eyes.
It only appeared for a split second before Zhu Yao pulled her hand back, and the fragment faded from his consciousness once more.
"They really are fragments from the same source." Zhu Yao lowered her hand and took another sip of water.
She was actually a bit surprised; from the looks of it, Li Ban's fragment was even larger than Du An's.
Yet Li Ban was only a 4th Tier Spirit Awakening Priest.
Zhu Yao furrowed her brow slightly. 'This Li Ban has excellent aptitude as well,' she thought. 'It's a pity he ran into a black-robed priest while undergoing the Rite of Heaven-Seizing Breath. Otherwise, he might have become a Star Glow Priest right from the start.'
She looked at the oblivious Li Ban and decided to keep this to herself to save him from the frustration.
For a priest, everyday cultivation involved not only absorbing spiritual rhinoceros but also cultivating the mind and practicing self-discipline.
If one allowed past events to weigh down their heart, it could easily spawn inner demons and affect their advancement.
Both Du An and Li Ban had excellent aptitude, but due to various circumstances, neither had been able to directly become a 6th Tier Star Glow during their initial ceremonies.
Zhu Yao felt a brief pang of regret in her heart before letting the matter go.
Even though she was already a Dark Moon Priest, she still had to maintain her state of mind at all times.
"Your aptitude isn't bad," Zhu Yao said, her tone a bit gentler than before. "Normally, as your guide, I would take you with me and teach you the knowledge and spells of a priest. However, once I escort Li Yuan back to the Capital City, I'll be leaving for the Nine Heavens Sea shortly after. That place is far too dangerous for you."
"Since you have to escort Shi Ming to the Unreturning Place anyway, the Myriad Ancient Pagoda over there also has a priest standing guard. His name is Qian Que. He is a friend of mine, as well as a Dark Moon Priest. You can study under him for now."
"Priest Qian Que? Is he the Pagoda Master of the Unreturning Place's Myriad Ancient Pagoda?"
Zhu Yao shook her head. "No, he is Pagoda Master Qian's ancestor."
"Ancestor?" Li Ban asked in astonishment. "How old is Priest Qian Que?"
"I don't know. Once you become a priest, your lifespan starts at three hundred years. The more complete your Wizard Embryo Fragment is, the slower your body ages. Once it reaches a certain level, you won't ever have to worry about dying from natural decay."
Wasn't that immortality?
He never expected that eternal youth and longevity could be achieved just at the priest stage.
Then again, considering that a priest's ultimate goal was to become a Wizard, living forever was nothing more than a necessary prerequisite.
Besides, a long lifespan didn't mean true immortality.
In fact, judging by how rarely priests were seen in day-to-day life, it was highly likely that a significant number of them died from other causes.
Li Ban rejoiced for a moment over his unknowingly extended lifespan before asking another question out of curiosity.
"Priestess Zhu Yao, who exactly is Shi Ming? Along the way, I've noticed many strange things about him. It's like he's blessed by fortune; no one can hurt him."
To his surprise, Zhu Yao replied with complete indifference. "He's just an ordinary person. He might be a bit special, but you don't need to concern yourself with him."
Li Ban found this strange again.
That terrifying black-robed priest had been so afraid of Shi Ming, yet Zhu Yao claimed he was just an ordinary person?
But looking at Zhu Yao's expression, she genuinely didn't care about Shi Ming. She didn't seem to be lying.
Remembering the black-robed priest, Li Ban quickly told Zhu Yao about the crisis he had faced at the Hundred Flowers Pavilion.
"What?" Priestess Zhu Yao instantly sat up straight, her reaction far more dramatic than when they had been discussing Shi Ming. "A black-robed priest appeared near Langzhou Hundred Flower City? And he actually dared to blatantly rob you of your fragment?"
She slowly sat back down, though an angry flush still lingered on her face.
"A black-robed priest this arrogant has to be Xiao Suo! I thought he died in the Nine Heavens Sea. How detestable!"
In her agitation, Zhu Yao shed her usual aloofness, showing a much more fiery temperament.
It was a bit strange; it felt as though this was her true nature.
However, she quickly suppressed her emotions and returned to her cold, almost expressionless demeanor.
She raised her hand, and a small bronze mirror appeared in her palm.
