Valley Master Tan explained enthusiastically, "Because we never found anyone suitable to bear its element, we've suppressed its growth. If you wish to fuse with it, Priest Ban, give us half a month, and we can bring the Xuanji Vine to maturity. When the time comes, we'll arrange everything to ensure your fusion goes smoothly."
"I'm not worried about the fusion's success rate." Li Ban raised a hand, stopping Tan Qiyue from saying anything more. "I'm more curious about the expert who gave you that advice. Who was it?"
Valley Master Tan, who had been trying her best to be completely honest with Li Ban, suddenly looked troubled.
She wrung her hands, furrowed her brows, and shifted her gaze from the tips of her shoes up to Li Ban.
Strangely, Li Ban, who hadn't put on any airs before, was now staring intently at her, waiting for an answer.
'Sure enough, no matter how approachable a priest usually seems, they become extremely overbearing the moment it involves something they truly care about.'
As she lowered her eyes, she caught sight of Cat Girl's tail swaying gently. Cat Girl appeared to be in an excellent mood.
She sighed inwardly again. 'Cat Girl might be happily flirting with a priest right now, but it won't be long before she realizes that spirit practitioners and priests are simply from two completely different worlds. Sigh...'
Tan Qiyue knew she had no place to interject in such matters; she could only keep her thoughts to herself.
Looking up, Tan Qiyue said, "Actually, that expert mentioned back then that it was just a casual remark and told me not to tell anyone else. But since you want to know, Priest Ban, I won't hide it. The one who guided us in improving the Xuanji Vine was Priest Hunyou."
"Priest Hunyou? When did he give you this advice?" Li Ban asked in surprise. This candidate was completely different from what he had imagined.
"It was about three years ago."
Li Ban glanced down at the vines beneath the iron grating once more. "Perfect. I was planning to visit Priest Hunyou anyway. Would it be convenient for Valley Master Tan to lead the way?"
Tan Qiyue understood the subtext; he was telling her to come along.
She gave a bitter smile.
Priest Hunyou had specifically told her not to mention this to outsiders. Now that Priest Ban knew, he was immediately dragging her along to confront him.
No matter how this played out, she was probably going to offend Priest Hunyou this time.
Earlier, when she mentioned getting 'guidance from an expert,' she simply hadn't wanted to deceive Li Ban into thinking they had cultivated the Xuanji Vine entirely on their own.
Who could have expected that Priest Ban would latch onto this 'expert' and refuse to let go?
Things having reached this point, she had no other choice. If she refused, she would only end up offending Priest Ban as well.
"Very well. Then, is Priest Ban satisfied with this Xuanji Vine?"
She still needed to gift the item to establish a good relationship.
An enigmatic smile tugged at the corners of Li Ban's mouth. "I am satisfied. I'll have to trouble Valley Master Tan to let it elementalize within half a month. Oh, right. When the Xuanji Vine matures, I hope to be present to observe."
"That won't be a problem. The success rate is highest if you fuse with it right as it elementalizes."
Since the tour was over, Tan Qiyue led the two of them out of the underground stone chamber.
Li Ban grabbed Cat Girl and teleported away, leaving the Valley Master all alone by the underground river.
By the time Tan Qiyue finally walked out of the tunnel, Li Ban had already conjured a cloud of mist.
"I have never visited Priest Hunyou's residence in Yingzhou. I'll have to trouble Valley Master Tan to lead the way."
"You're too polite," Tan Qiyue said, lowering her head slightly as she stepped behind Li Ban and Cat Girl.
To make it easier for Tan Qiyue to navigate, Li Ban didn't fly very high.
However, he used 'World Without Me' so that the people on the ground couldn't spot them.
Soaring about twenty meters above the ground, the mist of Mist Valley didn't obstruct their vision. There weren't many pedestrians in the valley, which was teeming with various plants and small animals.
Since Cat Girl had lived here for a while, she enthusiastically introduced the local specialties to Li Ban.
"That's a long-haired rabbit. There aren't actually many of them around here, but their fur is worth a lot of money."
Tan Qiyue covered her lips and chuckled softly. "Yes, Censor Cat has eaten quite a few of them. The meat is quite tender."
Cat Girl lifted her chin, not the least bit ashamed of being a glutton, and even started explaining the best ways to cook them to Li Ban.
Li Ban didn't say much, merely listening with a faint smile on his lips.
Amidst this relaxed atmosphere, they left the bounds of Mist Valley.
Priest Hunyou usually didn't like being disturbed, so he lived deep in the mountains. Low-level spirit practitioners didn't even have the ability to venture that deep.
As a priest of the Imperial Dynasty stationed in Yingzhou, he would go out on patrol once a month to check for any traces of the Black Robe or the emergence of any monsters powerful enough to threaten the region's development.
Actually, there were also priests stationed by the Imperial Dynasty in Yu Province, where Li Ban had first arrived in the Wizard World.
However, those priests ignored worldly affairs. Furthermore, Li Ban's Tier had been too low back then, making it completely impossible for him to interact with their circle.
But thinking back on it now, there was a deep mountain range near Qingcheng County that was forbidden to enter. That might very well have been the cultivation grounds of an Imperial Dynasty priest.
After flying through the sky for half a shichen, they finally spotted Priest Hunyou's mountaintop courtyard.
Priest Hunyou's courtyard sat atop a mountain peak that had been flattened out. It was built in a strict, three-courtyard layout perfectly symmetrical along a central axis.
Behind the courtyard was a garden filled with colorful plants. They were arranged into small, square grid patterns, looking exceptionally neat and orderly.
Just as Li Ban approached, a cloud in the sky suddenly turned gray, opening a pair of eyes and sprouting a nose and mouth.
"Who goes there?"
Li Ban knew this was Priest Hunyou's guard cloud, but he hadn't expected it to see through his 'World Without Me'.
"I am Priest Li Ban of the Myriad Ancient Pagoda, here to visit Priest Hunyou."
The dark cloud's face froze for a moment before instantly turning lively, sporting an enthusiastic smile.
"Hahaha, Priest Ban, you're finally here! Priest Qian Que and I have been waiting for you for quite some time."
The moment the dark cloud finished speaking, it dispersed.
A figure suddenly flew up from the courtyard below.
It was the very person Li Ban had come to visit: Priest Hunyou.
Seeing the smile on the man's face, it was obvious that he had been the one controlling the dark cloud just now.
"Priest Ban. Oh, Valley Master Tan and Cat Girl are here too."
Priest Hunyou greeted Cat Girl very enthusiastically. Evidently, the two had become well-acquainted friends over the Cyan Silk Algae incident.
Li Ban followed Priest Hunyou down into the courtyard.
There were no other servants or attendants in the courtyard, yet it was spotlessly clean, looking every bit as well-kept as the manors of noble families.
Walking into the main hall, they found no luxurious furniture inside. The style was simple and antique, yet it didn't lack comfort.
It was quite a nice place for seclusion.
Just as Li Ban's group of three entered the main hall, someone happened to lift the door curtain from the side wing and walk in.
It was Priest Qian Que, who had arrived a step earlier.
Everyone was gathered.
The polite smile vanished from Li Ban's face as he turned to look at Priest Hunyou.
"Priest Hunyou, three years ago, did you advise Valley Master Tan to add the ability to absorb flesh and blood to the Xuanji Vine?"
Priest Hunyou froze for a moment. He looked at Li Ban, then at Tan Qiyue. Stroking his gray beard, he answered with absolute certainty.
"I did not."