Mechanical Alchemist

Initial draft. The news that the Kurayama Ghost King "Red Demon" had been slain spread out.

Half a day later, Su Lun found various fairies and goblins gathering at the foot of the desolate mountain where the shrine was located. Some came to inspect the situation, some were onlookers, and others were drawn by the scent.

Qian Jiao was still staring blankly at the golden statue of the Konjin Thunder God, while the Princess was busy comprehending the Shinto legacy on the stone tablet. Neither of the women seemed to have any intention of leaving the underground palace soon.

This was an opportunity not to be missed, and Su Lun would not let the ghosts and monsters disturb them.

Just like how he had merged with his armor a few days earlier, it was now Su Lun's turn to cover for the two of them.

He went down the mountain and repelled several waves of goblins.

If he encountered troublesome monsters, he would lead them away in circles.

Su Lun was meticulous in thought and decisive in slaughter, confusing the peculiar group thoroughly.

Regrettably...

After stripping some ghost souls, he discovered a problem—that no matter how many layers of barriers there were, the Princess's Yang energy would still attract an endless stream of monsters.

Some ghosts with sensitive perception still detected the presence of the Princess and stealthily approached the mountain.

If left unaddressed, more waves of monsters would attack later.

Ultimately, Su Lun had no choice but to go to the underground palace and take the Princess out.

The Princess is a Shinto Shrine Maiden and could not engage in actions that would damage the shrine.

However, Su Lun did not have such concerns. He directly cut down all twenty-four relief sculptures and packed them away using a space-sealed scroll.

Then, it turned out to be Su Lun fleeing everywhere with the Princess.

....

Half a day later.

Two figures were quickly weaving through the forest. Occasionally, a thread would appear, strangling a ghost lurking in the shadows prepared to ambush them.

Su Lun's methods were quite effective in dealing with minor creatures.

Because they ran fast and there were black crows in the sky, the two were not blocked by a large assembly of ghosts and monsters.

Before long, the two arrived at a desolate mountain village.

"Mr. Su Lun, there is no scent of ghosts and monsters in this area. We can rest here," the Princess said.

Her Shinto secret techniques had a much wider range than Su Lun's Soul Perception, and she was particularly sharp in detecting ghosts. With her by his side, they could finally catch a peaceful breath.

"Good."

Su Lun also breathed a sigh of relief as if relieved of a heavy burden, setting down the Princess whom he had been half-embracing.

Originally, he could have used threads to carry the Princess like a puppet, but he thought that would make both feel awkward, truly like carrying a burden, and also feel alienated.

Fortunately, after asking the Princess, she did not mind, so they kept moving in that manner.

After being held close for so long, both of their garments retained each other's body heat.

Although it was compelled by circumstances, there was still a distinction between men and women.

The Princess straightened her dress, her cheeks slightly red, and bowed politely, apologizing, "I have caused you trouble."

The two were familiar with each other, naturally not too rigid with formalities. The Princess's habitual polite manners were usual to Su Lun. He smiled, said nothing, and then suggested, "Let's eat something and rest here."

The Princess nodded: "Yes."

Su Lun took a few steps and found a house in the village that looked sturdy enough not to collapse from wind or rain, then took out camping cooking tools to start a fire for cooking.

Running around for half the day, they were both extremely tired and hungry.

Only then did he realize the pressure Qian Jiao had experienced during those two days he spent merging with his armor.

Those ghosts gave no breathing room, appearing anytime, anywhere.

Before long, the canned meals were heated up, with the scent of the food wafting through the air.

Su Lun and the Princess sat by the stove and began their meal.

The black crows on the rooftop were very quiet.

Perhaps because he had cleared the minor monsters near Kurayama when slaughtering the Red Demon, this ghost village-like deserted village had no trace of ghosts.

It was a rare chance to rest and recuperate.

After a simple meal, the Princess sat down with Su Lun and began tidying up the cookware. They were not in a hurry to leave and started making repairs.

The Princess took out a stone slate she had found in the shrine's underground palace and studied the "Dance of the Shinto Priest" on it.

As it was an unspoken secret of the Shinto teachings, although Su Lun was curious about those "deity-communicating" secret techniques, he had no intention of probing further. Instead, he began inscribing runes on a thread nearby.

But as he was carving, suddenly, a series of crisp and delightful bell sounds reached his ears.

Ring-a-ling~

Ring-a-ling~

Looking up, he saw the Princess holding a Kagura bell, mimicking the movements shown on the stone slate, while softly muttering some arcane and difficult ancient chants.

Although she did not use Spiritual Power, the rhythm and melody felt as if they were resonating with some cosmic principle.

It was quite magical.

