Chapter 136 Alchemy (End)

"So you think Homunculi are superior to humans?" Daniel Davis looked at Lust and Gluttony, who had been knocked down by his Gatling gun, and quickly rushed to their side, grabbing the Philosopher's Stone from Lust's hand. Without further concern for the two of them, he swiftly ran off in another direction.

Along the way, Daniel discarded the Gatling gun.

"Fullmetal." Rushing out of the church, Daniel spotted the tall armored figure standing by Father Cornello's corpse and immediately knew that the Elric brothers had arrived. Although they had taken the train to Lior before him, Daniel had spent considerable time talking with Mustang and the others, allowing him to reach Lior ahead of them, thanks to his faster means of transportation.

"Creating an arc reactor by hand is nothing. I can now conjure a Gatling gun by hand. I wonder when I can manually trigger nuclear fission," Daniel mused as he left Lior and arrived at a remote mountain peak to study the Philosopher's Stone. Creating the Gatling gun had further demonstrated the stone's power to him.

The Philosopher's Stone could permanently alter the properties of a substance or even create something out of nothing. In simpler terms, it could turn stones into gold, diamonds, or even vibranium. As long as one had sufficient understanding and enough Philosopher's Stones, anything was possible.

There were three major prohibitions for State Alchemists: no human transmutation, no gold transmutation, and absolute loyalty to the military. In reality, the first two prohibitions were more symbolic.

Human transmutation and gold transmutation were not simple feats. If they were easy, no alchemist would be poor. Similarly, if human transmutation were simple, there would be human pillars everywhere, and the Homunculus wouldn't need to specifically seek out the Elrics and be so generous to them.

Ordinary alchemists attempting human transmutation would end up like Alphonse, losing their bodies. Not everyone had an older brother as skilled as Edward, who could pull their soul back.

The alchemist who fused his daughter and a dog into a chimera did so to maintain his status and benefits as a State Alchemist, disregarding basic alchemical ethics. Even the Homunculi couldn't create chimeras that could speak without combining humans and animals.

If gold transmutation were easy, there would be alchemists violating the prohibition. As long as they weren't greedy and were careful, they wouldn't easily be caught.

Look at the world of Harry Potter, where Nicholas Flamel continuously made gold coins without facing consequences.

Human transmutation was even more challenging. The Homunculi were always seeking individuals capable of it. Not everyone could achieve what the Elric brothers did at such a young age—that required innate talent.

"The Philosopher's Stone in the Harry Potter world seems larger. How many souls were used to create it?" Daniel pondered. The Philosopher's Stone in Harry Potter was essentially the same, but due to the lack of advanced alchemy, it was mainly used for immortality and gold production.

"Too bad Dumbledore destroyed it. What a waste." Despite understanding the necessity of destroying it, Daniel felt it was a significant loss. If he had been in the Fullmetal Alchemist world, he would have sought it out no matter what.

"Using the Philosopher's Stone to enhance alchemy is such a waste. If I had all the Philosopher's Stones within the Homunculus, reaching the Ancient One's level of power wouldn't be difficult."

Looking at the Philosopher's Stone he had taken from Cornello, Daniel began absorbing its power. He purified the tormented souls within, though his purification was different from Hohenheim's; it was more akin to annihilation.

"This is the correct way to use the Philosopher's Stone," Daniel thought, feeling the power boost from absorbing the stone's energy. 

"Although purification wastes a lot of energy, it's necessary to avoid becoming corrupt. Maintaining the purity of my soul is crucial," Daniel reflected.

With enough Philosopher's Stones and reckless absorption, Daniel could become immensely powerful quickly. However, the consequences would be similar to Kaecilius absorbing Dormammu's power.

The Philosopher's Stone's energy came from chaotic, fragmented souls, not Dormammu, so the side effects wouldn't be as severe. At worst, it would drive him mad.

Hohenheim conversing with tens of thousands of souls without going insane was truly remarkable. The Homunculi were different beings, so the issue was not the same for them.

Though Daniel could suppress the souls with enough power, the situation would become dire without that control.

"It's a pity that the energy absorbed from the Philosopher's Stone loses its unique properties." Kamar-Taj's magic could absorb the stone's power, but once absorbed, it became regular mana, losing the Philosopher's Stone's unique alchemical abilities.

In other words, as long as he had the Philosopher's Stone, Daniel could perform Mustang's flame alchemy without needing a transmutation circle.

Creating material from nothing and permanently transforming one substance into another consumed different amounts of the Philosopher's Stone's power. Creating material from nothing consumed more.

"Can animals be used to create Philosopher's Stones? If all things have souls, animals should too. The Homunculi never seemed to test this. It might be worth experimenting," Daniel considered. Fullmetal Alchemist's world allowed for soul experiments through alchemy, unlike the Marvel world, where even the existence of souls was debated among scientists.

