The most shameless alchemist in history

The problem troubling her now is that the town is so lifeless that there shouldn't be many living people around.

“My father… died in the mining accident two years ago, and my family members also died from the disease…” Siegel clenched his fists as he said this, and his nose twitched, showing how sad he was.

“I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to bring up your sad story… but your family is all gone, how are you living alone in town?” Bee Sting was really puzzled by this.

“No, it’s not just mine.” Siegel shook his head heavily, denying it.

"What? You're not alone? Then who do you live with? Are there other people in town?" Bee Sting asked, puzzled.

“Yes, there are still quite a few survivors in the town. Everyone is supporting each other and continuing to live. Everyone lives on the mountain. The area below the mountain has been contaminated by the venom, making it impossible to live there.” Siegel pointed to the mountain, and Bee Sting followed his direction. Indeed, there was a lush and green mountain in the upper right corner.

“So that’s how it is… There is indeed venom everywhere in the town. This pungent smell is unbearable. By the way, since you live with other people, why are you in town so late? Isn’t it dangerous here?” Bee Sting still didn’t understand this.

"Because we saw the lights on in the inn, we knew that the old hag was out harming people again. I was really worried, so I came down to warn you. I didn't expect to run into Brother Leopard Tail. This is wonderful!" Siegel was still very excited, and it was clear that his relationship with Leopard Tail was extraordinary.

"The inn lights are on? The old hag? What on earth is going on?" Bee Sting frowned, vaguely sensing that something big was about to happen tonight.

.

419 Ghost Hotel

Winry had finally gotten a good night's sleep, only to be woken up. If this were in Frost City, the capital of the Snow Kingdom, she would definitely be furious. However, after experiencing several dangerous situations, she knew that things were different now. She shook her head, trying to clear her mind.

"Miss Bailing, what happened that made you wake me up? I'm so sleepy." Wenli yawned. Bailing had told her to get some rest for the night and that she had to travel tomorrow. But when she looked out the window, the night was still dark, and it was the middle of the night.

She didn't believe anyone would be crazy enough to travel in the middle of the night. She followed Bailing out of the room and saw Hu Che and the others waiting outside.

“Miss Winnie, let’s go outside and discuss the details first.” Kotetsu said gravely, pointing to the door.

"Go out? But didn't that old woman repeatedly tell us not to leave the inn? Where is she? Why is she gone?" Wenli looked around, trying to find the old woman from the inn, but she couldn't find her, which made Wenli feel strange.

What puzzled her even more was that Kotetsu wanted her to leave the inn in the middle of the night, even though there was venom everywhere outside the town.

"I've searched everywhere, but I can't find that old hag. We don't have time, let's hurry up and get out of here. It'll be dangerous if we stay in the inn!" Bee Sting urged anxiously from the side. She had already opened the door and was urging Wenli and the others to go out with her.

"Ghost Granny? What ghost granny? What's going on?" Wenli was even more puzzled, her mind filled with too many questions.

“Miss Wenli, we’ve been tricked. The old woman we saw at dusk wasn’t alive; she was a ghost. And this inn isn’t for travelers; it’s a ghost inn for spirits,” Bee Sting explained after pulling Wenli away from the inn’s entrance.

"Not a living person? But I spoke to her just now..." Winnie found it hard to believe.

“Thinking about it carefully, that old woman is indeed very suspicious. In such an abandoned town, we haven’t seen a single person, yet she’s running an inn here. What else could it be but a place for ghosts to stay?” Kotetsu agreed with Bee Sting’s words and nodded slightly.

"Tell us first, what happened to you, or what kind of intelligence you received." Du Lei looked at Bee Sting and Leopard Tail not far away, while Leopard Tail was holding a little boy's hand on his right. All eyes were on the little boy.

“Siegel, you tell Miss Winry what happened.” Bee Sting gestured for the little boy to tell the whole story.

“Okay, Sister Bee Sting, here’s what happened…” The little boy named Siegel began to recount what had happened in Spring Breeze Town.

It turns out that Spring Breeze Town used to be a small town with a gentle spring breeze. Because it is located on the southern border of the Snow Country, every spring, a warm spring breeze would blow from here. The spring breeze would pass through the mountain pass to the north of Spring Breeze Town and bring the warm wind into the Snow Country.

With the arrival of spring, all things begin to revive. Every year, Spring Breeze Town holds a grand Spring Festival, making it a peaceful town. However, this peaceful town changed with the arrival of a group of outsiders who brought surveying equipment.

