Mechanical Alchemist

Su Lun fiddled with his silk threads and puppets until late at night, producing quite a few finished products.

As dawn approached, feeling somewhat tired, he sat cross-legged on the carpet and began to meditate.

He needed adequate rest to recuperate his energy.

Meditation Technique required enduring solitude, often demanding great perseverance. But with habituation, the efficiency of cultivation would increase, and the need for sleep dwindled. High-efficiency meditation had the effect of deep sleep, not only providing better recovery for the body but also augmenting the "energy" within it.

Su Lun had now advanced to the third tier, and his body's capacity to endure dark spiritual power had widened again. [Isaac's Alchemical Heart] provided him with an endless supply of dark spiritual power, making his extraordinary cultivation progress steadily and swiftly.

...

Blizzard City was known for its howling snow winds year-round, and the nights were extremely cold.

The number of people on the streets dwindled as the night deepened.

Close to dawn, when the sun rose, the temperature could drop to tens of degrees below zero, causing any skin exposed to the air to ache as if scraped by a rough sharpening stone. Even professionals were loath to wander outside in such low temperatures.

Therefore, Su Lun noticed something unusual.

"Huh... am I being watched?"

In the midst of meditation, his eyes suddenly opened.

He had not been entirely sure before, but after observing for quite some time, he was finally certain that someone was tailing him.

And they were not alone.

In room 307 on the same floor, someone had been peeking through the door crack for half the night; there was a shivering individual in the alley by the building entrance; and another in the back warehouse.

No one would be strolling outside on such a freezing night out of sheer boredom.

The three stalkers were very cautious, clearly trained professional spies.

Two of them were second tier, one third tier.

Their hiding spots were in blind spots unobservable from Su Lun's room, and they avoided making any noise that might give them away.

If Su Lun did not have the ability of Soul Perception, he really would not have noticed them.

But now, though his range of Soul Perception was not too wide, it was just enough to cover the "Owl Hotel" and the lower half of the street below, making it impossible for the stalkers to hide their every move from him.

Su Lun also suspected that they might be from the "Red Shark Pirate Group," or perhaps someone from the black market had targeted him.

But obviously, that wasn't the case.

He was certain he had not seen these three "fires of souls" before; they had appeared only after he had purchased Yuta.

And having received professional training, they were very likely people from some significant force.

This meant that they were most likely not his enemies.

"Are they after Yuta?"

Su Lun frowned, feeling somewhat puzzled.

In the eyes of humans, Yuta was just a slave of another race; no one should go to such lengths to watch her.

If there were any vendetta, they would have acted immediately.

But considering the manner of the surveillance, it seemed they did not intend to strike but merely to observe.

It appeared they just wanted to keep track of Yuta's movements.

"How strange..."

Su Lun's mind raced with thoughts, pondering various possibilities.

Lacking some essential information, he could not determine the purpose of those people.

With this in mind, he looked up at the white-haired girl sleeping on the bed, planning to ask her when she woke up.

Meanwhile, perhaps because her injuries had mostly healed, the nutrition solution and Potion had rejuvenated her body, and feeling the gaze upon her, Yuta suddenly opened her eyes!

The Dalu tribe were children of nature, possessing beast-like instincts.

Yuta seemed to wake from a nightmare.

In the moment of awakening, her eyes flickered with a wolf-like caution and sharp glimmer. With a roll, she adopted a four-legged attack posture, her hands and feet turning into wolf claws, her sharp nails glinting menacingly. In an instant, she was ready for combat.

But before she fully transformed, her gaze met Su Lun's.

The wariness in Yuta's eyes dissipated instantly, and her half-transformed body quickly reverted to human form.

"You're awake?"

Su Lun took off the clown mask, revealing his face, "Try not to move too vigorously, the sutured wounds haven't fully healed yet."

He cautioned her with a sentence, then said, "There are clothes by the bed, you can put them on first."

Upon hearing this, Yuta realized that she was still bare.

Under the warm light, her skin appeared as smooth and lustrous as warm jade, her body's lines looking incredibly natural and filled with a wild beauty.

