Mechanical Alchemist-Chapter 537 - 536 Female Dragon Knight

Top materials are mostly from the hands of top experts, and the treasures in "Dragon Hunter" Bartolo Figaro’s storage ring would absolutely make anyone jealous.

Three Dragon Crystals of pure blood, dozens of tier-six and above sub-dragon crystals, and more than a hundred other high-tier magical beast crystal cores, along with some rare materials that can’t be bought on the market.

Just these materials, if taken to any of the auction houses in either of the two great empires of Luying and Mafa, could potentially buy several of the most elite fleets.

Unfortunately, the capacity of the storage ring was limited, and he didn’t carry much with him. When Su Lun said he needed these materials, the old man took them all out.

Bartolo had nothing to lose, and at the end of his life, he didn’t plan to take these things with him to the grave.

Su Lun didn’t just take advantage of him, he took out treasures that filled several storage rings.

These materials were not available on the market, so their value couldn’t be precisely ascertained, but clearly the gesture of goodwill was more important than their value.

Bartolo obviously had no interest in gold and silver treasures but accepted them nonetheless.

Seeing those treasures of the transaction, he became even more certain that the young man before him was no ordinary adventurer. Merely his wealth was mind-boggling.

The old man also mentioned that if there was a chance later, he would ask someone to deliver those materials stored elsewhere.

Su Lun was naturally delighted. He stored these precious materials into the mini-void realm, and immediately, the war workshop and Dr. Banks’s laboratory were bustling again.

...

Su Lun had not expected that tonight’s originally thrilling night raid would turn into such a grand opportunity.

Meeting Bartolo not only gave him crucial and valuable intelligence but also brought him many precious materials.

While it was an exchange, it was more of a gift from the old veteran out of sentimental reasons.

But Bartolo did not intend to stay; after speaking, he prepared to leave.

Su Lun noticed his indifference towards the dragon knights, but he was a bit puzzled since Commander Bennett was quite easy to get along with, so he asked directly, "Senior, do you not get along with the Miracle Legion?"

Bartolo shook his head and said, "It’s not about them. The royal family is wary of me, and I don’t wish to be overly entangled with them."

Upon hearing this, Su Lun immediately understood.

An eighth-tier "Sword Saint" like Bartolo, with unfathomable combat power, probably had no one stronger than him in the whole Dragon Country.

As the supreme king, such a powerful being, if not under his control, would naturally be a source of concern.

Even if he was friendly with his own knights, it would lead to suspicions.

Bartolo did not intend to explain further. Being an unconstrained Great Pirate with no interest in power, he simply said, "These knights are quite good. But the Silver Dragon royal family is decadent and not any good ruler. Be careful on your trip to the capital. The antidote formula for the Petrifying Potion is in the hands of the white-robed wizard Garcia, whose sister is Queen Greysi the Eighth of the Silver Dragon Country."

As he spoke, the old swordsman seemed to think of something, glancing once more at the distant campfire before adding, "You had better be cautious. There might be something wrong with the person in that prisoner carriage. If possible, it’s best not to accompany the carriage."

"..."

Su Lun also grew solemn as he listened, well aware that there might be problems with the prisoner carriage.

But what others did not know was that it wasn’t just the prisoner carriage that could be problematic; he himself could be as well.

He asked, "Senior, what exactly is the situation with that prisoner carriage?"

Bartolo seemed reluctant to delve into royal gossip, but hearing that Su Lun was heading to the capital, he shared a bit more, "You should know about Queen Deborah being struck by the Petrifying Curse, and now, there are news everywhere about searching for materials to concoct an antidote, right?"

Su Lun nodded.

Bartolo continued, "How Queen Deborah was cursed, no news has leaked out yet. But you should be aware of the noble’s schemes. Whenever news is blocked, it’s definitely because there are scandals that can’t stand the light of day."

After pausing, he added, "Furthermore, as far as I know, Queen Deborah is extremely jealous by nature. She has played unbecoming roles in several internal court conflicts out of jealousy, and being from the witch heritage of the Haydon family, she herself is a witch not weak in power, skilled in Curse Magic..."

