The most shameless alchemist in history

She had thought she could finally get through the underground tunnel to Springbreeze and reach Harrenhal, but it seems she was wrong.

"Wait, if this is an underground mine, there must be a complex network of pits and excavated transport tunnels, right?" While everyone else was disheartened, Du Lei remained deep in thought, his brow furrowed. He quickly found some clues and immediately asked. The Most Shameless Alchemist in History

Chapter 438 Searching for the Land

Even the old woman, a local resident of Spring Breeze Town, couldn't answer Du Lei's question. She wasn't a miner and had never been inside the mine before the town was destroyed by monsters, so she had no idea what the mine's internal structure was like.

"The underground passages in the mine? When I was a child, my neighbor was an old miner. He told me that the underground roads in the mine were intricate and complex, with all sorts of passages dug out, like a spider web. I think the mine in Chunfeng Town is no exception."

After careful consideration, Kotetsu thought that Durei's suggestion made a lot of sense. There should be more than one way to get ahead. Since this road was blocked by monsters, they didn't need to be discouraged. They could find another way to get around it, just like they had done around the mountain path.

"Captain, do you mean there's another road leading forward near the mine we're in?" Bee Sting carefully considered Tiger's words before asking the question, since Tiger was the one with the final say in this escort team.

"This is the only choice we have." Kotetsu nodded. He had encountered so many things along the way, which had already wasted too much time. This made him anxious and eager to reach Rock City as soon as possible, lest something else happen while things were still in the way.

“Understood, then let’s split up and go search…” Leopard Tail agreed with Kotetsu on this point and immediately prepared to take action.

"Wait a minute." Du Lei interrupted them at this moment, and everyone's attention was immediately focused on him.

"Mr. Dure, what's wrong?" Wen Li was the first to ask, looking at him with a puzzled expression.

"Before coming to the mine, we forgot the most important thing." Dure's words carried a strong sense of self-reproach.

"What is it? What exactly do you want to say? Stop dawdling, okay?" Leopard Tail was getting impatient.

“Maps,” Du Lei succinctly stated what he meant by “forgotten things.”

"Map? What map are you talking about?" Leopard Tail was taken aback and continued to ask.

"That's right, it's the mine map! How could we forget that? If we had a map, we wouldn't be searching aimlessly like this!" Hu Che slapped his forehead. Not only Du Lei, but he had also forgotten about this, which caused them to take many detours.

“That’s right. If we had a map, we could just follow it out of the mine without worrying about which path is blocked or not being able to find the next one.” Bailing nodded in agreement. This was a blind spot that they had all overlooked.

"Grandma, do you know where we can find a map of the mine in town? We need to go back to town to get it." Du Lei turned to the old woman and asked. She was a local, and although she had never been down into the mine, she naturally knew far more about the town than Du Lei and his group of outsiders.

“Well… I do know that. Shall we go back to town now?” The old woman nodded. Even the young people hadn’t thought about the map, let alone this white-haired old woman. After everyone reached a consensus, they quickly left the mine.

Fortunately, they didn't stay deep in the mine for too long, only about an hour, before they left and returned to the town. It was still morning, and the sun was shining, but a persistent fog lingered over the town, and the pungent smell in the air was unbearable.

According to the old woman, this was poison seeping from underground in the mine. Under the corrosive effect of the poison, not only did the buildings corrode rapidly, but the weathering speed was also accelerated by more than ten times. Even the area around the town became desolate, with almost no plants able to survive.

The reason Wenli was able to persevere in such an environment was entirely due to the medicinal herbs she found, which she brewed into a soup for her to drink. The old woman had considerable insight into medicine making, and Du Lei took the opportunity to consult her, from which he benefited greatly.

"The mayor's house definitely has a map, but I don't know if it's been corroded." After leaving the mine, the old woman led Du Lei and his group to the mayor's house to look for the map. The mayor's house was not far away, located in the center of the town. It was a four-story building.