Seeing Su Lun's gaze directed at her, the Princess smiled back, not hiding anything, and explained, "This is a linguistic spell known as 'Shinto Priest's Chant - Heavenly Auspicious Jade Chime.' It's usually used to summon deities and bring blessings. Even ordinary people who hear it feel a sense of calm in their spirits."

Su Lun showed a look of realization: "Oh."

The Princess then asked, "Mr. Su Lun, did I disturb you?"

Su Lun smiled and shook his head, "Not at all."

He possessed the ability to multitask effectively, so even though he was currently conversing with the Princess, his engraving actions didn't stop.

The two of them continued the conversation along those lines.

"Mr. Su Lun, weren't you curious about the Onmyoji's 'Shikigami Substitute Technique' before? I also noticed some records on this stone tablet..."

"The stone tablet records Onmyoji techniques?"

"Yes, not just that. The stone tablet also contains records of major historical events from before the 'Era of Great Devastation.' However, many I still haven't figured out how to interpret, and I'm still researching them."

"Oh. Are these things alright to discuss?"

"Apart from Shinto secret techniques, other religious rules don't prohibit them from being shared… Of course, Mr. Su Lun, you mustn't share them either."

"Okay."

"…"

Su Lun was indeed quite interested in the history before the 'Great Devastation,' and since it was a rare opportunity, they began exchanging ideas.

While talking, they analyzed together.

However, not much content had been interpreted from the stone tablet yet, and after a few sentences, they nearly reached the limits of that topic.

They gradually shifted to some casual conversations.

This cursed space was like a cage—if they couldn't escape, perhaps this would be the last moments of their lives.

So, it seemed like there were no topics they needed to avoid,

training, life, royal gossip, childhood experiences...

They could chat about any topic for a bit.

This also brought some relief from the constant tension of being chased by monsters.

In the broken house, hearty laughter from the two was occasionally heard.

Suddenly!

While chatting, Su Lun thought of something and casually asked a question, "By the way, Senpai Chitose told me earlier that Miss Princess had something she wanted me to try out? She even mentioned it was a 'surprise'?"

This was something the three of them discussed in secret at the shrine, with Chitose suggesting he should ask the Princess when he had a chance.

They had been running around earlier and hadn't had the time to ask in detail.

Now that they had a moment to rest, he posed the question.

"…"

As soon as these words were spoken, the atmosphere in the room suddenly became somewhat awkward.

The Princess's pretty face instantly reddened, and her ears turned burning hot.

How could she just try that!

But as she glanced at Su Lun, who was earnestly inquiring, she could guess that they had both been teased by Chitose.

Unconsciously, her cheeks flushed, and she stuttered, unsure of how to explain the topic, "Ah... this..."

The soft light of the magic lamp cast upon her teasingly bashful face, full of shyness.

Seeing her demeanor, Su Lun immediately realized something, and awkwardly laughed, "Ah... I must have been teased by Senpai Chitose again." Experience more tales on My Virtual Library Empire

"…"

The Princess dared not continue with that topic.

But upon mentioning it, she instinctively thought of Chitose's bold actions when they slept together, and her gaze involuntarily fell to her own buxom chest.

Su Lun caught her expression and twitched his eye.

His vision was excellent. It was fine when he didn't intentionally look, but with this glance, his eyes delved into the open collar of her miko attire, viewing a stretch of smooth, white cleavage.

Having bathed together before, and carrying her all the way here earlier, he naturally knew the Princess had a shapely figure, which was beyond reproach.

Thinking of Chitose's bold nature, he probably guessed something, and immediately his face betrayed an expression that was both amused and exasperated, unsure of what to say, "Senpai Chitose really is..."

The Princess is a friend.

That was quite alright.

Upon hearing this, the Princess understood what he had guessed, and her gaze became even less direct.

...

They had not been settled in the dilapidated house for a few hours before a wave of monsters attacked the deserted village.

They had to run away again.

Moreover, Su Lun had discovered some troubling information from the memories of the monsters he killed.

The Ghost King [Red Monster] had been slain; hearing this, several other large demons planned to come and kill them. Even from Ghost Town, several infamous Ghost Kings emerged.

This was originally good news; Su Lun could use this opportunity to absorb demon qi to enhance his Reaper's Phantom.

But as the main combat force, Chitose was still at the shrine, and facing them head-on was very risky.

Su Lun's fighting power against minor monsters was sharp, but facing a Ghost King was more of a gamble. He could take on a single Ghost King in desperation, but he couldn't always rely on desperation.

Moreover, he had the Princess with him.

The two could only keep dodging and hiding.

Just like that, two days passed.

They encountered dozens of monster waves. Su Lun killed all that he could.

The ones he couldn't kill, they cleverly avoided...

But ultimately, the ghosts' intelligence was very high, and some were adept at scheming and using special methods.

