Mechanical Alchemist

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The vast sealed space was still ablaze with phantom fire.

The high-temperature smoke was so dense that visibility was reduced to less than an arm's length.

Fortunately, the "Puppet Theater"'s strings covered every corner without a dead angle, enabling Su Lun to accurately locate the more than one hundred corpses.

In this search, he scoured countless spoils of war.

Hundreds of storage rings, over a hundred sets of alchemy armor, professional materials...

Equipment, firearms, ammunition, steam machinery...

Innumerable.

If it weren't for Su Lun having his own storage space, he couldn't have taken much of these things with him.

Of course, in addition to the loot, Su Lun also harvested more than a hundred Soul Shards.

It must be said that the quality of the Soul Shards from the elite team of the Oliver family was much higher than those from the outer city.

During the battle between the Cross Society and the Steam Party, Su Lun harvested the fragments of thousands of people, and though they looked like a sizeable mass, in terms of quality, they were far inferior to those of the hundred elite members.

Most of the gang members in the outer city were rough men who barely recognized a few words. They did possess a variety of odd knowledge and practical skills, but almost no knowledge of alchemy.

Whereas nearly everyone in this hundred-member team was from the inner city.

Not to mention the few second-tier professionals, even amongst the dozens of first-tier professionals, and even the regular team members, most could read and write, and many had systematically studied knowledge at basic academies.

After this round of harvesting, Su Lun felt that the gaps in his basic knowledge of various fields were almost instantly filled.

Mechanics, runes, techniques of all schools, tracking skills, wilderness experience, monster compendium...

Expertise in bombs, swordsmanship, rope binding, prison break skills, cooking, flirting techniques...

These elite members all had their own fields of expertise, and with this round of harvesting, Su Lun instantly gathered a vast amount of knowledge across various domains.

Of course, harvesting so many Soul Shards in such a short period of time wasn't without its costs.

Su Lun hadn't dared to carefully digest that surplus of information, and instead, crammed it into his mind.

Even so, he felt as if he were drunk, his mind heavy and foggy.

As soon as he had digested some, he continued to harvest...

Then digested, and harvested again...

He also discovered a pattern, that after his spiritual power value increased, the efficiency of absorption became much higher and that heavy, foggy feeling became increasingly faint.

....

Su Lun was constantly calculating the time.

A normal professional would take about half an hour to sprint at full speed from the camp to this location. If one was taking Into account the pace of someone like Young Master Danze, a Puppet Master with a weaker physical body, it might take about an hour.

Thus, Su Lun calmly stayed in the sealed space for about half an hour.

After harvesting the spoils, there was still plenty of time to gather the collectible bodies together.

He set them ablaze, obliterating any traces.

Having done all this, he found a direction near the sealing barrier, opened a spatial door, and stepped straight out.

The scenery around him changed in an instant, from a smoky environment to a pile of dilapidated buildings.

Su Lun looked around; the location was almost as he had estimated.

This was observed before the spatial seal was in place.

The location where the spatial door opened was concealed by the dilapidated buildings, perfectly avoiding the sight of others.

When he emerged, a lot of people had already gathered outside the barrier.

From all directions.

To ensure a foolproof encirclement and capture of Su Lun, the Oliver family arranged dozens of teams in the ruin's southern city.

The barrier couldn't be opened, and the situation inside wasn't visible. These late pursuers, bored to death, were gathered outside the barrier, gossiping about this operation.

"Hey, do you think Mr. Lloyd and the others caught the fugitive?"

"Isn't that obvious? Once the barrier is up, not even a fly can get out. They must have caught him."

"Too bad, I was a bit too far away to catch up with that wave of easy bounty. Young Master Danze said there would be a reward for participating in the encirclement, and a hefty one for those who catch the guy..."

"Yeah, three groups of those guys got lucky. Hey, do you think that 'SS-level fugitive Su Lun' really has three heads and six arms? I heard that for this capture operation, they brought four or five second-tier professionals alone..."