They discovered a large amount of coal north of Spring Breeze Town. As is well known, with the advent of the steam age, the price of coal soared, and the entire continent was once swept up in a wave of coal hunting. Spring Breeze Town was found to have a large amount of coal reserves, and immediately a large number of coal merchants flocked in.

At first, Chunfeng Town resisted these outsiders and prevented them from mining. However, when these merchants waved large amounts of banknotes and carried baskets full of silver coins to Chunfeng Town, making a jingling sound, the people in the town finally couldn't resist and agreed to the coal mining.

During the period of coal mining, Chunfeng Town did indeed usher in its heyday. The once peaceful town was flooded with a lot of trendy things, and the men in the town all became miners. They had stable jobs and stable incomes, earning several times more than before.

The people of Chunfeng Town all lived a prosperous life. Not only that, but a railway was also laid to transport coal out continuously. Every town in the vicinity envied Chunfeng Town, and even women considered it a great honor to marry into Chunfeng Town!

However, this situation changed after several years. One reason was that coal mining was nearing depletion. No matter how abundant the coal reserves were, they could not withstand the capitalists' frenzied mining. Several mountains near Chunfeng Town were hollowed out.

Another reason is that the miners dug something up while working underground. As for what they dug up, no one knows for sure. The most well-known explanation is that they dug up the "Gates of Hell," from which a constant stream of monsters emerged from the depths of the earth.

Not only that, but also a highly toxic venom seeped from the ground. This venom was extremely deadly; if even a tiny bit got on the skin, it would quickly fester and become impossible to heal. Initially, the capitalists would hire mercenaries to guard the mines and deal with the monsters.

But gradually, the capitalists discovered that Spring Breeze Town could no longer mine much coal, and the input and output were not proportional at all. So they abandoned Spring Breeze Town and abandoned this once prosperous town. The miners in the town who made money moved away from the town with their families.

But those men died in the coal mines, leaving behind orphans and widows. They had no money, no one to rely on, and could only stay in Chunfeng Town to wait for death. For many years, they had been living together on the mountain, not knowing how long they could hold on. As for the town below the mountain, it had long been a dead zone.

"So that's how it is. Such a thing actually happened in Spring Breeze Town? That's really unfortunate. What about this inn and that old woman?" Wenli felt very sympathetic after hearing Siegel's account. Such misfortune would be painful for anyone.

At the same time, she also became puzzled about the origins of the inn and the strange old woman, because according to Siegel's account, there should be no living person in the town.

“Granny Ghost did indeed run an inn in town. At that time, Spring Breeze Town was not yet prosperous, and many outsiders came to the town. The inn was very successful. Granny Ghost’s son was a foreman in the coal mine. He was very capable. I met him. He was very close to my father. But later there was an accident in the coal mine. My father and Granny Ghost’s son were both killed in that accident…” Siegel’s expression darkened as he said this.

"They all perished, right?" Bee Sting patted Siegel's head; his plight was truly pitiful.

“Yes, they all perished. It was around that time that the capitalists decided Spring Breeze Town had no value for mining, so they abandoned the town. Everyone left around that time. Granny Ghost could have left too, but she couldn’t bear to leave her son, so she stayed. However, her health was too poor, and she died of illness not long after. My mother and the others helped with her funeral arrangements,” Siegel continued.

"The hearts of parents are truly pitiful... Wait, you just said that the old woman is dead? Then who is the old woman we saw?" While feeling sympathy, Wenli found the key point of the problem, which was that an old woman had appeared out of nowhere.

"This is the spirit of the old hag, born from her resentment towards her son. She believes her son could have escaped, and that the town killed him. Her spirit remains in the town, continuing to run this inn. Anyone who passes by and seeks lodging at the inn will be killed by her to pay for her son's life..."

Siegel couldn't continue speaking, and it was already quite difficult for a child his age to bear so much.

"Was that old woman a ghost? This is really..." Winry still had an incredulous expression.

“Miss Winry, it’s fortunate that we found out early. I found it strange that there would be an inn in such a small town. Wasn’t she just waiting for us travelers to come in so she could kill us all? She even told us not to come out. She must have been trying to wipe us out in one fell swoop.”

Bee Sting still felt lingering fear when recalling what had happened before. "This time, we are so grateful that you, Siegel, appeared in time and told us the details. By the way, Siegel, did you know Leopard Tail before?"

