Mechanical Alchemist

Su Lun really felt like he had struck gold.

Not only was Tanni one of the best sailing masters in Pirate City, but the ability he now displayed to "listen to the voices of sea creatures" was also a great help to the Dawn Group.

Otherwise, without realizing it, Su Lun would not have noticed that they were being watched.

The mechanical octopuses acted very covertly in the sea, as they possessed the soul fluctuations and some life characteristics of normal octopuses, making it difficult to distinguish them from regular octopuses unless seen with one's own eyes, even for practitioners with sensory abilities.

With these advantages, they were easily overlooked in the deep sea areas dense with marine life.

But as for the tracking,

with a little thought,

Su Lun knew that these octopuses were probably not originally after them but were more likely following that "Frost Moon Princess" Skadi.

The alliance between Mafa and the King of the North Sea allowed the pirates to grow swiftly. This greatly impacted several major nobles whose dominions lay within the raiding range of the North Sea Fleet, with Duke Rafael at the forefront.

Thus, if there was a chance, the person with the most motive to assassinate the princess would definitely be Duke Rafael.

But now the assassin, instead of following the "Princess," turned to follow the Dawn Group, and Su Lun guessed it was probably because of the mechanical octopuses that appeared during the recent battle. That individual hiding in the sea wanted to figure out exactly what was going on.

After all, the princess could be ambushed at another opportunity.

But Duke Rafael's exclusive techniques must not fall into the hands of outsiders!

...

Now that they knew they were being tracked, naturally, they had to flush out the tracker.

Moreover, considering the situation with the Dawn vessel, they couldn't shake the pursuit even if they wanted to.

"It won't be easy to lure that guy out..."

Su Lun listened to the position described by Tanni, where that individual was hiding in the deep sea, far away and very cautious.

That person probably didn't surface because they weren't confident they could take down everyone on their ship.

With Tanni's ability to communicate with schools of fish, they could indeed confirm some of the mechanical octopuses' positions.

But since they were constantly on the move, capturing them accurately was difficult.

It would be rash to dive into the sea, and there might not be any results.

If they struck at the snake without killing it, it would lead to big problems later on.

The key issue was that they weren't sure where the "controller" was.

Once Tanni brought this up, many people on the ship started paying attention.

Even Qian Tiao cast an inquiring look, clearly asking: Are we going to make a move?

Su Lun shook his head, not intending to startle the snake.

He raised his hand to signal that everyone should keep doing what they were doing.

Seeing this gesture from him, the crew also understood tacitly, and no one asked out of curiosity.

Meanwhile, Su Lun's mind was rapidly considering strategies.

In his head, he reviewed all the scenes after leaving Pirate City, reenacting the entire process from the beginning and pondering, "Since that person has been trailing us until now, they must have some special way to keep track of the 'Princess.' Either there is an insider, some special positioning ability, or it might be a mystic's power like divination or prophecy..."

Su Lun ruled out various possibilities one by one.

The Royal Guard of the "Frost Moon Princess" consisted of elites; tracking them without being noticed was difficult.

Furthermore, there were submarines in the water, and even with mechanical octopuses, constant close tracking seemed unlikely.

If they were too far, then how were they managing to follow without losing track?

Mystic divination abilities?

That would require a highly skilled practitioner, especially since Mafa's Royal Princess would surely have treasures to prevent divination.

Moreover, since they were using mechanical octopuses, it's not likely a traditional alchemist.

The likelihood of an insider existed, but that chance was small as well.

For the moment, Su Lun wasn't certain what means the "controller" used.

As he pondered, his thoughts drifted away.

It was at this moment that he faintly heard crew members communicating through communicators by his ear.

"First Mate Hays, there's a distress signal three miles north. It might be a brother who has fallen overboard, should we go take a look?"

"Alright! Turn the rudder!"

"..."

At that moment, the "sizzle" of the signal sounded unusually clear in Su Lun's ears.

Though the Dawn was not large, relying on shouting alone was inefficient for communication between the cabin and the deck. Especially in bad weather like they had encountered before, when the sound of wind and waves could drown out human voices, making communication ineffective.

