Mechanical Alchemist

Under the astonished gazes of everyone around, Su Lun conjured a three-masted sailing ship out of thin air.

No longer needing to soak in the sea, the crew laughed and chattered as they boarded the ship.

With information from the fish obtained by Tanni, they scoured the nearby waters again and found several more mechanical octopuses.

With the previous ones included, they had captured a total of forty-three.

It was truly a bountiful harvest.

Not counting the cost of labour and technology, the material cost alone made each mechanical octopus worth more than a hundred million liso.

This haul of spoils saved Su Lun billions in costs, as well as one or two months of non-stop production time.

And now, with a small army of mechanical octopuses, they finally possessed a formidable group fighting force.

With a total of forty-eight and enough materials left to produce a few more, Su Lun could, like the guy before him, take on a full fleet head-on.

With these ship-breaking tools, the mechanical octopuses, dozens of them attacking at once, were the nightmare of all warships.

Su Lun also felt that his once-conceived "Mechanical Puppet Army" was finally showing signs of coming to fruition.

As for other mechanical monsters, just these mechanical octopuses alone, with another thousand, wouldn't it be like locusts crossing the land, gods blocking killing gods, demons coming slaying demons?

Although mechanical products performed poorly in the realm of high-level professions, they could still undergo a qualitative change through quantity.

If a thousand were not enough, then ten thousand...

Su Lun felt that the future held great promise.

As for how to acquire ten thousand mechanical octopuses, he already had a "clue."

Beyond the spoils of war, perhaps the greatest gain this time was that piece of intelligence.

He had obtained information on Duke Rafael's secret research base!

When Qiantiao and the others heard this news, they all said they must seize the opportunity to strike a blow. The people of Old Lington, having been "miners" for generations, harboured some resentment against the mine owners.

Su Lun also found it feasible.

After all, they were pirates now!

What if they managed to raid it and realize the dream of a mechanical army?

...

The Dawn Group had a new ship, which was less conspicuous.

Even if they encountered the group from the "Frost Moon Princess" again, they wouldn't be recognized immediately.

The crew were in high spirits, busy salvaging items from the sunken ships before. They also helped paint and tidy up the cabins. The captains were organizing the crew to find their own cabins in preparation for the celebration after the big battle.

As the "New Dawn" sailed, they continued to search for crew members lost at sea during the previous storm.

Su Lun naturally didn't need to worry about these trivial matters.

On the deck, he and Qiantiao were enjoying the sea breeze.

By his side, stood Lolota holding a sword.

This young girl was now always by her teacher's side, sensing the profound and mysterious Sword Intent of the "Sword Saint Realm."

Tanni was silently by Su Lun's side as well, staring into the sea.

Enjoying the breeze was one thing, but Su Lun was more interested in seeing if there were a few "fish that slipped through the net" still to be caught in the sea.

Such windfalls from the sky were always welcome.
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After all, who knows how much of Duke Raphael's influence had infiltrated the area.

...

The excitement on Tanni's face didn't fade for a long time.

This new member of the Dawn Group was incredibly earnest and full of energy. He gazed at the sea, acutely sensing everything around him, listening for the responses of the sea creatures.

This was Tanni's first time on a large seafaring vessel, and he felt he couldn't let everyone down; he had to excel as the Dawn Group's chief navigator.

Su Lun watched, a trace of thought flickering in his eyes.

Today they had encountered two fierce battles in a row, but thanks to their meticulous planning, the Dawn Group did not suffer heavy losses.

However, the actual process was rife with danger, and one wrong step could have led to their complete annihilation.

And in the future, such situations would become more common.

The veterans in the group were aware of this, but for a new member, Su Lun thought some things needed to be explained.

The Dawn Group operated with freedom, with almost no restrictions.

If someone felt tired, no longer wishing to wander, they would even receive a severance package.

But since Qiantiao started with those old timers from the "Cross Society," except for those who fell in battle, no one has left.

Looking at Tanni's somewhat youthful face, Su Lun decided to speak up, "Tanni, I was too preoccupied with the battle earlier and didn't ask for your opinion... By the way, what do you think of our Dawn Group?"

After all, they hadn't known each other for too long, and Su Lun's initial invitation for Tanni was merely a transaction.

He offered to provide a potion to delay his mother's petrification in exchange for his cooperation in this unplanned venture.

And because of this right decision, Su Lun saved himself a lot of trouble.

But throughout, no one had ever asked Tanni whether he truly desired to stay with this team for the long term.

After all, his identity and background were also somewhat special.

Upon hearing Su Lun's words, a look of panic flashed across Tanni's face. Thinking he had done something wrong, he anxiously asked, "Mr. Su Lun, what do you mean by that? Have I done something wrong?"

