Mechanical Alchemist

What is Su Lun doing, unlocking his alchemy equipment now?

To facilitate his escape?

Kai's mind hadn't caught up with the situation a second ago, but in the next, his expression became very odd.

At this moment, he no longer found Su Lun's actions strange, rather his gaze was drawn to the sinister dark gold octo-spear, and it was his eyes that held a peculiar gleam.

What the hell is this thing?

Seeing this bizarre piece of alchemy gear was even more shocking to him than witnessing a monster suddenly burst out from the carriage.

If not for the pentagram that lit up on the ground, would you believe me if I said this was alchemy gear?

An alchemy suit shaped like a spider might not be unique in the outer city, but it would be something rare even within the inner city.

In a flash, Kai seemed to realize that he had never seen Su Lun's alchemy equipment before.

He had asked about it in the past, even thinking about helping to get a set suited for a marksman. But Su Lun had said he had already prepared a "decent" set, so Kai didn't question further.

But... is this it?

You call this kind of equipment "decent"?

Also, is this really the kind of gear a respectable marksman would have?

What's up with those eight spear legs? Do more feet mean faster running? But you'd also need to be able to control them!

Although Kai didn't understand what Su Lun was planning to do, seeing that familiar deadpan face filled him with an inexplicable trust.

That familiar feeling on the battlefield returned; if this guy said he could counterattack, then he was definitely capable of it.

.....

After unlocking his alchemy equipment, Su Lun was not done yet!

He understood well that mere physical damage would hardly penetrate the "Abomination Warrior's" skin. Even if the spear was incredibly sharp, its penetration depth was not enough to cause significant injury to the creature.

Upon unlocking his gear, Su Lun didn't stop; his hands swiftly changed the sorcerer's seals once again.

The alchemy formation lit up once more, his gaze growing sharper by the second. Finally, with the last sorcerer's seal in place, a soft chant escaped his lips, "Alchemy Arcanum: No Servant!"

In that instant, his entire body was covered with a layer of faint blue chilling flame. The eight spears were now enveloped in cold fire, turning into something resembling eight flaming spears, bizarre and fierce.

With the emergence of this chilly enchantment, Kai, who was watching from a distance, was no longer just surprised; he was utterly astonished.

The rank of an alchemy spell often correlates with the grandiosity of its casting. The chill flame that radiated a cold presence did not look like any ordinary spell; this was surely no commonplace alchemy!

However, the more advanced the alchemy spell, the longer it took to learn. And crucially, the knowledge of such high-ranked alchemy was not something you could simply buy if you wanted to.

Kai was already incredulous when Su Lun performed the "Melting Technique" earlier, and now here was another incomprehensible flame shield spell.

So this is you, who normally calls yourself a marksman?

....

Now was not the time to hesitate. Once the reinforcements from the Steam Faction arrived, they would have to face not just one monster, but something more complicated.

With his equipment unlocked, Su Lun wasted no time, raising his guns and firing simultaneously, immediately drawing the attention of the creature towards himself.

The monster charged fiercely, and Su Lun's eight spidery limbs all moved in unison. His body supported by all eight legs, dodged in a bizarre angle.

And in the moment of passing by, Su Lun's fingers grasped at the air, as several strands of wire pulled out a lead-grey trick puppet. As the strings were pulled, the puppet latched magnetically onto the right calf of the monster.

Almost simultaneously, Su Lun exclaimed, "Release!"

The runes on the doll lit up instantly, and in a flash, the monster's movement became as though its feet were filled with lead. Its legs, unbalanced in strength, stumbled and tripped over itself and fell.

This was none other than the intermediate trick puppet "Lead Sink Doll," inscribed with the earth elemental "Mountain Rune." As soon as the doll's feet touched the ground, it attracted earth elements continuously, growing heavier and heavier, until reaching the doll's threshold. What was originally a light wooden doll could now exert a pull of over a thousand kilograms.

The monster fell heavily to the ground, and Su Lun knew this was not enough to cause any real harm to it.

Almost at the same time, the eight spider legs pulled, and two more trick puppets, one black and one red, jangled towards the front with the creak of wooden joints.

When they got close to the Abomination Warrior, the black-faced doll's jaw split open, and from its mouth, a black tube appeared, spraying a stream of oil-like black liquid onto the creature; simultaneously, the red-faced doll beside it burst into flames, expelling a ten-meter long blaze resembling phosphorous flames.

Oil meeting fire burst into an inferno, engulfing the creature in a burst of flames like a flamethrower.