To convey orders accurately, almost every ship was equipped with mechanical communicators.

When Su Lun heard this, a sudden brainstorm flashed through his mind.

"Right, the communicators!"

It was only then he realized he had been neglecting something due to preconceived notions.

In his hand was a "Dagus Goblin Communicator," which allowed for long-distance secure communication regardless of obstructions.

Such communicators were excellent, but they didn't have the capacity for mass production.

Therefore, to equip them widely in the military, they relied on conventional mechanical communicators.

But these mechanical communicators had a fatal flaw; all their channels were open. The communication waves would propagate indiscriminately within a certain range, which could potentially be intercepted and decoded by others.

Even the advanced communication devices of Ruying and Mafa military couldn't avoid this issue.

Su Lun's eyes shifted as he guessed in his mind, "That guy must have some ability to decipher and capture communication signals, which is how he located the 'Royal Princess'..."

Suddenly, he felt like he had a way to lure that guy out.

The plan formed in his mind in an instant.

Su Lun signaled to Qian Tiao, then took out the ship's communicator and pondered before saying, "Hey, Captain, no joke, those six mechanical octopuses you got this time are really useful. We almost took out those Mafa submarines..."

A glint flickered in Qian Tiao's eyes, and he immediately understood, following up with, "That's for sure."

Su Lun continued, "Ah, if 'Old Ghost' could get us a few more, we wouldn't have let that submarine get away."

As the conversation reached this point, Qian Tiao had guessed what Su Lun was up to and added, "Duke Rafael's laboratory isn't that easy to get in and out of. Getting these mechanical octopuses was already tough enough."

Su Lun said, "The folks from the Royal family of Luying are offering a reward on the black market for information, and they're willing to spend a lot of money to buy these 'mechanical octopuses.' Even if we sold them in bulk, we could make a fortune. I heard that our mechanical octopus blueprints could be traded for at least the title of a 'hereditary marquis,' not to mention we've got three of the latest 'experimental grade' products. I'm thinking, when we get back, we should have a chat with those military intelligence guys from Luying. Oh, right! The Mafa folks would definitely want them too. When the time comes, we can negotiate with both sides, get a good price..."

Qian Tiao knew that Su Lun was trying to lure out the enemy and agreed, "Yeah, let's decide on that. Once we pick up the man overboard, let's sell the blueprints when we get back. They're no use to us sitting on them anyway."

Despite being close by, the two used communicators to talk.

This type of unencrypted channel was almost effortless to eavesdrop on.

If it was as Su Lun had speculated, then their conversation should have already been intercepted.

If that was the case, it was highly likely that the guy would make his move.

...

There were actually some flaws in the conversation between Su Lun and Qian Tiao.

For instance, why they would fight with the Mafa people, why the blueprints, the mole... these couldn't withstand scrutiny.

But he was certain that the "puppeteer" would take the bait.

Dr. Banks had been the head of an experimental project under Duke Rafael back in Old Lington. So, they were very familiar with the strict confidentiality management system of the laboratory.

Duke Rafael had many secret laboratories working on various projects.

But the laboratories were independent of each other and kept secrets from each other.

Even casually inquiring was considered a serious crime.

Moreover, to preserve technological confidentiality, the biological department, combat department, and mechanical laboratory were completely separate entities. There was almost no communication between members of different departments.

And since the "puppeteer" had come to the North Sea to perform an assassination, he was almost certainly from the combat department. Hence, he likely had no idea about the laboratory's situation.

So, he wouldn't know the specifics about the "mole."

But the conversation between Su Lun and Qian Tiao would make someone's imagination run wild!

Even though three mechanical octopuses had been lost previously in the Rock Caiman Strait, there were six at present. There were also three "Mechanical Octopuses.plus," which were what Su Lun emphasized in the conversation as "the latest products from the laboratory."

The puppeteer definitely didn't know that there was someone else who had mastered "neuro-mechanical technology."

Under normal circumstances, even if a mechanical octopus was captured by any power, even if it fell into the hands of the Mafa military headquarters, it was virtually impossible to have them reverse-engineered so quickly.

