The most shameless alchemist in history

"Lord Jewel didn't appear on Helm's Peak from the beginning. It fell from the sky when it was still a rock," Nicole answered truthfully. She was eating grass nearby when the rock fell from the sky and saw it clearly.

"It fell from the sky? So that's it! Its true form is a star stone!" Du Lei suddenly realized. He was no stranger to star stones, because he had previously followed a trio from the Eastern Continent deep into the Northern Mountains to find such a thing.

He knew that the star stones contained enormous energy. According to Nan Yin, all the star stones fell from the sky. Xia Yi's departure from the village and entry into the North Mountain was very likely also for the star stones. However, Du Lei did not find any trace of Xia Yi in the North Mountain.

"Starstone? What's that?" Nicole didn't know what starstone was, and she was curious when she saw Durei's reaction.

“It’s nothing, please continue. You said that the Jewel Lord was just a stone at first, a star stone. So how did it become a jewel?” Dure waved his hand, signaling Nicole to continue. He had roughly figured out some of the details.

"Lord Jewel stayed on Mount Helm in the form of stone for a while, maybe a few months, maybe a few years, I can't remember clearly, it's been too long. I only remember that someone later discovered Lord Jewel," Nicole continued recounting what happened next.

"You were discovered? What happened to that person afterward?" Du Lei listened patiently.

“I don’t know what happened to that person afterward. I only know that many people came to Mount Helmet later. They started digging into the mountain and built a palace inside. It took them a very long time to build.” Nicole recalled the distant past with a touch of melancholy.

"A long life? But shouldn't a rabbit's lifespan be very short? How do you know it could be very long?" Dure raised a question.

“I don’t know why, maybe it’s because of Lord Baozhu’s protection. My life, which should have ended soon, has been extended. No matter how much time passes, I will not grow old, and neither will everyone on the mountain. Time seems to have stood still,” Nicole continued.

"Life has been extended?" Dure frowned; this was the first time he had ever heard of such a thing.

"Kid, what's so strange about that? If I'm not mistaken, that star stone must have some amazing power. Whether it's humans, magical beasts, or even creatures from our Void Abyss, those affected by its powerful magical energy will gain even greater strength, and extending their lives will be a piece of cake."

Xiao Hei chimed in from the side, and luckily what he said was quite insightful, so Du Lei didn't refute him.

"I see. So this is all due to the power of the starstone? What happened after the palace was built?" Dure nodded, he could understand that, and then asked about the subsequent progress.

"Then Lady Jewel was born. The palace master found the most skilled craftsmen to polish the stone into the shape of Lady Jewel." Nicole continued, although these things happened a long time ago, they were still deeply imprinted in her memory.

“Wait, you’ve been calling it ‘Lord Jewel,’ could it be… alive?” Dure realized this and immediately asked.

“Yes, at first I also found it strange, thinking that Lord Jewel was just a stone, until one day it saw me and spoke to me.” Nicole nodded, speaking as if it were the most natural thing in the world, completely unaware of how incredible this was to Dure.

"Talking to you? What did it say?" Dure was very curious about this question and continued to ask.

"Master Baozhu said it was lonely, locked in a cage all by itself, unable to break free. It also said that those people were foolish, thinking that they could survive forever by relying on its power, but they did not know that while they were relying on its power, their flesh and blood were also taken away."

Nicole paused here, swallowed, her pupils dilated, and she looked somewhat frightened.

"There is never anything in this world that only takes without giving. In gaining a long life, one must pay a heavy price. As for that pearl... since it is a star stone, it shouldn't have life. Could it be possessed by something?"

Du Lei carefully recalled the circumstances under which he obtained the Star Stone. At that time, although the Star Stone possessed powerful magical energy, it had no life. Old Man Teng had specifically told him about this, and even said that under certain special circumstances, the Star Stone could be parasitized.

Although Dure had not witnessed it firsthand, he could roughly deduce that this was the case based on Nicole's account.

“That’s right, you have to pay a price for a longer life.” Nicole nodded, her voice trembling slightly.

"Then... what was the price you paid?" Dure realized that Nicole was also one of those who gained a long life. Otherwise, a rabbit would have withered away long ago and wouldn't have been able to survive for so long.

"Didn't you see? The price paid was flesh and blood. Everyone lost their bodies and became wandering ghosts." Nicole smiled bitterly. She was filled with mixed feelings about her current situation and had no words to express her suffering.