"Huh? You two know each other?" Dure, who hadn't spoken until now, frowned and looked at Siegel and Leopard Tail with a puzzled expression.

“Yes, I knew Brother Leopard Tail before. He had been to Spring Breeze Town before,” Siegel replied with a smile.

“Since the inn is too dangerous, we can’t stay here.” Kotetsu frowned, pondering where to go next.

“We’re all friends of Brother Leopard Tail, so let’s go up the mountain. The survivors of the town all live up there. There’s no poison gas there, so it’s safe. Come with me, everyone.” Siegel waved and beckoned Kotetsu and his group to follow him up the mountain.

"Up in the mountain...is that where?" Bailing looked up in the direction Siegel pointed, and there were indeed scattered lights coming from there.

"Mr. Kotetsu, what should we do now?" Winry asked Kotetsu for his opinion.

“It’s not safe in town right now. If we’re going to spend the night, let’s go up the mountain.” After thinking for a moment, Kotetsu decided to go up the mountain.

.

420 surviving townspeople

Led by Siegel, Winry, Kotetsu, and their group successfully reached the top of the mountain along the mountain path. From below, they could only see scattered lights, but upon arrival, they found that there were quite a few lights here, and a small campsite had been set up with wooden planks and tents.

Because of its high elevation and good ventilation, the pungent smell was gone, which finally relieved Wenli. Staying in town had taken a toll on her health, causing her to cough incessantly, but now her cough symptoms had improved immediately.

"Mother, Mother, I'm back! Look who I brought with me!" Siegel called out happily from afar.

"Siegel, where have you been so late? Do you know how worried I was... Hey? Who are these people? We rarely see strangers in town." A middle-aged woman rushed over from inside the tent and immediately scolded Siegel.

At the same time, she looked at Du Lei and the others with a puzzled expression. This town rarely saw outsiders visiting, so it was a rare occurrence for so many people to come at once.

"Mrs. Kama, it's me. I'm sorry to bother you again." Leopard Tail stepped out from Dure's group and greeted the middle-aged woman. It was clear that they knew each other. The woman, Kama, was taken aback and carefully observed who the young man in front of her was.

"You are... Leopard Tail? It's you! I never expected to see you again. This is wonderful! By the way, these people are... your friends, right? Come in, come in and sit down. Don't stand outside; it's especially cold at night." Madam Kama recognized the young man and laughed happily.

She immediately beckoned Du Lei and the others over, and found a few stools for them to sit on. Du Lei observed his surroundings. At this moment, the commotion alerted other people in the camp, and one after another, people came out to check the situation. Du Lei noticed that most of these people were women and children.

"Karma, do you have guests? That's really rare. It's been so long since anyone has visited Spring Breeze Town. Welcome, welcome!"

"Do you still think Spring Breeze Town is what it used to be? Now that it's fallen to this state, everyone's terrified. Who would dare to approach Spring Breeze Town?"

"That's true. The past glories are gone forever, leaving only us, the weak and unable to move, still holding on here..."

Besides women and children, there were also elderly people and a group of disabled people. A child was crying incessantly in a woman's arms, while the elderly were filled with emotion and kept wiping away tears. There was also a disabled person with a broken leg who walked silently to the side without saying a word.

“It’s Siegel’s friend. We don’t have anything to offer you, so please don’t mind. By the way, have you eaten? I’ll go find you something to eat; there should still be some left…” Kama immediately went to the kitchen to get busy. It was called a kitchen, but it was really just a makeshift structure made of wooden planks.

“No need, Mrs. Kama, we are already very sorry to have disturbed you, there’s no need to trouble you.” Winry stepped forward and waved her hand.

“You are Siegel’s friends, so we should welcome you. It’s been a long time since any strangers have visited, so we are really happy.” Kama said, wiping away tears as she smiled. It was clear that she was genuinely overjoyed and hadn’t been this happy in a long time.

"This town used to be so big, and now only you are left?" Wen Li stood on the hillside, a spot that offered a panoramic view of Spring Breeze Town. She could clearly see that the town was very large, with a square, a park, a train station, and all kinds of facilities.

But no matter how magnificent or bustling these facilities were in the past, they are now dilapidated and desolate, reduced to ruins.

“Yes, all the young and strong people in the town have fled, leaving only us old, weak, sick, and disabled people, who have no one to rely on. We can’t escape, so we can only wait to die here. It doesn’t matter if we die, but Siegel is still young…” Kama said, feeling guilty and very sad.