They figured out Su Lun and his companion's perception methods and began a planned encirclement. A group of monsters chased them, while some ambushed them. Even though Su Lun was already very careful, the situation grew increasingly dire.

After all, this was the realm of the dead; enemies were everywhere.

As they ran, they finally crashed into a large group of monsters' encirclement.

...

That day.

In the dense forest.

Having unlocked the Eight-Armed Spider Spear, Su Lun, carrying the princess, sprinted through the forest.

Having just escaped a fierce battle, both were covered in black blood.

Behind them, a large mass of black hair floated in the air, relentlessly pursuing with great momentum.

This was a Ghost King-level monster called the "Hundred Faces Hair Ghost."

It didn't have a body, only hair that could extend indefinitely. Beneath the tide of hair, dozens of crowded, terrifying ghost faces looked extremely eerie. Dozens of eyes fixed on Su Lun and his companion, while from their throats came a chilling "jiejiejie" laughter.

Su Lun didn't dare think of fighting.

This creature greatly restrained his abilities; once he used his puppets, they would be entangled by the hair.

Besides, Su Lun sensed that this thing had several dozens of soul fires. Each ghost face hidden in the hair had soul fluctuations— even using his Black Scythe, Su Lun didn't know which to strike first.

The only advantage was that this hair monster feared fire.

Su Lun knew the technique "Wu Shi," ensuring his safety.

However, the black crows in the sky also noticed some movement of other monsters at a distance, which showed Su Lun a hint of military tactics.

He realized they had been surrounded.

The princess in his arms also noticed the perilous situation and asked, "Mr. Su Lun, should I make a move? I have a technique that can heavily damage this 'Hair Ghost.'

Su Lun shook his head, "Not yet. We are running low on light gemstones; save them for the most critical moment. Besides, that monster clearly wants to force us into the valley to the south where there's likely an ambush. We have only one path now—to head for Cangshan Shrine."

The princess nodded, "Right."

Meeting up with a thousand warriors, they could turn the tables.

...

As they sprinted, they soon saw Cangshan from afar.

But just then, a black crow in the sky suddenly cawed loudly.

The princess sensed something too, her expression changing, "There's a large area of ghostly energy fluctuation ahead!"

Su Lun narrowed his eyes, suddenly understanding something, and analyzed in a deep voice, "We have been operating around Cangshan these past few days; the monsters clearly perceived our range of activity."

They had stayed close by these past days to coordinate with the thousand warriors.

But the ghosts had also noticed this and had prepared their tactics early.

As Su Lun had suspected, there were capable beings among the ghosts.

However, Su Lun uttered these words quietly.

Because a reply had already come from the thousand warriors.

She said they could kill.

...

The crow's alarm forewarned them of at least one powerful monster.

Indeed, after running only a few steps, Su Lun and his companion encountered another Ghost King.

Su Lun looked at the general clad in tattered armor and, upon closer inspection, was startled to recognize a historical figure.

A significant figure from the Warring States Period several centuries ago—Ghost Warlord Toyotomi Hideyoshi.

And behind it, an army of over five hundred "Ghost Samurai," all lined up in formation!

Seeing these soldiers, Su Lun knew that this encirclement was likely their doing.

Without giving them any time to react, the moment they showed up, the group of long-prepared ghost samurai suddenly raised their bows and released countless arrows into the sky.

"Swoosh," "swoosh," "swoosh"...

The arrows fell densely like a thunderstorm, covering the sky.

Su Lun pulled with one hand, and several mechanical shields appeared from nowhere. With a series of "click-clack" metal sounds, the shields quickly connected into a shield wall, instantaneously surrounding them.

After setting the defense, with a single hand forming the sorcerer's seals, a dark golden luster flowed over his skin.

Just as he embraced the princess for protection, the sound of rain hitting banana leaves erupted.

Filthy ghostly energy exploded on the shield, sending waves of energy impacts, one after another, like the chill of deep winter, painfully piercing to the bone.

After a round of arrow rain, without much pause, a second wave of arrows shot toward them again.

The dense crossfire left no time for escape.

Su Lun's heart sank.

The black crows in the sky shared their view, and he could clearly see the ghost samurai charging over.

Lonely wandering ghosts were manageable, but these well-trained ghost samurai were the most troublesome!

Su Lun glanced at the agreed time and decided not to move, stopping in place.

There was no point in heading up the mountain now. Being trapped on the mountain would be worse than deciding the battle right here.

In case of unforeseen circumstances, there would still be a way out.

Moreover, dealing with these ghost warriors, he also had enough experience and wouldn't be at a disadvantage for a while.

Su Lun made his decision.

"Princess, prepare for battle! You block the "hair ghost"!"