Simmons and Fitz believed in souls now, thanks to their encounter with Mephisto.

"It's time to go to East City."

"Lior is in chaos, just as expected." Daniel sneered, tossing aside the newspaper reporting the Lior uprising. The paper also mentioned the deaths of several State Alchemists. Although the State Alchemist examination was tough, over the years, dozens had been certified, and now five were dead.

"Tucker, the Sewing-Life Alchemist." It wasn't long before Daniel found out about the alchemist who fused his daughter into a chimera. Tucker was a research-type State Alchemist. State Alchemists were roughly divided into two types: combat-oriented like Mustang, Kimblee, and Armstrong, and research-oriented like Tucker and Dr. Marcoh.

State Alchemists had to submit an annual report for review. Combat alchemists had it easier, as their missions usually ensured they passed. But for researchers, the review was stricter.

This scrutiny mainly targeted mediocre alchemists. Talented ones like Edward could pass with minimal effort.

"There's plenty of biological alchemy material here, but his skills are too poor." In Tucker's home, Daniel examined the books on alchemy and the animals in the lab. He shook his head slightly.

Like scientists, alchemists required talent. Without it, progress was nearly impossible, regardless of effort.

It was like ancient poets—some created timeless verses, some wrote doggerel, and others couldn't produce anything worthwhile.

Tucker's alchemy talent was mediocre at best, slightly better than Cornello's. Yet, he greedily aimed to create speaking chimeras without considering basic alchemical principles, something even the Homunculi couldn't achieve.

The Homunculi's speaking chimeras were human-animal hybrids, whereas Tucker aimed to make animals speak through alchemy alone, an impossible leap akin to Marvel scientists believing they could solve human evolution and lifespan limits.

Seeing Tucker slumped over a lab table, clutching his head in frustration, Daniel appeared and said, "You seem troubled. Worried about the State Alchemist review?"

"Who are you?" Tucker jumped, banging his knee on the table. Pain contorted his face, but concern over Daniel kept him silent.

Daniel wore a white fox mask, adding an eerie touch in the dim lab.

"Who I am doesn't matter. What matters is I know what you've done. Using your wife's life to gain luxuries. Will you use your daughter next?" Daniel's voice was cold.

Using humans for alchemical experiments wasn't unusual. The Homunculi did it all the time. Even Daniel would likely do so in the future.

Had Tucker used strangers, it might have been forgivable. But he used his own family. Before coming to Tucker, Daniel had done some research on him.

Since becoming a State Alchemist two years ago for creating a talking chimera, Tucker had used his research funds for luxury, barely continuing his chimera experiments.

"How do you know?" Tucker's face turned pale, his voice trembling.

"Don't worry about how I know. Just know why I'm here." Daniel swiftly approached, striking Tucker's arm with an iron rod.

With a crack, Tucker's right shoulder was at least fractured.

The intense pain made Tucker scream. Daniel didn't stop him; he had put Nina and the big dog to sleep beforehand. No matter the noise, they wouldn't wake up until it was time.

Bang, bang, bang.

The more Daniel thought about Tucker's actions, the angrier he became. He raised the rod again, targeting non-lethal areas to avoid killing Tucker outright.

"You don't understand. These sacrifices are necessary for alchemy's progress," Tucker insisted despite his injuries.

"Don't flatter yourself. You did it for the money and status of a State Alchemist." Before becoming a State Alchemist, Tucker was poor, supported by his wife who believed in his alchemical potential.

Alchemy needed either talent or resources. Without both, progress was nearly impossible. Before his breakthrough, Tucker's wife had supported him, only for him to betray her.

It was like a poor scholar in ancient times, abandoning his wife after achieving success through imperial exams.

"And you think your alchemy is impressive? Central has already perfected human-animal transmutation, allowing people to retain their forms and gain animal abilities. Your alchemy is outdated. I've been sent to eliminate you."

"Impossible. That's impossible."

 Tucker, his pride in his alchemy shattered, broke down completely.

"Goodbye." Daniel sighed, dropping the rod and shooting Tucker.

"I should turn you into a Philosopher's Stone. This is too good for you." Leaving a note explaining Tucker's death, Daniel exited the lab.

"Mr. Tucker, are you home?" Just as Daniel left the lab, he heard someone calling for Tucker.

"The lab's soundproofing is impressive," Daniel noted, realizing the caller hadn't heard the gunshot.

"Perfect timing. With Mustang around, Nina's future should be secure." With this thought, Daniel used the Disillusionment Charm to exit via a broomstick.

"Lior really is in chaos," Mustang and Hughes sighed in unison, looking at the map in East City's military headquarters.

Knowing trouble was brewing in Lior, Mustang and Hughes had focused on it. Mustang had even sent Eastern troops to maintain order there shortly after Daniel left Lior. But soon, Central troops arrived and ousted them.

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