"Having lost its original body... it has become a ghost or phantom?" Dure nodded; it was indeed a poignant statement.

“It wasn’t that we became ghosts or phantoms; we all became shadows. Tormented by time, we all went mad and then disappeared into the darkness one by one.” Nicole shook her head, a hint of self-reproach in her voice.

"And what about you? Since everyone else has become a shadow, how did you become a ghost?" Du Lei knew that a ghost was a very special existence, completely different from a shadow.

"Because Lord Jewel needed someone to do things for it, it kept me here, and that's how I ended up like this," Nicole answered truthfully.

"Help him with something? Help him with what?" Du Lei frowned; he could tell this was definitely not a good thing.

"It's just... it's just that Lady Jewel needs more shadows, so it needs someone to help it..." Nicole's voice trailed off.

"More and more shadows? Does it mean you're going to lure more people to Nightmare Mountain and then kill them all?" Dure emphasized, glaring fiercely at Nicole. His expression was so menacing that Nicole was startled and stumbled to the ground.

“I…I didn’t want to do this either, but I didn’t want to become a shadow like everyone else. Lady Jewel promised that it would give me a new body, a human body! That’s why…” Nicole felt guilty and didn’t dare to speak loudly.

“No matter the reason, a wrong thing is a wrong thing.” Dure shook his head; he didn’t approve of Nicole.

Nicole lowered her head and didn't say anything more; the two remained silent for a long time.

"Hey kid, is it really that big of a deal? It's just a few people dying, what's the big deal?" Little Black couldn't stand it anymore and said a few words.

"Shut up!" Du Lei glared at Xiao Hei, who knew Du Lei was angry and didn't want to provoke him.

"But no matter what, Lady Baozhu has disappeared, and my wish has been dashed. I can only live like this forever, but is this what it means to be alive? It's even more painful than being dead." Nicole looked at her body, feeling somewhat sad.

"By the way, there's one more question. Since that jewel possesses such immense power, how could it have been so easily defeated? That's really strange." Du Lei raised his final question. He had witnessed the power of the star stone; it shouldn't have shattered so easily.

"I don't know what happened either. Lord Baozhu's aura suddenly disappeared. Doesn't that mean it's dead?" Nicole was completely baffled and asked Dure.

"No, I don't think it's that simple. The Lord of the Pearl you mentioned... it must still be alive!" Du Lei said with certainty.

.

417 Two hundred years ago

Du Lei had no idea that while they were resting in a small inn in Spring Breeze Town, a dark figure emerged from an underground palace in an unknown cave in Nightmare Mountain. As it appeared, the lights that had been extinguished around them were turned on again, creating a vast expanse of eerie green light.

"Are they already far away? That was close. I almost got killed by them. Everyone else said that killing them was as easy as crushing an ant or stepping on a bug, but that kid... what exactly happened?" The shadowy figure was still shaken.

Recalling the previous scenes, according to its cooperation with the little rabbit, it should have stripped the intruders of their flesh and blood. It had done this countless times before, and it was very skilled at it. Its method was simple: to make people completely sink into nightmares.

But just as it was trying to kill the boy from his nightmare, an unexpected situation occurred. A force that appeared out of nowhere forcefully pushed it away. If it had just been pushed away, it wouldn't have bothered with it.

But after the force repelled it, it was like a burning flame. Even if he pulled his hand out of the burning flame, the flame would not go out, but would continue to burn along his hand. Fortunately, it escaped in time, broke free from the pearl's restraint, and hid deep underground.

Otherwise, it would have every reason to believe that it would have been completely reduced to dust by now, so how could it still be standing properly in the underground palace?

"I don't know what that little rabbit was doing, actually attracting such a powerful and ruthless character. But her fate wasn't much better; she was swallowed up by the terrifying darkness, and by now there's not even a trace left. That's something even I wouldn't dare to mess with."

The shadowy figure could only accept his bad luck; he had never expected to encounter such a thing.

"Forget it, as long as I'm safe and sound, that's all that matters. The little rabbit is dead, so I'll just have to find someone else to do my bidding. But who should I look for... Hmm? Who's that outside? Who's lurking around there like that?" Just as the shadowy figure was having trouble finding a new partner, someone burst in.

