The Acting Pope's Conception

"... Here I can give you some further reading. The man mentioned here who 'completely degraded Advanced Divine Arts ' actually created a new profession, namely the 'Demon Man' Path of Transcendence..."

The Pure White Saintess continued speaking patiently to Iver.

But at that moment, Iver's pupils suddenly became empty for a split second.

She was stunned for a moment, and then she saw a pure, breathtaking crimson suddenly ignite in the depths of Iver's originally deep blue eyes—

Like sunrise, the Rising Sun leaps from the edge where the sky meets the sea. That deep red, accompanied by a golden halo, makes one feel as if light is shining on their face.

What's going on here?

Chunbai suddenly opened her eyes wide.

In an instant, an unbelievable idea popped into her head.

Iver, it couldn't be...

As Iver's gaze refocused, the light in his eyes slowly faded, and Pure White temporarily suppressed the terrible thoughts in her heart.

"... From this perspective, Cardinal Hecate studies Advanced Divine Arts, actually has a conjecture. She believes that a prerequisite for mastering Advanced Divine Arts is 'the possibility of becoming Phantom Demon Egg.'"

She continued her narration.

Iver casually asked, "Then can we think of it this way: to become Phantom Demon Egg, one must actually possess some kind of special aptitude?"

"That's right."

Pure White nodded.

She continued to explain patiently, while Iver listened attentively.

—Because the abilities acquired directly through the system do not involve related knowledge.

Advanced Divine Arts are different from abilities like "Dawnfire." It's not a skill, but a complete system... similar to "divination" or "alchemy." Even if one can use it, it's difficult to fully utilize it without the corresponding knowledge.

After Pure White finished explaining the first book, Iver took out the second book.

This book is called "Advanced Divine Arts: The Container of the Soul".

Before Iver could ask, Pure White spoke directly, "To talk about this, we need to touch on the connection between the Material Realm and the Dream Realm. It's not just that people enter the Dream Realm after they die, or that the Dream Realm's phantoms enter the Material Realm after they die; the gods of the Dream Realm can directly influence and transform the Material Realm, and the various ideologies and changes of the times in the Material Realm will also feed back into and influence the Dream Realm."

"In these two processes, the only thing that can actually communicate between the two realms is the soul. The power that a transcendent gains from the Dream Realm will eventually return to the Dream Realm after death, regardless of whether they become a phantom demon. Therefore, things in the Dream Realm always belong to the Dream Realm. And no matter how the Material Realm changes, matter is ultimately conserved. Therefore, things in the Material Realm always belong to the Material Realm... Only the soul can communicate back and forth between the two realms."

"When a person dies, if they can be reborn as an apostle or a celestial being, or become a wild phantom demon due to the influence of the Dao, thus escaping the fate of reincarnation, then they have essentially raised their will into the Dream Realm. Similarly, the celestial beings and apostles in the Dream Realm can also be reincarnated back into the Material Realm, and apostles can even walk in the Material Realm."

"Illusory demons such as fairies, demons, and celestial maidens can also enter the Material Realm —if they die in the Material Realm, even if their essence as illusion demons can return to the Dream Realm, a part of their will will still be destroyed in the Material Realm. So from this point of view, only the soul... or rather the will, can travel back and forth between the two worlds and does not belong to either world. This is the basic theory of Advanced Divine Arts."

"From this perspective, we believe that the physical body in the Material Realm is actually a temporary container for the soul, and humans are like gods in their infancy. The essence of Advanced Divine Arts is to make the soul a container for another kind of will. That is, to transform the body into a 'container of containers.' If the original body is just a bowl filled with water, that is one's own soul; then we now want to turn the body into a cupboard, so that the water-like soul can condense into individual ice bowls according to different divine wills..."

Upon hearing this, Iver finally saw the pop-up window: [Grey Eternal is teaching you "Advanced Divine Arts (2/11)". Do you wish to pay 112 public experience points to master this mysterious art?]

This time there's even less experience! Iver was secretly delighted.

He has only accumulated 5214 experience points, which may not be enough if the experience requirements keep increasing. In that case, he will probably have to find a way to gain more experience.

Pure White could clearly see that Iver's pupils had become empty again.

The Rising Sun, like that of the rising sun, shone again beneath his pupils—brighter than before. It was as if the sun had moved upwards for about ten minutes during the sunrise. Though not very obvious, the difference was clearly visible in his pure, untainted memory.

--really.

Pure White felt a chill run down her spine, confirming her earlier suspicions.

A memory suddenly flashed into her mind—it was something the Eternal Pope had said to her when he was still conscious.

