Dimensional Hotel-Chapter 164: Irene MK-II
You have to hand it to Foxy—her skills in welding with Fox Fire were top-notch. The flame, possibly imbued with some mystical demon fox arts, hissed and melted metal with precision. The resulting welds weren’t just functional; they carried a visual strength and beauty that surpassed anything a regular welding machine could achieve. Even better, she could both cut and weld seamlessly.
With brief instructions and preparations completed, sparks began flying across the alchemy platform. Several rebar rods were cut to varying lengths according to precise measurements, then positioned at designated points on the platform, marked by Yu Sheng. The rebars formed the outline of a doll’s skeletal frame. Foxy, with her many tails floating like a collection of anti-gravity robotic arms, adjusted angles and welded with remarkable accuracy. The sharp scent of molten metal filled the air, accompanied by the constant crackle of sparks, which illuminated Yu Sheng’s focused face.
Nearby, Irene sat expressionless, her drawing frame strapped to her back. The bright flashes of welding reflected on her petite face. Every few seconds, she couldn’t help but mutter, “This isn’t alchemy… This isn’t alchemy…”
“How is this not alchemy?” Yu Sheng, brimming with excitement, shot back at her grumbling. “Melting metal isn’t alchemy? Metal isn’t part of alchemy? Why can’t working with metals be considered alchemy?”
He plopped down beside Irene, gesturing toward the glowing scene on the alchemy array with a serene tone. “Look at that… the cyber fox immortal’s mystical arts, the secrets of alchemical tradition, and modern rebar. Isn’t there a certain…”
“…abstract beauty to it,” Irene interjected after some thought.
Yu Sheng nodded, a faint smile forming. “Exactly.”
The dazzling sparks finally subsided, and Foxy wiped at her forehead in a mock gesture of wiping sweat, even though none was there. Turning back, she waved cheerfully. “Benefactor! All done!”
“Great work, Foxy!” Yu Sheng clapped his hands in joy, standing up and pulling Irene up with him. “Enough talk about abstraction—time to get to the next step. Irene, take a look at the frame. See if it meets your standards.”
Still grumbling under her breath, Irene paused when her gaze fell on the completed structure.
At the heart of the alchemy array, resting quietly, was a skeletal doll frame welded together to the height of a normal adult.
She stared at it in disbelief for a long moment before finally snapping back to reality. She looked up at Yu Sheng. “You… this size…”
“I promised you, didn’t I? A solid 1.67 meters,” Yu Sheng replied, gently placing the little doll on the ground with a calm smile. “Now, time for the next step.”
“Awesome!!” Irene’s previous grumbles vanished instantly. She jumped up and clung to Yu Sheng’s arm, shaking it with glee. Then she ran to the spirit infusion node, urging him eagerly. “Hurry up! I want to see what you do next!”
Yu Sheng merely chuckled and got to work. For this stage, he abandoned traditional materials like clay or dough. For Irene’s specially designed “new body,” he had some bold ideas.
He scattered the prepared alchemy materials evenly over the welded rebar frame and across the surrounding platform. Then, drawing a knife, he sliced open a wound on the back of his hand, mixing his own blood with the materials and sprinkling it on the ground as well.
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Under the curious gaze of Irene and Foxy, Yu Sheng stepped back to the outermost ring of the concentric circles on the array. Taking a deep breath, he concentrated, crouched, and pressed his still-bleeding hand onto the platform.
A low tremor coursed through the platform. Soft scraping and shifting sounds emerged from deep within the rocks, as if the very earth was stirring from slumber.
Yu Sheng intended to use the soil and stone of this otherworldly valley to craft Irene’s new body.
After a few seconds of delay, the alchemy array’s center began to rise. The soil and rocks there moved as if alive, surging like molten substance to envelop the steel frame. Layer upon layer built up, producing a soft, rustling noise as it flowed and gathered.
Irene’s eyes widened as she watched.
“Living soil…” she murmured in astonishment. “He actually made it work?”
The animated earth worked rapidly, and soon, the skeletal figure lying at the center of the array began to take form.
Yu Sheng continued sculpting it with care. He carved out the fingers of the hands, molded a face, and adjusted the proportions of the body with meticulous precision. He sat next to the frame, using his own hands to refine the features little by little.
Compared to working with clay, this seemed far easier to manipulate.
“He’s… actually quite serious about this,” Irene whispered, tugging on one of Foxy’s tails. “He completely butchered my last body. I thought he was just winging it before.” 𝘙ΑℕỔΒΕṡ
“Benefactor has always been serious,” Foxy replied solemnly, watching the process intently. “It’s just that what he focuses on is… different from others.”