When he was with other pirate crews before, he was always ostracized and neglected by those mean-spirited pirates. Especially due to his special "cursed physique," after encountering storms at sea, he would often be disliked and cursed by others.

At this moment, he thought he had done something wrong.

After all, if there hadn't been the previous storm, those sailors wouldn't have fallen overboard.

Seeing the unease on his face, Su Lun explained with a smile, "What I mean is, our Dawn crew is not an ordinary pirate crew. In the future, we may do a lot of meaningful things, venture to dangerous places, and face many battles, just like today's. The journey ahead will be filled with danger."

He paused for a moment, then continued, "Although we of the Dawn crew really need an outstanding navigator like you, we must also follow your wishes. This is not a transaction; we need a partner who is willing to live and die together."

"I am willing!"

Before the words were even finished, Tanni nodded without hesitation.

Then he spoke very quickly, "Mr. Su Lun, my dream is to become a navigator, an adventurer! To venture into the great sea, to explore unknown waters, I am not afraid of any danger..."

As he spoke, he seemed to realize he was getting too excited and with less confidence, he added softly, "If possible, I... I... I want to be everyone's partner."

Su Lun listened, a faint smile on his lips, "Hmm."

He did not speak further, but Lolota, who was beside him, watched Tanni's cautious demeanor and slapped his shoulder carefreely, saying, "Hey, hey, hey, Mr. Navigator, you don't have to be so formal. Mr. Su Lun is actually very kind and easy to talk to. And look... we are none of those dirty pirate crews. Since we're partners now, no one on the ship will bully you."

She herself had come from a slave gladiatorial arena, and she understood all too well that kind of mentality, sensitive from being oppressed and alienated for long, fearing that one wrong move could strip away the tiny bit of "happiness" just acquired.

Listening to Lolota's words, as if someone had voiced his deepest desires, Tanni bit his lower lip and nodded seriously, "Hmm."

...

Finally, Tanni's intentions to be the chief navigator of the Dawn crew had been confirmed, resolving a important matter.

Fragments of wreckage floated on the sea surface, as the rescue operation continued in an orderly way.

At this point, Su Lun thought of something and asked, "Tanni, did your mother ever tell you who your father is?"

Upon the sudden mention of the father he had never met, Tanni's expression turned gloomy: "No..."

After thinking for a moment, he added, "Mother said my father was a very powerful big shot. I could only learn his name once I became strong enough. Otherwise, it would bring me trouble."

"..."

Su Lun, hearing this, was unsure whether to share his own guess with him.

After all, that 'Pirate King' Sam Bellamy really was one of the few people standing at the pinnacle of that era.

```

Being cautious about claiming someone as your father is probably for the best.

Otherwise, what if you guess wrong?

With a thought, Su Lun merely relayed the information he had discerned and said, "In the[Cursed Gold Coin]you hold, I can feel a mysterious power connected to your bloodline. It will protect you and keep misfortune at bay. Perhaps... it was left to you by your father."

Tanni's face flashed with a glimmer of hope upon hearing this.

However, he then thought of something else and took out his own gold coin and the other two given by Su Lun, saying, "My mother never told me where these gold coins came from. But when I was very little, she told me that only a person favored by destiny could possess these three cursed gold coins. She also said if someone else brings the other two coins to me, that person is to be trusted, and I could go on an adventure with them!"

Su Lun laughed at this, thinking to himself: Indeed, it takes great luck to obtain these two coins.

Just then, Tanni seemed to remember something; he rubbed the three coins in his palm and blew on them. Astonishingly, under the sunlight, the three coins suddenly sparkled with a dazzling golden glow.

Su Lun keenly caught this change, with a light sound of surprise.

All of a sudden, an even more magical scene unfolded.

Just like a rainbow appearing after a storm, an ethereal sea map materialized before their eyes.

The map displayed a vast expanse of blue ocean, dotted with tiny specks that were actually islands. It was as if they were looking down from a great height upon the sea, with the map detailing many islands with names, storm zones, dangerous waters, and areas where sea monsters lurked.

Bristone Trench, Otlantic Volcano, Senarius Chaos Winds, Burning Sea, Narachi Nightmare Phantoms...

One by one, landmark names appeared before them.

Many were infamous "death zones", untouched by man.

"This..."

Su Lun looked on, thunderstruck.

For now the names showing on his appraisal of the three cursed coins had changed; they had become the[Black Sam's World Sea Map]!

[Black Sam's World Sea Map]

Description: An ethereal map made of special memory material; drawn personally by the Pirate King Sam Bellamy, depicting the footprints of his lifetime of adventures at sea; a particularly unique alchemical item, capable of recording coordinates, terrain, climate, wind direction, currents...;

....

Su Lun, gazing at the transformed coins before him, realized what the Pirate King had left behind.

Such a magical alchemical sea map, it was undoubtedly a divine artifact for navigation!

It transformed the map from mere ink on paper to a panoramic view of the actual scenery... a sea area sandbox!

Clearly, Tanni had only tried it on a whim and had no idea the coins would exhibit such a wondrous phenomenon, stuttering, "This... I... I don't know why this is happening."

But as he beheld the stunningly accurate and realistic sea map, he could see the value of the alchemical item, exclaiming in amazement, "My goodness, it records so many places... many of which are uncharted territories never noted on any sea map!"

There is no treasure that could excite a navigator more than obtaining a map of unknown regions beyond their wildest knowledge.