These two dolls were also among the latest trick puppets Su Lun had mastered, the "Oil Swallower Doll" and the "Phosphorus Fire Doll!"

The red-faced doll had an alchemy formation inscribed within. The flame it spat was actually a first-tier alchemy spell—"Inextinguishable Phosphorus Fire";

The black-faced one was not spewing ordinary oil, but a specially formulated combustible—"Refined Phosphorus Oil."

The fuel is extremely viscous, and once it adheres, it is impossible to shake off;

Phosphorous fire reacts even more vigorously with water, hardly extinguishable unless it burns out.

What use is strong defense and recovery?

A magician skilled in alchemy might have other means to extinguish the flames.

But a pure physical attacker, especially a dim-witted "Abomination Warrior," would suffer greatly from such burning.

....

The monster seemed impervious to pain, its back ablaze with roaring flames, apparently oblivious.

It rose to its feet, smashed the "Lead Sink Doll" clinging to its leg with a slap, and turned its head toward Su Lun.

But this time, the monster made a shaking motion with its head, as if to fling off the phosphorous fire that blocked its vision.

It was the shake of its head, delaying for a second, that it charged wildly toward Su Lun.

Su Lun caught the subtle shaking motion of the monster and immediately concluded, "Just as I thought! The monster also relies on vision to perceive its target, and the burning flames are greatly limiting its senses!"

The Abomination Warrior charged ferociously, dribbling flowing phosphorous fire as it ran.

A gust of wind, carrying a scorching heatwave, whisked past him, and this time, Su Lun likewise avoided the creature's charge with a clever use of his spider spear for support.

Moreover, this time it was much easier than before.

The monster's perception was limited, and its reaction was considerably slower.

For Su Lun, this reduced the crisis in an instant by too much.

Just watching the monster burn could have been an option, and although it was highly unlikely to kill it, it could at least maim it.

The subsequent kill would be much easier then.

But Su Lun knew he could not wait any longer.

This monster had an extraordinary vitality; if he did not make it quick, reinforcements from the Steam Faction might arrive.

Therefore, he had to strike on his own initiative.

And in the moment he brushed past the flaming monster, the creature collided with the wire, pulling it and consequently sending Su Lun flying backward with a "whoosh."

However, that was exactly what he wanted!

Su Lun's body flew backward, like the inertia thrust of a thrown javelin, providing him with an extra acceleration.

At that moment, he had already stood the eight spider spears vertically in front of him, and with a "click," "click," "click," the sharp black spikes at the tips of the spears were launched with a sharp sound.

Having missed the target, the monster realized something was amiss and came to a sudden stop.

In an instant, Su Lun was catapulted out by a huge inertia, the eight spider spears encased in ghostly cold flames, unfazed by the phosphorous fire on the monster's body, stabbing straight toward its various vital spots.

Four spider spears each targeted the back of the monster's head, its upper back, and both sides of its waist.

Maybe it finally felt pain, as the creature's movements visibly faltered.

Su Lun didn't relent, pulling on the steel wire, securing himself in mid-air. The joints of the spider spears were flexible; they could not only stab directly but also attack laterally. With a "zss" "zss," two slicing sounds of flesh being pierced emerged, and two spears stabbed into the monster's ear holes. Find adventures at empire

The spider spears even had better piercing effectiveness than alchemy bullets, with six spikes penetrating half a foot deep into flesh.

The eight-armed spider spear, permanently imbued with the "Sharp Rune," was not just sharp—it also carried the toxicity inherent to the cursed material!

"Corrosive Poison" granted the spider spear a remarkable armor-breaking effect; after penetrating, it instantly released "Blood-Poison" that slowed down the healing of the wounds.

The No Servant cold flames already carried dual physical and magical damage. The combination of two toxins allowed the spider spear to penetrate deeper, inflicting tremendous damage on the creature in an instant.

Su Lun was like a giant mosquito, with eight spider legs like proboscises, firmly adhered to the monster's back.

With many legs for support, he could comfortably dodge the monster's flailing arms, repeatedly driving the spider spear in and out, continuously creating new wounds on the creature. In a matter of moments, the monster's body was like a punctured water bag, with streams of blue blood jetting out one after another.

"Auu~"

The desolate wilderness echoed with the monster's furious roar.

The creature instinctively sensed the danger and tried to throw Su Lun off its back.

After several unsuccessful attempts, it accelerated suddenly and charged violently at the bulletproof transport vehicle.

With a heavy "thud," the immense force of the impact shifted the hefty vehicle sideways by several meters.

Su Lun, quick as a flash, tugged on the steel cable, springing off from the monster's body to separate himself before being squashed.