From Alchemy Apprentice to All-Powerful God King

The night was dark and gloomy, and Matthew paid no attention to the recipe that popped into his mind.

He put the ten self-destructing bugs he had crafted into a bottle, then quickly left the house and headed towards the guild.

We need to hurry.

The town of Val was unusually lively tonight, with residents of all ages heading towards the central square.

However, after entering the guild, Matthew walked to the other side, to a row of rather deserted low houses.

This is the Alchemy Workshop.

This is where these guild alchemy apprentices first received their lessons.

Although I rarely see my supervisor on weekdays.

Even before they got close, the sound of whips being lashed could be heard coming from inside the alchemy workshop.

Matthew carefully pushed open the half-closed wooden door and went inside.

Inside the alchemy workshop, a man with a pointed mouth and monkey-like face was holding a long whip and was forcefully lashing it at the apprentice lying on the ground.

The young apprentice looked a few years younger than Matthew and was also a bit thinner.

He was lying on the ground, not daring to move at all.

The weasel-faced man continued whipping his whip, scolding, "So young, and you've already learned to slack off! You can't even refine ten self-destructing bugs in a week? Did you all take the materials the guild gave you and sell them for money?"

The young apprentice's back was covered in bloodstains from being pulled, and there were also some areas on his arms where flesh had been torn open and bleeding.

The pain from the beating made him instinctively beg for mercy: "Professor Flynn, please stop hitting me, please, give me one more day, I'm sure I can master it."

Seeing this, the other apprentices all lowered their heads, keeping their eyes down and not daring to step forward to stop it.

Matthew stood aside, watching the violence unfold before him with a blank expression, but his heart gradually grew cold and filled with disgust.

Because he was the one lying here last week.

These apprentices, to put it nicely, belong to the guild, but in reality, they are just tools kept in captivity.

Ten years ago, there was no Hunter's Guild in Val Town, and the town's residents lived a self-sufficient life.

It wasn't until the strange beasts on the border suddenly erupted that the empire sent a guild to be stationed there.

At the same time, it attracted a large number of people with special abilities to join. As it has developed, the entire guild has become a mixed bag, and the Alchemy Workshop is a place controlled by the Alchemy Bishop.

Every year they recruit a large number of apprentices, ostensibly to train alchemists.

In reality, it's all about profiting from the war. They use their manpower to stockpile disposable magical insects and then sell them to those with special abilities outside.

The sharp-mouthed, monkey-faced Flynn in the alchemy workshop is the bishop's capable mentor.

He was specifically responsible for teaching alchemy methods and collecting demonic insects.

Each person must submit ten disposable magical insects every week. If they fail to refine them, they will be scolded and verbally abused at best, and physically punished at worst, with no regard for life or death.

Whether he can be killed or not depends entirely on his mood.

In this alchemy workshop, apprentices are often beaten. Some are covered in bruises, have difficulty walking, and can't even get out of bed. Others are beaten until their skin is torn and bleeding, but they still have to continue alchemy despite their wounds. As a result, they are contaminated by magic potions and die at home within three to five days.

Of course, there are also those like Matthew from last week, who were beaten to death.

Finally, they were simply dumped at the border, without even needing to lay down bamboo mats; the strange beasts would help clean it up.

As for why no one cares, it's because the first requirement for entering the guild as an alchemy apprentice is being an orphan or a beggar who can't even get enough to eat.

Even if several people die every day, no one will care.

"Snapped!"

After a few more lashes, the young apprentice lay motionless on the ground.

Seeing this, Flynn snorted coldly and wiped the blood off the whip.

He then scanned the room and his gaze finally settled on Matthew, who had just entered.

"You're so late. Did you fail to finish your tasks again this week?"

Hearing that he was being called, Matthew stepped forward, took out a culture jar containing ten exploding bugs from his clothes, and respectfully placed it on the table.

"Professor Flynn, I'm sorry I'm late today and have taken up your time."

Matthew's voice wasn't loud, but his attitude was impeccable.

"Hmm, this week is good. If it had been like this earlier, we wouldn't have gotten beaten up last week."

Flynn looked at the exploding bug on the table, nodded in satisfaction, held it in his hand, poured half of it out in front of them and put it in his pocket, then patted Matthew on the shoulder.

"Your skill has improved a lot, and your appearance is the best among this batch of apprentices. If there is an alchemist selection next time, I will give you priority recommendation."

As Flynn spoke.

Matthew turned a page in the Chronicle of Another World in his mind, and then a new message appeared on it.

[New label detected - unscrupulous businessman]

[Tag Activation Requirements: Successfully pass the Flynn Mentor selection and become a Guild Alchemist.]

Looking at the information on the Otherworld Record, Matthew remained expressionless, but was inwardly somewhat excited. However, upon closer inspection, he discovered that it actually required activation.

I thought I had a new label, but it turned out to be a false alarm.

As far as he knew, among these apprentices, only a handful could successfully pass the examination and become guild alchemists.

"It's all thanks to the mentor's guidance." Matthew ignored the prompt in his mind and bowed to Flynn.

The latter simply waved his hand, then walked out of the Alchemy Workshop and headed towards the central square.

Only when the footsteps had completely faded into the distance did everyone in the room breathe a sigh of relief.

After a moment of silence, someone stepped forward and called out to the young apprentice who was lying on the ground.

He simply lay quietly on the ground, offering no response.

As Matthew approached, he noticed that the young apprentice's back was soaked with blood, his clothes completely stained, his eyelids drooping, and his pupils lifeless.

After putting his hand under his nose to test it, Matthew's heart stopped for a moment.

"Dead..."

For a moment, the apprentices in the alchemy workshop looked at each other in dismay; yet another apprentice had been killed by Flynn.

Matthew clenched his fists instinctively.

It could be said that he didn't know most of the apprentices in the alchemy workshop, but seeing someone die in front of him still ignited a nameless anger in his heart, making him feel uneasy.

"What...what should we do?"

Matthew scanned the room: "Bring that bamboo mat over and carry him to the border."

But as soon as he spoke, no one in the room made a move.

"It's so late, are we leaving town now?"

"What else can we do? Just leave it here and wait for Instructor Flynn to punish us tomorrow?" Matthew stood up and picked up the bamboo mat. "Who's coming with me?"

After waiting for a while without anyone coming to help, Matthew could only drag his young apprentice away from the town by himself.

......

The town of War is located near the border.

On a dirt road to the south, Matthew was struggling to drag the bamboo mat.

Only the heavy dragging and panting echoed through the desolate wilderness.

This is a mass grave; most of the dead beggars in town, as well as the apprentices killed by Flynn and his gang, were dumped here.

"Although I don't know your customs, we are used to burying the dead for peace."

Matthew looked at the young apprentice lying on the bamboo mat. In his original world, this was still the age to go to school, but now his face was completely bloodless.

He didn't know if he was being nosy, but he felt that if he didn't do something, he wouldn't be able to get over it.

Matthew then stood up, looked around, and found a long-rotten coffin. Through the opening, he saw that it was empty.

He picked up a crowbar and weighed it in his hand for a moment.

"This is fine, it's better than leaving our bodies to rot in the wilderness."

Just as he was struggling to pry open the coffin lid, a sudden cracking sound rang out, and when he turned around, he saw that the coffin had suddenly split open.

Immediately afterwards, a fist-sized, black and red flying insect hurtled straight at his forehead!