The most shameless alchemist in history

"York, are you crazy? Let Black Wind go right now, or I'll kill you!" Riley roared at York at the sudden turn of events. Distracted, Riley was caught off guard and Old Man Teng took the opportunity to close in, delivering several heavy punches to Riley's ribs, putting him at a clear disadvantage.

“If you can do it, then come on,” York replied with a sneer. Normally, he would never dare speak to Riley like this, but now all the conflicts had erupted, and he couldn't care less. Besides, York was completely blinded by excitement; the Star Stone was practically within his grasp.

"Brother York, here's the Star Stone, please let me go. I'm just a messenger, I haven't offended you at all," Black Wind said weakly. York's ramming earlier had already given him a hard time, and now with his neck choked, his condition was getting worse and worse.

"I'll let you off the hook, you're the kind of guy I hate more and more. I want the Star Stone, and I want your life too!" York threatened viciously. The crux of his conflict with Riley was Riley's excessive trust in Blackwind. Now that he could finally get his revenge, he naturally wouldn't miss this opportunity.

"Damn it, if that's how it is, then there's nothing I can do." Black Wind knew that York would never let him go no matter what. He struggled to pull the Star Stone from his pocket, and with all his might, he threw the Star Stone heavily out of his pocket.

"That's the Star Stone!" York, though eager to kill Black Wind, reacted immediately upon seeing the Star Stone being thrown away. He rushed forward, knowing Black Wind's life was at stake and he could retrieve it at any time, but once the Star Stone fell into someone else's hands, he would never get it back.

"Brother York, don't blame me, you forced me to do this." Black Wind coughed twice as he landed. After catching his breath, he quickly took out a crossbow that he had been hiding at his waist. He loaded the bolt into the slot as fast as he could and aimed it at York's back.

York's attention was entirely focused on the starstone; he never imagined that Black Wind, whose life was entirely in his hands, would suddenly attack. With a sharp whooshing sound, the crossbow bolt shot out faster than York could run, aiming straight for his heart.

037 From now on, follow me.

York didn't have much ambition in his life. He knew he wasn't cut out to be a boss. He lacked the courage and intelligence to be a leader. He had plenty of brute strength, but he was always getting into trouble and suffered a lot because of it. Before he met Riley, he was just a small-time hoodlum in a local town.

At that time, he had offended someone and was captured by another group of thugs. Although he was incredibly strong, he was quickly defeated when surrounded by more than a dozen people. Two big men grabbed his arms and took turns beating him. The ground was covered with blood and foam. He glared angrily at these people.

"Hey, with so many of you bullying an unarmed guy, isn't that going a bit too far? Even if there's some deep-seated grudge, it should be a fair one-on-one fight. This isn't how a real man behaves." Just then, a burly man appeared and couldn't help but say.

"Who do you think you are, trying to meddle in our business? If you don't want to get into trouble, get lost. Otherwise, you'll end up like this guy, hehe. York, how does it feel to get a good beating? Who told you to offend someone you shouldn't have? Now you're tasting the bitter fruit, aren't you?" The thug grabbed York's head.

Not long ago, York stood up for someone in a pub and injured one of their men. Today, they seized the opportunity and cornered York in an alley, determined to teach him a lesson. Anyway, York always went his own way and didn't have any companions, so they weren't afraid of retaliation after they beat him up.

"Damn it, let me go if you dare, or I'll beat you to a pulp. Don't think you're so great just because you outnumber me!" York gritted his teeth, trying to break free, but the two burly men held him tightly. His face was covered in blood, and the thug punched him in the stomach.

"We're just too big for you because we outnumber you, huh? What are you going to do about it? Hehe, you won't learn your lesson unless we teach you a lesson. So, let's pick a finger, your left or your right? If we don't cripple you, what will you do if you retaliate? You agree, right?" The thug pulled out a dagger.

His gaze darted between York's left and right hands, and even the latter's angry roars only excited him more.

