Chapter 102: It’s open, so what?

When Aiwass saw Bishop Mathers again, he was surprised by his youth.

Bishop Mathers did not wear the red bishop's robe today, but only a thick off-white wool shirt with elbow pads.

His dark brown curly hair, amber eyes, and his look and smile full of vitality and confidence make him look like a successful young man in his thirties.

Aiwass was stunned for a moment before he remembered that this was the true appearance that Bishop Mathers showed him after teaching Aiwass the fire ritual.

It was just that during their first meeting, the extremely aged "old bishop" had left such a deep impression on Aiwass... He had even forgotten that Bishop Mathers had deliberately contrived that decrepit appearance to demonstrate the Fire Sacrifice to Aiwass. Whenever he mentioned Mathers, he would involuntarily think of "the old bishop."

Recalling Ms. Maya's appearance, Aiwass realized that Bishop Mathers and Ms. Maya were indeed siblings. They did look somewhat similar.

Bishop Mathers is already forty-six years old this year, so I'm afraid Ms. Meiya is not young either...

The moment he opened the door and saw Aiwass, Bishop Mathers was visibly stunned. He clearly sensed the depth of Aiwass's path.

"...It really is the second energy level."

Bishop Mathers opened his eyes wide, looked at him hesitantly for a long time, and finally sighed in a low voice.

He taught Aiwass the four sacred skills last week and witnessed him embark on the path of devotion.

Although it is very scary to advance to the second level in one week, this efficiency is actually understandable.

After all, Aiwass was quite talented and mastered the art of "Sacrificing Fire" in an instant. As long as he went back to practice a little and figured out the "blessing", he could be promoted to the second level.

But the last promotion ceremony took place just the day after Bishop Mathers taught him the sacred skills.

In other words, Aiwass completed the advancement in just one day.

Considering the materials and procedures for the advancement ceremony, which all needed to be prepared in advance, Aiwass might have spent much less time than that.

"Unbelievable, really unbelievable..."

"I can only say that I am gifted."

Aiwass laughed.

Mathers shook his head, speechless.

When Mathers saw the news in the newspaper earlier, he immediately recognized the "red-handled sword." His first reaction was to wonder if Aiwass had already embarked on the path of transcendence and acquired a sufficient pool of fire mana through other professions. This was why he had the mana to activate the key and use the "holy sword technique" sealed within.

Bishop Mathers had lent Aiwass the chapel key, simply to use its "flame infusion" effect for self-defense—it required only a minimal amount of mana to unleash a flaming blade, and it looked quite intimidating. He hadn't even explained the effect of the holy sword technique, which could only be used once a month.

Because it is impossible for a first-level priest to use holy swordsmanship no matter what.

After seeing the news, Mathers's first reaction was to suspect he'd been deceived... He was even a little angry. He was planning to ask Aiwass for an explanation today.

But after seeing Aiwass in person, he realized that he had indeed misunderstood him.

...Luckily, he hadn't explained his anger to Sherlock or Mina yet. He'd originally planned to wait for Aiwass to arrive and then ask them in person...Luckily, he'd been calm enough to avoid making a fool of himself.

Otherwise, if this matter gets home, my parents and Maya will laugh at me.

But Mathers still found it a little incomprehensible.

——How could there be someone in this world who could advance to a higher level in just one day?

"...You kid."

A multitude of complex emotions lingered in his mind, and Mathers couldn't express them, nor could he swallow them. In the end, he could only sigh helplessly, "You were actually pretending that you hadn't learned the blessing spell, weren't you?"

"Yes, Bishop Mathers."

Of course, Aiwass knew what Mathers was thinking.

He didn't expose it, but just smiled and said softly: "The first time he came into contact with extraordinary power, he immediately learned the four sacred skills of the church - this would be too shocking if it were spread out, and it might cause unnecessary trouble.

"You taught me the sacred arts ahead of time because I was in trouble. Since that's your goal, I should avoid causing as much trouble as possible... When I first learned 'Fire Sacrifice', your reaction made me realize I was abnormal—so I deliberately didn't demonstrate my blessing skills later. But in fact, I had already mastered it."

