Mechanical Alchemist

Upon the azure sea, the Eternal Night was sailing at a steady pace, unhurried.

A few days prior, the battle at the Imperial Strait had come to a definitive close, with nearly the entire million-strong Legion of Mages from the celestial plane annihilated. After clearing the battlefield, the Dawn Brigade set sail toward the God Burial Ground within the Silent Forest to the north.

Inside the captain's quarters.

Sunlight streamed through the windows, brightening the cabin.

The breeze also carried the fresh scent of the ocean.

The room was a picture of tranquility.

"Teacher, the newspaper has arrived,"

Lolota knocked on the door and entered, bringing with her the "Lyndon Daily News" that was printed a few days earlier.

Chian Tiao, covered in bandages, took the newspaper and started to flip through it leisurely while sprawled on the sofa.

Many of them had sustained various degrees of injuries in the battle that erupted several days earlier, especially her. Having charged most fiercely, she had taken the worst beating and nearly lost half her life.

This would require a long period of recuperation.

Therefore, the Eternal Night wasn't in a rush to make its way, instead sailing leisurely.

While healing, neither strenuous exercise nor sword practice was advisable, leaving Chian Tiao listless with boredom. Initially wanting to read the newspaper to pass the time, her expression suddenly brightened with surprise upon seeing the headline on the front page.

She winked at Su Lun, who was flipping through alchemical tomes at a desk off in the distance, and teased, "Yo... Su Lun, you should see this, the paper has granted you the title of 'Puppet Emperor,' sounds rather nice, eh."

Su Lun heard this, glanced sideways with a wry smile, "Hehe, the reporter's description is a bit exaggerated..."

The "God Profaner" had provided him with immense cerebral enhancement. With just a glance, he instantly etched all the contents of the newspaper into his mind.

Wars needed heroes, and so, they of the Dawn appeared on the newspaper once again.

A considerable part of the paper detailed the battle from a few days ago, with many exaggerations in the wording.

Himself receiving the most attention, with the most outrageous descriptions.

Controlling a million puppets was akin to controlling an entire nation's emperor, so the paper coined the title "Puppet Emperor". Normally, the term 'emperor' could not be used lightly, and the "Lyndon Daily News," being the official paper, certainly would not make such a basic error. It was all because Su Lun's other identity was as the legitimate wife of Empress Ekaterina, the current Prince Fick, that the title of "Puppet Emperor" did not breach any taboos.

But it was precisely because of this that Su Lun felt something was off.

Hearing this, Mr. Jing, who was taking notes at Su Lun's side, also looked up with a fleeting smirk, responding with a laugh, "Indeed, it fits quite well."

As she gazed at the photo in the newspaper, the scenes played vividly in her mind.

Even as someone who had experienced it firsthand, she still found it somewhat unbelievable.

To say that Su Lun had turned the tide almost single-handedly during that battle several days ago wasn't an exaggeration, as even the presence of a few demigods wouldn't necessarily have been enough to break through the giant bird formation of the million-strong Legion.

Afterward, it was he alone who stood against the million Mage Legion.

This glorious battle indeed deserved such a grand portrayal in the newspaper.

...

Su Lun was well aware of the slight teasing in his senior sister's praise and chuckled, shaking his head, not wanting to dwell on the topic.

He set down the "Sage's Proclamations" golden scroll he was pondering and instead said, "Senior sister, once the 'God Profaner' implant is fully assimilated, I plan to advance to the ninth rank."

The materials required for the promotion to the ninth rank, the cosmic essence, and legal understanding, he had them all ready, and there was practically no risk of advancement.

Su Lun had previously drunk from the Mimir's Well and received the second resolution of the All-knowing Eye. There were no secrets in the world unseen to him, but his brain could not bear the burden of those higher-level insights that far exceeded his cognition. Now, the brain of the Void Bidirectional Worm, refined into the "God Profaner," acted like a supercomputer, enabling him to process and digest those higher-tier insights.

This had been Sir Isaac's original intention when designing this type of implant, to use alchemical enhancements to grant mortals the cognitive abilities only gods possessed.

If he could advance to the ninth rank, then Su Lun would truly be able to touch the pinnacle of power humans could grasp, such as the mysteries of "rules".

Although he had previously extracted some insights from two demigods, after all, the world perception of a mage was incomplete.

Besides, those were after all someone else's insights, and some sceneries could only be truly appreciated by reaching that height oneself.

Upon hearing this, Mr. Jing nodded and said, "Indeed, after the battle in the Imperial Strait, the divine realms won't be making any movements for a long while. Now is indeed the best opportunity for your advancement."

