Mechanical Alchemist-Chapter 406 - 405: Advance to Level 5

The members of the Dawn Group cleared out all the valuable items from Laboratory Zero.

Dr. Banks was eager to return to the minor void realm.

He wanted to research the newly acquired experimental data, hoping to quickly develop the "Void Gene Potion" that would then be tailored for each member of the Dawn Group according to their ranks, allowing everyone to integrate void armors and advanced materials.

The effects of this potion were incredibly exaggerated, as it directly altered a person’s genetic sequence and permanently increased their affinity for the void.

In layman’s terms, it meant making the impossible possible by force.

This potion allowed professionals to integrate higher-tier void materials beyond their own tolerance.

For instance, Qian Tiao, who originally at rank five could only barely integrate the dark-gold quality "Void Ghost Hand," but with the potion amplifying her void affinity, she could integrate legendary-quality materials. This boost to her combat power was tantamount to an increase by a good half a rank. Additionally, after her void affinity increased, she could more easily comprehend and master various spatial law sword techniques in her Sword Dao.

Su Lun had three vials of the "Void Gene Potion essence" as finished products, which he planned to integrate right there in the cursed space.

This also added an extra layer of security.

Originally, his plan was to follow those from the North Sea Fleet into the exploration, quietly secure some benefits, and then sneak back out with the crowd, likely going unnoticed.

But he hadn’t expected that Princess Stika would also send a squadron of mechanical warriors.

And now, they were all annihilated.

This situation was different from the original plan.

To be precise, aside from some war slaves still alive in Su Lun’s minor void realm, almost all the adventurers this time had perished.

So, the number of those who could survive and get out were few.

The moment he appeared, he would definitely become a prime target for attention.

With hundreds of thousands of pirates outside, Su Lun, now only at rank four, had no expectations of causing trouble in the North Sea Fleet’s void stronghold.

Even if he could release the members of Dawn, battling in the secret realm would surely end in mutual destruction.

Thus, Su Lun planned to digest the potion, calculating enough time for him to integrate the "Voidwalker’s Portal."

By then, moving directly to rank five, his chances of survival would skyrocket by dozens of times.

...

Dr. Banks still needed many materials to create the potions, so Su Lun released all combat personnel of the Dawn Group.

Since the ultimate boss of the cursed space was defeated, and the planar gateway was completely closed, there was no more danger in this cursed space.

Qian Tiao and Barrett led the Dawn Group members, forming several tactical squads to go to the experimental area inside the planar gateway and scrape up materials. With their investigator status, the NPCs wouldn’t interfere. After all, with the void invasion now truly happening, searching for materials was more justified than ever.

The academy zone outside had fattened an entire North Sea void fleet, what more in a "T-level area" previously from the planar gateway?

This place held too many treasures and secrets to unearth.

Everyone was very enthusiastic.

Su Lun stayed behind in Laboratory Zero.

It was safe enough here, and no one would disturb him.

The crow had eaten itself into a stupor, unable to fly and sprawled out in the corner with its belly swollen.

Su Lun paid no mind to the foolish bird, took a moment to regulate his breathing, and then took out a potion, administering a sharp shock to his own arm.

The blue potion slowly entered his muscles, quickly bringing a chilling sensation into his bloodstream. He soon felt a dreamy scent drilling into his body’s organs and bones, the effect overwhelming his brain, making him hallucinate that he had turned into a plump insect.

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Su Lun knew this was the residual substance from the Matriarch Worm in the potion, signaling the onset of mutation.

Normally, if a professional remained immersed in such altered hallucinations without emerging, his body would mutate.

However, Su Lun had a Fallen Angel gene modification inside him, which caused the insect-like hallucination to vanish as quickly as it had appeared.

As the potency of the medicine gradually fused into his bloodstream, a new sequence was added to his genetic chain on a microscopic level.

As time passed, the chilly sensation became clearer and clearer, and Su Lun felt as if he were merging with the void itself.

Having previously merged with void materials at the second tier, he was quite familiar with this feeling. This indicated an enhancement of his void affinity.

.....

Time passed quietly.

In that moment, Su Lun abruptly opened his eyes, and it seemed as if the entire dazzling starry sky was hidden within his pupils.

"It worked!"

A slight joy rose in Su Lun’s heart.

It was also within expectations.

With a 95% probability, and a stable mindset, failure was nearly impossible.