The Dalu tribe's faith is in the nature goddess, and many of their thoughts and perspectives differ from humans; thus, there wasn't much shyness on her face.

She didn't know what had happened during her unconsciousness but memories prior to it flooded her mind. Seeing the stitches on her arms and legs, she understood that it was this man before her who had saved and healed her.

As a Druid, she was adept at Healing Techniques herself. This was the first time she had been treated with human medical skills, and Yuta couldn't help but murmur instinctively within her heart: what an odd stitching technique...

The precision of the stitches was somewhat beyond expectation.

In a moment, she looked at the dress Su Lun had prepared for her, her delicate eyebrows slightly furrowing.

Being accustomed to wrapping herself in beast skins, she was obviously puzzled by such a complicated textile.

Su Lun also noticed Yuta's plight and gave her some directions, after which she began to dress.

The fluffy hem of the dress was just right to cover the soft, silver tail. With the addition of a hat, the pair of furry beast ears could also be concealed.

She almost looked like a human.

While Yuta dressed, Su Lun straightforwardly said, "Elder Yuta, as I mentioned before, I need a bit of your help. Furthermore, if possible, I'd like to meet with the current Clan Leader of the nobility, the descendant of the Aisak family entrusted me with a few words concerning an ancient oath."

The Druids of the Dalu tribe are somewhat like tribal Priests, so addressing them as Elders is not incorrect.

"An oath?! Do... do humans still remember the oath?"

Yuta's blue crystalline eyes trembled slightly at the statement, clearly unsettled.

She looked at Su Lun and asked, "Are you, Mr. Su Lun... a descendant of Sir Isaac?"

The term "Mister" seemed awkward for her, but as she was learning the common language of humans which appeared to be a term of respect, she used it.

Su Lun nodded, "Yes. But someone else entrusted me with the message."

Being a disciple of Selena, he naturally counted as a successor to Isaac.

However, the fact that Mr. Jing was the direct daughter of Sir Isaac wasn't something he could divulge casually; he planned to meet with the current Clan Leader of the Dalu tribe personally and convey the words entrusted by his own sister.

Hearing this, Yuta pondered for a moment, seemingly in thought, without responding immediately.

Then, she looked at Su Lun and asked, "You said... there was something you needed my help with?"

"Yes," Su Lun replied.

He observed the caution in her expression and didn't mind.

The relationship between humans and the Dalu tribe could not be considered good. Even though he had saved her, he could understand her caution.

He said, "My spiritual power has mutated. I've heard that Druids of the Dalu tribe are proficient in healing and might be able to resolve this issue. So, I wanted to ask."

Probably dealing with a human for the first time, Yuta appeared somewhat reserved.

Hearing Su Lun's words, she hesitated for a moment before asking, "May I take a look first?"

Su Lun: "How do you want to look?"

Yuta: "I need to hold your hand."

Su Lun readily extended his hand to her.

Yuta took Su Lun's hand, like a Chinese doctor taking a pulse, and then a bundle of green light emerged from her hand.

Su Lun didn't feel anything special in his body, but he sensed as if a will had entered his mind, trying to peek at the "Ferocious Beast" he had caged inside.

However, it didn't seem to go smoothly.

Probably sensing the rampant negative emotions, like facing a surge of bloodthirsty waves head-on, Yuta was shocked in an instant, retracting her hand as if receiving an electric shock.

She had never seen such a terrifying will before.

Yuta's complexion suddenly turned very solemn, and her gaze towards Su Lun grew strange, "You... your situation is extremely dangerous!"

"Mhm."

Su Lun nodded and offered her a kind smile, saying, "I'm aware of my situation. That's why I wanted to ask if there's any way to solve it."

"I'm sorry, I can't solve it..."
Explore hidden tales at empire

A slight sense of guilt passed across Yuta's pretty face.

Initially, she thought that since this human had saved her, she could repay him with her expertise in Healing Techniques.

The people of the Dalu tribe would not be indebted to their savior.

But she hadn't anticipated the situation to be so tricky, presenting her with an unprecedented problem.

