What Witch? This Alchemist is Breaking Bad!

Southeastern Major Diocese of the Empire, Church of the Prophet.

“In the name of the Supreme God, I swear here upon this sacred ground—

I am willing to become the sword and shield beneath Your divine throne, to defend Your glory with my blood, and to practice the truth You have bestowed.

If I stray from Your path, may You guide me back with Your staff.

If I grow weak and lost, may You urge me forward with Your staff.

I shall cherish Your blessing, uphold Your glory, and never turn my back upon Your law.

If I violate this oath, may You reclaim my life, let my name be forever shamed, and deny my soul all forgiveness!

O Supreme God who was, who is, and who ever shall be above, may You witness my heart.”

Leon knelt on one knee before the statue in the cathedral and completed his oath under the witness of Archbishop Miller, who held the Holy Scripture in his hands. Two bishops on duty stood at different positions around the altar in preparation, and two officially appointed knights guarded the inner side of the church doors.

After confirming his intention to join the Church of the Prophet with Archbishop Miller, the Archbishop had, as promised, submitted his recommendation to the Church, allowing Leon to join the Church of the Prophet before the ordinary Allocation Process.

When an Acting Agent, priest, or probationary knight formally obtained their rank, they would attend the bestowal ceremony at the corresponding church within the local major diocese, presided over by the Archbishop, and officially become a transcendent blessed by the god to whom they pledged loyalty.

“Supreme Prophet, please bestow Your blessing upon Your new Acting Agent,” Archbishop Miller bowed his head toward the statue of the Supreme God and spoke devoutly.

The other prophets and knights followed suit and saluted the statue.

Compared with the statues of other gods, the statue of the Supreme God as Prophet appeared exceptionally simple. The statue wore a monk’s robe, leaned upon a staff, and held a book. It looked like an ascetic hermit in bitter cultivation, and beneath the hood of the long robe, there was no face.

In the Church’s creations, the Supreme God possessed no visage. His entire body was formed from countless grains of the sands of time. The sculpted statue even depicted the sand flowing from the gaps of the robe, each grain carved with clarity.

From this perspective, crafting the statue of the Supreme God was instead the most difficult among all divine statues.

As all the bishops bowed, an invisible force flowed from the depths of this Church of the Prophet and converged upon the towering statue.

At the same time, the drifting sand that had seemed part of the sculpture began to truly flow like sand within an hourglass.

The faintly glowing grains poured endlessly from the robe of the Supreme God like a waterfall, like scattered stars, falling at a steady rate into the pile of sand at the base—yet the sand pile never increased.

Then a gentle and holy radiance emerged within the statue, gathering at the tip of the staff and transforming into a beam of light that shone upon Leon.

Leon felt a strange power begin to circulate within his body. It felt very similar to the magic power of a witch’s blessing, yet fundamentally different.

“Do not be anxious. Simply follow your instincts and circulate the power of the blessing. The blessing itself will guide you. Imagine the power drawing inward and concentrating within you, and recall the important events of your past life,” Archbishop Miller instructed in a warm tone.

“Yes.” Leon calmed himself and sensed the blessing flowing within him. Controlling this blessing power, similar to magic power, was not difficult for him. He quickly found the knack.

When that power began to operate, numerous scenes of memory suddenly flashed through his mind on their own, including memories from his previous life, like a revolving lantern.

“So this is the fundamental blessing of the Supreme God,” Leon immediately realized.

He could replay past memories within his mind—even those from before he had received the blessing.

Leon began attempting to replay the knowledge he had learned in his previous life. He discovered that even the vague parts could be reconstructed with slight concentration. Even books he had merely skimmed without memorizing could be reread by replaying the memory of having read them.

This was rather good. If he could recall even the knowledge from his previous life, then with sufficient resources and conditions in this world, it might prove useful. He could also use it for academic exchanges with Academically Inclined Figures like Archbishop Miller and Bishop Weiss.

“Now maintain the circulation of the power, turn your attention outward, and imagine that power spreading from within you,” Archbishop Miller continued guiding him.

Leon tried to follow the instruction, imagining the circulating blessing power being released outward, instinctively casting the divine art he had obtained.

He felt the power being released, yet noticed no obvious change. He only sensed an invisible barrier appearing between himself and his surroundings, and the air around him seemed to become unusually viscous, making it somewhat difficult to breathe.

This discomfort made him tense for a moment. He briefly wondered whether a conflicting reaction had arisen between blessings. But he quickly realized that the magic power belonging to Moilai within him had not reacted at all. The discomfort seemed to be merely physiological.

Since it did not seem to be a major issue, he continued casting the divine art.

In the eyes of Archbishop Miller and the two knights on duty, the sand that had been flowing steadily from the statue of the Supreme God suddenly accelerated the moment Leon cast the divine art. Yet in Leon’s own vision, the speed of the sand had not changed.

The flow rate of the statue’s sand would change in accordance with the divine art performed by the blessed individual. Thus, the one presiding over the ceremony could observe from the side and determine what blessing had been obtained.

“It is a blessing that accelerates time,” Archbishop Miller concluded with a gentle smile.

Leon looked at him in surprise. To his ears, the Archbishop’s voice sounded unnaturally prolonged.

A blessing that accelerated time? Leon instinctively observed his surroundings. Within the beam of light cast by the statue, he saw dust motes dancing in the air. In his eyes, their movements were indeed noticeably slower than he remembered.