"Who knows? An SS-level fugitive must have some tricks up his sleeve. But I think there were not just five second-tiers, there must have been seven or eight, right?"

"You underestimate that Su Lun. We'll let you in on a top-secret piece of information, but you can't spread it around. The reason Young Master Danze is so crazed about this is because of the last hunt at the abbey. I heard he suffered a big loss then, had his materials stolen, and even had a few second-tier guards killed by that Su Lun..."

"Cut the crap. Are you overhyping it? Isn't Su Lun just relying on two 'Sealing Artifacts'? Give them to me, I could do it too..."

"..."

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Su Lun listened for a moment in the dilapidated building and didn't go out, quickly discerning the enemy's positions.

There were quite a few enemies outside, but without any second-order ones, they posed almost no threat.

Continuous squads kept returning, and Su Lun had no intention of lingering there.

Just as he was about to teleport instantly, a sudden gunshot rang out.

Then, those people outside seemed to have no intention of pursuing, as if they were already accustomed to it.

"Haven't caught him yet, huh? That guy sure can jump around."

"I heard that guy alone wiped out the fifteenth squad to the north just now. If it weren't for the patrol team spotting him, he might have actually managed to break the barrier."

"Everyone be careful. The patrol team is in charge of the pursuit. We just need to guard the barrier."

"But speaking of which, the SS wanted criminal Su Lun's accomplice is really loyal. To think he'd dare to come here alone to his death..."

"..."

Su Lun frowned upon hearing this.

My accomplice?

His eyes shifted as he immediately thought of something.

During the ambush at the trading spot earlier, he remembered someone shielding him from the "Gun King" Geiger's subsequent shots.

Now, he had come again.

Su Lun immediately guessed who it was.

....

The gunshots moved further away toward the depths of the northern ruins.

Su Lun didn't delay; with a few sorcerer's seals, he teleported several times and left those people's field of vision.

Following the direction where the gunshots had sounded, he found a ten-person elite squad supporting two wounded, all on high alert walking back towards the barrier.

Su Lun originally planned to go up and "ask for directions," but suddenly, he slightly moved his ears and detected something.

Looking again, a figure suddenly burst out from the mist in the distance, a cloaked assassin who appeared and disappeared intermittently.

The assassin's speed was extremely fast, moving like a ghost, flashing in and out.

His entire body was pressed very low, as if he was going to stick to the ground. Even more eerie was that under his feet, it seemed as if he was stepping not on the ground but on air.

"Eh... Stepping on Air?"

Su Lun recognized this technique, with a memory of related knowledge.

He had seen it once before, back when it was used by the Thousand Smoke Ghost.

This was a very advanced technique that required great coordination of the body and explosive muscle strength. Few second-order melee professionals knew it.

If his eyesight hadn't improved before, the speed he saw would be equivalent to teleportation.

Su Lun lifted an eyebrow, watching as the assassin passed through the crowd like a ghost.

After the figure passed, a series of thumping sounds of stepping on air followed in the air, "pop" "pop" "pop"...

Then came a burst of gunfire, "tap" "tap" "tap"...

Bullets sparked everywhere among the ruins, but the cloaked assassin was already gone.

In the crowd, a soldier's scream rang out as his neck was sliced open to a depth of half a palm, blood gushing out. The cut was cunningly placed right in the gap not covered by the mechanical skeleton, killing him instantly.

"Damn it! Damn it!"

The team leader was so angry his face turned black, but he was helpless.

Su Lun saw the cloaked figure clearly and murmured, "It really is Kai..."

Saying this, he didn't delay, teleporting instantly into the midst of the crowd.

Before those guys could understand what was happening, eight spider spears pierced through, and the bodies fell in unison.

Knowing that Kai was nearby, Su Lun called out into the thick fog, "Captain, long time no see."