Su Lun was not surprised to hear this.

Since Mr. Jing had mentioned it would take a seventh-tier Druid to possibly solve the issue, it was only natural that Yuta couldn't resolve it.

He was about to say it didn't matter when he heard Yuta continue, "This situation can probably only be handled by the great Druids of our clan..."

Su Lun asked curiously, "Does our clan have a great Druid right now?"

Yuta responded, "Yes. The clan leader and several elders are great Druids."

Su Lun found it somewhat unbelievable. If the Dalu clan truly had seventh-tier masters, their group wouldn't be in the situation they currently were.

He thought of something and asked in a slightly strange tone, "May I ask, what tier is your great elder now?"

Yuta responded, "Fifth-tier."

Although she didn't understand why Su Lun was asking this question, she seemed to catch the doubt in his voice and instinctively explained, "Hundreds of years ago, our Dalu clan had a great war with the deep sea giants. That led to..."

She suddenly stopped there.

It seemed that she realized she was touching on some secrets of the clan and wasn't sure if she should continue. Her trembling eyes betrayed her inner struggle.

Hesitating for a moment, Yuta could only change her words and say, "I can take Mr. Su Lun to the Sacred Lake to see the clan leader. Then you will naturally understand."

"Mmm."

Su Lun's eyebrows slightly lifted, revealing a friendly smile.

Though they hadn't talked much, he could see that the Dalu clan had a simple nature and didn't possess the deceitful mindsets human beings often had.

So when they encountered sensitive topics, Yuta's facial expressions would become stiff, making it obvious what she was thinking.

Su Lun didn't mind either.

A visit there also suited his interests, to broaden his horizons and see if he could solve the issue with his spiritual distortion while also passing on a message to his senior sister.

Moreover, he had received information from the "smuggling gang" previously, that the Silent Forest indeed contained "Nightmare Spiders," which were among the potential candidates for the main materials he needed.

Lords of the strange were not easy to find, and since the Dalu clan were the masters of that forest, they likely knew more.

....

Just as Su Lun was about to ask for clues about the materials, Yuta seemed to recall something, her face showing difficulty, "Only the masters of our Dalu clan can reach the Sacred Lake. But I might not be able to take you there myself. I must find a way to quickly rescue my clanspeople, or they will be taken away by the slave merchants..."

"Rescue?"

Su Lun was not surprised to hear this.

From the slave merchants, he had heard she was caught because she came to Blizzard City to rescue her clanspeople.

But upon hearing this, ideas suddenly flashed through Su Lun's mind. He thought of the three people who were keeping watch outside at this moment.

"Ah...that's right!"

Furrowing his brows, Yuta seemed to think of a compromise.

With a "rip," she tore off a piece of the bedsheet, concentrated a ball of light on her fingertip, then wrote some Dalu script on it and handed it to Su Lun, saying, "You can go to the 'Eagle Beak Pass' on the west side of the forest. My clanspeople patrol there. When they see my token, they will take you to the Sacred Lake."

While speaking, she also sketched a simple map on the back of the bedsheet, showing how to get to that pass.

Su Lun looked at the token and could tell Yuta had no intention of asking for his help, intending to rescue the people herself.

After considering, he didn't rush to express his stance. He asked, "Elder Yuta, have you noticed anyone keeping an eye on you?"

Yuta appeared utterly clueless, clearly unaware, and asked in confusion, "Mr. Su Lun, what do you mean?"

Su Lun said, "I've noticed there are a few people keeping watch around this inn. If I'm not mistaken, they're watching you."

Yuta still looked puzzled.

Clearly, neither of them could figure out the purpose of those people.

Was it possible that Yuta had some valuable object on her?

No... if she had anything valuable, it would have been confiscated when she was captured.

Then why were they watching her?

Unable to come up with a reason, Su Lun thought and then said, "There might be something fishy about this situation. So, don't be hasty in taking action. I'll go and gather some information first. Your clanspeople won't be setting out to sea for several days. It's better to understand the shipping situation, as acting on the sea has a higher success rate than making a move in the city."