Speaking into the mirror, she said, "A black-robed priest has appeared near Langzhou Hundred Flower City. It might be Xiao Suo. Is anyone available to go look for him?"
Li Ban stared at the small bronze mirror with wide eyes.
Wasn't this exactly like the small mirror he had found in the hidden room of the Hundred Flowers Pavilion?
Was this mirror the Wizard World's version of a telephone?
Li Ban didn't hear a response from the mirror, but Zhu Yao clearly did.
"Good. If it's convenient, all of you should go. It would be best if you could kill him." Even as she spoke of murder, Zhu Yao's expression remained calmly indifferent.
She put down the small bronze mirror, but instead of putting it back into her Cubic Space, she held it out for Li Ban to see.
"This is a Self-Seeking Mirror. It facilitates communication between priests and can also be used to cultivate one's state of mind. Every white-robed priest has one. Once we reach the Capital City, I'll get a new one for you. You cannot use someone else's Self-Seeking Mirror, as it will affect your mental cultivation."
Li Ban felt a wave of relief. 'Good thing I was careful and didn't mess with the one I picked up,' he thought.
Having dealt with the issue of the black-robed priest, Zhu Yao decided to give Li Ban a proper explanation while they were on the road.
"In the Wizard World, a priest holds a special identity. It can be integrated into the identity of a spirit practitioner, yet it also exists independently of it. The several Wizard Lords who created the Wizard World established this system as a path to heaven, allowing priests to become Great Wizards more smoothly and rapidly."
"Otherwise, for priests of the past to become Great Wizards, they would have had to spend at least several millennia cultivating, or they would have had to slaughter each other to steal Wizard Embryo Fragments. Now that the Wizard World exists, priests can become Great Wizards in much less time and in a much safer manner."
"As you probably already know, the priest pathway begins at 4th Tier and goes up to 9th Tier, eventually giving you the chance to become a Great Wizard. This is already a path that reaches the heavens."
Zhu Yao then warned him, "Since you have decided to join us, you will become a white-robed priest. You absolutely must not steal Wizard Embryo Fragments from other priests, or your white robes will instantly turn black, and they will never change back."
"Black-robed priests are destroyers of the rules. They plunder fragments, destroy lesser worlds, alter elements, and trigger all sorts of conflicts and disasters."
"Whenever they appear in the Wizard World, white-robed priests are obligated to hunt them down. Outside of the Wizard World, if you run into danger, a white-robed priest might not help you, but they won't actively harm you either. A black-robed priest, however, will only ever be a greater threat."
"Cultivation is as much about cultivating the mind as it is about accumulating power. The black robes and the white robes walk two entirely different paths. I hope you understand this, and don't end up on a path of no return just because of a momentary conflict of pride."
Li Ban nodded.
Given how weak he currently was, the cultivation philosophy of the white-robed priests was much more beneficial to him.
Seeing that Li Ban's attitude was sincere and free of any perfunctoriness, Zhu Yao nodded in satisfaction.
"Before joining the white robes, you must fast for three days, burn incense, and bathe. Once we reach the next town, I will hold the robe-bestowing ceremony for you."
"Thank you, Priestess Zhu Yao." Li Ban stood up solemnly and cupped his hands in gratitude.
While low-level spirit practitioners fought and slaughtered their way to advancement, high-level priests observed etiquette and cultivated their minds.
The myriad facets of society seemed to be the same no matter which world one was in.
However, Li Ban also knew that the world of high-level cultivators wasn't without conflict. It was simply hidden in the dark, where the undercurrents were far more fierce and turbulent.
At this moment, however, Li Ban was genuinely grateful to Priestess Zhu Yao.
Priestess Zhu Yao accepted his gesture with a calm expression and waved for him to sit back down.
"You'll have to wait until we reach the Capital City to get your new Self-Seeking Mirror, so put the matter of mental cultivation aside for now. Along the way, however, I can start by teaching you two of the most common spells."
"One is Shrinking Ground to an Inch, which you just witnessed. The other is the Terror Spell, which has offensive and suppressive capabilities."
Li Ban's eyes lit up.
Spells... He had always heard that priests could cast spells, and now, he was finally going to witness true spells for himself.