Yes, I did—I mean, I used a cheat. His talent was strong, but it wasn't to the point where he could instantly master the Fire Sacrifice. That was a miracle achieved through the power of "experience."

But it’s open, right?

Isn't it my own experience?

Oh, I was the one who grabbed the head. That's fine.

"...You are correct, Aiwass."

Mathers sighed and walked towards the living room with Lily and Aiwass. “If someone had told me before that someone could learn blessing in one day, I would have thought he was still asleep.

"You know, you've mastered the art of blessing faster than the Eternal Pope. If you had displayed this talent one day, I'd probably have transferred you directly to the Theocracy... because your fate is no longer something I have the power to decide. The Pope might have personally written to His Majesty to request you."

Fire worship is one thing, but blessing is the most difficult of the sacred arts. Many apprentice priests are stuck at this point. Even after four years of university, they may not be able to fully master it, unable to advance to the second level, and therefore cannot enter the church and receive the canon.

It also took Mathers a week to master the blessing spell, which was the fastest among the priests he knew.

How ridiculous! He once thought he was a genius, but now it seems he is just a person with limited knowledge.

"No wonder those demonologists came specifically to capture you."

Mathers couldn't help but sigh, "Your talent has reached this level, it's already abnormal. I feel like you might have been blessed by one of the Candle Master's apostles... That ritual was quite noisy, as if it summoned a higher-level demon, and the Inspectorate couldn't find that demon in the end—looking back now, it must have been the same deformed-limbed demon that attacked you this time."

"I was puzzled then... You weren't a willing sacrifice. How could a demon of this magnitude be summoned if you were forcibly captured and sacrificed? But now it all seems perfectly reasonable."

Mathers could only warn him seriously, "Be careful, Aiwass. Advancing too quickly isn't necessarily a good thing."

“The higher the energy level, the stronger the call from the Tao, and the more paranoid one becomes.

"We do need to practice the path of dedication, but I actually think... we should still maintain our original intentions. We should always leave some room for maneuver and not try our best to force our way up—if we do that, we might not have the energy to fight against the influence of the path itself."

The young pastor with dark brown curly hair was somewhat helpless. "I originally planned to tell you this when you reached the third energy level, so that you could advance to the fourth energy level later. I wanted you to consolidate your realm and make more preparations."

"Partly because the third promotion ceremony is becoming more difficult, and partly because starting at the fourth energy level, one must prepare for career advancement. Furthermore, starting at the fourth energy level, the nine great paths begin to have a noticeable impact on the mind."

"Bishop Mathers," Aiwass asked curiously, "Are you a fifth-level transcendent?"

"Actually, I'm only a fourth-level 'Guardian of the Holy Sepulchre' right now, but before I was thirty, I'd already reached the limits of the fourth level. That's why the Theocracy entrusted the Candlelight Cathedral to me... At that time, your biological father was one of my students."

Mathers paused slightly before continuing.

"I've always had a point of view. Of course, you don't have to listen to it," Mathers said softly. "It's well known that if your will to practice the Tao is not pure enough, you cannot be promoted to the fifth level. But I think... if your will becomes too pure, will you still be the original you?

"In the beginning, when we first embarked on the path of transcendence, we were just passionate young people, right? Back then, could we really have imagined that the future would turn out like this? Since no matter how far we go on the path of dedication, we can help others... then is there any point in going too far?

"I was called a genius. I thought I was really that powerful and amazing.

"I even had a falling out with my parents because I felt I was right—I had completed a journey that took them a lifetime to complete in a shorter time and without much effort. But they said that my understanding of the path of devotion was distorted, that I had strayed onto the path of love. How could I believe them?"

Mathers sighed slowly: "But even someone as outstanding as me couldn't save your parents."

Hearing this, Aiwass perked up.

Although he had personally witnessed another version of history during the advancement ritual, the "alternative history" in the dream ritual was ultimately not the real past, but merely a stage script written by the Nine Pillars Gods based on historical references.

——But Mathers was a real eyewitness.

(End of this chapter)