In anyone else's mind, the only reasonable explanation would be that something went wrong within Duke Rafael's laboratory, and things leaked out.

But none of that mattered.

What mattered was that there was indeed a problem now, so they had to find a way to mitigate the damage!

The "puppeteer" couldn't chance letting Su Lun and his team leave, and couldn't wait for backup; he had to risk an attack.

Otherwise, once they returned to Pirate City Hastlein, he would lose any chance of acting.

Moreover, he was quite confident in his mechanical octopuses.

If dozens of mechanical octopuses attacked at once, even top professionals would have to keep their distance.

Even if they couldn't kill the enemy, damaging the ship in these deserted waters would be enough to wear these people down to death.

...

As expected.

Shortly after the conversation, Tanni immediately confirmed through the fish in the sea that the group of mechanical octopuses was approaching from underwater.

Su Lun calmly set up some energy barriers beneath his feet, and as he opened the rune-covered black umbrella in his hand, an invisible force of Soul Perception spread out.

With Soul Perception, everything was crystal clear.

Since the enemy was approaching, Su Lun was only then able to perceive clusters of special Soul Fires, which were none other than the mechanical octopuses.

Among these clusters of Soul Fires, there was one that was particularly distinct.

The Soul Fire of a human was completely different from that of an octopus.

With a quick scan, Su Lun instantly identified the guy, who was the "puppeteer"!

He quietly shared this information with Qian Tiao and a few others on the ship, including Dr. Banks, who had the strongest fighting capabilities.

Since the enemy had decided to attack, they were very decisive.

Just then, the sailors at the ship's rail also saw shadows rapidly approaching underwater and cried out in alarm.

"Captain, there are monsters in the water coming towards us! There's a lot of them!"

"Damn it, those tentacled beasts are attacking our ship!"

"..."

Most people didn't understand what was happening, but they could clearly feel the ship's body shaking violently. A "thud" and "crack" could be heard coming from the lower deck.

These were sounds of the ship being chipped away.

Mechanical octopuses were known as the ultimate "ship-breaking weapon." Under normal circumstances, two or three mechanical octopuses could dismantle a wooden sailboat in a short amount of time, let alone dozens.

Just one touch from them, and a three-masted ship started showing signs of capsizing.

Su Lun looked at the situation without the slightest panic, a hint of joy in his heart: "Thirty-eight? Geez, that's quite a number..."

The "Manipulator" didn't make a move earlier, which means that their strength was just so-so.

Otherwise, if they were truly confident about taking them down, they would have acted earlier.

No need to worry too much.

Just then, Su Lun also captured the location of the Manipulator's Soul Fire, and with a roar shouted, "Thirty meters underwater, at the nine o'clock direction! Move, grab that guy!"

"Got it!"

Upon hearing this, Qian Tiao, Dr. Banks, Banner, and a few of the strongest forces on the ship, leaped into the sea without paying any attention to those mechanical octopuses and swam towards the ocean floor.

At the same time, Su Lun pinched his Suren Sorcerer's Seal, and the energy baryte under his feet burst into dazzling light, instantly forming a huge cross in the sky.

"Puppet Mastery · Puppet Theater!"

The moment the cross in the sky lit up, the transparent strands that had been set up on the ship for a long time had also rapidly condensed into physical form.

Those mechanical octopuses were busily trying to break the ship.

Above the sea were churning mechanical tentacles everywhere, making the water look as if it was boiling, extremely terrifying.

The crew were still fighting valiantly.

But whether it was swords or sabers striking those mechanical tentacles, aside from a spark, there was hardly any damage.

Neither musket bullets nor individual bombardments could leave many marks on those mechanical tentacles.

Facing such cluster attacks from mechanical monsters, the Dawn seemed to be in danger of annihilation.

The Manipulator probably thought of a "one-hit kill," sinking the ship and killing as many people on board as possible in an instant. That's why all the mechanical octopuses were concentrated and charged over together.

Unfortunately for them, there was Su Lun on the ship!

