Inside the basement of St. Amanda School, listening to Aldrich's words, Dorothy felt a little surprised. She hadn't initially considered that Aldrich didn't destroy those excellent works to absorb spirituality purely because he couldn't bear to.
'More like artisans than Beyonders...?'
Silently repeating Aldrich's words in her heart, Dorothy was thoughtful, then spoke to Aldrich.
"According to what you said, the Beyonders of'Stone' are highly associated with artisans..."
"That's right. We are usually all kinds of artisans: stonemasons, blacksmiths, jewelers... even mechanics... Although there are some exceptions, the image of the artisan has become firmly linked to us."
Aldrich replied naturally. Listening to his words, Dorothy couldn't help but nod in understanding and then spoke with emotion.
"Artisans and craftsmanship? In any case, the way Beyonders of'Stone' spirituality absorb spiritual energy is much better than those of 'Cup'..."
"'Cup' absorption... Haha, I'm glad Miss Meshos still possesses a basic sense of morality. I hope you can retain this on your subsequent path. However, I need to correct you on one point: don't assume that all Beyonders associated with'Stone' practice this way just because of me. There are also forbidden methods in the practice of'Stone'." Aldrich corrected Dorothy with a smile, causing Dorothy to pause slightly.
"'Stone's' taboos..."
"Yes, the Scarlet Communion you encountered previously obtains rich spirituality by devouring human flesh and blood. But don't forget, how could humans, the spirits of all things, only have spirituality in their flesh and blood? I can tell you that human bones contain much higher spirituality than ordinary rocks. Among the societies that worship'Stone,' there are many who kill people to take their bones and carve artifacts from them. They are not necessarily any more noble than the Communion."
Listening to Aldrich's words, Dorothy felt a shock in her heart. She hadn't expected that even the seemingly peaceful'Stone' path could have a bloody and cruel side.
'It seems that every type of spirituality might have inhumane methods of practice. And Aldrich also said earlier that the mainstream practice for 'Cup' is devouring flesh and blood, so could there be other methods of 'Cup' practice?'
Dorothy was deep in thought, while Aldrich calmly sat back down on his chair and continued speaking to Dorothy.
"I have finished my answers. Do you have anything else you want to ask?"
Listening to Aldrich's words, Dorothy paused slightly, then continued to speak.
"Then, what I want to ask you next is, why are you willing to offend the Communion to protect me?"
Dorothy spoke with a hint of seriousness. She could clearly feel Aldrich's goodwill toward her, but she couldn't figure out where this goodwill originated.
"Offend the Communion? Hmph... As I said before, they were the ones who first broke the rules and caused trouble on my territory. We, the White Stone Artisans Guild, do not proactively interfere in the affairs of others, but we absolutely do not allow others to run wild over us..." Aldrich said with a cold snort, and Dorothy immediately spoke up upon hearing this.
"The White Stone Artisans Guild?"
"Hmm? You don't even know that? Heh... It seems Miss Meshos is truly a newcomer to the hidden world..." Listening to Dorothy's bewildered tone, Aldrich smiled slightly and spoke.
"As I said before, most Beyonders associated with'Stone' are various types of artisans. Artisans, naturally, need to exchange experience, take on apprentices, trade materials, and so on. Thus, various societies were formed, and the White Stone Artisans Guild is arguably the largest among them... The scale of the Artisans Guild is enormous; it can be considered one of the largest secret societies. It includes all sorts of'Stone'-associated Beyonders like me, and all kinds of artisans. Its influence spans the entire continent. For example, I am the person in charge of the Artisans Guild in Egwent."
"One of the... largest secret societies..." Hearing Aldrich's words, Dorothy was stunned. She hadn't expected the power behind this old man to be so immense.
"Hehe... no need to be so surprised. Although the Artisans Guild is large, its structure is relatively loose. The organization's constraints on members are not strong. Compared to those strict societies, we are actually more like an Artisan Alliance."
Aldrich said with a chuckle, then took a sip of tea before continuing.
"Our Artisans Guild members are spread across the continent, present in almost every major city. Compared to other societies, the Artisans Guild strictly adheres to the principle of eternal neutrality. We will not take a stand with any side, whether they are nations, churches, or other societies. As long as they don't actively provoke us, we won't intervene."
"We rarely interact with any power, except for trade, of course. Our creations are sought after by other powers, and as long as they can afford the price, we can trade with anyone. In fact, many powers are happy to do so... Although I usually dislike the people from the Communion, due to the society's rules, I cannot proactively seek trouble with them. However, since they came to my territory and broke the rules this time, I cannot be blamed for being impolite. I was merely clearing out the rule-breakers; saving you was just incidental."
Aldrich explained. Listening to his words, Dorothy felt that this White Stone Artisans Guild was essentially an association of artisans and merchants. Indeed, both artisans and merchants can thrive anywhere, and maintaining neutrality is certainly the best choice. According to the report she had seen from Gregory, Egwent's official Security and Secrecy Bureau also traded with Grey Hill.
"Whether it was incidental or not, the fact remains that you helped me, sir. I still need to thank you very much, especially since you have so generously shared so much secret intelligence with me."
"Secret intelligence? What secrecy? These are just common knowledge, worthless. You are a student at my school, and I appreciate your performance. Telling you this counts as a small reward..." Aldrich said, waving his hand. In his opinion, the information he had shared with Dorothy was trivial.
Hearing Aldrich's words, Dorothy felt reassured. After a moment of internal hesitation, she spoke.
"I see... Then I will ask you one last question, sir. Do you... know the initial advancement rituals for various spiritual paths?"
Dorothy asked Aldrich. Her Revelation was close to accumulating 10 points, and she would soon have to consider advancing. Now that she had finally met an elder of the hidden world, especially one with a neutral stance, she felt compelled to ask, even though he wasn't of the same spirituality as her.
However, just to be safe, Dorothy did not directly ask about the advancement ritual for a specific spirituality.
"Advancement rituals..."
Listening to Dorothy's words, Aldrich scrutinized her, then slowly began to speak.
"I don't know if you have already accumulated enough spirituality or if you are simply curious, but I can tell you that the ritual for an ordinary person to advance to an Apprentice is actually very simple and highly homogenized, with only minor differences. Therefore, I know all of them."
"You know all of them..."
Hearing Aldrich's words, Dorothy's eyes lit up. Just as she was about to continue asking, Aldrich spoke again.
"Yes, I know them all, but if you want to know, I cannot directly tell you."
"Ah... why?"
Dorothy asked, stunned, while Aldrich continued to speak with a smile.
"Although this information isn't worth much money, a few coins is still money. Although the initial advancement rituals for the major spiritual paths are known to those with some experience in the hidden world, they haven't yet become 'common knowledge' that can be freely shared. According to the rules of the Artisans Guild, anything of value cannot be given away for free, even if the value is minuscule."
"Miss Meshos, I am a man who strictly adheres to the rules, and I cannot break this rule of the society. You must offer enough bargaining chips before I can tell you the ritual."
Aldrich patted the dust off himself, leaned back in his chair, and raised one finger while looking at Dorothy.
"100 pounds. Non-negotiable."
Hearing Aldrich's words, Dorothy froze on the spot. At this moment, she felt as if she had returned to the secret gathering from a few days ago.