```

The coordinates marked on the sea chart almost include the entire Emperor Luying Empire, the Mafa Empire, the Far North Ice Field, the four nations of the Northern Continent, the West Sea Islands, the Southern Sea... all the territories known to mankind.

"So this is what the world looks like..."

Su Lun's eyes were also filled with immense shock.

He still remembered the shock he felt the first time he saw a world map in his previous life.

Just like now, it was the first time he was seeing the "World Map" of this world.

He had thought that the four nations of the Northern Continent were huge, but on this sea chart, they were just specks of sesame seeds.

The Silent Forest located at the edge of the Far North Ice Field was just a thin line on the edge of the ice field...

Even the three large islands of the Emperor Luying Empire were only the size of fingernails.

There were too many place names marked on this sea chart, and even more regions Su Lun had never heard of.

What secrets did the Western Sea that ultimately sank Black Sam's ship hold?

What lies further to the west?

Does the ocean have an end?

Where does the endless mountain range to the east of the Mafa Empire lead to?

How vast is the Endless Ice Field in the Northern Sea?

Is this realm round, or does it extend infinitely?

...

A flurry of questions surfaced.

Su Lun didn't know how to describe the stir within him, his heart touched by the shock.

Upon seeing this sea chart, an uncontrollable thought emerged from the depths of his heart.

The world is so large, I want to see it all.

He had an urgent desire to set sail and explore, to uncover the secrets of those "fog-covered areas"… and then to mark them on this map.

It felt as if by doing so, he would truly leave his footprints in this world.

No matter the outcome of his life, it would prove that he had been here.

...

Tanni, the professional Navigator, obviously saw even more value in this map, and he was equally stunned.

Looking at Su Lun and Qianjiao, who were both casting glances his way, he explained, "I didn't know about the sea chart inside this Gold Coin before. Then... after I began to continuously hear the voices of sea beasts, I thought I could give it a try. And then, it just happened like this..."

"Hmm."

Su Lun had his suspicions.

Was this a secret that could only be unlocked after awakening a talent?

He felt that it was probably a threshold set by Black Sam for his son—if Tanni had not awakened the ability to "hear the voices of sea beasts," this sea chart would not have been revealed to him.

Now it seemed as if the Pirate King had left something for his child.

Some of Su Lun's concerns also dissipated a great deal.

Even though he knew previously that this was a sea chart left by the Pirate King Sam Bellamy, the level of danger was truly unknown.

After all, there are many malicious people in this world who create fake treasure maps pointing towards dangerous waters to lure adventurous and treasure-seeking navigators to their deaths.

But with Tanni around, those concerns could be put to rest.

Tanni then said, "This Gold Coin records a sea chart, and I already know where it points to. But it's a very dangerous area, to the west..."

Su Lun wasn't too surprised, and he nodded in agreement.

They, the Dawn Group, currently don't have the strength to explore that area.

...

Su Lun spent most of the day on the deck, and the crew had almost all surfaced, but they didn't find any more mechanical octopuses.

So he went to the cabin.

This battle had netted a large amount of war spoils which required his inventory.

In addition to over forty mechanical octopuses, there were also the Mafa Royal Guards they had killed when they intercepted the submarine earlier.

About twenty or thirty storage rings, and two damaged "Lieutenant Colonel level" Mecha suits.

Su Lun did an inventory check of those men's storage rings and found a large amount of ammunition, as well as replacement and supplementary equipment for the Mecha.

Mecha weren't just one thing; they could be outfitted to suit different combat scenarios,

Such as heavy firearms, missile launchers...

It must be said, those coming from the royal family are so rich they're dripping with wealth.

Although these storage rings didn't hold many miscellaneous items, the neat rows of spare military gear and ammunition dazzled Su Lun.

Just considering the few submariners they had killed, the value of their individual equipment was worth at least tens of millions, not to mention the priceless Mecha suits.

