Mechanical Alchemist

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After gambling through the night at the gladiator match with Sister Qian, this gambling-obsessed housewife came with a bag full of money and left only after losing it all.

Her metaphysical gambling arts once again proved that gambling is a road of no return.

However, Su Lun was in a good mood.

Although he had lost several thousand lira, the thank-you gifts from Miss Lena and Fatty Charlie were a significant profit.

In the morning, he treated Sister Qian, the penniless boss, to breakfast and made plans to gamble again in the coming days before sending her off. Then Su Lun found a hotel to see what was so special about the famous gun Lena had given him.

....

In the sealed room, Su Lun opened the alloy metal box, entered the password, and clicked as the metal gears crisply engaged.

Seeing the two rune firearms in the box, Su Lun understood why the big boss Qian had said the saying, "Wealth should never be exposed."

The aesthetic of these two guns was exceptionally distinctive, carrying a heavy punk-tech vibe, understated yet luxurious. At a glance, anyone could tell that these two firearms were of high grade and valuable, with their composed style.

One black and one blue, the gun bodies were engraved with high-level runes that balanced aesthetics with practicality.

"Green Demon" and "Lightning Serpent"?

Su Lun narrowed his eyes slightly as he read the inscriptions on the guns.

Having proper names meant they were "named guns."

The definition of a "named gun" is one that was unique and created by a famed firearm master.

These firearms, in terms of materials, design, handcrafted enchantments, runes... were quite different from mass-produced ones. Their unique craftsmanship meant they could not be mass-produced, and they carried certain special functions.

Inside the mechanical box, there was also a certification from "Master Maxim's Firearms Workshop" and technical specification manuals for both firearms.

Su Lun had heard of the late "Master Maxim," a pinnacle figure in firearm crafting, who had dedicated his life to forging exquisite firearms. Since the master had passed away and his works were few, every one of his creations that came to market caused a frenzy. Those exquisite firearms were "divine artifacts" every musketeer dreamed of owning.

Su Lun raised his eyebrows slightly; such a gift was not light.

This was a top-level luxury item that people from the outer city could hardly ever come into contact with.

Probably only a financial powerhouse like Lena's family could afford to give away two named firearms at once as gifts.

"Lightning Serpent"

Detailed Description: The gun body is made from Hagier nickel-based alloy, weighing 3.3 kilograms; engraved with Level II Stability Runes, Level III Durability Runes, and residual kinetic energy recovery runes; all-over high-level elemental conduction enchantments, anti-dust enchantment, anti-oxidation enchantments; the firearm's fire rate is +20% compared to standard models, accuracy +135%, bullet muzzle velocity +50%; capable of loading Level III high explosive rounds, effective range with regular bullets 300 meters, with armor-piercing alchemy bullets 600 meters...

"Green Demon"

Detailed Description: Weighs 2.5 kilograms; engraved with Level II Stability Runes, Level I Cooling Runes, Level II Durability Runes, special-grade Permanent Runes; intermediate elemental conduction enchantments, anti-dust enchantment, high-level wind elemental bore linings; the firearm's fire rate is +110% compared to standard models, accuracy +40%, recoil -75%; using standard ammunition, achieved a rapid fire record of 700 rounds without jamming, alchemy bullet rapid fire test rating A+...

"Such impressive attributes... Are these still handguns?"

As Su Lun looked at the technical specifications for the two guns, he felt an irresistible fondness for them.

He himself was a Mechanic who had mastered "Basic Mechanical Proficiency;" he could modify and manufacture ordinary firearms.

Therefore, he was so astonished upon seeing the attributes of these two firearms.

The attributes of these two rune guns could not just be called outstanding; they were far too exceptional.

"Lightning Serpent" was a large-caliber powerhouse handgun; it wouldn't be wrong to call it a "hand sniper." High-level runes gave it the power and range of an average sniper rifle.

Conventional handguns had an effective range of 50-100 meters, but this one reached 300 meters, and even more with alchemy bullets.

"Green Demon," on the other hand, was a high-rate-of-fire firearm, offering precision, high firing speed, and low recoil — the highlights of this gun.

Its specifications were so exaggerated they were almost indistinguishable from a typical light machine gun. Paired with a specially-made extended magazine, it could certainly double a gunman's firepower.

After deciding not to use "Three-Headed Demon," Su Lun had been worried about not having a handy rune firearm, but now these two were perfect.

One was high-powered, and the other was rapid-fire; they were an ideal match.

These were even a grade or two higher than the ones Fatty gave him in the underground lair; they clearly were collectible-level high-grade rune firearms!

Moreover, the mechanical box contained not only the two handguns but also several neatly packed boxes of alchemy bullets.

Su Lun caressed the bullets in the box as if he were touching the delicate skin of a peerless beauty.

He was unfazed by the 500,000 Fatty had given him, but looking at the two guns Lena had gifted, he truly felt delighted.

Not to mention the alchemy bullets alone were probably worth over a million, these two named guns were priceless treasures money couldn't buy.

Indeed, Miss Lena was sensible.

"But having such luxurious gun designs is also a problem..."