In the dim light, one could see the silhouette of a young man walking in. He walked slowly, each step perfectly timed and rhythmic, making the most ordinary act of walking seem like an art form. This showed that the young man's temperament was absolutely outstanding.

"Sneaky, huh? A ghost who's been hiding in Nightmare Mountain for over two hundred years is calling others sneaky? That sounds like a joke." The young man chuckled softly, and his footsteps echoed through the empty underground palace.

"What...what are you saying? I don't understand. What do you mean by a ghost that has been hiding for over two hundred years? Don't talk nonsense!" The shadowy figure was stunned for a moment, but he quickly became flustered. He had never been so frightened in over two hundred years.

"What, still won't admit it? The infamous alchemist from two hundred years ago, known as the 'collector of human body art,' Senior Steker." The young man stopped in front of the shadowy figure. The vast underground palace contained only him and the shadowy figure, yet there was no fear on his face.

"How do you know all this? Who told you?" Startled by the shadowy figure named Steker, he looked warily at the young man before him, unsure how much more this guy knew.

"More than two hundred years ago, as you grew older and were about to die, you unexpectedly discovered traces of the Star Stone on Helmet Mountain. You then persuaded a king to build a massive underground palace on Helmet Mountain, which is the place we are in now. You used the power of the Star Stone and combined it with secret techniques to transfer your soul into the Star Stone. You paid a heavy price for this, and everyone who participated in the construction of the underground palace died a violent death."

The young man was very clear about the events of more than two hundred years ago; he spoke of them as if he had witnessed them with his own eyes.

"How do you even know all this?" Stark was extremely flustered, and the silhouette of a withered man could be seen in the shadows.

"It wasn't just the craftsmen and soldiers who died; even the king you bewitched died with resentment because he believed the rumor that you could grant him immortality. For over two hundred years, you've been hovering around Helm's Peak, absorbing the flesh and blood of passing travelers in order to refine your own body. You hope that one day you can forge a young body and live under the sun again, turning Helm's Peak into a nightmare mountain. Am I right?"

The young man continued speaking, each word he uttered like a hammer blow to Stark's chest. For over two hundred years, Stark had believed he was doing this in secret, a secret that no one else in the world should know.

But now this young man has easily exposed his secret, which has filled him with unprecedented fear.

"You bastard... stop talking nonsense. I don't want to hear your rubbish. Go to hell!" Stark knew the newcomer was up to no good. He sensed danger emanating from the young man. Based on his more than two hundred years of experience, he knew this man was definitely looking for trouble. He decided to strike first!

"So eager to kill and silence you? You've lingered in this world long enough, so... let me send you on your way and put an end to your unrealistic fantasy of creating a body of flesh and blood." The young man advanced instead of retreating in the face of Stark's threat.

In an instant, black smoke enveloped him. If Dure were present, he would have noticed that the concentration of the black smoke was hundreds or thousands of times stronger than when they fought with Nicole, as if it could block out the entire world!

“What do you mean by unrealistic fantasy? That’s great art. I’m about to succeed. You shallow guy wouldn’t understand. I’ll make you part of my great art, hehehehe… What?” Steck let out a strange laugh.

This underground palace is his lair. With the advantage of home ground, he is fully confident that he can kill any intruder on the spot. You should know that before he became like this, he was a famous alchemist on the continent. What kind of scene has he not seen? What kind of opponent has he not defeated?

But precisely under these circumstances, his laughter quickly came to an abrupt end, replaced by terror and despair.

"No, no, I don't want to die, I don't want to disappear, no!" Stark screamed as he turned and fled, trying to escape the dangerous place.

"It's all over," the man said casually. Soon, the only faint green light in the underground palace flickered like a candle in the wind and then went out.

.

418 Hotel Lights

Dure finally learned about the events that happened on Nightmare Mountain from Nicole, although some doubts remained, such as how the powerful Star Stone could be broken so easily, and where the Lord of the Orb had gone. These questions had not yet been given reasonable explanations.

But just as Kotetsu had said before, they had already left Nightmare Mountain, and the thick fog on Nightmare Mountain had also dissipated. There should be no more missing travelers in the future. Whatever happens on that mountain in the future is no longer of much concern to them.

The town that is now related to them is Spring Breeze Town. Although Winry said that after resolving the Nightmare Mountain incident, she would also need to resolve the Spring Breeze Town incident and find out what exactly happened here to make it into what it is now, Kotetsu does not agree with Winry's point of view.

