Mechanical Alchemist

After a day and a night of shelling, the morale of the magic airship fleet had greatly declined. However, just as the combined forces of the imperial fleet thought victory was within reach, suddenly, an angry old Mage descended upon the battlefield and disrupted the rhythm.

As soon as the old man in the white magic robe appeared, with just a few instant cast spells, he destroyed several main warships of Sea King-class tonnage, inflicting substantial losses on the allied fleet.

Seeing his power, where would the fleet not know that this must be strength above the ninth order?

Even because this old man had been causing trouble on Luying Main Island lately, wanted notices had already spread throughout the empire, and the staff officers recognized his identity at first glance.

"That's... the enemy's Demigod strongman has come! Be careful, that's the 'Archmage of Evil,' Constantine Reiloz mentioned in the intelligence reports!"

"Not good, that's Forbidden Curse magic, quickly inform the command post over there to intercept with the ten thousand Magician Group..."

"Eh, look quickly, someone blocked the Mage?"

"That's Mr. Hei from the Dawn Group, oh... that's the Dragon Language Magician Group!"

"My God, how can they be so strong? They actually withstood the attack from a Demigod strongman! That's much stronger than the ten thousand Mage Group."

"This must be His Majesty's secret move, haha... Dawn always brings surprises when they appear."

"..."

As soon as the old man appeared, the Eternal Night, hidden within the united fleet, also made its move. Mr. Hei, leading the ten thousand Mage Group, blocked a super wide-range Forbidden Curse spell, at least saving dozens of warships from being sunk.

However, under such absolute power suppression, all numbers are meaningless.

Even after Mr. Hei and the Dragon Language Magician Group had taken two full-blown spells from the Demigod, they were somewhat overwhelmed.

Fortunately, it didn't take long for a spatial fluctuation to flash, and several figures appeared on the deck of the Eternal Night.

At a closer look, several mysterious figures wearing Gold-Patterned Cloaks materialized out of nowhere.

Mr. Hei on the Eternal Night knew who the newcomers were and was not surprised.

But the soldiers of the united fleet burst into cheers.

"Look, those Gold-Patterned Cloaks... are the top combat forces of Dawn!"

"Haha, our reinforcements have arrived!"

"..."

The warriors' eyes brimmed with hot tears of excitement, these Gold-Patterned Cloaks... were the "legends" they had seen countless times in the newspapers!

...

There's no need to be merciful towards the enemy.

As soon as Su Lun made his appearance, looking at that old Mage in the sky, he unceremoniously took out the "Soul-Locking Lantern of Tartaros," intending to lock down the man's soul.

At the same time, Lei's reaction was extremely quick, already drawing his sword and charging forward with the speed of thunder.

Mr. Jing also turned into a beam of light, vanishing from his original spot.

The three wanted to repeat their old tactic, attempting the same method they used against the Grand Princess Octavia J. Fielding.

However, unexpectedly, Mage Constantine seemed to have been prepared. As his gaze hardened at the sight of the brass lantern, his figure eerily dispersed into illusions, dodging the soul light. He swiftly retreated a great distance, causing Lei's Sword Qi and Mr. Jing's attacks to miss.

Another look, and the old man had already transformed into a streak of light. In the blink of an eye, his silhouette flickering, he had disappeared into the horizon.

What Su Lun and the others hadn't expected was that this grand Demigod, without the slightest intent to fight, had chosen to flee.

Feeling the situation was tricky, Su Lun and the others promptly followed in pursuit.

In the blink of an eye, after chasing for dozens of miles, they realized they were already near the nearly one thousand magic airships of the divine realm.

There, the 'Archmage of Evil,' Constantine, was standing in the void in front of the airships, seemingly only then having the courage to stand firm.

And indeed, it was true.

Although Su Lun and his group had followed him, looking at the million Mage army behind the old man, they dared not approach any closer.

No matter how strong the few of them were, it was absolutely impossible to directly withstand the attack of a million Mage army.

...

As an Archmage, he had already reached the pinnacle of power in the Alchemy plane, and now this old man, pulling down the faces of the strong, had hidden behind a million-strong army, leaving Su Lun and his companions truly helpless.