As Su Lun looked at the two exceptionally attractive firearms, an idea came to mind.

In his possession, there were no such things as collector's items; guns were for use.

Yet displaying them so openly on his hip would be too conspicuous; a small-time gangster did not match such top-tier named firearms.

Although he still couldn't craft firearms on this level, he was capable of making minor modifications, such as... giving them a worn look, painting them over?

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Su Lun finally understood that Miss Lena wasn't thoughtless; on the contrary, she had carefully selected these two rune guns that, while not looking too peculiar in design, she had probably guessed would be inconvenient to carry. She sent them probably for the purpose of facilitating his modifications...

....

When Su Lun emerged from "Big Beard Mechanic's Mod Shop" on Green Street, it was almost ten o'clock.

Upon leaving, the gun holsters under his trench coat were now home to two slightly different-looking muskets, battered with age. The once high-end looking runes on the barrel had been covered with spray paint, concealing their cutting edge and making them look utterly ordinary.

He tested the guns at the shooting range and was surprised by how good they felt in his hands.

True to their names, [Azure Demon] rapid-fire belched blue ghost fire from the barrel, enabling hundreds of shots to be fired without the barrel getting hot or jamming; [Thunder Serpent] snipe appeared like a flash of lightning, precise and deadly.

Finally, Su Lun got to experience the power of "cash ability"; with the named guns in hand, his combat power visibly surged by a large margin.

Now that he had money, Su Lun also thought about getting a motorcycle for personal transport, as riding the bus each time was often inconvenient.

It just so happened that the owner of the mod shop, Lait, had come into possession of some military motorcycle parts from the inner city and had just finished modifying a high-performance heavy motorcycle, which Su Lun bought for more than twenty thousand risos.

Muskets, leather jackets, motorcycles...

Now he was fully equipped, the standard gear for a seasoned gangster.

....

Checking the time, today was the day to take care of the housing,

Having had enough of cheap motel environments, Su Lun was in dire need of a private and stable residence to craft puppets and practice the less-than-quiet arts of alchemy.

Soon, he rode his motorcycle to the little western-style house at 88 Ginkgo Street.

The landlord Ge Langtai was still all smiles, betraying no hint that he had just rented out a "haunted house" where people had died.

Probably because the money had already been paid and the contract was irreversible, the chubby landlord didn't conceal the matter of the deaths anymore.

"I heard people died in this house before?"

"Oh, honorable sir, as you know, too dense a concentration of dark spiritual power is a disaster for ordinary people. I believe it was just an accident... and besides, isn't that dark spiritual power exactly what you require?"

"..."

Ge Langtai was shrewd; Su Lun couldn't get any useful information out of him.

The western-style house had been cleaned thoroughly.

The ground floor had a living room, dining room, fireplace, and a maid's quarters; the second floor housed the bedrooms and study, a very standard layout.

The furniture was a bit old-fashioned, but it seemed as if no one had used it before.

And then there was the spacious cement basement that could serve as a shooting range and laboratory.

For the price and the environment, it was truly beyond criticism.

After all, people had died in the house, and not just one person.

Su Lun had Ge Langtai accompany him as he carefully inspected every room.

Whenever he was doubtful about something, he covertly scanned the area with his All-knowing Eye but found nothing out of the ordinary.

Aside from the high concentration of dark spiritual power in the basement that might lead to mutations, Su Lun couldn't find anything in the house that could be fatal.

Could it be that he was overthinking?

Since it was hard to come by such suitable property, Su Lun wasn't willing to give it up just because people had died there.

He took the keys and then rested inside the house for the entire day.

Still, no abnormalities were detected.

....

That night, Su Lun asked Kai for a leave and didn't go on patrol in Green Street.

He had a very important task ahead of him, which was to turn the spider leg materials and blueprints into alchemic prosthetics, becoming a formal professional.

Cursed materials required a complex enchantment and alchemy conversion process to turn into alchemical prosthetics. With his current level of [Intermediate Forging Fundamentals], Su Lun could only tinker with black iron-level materials, with a high chance of failure.

Originally, he thought he would only be able to obtain some silver spider leg materials and then could easily customize his desired [Eight-armed Spider God Spear] in a decent alchemy shop.

But now, the quality of the materials was so good it posed a challenge for him.

Silver and gold quality materials could still be found and crafted in the outer city.

However, "dark gold level" cursed materials required high-end enchantments, runes, and crafting techniques, with extremely high comprehensive skill requisites for the alchemical craftsmen. Only a "master craftsman" could ensure that the process wouldn't end in failure, ruining the materials.

In the entirety of Old Lington, "master level" alchemical craftsmen were few, and such talents were often patrons of the major families in the inner city. There were even fewer in the outer city, and the highest-ranked alchemical craftsman among the three major gangs barely reached "expert level".

Su Lun had only this set of Queen Spider legs and dared not experiment recklessly.

Therefore, he planned to make a trip to the black market to find out if there were any "master craftsmen" in the outer city.

Unless absolutely necessary, he was not inclined to exhaust the meager favors he had, nor to resort to that Rich Lady Lena.