"I've decided, how about we chop off both hands at the same time? What do you think of that suggestion? Hehehehe, it won't hurt much, just for a moment, you can bear it. Hey uncle, you really dare to meddle in other people's business." The thug raised his dagger and was about to stab York's hand.

But then he realized that his arm had been grabbed. He turned around and saw that the burly man had been standing behind him at some point. The thugs' companions nearby immediately surrounded him, and many of them pulled out daggers, all with ferocious and malicious expressions.

"I've already said this isn't how a man should act. And if you cripple him like this, how will he live his life? I, Riley, won't stand idly by." The man who called himself Riley suddenly twisted his hand, snatched the dagger from the thug's hand, and threw it on the ground.

"Ouch! Ouch! You dare mess with us? Let's all attack and kill this outsider!" the thug howled, pointing angrily at Riley. The thugs who had surrounded him swarmed forward, determined to kill this meddlesome man and uphold their authority.

"Tch, they're just a bunch of scum. Although I'm no saint either, even scum has to act like scum. Hey, are you alright?" Riley, as an experienced mercenary, didn't take the thugs seriously at all and quickly dealt with them with lightning speed.

"Wow, he's really something! Let's run, or he'll kill us!" The thugs panicked and fled the scene, leaving behind only twisted daggers scattered on the ground. They didn't even care about their wounded companions, disappearing in the blink of an eye. Riley didn't choose to give chase.

"I...I'm alright, thank you so much, you...you're amazing." York was rescued by Riley. He looked at the man before him in astonishment. That imposing figure—wasn't that the great hero he had admired since childhood? So the heroes in stories really existed. He had been saved.

“It’s nothing, how did you get bullied by them?” Riley helped York up and asked the sturdy and honest young man.

"I couldn't stand them bullying people in the pub, so I taught them a lesson, and they took the opportunity to retaliate," York answered truthfully.

"What about your companions? Didn't they come to help you?" Riley nodded and continued to press, having seen this kind of thing far too often.

“I have no companions.” York’s head drooped, and he shook his head slightly, looking somewhat dejected.

"Is that so? Would you like to come with me? I need to go out and take care of some things, and I happen to need a few helpers. I think you have a good foundation and aren't a bad person. As long as you train in the right way, you can also become a qualified fighter." Riley thought for a moment and took the initiative to extend an invitation to York.

"Are fighters people who can fight with magic?" York paused for a moment; that was something very distant to him.

“It’s not magic, it’s magical energy. Well, it’s pretty much what you’re thinking. Why don’t you come with me and become my companion?” Riley shook his head, but he didn’t know how to explain it to York, so he glossed over the question and extended the invitation again.

"But I don't know anything. Can someone like me really do this?" York was a little confused, as if he were dreaming.

"Of course you can. Follow me, Riley, and you'll never suffer any losses. Come with me." Riley grinned and reached out to lift York up.

“Then, Brother Riley, you’re my big brother now. Where are we going now?” York was overjoyed and followed behind Riley.

"Now, I need to go back to the Land of Dogs first. By the way, do you have any family or enemies?" Riley asked, frowning.

“I have no family. Didn’t you just teach those enemies a lesson, Brother Riley? I’ve wanted to leave this place for a long time, and I can leave now.” York nodded frantically. He thought he would spend his whole life in this small town, but he never expected to have such an opportunity one day.

“In that case, let’s go. Let’s leave this little place and venture into the vast world. I, Riley, have been wandering for over twenty years, and I haven’t even explored half of this continent. There are still so many places I haven’t been to.” Riley smiled, his burly figure walking down the gray street.

York, a penniless and down-on-his-luck hoodlum, followed him. That was the figure he would chase for the rest of his life, and he should have believed it deeply.

038 There are no winners.

People often feel that time passes very slowly before they die. Some call it an out-of-body experience, while others call it a final burst of energy before death. York was unsure which one he was experiencing. In the instant he felt a chill in his heart, the scene of him meeting Riley flashed through his mind.