As he spoke, he paused for a moment before adding, "A few days ago, after the defeat of the magic legions, personnel from the Imperial Intelligence Department monitoring the realm portal in Zambra Ironfalls province confirmed that two new banners appeared in the magic encampment. One is a blood-colored griffin banner, the other a star-striped crown banner. They should be the armies of the 'Golden Griffin Empire' and 'Holy Crown Empire' you've mentioned, bordering the Ascieden Empire. If the enemy launches another attack, we may face not just one or two demigods and a million-strong legion, but at least several times that number of enemies..."

"Indeed."

Su Lun's gaze slightly sharpened as he listened, which was one of the reasons he wanted to advance to the ninth rank as quickly as possible.

Having stripped two magic gods of their memories, he was very clear on the divine realm's invasion plans.

In the battle of the Imperial Strait, a million magic legions were annihilated, and the enemy suffered a heavy loss; they definitely wouldn't act rashly.

This indeed gave the Alchemy dimension a long period of breathing time.

But now, with the Ascieden Empire's lackluster campaign, next would be the joint campaign of the three great empires against the Alchemy dimension.

Without solving the root problem of the realm portal, the war would never see its end; instead, the number of enemies would only increase.

Su Lun had also considered raiding the realm portal's magic encampment, but it would be meaningless.

Not to mention that the enemy was already on guard and that a surprise attack would be extremely risky; even if it were successful, the portal was already completely stable. The exit was controlled by the gods of the divine realms, and they were powerless to stop the mages from descending.

As Su Lun's mind automatically deduced various possibilities, a careless voice rang in the room, "Ah... If they come, then battle it is."

After saying this, she smacked her lips and added with enthusiasm, "Just right, my understanding of sword dao has deepened from these last two battles with demigods. Maybe by checking out that black stele you mentioned, I might have a chance to make further progress."

In her tone, there seemed to be an anticipation for battling strong adversaries.

"..."

Hearing this, both Su Lun and Mr. Jing had a strange look on their faces.

To the Rakshasa Woman, terms like demigod sparked no reverence in her voice; after all, apart from the two this time, she had already killed a demigod monster in the Netherworld.

It was as if seeing a few more the next time made no difference to her.

The reason Su Lun and Mr. Jing's expressions were odd was not only because of that but for another reason.

For others, the realms of profound understanding that were difficult to reach seemed to have no threshold for the Rakshasa Woman.

The Rakshasa Woman had a natural talent for warfare; as long as she didn't die, the more she battled, the stronger she got.

This time, severely wounded and on the brink of death, she had a new insight. And now, as a ninth rank sword deity, she had already touched the mysteries of the rules. Her next step was the realm of a demigod.

For most people, this was a realm heard of only in legends, but in her mouth, it seemed as simple as getting into a fight.

Su Lun had not failed to notice that after her trip to the Netherworld, the Rakshasa Woman's innate gift had been fully unleashed.

While the Rakshasa Woman herself couldn't clearly describe those changes, Su Lun had observed the Rakshasa Golden Body Law closely. It was an existence beyond the "rules". He even started to believe that the legend of "godly reincarnation" might really have some truth to it.

...

The Rakshasa Woman's casual words lightened up the conversation in the room.

Su Lun also chuckled lightly.

Indeed, if the enemy came, they would just fight.

Once he advanced to the ninth rank, the situation would improve a lot.

The Puppet Master's greatest weakness still lay within himself. The battle before had been fortunate with Mr. Jing, Qiantiao, Pandora, and Pestroya adopting a four-protect-one strategy, which gave him the space to fully concentrate on controlling his puppets' offensive. Otherwise, in front of a Demigod, he truly wasn't certain he could have preserved his own life.

But once he advanced to rank nine, everything would change.

By then, even against a Demigod, Su Lun was confident he would have the ability to protect himself.

Moreover, the War Workshop was now continuously producing high-quality gargoyles, and his puppet legion was destined to grow stronger.

If he were to encounter an equally large-scale magic army of a million again, it would pose much less of a threat to Su Lun.

By that time, if the enemies didn't send at least ten or eight Magic Gods, Su Lun would truly feel underestimated.

However, there was another reason he was considering advancing to rank nine.

Su Lun had never forgotten that he was bound by a demon contract.

Following the integration with the eighth-rank implant, he increasingly had a premonition that the time to honor the contract was approaching.

He himself was proficient in various prophecies and divinations; his intuition could not be misleading, and the fulfillment was bound to come.

This was also the most crucial reason Su Lun wished to advance to rank nine as quickly as possible.

A contract involving gods and demons could only be survived through sufficient strength.

...

