Mechanical Alchemist

Su Lun realized that bringing Pandora along was a wise decision.

He had just carefully observed the various prohibitions in the tomb's underground palace, where had he not discovered that the Power of Faith of the Taris clan was still entangled with even more super prohibitions?

Which meant that if he had forcefully killed Cleopatra the Ninth, the problem would not only have remained unresolved, but it would also have triggered even more terrifying tomb-guarding prohibitions due to the absence of this Pharaoh's control over the Divine Power.

This Pharaoh, bearing the Power of Faith, was like a fuse, once blown, the higher-level prohibitions would most likely indiscriminately kill all outsiders within the tomb.

And Pandora, having stolen that Divine Power and substituting the Pharaoh's role, did not trigger the fuse mechanism, hence there wouldn't be any problems for a while.

Su Lun gazed at the figure made of Divine Power in the sky, and said, "Thank you."

Pandora really had a lot of loyalty for coming along this time.

Although she wouldn't die while the divine artifact was still with her, once her body of Divine Power collapsed, she would have to start all over again with her cultivation.

The loyalty shown was not insignificant.

But in the next moment, from within his sea of consciousness came the carefree response of the great God Tsukuyomi, "Yo, when did you become so polite? Giggles... The Power of Faith here is the largest amount I've encountered, the most pure, and also has the most complete divine incense burning. If I were to steal a part of it, I would likely be able to condense my own Divine Fire. Following you, luck is always on my side~"

Listening, Su Lun merely smiled slightly, non-committal.

Opportunity and risk always coexist.

After all, the Taris civilization was a powerful one, with countless existing followers. The tomb of the Taris in this Yellow Sand Dimension continuously gathered the Power of Faith.

They were now like mice that had sneaked into a farmer's grain silo, at least until they were discovered, they could feast to their fill.

Speaking of which, Pandora did not forget to remind, "Be careful, I feel there might be a true godly aura in this tomb."

Listening to her, Su Lun responded, "Hmm."

Now was not the time for extended discussion, better to wait until they could actually make it out alive.

...

Meanwhile, the centaur Makamul, the barbarian Ralph, and Dragon Maiden Masia also noticed the sudden appearance of a "person" in the tomb.

Initially, they thought it was an enemy, but seeing the attitude of this "Nicholas," they realized it seemed to be the mysterious existence that had just helped them control Cleopatra the Ninth.

This fellow, he had actually brought assistance?

How did he bring them here?

Why hadn't they fully noticed before?

Amidst their confusion, what shook them even more was the realization.

They recognized this was a Demigod.

It was the most powerful Demigod they had ever encountered with Divine Power!

The palpable divine majesty even instinctively prevented the three from looking directly at it.

As Ralph and the others looked again towards this "Nicholas," their eyes filled with more wariness.

...

"You have stripped 'Cleopatra the Ninth' of her soul"

"You have gained some insights about the 'Power of Rules'"

"You have gained a large amount of insights into the laws of wind, earth, and death, elemental experience +684577"

"You have mastered the language, rune system, technique system, and history of the Taris civilization..."

"You have learned the Pharaoh's secret: the seventy-two divine incantations from the Book of the Dead..."

"You have obtained some top-secret information about the Taris Tomb: the tomb is a mysterious realm of death where the divine ancestors await resurrection, slaves are material for extracting the Origin of Life, and it's not just human slaves; there are also divine prisoners at the lower levels... These intruders are probably summoned by some imprisoned deity, though it's unclear where the flaw lies..."

"Spiritual Power +75112"

"..."

Su Lun quickly digested the memories of Cleopatra the Ninth, and a flood of information rushed into his mind, his expression growing increasingly solemn.

The Pharaoh guarding the Sun Temple was the highest-ranking Tomb Guardian among the Taris clan in the entire sandy plane, and she too knew some top-secret information that only Pharaohs were privy to.

For instance, inside this tomb, there lay a true God!

Compared to those cognitive enhancements, this information was the most crucial thing for Su Lun to survive at the moment.

"Divine prisoners?"

Su Lun's eyelids twitched slightly.

He suddenly realized what sort of entity had summoned them.

This also directly confirmed the strength of the Taris clan, so powerful that the demonic god capable of summoning Contractors from other realms had become a prisoner.

In his mind, Su Lun pictured himself as a rat sneaking into a prison through a crack to steal keys, an existence that prisoners and prison guards could snuff out at any moment.

But now was not the time to dwell on it.

Su Lun looked up again at the symbols carved into the walls of the tomb everywhere.