It had been a long time since then, and he thought he had forgotten it all, after all, he wasn't someone with a good memory. However, those scenes became so clear the moment he fell forward, with the crimson rhomboid star stone less than two meters away from him.

The starstone shone with a dazzling light. York reached out, trying to grasp it, but someone stepped in front of him and took the starstone in their hand first. It was a pale and slender hand. York looked up in a daze and recognized it as the creature called Night Raven.

“I’m sorry, this is not a power that ordinary people can wield, so I have to take it back. Your heart has been pierced by a crossbow bolt, and there’s no way to save you. Rather than watching you bleed to death in agony, I’d rather lend you a hand.” Night Raven looked at York, who had collapsed to the ground, with pity.

He drew a slender rapier, raised it with one hand, and plunged it heavily into York's back. Blood splattered out, accompanied by a muffled groan from York. His eyes were expressionless; he felt no remorse for taking another's life, only the deepest pity.

"Brother Riley," York tried to turn around and look in Riley's direction. Riley had saved him when he was almost killed, but now, facing the same situation again, Riley was powerless to help. And even if Riley did intervene, he wouldn't have the face to live on.

"York, you damned idiot! Why didn't you just run away with Black Wind? Why did you have to die here? Even the Star Stone is gone!" Riley stopped fighting with Old Man Teng and quickly retreated. Seeing the Star Stone in Night Raven's hand, he felt annoyed. The problem had become tricky.

"Coo coo coo coo, you've got the stuff, so can you fight me to your heart's content now? I can't wait any longer. If you don't let me kill to my heart's content, I'll be very angry." Kashu slowly walked over from behind. The reason why Night Raven was able to free up his hands to seize the Star Stone was because...

To a large extent, it was because Kashu and he reached an agreement to temporarily cease hostilities. Kashu had no interest in star stones; all he was interested in was fighting, fighting with all his might and completely immersed in the edge of death. Night Raven, without any worries, could be said to be his best opponent.

“Kashu, thank you for your understanding. If I could, I would really like to have a good fight with you, but I’m sorry, I have a mission to complete and must return the Star Stone. So let’s save our battle for another time.” Night Raven shook his head; he didn’t intend to waste any more time here.

He has always been an efficient person. Every step he takes is strictly in accordance with his pre-determined plan. He would never disrupt the overall situation by acting on impulse. The moment he obtained the Star Stone, he had already made plans to retreat and would not continue to entangle with Kashu.

"So you're going to unilaterally break your promise, even if it angers me?" Kashu squinted at Night Raven, his tone much harsher than before. Although he was a serial killer, he was also a man of his word, and this had undoubtedly enraged him.

"Red Sparrow, you stay here and hold him off. I'll take Starstone and leave. Don't get too entangled with him, understand?" Night Raven looked towards the exit and gave Red Sparrow his instructions. It wasn't that he was afraid of death, but rather that Red Sparrow wasn't reliable enough, and he couldn't trust her with Starstone.

"Understood, I'll hold him off." Red Sparrow nodded, turning back to watch Kashu's every move, preparing for a desperate fight.

"Damn it, the Star Stone is in his hands now, this is really troublesome." After a short rest, Nan Yin could barely move. Before, when the Star Stone was still in Riley's hands, she wasn't too worried because Riley wasn't a ruthless character, and if it fell into his hands, there was still a way to snatch it back.

But Night Raven is different. Once it falls into his hands, defeating Night Raven and retrieving the Star Stone will be as difficult as climbing to the sky. She doesn't want to have worked for nothing.

"Don't worry, Miss, I won't let this guy leave. What, are you going to be my opponent now?" Duanmu held his spear horizontally, blocking Night Raven's retreat. Previously, Red Sparrow had been fighting him, but now Red Sparrow was covering Night Raven to stop Kashu, which freed Duanmu up.

"You are from the Eastern Continent, aren't you? Although I have no intention of starting a conflict with you, if you try to block my path, I will have no choice but to defeat you." Night Raven held a star stone in his left hand and a longsword in his right. He was indeed at a disadvantage in his fight against Kashu, but he was very confident in dealing with Duanmu.

