The most shameless alchemist in history

The blacksmith walked over to Dure, grasped the shaft of the crossbow bolt embedded in the tree, and pulled it out with a little force, handing it to Dure.

"Is it about the improvement of the crossbow bolts and the later filling issues? I understand." Dure took the crossbow bolts and nodded. He was no stranger to using crossbows. He even had a large crossbow at his home in Hot Spring Village. He had also had a crossbow before, but it was severely damaged in a previous encounter.

"Since you understand, you should get lost as soon as possible. Try to stay away from Sherry in the future, for her sake and for yours too." The blacksmith yawned, speaking casually, but Du Lei could see from a close look that the usually energetic blacksmith looked very tired at this moment.

"I will respect Sherry's personal wishes regarding this matter." Du Lei picked up the crossbow in his hand and tested it; the feel was much better than he had expected.

"There's one more thing I need to remind you. Even if we've created the prototype, it can only be called a 'weapon' for now. To make it a magical weapon, we must embed a magic core and integrate the magic core with the weapon. I've already pre-drilled a slot for the magic core on the crossbow."

Just as the blacksmith was about to turn and leave, he reminded Dure again, pointing to the location of the card slot and indicating that Dure should take a look.

"The slot... is it here? I see it." Du Lei found the slot by the blacksmith's pointing finger, on the right side of the crossbow's sight.

“You should have gotten the magic core from Raka, right? What you need to do next is put that magic core into the slot and let them fuse together.” The blacksmith continued to explain, his tone revealing impatience, but he still spoke very carefully.

"Just put the magic core into the slot? It's that simple? I thought it was a very complicated process." Du Lei had heard before that the production process of magic-powered weapons was very complicated, but now it seems that it is not like that. With the raw materials in hand, it only took a day to forge the prototype.

The third and final step, Du Lei had expected to be a huge undertaking, but the blacksmith told him it could be done with just a gentle touch. It seemed far too simple.

"Is it that simple?" the blacksmith asked Du Lei with a stern face.

"This..." Dure was taken aback by the blacksmith's expression, which showed a hint of mockery. He also realized that if things were really that simple, magical weapons wouldn't be so rare.

"Only alchemists can complete the final step of the magical armor. You should have crossed the threshold of alchemy, right? So the next step is up to you. Whether you succeed or not depends on you," the blacksmith solemnly reminded him.

"Only alchemists can do this? I understand. I'll go back and study it now." Dure pondered the blacksmith's words, sensing their weight. He nodded heavily, then took his leave.

"Oh, right, there's one more thing." After walking a few steps, Du Lei stopped and turned back.

"Are you ever going to stop?" the blacksmith said impatiently.

"Thank you, Uncle Tie Xin." Du Lei smiled and thanked him before turning to leave.

This time, they've really gone far.

.

373 Magic Core Inlay

Two days have passed since Nono found Dure, and only one day remains before the three-day preparation period she gave her. At first glance, the whole process seems to be going smoothly. Two days have been enough to complete the two steps of making the magic weapon, which is an astonishingly rapid progress.

Because under normal circumstances, the raw materials for magical weapons are easy to find and can be obtained in minutes by purchasing them, but it takes several weeks to forge the blanks. However, the blacksmith managed to do it. Now, in the final step of embedding the magic core, Dure knows that he will not have such good luck.

He knew he wasn't as skilled as the blacksmith. Even experienced alchemists would take several days or even weeks to complete this step, let alone a novice like himself. Dure began to wonder what secrets lay behind this seemingly simple step.

"Insert the magic core into the slot... Shouldn't that be something that can be done with a simple gesture? Why does it have to be an alchemist to do it? That's really strange." Dure was very suspicious of this. After coaxing Sherry to sleep, he left the blacksmith shop and went to the back mountain of the academy.

This area is very quiet, and there are hardly any people around, making it the perfect place for him to embed magical energy.

"Hey kid, why are you dawdling like this? If you want to know the answer, why don't you try it yourself? Hurry up and try it, try it." Little Black's voice rang in Du Lei's mind. It was eagerly anticipating the final step of the magic-powered armor.

"What's the rush? By the way, what do you know about magic-powered weapons?" Du Lei asked Xiao Hei, wanting to learn more.