Having harvested the memories, the runes on the Book of the Dead, which he had almost been unable to understand before, made sense to him at this moment.

In almost any divine civilization's practice system, people only need to know the effects of runes, and rarely does anyone research why they have such effects.

But the Alchemy system goes back to the roots to understand the function of every stroke in these divine symbols.

Like this "Secret of Immortality" Ankh rune—even Cleopatra the Ninth, a demigod, did not know why it could resurrect people.

Yet Su Lun could understand; in these divine symbols, there was a kind of anti-life equation.

This knowledge was critically important for his future world comprehension.

By understanding the secrets the runes indicated, he became more certain of a previous conjecture.

"This Taris civilization's legacy scripture truly shares a common origin with the 'Sage's Proverbs'..."

Su Lun affirmed this, feeling increasingly that the predecessors of the Alchemy plane had left too many treasures for future generations.

The gold scroll he held had been obtained from the head of the "Ancient Magic and Archaeology Institute" at the Royal Academy in Lu Ying, a sixth-order professional.

And the secrets recorded in this gold scroll were of a divine level, even older than the Taris divine clan's legacy scripture, the Book of the Dead.

Such a divine treasure ending up in mortal hands was almost impossible in a divine-right state.

...

The thoughts in his mind flashed and faded, and Su Lun did not think too much about it.

He picked up the "Key of Immortality" from the ground with a thread, turned to his three teammates from Makamul, the centaur, and asked, "Gentlemen, should I now place this key on the altar?"

After all, as people also recruited by the demon god, it was good to ask.

Perhaps his teammates had noticed some details he had overlooked.

It also made the three of them a bit less suspicious of each other.

Hearing this, Kamul and the other two instantly became serious.

They knew full well that the situation was completely under the control of this "Nicholas".

If it weren't for him, this infiltration into the tomb would have failed long ago.

But there was nothing much to say, his strength was there for all to see, and the three of them could say that it was because of him that they were still alive.

Now they just needed to place the "Key of Immortality" on the altar, and the magic contract would automatically be lifted.

Their mission would then be completed.

But having experienced the previous mishaps, the four of them were even more cautious.

After pondering for a moment, the centaur Kamul cautiously spoke up, "Mr. Nicholas, what do you think we should do?"

The two had worked together before, so naturally, it was best for him to speak up.

Su Lun candidly said, "The contract must be undone. However, after placing the key there, some unforeseeable events might occur."

Even if he didn't say it, the other three could guess as much.

Although they didn't understand the structure of the tomb, their intuition told them that things involving gods and demons were never going to be simple.

Ralph said, "Open it. Whether we can survive afterward will depend on our own abilities."

Masia said, "Yes, I agree."

"..."

And after the words were spoken in the open, much of the mutual suspicion had dissipated.

Since the three of them all agreed, Su Lun said nothing more.

However, before placing the key on the altar, he had another task to take care of.

Never mind whether they would die or not, the loot still had to be collected first.

In case there was any mysterious power controlling these mummies, it might as well resolve some hidden dangers in advance.

The mummies in this tomb were rare puppet materials that were hard to come by, and he had earlier stripped away the control method of the mummy legion. With a slight modification, he could fully replicate the previous "Pharaoh's Curse" on a grand battle formation.

This army of mummies would potentially be a great weapon in Su Lun's arsenal in the future.

The coffins, too, whether they were the lavish ones cast in pure gold and studded with gemstones, or even the wooden ones made of various rare spiritual woods, possessed very strong cursed properties...

To an alchemist, they were inherently invaluable.

And estimating from this crypt, there might be as many as a million mummies and coffins!

No time like the present.

Su Lun paid no attention to the others. With a pinch of the sorcerer's seals, more and more threads began to fall from the sky.

As the other three watched him perform that miraculous alchemy, they all tensed up, "This isn't good!"

They thought another battle had been triggered.

Especially as they saw the tens of thousands of rigid mummies suddenly start moving, the three, like cats that had their tails stepped on, instantly bristled and prepared for battle.

However, the battle they expected didn't happen. Instead, something unforeseen occurred.

At that moment, they watched as those mummies, under the control of the threads, picked up their own coffins and began moving in unison.

The three were immediately perplexed. What was this for?

Was he planning to control these puppets for battle?

Although they didn't know how this "Nicholas" managed to control tens of thousands of mummies, when they saw him pinch the sorcerer's seals and conjure two giant spatial vortexes in the void, they suddenly realized something was about to happen: Was this guy planning to take these mummies as spoils of war?

Although...

As a Puppet Master, he wouldn't have a problem wanting these corpses.