He checked his pocket watch, almost eight hours had passed since he injected the potion.

Su Lun then checked his data panel, the first wave of the drug’s potency surged his void affinity from a value of 124 to 765, far surpassing his affinity for any other element.

Moreover, this "Void Gene Potion Essence" would continue to increase his void affinity over the coming months, potentially raising it well above a value of 1000.

"Truly potent... there’s probably no other potion in this era with such an effect. The Dawn Era truly was the pinnacle of alchemy!"

Su Lun inwardly exclaimed.

He had previously studied affinity values in detail and estimated that pure elemental talents like "A-001-Pyromancer" had an innate fire affinity around 1500. He now nearly crafted himself half a spatial element talent.

This was the formidable aspect of alchemy, able to compensate for human weaknesses with external objects.

Those ancient alchemists had also relied on these miraculous secret techniques to create a gloriously brilliant civilization.

However, Su Lun also distinctly felt that after injecting this potion, his body had reached its limit, seemingly unable to endure any more foreign gene amplifications.

This completely matched with one of Dr. Banks’ theories under research. He had once said that the essence of human mutation was the fragile body’s inability to withstand foreign genes. But the stronger the body, the more it could endure.

A thought immediately crossed Su Lun’s mind: "After the body becomes stronger, perhaps it can merge with other gene potions? No wonder Mr. Jing always says that in the domain of top-tier professionals, the physical body is essential..."

He didn’t dwell on it much longer and once again took out the "Voidwalker’s Portal" to appraise it.

This time, because both his void endurance and affinity had significantly increased, the displayed fusion success rate had now become 83%.

Su Lun laughed and continued to assimilate the energy, which should increase his affinity significantly, making the possibility of advancing to the fifth tier even higher.

He once again immersed himself in meditation.

He had originally estimated it would take several hours, but unexpectedly, just after he closed his eyes, Su Lun suddenly felt a familiar spatial fluctuation.

He was now very sensitive to spatial energy and could clearly discern that strange feeling, as if space itself was collapsing.

"Spatial Dimension Reduction?"

Su Lun instantly recognized the ability and abruptly opened his eyes.

He thought it was the "Bisect Worm" monster that hadn’t been completely killed, but upon closer inspection, the source of the spatial collapse was actually the bird that predicts death.

"What’s wrong with you?"

Su Lun looked at the bird in front of him, his eyes trembling.

Its belly had indeed shrunk quite a bit, but the previously glossy feathers had now turned into flat black lines.

It looked as if... drawn with an ink brush.

Very strange!

Having seen the Bisect Worm undergo dimension reduction before, Su Lun knew exactly what was happening.

Had the foolish bird been gluttonous and mutated?

Hearing its master’s question, the bird turned its dim little eyes toward him and cawed, "Gaga" saying: uncomfortable.

Su Lun twitched his eyelids, "Did you mutate?"

But no sooner had he asked the question than the crow’s little eyes shifted, revealing a look that seemed to mock its silly master, and lazily cawed: How could the great lord crow mutate?

Su Lun then confirmed it.

The foolish bird hadn’t mutated but had indeed become cunning.

Previously, it couldn’t show such cheeky emotional fluctuations in its eyes.

Perhaps this sly creature was getting back at him for always calling it a ’foolish bird’, and now it was even mocking its master?

Su Lun didn’t mind at all. Read exclusive content at novelbuddy

Even if it had mutated, this silly bird wouldn’t die, and that didn’t need anyone’s worry.

Su Lun looked at its wings, which were becoming two-dimensional, and realized this was a manifestation of the bird’s ability.

The innate ability of the bird that predicts death is to grow by consuming decay, acquiring some of the deceased’s abilities.

Moreover, legend has it that it’s a spectral bird wandering in the god’s graveyard.

The flesh it ate was the flesh of gods.

Eating the flesh of a near-god-tier Matriarch Worm wouldn’t cause it to mutate.

The crow seemed not to have any intention of mutating; it was purely overeating. Su Lun affirmed this and left it alone, instead looking forward to whether the bird could master that dimension-reducing ability.

If it could, that would truly be formidable.

Soon, the potion was almost fully assimilated, and Su Lun took out the rune stone door, beginning his attempt to advance to the fifth tier.

....

One day later.

The Dawn Group members all returned to Laboratory Zero together.