His Pope Your Majesty told her that Bishop Mathers had written to mention that... Iver mastered the "Sacrificial Fire Method" even faster than His Pope Your Majesty. He hadn't even finished explaining all the key points, yet Iver had already grasped it completely—to a degree that surpassed many who had studied for three or four years.

"That feeling is closer to 'remembering' than 'learning'."

At that time, His Pope Your Majesty sighed, "If Iver weren't just a human... I would have thought about trying to make him the Pope. Maybe he could even 'remember' Advanced Divine Arts so easily."

Before meeting Iver, Pure White would have scoffed at such a statement.

In fact, she had great respect for and admiration for His Pope Your Majesty.

As the Eternal Saintess, she shares the legacy called "Eternity" with the Eternal Pope. In a sense, their relationship is like that of a mother and daughter... although the Pope's current body looks much younger than hers.

But that was also the price that had to be paid for the burden of the Most Holy Crown.

As a top-tier artifact in this world, the [Most Holy Crown], which allows even the most powerful beings to forcibly break through to the next energy level, naturally comes at a price. And that price is the user's [time].

To ordinary people, it seems to be a magical artifact with the power to reverse aging.

However, this kind of rejuvenation does not actually extend lifespan; on the contrary, it doubles the burning of lifespan—when wearing it, it simultaneously burns away years "forward" and "backward." The apparent effect is that the body becomes smaller and smaller.

Generally, Saintess will succeed to the Pope at the golden age of three or four hundred years old, and after the three-hundred-year term expires, she will step down and become a saint. The so-called saint is a "contributor outside the church" who "has the power of the Fifth Level but has not become Cardinal Bishop".

If a 400-year-old elf were to Pope for 300 years, she would appear to be only 100 years old, like a 12 or 13-year-old human child. However, she would actually be 1,000 years old, which would be considered very old by elven standards.

Next, her body will age at a visible rate, rapidly reverting to its original state. The aging process will be even faster than human growth. In just twenty years, she might go from a twelve or thirteen-year-old girl to an eighty or ninety-year-old woman. This remaining time will then be the "retirement vacation" for these saints as they travel the world.

Candidate Saintess cannot leave the Twenty-First Ring, and even after becoming Pope, they cannot freely leave the Twenty-Second Ring. Conversely, Saintess can roam freely throughout the Theocracy... but still cannot leave the Theocracy.

Only after stepping down can one leave the Theocracy and travel abroad.

This remaining time in their lives is one of the few moments of freedom these retired Pope have left to do as they please.

From this perspective, becoming Pope is not a "good thing." It is actually a sacrifice, a dedication. That is why only the most dedicated people are willing to sacrifice their lives in this ceremony.

Two hundred years of arduous cultivation, a genius who could communicate with the Nine Pillar Gods in his youth... He had to endure more than three hundred years of solitude and sacrifice three hundred years of his lifespan in order to gain that final twenty years of freedom.

Even if Iver could barely learn Advanced Divine Arts, he would never become the Pope.

Pure White firmly believed this back then.

This is an unbearable pain for Short-lived Races.

Not to mention, just learning Advanced Divine Arts would nearly burn through their lifespan. And tampering with their souls might affect their posthumous assessment... those who could have become apostles might become less pure as a result. Preventing them from continuing their studies is for their own good.

But Iver...

She had only one thought in her mind.

It turns out that everything Bishop Mathers said back then was true, and His Pope Your Majesty's retelling was so accurate.

There are actually people who "learn" things that seem like they "remember" them...

This is already a miracle.

If the first miracle has occurred, why can't there be a second?... Could it be that Iver really has a chance to become Pope?

Even a short ten-year or even shorter tenure as "Acting Pope" could change the problems of the Theocracy —any Cardinal Bishop would seem too extreme for the current Theocracy.

Because unlike the Eternal Saintess, they didn't receive the most peaceful and balanced education from the beginning; instead, they each had their own beliefs. If they were to obtain Pope power, perhaps they would change the Nine Pillars God Church ' permanent neutral stance in various countries... No, not perhaps, but certainly.

But if Iver, an Avalon who is not even at the Fifth Level, were to become the "Acting Pope," things might be much better!

If he can delay for ten years, or even less... perhaps just one or two years, the medicine to treat his own stagnant amber can be developed!

At that time, I will be able to take over...

No, it still won't work.

Chunbai shook her head, suppressing her excitement.

That would be equivalent to burning Iver's lifespan... She can't do that, it would be harming Iver.

For Short-lived Races with already short lifespans, every year is precious.

Pure White sighed inwardly, then focused her mind and continued explaining the techniques of Advanced Divine Arts to Iver.

Meanwhile, she was still hoping—

—Anyway, let me see a miracle first, Iver.

Pure White thought to himself.