The small building occupies a large area, with a garden downstairs. However, the flowers and plants have long since withered due to the poisonous gas. There is also a large pool of toxic sap at the entrance, which requires great care to pass through. The lock at the entrance has long been rusted and can be easily broken with a slight pull.

"Let's look for it first. If we don't find it, we'll think of another way." Kotetsu didn't have high hopes for this trip. After all, the map was old and easily corroded. But even if they didn't find it here, there must be more than one map in such a large town.

"But speaking of which, this mayor is really rich. He actually built such a tall building. Look at the furnishings here, they're all expensive." After entering the house, Bee Sting's eyes were drawn to the furnishings. She was a worldly person who had been to many wealthy and powerful houses.

But now, the carpets and lamps in the mayor's house are all very exquisite and sophisticated, which surprised her greatly.

"The town that made its fortune from mining was already incredibly wealthy. As the mayor, he must have made a lot of money off it. It's not surprising at all. Now is not the time to see if he's rich or not. Maps are usually hung in places like studies. Everyone, look carefully."

Durei wasn't interested in the decorations. The windows were all closed, making the room quite enclosed, and everything was in good condition, which was a good sign. This gave Durei some confidence, and he immediately began searching for a map around the room.

"Huh, what is this..." Just then, a surprised voice came from Leopard Tail.

"What's wrong? Did you find it?" Du Lei assumed that Leopard Tail had found the map and immediately came over to check. Kotetsu also looked over.

“No, the person in the photo… he looks somewhat familiar.” Leopard Tail shook his head, his gaze fixed on a photograph on the wall.

The photo shows a middle-aged man holding a little boy. The date of the photo is shown next to the picture; it was taken ten years ago.

“These are the mayor’s son, Karen, and Karen’s son, Camus, the mayor’s grandson. They both left the town by train on the day the incident happened,” the old woman explained as she walked over, glanced at the photograph.

"Karen... Camus... What's wrong? My head hurts so much." Leopard Tail swayed and seemed about to fall, but Bee Sting immediately caught him.

"Leopard Tail, are you alright? What happened to you?" Bee Sting was very concerned about his condition.

"I'm fine, it's just... I feel like I've been here before." Leopard Tail's face was grim, his gaze still fixed on the photograph.

"Have you been here before? The photo was taken ten years ago. If you calculate your age, you should be about the same age as the little boy named Camus in the photo. And since Siegel knew you before, it means you did live in this town..." Dure looked suspicious.

Leopard Tail had shown a series of unusual reactions before, which made him very suspicious. Now that he has come to the mayor's house, various clues are gradually coming to light.

“I watched Camus grow up. You and Camus are very different.” The old woman shook her head, denying Durei’s guess.

"Is it different? What do you mean by different?" Du Lei continued to ask.

“Look at Camus’s forehead. He should have a scar on his forehead. It’s from when he fell as a child. Everyone in town knows that. Camus was seriously injured that time, and the mayor was very anxious. He called many doctors, but none of them could help him.” The old woman pointed to the photo.

Du Lei and the others observed carefully and indeed saw a crescent-shaped scar on the little boy's forehead. They then looked at Leopard Tail, but Leopard Tail did not have a scar on his forehead.

“Leopard Tail doesn’t have this scar on his forehead, which proves that Leopard Tail isn’t Camus, and the name Siegel mentioned before was also Leopard Tail…” Bee Sting was also puzzled by this question, as there were too many suspicious points.

"But I really remember being here before. Damn it, why does my head hurt so much? I can't remember anything..." Leopard Tail looked terrible, and his expression was pained.

"Alright, Leopard Tail, stop thinking about it. Things will definitely clear up someday," Bee Sting comforted him kindly from the side.

"Found it! Is this the map you were talking about?" Just then, Bai Ling's voice came from the next room. The most shameless alchemist in history.