Su Lun listened to these royal scandals with a slightly altered expression.

Indeed, no matter where, the nobility always had these machinations.

On hearing the queen was a witch, he instantly understood something.

As far as Su Lun knew, there were only two methods to be cursed with petrification: the first was being cursed by Medusa, and the second was through an item capable of casting a Petrifying Beam, the "Serpentine Staff of Medusa."

Regardless of which situation it was, if Queen Deborah’s curse was linked to "Helen" in the prisoner carriage, the situation became very delicate.

Seeing that Su Lun seemingly understood, Bartolo spoke no more, stating, "All of these are just my speculations. I don’t know the truth, nor am I interested in finding it out. But when I was near the prisoner carriage earlier, my instincts sensed danger. So, I’m just giving you a heads-up. In any case, be cautious."

Su Lun, thoughtful, nodded, "Hmm. Thanks for the warning, senior."

After finishing, Bartolo had no intention of staying any longer and said, "I have some arrangements to make, I will come and find you again in a few days. If by then you still plan to visit the Old Dragon Kingdom Ruins, I might accompany you for a part of the journey."

With that, he turned and walked towards the forest.

Su Lun was pleased and did not say much more, "Take care, senior."

...

After Bartolo left, Su Lun and Qiantiao walked back to the camp unhurriedly.

After all, he was their guest, and even if he was to leave, he needed to inform the host.

Su Lun looked at Qian Jiao beside him, whose sword intent uncontrollably spilled out from time to time, giving him a chilling sense of danger. This was a situation he had never seen before, so he asked, "Sister Qian Jiao, how do you feel?"

"I’m fine."

Qian Jiao’s eyes were somewhat scattered as she occasionally glanced at the sword manual in her hand, seemingly immersed in some profound enlightenment. She said, "Just now, Bartolo Figaro broke through with the Sword Intent of Divine Path No Thoughts, and he showed me the Sword Dao beyond the Sword Saint. This makes me feel quite wonderful. If I can hold onto this enlightenment, perhaps I can stand firm in this high realm..."

Listening to this, Su Lun felt relieved, and he also marveled at her perceptiveness.

Previously, Mr. Jing had commented on Qian Jiao’s extraordinary sword Dao talent, and just now, Bartolo said the same thing.

Anyway, this bout of sparring was half-understood by Su Lun, but obviously, Qian Jiao had comprehended something on her own.

This was good news, and Su Lun didn’t dwell on it too much.

His mind recalled Bartolo’s warning that the royal family of the Silver Dragon Country was not easy to handle, and this trip to the capital might not go smoothly.

Moreover, the "Helen" in that prison carriage was all mysterious.

She must be exceedingly beautiful to have prompted the King of Silver Dragon Country to wage war for her.

But aside from her looks, what does she have to do with the Queen’s curse?

Suddenly, Su Lun thought of something and realized, "Oh... right! When in doubt, I can ask my senior sister!"

Thinking this, he hesitated no longer and dialed the communicator, saying, "Senior sister, are you busy? I have something to consult you about."

From the other end of the communicator, a familiar and indifferent response came, "I’m taking a bath."

Hearing this response, Su Lun knew she wasn’t busy, so he directly shared some previous situations and his own speculations, "Um... do you know about the petrifying demoness? I’ve encountered some situations here..."

Before coming to Dragon Country, Medusa was just a mythical legend in the books. Previously, he had asked Mr. Hei, the scholar, and hadn’t obtained any useful information, so he thought of consulting Mr. Jing, the "mobile database."

With this question, his own senior sister indeed knew!

Mr. Jing’s ability to duplicate knowledge allowed her to retain almost all the knowledge she had ever come across.

Plus, she also had a well-connected demigod as her father.

Mr. Jing said, "You mean, you suspect that ’Helen’ is related to the tribe of Medusa?"