"Magic Energy Armament? I came from the Holy Domain, how would I know about your Magic Energy Armament?" Xiao Hei's tone was full of contempt, and his words were full of superiority. Just listening to his voice made you want to beat him up.

"Sanctuary? What is Sanctuary?" Du Lei was intrigued by the term and asked curiously.

"The Holy Land is my hometown, the place you call 'Void Abyss.' It's truly something to reminisce about." Little Black's words were a mixture of pride and melancholy, with a hint of guilt, revealing something it cherished there.

"You don't know anything? Then don't interfere. I'll figure it out myself." Du Lei originally thought he could get some information from Xiao Hei, but now it seems that won't work. After spending some time together, he has figured out Xiao Hei's temperament.

"Kid, who do you think you are, daring to lecture me like that? I am..." Xiao Hei was enraged by Du Lei's tone and was about to argue with Du Lei aggressively, baring his teeth and claws, looking as fierce as if he wanted to devour him alive.

"Come on, you can only scare people. If you don't shut up, I'll have Little White burn you." Du Lei interrupted Little Black, shutting it down with a single sentence. As the saying goes, one thing subdues another, and that egg had Little Black completely under its thumb.

"Kid, don't think I'm scared of you just because you talk like that! I... Ouch, ouch, it hurts, ouch, ouch, ouch, you're all ganging up on me! I'm not playing with you anymore, ouch, ouch!" Little Black wanted to say a few more harsh words, but the scorching heat made it cry out, and it quickly fell silent.

"So, as they say, if you don't do stupid things, you won't die. Just stay put and don't bother me. Now... I should start researching the matter of embedding the magic core. By the way, this magic core was chosen by that guy Xiao Hei. I wonder if it will actually work." Du Lei took out the crossbow and the magic core.

He examined the two items by the moonlight, feeling unsure where to begin.

"Whether it works or not, let's give it a try first. So let's begin, the final step in creating the magic weapon: embedding the magic core!" Dure took a deep breath, picked up the magic core, and inserted it into the slot!

Meanwhile, on the balcony of a dormitory at Maple Leaf Academy, two girls were leaning on the railing, looking up at the starry sky.

"Nono, have you arranged for someone to escort me to Rock City? But isn't this a bit inappropriate? This journey is very dangerous, and many people don't want me to arrive at Rock City alive. Wouldn't having them escort me put them in danger?"

The girl on the left spoke with a worried expression. If Dure were there, he would definitely recognize her as Winry, the girl he had encountered twice before who had gotten into trouble because she was lost. However, compared to when Dure had met her before, she had her hair down, was wearing pajamas, and looked very cute.

"Your trip to Rock City is of great importance. It concerns whether the Land of Snow and the Land of Mountains can continue to coexist peacefully. If war breaks out again, countless people will be displaced. So you must arrive safely. Even you, a girl, are not afraid of danger. Do you think they are afraid?"

The girl next to Wenli was someone Du Lei would definitely recognize; it was naturally Nono. She was very opinionated and spoke with absolute certainty.

"Why does war have to break out? Why do we have to fight? Can't we just get along peacefully?" Winnie was puzzled by this question.

“If everyone were as kind as Wenli, that would be great. I never expected the royal capital to send you here. Their attitude is really…” Nono thought much more deeply than Wenli. After learning that the envoy to Rock City was Wenli, she had a bad feeling.

According to convention, envoys sent to diplomatic missions are either skilled in diplomatic rhetoric and negotiation or have a tough stance. However, Wenli is neither. Moreover, she has no experience in handling diplomatic affairs at all. Nono really couldn't understand why the capital would send her here.

“There are many discordant voices in the capital; they all hope to start a war with the Mountain Kingdom.” Wenli came from the capital and knew the situation there very well. She spoke as calmly as possible.

"Is that so? Then it's not surprising." Nono nodded. At first, she couldn't understand why the capital would let a complete novice be an envoy. Although Wenli's status was not bad, enough to make her competent for the role, her ability and experience were far too lacking.

However, if it is someone with ulterior motives who wants to take advantage of the situation to achieve some ulterior purpose, and deliberately sends Winry as an envoy to the Mountain Kingdom, then it is understandable.

"Nono, tell me, even if I go to Rock City, I can't do anything to stop the war from breaking out, right?" Although Wenli was inexperienced, she wasn't stupid. She looked at her friend with worry, trusting her and knowing that she would give the right answer.