In fact, Kamul and the others had previously considered that these coffins and corpses were very valuable.

But to take away a million mummies? How was that even possible?

However, the bizarre scene that followed unfolded.

The three of them just watched as the vast army of mummies quickly streamed into the spatial vortex.

The space seemed like a bottomless pit, never filling up.

Even those that were not yet revived and were still in their coffins tumbled out on their own and entered the two void gates.

Kamul and the others watched, their eyelids twitching: How huge was this guy's storage space?

Then, under the shocked gaze of the three, the army of a million mummies had almost all been taken away.

Even the valuable funerary goods and construction materials, the "Asgard stones" of this tomb, had been completely plundered.

Su Lun, having the All-knowing Eye, wasn't afraid of unintentionally triggering any safeguards.

In just a short time, the previously death-filled crypt, because of the absence of mummies and coffins, suddenly became much more spacious.

Leaving Kamul, Ralph, and Masia standing there stunned: This act of plucking feathers after a goose is passed and this mysterious alchemist's demeanor seemed hardly fitting.

...

Su Lun didn't care about the opinions of others and went about his business, and then said, "Ladies and gentlemen, I'm about to start."

Upon hearing this, Kamul and the others came back to their senses from their shock.

The three nodded, each prepared themselves defensively.

Kamul called forth the spirit protection of the centaur tribe, barbarian Ralph entered a deep frenzy, and Dragon Maiden Masia completely transformed into a red dragon.

Su Lun himself arranged a super large multifunctional alchemy formation and stood at the center of the Formation.

Then, he controlled a mummy holding the "Key of Immortality" and walked towards the altar in the center of the crypt.

The four peak human powers held their breath, their expressions serious.

No one knew what would happen next.

The few dozen seconds it took for the mummy to walk towards the altar felt like the longest time of their lives.

Finally, the mummy reached the rune-covered altar and aligned the "Key of Immortality" with the "☥" symbol indented on it.

Su Lun had already understood most of the mysterious symbols on the altar, where not evident, it was beneath: the resting place of the gods!

But at this point, there was no choice.

His eyes hardened, and he decisively cut off all connection.

The key slipped from the mummy's hand, "click," flawlessly fitting into the indentation.

This action was as if a key was inserted into a lock, and the mysterious symbols on the altar all lit up.

Meanwhile, Su Lun glanced at his attribute panel and his expression brightened: the demon god contract had indeed disappeared!

It seemed that the three from Makamul had also confirmed this situation through their own methods, a smile appearing on all their faces.

They had been summoned by the gods and demons, and at this moment, they had finally repaid the debts they once owed!

They were finally free!

However, just as the surprise had not yet let the four of them rejoice for long, the moment the key was inserted into the altar, an indescribable "great terror" instantly swept through the underground palace.

"Danger is coming!"

Su Lun's heart chilled, not surprised that an accident had occurred.

However, what he did not anticipate was that this "great terror" was so oppressive that it even stifled their breathing.

"Could it be a True God descending?"

Su Lun was shocked to the core.

He had witnessed the will of the gods descending many times, but none was comparable to this moment.

How quickly did it come?

So fast that Su Lun's All-knowing Eye only caught a shadow that "whooshed" out from the unknown space beneath the altar.

Upon closer inspection, it was actually a dog-headed mummy!

That "great terror" was emanating from this dog-headed mummy.

To the naked eye, it was surrounded by a force that distorted space itself. Through the All-knowing Eye, it was a protective divine domain formed by strands of rules!

Su Lun instantly understood everything: "Corpse of the Gods!"

However, before he had time to ponder why the god corpse of the Taris deity was so fierce, the dog-headed mummy charged toward Ralph who was holding a huge axe in the distance and threw a punch.

"Boom!"

The sound of shattering gold resonated.

While Su Lun and the others were preparing various lifesaving methods, they caught a glimpse of the dog-headed mummy landing a hit in the corner of their eye.

The mummy's punch landed on Ralph's battle axe, and this epic weapon capable of splitting mountains and seas instantly shattered. Then, the force of that punch continued, turning Ralph's right arm into powder.

What none of them expected was that Ralph, a barbarian with demigod combat abilities, couldn't withstand even a single blow?

If it had not been for the axe, that punch would likely have killed him outright!

Seeing this, even Su Lun couldn't help but gasp.

His eyes had clearly seen everything. The pinnacle of humanity was to utilize a bit of the power of rules, but compared to the fist of the dog-headed mummy, surrounded by a complete divine domain of rules, it was a completely different story!