"Hehe, then bring it on!" Duanmu beckoned to Night Raven with his finger, his words brimming with provocation.

"The greatest respect I can give you is to defeat you with all my might. Please be prepared. Hmm, what's going on?" Night Raven declared his attack to Duanmu. He was never the type to ambush someone from behind, but at this moment he suddenly noticed something was wrong.

"Nightcrow, hurry up and kill that guy! What are you babbling about? Didn't you say you were in a hurry?" Red Sparrow urged loudly. Unlike the slow-paced Nightcrow, she was impatient, and she was already very angry because she hadn't been able to defeat Duanmu for a long time.

"My body can't move." Night Raven, who was originally planning to attack Duanmu, suddenly knelt on the ground, supporting himself with the rapier in his hand.

"Are you injured? Why do you feel this way at this time? Why do I suddenly feel weak too?" Red Sparrow was a little suspicious. She wanted to rush to Night Raven's position, but at this moment, a feeling of weakness and exhaustion came over her, causing her to subconsciously kneel down on the ground, with the black umbrella lying beside her.

"Cough cough, damn it, did I just exhaust myself and start to collapse? But this shouldn't be happening, I'm not reconciled." Riley also collapsed to the ground.

"Hey, what's going on with you guys? Are you all putting on an act? I'm not going to fall for your tricks, so all of you stand up. We agreed to have a proper fight!" Duanmu was a little confused by this sudden turn of events, assuming that Ye Ya was deliberately trying to lure him into a trap.

"This feeling is a smell." Kashu reacted quickly, immediately covering his mouth and nose to avoid inhaling the surrounding air.

"It's too late. What I mean is, even if you cover your mouth and nose, it's useless. The powder has already seeped into your skin, so unfortunately, none of you here are winners." A voice slowly came over, and Nan Yin was clearly stunned when she heard it.

She immediately turned her head to look to her right, where Du Lei, who should have been lying in a pool of blood, slowly stood up.

039 Don't believe his nonsense.

Among the Star Stones, the ownership of this fist-sized, rhomboid stone, entirely crimson in color, has been a long and complicated story. It was initially acquired by Riley, who then handed it over to Blackwind. To protect himself, Blackwind threw the Star Stone away. York was once very close to the Star Stone, just one step away.

After changing hands several times, it ended up in the hands of Night Raven. In a sense, this could be considered a settled matter, because Night Raven and Red Sparrow together could be considered the strongest force here. But just as Night Raven was about to leave, a feeling of weakness came over him, making it impossible for him to hold the Star Stone any longer.

The Star Stone slipped from his left hand and fell to the ground. Not far behind Night Raven, the boy, who had been seriously injured and on the verge of death, slowly stood up. He walked to Night Raven's side, took the Star Stone in his hand, and became its next master. Black Wind stood beside him.

"Du Lei, it's so good that you're not dead! You should get away from that guy quickly, he's dangerous!" Nan Yin was overjoyed to see Du Lei standing there unharmed. When Du Lei was stabbed earlier, she had thought he was going to die, which made her extremely angry. She blamed herself for dragging him into this mess.

But now that Du Lei has come back to life, Nan Yin was shocked but also relieved, and her guilt lessened by seven or eight tenths.

"Is it dangerous? At this moment, he has lost his ability to fight for a short period of time and is no different from an ordinary person. I have a lot of experience in dealing with ordinary people, so you don't need to worry about that." Dure shook his head and looked at Night Raven lying on the ground, who was trying to stand up.

“You should have been stabbed just now, and you, all of you…” Night Raven struggled several times, but just as Du Lei said, he was weak and powerless, and even standing up was difficult. He looked at Du Lei, and then at Black Wind. The two people with blades facing each other were standing together perfectly fine.

"You mean this? It just went through my clothes under my ribs and pierced a hole. It's just the angle that makes it look like it stabbed my heart. Actually, I'm perfectly fine. You can see for yourself." Du Lei pointed to his ribs, where there was indeed a hole.