To exert force, the mechanical octopuses definitely required a solid anchoring point. Each of those tentacles also adhered to the hull, spreading onto the deck, the cabin, the masts...

It was this kind of close contact that gave Su Lun the opportunity to wrap them with his tendrils.

The moment those dozens of mechanical octopuses appeared, numerous threads that had already covered the entire ship quickly condensed into solid forms. Like capturing prey that fell into a spider's web, the octopuses hardly struggled before being tightly entangled.

Under normal circumstances, it would be impossible for Su Lun to control dozens of powerful mechanical beasts with his threads simultaneously.

Not even the strongest strongman could handle such a feat of strength.

However, after extensive research and crafting, Su Lun now had a complete understanding of the construction of the mechanical octopuses.

As the threads wound around them, the [Spiritual Tendrils] skillfully penetrated the armor joints, finding the octopuses' nerve tissue. Without much effort, he easily stopped those dozens of mechanical octopuses at the source.

Though the Dawn was almost destroyed in an instant, the octopuses only acted ferociously for that moment.

The next second, they were like someone had hit the pause button, staying still on the spot.

The crew members, who were previously in a state of confusion, were instantly dumbfounded, turning their heads to look at the figure standing on a piece of ship wreckage, their eyes shining brightly.

The old team members of Dawn, like Lorota, who had seen Su Lun's abilities, looked at the sky full of threads.

Their expressions changed from shock to extreme joy.

"Mr. Su Lun is mighty!"

"Hahaha... Mr. Su Lun is indeed formidable!"

"..."

Who would have thought that a moment ago it was the brink of annihilation, and in the blink of an eye, it was reversed?

....

This scene even had the "Manipulator" dumbfounded.

The sinking of that pirate ship was as planned, caught by a single encounter.

But what was going on now?

He never would have thought that someone could use this method to crack the nearly invincible mechanical octopus legion.

How could this be...

They had even defeated the fully-equipped naval ships of Mafa without allowing them any chance to fight back, how could they be defeated so easily?

Before he had any more time to think, his surprise turned into horror as a sword qi charged with the force of thunder slashed directly at him.

He saw several figures rushing towards the location where he was hiding!

Every time, he had controlled the mechanical octopus legion from within the sea, never being exposed before. How did these people ascertain his hiding place?

...

If the enemy's trace wasn't discovered, it would be fine, but once found, how could they allow their target to escape?

The methods of Qian Tiao and the others were extremely sharp, there was no chance they would let him escape, even in the sea.

Moreover, after Su Lun took control of the mechanical octopuses, he quickly "turned" the group of octopuses and cornered the Manipulator in the water.

Before long, the fellow was cornered with no way out and was killed by a single strike from Qian Tiao.

This guy was a "Super Mechanical Warrior," and as expected, his own combat ability was around the level of someone with a fourth or fifth-order profession.

However, his mechanical limbs were a bit special with fins on his arms and legs, equipped with a delicately designed [Mechanical Aqua-lung] enabling long periods of underwater swimming and strong concealment abilities. And as expected, a [Communicator Decrypter] was also found on his person.

As for prisoners?

They weren't needed.

Su Lun had the ability to strip Soul Shards.

He devoured the gray mist on the corpse, selecting the information he was interested in.

'You have stripped the soul of 'Sid Haivent.'

'You have gained experience related to the maintenance, repair, and upkeep of mechanical octopuses.'

"You have acquired a large amount of knowledge about mechanical warriors, mechanical experience +554"

"You have harvested a portion of the organizational structure, secret codes, and strength distribution from the memories of Duke Raphael's special legion"

"You extracted some information: 'One of Duke Rafael's large secret bases is located near 'Prospector Sea Island', specializing in the manufacturing of mechanical creatures'..."

"Spiritual Power +4.1"

"..."

...

"The base where Duke Raphael manufactures mechanical octopuses is near a place called 'Prospector Pirate City', in the Nameless Wasteland Sea to the west of the black tower?"

After Su Lun harvested this guy's memories, he immediately became spirited.