The blessing of the Supreme God was a blessing that controlled time. Now everything around him appeared to slow down. Conversely, did that mean the flow of time within himself had accelerated?

He wanted to observe further, but the difficulty in breathing became increasingly pronounced.

He soon could not endure it any longer and halted the circulation of the blessing’s power.

The radiance faded from the statue of the Supreme God, and the flowing sand froze instantly. In the blink of an eye, the statue returned to its original state, even the position of each grain identical to before.

Leon suddenly felt the world spin around him. He could not help but gasp for breath, his entire body breaking out in cold sweat from the discomfort.

“How do you feel?” Archbishop Miller stepped forward and asked with concern. “The ritual has succeeded. You have obtained the blessing. From this moment onward, you are one of the Acting Agents of the Supreme God’s will.”

“Thank you for witnessing this for me, Your Grace,” Leon rose and expressed his gratitude, shaking hands with him.

Aside from some slight physiological discomfort, there were no obvious issues. It seemed Bishop Beckett’s intelligence had been accurate—Moilai’s blessing could indeed coexist with the blessings of the Four Gods.

“I am also delighted that you accepted my invitation,” Archbishop Miller said with a benevolent smile, then turned and gestured to the assisting bishops.

The two bishops saluted and withdrew from the church, though the two knights remained, as they were the guardians of this church.

“I will take you to complete the remaining procedures. Please.” Archbishop Miller gestured for Leon to walk with him.

Leon walked beside him out of the church and tried asking, “Your Grace, I would like to inquire about the divine art I have obtained—”

“Oh, the divine art of accelerating time? You need not be discouraged. Although it is not a particularly practical divine art, it does not matter. The divine art itself possesses considerable research value,” Archbishop Miller said in a consoling tone.

“Not practical?” Leon paused.

“You should have felt it yourself. The essence of your divine art is accelerating the flow of time within yourself. From your perspective, the surrounding flow of time slows. From others’ perspective, your time flow accelerates; your actions and thoughts become more agile,” Archbishop Miller explained patiently, as though instructing a student.

“Personally, I would think that qualifies as rather practical,” Leon said in confusion.

Having confirmed that he had obtained a divine art that accelerated his own time, Leon had actually been quite pleased. Being able to accelerate both body and consciousness sounded ideal for direct combat. As the saying went, in martial arts, speed reigned supreme.

“But you should also have felt the burden of using the divine art. From others’ perspective, when your body accelerates, the frequency of your breathing must also increase. Yet the surrounding air flow does not accelerate. This discrepancy will cause symptoms of breathing difficulty,” Archbishop Miller continued.

“That is indeed true,” Leon acknowledged. He clearly remembered the suffocating sensation. He had only sustained the divine art briefly before he could no longer endure it.

“And not only that. The temporal discrepancy between your body and the external world produced by this blessing will also trigger a corrective effect. This corrective effect imposes additional strain upon your physical body.

Arrhythmia, breathing difficulty, and sudden changes in body temperature are common symptoms. An ordinary physique can hardly withstand it. If the divine art is maintained too long or at excessive intensity, one may lose consciousness,” Archbishop Miller said.

“Could one not adapt through practice?” Leon asked.

“Through training, perhaps one may strengthen the physique slightly, but the improvement would likely be negligible. Compared with the interference of natural external forces, the strength of the human body is extremely limited. No matter how much you train, you cannot endure the burning of flames.

And this divine art, in its very use, constitutes a form of physical depletion, with the risk of severe consequences. It is best used only when necessary. I do not advise you to practice it recklessly,” Archbishop Miller offered sincerely.

So that meant that if one’s physique surpassed that of ordinary humans, it might be bearable? Leon’s thoughts stirred.

Archbishop Miller continued explaining, “If your goal is merely to enhance agility, the blessing of the War God would likely be more practical and could also increase strength. Furthermore, accelerating time does not mean that true relative velocity increases. For example, if you accelerate time while falling from a height, from others’ perspective your descent appears faster, yet the impact you suffer upon hitting the ground does not change. This point may be somewhat difficult to understand—”

“You mean that from an observer’s perspective, after using this blessing, the time parameter within the observed transcendent’s state of motion undergoes a regular change, while the actual momentum does not change. Therefore, this divine art alters the externally observed phenomenon of motion?” Leon attempted an analysis.

Archbishop Miller looked at him in astonishment.

Leon immediately wondered whether he had gone too far with his speculation.

“You have quite good comprehension. Have you read the Pope’s treatise ‘On Time’?” Archbishop Miller suddenly asked with appreciation.

“Regarding that, I must admit my knowledge is shallow. I have not yet had the honor of reading it—” Leon said somewhat embarrassed.

“So this line of thinking was your own insight? It coincides remarkably with His Holiness’s theory. His Holiness once proposed that time is merely a reference quantity defined by observers to describe changes in things. The essence of the Supreme God’s power may be a form of interference with observed phenomena. The blessing of time acceleration holds considerable research value in this regard—” Archbishop Miller began enthusiastically discussing academic matters with Leon.

Yet at this moment, another thought surfaced in Leon’s mind.

If the primary issue with the divine art of time acceleration lay in the inability of an ordinary human body to withstand it, then could a werewolf, reputed to possess an immortal body, break through this limitation? Now that it had been confirmed that the two blessings could coexist, could they be used simultaneously?

To claim that the ability of time acceleration was not practical seemed premature.