“But there’s so much blood on the ground.” Riley struggled to his feet, but could only remain half-kneeling. He judged that Dure had suffered a fatal wound because of the large pool of blood on the ground, which was an undeniable fact. But Dure was indeed acting as if nothing had happened.

"It's just the sap of a plant. I put it in my pocket beforehand and tucked it into my waistband. When Black Wind stabbed me with his sword, he just happened to puncture the pocket, and the sap flowed out. You all didn't take me seriously, so it's normal that you mistakenly thought I was dead."

Dure patiently explained that when Night Raven and Riley were embroiled in conflict, he had remained a mere spectator lying on the ground. But now, he had transformed into the center of attention amidst the vast Star Stone, a change that no one had anticipated.

"Black Wind, have you betrayed my trust?" Riley was stunned. He wasn't stupid and quickly realized that for Dure to accomplish all this, he needed Black Wind's cooperation. In other words, his previous confrontation with Black Wind was all an illusion, and Black Wind had always been on Dure's side.

“Boss Riley, it’s a shame to say this, but Dure and I have known each other for a long time. I can’t betray my friend, right? And you initially planned to kill me, right? Changing your mind now is something that surprised me too.” Black Wind shrugged as if nothing had happened.

He proved his stance with his actions, and his cooperation with Dure kept everyone present in the dark.

"Du Lei, what exactly happened? Since you made preparations beforehand, why didn't you tell me in advance? It made me very worried," Nan Yin complained to Du Lei. Although she had complained many times on the way here that Du Lei was a hindrance and had many complaints about him.

This wasn't because she had any prejudice against Dure. In fact, she knew very well that if it weren't for Dure, she wouldn't have been able to get here at all. That guy had saved her life several times, and she knew all of this clearly and kept it in mind. It's just that she has never been a frank person.

Now that Du Lei is out of danger, the joy in her heart is so real; she never thought she would worry about someone so much.

"If you're asking what happened, it all started a long way off, probably with the blizzard," Dure explained patiently, his face expressionless. He weighed the star stone in his hand, not taking it too seriously.

"Was the blizzard last night?" Nan Yin had a vivid memory of the blizzard because it was Du Lei who rescued her.

"Miss, don't believe that kid's nonsense. Old Man Teng and I checked, and there was clearly a better way to get to Beishan. He deliberately chose that mountain road that couldn't avoid the blizzard and was haunted by ghosts," Duanmu hurriedly blocked Nanyin's way.

He brandished his spear, pointing it at Du Lei, harboring intense hostility towards the young man before him, which startled Nan Yin.

"What do you mean by 'deliberately'? But Nan Yin hadn't expected things to develop this way. She believed that Duanmu wouldn't lie to her."

“That’s right. I think his goal is to shake us off, because the two of us following behind you, Miss, are a big problem for him and he has to get rid of us. And Blizzard and the Undead are the best way to kill us with a borrowed knife, right, young man?” Old Man Teng squinted at Du Lei.

Du Lei was the guide he personally found. He originally thought Du Lei could help them enter Beishan smoothly, but he didn't expect that Du Lei would trick them halfway, causing him and Duanmu to almost die in the vast snow-covered mountains. He had experienced many ups and downs in his decades of life and had never suffered such a loss.

"But Grandpa Teng, why would he do this?" Nan Yin didn't doubt the truthfulness of Grandpa Teng's words, but she really couldn't find a reason.

"Oh my, oh my, the old man really has sharp eyes. My little thoughts didn't escape your notice. It wasn't just during the blizzard, Miss. Do you remember the time on the mountain road?" Du Lei readily admitted what Duanmu and Old Man Teng had said. He then asked Nan Yin, whose eyes were full of confusion.

"If what you just said is true, then why did you go through all that trouble to bring me there that time?" Nan Yin kept shaking her head, trying to deny it all. She didn't believe it was true, even though the words came from Du Lei's own mouth.

“Because I had the mountain path destroyed beforehand,” Du Lei replied softly.