It seems that this time, it's not just about harvesting a few dozen mechanical octopuses, but also about uncovering a bigger secret?

These mechanical warriors have been imprinted with an absolute loyalty "thought steel stamp" in their consciousness since they were produced. No matter how they are tortured or even hypnotized, they would not reveal any secrets.

But Su Lun's soul separation technique directly bypassed those will barriers and peeled away this big secret.

"Finally, I know where Duke Raphael's secret factory is..."

Su Lun's thoughts immediately became more active.

A large research base means a large amount of materials, advanced mechanical equipment, numerous research documents, finished products, semi-finished products...

"Damn, becoming a pirate makes my brain reflexively think of one thing, to rob?"

In an instant, Su Lun even came up with some battle plans in his mind.

A completely isolated military base... That means, as much as possible, it's something outsiders should know little about, so its defenses may not be particularly strong.

Was it like the former Old Spiriton Underground City?

Although the intelligence from inside the base isn't detailed, perhaps... some manipulations could be made?

While Su Lun's thoughts were rapidly turning, his teammates in the distance also started to clamor.

A surprise attack battle had ended without much danger, with hardly any casualties.

But the problem was, during the recent battle, their ship had been turned into pieces by the mechanical octopus.

Fragments floated everywhere on the sea surface, with some crew members on lifeboats, others clinging to barrels, masts floating around, looking both miserable and ludicrous.

"Captain Qiantiao, our warship is destroyed, what should we do now?"

"Yeah, this is the Nameless Wasteland Sea, hardly any ships pass by, and it's almost certain we can't get back on lifeboats. The communicator's signal is too far, we can't call for help..."

"Oh~ This is really bad, are we going to feed the sharks together with our mighty captain?"

"..."

The crew members weren't particularly pessimistic, actually somewhat delighted in their misfortune, taking after Qiantiao's heartiness.

Hearing her crew's self-deprecating jokes, Qiantiao rolled her eyes.

She looked at Su Lun again and asked, "Su Lun kid, you should have some preparations, right?"

She was very clear about Su Lun's personality. Since he took action, he must have anticipated this outcome.

Upon hearing this, Dr. Banks also cast an inquiring look at him.

On the sea without a ship is a terrible situation indeed.
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Su Lun spread his hands and said, "I do have some preparations indeed. But it will take some time."

Hearing his words, the members of the Dawn Team all let out a sigh of relief.

This Mr. Su Lun, every time in desperate circumstances, could bring them a great surprise.

At the same time, they also wondered, with no ship left, what could be done?

Even if he had spatial storage, at most, he could take out a few small lifeboats, which wouldn't solve the problem at all.

Su Lun didn't explain further. He took a deep breath, pinched the sorcerer's seals, and a black hole slowly formed in the palm of his hand.

Indeed, this was the sorcerer's seals to unlock the fourth-tier armament [Endless Stomach of the Space Whale].

With such a huge storage space, Su Lun naturally wouldn't waste it.

He anticipated possible contingencies, so he crammed all sorts of odd items into the space – mostly large objects that didn't fit in his regular storage space.

The biggest of these was... an entire three-masted sailing ship with a displacement of nearly a thousand tons!

It was indeed possible to store it.

But whether it was storing the ship or releasing it now, both processes were extremely draining.

Su Lun's Spatial Ability was like an ant dragging an elephant. Just opening the "miniature void world" already felt like his dark Spiritual Power was being drained by half.

With no other choice, he took out a pile of Energy Baryte, absorbing it while continuing to pour Dark Spiritual Power into it, enlarging the black hole enough for the ship to come out.

...

The Dawn Team's crew members watched the eerie spatial black hole appear, not understanding at first what Su Lun was up to.

They gathered the floating items from the sea, watching with interest.

However, when a huge three-masted sailing ship slowly emerged from the black hole...

All their gazes froze.

Nobody expected Su Lun to be carrying a warship with him!

Qiantiao, with sparkling eyes full of surprise, murmured to herself, "This kid really did come prepared..."

Even the composed Dr. Banks looked astounded, saying in disbelief, "That... is indeed an extravagant preparation."