Chapter Forty-Nine: Domain

Day after day, the priest scrutinized his own heart through prayers to the deity, clarifying the sincerity of his devotion.

Compared to the many trainee priests present, Zhao Xu had skipped many steps, more akin to a transfer student than a novice. Normally, apprentice priests would first examine their daily gains and losses before their god, only at the very end spending a little time selecting a divine spell granted by the deity, never daring to slack. Some spells could only be obtained after actively presenting their needs to the deity.

Yet Zhao Xu, after uttering a few formulaic words of praise to the goddess, would immediately proceed to the phase of acquiring divine spells. For other players, if they adopted his attitude, they would be stuck at the threshold of obtaining spells. Devotion is offered to the deity, the god condenses power from it and grants blessings to the faithful—this is the unchanging principle of Arthur for ten thousand years.

By the time Zhao Xu finished studying the spells, the hour allotted for everyone’s prayers was nearly over. After the morning lessons, the remaining time was left for personal arrangements, and most chose to study scriptures. Zhao Xu, however, slipped into a corner to mingle with the other players, attempting to exchange information.

Currently, there weren’t many players in Mystra, and those who made it here had already undergone a selection process.

“That ‘Falling Maple’ managed to advance to priest yesterday?” a tall priest remarked.

“Yes, he was one of the few player representatives on that list of three hundred and succeeded in advancing. Now he’s a quasi-priest with divine spells, so he’s not praying with us anymore,” another replied.

“As for Feng Shao, he didn’t make it. I don’t think he even logged in today, he’s that upset,” an apprentice priest standing in the corner interjected.

“This place is really strict. I saw on the forums that other temples are more inclined to give players a chance. But here at Sacred Heart, you have to pass the assessment just to get on the list of three hundred. Some long-time apprentices haven’t made it, and we’ve only been playing for half a month—how are we supposed to pass?” another said.

“Well, it could be worse. The local priest groups have it even harder. Even if you pass the assessment, you have to fight for seniority and family background to squeeze onto the list. At least we can switch to other classes if we want,” someone offered.

“Switch classes? Xiaoke, we Mystra players know how powerful the mages and priests are. Would you really want to give up spellcasting for a non-spellcaster class?” the tall man challenged.

The girl called Xiaoke fell silent at his words.

“So are we playing the game, or is the game playing us? I think I’m starting to genuinely believe in the goddess,” a slightly chubby player muttered.

“Careful with your words,” another priest, who had been silent all along, warned urgently.

At this, a shadow passed over the faces of the apprentice priests present. After days of repeated morning prayers and study of scriptures, they might not be as devout as Arthur’s natives, but unlike other players outside, they dared not blaspheme the gods—not even in jest.

As time went on, more and more players immersed themselves in this roleplay, becoming like method actors who lose themselves in their roles.

“You’re new here?” A player finally noticed Zhao Xu and asked.

By this time, most of Arthur’s native priests had returned to their quarters to continue their morning routines. Only the players waiting for afternoon training remained, chatting idly.

Zhao Xu nodded. “I just arrived yesterday.”

“If you’ve just arrived, why not delete your character and start somewhere else?” the tall player said bluntly.

Zhao Xu was taken aback. “Is there a special reason?”

“Don’t listen to him,” Xiaoke interjected. “It’s just that Mystra is the headquarters of the goddess’s church, so the standards are higher and it’s harder to advance here than in other temples.”

“At some other temples, players became full-fledged level one priests a week ago. We’re still struggling, and only yesterday did a player finally break through. In a day or two, he’ll complete the process and become an official priest.”

Hearing this, Zhao Xu understood. So it was both competitive and elitist. Logically, Mystra’s players were already selected for their aptitude, so they should be graduating faster, not lagging behind with barely a hundred in the initial ranks, barely making a ripple on the forums. At first, he thought there just weren’t enough players, but now he realized they were being strictly filtered.

For those like Zhao Xu, who didn’t want to study the scriptures and hadn’t advanced to priest yet, there was nothing to do but pass the time chatting. In the early stages of the game, when time was so precious, they were reduced to idle chatter.

The others took the opportunity to fill Zhao Xu in on the basics of Sacred Heart Cathedral.

It wasn’t until the afternoon that the official training session arranged by the church finally arrived.

The priest training courses were conducted in parallel batches, with the profession’s abilities divided into modules for instruction. Zhao Xu wasn’t eager for the weapons and armor training—he couldn’t wear heavy armor anyway. As for “spontaneous spellcasting,” he’d already figured that out on his own yesterday.

He scanned the schedule and found that the first round of “Domain” instruction was about to begin.

Priest was one of the few classes that could master most abilities on their own through divine power. Zhao Xu, having initially gone to the wrong room, arrived after the teaching priest had already started.

“The goddess, as a being of great divine power, has vast and formidable domains. Each priest may select two of these to serve as their personal domains.

“For every domain acquired, you gain access to both the domain’s unique power and its spell list.

“Whether you have mastered a domain is determined by your ability to wield its domain power.”

“At the same time, for every spell level, you gain a domain slot to cast domain spells.”

The group of trainee priests sat quietly in various corners, all familiar with these basics. Yet in this moment, they listened with patience, not daring to interrupt the elderly priest’s thoughts.

Zhao Xu listened from the doorway, then quietly slipped inside to find a seat. With every sentence, his heart beat faster.

He knew domains were a powerful priest ability. What he didn’t know was just how formidable the goddess’s domains were.

Soon, the priest began calling them up one by one to receive materials. He didn’t know how many would attend, so he’d stacked the parchments high.

Each person announced their name, and the priest handed them a sheet from the stack. It seemed everyone received the same materials.

Zhao Xu followed the person ahead, introduced himself, and the priest, as before, pulled a sheet from the bottom of the heavy stack.

Zhao Xu’s eyes flickered, though he said nothing. He noticed that the priest had drawn the very last sheet for him. No one else seemed to notice, all focused on their own parchments.

He accepted the sheet with both hands, nodded his thanks, and quietly returned to his seat.

He immediately began to study the parchment closely.

Unlike the others, whose parchments listed four or five domains, his bore only three: Magic, Planning, and Knowledge.

Beneath each, a special note was inscribed in small print.

Did this mean he would have one more domain than the others?