One-Eyed Monster

"Senior!" Brad's loud yell took Joela and Hector by surprise; neither of them had expected such an outburst from the usually reticent Brad.

They followed the sound and were astonished by what they saw.

Across the road, two, no, three figures were stumbling along, with one being carried on another's shoulder…

They seemed to be descending the mountain.

Both parties slowed their pace, aware of each other's presence.

However, Brad's shout had clearly put the other party on high alert.

These two had been spotted before through Spirit Vision Sharing via the Alchemy Array.

Joela began to scrutinize the duo more closely. The one carrying a person had a serious expression, was wrapped in a purple robe, and looked formidable. He must be the one who managed to repel those Wire Puppet-controlled walking dead single-handedly.

The other was a big brute Joela had met before while setting up an array at the foot of the mountain. The fellow had rushed past the friendly warning line set up by their Alchemy Workshop and climbed the mountain. Later, Milo mentioned that the Chief intended to recruit this fellow. Although he seems ordinary except for his large size, it's surprising he remained largely unharmed despite the unexpected events on the mountain. Hmm, it couldn't be considered entirely an accident either. The purple-robed man had taken on many of the attacks for them; the actual threats they faced were minimal…

The brute in Joela's eyes was, naturally, Baharo. Upon seeing the three individuals opposite him, Baharo was first startled, then stunned. Finally, after recognizing them, his mouth stretched into a wide grin.

"Heh heh heh, so it's Alche…" Before Baharo could finish his sentence, a massive fist was already flying in his direction.

Baharo hastily leaped back, barely having time to instinctively cry out in alarm.

The punch was Brad's. As far as Brad was concerned, there was only one way to greet someone: fist to fist. A fist that wasn't hard enough didn't deserve to stand before him.

TSSS… Brad, having missed his first strike, immediately switched targets. He had enhanced his arm with an Alchemy Potion; it instantly glowed red like a searing-hot iron, sizzling as it met the cold air.

"Brad…"

"Alas, Brad's reaction is correct. We can't afford any wishful thinking right now," Joela said, halting Hector, who had intended to stop Brad. Until the situation is clear, Brad's fierce assault might force them to reveal their true capabilities and intentions.

CLANG—

Brad's Frenzied Fist, aimed at the purple-robed man, was blocked by his robe, emitting a fierce crash.

"Hector, let's go too!" Joela said, also rushing forward.

"Huh?" Hector was perplexed. But Senior's orders are never wrong. So, he too raised his fists and attacked the two individuals opposite them.

"Why is this happening?!" Baharo was even more bewildered. They attacked without a word! This is nothing like the Alchemists I knew from the taverns!

Brad's fists were indeed unpredictable and packed immense power, sometimes like searing-hot iron, other times like piercingly cold icicles, relentlessly pounding Stan Sol, who was carrying someone on his shoulder.

Stan Sol wasn't as taken aback as Baharo. His world was inherently filled with danger, and his response to any kind of adversity was always calm and composed.

So, even when Joela's flying kick came at him, Stan Sol effortlessly avoided it; moreover, Hustace, whom he carried on his shoulder, was not affected in the slightest.

WHOOSH—

Brad ripped off his sleeves, revealing his bare arms, undeterred by the cold weather.

Various patterns covered his arms, looking daunting from afar.

These patterns were Alchemy Equation elements embedded into his body. Alchemists could extract these elements to form Alchemy Equations at any time, allowing them to effortlessly exchange for various items needed in battle.

These items could be weapons or enhancement potions. Brad had a particular fondness for going Berserk, and the elements he extracted were naturally for exchanging Berserk Potions.

SWOOSH. After swallowing a Berserk Potion, Brad seemed like a completely different person. His reddish skin continuously emitted steam, and his green, gleaming eyes were wide, as if he could see through the entire world at any moment.

The Berserk Brad was faster and more aggressive, and soon had Stan Sol falling back repeatedly. Brad's offensive style clearly held the advantage on the mountain path. Stan Sol could only dodge along the narrow trail; he couldn't leap off it, because if he strayed from the path, he wasn't sure he could find his way back.

Joela shook his head gently, sighing inwardly. Combat… it really does come down to talent.

As a member of the Golden Seats, he was naturally a renowned Battle Alchemist of the Alchemy Workshop. However, his flying kick, delivered with all his might, hadn't harmed the opponent in the slightest. It seemed there was still a huge gap between Alchemists and other professions in terms of Physique Technique!

The fighting style of Alchemists had its unique aspects. Most of the time, Alchemists relied on Alchemy Arrays to engage their enemies. In a desperate one-on-one battle, Alchemists mostly depended on their Exchange Beasts and Exchange Weapons to tie down their opponents. Only a few oddballs like Brad would favor Alchemy's Berserk Potions.

In the early days, Alchemists, much like Scholars, were confined to research and seldom participated in actual combat. It was Kuyi Tulan who changed this. His primary contribution was the extraction of elements from the Alchemy Equation. He then promoted the embedding of these elements. This very extraction of Alchemy Equation elements made Alchemy Equations less dull and rigid, and also allowed Alchemists to summon exchanged items for battle at any time.

Hector wasn't as sentimental as Joela. Although he didn't understand why Senior Joela had ordered the attack, he executed it without complaint.

However, he didn't attack Stan Sol…

Hector's target was Baharo.

"Brother…" Baharo was a chatterbox. Even when under attack, he didn't forget to try and connect with his opponent.

"Brother, don't be like this… Let's talk…"

"Stop… if you keep this up, I won't…"

A chatterbox's words are always left unfinished, because every time he was about to complete a sentence, his opponent's attack would arrive first.

Actually, Hector wanted to reply too; chatting was his hobby! But when he saw Brad beside him enter a primary Berserk state to fight, he suppressed the urge to respond. Though he didn't understand the reasoning behind Senior Joela's command, unconditional execution had always been his greatest strength.

Talk things out properly?

Wait until you've earned the right to talk, then we can talk things out properly.