Chapter 439 Morning Star Staff

Bai Ling's words immediately drew everyone's attention, including Du Lei and Hu Che. They all ran to the next room and soon followed Bai Ling's gaze to see a map hanging on the wall. The map was very well preserved and had the words "Spring Breeze Mine" written on it.

“Let me see, this map… this… why don’t you come and take a look, kid, is this the one we’re looking for?” Kotetsu took the lead and took the map down. He looked at it carefully but couldn’t figure it out. Then he gestured for Durex to come forward and handed it to Durex.

"There's no mistake, this is the map we've been looking for. It's really going smoothly. Look, we just went in along this path. We encountered the sea of ​​skeletons here, we were attacked here, and our path was blocked here. Look, there really is another path over here!"

After carefully examining the map, Du Lei quickly located their position on it and beamed with delight.

"Now that we've found the map, let's set off again. With the map in hand this time, we're sure we can get through the mine smoothly." Hu Che urged immediately. They had already wasted too much time, and he didn't want to stay a moment longer.

“Let’s do it this way.” Du Lei nodded; this time, he and Kotetsu had reached a consensus.

"Hey? Aren't you all going to rest for a bit? You're all so energetic, running and jumping around, but Miss Wenli needs a rest." Bee Sting suggested taking a break, mainly because she was thinking of Wenli. Wenli had run around several times in the mine and was already exhausted.

"I'm fine, everyone, let's go. I won't be a burden to you." Wenli shook her head, indicating that she was alright.

"I will take care of Miss Wenli, so everyone doesn't need to worry." Bailing stayed by Wenli's side the whole time, taking care of her.

"Let's not delay, let's go." After obtaining Wenli's consent, Kotetsu quickly left the mayor's residence in Spring Breeze Town.

“This place…” Before leaving, Leopard Tail stopped and looked at the mansion one last time.

"Mmmmmmmmmmm." The ape arm next to him walked over and patted the leopard tail on the shoulder, intending to comfort him.

"I'm fine, let's go." Leopard Tail waved his hand and quickly turned to leave.

They soon returned to the interior of the mine. After arriving at the mine where they had encountered the sea of ​​skeletons, Dure followed the map and found another path. At this point, they all stopped because the old woman was still seeing them off.

"Grandma, you can stop here. We can proceed on our own from here on out. We've already caused you a lot of trouble." Wenli was very grateful to the old woman. If it weren't for her, they would have been wiped out by those monsters in the mine long ago.

"Here's another bottle of holy water. Keep it for later use; it will be helpful. Oh, and this too." Before parting ways with Wenli, the old woman handed her another bottle of holy water. She had done this once before, and the holy water had been of great help to Wenli then.

Besides the holy water, she gave Wenli another item this time: her white cane.

"Huh? This? Isn't this something very important to you, Granny Ghost? How can this be..." Wenli had personally witnessed the old woman wielding this staff and wreaking havoc, with countless demons vanishing into thin air under its touch. She knew it was definitely a very precious treasure.

"It has indeed accompanied me for almost half a century, especially when I was young and traveling across the continent. It helped me through many hardships. But now I am old, and leaving it here would only mean it would be buried in the dust of history and eventually buried deep underground... This is not what it wanted, is it? Many years ago, an old man gave it to me when I was young, and now, many years later, I, who am old, am giving it to you."

The old woman shook her head. Her attitude was firm. She insisted on putting the cane into Wenli's hand. You could see that there was reluctance and longing in her eyes, but more than anything, she was reminiscing about the past. It had accompanied her through her entire life, from girlhood to housewife, and then to old woman!

“This…” Wenli still hesitated, not daring to accept it easily.

"Miss Wenli, please accept this. It's a gift from the old lady, and it's also her wish," Kotetsu added from the side.

“But…” Wenli was still hesitant. At this moment, she looked at Dure, seeking his opinion, and Dure nodded slightly.