Seeing the uncontrollable excitement on everyone’s faces, Su Lun knew they must have gained a great deal this time.

"Hahaha... Teacher, you have no idea, we’ve gathered so many treasures. My God, this has been the most unforgettable exploration experience of my life!"

"Yes, yes! Mr. Su Lun, look, I found a gold-grade Void material! Wow, once Dr. Banks researches the potion, I can directly merge it. Oh, I’ll be invincible among my equals as soon as I can merge with a gold material!"

"Pfft—Tanni, you can’t even beat me, and you talk about invincibility at your tier, aren’t you embarrassed?"

"Lolota, I can’t beat you now, but I definitely will later!"

"..."

The group of youngsters crowded around Su Lun as soon as they entered, chattering excitedly about their adventure experiences.

Void materials are the premium choice for any practitioner. Now, every member of the Dawn Group either had one or several, and combined with the "Genetic Potion", merging would definitely crush their peers. Indeed, this was an exciting matter.

At least, Su Lun had been just as thrilled when he had advanced to the second tier and acquired the "Magician’s Top Hat".

Su Lun: "Alright, everyone go to the ’Little Void Realm’ for now."

This was their seventieth hour in this cursed space, and they would soon prepare to leave.

The will of the space hadn’t dissipated yet, but once they stepped out, the cursed space would collapse immediately.

The anomaly outside would be massive, and the Northern Sea Fleet would surely surround it with heavy troops.

Having more people would actually be disadvantageous for their retreat.

The crowd: "Yes."

Suren performed a Suren Sorcerer’s Seal, and a doorway allowing passage in and out of the space appeared with a clap, and the Dawn Group members entered one after another.

Qian Tiao, seeing him instantly cast what was originally a difficult technique, felt quite surprised and teased, "Yo, you can cast this technique instantly now?"

In the underworld, she had watched Su Lun comprehend this "Void Whale Swallow" ability. Prior to yesterday, forming this technique required squeezing a series of seals for a long time, so its instantaneity naturally surprised people.

Su Lun smiled, "Yeah, I barely reached the fifth tier. My state isn’t very stable yet."

After merging with the "Voidwalker’s Portal", he would need another month or two to assimilate the materials for professional advancement, but it was barely enough for emergencies now.

Qian Tiao thought of something and asked, "Did you use that cursed ’stone door’ from before?"

Su Lun nodded: "Hmm."

Hearing this, Qian Tiao gave Su Lun a thorough once-over: "Wow, your recent advancement seems to have awakened a very formidable ability, huh?"

Because they were very familiar with each other, she clearly sensed a magnificent change in Su Lun, giving him an ephemeral and elusive aura.

Su Lun noncommittally shrugged his shoulders, "I grasped the ’Voidwalker’s’ unique teleportation ability."

Qiān Tiáo cast a curious glance, "Oh?"

Su Lun didn’t hide anything; he thought for a moment, took out an engraved dagger, and then, in front of Qiān Tiáo, he threw the dagger.

While Qiān Tiáo was still puzzled about what he was doing, her expression suddenly hardened.

Because at that moment, she watched as Su Lun, who was right in front of her, suddenly disappeared, and a figure appeared next to the dagger flying out several meters away.

It was not "Teleportation," nor were there any sorcerer’s seals for spatial displacement. She even hadn’t perceived any spatial fluctuations.

Qiān Tiáo understood some principles of this technique and exclaimed in surprise, "You used spatial runes for marking, and then performed fixed-point teleportation?"

Su Lun smiled and said, "Yes."

Qiān Tiáo suddenly thought of a shocking possibility and exclaimed again, "Does that mean you can mark anywhere and then teleport to that point?"

A glint crossed Su Lun’s eyes as he nodded, "Theoretically, yes. As long as the energy is sufficient, I can mark any distance for teleportation. Even in the future, if I become strong enough, I could perform spatial displacements between planes."

Qiān Tiáo pondered for a moment before remarking, "This ability is really heaven-defying!"

As she spoke, she looked at Su Lun with a teasing gleam in her eye, "It really suits you, kid. Whether you can beat others or not, with this ability, even professionals a rank or two higher than you wouldn’t be able to kill you..."

"Indeed."

Su Lun grinned broadly.

This was the powerful capability of the material used for advancing the "Voidwalker’s Portal."

After advancement, it would exponentially increase Su Lun’s ability to survive by dozens of times.