Mr. Jing, at his side, seemed to perceive the unusual expression between his brows and asked, "What's wrong?"

Qiantiao often appeared somewhat dim-witted, but her instincts were frighteningly accurate.

It was this question that led her to immediately guess the issue, and frowning, she said, "That contract?"

"Mmmhmm."

Su Lun nodded.

His elder sister and Qiantiao were not outsiders, so he spoke openly, "I have a feeling... that the lord of the contract may want me to fulfill it."

Back then, in the country of Mountain Hermit, within the world of "Lyndon Daily News: Netherworld,"

Su Lun had resurrected Qiantiao and Shinfuku Mitsuko using the method left by the great author Fujiwara Hayato and had signed a pact with a demon in exchange.

At that time, he made no sacrifice to bring back the two lives of Qiantiao.

Fujiwara Hayato had stated that when the time was right, he would have to board the legendary "cursed ship" and travel to a mysterious place to fulfill that pact.

Years had passed, and the contract had remained silent.

But Su Lun had never forgotten it.

His current understanding of the world now stood at the pinnacle humanity could reach. With hindsight, the significance of the demon contract became ever clearer.

At the time, what he exchanged was his "fate."

This was absolutely unavoidable.

Upon hearing this, Qiantiao pursed her lips, and without hesitation said, "I'll accompany you."

Mr. Jing also cast a concerned look.

Su Lun shook his head, "It must be me alone."

He had never known when that "appropriate" time would come, but now, that vague feeling was close and likely after his advancement to rank nine.

It appeared that the lord of the contract required him to possess a certain fighting strength to be eligible.

However, Su Lun had never intended to evade the contract. Since he made the exchange, he would naturally honor it.

As he spoke, he noticed the seriousness on their faces and explained in a lighter tone, "Perhaps it's not as bad as imagined. All things adhere to equivalence. If that god or demon requires me to fulfill the contract and is waiting for me until I reach rank nine, it's highly likely they see value in my abilities. If they see value, then it implies there's an equitable matter at hand, and I won't be completely without opportunity. After advancing to rank nine, it will be difficult to feel fatally threatened by anything below a godly level..."

Su Lun's words were not solely to reassure them, but reflected his genuinely positive mindset.

At his current level, having weathered great storms and even died once, he could calmly accept anything.

In fact, he anticipated the mysterious contract.

To Su Lun, the fragmented alchemy plane held few true secrets. The "cursed ship" and the lord of the contract, on the other hand, intrigued him greatly.

According to the current situation, the legend of the cursed ship has been circulating for tens of thousands of years.

Yet no one has ever lifted its veil of mystery.

In his mind, Su Lun even pieced together various clues and legends to derive a scenario he found most plausible: a demon, for some special reasons unable to handle certain matters, required low-level humans to intervene and thus created the contract.

And the task at hand would certainly be within human capability. It was definitely not a stalemate.

...

After this explanation, the look of concern in Mr. Jing and Qiantiao's eyes discernibly dissipated.

Su Lun's analysis was indeed plausible.

No contract demon would be so idle as to make some trivial pact for amusement. If they needed someone to fulfill it, success was certainly possible.

Moreover, indeed very few things below a divine level could threaten Su Lun after his advancement to rank nine.

The Puppeteer's strongest state is in solo combat, where one can face a million-strong army.

Assistance from others would only be a hindrance.

Even Mr. Jing and Qiantiao, who were rank nine themselves, felt far inferior in this aspect.

But they also knew Su Lun had merely discussed the positive side.

On the other hand, fulfilling the contract would undoubtedly involve immense risk.

Otherwise, the contract demon wouldn't be still seeking someone to enter the pact after tens of thousands of years.

Qiantiao pursed her lips, feeling uneasy about being unable to help.

At that moment, something occurred to Su Lun, and he added calmly, "Moreover... if that lord of the contract truly wants me to fulfill it, perhaps it's the hope for solving the conundrum of the alchemy plane's invasion."

"Oh?"

Upon hearing this, Mr. Jing's eyelashes fluttered slightly, swiftly grasping the implications, and his gaze deepened.

Although it seemed like the alchemy plane was gaining the upper hand in the current plane war, the underlying problem was unresolved.

Unless the plane portal was closed, collapse was an almost inevitable outcome.

And within the alchemy plane itself, there was very little chance left to turn the tide.

The only option was to look outside.

Previously, there had been no leads, but now there was one.

Since avoiding the obligation of the contract was impossible, the mindset naturally gravitated toward optimism.

The lord of the contract Su Lun referred to, whether benevolent or malevolent, was undoubtedly a divine entity.

This just might be the hope to turn the tide!