Not to mention, he was currently out of money and couldn't afford to buy the batch of non-human slaves.

Even if he had the money, given the current circumstances, he feared that buying them might also come with unforeseen complications.

He wanted to clarify the situation first.

If there was really any way he could help, he didn't mind planning to be a pirate for once.

Yuta listened to Su Lun's plan, which seemed far more reliable than her rashly attempting a lone rescue.

Although she felt uneasy about asking humans for help, thinking of her clansmen, she nodded, "Thank you, Mr. Su Lun, for the trouble."

Su Lun smiled and shook his head.

At that moment, he took out a mechanical communicator and handed it to Yuta, saying, "This is a communicator, the method of use is straightforward, we have several codes... First, I have to make sure if those people are really keeping an eye on you."

Yuta listened intently to Su Lun's plan, a serious look in her eyes.

....

Soon after, a figure smashed through the window of room 303 at the Owl Inn and leaped out. The crisp sound of shattering glass broke the silent dawn.

Yuta jumped down from the building and quickly dashed into the alleyways.

Disheveled, hasty, panicking, like a fleeing slave.

This noise instantly attracted the attention of the nearby surveillance personnel.

In the room, Su Lun felt two fires of souls on the street below swiftly giving chase, murmuring to himself, "They're really going after her. Those guys must have some means of tracking Yuta's whereabouts..."

He thought of something, left a body meant for reanimation material in the room, creating some wounds that looked like they were caused by wolf claws.

Then he set a fire, burning the body.

Next, he used Spatial Teleportation, moving to another open room in the inn.

The commotion immediately stirred up the inn; the blaze in the room was extinguished before it spread further, but the body was charred to a crisp.

Room 303 became a crime scene where a slave had killed their master and escaped.

Seeing the body, the person keeping surveillance from room 307 of the inn also left.

Su Lun mingled with the crowd of onlookers to observe for a while, and finding nothing out of place, he then left.

He was now one hundred percent certain, the surveillance personnel were indeed targeting Yuta.

....

As a Druid, Yuta was not weak either.

Especially in the snow, she had many stealthy methods and need not worry.

Su Lun waited a while and heard no sounds of a fight, confirming that those people just wanted to watch her and had no intention of taking action.

He then stopped worrying and went back to his room to rest for a while.

When dawn broke, Su Lun left the inn.

He hadn't forgotten that there was someone still enduring the "ice punishment."

In the central plaza of the city, there was a huge white stone statue, a monument the residents had carved to commemorate the first Town Lord of Blizzard City.

On the edge of the square was the headquarters of the city's security, where more than a dozen crosses stood at the entrance of the spire-topped building. Each cross had a person bound to it, men and women alike, all stripped bare.

These were the individuals who had violated the city's laws and were subjected to the wind punishment by the security team.

Some were already frozen into ice, while others still clung to life.

....

Having been subjected to the cold wind all night, Gik, butt naked, was puzzled, how had he not died?

He knew the rules of Blizzard City well.

His survival meant someone had paid his bail to the security, and that's why the guards had applied anti-freeze ointment on him and turned on the heating pipes' hot water for his cross.

Even so, Gik was barely clinging to life.

When the sun rose and the sunlight shone on him, he finally felt alive again.

While he was still in a daze, he suddenly heard a commotion close to his ear, "Kid, your punishment is over. Next time, remember, don't commit the crime again!"

The man roughly untied the ropes, and Gik collapsed to the ground. Some of his skin, which had not been reached by the heating pipe, tore off, leaving a horrific crimson but hardly any blood flowed out.

Gik felt no pain.

Then he felt someone covering him with a thick cloak.

The instant it was placed on him, Gik experienced a surge of warmth.

He struggled to open his eyes and saw a person in a black cloak. The person, wearing a mask, tilted their head towards him, saying, "Let's go. We'll find another place to treat your wounds."

Gik only felt the voice was very familiar, but after being in the cold wind all night, he felt his brain had gone numb.

It took a long while before he snapped back to reality, and to his great surprise, he thought, "Mr. Nicholas?"