At this moment, Constantine spoke up, "I think, we can negotiate. As long as you release Her Royal Highness Princess, we can agree to some exchange conditions."

The man had used the magic of Language Proficiency, and everyone understood what he was saying.

Mr. Jing's face was cold, with no response.

Lei was coldly watching the activating Formations on those airships, seemingly considering where he could find an entry point.

When Su Lun heard this, he didn't mince words, directly gripping the mummified Princess Octavia J. Fielding in his hand. Without further ado, he looked ready to tear up the hostage.

Negotiation was out of the question.

Even if the divine realm made the greatest concession possible and chose to retreat, there would be no benefit for the alchemy realm.

Once this important hostage was gone, the enemy would have no more concerns, and never again would such an opportunity to capture alive arise.

Interdimensional invasions were by nature battles to the death.

Moreover, the weaker party never had the right to negotiate terms.

But likewise, Su Lun and the others also temporarily didn't dare to kill Princess Oktaavia.

If they killed her, those guys from the divine realm would lose all restraint, possibly attacking Luying Main Island in a desperate act of revenge, resulting in a far more tragic great battle.

The enemy was clearly certain of this.

That's why the old mage could speak so composedly, wanting to negotiate.

To the rest of the magical legion, Princess Oktaavia was more important than their own lives due to her royal status.

But standing before them was Constantine, himself a demigod. In the divine Ascieden Empire, he was a big shot of the highest order, with far fewer concerns.

Besides, it wasn't anyone who could decide the fate of a divine maiden; that was the province of the gods.

Su Lun and the others had pursued her to see what value this bait still held.

Now, seeing the mages' attitude, ready for a forceful attack, it seemed there was no hope of success.

...

At the level of a demigod, schemes and plots almost had no effect.

Upon facing each other, they could already discern the other party's intentions.

Constantine, looking at the hostage in Su Lun's hands, knew that there was no room for negotiation. Decisive as ever, he scoffed and with a wave of his hand commanded, "Attack!"

Right then, a terrifying magical power fluctuation surged from the thousands of magical flying ships behind him; clearly, they were prepared, and multicolored spells were instantly cast.

Just a moment before, Mr. Jing's shoulder crow had already cawed a warning, alerting them to the imminent danger.

Mr. Jing, Su Lun, and Qiantiao all retreated explosively at the same time.

When they had arrived, Su Lun's Eye of Omniscience had already seen through everything, so they had not entered the ambush circle of the enemy.

This sudden retreat perfectly avoided the deadliest coverage area of the legion's magic.

Even though their reactions were so swift, a sky full of light bullets and countless beams of magic still came at them in a wide sweep, impossible to avoid.

To deal with these three, the million-strong magic legion was anything but stingy with their magic power, releasing an area attack terrifying enough to instantly kill any ninth-tier professional.

The fatal crisis was like a mountain collapse, making one's scalp numb from the pressure.

As they retreated, Mr. Jing raised both hands; the reflected light from her mirrors sent the magic that had touched her flying back.

Qiantiao, meanwhile, slashed out with three cuts, instantly cleaving apart several ninth-tier legion spells that had been coming at them from behind.

Su Lun teleported effortlessly.

In a flicker of light and shadow, upon looking again, the three were already several miles away.

The old Archmage Constantine looked on with furrowed brows but made no movement.

Almost immediately, both sides fell into a bizarre standoff.

The magic legion was too slow in teleporting, unable to give chase.

Though Constantine was powerful, he didn't dare to pursue alone.

On the other side, Su Lun and his companions also didn't dare to charge forward.

...

The two parties remained in a stalemate for a moment through the distance.

Constantine, looking at the trio from afar, his expression darkened, but he didn't hesitate any longer and turned back towards the fleet.

Upon looking again, the entire magical legion also ceased focusing on the three and continued their journey westward, heading for Luying Main Island. Despite losing some flying ships in the past two days of artillery warfare, they remained an invincible legion.

Now it was Su Lun and his companions who were left exchanging glances.

Qiantiao commented dispassionately, "This guy is a mighty demigod, yet he doesn't even dare to fight, just hiding away like that?"