Of course, Kotetsu outwardly agreed, but his disagreement lay in the fact that he only hoped to cross the border as soon as possible, reach Rock City, and complete the mission. He did not want any unforeseen complications, so he would not implement Winry's naive idea. As long as things went smoothly tonight, he would leave Spring Breeze Town tomorrow.

"Although this town has a strange vibe from beginning to end, ... Kotetsu is right, our mission is to escort Miss Winry to Rock Castle, not to be messengers of justice. Let's get some sleep and recover our strength, we still have a long journey ahead tomorrow... Hmm? What's that?"

Du Lei had already opened his eyes and returned from the space of the wooden dagger. He leaned against the window, and just as he was about to fall asleep, he noticed a shadow flickering outside the window. Out of curiosity and basic vigilance, he squinted down to find out what was happening.

By the moonlight, Dure could see that the person walking under the window was Bee Sting, which puzzled him. Both Kotetsu and the old woman in the inn who was full of suspicion had repeatedly stated that no one was allowed to leave the inn at night, but Bee Sting did just that anyway.

Du Lei couldn't understand Bee Sting's reasons for doing this, but Bee Sting herself knew that the reason she left the hotel and went outside was because she was worried about Leopard Tail at night and went to check on Leopard Tail's condition. However, she was surprised to find that Leopard Tail was not in the room, so she had to go out to look for him.

"Leopard Tail, Leopard Tail, where are you? It's dangerous to be out so late, and Captain Tiger Che said not to cause any trouble... Leopard Tail, where are you?" Bee Sting looked around, trying to find Leopard Tail's whereabouts. She was very concerned about Leopard Tail.

"No, could something have happened to Leopard Tail? I have to find him... Hey, who's that figure over there... Leopard Tail, what are you doing here? I've been looking everywhere for you, I was so worried when I couldn't find you." Just as Bee Sting was at a loss, she caught sight of a figure ahead.

Leopard Tail was squatting next to an abandoned house across from the hotel, and it was unclear what he was doing.

"I just came out for a walk because I couldn't sleep," Leopard Tail shook his head and responded softly to Bee Sting.

“I know you’ve been in a bad mood lately, especially after what happened at Nightmare Mountain…” Bee Sting didn’t know how to comfort Leopard Tail. She had done similar things many times before, but she always felt that they had little effect.

"Isn't what happened at Nightmare Mountain over?" Leopard Tail turned to look at Bee Sting, his expression calm.

"Huh? That... it is indeed in the past, but why are you still..." Bee Sting did not expect Leopard Tail to say such a thing. She originally thought that Leopard Tail's knot came from Nightmare Mountain, but now seeing that Leopard Tail was so aware, it seems that there was something else troubling him.

"It's nothing. I didn't expect Spring Breeze Town to be the same as always," Leopard Tail sighed softly.

"The same as always? You mean... you've been to this town before, and even lived here?" Bee Sting was taken aback.

"I guess so, hmm? Who's up ahead?" Leopard Tail nodded, not denying it, just as some movement came from ahead.

"Are you... Brother Leopard Tail?" A timid voice came from the dark alley ahead. Bee Sting immediately became alert. She followed Leopard Tail forward and saw a little boy hiding in a corner of the alley, trembling with fear.

“That’s right, I am Leopard Tail, and you are… Siegel, right?” Leopard Tail was startled when he saw the little boy, but after recognizing him and saying his name, he laughed happily.

"It really is Leopard Tail! I'm so glad to see you!" The little boy named Siegel cheered and ran over to grab Leopard Tail's hand.

“Leopard Tail, who exactly is he…” Bee Sting had some doubts and looked at Leopard Tail with a puzzled expression, hoping that he could give an explanation.

"Hello, sister. My name is Siegel. I'm a kid from town. My father is a miner. I've known Brother Leopard Tail for a long time." After recognizing Leopard Tail, the little boy was no longer shy and took the initiative to introduce himself to Bee Sting.

"Hello, my name is Bee Sting, I'm Leopard Tail's partner, Siegel. Why are you alone? Where are your family? And your father who works in the miners..." After introducing herself, Bee Sting asked the little boy with a puzzled look. Since Leopard Tail knew him, she trusted him completely.