It was like a stone striking an eggshell, effortlessly shattered.

This punch was simply not something a human could withstand!

Su Lun felt that their survival didn't come from their strength, but rather from good luck.

The first target that the dog-headed mummy chose was Ralph, who had the largest energy fluctuations, not them!

And right after this punch that broke Ralph's right arm, the dog-headed mummy threw another punch.

Seeing this, Ralph, now severely wounded, only had despair in his eyes. Overwhelmed by divine power, he was utterly unable to dodge. And even if he had dodged, it would have been equally certain death.

From their brief contact, he had already understood that this was not an enemy that human strength could contend with!

Su Lun saw this, and a chill shot straight to his forehead.

If he didn't prepare, he might be the next one to die.

But in an instant, his brain had made the best response, hastily pulling out the "Wrap of Oz's Iceman" and wrapping it around his body.

This was his last chance to stay alive!

He had already judged that the mummy probably targeted by detecting energy fluctuations.

The greater the energy fluctuations, the more likely one was to be targeted.

Using Spatial Teleportation to break through the Tomb's restrictions would take considerable time and a lot of energy, enough for the jackal-headed Corpse of the Gods to lock on and kill him!

Meanwhile, Makamul the Centaur and Dragon Maiden Miss Masia also showed signs of great fear. For a moment, instead of choosing to run away or defend, they actually charged towards Su Lun together.

Su Lun saw this out of the corner of his eye, instantly understanding their thoughts.

The judgment capability of top experts was naturally top-notch as well.

These two, knowing that they would surely die by their own means, had no thoughts of resisting and instead chose to place their hopes in "Nicholas," the mysterious Alchemist.

Although they did not know what means he might still have to save his life, it was better than having no hope at all!

...

Seeing the two rushing over, thoughts flashed through Su Lun's mind, and there was no time to stop them. With his hands, the spatial fluctuations flashed, and he hastily brought the two into the mini Void Realm.

At the same time, with a tug of a thread, dozens of animated corpses that he had set up beforehand began to move immediately, serving as targets to attract firepower.

As for Su Lun himself, he was already wrapped in the mummy wrap, his presence completely vanished on the spot.

Just as he finished all this, the barbarian Ralph exploded into a cloud of blood under the mummy's second punch in the distance.

Then, a cold wind swept through, and the jackal-headed mummy quickly eliminated the dozens of animated corpses like lightning. Regardless of how secretly hidden the animated corpses were, each was pulverized into blood and flesh powder with a single punch.

Su Lun was terrified as he watched, fearing that the next punch would land on him, and he quickly concluded in his mind, "Biological recognition, energy fluctuations, sound waves... fuck, there's absolutely no way to hide!"

Those animated corpses weren't randomly arranged; they were to test the mummy's sensory capabilities.

He was also relieved by his choice; if he had chosen to run away just then, he would certainly have been a corpse by now.

And thankfully for "Wrap of Oz's Iceman," this miraculous sealing item.

What he had once thought to be increasingly useless curse item, at this moment, had saved his life again.

Luckily, after killing off all the animated corpses, the jackal-headed mummy did not discover him and just stagnated in the Tomb.

Seeing this, Su Lun's heart that had been hoisted to his throat finally settled down.

But just as he was beginning to calm down, another problem arose.

The jackal-headed mummy had not left, which meant that any noise Su Lun made could potentially expose and kill him.

He thought it best to stay put.

The situation suddenly fell into a deadlock.

The jackal-headed mummy was motionless, and Su Lun dared not move either.

However, not dying on the spot was a lucky break amidst misfortune.

Su Lun looked at the jackal-headed mummy, and saw the glittering brown gemstone at its chest, thinking to himself, "A divine essence?"

He had seen genuine divine essences in the "God Slayer" armament before, so even amidst the complete "chaos," he recognized it as a genuine divine essence.

And before him lay the corpse of a True God.

The only good news was that it was a corpse, devoid of its own consciousness.

This was probably the only opportunity.

Calming himself, Su Lun's mind also became active.

He did not feel that this was a desperate situation.

After all, the bottom layer of the tomb had been opened, and that demon god should appear soon.

Perhaps he still had a chance to slip away.

...

Su Lun glanced over, and saw that a passage had opened up at the altar, emitting a vast amount of mist-like divine aura, reminiscent of a freezer being opened.

The All-knowing Eye revealed, surprisingly, unreadable "****"?

This mysterious vapor escaped, diluting into the vast space of the underground palace. Only then did Su Lun slowly understand—these seemed to be a mix of murky divine powers?