Su Lun voiced his doubts, "Yes. If the petrification curse was cast using ’Medusa’s Serpentine Staff’, then the user would also suffer from the curse’s backlash. But if not, I can’t figure out how the Queen got cursed."

After listening, Mr. Jing proposed a third possibility, "Have you considered... the backlash of Curse Magic? The Queen herself is a curse witch, she might have used some curse due to jealousy and then got backlashed? If that’s the case, then for ’Helen,’ I can think of another possibility. My father once told me about a legend concerning the metamorphosis process of demigod bloodlines..."

Su Lun felt as if a flash of insight passed through his mind, "Ah?"

Mr. Jing said, "The tribe of Medusa is of a demigod lineage. They are offspring of the union between the Earth God and the Father of All Monsters. Because they were tainted by the mortal filth, they did not possess immortal bodies. My father once saw in an ancient ruins fresco some ancient legends. It said that Medusas, upon reaching the upper limit of the plane rank, would use some method to ’go through tribulations.’ They would endure war, lust, jealousy, brutality, insult, curses...and so on, bearing numerous hardships. Eventually, they become wicked, until slain by a true hero. At that time, they would completely shed their mortal coils and transform into the wicked ’Queen Medusa’..."

Su Lun felt as if things were getting more serious, "Queen Medusa? What rank is that?"

Mr. Jing explained, "These mythical creatures of demigod lineage shouldn’t be measured by ordinary standards. You can regard them as having the same combat power as a dragon. An eighth-rank Medusa can petrify almost any creature of this plane. And a ninth rank is the true sense of a demigod; only then are they called ’Medusa’."

"..."

Listening to Mr. Jing’s explanation, Su Lun felt as if a thread in his mind connected all those pieces of fragmented information.

...

Bartolo had also said that he could kill that seventh-rank Medusa not because he was stronger than her.

But because both had the ability to instantly kill each other.

This kind of victory purely depended on experience and skill, also taking advantage of a surprise attack.

"Could Helen be the ’Medusa’ who came to undergo tribulations?"

The 𝘮ost uptodat𝑒 novels are pub𝙡ished on freeweɓnovēl.coɱ.

Su Lun felt increasingly uneasy about the situation.

But the more he thought about it, the more likely it seemed.

If it really was as he guessed, all deductions made sense! Queen Deborah casting a curse and then being petrified by Helen’s backlash... Isn’t that exactly the curse tribulation?

War, lust, jealousy, brutality, insult, curses...

Looking at it, didn’t all these things happen to Helen?

Su Lun no longer thought this was a coincidence.

Then thinking about Garcia from Atalan City being killed, it must have been targeting ’Medusa’s Serpentine Staff.’

And Helen’s visit to the royal family was surely for the staff as well.

Because each of the nine kingdoms in Dragon Country has a staff in their royal families.

Although Su Lun didn’t know what use ’Medusa’s Serpentine Staff’ had for "Helen," he now had one in his possession.

He faintly felt that this might be an essential link.

Moreover, given that a Sword Saint like Bartolo could sense the scent of danger, this Helen, even if not Medusa, must be something nearly as formidable.

...

After communicating with his martial sister, Su Lun’s expression turned very solemn.

Qian Tiao watched his changing expression and, puzzled, asked, "What’s wrong?"

The inquiry interrupted his thoughts, and the look in Su Lun’s eyes turned strange as he sighed lightly, "It seems like things are a bit troublesome..."

But before he could explain further, the two had already reached the camp.

The bonfire was burning brightly, illuminating a large open area with its red flames.

No sooner had they returned than Commander Bennett approached, sincerely stating, "Mr. Su Lun, I apologize for disturbing both of you tonight. I have just received orders, and at dawn, I will send the prison cart to the capital first. Both of you rest assured, I have already expanded the patrol area of the sentries, and nothing will happen again. Tomorrow, my deputy Johnson will accompany you, apologies for any shortcomings."

"No worries, official duties are important," Su Lun responded, watching the other’s courteous stance and finding it hard to say much.

Bennett had made the most meticulous arrangements, splitting the forces into two groups, and had no plans for them to continue following the prison cart, which alleviated Su Lun’s concerns.