"Well... you'll only know after you've tried, worked hard, and strived for it, Wenli. I believe you can do it," Nono encouraged her.

"I hope so." Wenli shook her head gently, looked up at the moon in the sky. The moonlight was pale and everything was quiet.

.

374 is ready.

Du Lei spent an entire night finally understanding the strange look Tie Xin gave him when he said that embedding magic cores was easy. He had tried more than a hundred times, but he still couldn't successfully embed the magic cores into the crossbow's slots.

This wasn't because the blacksmith cut corners when making the crossbow, making the slot too small or anything like that. In fact, the slot was perfectly positioned. If it were anything else of the same size, like a bead, it could easily fit into the slot.

However, it was precisely the magic core that fit perfectly in size that caused a repulsive force to appear every time Du Lei tried to put it into the slot. Even though there seemed to be no obstacle between them, with only a few centimeters between them, he couldn't manage to squeeze it in no matter how hard he tried.

Having failed all night, Du Lei still had to attend class and couldn't continue trying. He could only return to the classroom dejectedly, but the lack of sleep left him feeling dizzy, and he naturally spent the morning's classes in a daze.

"Du Lei, you look so listless. And where did you go last night? I didn't see you all night." After class, Du Lei walked out of the classroom yawning. Lance, who lived in the same dormitory as him, walked up from behind and put his arm around his shoulder, asking.

“I went to Uncle Tie Xin’s place last night and got the prototype for making magic-powered weapons, but I still can’t complete the final step of embedding the magic core.” Du Lei didn’t hide anything from him, after all, Lance had known about this all along and had even been involved.

"Huh? You can create a prototype in such a short time? Are you kidding me? I heard them say it would take several weeks, or even months, to complete." Lance was a little incredulous. He hadn't been very optimistic about his path of creating magical weapons before; this was too far-fetched.

"It's hard to believe, but Uncle Tie Xin really did finish it." Du Lei was quite certain of this, since the materials were all with him.

"Then let me see what it looks like quickly," Lance said, intrigued.

"I kept it in my dorm. It's just a regular weapon now, without the magic core yet. It's not a magic-powered weapon. This final step..." Dure fell into thought. He only had one night left. He had to leave for Rock City tomorrow morning.

"Durey, don't worry, there will definitely be a way. Hey? That's... Teacher Nono?" Lance comforted Durey. Even someone with no common sense knew that the creation of magic-powered weapons was extremely difficult, and it was completely impossible to complete them in just three days.

Just then, someone walked towards the two of them, and Lance was the first to notice that the person walking towards them was Nono.

“I have something to say to him.” Nono pointed at Dure, her purpose very clear, and she spoke bluntly, implying that Lance should leave.

"Okay, okay, I got it. I'm going to the training ground now. Good luck, Dure." Lance gave Dure a thumbs-up to encourage him and quickly walked away. After walking a dozen meters, he turned back to look at Dure and Nono. They had already headed towards the less crowded area of ​​the square on the right.

Du Lei knew Nono's purpose, so when he met Nono's eyes, he felt uneasy and subconsciously looked away.

"Hey, how's your preparation for the magic weapon going?" Nono asked directly, and the two of them stopped nearby.

"Well..." Du Lei really wasn't confident. He couldn't very well tell Nono that he wasn't ready yet and make her laugh at him, could he?

“If you’re not ready, just tell me. I know you…” Nono seemed to have anticipated Dure’s reaction. She reached into her pocket, as if preparing to give him something, but upon hearing her words, Dure suddenly became anxious.

"No, I'm ready, I'm ready!" Du Lei knew that Nuonuo was sharp-tongued and wouldn't give anyone any face when she started making things difficult for him. He nodded immediately before Nuonuo could make things difficult for him. He knew that if he didn't say something now, he would definitely face a storm of ridicule.

"What? You're ready? It's only been three days, where did you get these magical weapons?" This time it was Nono's turn to be surprised.

"You don't need to know where I got the magical weapons. Anyway, I've done what you asked me to do," Dure said, patting his chest.

"Are you sure there won't be any problems? The journey to Rock City is long, so you'd better be careful." Nono solemnly reminded Du Lei. Although she usually looked down on people and often teased Du Lei, it was clear that she was genuinely worried about him this time.