The equipment that those ten or twenty people carried could possibly rival plundering dozens of Pirate groups in terms of value.

The mechanical equipment of the Royal Guard Legion is the pinnacle product of Mafa's military achievements, hard to analyze—Su Lun knew the difficulty was immense.

He didn't bother to put in the effort.

Su Lun took out his experimental equipment and set up a temporary mechanical laboratory in the captain's room.

He intended to focus on researching the mechanical octopus, as this was the path to rapidly developing combat capabilities.

Once everything was in place, Su Lun sat at the workbench and carefully analyzed the blueprints he had drawn earlier.

He wanted to refine this batch of mechanical octopuses.

The design concept of the current mechanical octopus was actually quite perfect already. It had a super-strong metallic body with strong defense against both magic and physical attacks; it also had excitation alloys and special runes, making it less affected by spiritual power or other mysterious methods; motion control systems, kinetic systems... there was almost nothing to criticize.

This was definitely the result of many years of research and experimentation by a large team.

If it weren't for someone like Su Lun who could use spiritual threads for direct "physical control," under normal circumstances, a fourth or fifth-stage professional facing a single mechanical octopus would have to hack away for a long time. Either they had the strength to directly sever the metal tentacles like Thousand did, or a group of forty or fifty would be enough to give a sixth-stage professional pause.

Although Su Lun felt there probably wasn't anyone with physical "spiritual tentacles" like his, the extraordinary powers in this world were varied and strange.

Small workshops had their advantages, allowing for cutting-edge use of certain materials.

He planned to reinforce these mechanical octopuses in his area of expertise with rune enhancements and direct control using mysterious powers.

Once he had a clear plan, he became busy.

And so, Su Lun spent several days absorbed in the cabin.

...

One day, Su Lun was researching the mechanical octopus when he suddenly noticed the two decapitated mecha armors he had confiscated in the lab.

These were only "Lieutenant Colonel" level mecha armors, not very high-end.

And with only two, Su Lun hadn't originally planned to dismantle them first.

But then, an idea occurred to him—if there were mechanical octopuses underwater, what about on land?

Equipped with various gears, mecha armors were more than suitable.

Yet another thought crossed his mind—if he encountered them again, would he just have to slash them in two with the black scythe and hope for luck to pick up some scraps?

Without a complete mecha armor, even if he managed to repair one, there would be significant problems.

Su Lun's hands were still working with the mechanical octopus, but his thoughts became active.

The "Colonel Grade Slayer IX Mecha Armor" he had encountered before was killed directly by a special seal item like the "Bow of Time," which shot the controller inside the mecha.

He lacked such an item.

What he did have was a "Rune-Carved Human Skin Black Umbrella."

But this umbrella had strict usage conditions and was almost restricted to one-on-one encounters. Moreover, if he faced a high-grade armor, the opponent could still escape.

What if he ran into a group of mechanical warriors again? How would he deal with them?

Moreover, the people of the Mafa Empire had a habit of destroying their technology.

As Su Lun's thoughts branched out, he suddenly felt vexed.

Now he knew that it was highly probable there was a "secret mechanical research institute" near "Princess Frostmoon," and he had marked the location of one of the submarines.

But that presented a problem.

If he met them again and managed to successfully ambush them, what if they triggered the self-destruct mechanism?

Su Lun was confident in picking off the enemy one by one, but he had no way to deal with self-destruction.

If he hustled and only managed to gather a pile of scrap metal afterward, that was certainly not what he wanted.

But neither he, Thousand, Dr. Banks, nor anyone from the Dawn Group had the means to kill someone through the mecha armor.

Show a hint of a domineering air, and the enemies would willingly bow down and submit?

Impossible...

"What method could there be to seize the submarine intact? Without a special curse item, it has to be a mysterious technique. Deploy a virus? Dr. Banks would have that capability, but how to deploy it inside is a big problem. Or maybe a mental sorcerer... I'm still far from that level," Su Lun pondered more, his frown deepening.

He went through all the possessions and abilities he had, even considering the people he knew.

There was no suitable method.

Even if Mr. Jing showed up, it seemed he couldn't resolve the issue.

Su Lun felt slightly frustrated.

It was like the gold mine was right in front of him, yet he lacked the tools to refine the ore. Could he only rely on luck to find nuggets?

"Eh...!"

Suddenly, something dawned on Su Lun, and his expression turned fierce.

If it was about mental control, Su Lun couldn't do it himself, but he knew someone far stronger than him.

"Pandora's seduction powers are extremely strong, isn't that the very pinnacle of spiritual control?"

It was then that Su Lun remembered the alchemy homunculus that had been locked away in the "Minor Void Realm" for a long time.