"Where are the people from the city hall? This place should be under the jurisdiction of Maple City, right? How can such a small town be reduced to this state? Don't the people from the city hall care?" Wen Li frowned. Based on her knowledge, the municipal authorities were responsible for managing the town.

"Those guys at the city hall? Back when Spring Breeze Town was riding high, we saw them come all the time. One official after another, big and small, came and left with bulging pockets. In Maple City, and even Frost City, countless people got a share of the spoils from Spring Breeze Town. But now that Spring Breeze Town has fallen into this mess, who among those who benefited cares about the fate of Spring Breeze Town?"

A man with a severed arm in the crowd spoke indignantly. Siegel whispered to Wenli and the others that the man's name was Seda, a miner from the town, and that he had lost his arm in a mining accident.

“How could this be? They’re so inactive.” Winry was very surprised by the city hall’s actions.

"What else can they do besides make money? If we relied on them, we wouldn't have to stay here waiting to die," an old man sighed.

"Alright, alright, everyone, let's not talk about this anymore. It's supposed to be a happy occasion to have guests, so why bring up these things? By the way, guests, you came from town... you didn't happen to see the old ghost, did you?" Kama suddenly remembered the old ghost and asked seriously.

“We did see her, and we initially stayed at her hotel,” Bailing nodded in response.

"What? You actually stayed at the old hag's inn? Don't you know that the old hag is long dead? She's a ghost, and her inn is a place that kills people!" Kama was startled and solemnly reminded Dure and his group.

“If we hadn’t run into Siegel, we might have really fallen for his trick. Luckily, we met Siegel, who led us away from the inn, and that’s how we ended up here to stay. I hope we haven’t bothered you.” Bee Sting patted Siegel’s head again, very grateful to the little boy.

"So it was Siegel who brought you up here? That's wonderful. It's worth it for teaching Siegel to help others often." Kama smiled with satisfaction, her words revealing pride in her son.

"Hehe, I didn't expect to run into Brother Leopard Tail. I have so much to say to Brother Leopard Tail." Siegel was a little embarrassed by the praise in person. He and Leopard Tail had a very close relationship.

"Alright, it's getting late, and the guests must be tired. I'll tidy this up for them to stay in. Please don't mind how simple it is." Kama warmly invited Wenli and the others to follow her to the nearby tents.

“We are already very sorry for disturbing you, how could we mind? Lady Kama, you are too kind.” Although Winry was a noblewoman from the capital, she did not complain about the simple living conditions. They quickly settled in at Kama’s invitation.

The moonlight in the sky was cold and clear, falling on the hillside. The evening breeze carried a bone-chilling cold. Although it was already spring, it was still early spring.

"The spring breeze in Spring Breeze Town... it's really bone-chillingly cold." Du Lei looked up at the moonlight in the sky, facing the cold wind blowing by, and sighed softly.

.

421 How to see through

The campsite on the mountain was very rudimentary. Kama had prepared only a few rooms made of wooden planks for Dure and his group to live in. There were gaps between the planks, and cold winds were blowing in. Lying in bed, they could see the moonlight through the gaps, and the blankets were very thin.

However, for Winry and the others who had just escaped from the ghost hotel, there was no room for further requests. Moreover, they were already extremely exhausted, and after experiencing the ghost grandmother's ordeal, all they could think about was getting to sleep as soon as possible.

Both Kotetsu and Winry slept soundly. The warm-hearted Kama made them feel at ease, and Kama had also told them that the mountain was absolutely safe. Although it was a bit cold, their physical condition was sufficient to withstand the cold of the night.

Once everyone was fast asleep, no one noticed that Siegel and his mother, Kama, were sharpening knives at the back of the camp. The ordinary kitchen knives were sharpened to an exceptionally fine point, gleaming in the moonlight, and soon they were gleaming.

"Hehehehe, are they already asleep? It's almost time to get to work." Siegel's previous innocent and cute appearance was completely different. Now, his eyes were filled with cruelty and ferocity. He stuck out his tongue and licked the blade. His tongue was very long, almost reaching his chin.

A normal person's tongue couldn't possibly be that long. If Winry had seen this, she would have been terrified. But at that moment, she was breathing evenly and having a sweet dream. Little did she know what was happening behind the camp. More and more people were gathering around Siegel.