Hearing this, the cloaked man slowly emerged from behind the wall where he was hiding.

Although his face wasn't clear, the surprise in his scrutinizing gaze was unmistakable.

An elite squad killed in an encounter?

Hearing the word "Captain" and seeing the familiar dark gold octopus spears, Kai also recognized who the person in front of him was.

Su Lun cleaned up the spoils from the bodies, threw an incendiary grenade to burn the traces, and then called out to Kai, "Let's go, we'll talk somewhere else."

Saying this, he led the way deeper into the ruins.

The cloaked assassin heard these words and hesitated on the spot for a moment.

He watched the figure gradually moving away, thought about it, and still decided to follow.

....

Su Lun walked ahead,

while Kai followed at a moderate distance, without uttering a word.

The two friends, who had once shared a bond deeper than life itself, found themselves immersed in an awkward atmosphere.

Su Lun raised his eyebrows, wanting to say something, but not knowing what to say.

He had a strange feeling.

The person following him was alive, but their soul seemed as though it had already died.

Eventually, after walking a while, Su Lun found a place that was difficult to be surrounded and stopped there.

It wasn't that he didn't want to go further, but he noticed that Kai was injured.

A very serious gunshot wound.

Su Lun found a rock to sit on and then tossed a strong healing potion.

Kai caught it instinctively, looked at it, and clearly hesitated with something.

He too found a rock to sit on, holding the potion in his hand without using it, seemingly indifferent to the possibility that his own injuries could worsen.

The atmosphere didn't ease but became even more awkward.

After some thought, Su Lun broke the deadlock and said, "Thank you for what you did just now."

Whether it was blocking the "Gun King" Gage earlier or coming to the barrier, he had risked his life trying to save people.

Even on his own, he had tried hard to save others.

Just for that, Su Lun knew that the man before him was still the Captain Kai he once knew.

No matter what his current identity was.

Kai's gaze drifted; he didn't look at Su Lun but stared at the outlines of the buildings deep in the ruins, growing more profound.
Your journey continues with empire

After a long silence, he didn't mention what had just happened but uttered three words, "I'm sorry."

"..."

Su Lun heard the deep remorse in his voice and sighed with a nasal tone.

After a pause, he said earnestly, "Captain, I've never blamed you. You don't need to blame yourself like this."

Although Su Lun didn't know what had happened to Kai, he understood that Kai must have been suffering greatly after the escort mission went awry.

The Smoker whom he had trusted like a father had become a traitor of the Cross Society, and an opportunity he thought would lead to great success had almost killed his most trusted brother.

Kai shook his head, feeling no relief from those words, "I've clung to life just to tell you 'I'm sorry.'"

Having said this, he sighed as if a great weight had been lifted from his shoulders.

He finally turned to look directly at Su Lun and then took off his hood, smiling at Su Lun, "Brother, I'm glad to see you're still alive, and I'm glad you've become so strong..."

The smile was sincere, and his eyes sparkled with relief.

At this moment, there was finally a hint of life in him, but his words sounded more like a farewell, and the smile slowly faded along with his last vestige of attachment to life.

Finally, Su Lun understood why Kai wasn't in a hurry about his own wounds.

The half-face marred by grotesque tumors and his ashen spiritual state made it seem as though a corpse had walked out of a grave, not a living person.

"My appearance must have scared you, right?"

Kai laughed at himself sarcastically.

Clearly, he knew he didn't have much time left.

But he didn't wish to talk more about it and stood up, saying, "It's okay, I've said what I needed to say. Seeing you alive, I have no regrets now."

Kai put his hood back on, covering his face.

He tossed the potion back to Su Lun and chuckled, "Since I won't live for many more days, there's no need to waste such a good potion."

"..."

Su Lun looked at the potion in his hand, his gaze complicated.

Kai grinned, finally revealing that trademark radiant smile, "In the next life, I still want to be your brother."