They had waited these two days primarily to lure in this 'big fish' at the end.

She had thought there would be a great battle.

Yet, he'd chosen to avoid fighting altogether.

Now hidden within the million-strong legion's formation, even a few more demigods might not be able to break through.

Chian-Tiao could do nothing about it.

Su Lun's eyebrows knitted slightly as he murmured, "It seems that the deities of the Divine Plane have given up on Octavia. This has become troublesome."

They probably felt that she could no longer be rescued and decisively abandoned her.

And now, it's apparent the enemy intends to stick to the original plan, attacking Luying's homeland first to annihilate the alchemical civilization.

If it really came to a direct confrontation, even if the Alchemy Plane could win, it would be a pyrrhic victory.

A hint of solemnity flashed in Mr. Jing's eyes as he said indifferently, "Let's return to the Eternal Night and discuss our long-term plan."

As he spoke, the three of them had already vanished from the spot.

With a change of scenery around them, the three had returned to the deck of the Eternal Night.

No sooner had they returned than the ship's numerous cannons began a new round of fire coverage against the magic airship fleet, with the sound of artillery shaking the heavens.

Despite the busy endeavor, they had not been able to prevent the Divine Plane's total assault, but there was a silver lining: with Su Lun and the others on the fleet, there was no fear of the enemy's top warriors coming over for a beheading strike.

This also ensured that the artillery tactics could continue.

And from these fellows reaching Luying's homeland, if they spared no expense on ammunition, they could at least take out ten to twenty percent of the enemy's forces.

But aside from engaging in long-range artillery warfare, who would dare to clash head-on with a million-strong magic legion.

From the current perspective, the only option seemed to be to gather forces on Luying's homeland for a decisive battle.

Once again, the situation had fallen into a stalemate.

....

Not many knew about Chian-Tiao's message from the netherworld before, but now that she had safely returned and advanced to the ninth rank, it was indeed a cause for celebration.

Cheers erupted from the Dawn's crew on the deck.

Lolota, as her disciple, was especially thrilled, dancing with joy.

Since the Dawn team needn't get involved in the artillery fight, everyone on the ship gathered around Chian-Tiao, eager to hear about her experiences in the netherworld and to learn what exactly the realm of a ninth rank Sword Saint was.

A lively celebration was also prepared.

Whatever the circumstances, the Dawn team always maintained an optimistic outlook—a tradition.

Su Lun didn't mingle much with the festivities but instead returned to the captain's quarters.

Because there were some things he had to do immediately.

If the enemy didn't care about hostages, then keeping prisoners alive was pointless.

Even the body of a demigod was of great use.

Su Lun closed the door, set up an isolating formation, and proceeded to dispose of the demigod captive.

He wanted to extract the soul to strengthen himself and to obtain some necessary intelligence.

'You have extracted the soul of "Octavia J. Fielding"'

'You have acquired a vast amount of Holy Light-specific magic, Light Forbidden Spells, Elemental Experience +1124531'

'You have comprehended the "Elemental Forbidden Curse Secrets" and mastered a multitude of high-ranking elemental magic'

'You have gleaned insight into the "Rule of Light," understanding some of the mysteries of the "Magic God".'

'You have acquired intelligence: The details of Ascieden Empire's military deployment in the Alchemy Plane...'

'You have learned royal Ascieden Empire secrets: The Demon World Tower within the Royal Academy of Magic houses forbidden texts of a heretical sect, which contain secrets to ascending to godhood. It's taboo, and no one is allowed to peruse them...'

'You learned intelligence: Our Ascieden Empire's invasion of the Alchemy Plane is not going well, and it has displeased the great Sir Niedegro. The "Golden Griffon Empire" and the "Holy Crown Empire" have found out about the emergence of the plane's passage. If we cannot eradicate the alchemical indigenous civilization soon, the two empires will join forces to snatch and divide the wealth that should belong to Ascieden...'

'Spiritual Power +75542'

'...'

This extraction went as Su Lun had expected.

He had gained too many important benefits.

...