"Okay!"

He set down the Princess, clasped his hands in the sorcerer's seals, and softly chanted, "Puppet Mastery · Puppet Theater!"

In an instant, the Hexagram Array beneath his feet lit up, and a giant cross quickly condensed in the sky above.

Su Lun took out a few scrolls and exploded hundreds of puppets.

The Princess stood solemnly next to him, lightning-quick she drew her bow and arrow, bit her finger to draw blood-red runes on the arrow shaft, and shot an arrow at the hair ghost chasing them.

"Whoosh~"

The arrow, wrapped in white Amaterasu daylight fire, easily penetrated the hair ghost, directly demolishing several ghost faces in range. The creature screamed and retreated repeatedly.

On the other side, Su Lun's puppet army had already clashed with the ghost warriors.

Army formation battle, if you can do it, so can I.

The ghost warriors' formation was tight, clearly old soldiers.

But these "ghost warriors" here couldn't infinitely resurrect like those previously under Abe Yasukazu's control. When the puppet army charged, they also suffered casualties. Plus, the mechanical armors loved charging against such fleshy walls, massacring all over.

These humanoid ghost creatures, capable of being controlled with mental tentacles, Su Lun seized any opportunity to control some with thread, causing his puppet army to gain a significant upper hand.

He himself also unleashed the fourth stage of hormone rampage, directly clashing hard with that "Ghost Hero · Toyotomi Hideyoshi".

This ghost king was of about fifth-stage profession strength, not easily killed.

The battle instantly became extremely intense.

Plus, with two great ghost kings tied up, there were continuously various ghosts and monsters coming from all directions.

Su Lun was not at all panicked.

Because his mental countdown was almost up.

15, 10, 5...

Sure enough, just then.

From the direction of the dilapidated shrine on the mountaintop, a sudden surge of sword intent burst forth, and the sky was instantly filled with thunder and lightning.

Su Lun's expression hardened: "It's coming!"

...

Very abruptly, thunderclouds appeared in the sky above the desolate mountain peak of Cangshan.

And in an instant, the dark clouds rolled, covering a large nearby area with roaring thunderclouds, looking like an apocalyptic scene, with thick purple-red lightning snakes flashing within.

A solitary figure stood beneath those thunderclouds.

After pausing for an instant... she charged fiercely toward the foot of the mountain!

"That's a bit too exaggerated..."

Su Lun didn't know if Chikara had suddenly reached the realm of Sword Saint in the Divine Palace, but before she could only call for help when she couldn't win.

Now, seeing the soaring sword Qi, he knew she had succeeded.

This scene seemed familiar, almost like seeing that previous "Sword Saint" Akutagawa Ryuichi's corpseladen "Draw Sword Hell."

But differently, behind her was not a "Sword Hell" but a "Thunder Roaring Hell"!

And more astonishingly, there was still more to come.

Chikara charged down like lightning, and behind her the shadow of a six-armed Asura suddenly emerged. Unlike before, behind that shadow were now three hooked-jade-patterned thunder drums!

These were thunder drums condensed from pure elements; her movements caused the thunderclouds in the sky to respond to her, trailing fire and electricity as lightning mixed with sword intent covered her in a layer of flashing protective Gang Qi.

Her speed was incredibly fast, leaving a long trail of thunder light behind her.

Her momentum was like a thunder dragon descending from the heavens, fiercely cleaving down from the mountaintop.

Dominance on full display.

Su Lun saw this and his pupils suddenly contracted: "Chikara's also became dominant!"

This was the biggest hurdle for a sixth-stage professional, and she had finally crossed it.

In the blink of an eye, the thunder light had arrived.

Su Lun only heard a "clang" as the long sword was unsheathed, as if a profound sound had come from hell: "Single Sword Style - World Exile!"

Su Lun could only see a sharp flash of lightning zip by, as if the world in front of him had been split in two by the sword light.

The speed was so fast that it was impossible to react!

Looking again, the "Many-Faced Hair Ghost" that the Princess was struggling against had suddenly stiffened, its dozens of ferocious faces showing shock and fear.

At that moment, time seemed to have stopped.

A crack split from the center of the creature's faces, and then lightning flashed within the fracture. Immediately after, a bolt of purple lightning struck down from the sky. The heavens exploded in brightness, like a thunderous hell.

This "Ghost King," along with its tide-like black hair, also disintegrated into ash under the lightning.

Reduced to ashes.

The sound of breaking stones echoed by his ears, and looking again, a small hill a hundred meters behind the creature had been forcefully shaved off a chunk.

Chikara sheathed her sword, standing there lazily, lifted her eyebrows slightly, and muttered, "Sorry, I just grasped this 'Thunder Roaring Hell,' couldn't contain the sword Qi."