Looking at that prison cart, Su Lun wanted to say something, but hesitated and swallowed his words.

Even the emperor had issued a secret order to ensure the prisoner was transported alive, and Bartolo’s persuasion was to no avail, let alone him, an outsider.

Moreover, the situation was still very complicated.

Even if, as he suspected, this "Helen" was a high-tier serpentine sorceress who had survived calamities, she still could not be killed.

Killing her would bring the true terror, a nigh invincible demigod Medusa.

Su Lun didn’t just lack confidence; even if he had it, he no longer dared to make a move.

This was truly a hot potato that couldn’t be placed anywhere.

Fortunately, Mr. Jing had mentioned that "Helen" posed no threat unless she was killed.

Another relatively good piece of news was that the occupant of the prison cart probably didn’t know that he had been exposed.

Su Lun was also troubled about how to deal with this, thinking about finding an opportunity to disclose this matter to the royal family of the Silver Dragon Kingdom?

Either way, now was not the time to speak.

With only a few hours left until dawn, Su Lun and Qian Tiao continued to stay in the tent.

Upon entering the tent, Qian Tiao became completely engrossed in that state of sudden enlightenment.

Su Lun’s sensory perception was fully extended, constantly monitoring the prison cart.

Fortunately, as expected, after repelling the serpentine sorceress, the latter half of the night remained silent.

The night passed without incident.

...

Unnoticed, the sky began to lighten with dawn’s rays.

In the bustle of the camp, knights were feeding the dragons as Su Lun meditated.

The breakfast of thick milk soup cooking over the bonfire was also fragrantly drifting about.

Commander Bennett was personally directing his subordinates to attach the chains of the prison cart to a dragon, getting ready to leave first.

Su Lun too, tentatively breathed a sigh of relief.

Spending the night next to the prison cart was like sleeping next to a ticking time bomb that could create major trouble at any moment.

As long as these people left first, he could confirm whether or not someone knew that he possessed the "Serpentine Staff."

However, just as Beretta’s group was all set to leave first, an unexpected complication arose.

Suddenly, a high-pitched dragon’s cry echoed from the horizon.

Inside the tent, Su Lun’s eyes snapped open in astonishment, "A pure-blooded giant dragon?"

The cry of a pure-blooded giant dragon was vastly different from that of a lesser dragon, akin to distinguishing between a cat’s meow and a lion’s roar, clearly recognizable at the first listen.

Although the dragon cry entering his ears was faint, he heard it clearly.

Instantly, Qian Tiao also opened her eyes, grabbed her saber, and the two lifted the tent flap and walked out.

Looking up, they saw a black dot rapidly approaching from the azure cloud-filled sky.

Su Lun’s pupils narrowed slightly, quickly recognizing it as a noble-looking silver dragon.

Seeing this, he immediately guessed, "The protective silver dragon of the Silver Dragon Kingdom? No, that doesn’t seem right... It’s too weak. Could it be a sixth-tier juvenile dragon?"

But the sacred silver dragon was an exceedingly rare dragon, and even if it wasn’t that eighth-tier national guardian silver dragon, it was likely directly related.

What surprised Su Lun was that there was a figure on the dragon’s back. Had someone actually tamed a pure-blood dragon?

Beside him, Qian Tiao also watched with interest, "Yo, it’s a female Dragon Knight."

Su Lun, observing the reaction of the knights in the camp, vaguely guessed the identity of this female Dragon Knight. But his brows furrowed as well—her approach was aggressive; it seemed she came with ill intent.

Indeed, before he had much time to think, the silver dragon had already dived down from the sky.

The Dragon Knight in fine silver armor raised her dragon spear towards the prison cart and bellowed, "Dragon Flame!"

Commander Bennett’s face changed drastically, and he shouted, "Your Royal Highness Princess, don’t!"

As he spoke, he rushed forward, raising his huge shield to block the Holy Light dragon flame.