The body of the demigod truly was extraordinary, directly refined into 97% of the "Cosmic Sixth Essence: Light." With a little stock remaining, it totaled one complete essence.

There was also the demigod's profound understanding of the rules, which was a treasure beyond price for any ninth-order professional.

Comprehension of the rules required more than just talent.

Opportunity, guidance, foundation, resources... all are indispensable.

Even for someone like Mr. Jing, currently, the realm seems as unreachable as the heavens.

And within this Grand Princess's soul, there exists some matured thoughts about the "Rule of Light".

Even though the divine guidance is somewhat lacking, it still suddenly allowed Su Lun, an eighth-tier professional, to glimpse more secrets about rules.

However, these gains were all expected.

Su Lun had guessed so before the battle.

What he cared about more was some special information pilfered from Princess Oktaavia's soul.

In the room, within the center of a nine-pointed star formation.

"No wonder these guys are so anxious to attack, so there's this reason..."

Su Lun had also been puzzled as to why the people from the Divine Plane were so eager to attack, given that waiting a few more months for more experts would be more prudent. Yet now, even that Princess of the Empire had risked coming herself, resulting in her death on a foreign plane, which is clearly abnormal.

Now, looking into it, it turns out there was competition.

A shattered plane without even a demigod, for those mighty empires of the Divine Plane, is like a deer in a trap. Not particularly dangerous, yet a substantial piece of meat.

Years ago, the Ascieden Empire discovered the plane portal, originally monopolizing it. Unexpectedly, after several years, they still hadn't conquered the Alchemy Plane, and had also lost a million mages.

Now, it is estimated that the gods have also run out of patience, and the news has leaked out. The 'Golden Gryphon Empire' and the 'Holy Crown Empire' neighboring the Ascieden Empire are also about to join in.

To prevent competitors from seizing too much of their interests, they launched this total offensive prematurely.

Su Lun digested that segment of memory, his eyes reflecting solemnity as he thought, "This complicates things. There was one empire, now there are three. The enemies are multiplying..."

But on second thought, it didn't really matter.

Whether facing one enemy or three, it was more or less the same.

Anyway, without thoroughly resolving the issue of the plane portal, the war would never end.

The situation would also continue to worsen.

Su Lun also deliberately scoured the memory but found no information that could close the plane portal.

He then searched for some things he was more interested in.

It must be said, those mages previously stripped were mostly ordinary mages who only knew how to battle. It was the royal family that was qualified to possess some top-secret intelligence.

This Grand Princess Oktaavia provided Su Lun with secrets that the ordinary strata could not reach.

This also allowed him a deeper understanding of the Divine Plane.

"Heresy? The secrets to godhood?"

Su Lun pondered for a moment.

He had now touched the secrets of the rules, advancing to the ninth tier almost without any bottleneck.

He naturally also looked forward to whether there were ways to glimpse an even higher realm in the future.

This search indeed found some clues pointing towards the divine rank within the memories of Grand Princess Oktaavia.

"Becoming a god" might be one of the ways to break the stalemate, only by becoming powerful enough would he qualify to contend in future plane wars.

But for the Alchemy Plane, although the existence of gods is known, the path to divinity is almost completely unknown.

Even the legendary Sir Isaac had not left much useful information.

Moreover, to Su Lun's slight surprise, not every faction in the Divine Plane is of the godly order; there are also some "heretics".

And within what the Divine Plane calls "heretics", besides various followers of other gods, there are a small number of Alchemy magicians?

...

After a long while, Su Lun fully digested those memories and developed a keen interest in the Divine Plane, murmuring to himself from time to time, "The secrets of the higher planes are indeed numerous..."

But that interest was quickly submerged.

Compared to that, how to resolve the current grand decisive battle was the pressing issue.

"I need to quickly enhance my combat power. At present, the Ascieden Empire hastily marched, preparations are not adequately thorough, perhaps that million mage legion might just be breakable... Hmm, first to integrate the Constructs!"

Thinking this, Su Lun immediately took out the "Brain of the Bidirectional Void Worm" and a large pile of materials.

He planned to first craft the eighth-tier Constructs.

After integration, the final shortcoming of the endless puppet legion would be filled!