Moreover, it had a very convenient feature, which was fixed-coordinate teleportation.

For example, if Su Lun established a fixed spatial coordinate in the Emerald Holy Land of the Dalu tribe, he could teleport there anytime to see Yuta; or if he set a spatial coordinate in the Mountain Hermit’s Edo, whenever he thought of it, he could go and chat with the Princess...

However, this scenario was just hypothetical, as ultra-long-distance teleportation also consumed a terrifying amount of energy.

With his current strength, Su Lun couldn’t manage it. He could use the "shattered dimensional crystal nucleus" he had previously obtained, but using such a precious material just for traveling would be purely wasteful.

...

All of them entered the small void realm, and after chatting for a few moments, Qiān Tiáo also prepared to go inside.

Su Lun didn’t plan to wait for seventy-two hours exactly to go out; leaving one or two hours early would catch that group of pirates by surprise.

Just then, he formed a Necromancer’s Mark and summoned a black crow.

However, the instant the black bird appeared, Qiān Tiáo’s expression sharply tensed, and an instinctual sense of crisis made her rest her hand on her sword hilt.

Because she saw a very strange bird—it appeared as if cut out from a sketch, a completely two-dimensional creature!

She naturally thought of the dimensional-reducing monster Su Lun had mentioned right away.

Su Lun looked at her cautious demeanor and smiled. Before he could explain, the black bird parroted in a flattering voice, "Qiān Tiáo sister, one of us! Qiān Tiáo sister, one of us!"

Qiān Tiáo raised an eyebrow at this, "This bird of yours?"

Su Lun facepalmed, "This is that silly bird. It’s learned the ’dimensional reduction’ ability. Oh... and it’s learned to talk as well."

He had found out just a few hours ago.

After digesting that piece of meat, the bird seemed to have grown overnight; not only could it talk like a parrot, but its intelligence had also increased significantly.

Most importantly, it had now become a "Two-Dimensional Raven," possessing the ability to reduce dimensions.

Clearly understanding this, the black raven immediately cheekily corrected Su Lun’s words, "It’s Raven Lord! It’s Raven Lord!"

Qiān Tiáo: "..."

Su Lun: "..."

Qiān Tiáo, astonished, asked the black raven in a peculiar tone, "Raven Lord, you can talk now?"

The black raven flapped its wings excitedly, responding, "Caw caw caw~"

It could talk, but not fully.

Seeing Qiān Tiáo’s intrigued expression, Su Lun warned, "Don’t touch it. It’s not proficient with that ’dimensional reduction’ ability yet, be careful not to get dimensionally reduced."

"Hahaha..."

Qiān Tiáo’s laughter grew even more radiant.

Becoming well-acquainted with the bird through Su Lun, she knew it used to be really silly.

Now that it could talk and even act cheekily, it seemed like there was suddenly much more fun to be had.

As there was still a chance to tease it later, Qiān Tiáo didn’t linger further on this subject, and waved at the black raven, "Raven Lord, see you in a bit~"

The black raven flapped its wings happily, "Caw caw~"

Watching Qiān Tiáo enter the small void realm, Su Lun also closed the black hole in his hand.

He glanced at the black raven and said, "Silly bird, let’s go."

Watching Su Lun walking towards the door, the black raven followed, flapping its wings and continued to mutter, "It’s Raven Lord! Raven Lord!"

Su Lun: "Got it, Raven Lord!"

....

With the brass clockwork sphere in his hand, Su Lun controlled all the restrictions of the academy; he didn’t need to use the old methods to exit but could leave anytime he wished.

He passed through the library to the outside of the academy, then took out the brass sphere.

A flash of restriction light, and the scene of the "Tokster Alchemy Academy" began to gradually dissipate.

This was a sign of the curse space collapsing.

This commotion lasted for nearly half a minute. Watching the environment change around him, Su Lun reappeared within the ruins of the academy, already back in the real world.

It was still near that spatial fissure.

However, unlike when he had entered, the pupil-like twisted space in the sky had disappeared.

"Eh... look what’s going on there. Isn’t the cursed space still supposed to open in more than an hour?"

"The twisted space has collapsed, the cursed space has been breached! God, quickly inform the boss and Her Royal Highness Princess!"

"Major General Jina really broke through this T-level cursed space! Oh, this is unbelievable; who knows how many treasures will appear this time!"