"Don't worry about it at all. Is this what you came to me for?" Even though Du Lei wasn't sure himself, he couldn't show his weakness in front of Nuonuo. He spoke with complete confidence, but he knew very well that he hadn't even completed the final step of embedding the magic core.

“So there was something else going on, but now… never mind, it’s alright now. You can set off early tomorrow morning, and I’ll come to see you off.” Nono withdrew her hand from her pocket and shook her head. Her actions puzzled Du Lei.

"Other things? What other things? Why are you hesitating like this? This is really not like you. By the way, Nono, I still don't know who the person you asked me to escort is?" In Du Lei's memory, Nono was never the kind of person who would hide things.

"Mind your own business! As for the one you're escorting... you'll find out tomorrow. But remember one thing: you're just there to make up the numbers. Don't try to show off. There are other experts with you. If anything happens, stay away from them, understand?" Nuonuo scolded loudly.

Seeing her like this, Du Lei finally felt a little relieved, because this was the usual Nono!

"Okay, okay, I have to go now, so goodbye. See you tomorrow." Du Lei waved his hand. If it had been a while ago that he was asked to leave Maple Leaf Academy, he would have been extremely unwilling, because at that time he had not yet crossed the threshold of alchemy and could not leave such an environment and stage.

Now that he has made rapid progress and wants to further improve himself, he needs to temporarily leave Maple Leaf Academy to gain experience. The spot that Nono secured for him is undoubtedly a timely help for him.

"I didn't realize you were so busy. Never mind, let's go." Nono waved her hand impatiently, urging Du Lei to leave.

The latter was not polite at all and left in a hurry, his figure quickly disappearing from sight.

"This guy just left without saying anything? It's really strange. What's even stranger is that in less than three days, he actually found the magic-powered weapon? I was just saying it casually. I had already prepared it for him..." Nono frowned.

The more she thought about it, the more suspicious it seemed, and at the same time, she took out the box she had been planning to take out earlier from her pocket.

"It seems he's not of any use right now. I wonder if he'll be able to return safely from Rock City. We'll see how lucky you are." Nono shook her head, it was unclear what she was denying. Soon she turned around and disappeared into the afterglow of the setting sun.

375 Exchange and Integration

When Du Lei patted his chest and told Nono that he had obtained the magic-powered weapon, he was full of pride and confidence. But as soon as he walked away, he deflated. It was obvious that he had just exaggerated to avoid being ridiculed by Nono. Nono's sarcasm was too devastating.

After parting ways with Nono, Dure headed towards the library. He went there for two reasons: first, to find some clues about magic core embedding in the books, and second, to find the librarian, Winster, who was, in fact, his mentor in alchemy.

It was thanks to Winston's patient explanations and demonstrations that he was able to overcome the hurdle of alchemy. Now he has encountered another bottleneck, and it would be ideal if he could find Winston to seek answers. However, Winston left the library on leave a month ago.

The position of librarian on the first floor is now held by a girl who wears black-rimmed glasses and looks very quiet, or rather, overly quiet, to the point of being neurotic. Several times before, when Du Lei tried to strike up a conversation with her, she would warily retreat more than ten meters away and not say a word.

"I thought that after a month, Professor Winster would be back by now, but I didn't expect him to still be on vacation. Are the benefits for teachers at the academy so good that they can take vacations whenever they want? Sigh, even Professor Winster isn't here, who else can I ask for advice?" Dure said dejectedly.

"Forget it, I'll go look at the books again. Maybe I can find some clues. There are so many books here, quite a few about magic power. Maybe the key is hidden here." Dure's frustration didn't last long, and he quickly cheered up.

He plunged into the sea of ​​books, flipping through them; with little time left, this was the only thing he could do.

"No, this one doesn't have it, this one doesn't have it either. These authors are too fond of making things mysterious. Concepts that can be explained in just a few words are stretched out into several chapters, making people feel confused, as if they want to appear profound. It's really annoying."

Du Lei didn't know how long he had been in the library. After a small mountain of books had piled up on his right, he yawned. Still unable to find any clues, he could only continue searching on the bookshelves. Because he was too short, he had to use a ladder to reach the books on the upper shelves.