The scene beneath the altar was still unclear, shadowy and foggy, faintly resembling green flames like ghost fires.

With a divine-grade corpse guarding the gates, there was no need to wonder, something incredible was sealed inside.

Looking at it, Su Lun's heart was also heavy.

But there was nothing he could do for now, and his thoughts shifted to another location—the two strangers in the little void realm.

...

To avoid danger, the centaur Makamul and the Dragon Maiden Masia had no choice but to dart into the little void realm.

Upon entering, they were met by the sight of a million orderly arrayed mummies.

Only at that moment did they realize why that "Nicholas's" storage space could contain so many items—it was not a storage space but a whole minor plane!

A castle, mountains, forests, amber—it was quite like a small kingdom.

It seemed like many people had once lived there.

However, what shocked them even more was that not only did this place have a million mummies, it also housed winged metal puppets, countless metal octopuses, and innumerable mechanical equipment...

All these were things Su Lun brought that could be used in battle.

Makamul and Masia, who had never seen machinery, were immediately astonished upon seeing these things.

Only then did they realize that "Nicholas's" trump cards far exceeded what they had seen before.

Exchanging glances, they couldn't help but swallow their saliva.

Was this the legendary Alchemy?

They could hardly imagine how outrageously strong Nicholas must be with these puppets in play.

Before they could explore further, Su Lun's will arrived.

"You two, I saved you just now, and the situation is quite dire..."

With time pressing, after exchanging a few words of small talk, he spoke bluntly, "As a condition of the exchange, I need you both to sign a contract."

His rescue wasn't out of kindness; he simply felt they might be useful later.

The combat capabilities of Makamul and Masia were extremely strong, far exceeding the average rank nine.

One could kill a demigod with a single arrow; the other could transform into a huge dragon.

If there were any battles ahead, Su Lun thought they might be good options to draw fire.

If by any chance they survived and returned to the alchemical plane, they would also be a significant help.

Looking at the two contracts emerging in the sky, Makamul and Masia's expressions changed—they had just ended a divine contract and now another?

Su Lun wasn't about to give them any false hopes.

Having just saved these two, if he couldn't exchange that for some benefits, keeping them would be pointless.

Now, in the small void realm, killing them would be as easy as flipping his hand.

However, for experts, Su Lun still retained the necessary respect, stating, "This is a ten-year cooperation contract. You both need to help me fight... Rest assured, I respect your faith and won't ask you to do anything that contravenes it..."

Upon hearing this, Makamul and Masia's brows relaxed considerably—was this not a slavery contract, but merely a ten-year combat contract?

Naturally, it wasn't a slavery contract; although Su Lun had thought about it, he clearly understood that if that sharpness were dulled, they might remain at this level for their entire lives.

The situation on the alchemical plane needed experts and also those with potential.

These two had been selected by gods and demons, their talents one in a billion from their respective planes.

As long as they could survive, their future might still hold further progress.

Su Lun continued, "As compensation, I will provide all the cultivation resources you need later. You should guess that I come from the alchemical plane; my plane owns many ancient treasures. Mr. Makamul, for your principle of destruction, I can provide a reliable pathway to demigod... As for Miss Masia, I can responsibly tell you that I have a genetic potion which can greatly make your bloodline regress towards a more pristine dragonkin. This, you know I don't speak idly..."

To make people fight hard, naturally, some incentives were necessary.

Speaking thus, Su Lun added, "Of course, you can also refuse. However, I have no interest in assisting those who are not friends."

"..."

Makamul and Masia listened to these words, the corners of their eyes twitching.

They were well aware that having just been rescued, naturally, there was a price to pay.

Their gazes surveyed the small void realm again—they hadn't even seen Su Lun's person, let alone fought.

Furthermore, even if they won the fight to get out, it was a dead-end.

It seemed they had a choice, but in reality, there was none.

If they truly wanted to live, even a slavery contract would have to be signed.

But now, it seemed the terms were better.

Masia confirmed once more, "Just a ten-year contract?"

Su Lun declared emphatically, "Yes! As long as you follow the contents of the contract, you can go wherever you want afterward. We can include that clause."

Upon hearing this, Makamul and Masia both breathed a sigh of relief, "Alright."

They added a few clauses, and the three quickly signed the contract.

Su Lun also breathed a sigh of relief.

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the underground palace, that white-smoke-like divine vapor had already spread everywhere.

At that moment, a little mouse, unbeknownst to them from where it had come, quietly appeared in their field of vision.

Su Lun knew—the demon god was finally about to show up.