Though it was only a sixth-tier dragon, the breath it exhaled was a seventh-tier Holy Light Dragon Breath.

Bennett blocked the dragon breath head-on. Although he had the shield, his body looked as if it had been scorched, appearing rather worse for wear.

The female Dragon Knight, seeing her attack blocked, controlled the silver dragon to dive and then rise again, flying back to the sky. She arrogantly said, "Commander Bennett, you dare block me?"

Bennett’s face was bitter as he replied, "Your Royal Highness Princess, this is an important mortal that His Majesty has ordered to be brought back. I apologize for offending Your Highness, but duty compels me."

Hearing this conversation, Su Lun immediately knew who the person was—Gracey the Eighth’s youngest daughter, Becky Greysi, renowned in the Silver Dragon Kingdom for her beauty and extraordinary martial talent.

However, she seemed a bit haughty.

The female Dragon Knight arrogantly yelled, "Move aside!"

She didn’t intend to explain herself and charged over on her silver dragon again, ignoring the lives of the knights guarding the prison cart, and exhaled another breath of dragon flame.

This beam of light, even thicker than before, scorched the surrounding trees to cinders within moments and cracked the ground with its power comparable to seventh-tier light magic.

The Miracle Legion’s dragon knights tried to protect the prison cart, daring not to retaliate, and could only endure the attack.

Although Bennett could withstand the dragon breath, it didn’t mean the other lower-tier knights could endure it.

It was in this instant that Su Lun’s brows furrowed tightly because he saw several knights being burnt alive by the dragon breath, the air filled with the stench of charred flesh.

This princess truly acted like a nobility disease, hardly viewing the royal knights as human.

Normally, since this was another kingdom’s royal affair, Su Lun, an outsider, wouldn’t have much to say.

Under the current circumstances, Bennett and his subordinates didn’t dare retaliate and couldn’t defy the king’s orders, and could only desperately guard the prison cart.

The ultimate outcome was them getting killed, and then the princess would burn another person to death.

But the reality was that the person in the prison cart could not be killed!

If Su Lun guessed correctly, her death would mean the death of everyone present.

If that mythological, evil Medusa were to awaken, countless more would die thereafter.

Knowing this thing was ultimately a calamity, but not knowing how to handle it.

Su Lun didn’t want to get involved, but he couldn’t help but to intervene, not just because he couldn’t stand by and watch Bennett get killed, but also because he needed the petrification potion formula and the seafaring maps still in the Silver Dragon capital.

After the second breath of dragon flame, the female Dragon Knight flew up into the sky and again bellowed, "Still not moving?!"

Bennett, his armor already lackluster and visibly wounded, still showed no intent of dodging, bitterly said, "I’m sorry, Your Highness Princess, but duty compels me."

The female Dragon Knight snorted coldly, her eyes desensitized, and once more controlled the dragon to dive down.

This third dragon breath was likely going to kill Bennett and a few others along with the prison cart.

Su Lun also felt troubled—if he really had to act against the princess, obtaining that formula would become even more difficult.

But he was also prepared to intervene.

However, Qian Tiao was faster.

She had heard the story the previous night, and knowing Su Lun’s tacit understanding well, she exactly knew what to do in this moment.

Qian Tiao, without any arrogance, suddenly beamed with a fierce gaze, releasing a terrifying aura of slaughter that instantly targeted the diving silver dragon.

After all, it was only a juvenile sixth-tier dragon, and upon feeling that tangible killing intent, its arrogance turned into shock. Instinctively dodging, it flipped its wings and both rider and dragon tumbled down.

With a crash of shattering sounds, the princess in splendid armor fell face first.

That terrifying aura of slaughter not only affected the dragon but also dazed her.

Qian Tiao, not one to go easy on a princess, lazily rested a hand on her sword hilt, smacking her lips, turned to Su Lun and said, "Pretend you don’t know me in a bit. I’m going to give her a beating; lead the people and get out."

Upon hearing this, Su Lun thought, What a good idea!

This gambling-addicted woman might find thinking troublesome, but she was always reliable when it mattered most.