But it seemed he hadn't smiled in a long time, and this expression felt very foreign to him.

The smile hadn't fully formed before it receded.

After a pause, he looked at Su Lun uncertainly and added, "I hope you won't mind."

...

Su Lun watched as Kai was determined to leave, thought of something, shook his head, and called out, "Captain, wait a moment."

Kai turned back with a puzzled look.

Su Lun didn't waste words and tossed him two potions.

This time, looking at the potion in his hand, Kai's brows furrowed even more, his confusion deepening.

Without waiting for him to ask, Su Lun said directly, "The blue one is a 'Mutation Suppression Serum'; after injection, it can solve your mutation problem. The green one, you should recognize, it's the 'X Serum' we robbed from the Steam Party convoy that time."

"???"

Kai looked at the two potions, his gaze becoming very complex.

Puzzlement, astonishment, a blank... but mostly disbelief!

Mutation can be reversed?

But when he saw the green potion, he seemed to remember that robbery, and a hint of reminiscence crossed his face.

Thinking back, if it weren't for Su Lun's extraordinary strength, that would have been big trouble.

On further thought, that seemed like a very long time ago...

Suddenly, Kai's gaze became distant.

Su Lun didn't give him much time to think and explained in detail, "After injection of the 'X Serum,' there's a 75% chance that it will significantly increase your physical strength, and a 25% chance of death. But from what I've seen, your body has a high tolerance to mutation, so the success rate of the potion injection should be quite high. You can choose to inject the 'X Serum' first, followed by the 'Mutation Suppression Serum'. Of course, there's a small side effect, which is that it will turn your skin blue for quite some time."

Usually, once a mutation occurs, a human would lose their will in a very short time and turn into a monster.

But Kai's condition was very special.

Su Lun had seen it once in the Bell Tower Monster's space.

It was all sustained by sheer will, without complete mutation.

But sooner or later, it was a dead end.

....

Really speaking, Kai also owned half of those 'X Serums.'

Now that Su Lun was confident, it made sense to give him one.

Hearing this series of unbelievable statements, Kai's expression became very rich.

In his current situation, he was certainly doomed, and yet Su Lun was saying he could be saved?

Doubt?

No, he didn't have any.

He just felt... emotionally complex.

Kai looked at Su Lun and then at the potions in his hand, as if he had returned to the time when he was still with the Cross Society.

In those desperate moments, Su Lun always found an unbelievable way to bring him hope of survival.

Thinking of something, Kai laughed.

But then he laughed bitterly.

The light that had just appeared in his eyes suddenly extinguished.

He shook his head, didn't ask about the potion, and said indifferently, "I'm now an outlying member of the Umbrella Organization. They kept me alive to find clues about you through me. I know you won't be easily caught. I've clung to life just to see you once more, to say 'I'm sorry.' Now... I have no regrets. Even if I could continue to live, I wouldn't work for them anymore."

Working for the Umbrella Organization?

No, what once seemed an unattainable "public position" for those on the outer levels, now seemed pretty average.

The life Smoke Ghost had arranged for him,

was not what he wanted.

Listening to this, Su Lun remarked unconcernedly, "Then just defect."

"It's not that simple..."

Kai's tone was heavy, as if locked by an invisible shackle that made it hard for him to breathe.

He shook his head and explained, "To control some special outlying members, the Umbrella Organization makes them take a slow-acting poison. They must collect an antidote every month, otherwise they won't live long. No one in the outside world can cure this poison. And I won't be going back..."

Su Lun looked at Kai, and with a slightly odd tone, he interrupted, "If it's about the antidote for the Umbrella Organization's 'Grom Parasitic Toxin'... I think I might just have it."

"???"

Kai's eyes twitched involuntarily upon hearing Su Lun directly name the toxin.

That inexplicable but real sense of familiarity came over him again...

Everything seemed to have returned to the past, as if nothing had changed.