"Haha, there definitely won’t be just a few. Such a large-scale cursed space must contain top-tier treasures and at least yield many ’sealed items’ quality treasures."

"Tsk tsk... I wonder how many of those who went in will survive."

"Eh... Doesn’t look like many did? Only twelve... Wait, didn’t Major General Tanni survive, only a few slaves came out alive?!"

"Something went wrong! Everyone, be alert!"

"..."

The pirates were no fools; the collapse of the cursed space definitely meant someone had broken it.

Moreover, as the main force, Major General Tanni and her group did not survive, only a few slaves did, which was quite thought-provoking.

Those who came out alive, must be within these slaves who broke the cursed space.

...

Su Lun hadn’t fully grasped the surroundings when the raucous noise of the group of pirates reached his ears, it seemed like many pirates were heading their way.

In his soul perception, there were a dozen or more people who had been teleported out with him.

Clearly, those lucky ones must have avoided entering the spatial channel and stayed hidden for three days before being transported out together.

The moment the group was teleported out, numerous murderous intents locked onto them.

At the same time, the pirates yelled in terror.

"Watch out for the rocket launcher!"

"Get out of the way!"

"Damn it! Those two are infiltrated spies!"

"..."

Su Lun’s attire, identical to that of the slaves, did not attract attention.

But not far from him, two zombies had launched a barrage from rocket launchers slung over their shoulders. The rockets, emitting long flames, exploded towards the crowd; the mechanical skeletons had six launchers in total, firing twelve projectiles at once. Five rockets blasted amidst the crowd, two hit buildings, and five shot towards the distant sky, leaving a long white trail of smoke, vanishing in the blink of an eye.

The two zombies had but a moment to trigger the launcher before several controlling spells immediately descended, subduing "both" on the spot.

Not far away, Princess Stika and the fleet commander of the Void Fleet, Samikina, had just hurried over amid a crowd.

They had rushed over intermixed with ecstasy and anticipation after hearing that someone had broken the cursed space, but did not expect to witness this chaotic scene of flying rockets.

And it was during the distraction caused by the rockets that the two zombies were controlled in that instant.

In the crowd, Su Lun crushed a small piece of spatial crystal in his hand and formed a sorcerer’s seal with his fingers, "Teleport!"

Fleet Commander Samikina sharply sensed the spatial fluctuation and instantly spotted Su Lun’s unusual action in the crowd, shouting, "Careful, that man is trying to escape!"

As he spoke, he had already teleported into the midst of a group of slaves, reaching his hand out to stop Su Lun engaging the spell!

Unfortunately, it was too late!

The [Planar Crystal Source] skipped all elemental condensation processes, allowing Su Lun to nearly instantaneously release the spell.

"Such a quick response, as expected of a seventh-tier professional..."

Smirking coldly, he watched the large hand almost within reach; a moment slower, and the [Spatial Confinement] spell would have detained him.

Samikina sensed something, his face suddenly changing. He turned to the southwest and roared, "Quick, chase after them!"

....

The scenery flashed around him, and Su Lun found himself in the sky.

Next to him, a rocket was flying, and upon close inspection, the rocket was engraved with spatial runes.

Su Lun’s lips curved slightly, thinking, "Tsk tsk... done."

This was exactly as he had anticipated.

His "teleporting rocket", catching the group of pirates off guard.

Probably no one expected him to have such a capability.

In just that instant, the rocket had already flown past much of the decrepit academy. Even a seventh-tier professional could no longer pursue him.

To be on the safe side, Su Lun took out the rocket launcher again and fired two more rockets in different directions. After the rockets flew for a while, he teleported away again.

Although this way of retreating consumed a bit of regular spatial crystal, it was virtually without any risk.

Once he reached the sea area, the large numbers of pirates became irrelevant.

They couldn’t find him before, and now they had even less chance.

....

Meanwhile, in the ruins of the academy.

Princess Stika had been watching Fleet Commander Samikina and a group of pirates chasing out of the city for quite some time, still seemingly clueless about what had happened.

The cursed space had been broken...

Someone had escaped right before her...

And that person took the treasures!

After a moment of stupor, her charming face was left with nothing but the cold frost of rage.

She had never imagined that someone would dare to escape right under her nose.

"Damn it! At any cost, I must find those guys!"

"Notify Oleg, block the North Sea!"

"Tell those at the temple, no matter what it costs, I want to know where those people are!"