"Anyway, at this stage, the Clock of Eternity can approximately extend your perceived time by up to sixty times, with a maximum duration of one minute. Note, that's one minute in your perception—only one second in real-world time flow.
However, your current physical body can barely withstand the strain of tenfold acceleration while maintaining normal speed. So, I strongly suggest that when you use it, you shouldn't crank it up to the maximum like this time. Otherwise, it will only leave you exhilarated for a moment and then render you useless." Mela explained earnestly.
"Ten times..."
Moen lowered his head and stared at his hands. Thanks to the flames from King of Wither, his injuries had almost healed, though the emptiness in his body still felt overwhelmingly strong.
It seemed he wouldn’t be able to use it again anytime soon.
Still, he remained fully aware of the power’s potential.
Achieving tenfold speed for a short period, combined with the indestructible Elizabeth, could significantly shift his strength to a whole new level.
It might even compensate for the glaring shortcoming of his overly limited techniques.
And, more importantly, this power has the potential to evolve.
From that seemingly frozen world just now, Moen realized how unstoppable he would become once he fully mastered the sixtyfold extension of time.
Imagining a certain knife-wielding, dashing older man—the mere thought exploded with an unparalleled sense of exhilaration.
"And this is only the beginning."
Mela continued:
"At present, the Clock of Eternity can only affect your own perception of time, meaning it’s just functioning as a personal consciousness accelerator for now.
However, as further progress is made, and your connection with the Clock of Eternity deepens, once you gain more enhancements from it, the dominion over time will expand beyond [yourself] to [external objects], and ultimately to [the world] itself.
At that point, the true power of the Clock of Eternity will finally reveal itself."
As she spoke, Mela glanced at Moen, a sly smile curling on her lips:
"And by then, those strange little ideas running around your head might even become reality."
"......"
Moen’s cheek twitched, and he awkwardly scratched his head with a laugh:
"Strange ideas? What are you talking about, Mela? I have no idea what you mean hahaha..."
"Let’s pretend you don’t."
Mela stretched adorably and headed towards the depths of the Sea of Flowers:
"Keep at it, kid. The stronger the power, the more diligently you must progress step by step. Otherwise, instead of mastering the power, it’s the power that will control you.
Therefore, until you can fully master the sixtyfold extension at the current stage, I won’t proceed to the next steps."
"I’ll make it as quickly as possible."
Moen clenched his fists, determination gleaming in his eyes: "Definitely."
"Good enough that you’ve got the determination."
Mela waved her hand dismissively:
"You can leave now. After all, I’ve been up and about for quite a while. I’m tired and need a nap."
"Understood, I won’t bother you any longer."
Moen respectfully bid her farewell and prepared to turn away, but he had barely taken two steps when Mela called after him:
"Oh, by the way, I’ll continue decoding the Aesop texts. Given that the Moon doesn’t currently have time to pay attention to us, I might find some loopholes."
Moen froze, then broke into an ecstatic grin:
"Thank you, Mela!"
"No need for that, but there’s one more thing."
Lying amidst the Sea of Flowers, Mela suddenly flipped over onto her side, propped her chin on her palm, and said:
"In ten days, there’ll be a lunar eclipse in this city."
"Lunar eclipse?"
Moen blinked.
"What kind of lunar eclipse?"
An event like a lunar eclipse should be a major occurrence in this era, typically hyped well before it happens.
But why hadn’t he heard anything about it?
"Well, don’t bother asking why there’s a lunar eclipse—that’s irrelevant to you. I just wanted to remind you."
Mela spoke with the same subtle smile curling her lips. Yet Moen felt completely transparent under her crimson gaze:
"Being a mischievous brat who sleeps soundly through the night isn’t necessarily bad, but this city—Belland—is about to get very interesting. So, be cautious."
…
…
"Lunar eclipse, huh?"
Walking out of the Mercury Well, Moen was still pondering Mela’s words.
Yet seemingly disconnected matters, when pieced together alongside previous intelligence, could often become startlingly clear.
"In the end, it’s almost certainly pointing toward one thing—the lunar eclipse refers to the Moon of Silence getting trounced by the King of Wither.
Ten days from now… I didn’t expect it to happen so soon."
It turned out that King of Wither was even more ferocious than imagined.
No—on second thought, perhaps the Moon of Silence’s series of self-preservation actions had utterly backfired, depleting its strength and exacerbating the disparity.
"And as for Belland becoming more interesting…"
This speculation was fairly straightforward too.
After all, that Moon had already done so much—it definitely wouldn’t resign itself to defeat and let the King of Wither utterly devour it.
Surely, it would take action.
Moreover, based on current trends, it was clear the Moon intended to pull some maneuvers in Belland. However, Moen’s senior would undoubtedly serve as a vital pawn in its plans.
Nothing would be taken lying down—not even with a dark god.
"Black Book."
Moen softly called within his mind.
After a long pause, the pitch-black tome deep within his consciousness stirred, its blank pages reluctant to display even the faintest word.
Finally, a single word emerged:
[Huh?]
It seemed increasingly unreliable.
Moen’s expression stiffened slightly as he frowned:
"Can you reveal the Moon of Silence’s purpose?"
[Cannot.]
"Why? You’re supposed to help me predict things, right?"
[I can only predict events partially related to you.]
"Ah, I see."
Of course, it wouldn’t be so easy to divine the intentions of a dark god.
Moen pondered for a moment before asking again:
"What about the serpent transformation disease? Do you know the cure?"
The script of Black Book began writhing, converging into a complete sentence.
But amidst the hazy mosaic, Moen could only discern four visible characters:
[Tear of True Love.]
"Even you are being affected by the influence of the dark god?"
[It’s not me being influenced—it's you.]
"What do you…?"
Moen froze momentarily before abruptly realizing the truth.
This must be the subtle suggestions Mela warned about—the influence of the dark god, wasn’t it?
In other words…
"Under the dark god’s suggestion, even if I see the real answer, my interpretation will only process these four words?"
[Correct.]
[But these four words are absolutely true.]
[So don’t worry.]
"...Getting reassurance from a book like you feels rare enough." Moen chuckled bitterly.
[Good luck.]
With those final encouraging words, the Black Book sealed itself shut once more, sinking back into Moen’s consciousness and falling into complete dormancy.
"To think I’d be motivated by a book."
Moen laughed self-deprecatingly and raised his gaze toward the sky.
The weather was no longer clear; dense clouds swept across the heavens, overshadowing the sunlight—the whole world cloaked in heavy shadows.
"It seems tonight will be perfect for mischief amidst dark winds and murky skies."