As Yu Sheng finished his final adjustments, he couldn’t help but feel surprised by how smoothly everything had gone. Faster and easier than he’d expected, the new doll body, crafted from steel, soil, and rock, now lay quietly on the ground. Though it hadn’t yet awakened, it radiated a lifelike presence, as if it could spring to life at any moment.
“Let me think… how did I do this last time?” Yu Sheng muttered, recalling his earlier attempts at creating Irene’s second body. “Right, guide the spirit infusion. That’s the key to bringing it to life…”
He reached out and gently pressed his hand to the doll’s forehead.
“Wake up.”
The stone surface began to pulsate.
“It’s time to come alive.”
The soil rippled softly.
“Are you ready to open your eyes—”
The steel frame shifted slightly. The once-soulless shell emitted faint breathing sounds—signs of life.
“Irene,” Yu Sheng called softly.
“Huh?” The little doll standing nearby instinctively responded. But in the next second, she felt her consciousness rapidly pulling away—part of it, at least. A new “link” surged into her awareness, causing a brief, unavoidable disorientation. She couldn’t make sense of her surroundings and only vaguely heard Yu Sheng’s startled “Huh?” followed by Foxy’s surprised gasp before losing awareness entirely.
It lasted only a couple of seconds before Irene successfully connected to and took control of her new body. She tentatively opened her eyes, confirming the presence of a third-person perspective.
“It worked!” the little doll exclaimed, stunned but delighted. She pushed herself up from the ground, standing triumphantly in the center of the array. Hands on her hips, she proudly looked up at Yu Sheng and Foxy. “I can’t believe it worked, Yu Sheng! You might actually have a knack for alchemy. Look at me, 1.67 meters tall with long le—”
She froze mid-sentence, something clearly amiss.
Yu Sheng looked unnaturally tall. Foxy looked just as tall as before.
Slowly, she lowered her gaze, glancing at the ground, which was far too close. Then, shifting her perspective to the other body outside the array, she caught sight of her new form. After a moment of processing, realization struck her like a lightning bolt.
“Why am I still this short?!”
“I don’t know!” Yu Sheng was equally baffled. “Right before you opened your eyes, this body was still 1.67 meters tall! Then, right before my eyes, it just started shrinking. I didn’t even have time to react—it’s barely half a meter tall now! Foxy can vouch for me. I didn’t do anything!”
The demon fox girl enthusiastically nodded. “I swear, Benefactor didn’t do a thing! You shrank all on your own!”
Irene stood motionless, processing the absurdity. Just as Yu Sheng began worrying that the shock might be too much for her, she suddenly erupted in frustration.
“No, why… WHY?! It was already crafted to be 1.67 meters tall! It had already started coming alive! Why did it shrink the moment I entered it?! How is this fair?!”
Yu Sheng silently took several steps back, retreating to Foxy’s side. He muttered under his breath, “We should probably avoid provoking her…”
Before he could finish, the other Irene—the original body—turned her head sharply, inhaled deeply, and roared, “WHY IS THIS HAPPENING?!”
Yu Sheng sighed, turning to Foxy. “I forgot there’s still another one…”
What followed was chaos. The two Irenes began running in circles, first around the array, then around Yu Sheng, grumbling endlessly. One moment, they lamented their fate; the next, they decried the struggles of being a doll. They bounced between accusing Yu Sheng’s clumsiness and speculating that their souls were defective. After six or seven laps, Yu Sheng’s head was spinning. He thought to himself, Even a seasoned investigator hearing the ramblings of an elder god couldn’t feel worse than this…
Finally, by the tenth lap, Foxy couldn’t take it anymore. With a flick of her tails, she wrapped both diminutive Irenes tightly, silencing them. “You’re too noisy,” the demon fox declared.
Bound by the fluffy tails, the two half-meter-tall dolls squirmed helplessly. They mumbled a few final complaints before falling silent, gazing at Yu Sheng with a mix of despair and resignation.
“Am I going to stay this short for the rest of my life?” Irene, the original body with the drawing frame, asked, her voice mournful.
“Why did this happen…” muttered the steel-rebar Irene, her eyes brimming with tears.
Yu Sheng had no idea how to console them. He muttered a vague reassurance, “It’s just a temporary setback… Look, I’ve already come up with so many strange alchemy methods. Maybe next time, I’ll manage to create a properly proportioned body for you. Maybe the shrinking is related to the materials. Or maybe it’s because that rose oil I used wasn’t reliable… Next time, I’ll avoid buying stuff from discount stores.”
The rebar Irene froze for a moment before leaping out of Foxy’s tail in outrage. She lunged at Yu Sheng’s arm, screaming, “Discount store?! Last time, you said it was from a ten-dollar store!”
The next second, Yu Sheng discovered what made this angry little doll different from before—
Rebar arms are seriously strong.
Those tiny claws pinched like a vise!