“I understand, then I’ll accept it. I wonder if it has a name? I will treat it well.” Wenli finally made up her mind to accept the cane.

"Its name is Morning Star. Alright, you can go now. Whatever you encounter on your journey, I wish you good luck." The old woman waved her hand and slowly turned to leave. She was so old that she could hardly walk and began to pant after walking only a short distance.

As she wielded her staff to fight the monsters, she vaguely saw that spirited girl, who was once the object of countless young people's admiration. She wondered more than once if things would be different today if she hadn't met him.

Perhaps she will get a place in that tower, or perhaps she will be able to maintain her youthful appearance thanks to the abundant magical resources?

She knew that her life had countless possibilities, and of those hundred possibilities, the remaining ninety-nine would be infinitely better than the present!

But why did she choose the remaining one? She still can't figure that out.

"Perhaps this is fate." The old woman gave a self-deprecating laugh, her figure gradually receding into the distance until it disappeared.

Du Lei and his group watched her leave until she was completely out of sight before turning around and continuing on their way.

"To guard a dead town all by herself, what an amazing person she is," Bee Sting exclaimed. She admired the old woman greatly because she knew that she herself could never do what the old woman did.

"Is she really protecting this town?" Du Lei said softly.

“Mr. Dure, what did you say?” Winry asked, not having heard him clearly.

“It’s nothing. According to the map, besides the road we were blocked on before, there are three other roads we can take. Although it may take some time, let’s try them one by one.” Du Lei shook his head, looked at the map, and pointed to the markings on it.

“I understand. As long as I follow Mr. Dure, that’s the right thing to do. It’s really reassuring.” Wenli smiled and winked. She held the cane in her hand. How was she any different from the girl who had just received the same cane called “Morning Star” many years ago?

Perhaps only silent fate knows the answer. The most shameless alchemist in history.

Chapter 440 Underground Station

With the mine map found at the mayor's house in Chunfeng Town, Du Lei and his group had a smooth journey from then on. Although several years had passed, the geological structure of the mine had not changed, and the map marked which routes were dangerous areas.

Following the map's guidance, Du Lei successfully bypassed all the dangerous areas. About an hour and a half later, they found the railway tracks, which meant they had successfully bypassed the road blocked by monsters. According to the map, they had reached the edge of the mine.

“If the map is pointing correctly, we can get out of the mine through the tunnel ahead, and then follow the railway for about six hours to cross the border of the Snow Country and reach the edge of Harrenhal,” Dure said, pointing to the markings on the map.

“Thanks to this map, we’ve been saved a lot of trouble. And thanks to you, Mr. Dure, otherwise we don’t know how many detours we would have taken.” Winry was very grateful to Dure, after all, it was Dure who came up with the idea of ​​finding the map and led them forward with it.

"This is what the kid should do. We haven't left the tunnel yet, so don't let your guard down." Hu Che walked over and ruffled Du Lei's hair. Although he didn't praise Du Lei verbally, his attitude towards Du Lei was much better than at the beginning.

"Captain, look over here! What's that?" Just then, she heard the sound of bee stings coming from ahead, and she seemed to have made a discovery.

"Did you find anything?" Kotetsu immediately went over to check the situation, but due to the dim light, he could hardly see what was in front of him.

"It's a train! We found a train ahead!" Bee Sting seemed a little excited as she pointed ahead and shouted.

"A train? How could there be a train here? Let's go take a look." Kotetsu was stunned for a moment. According to his understanding, there shouldn't be any train left here, because the train should have left many years ago, and there shouldn't be any train returning after that.

“Finding a train in a tunnel is quite a novel thing, Mr. Dure, what do you think… Huh? Where is Mr. Dure?” Winry was also intrigued by the discovery of the train. She originally wanted to ask Dure’s opinion, but after looking around, she couldn’t find him anywhere.

"What? There really is a train here. This is really strange. But it's too dark to see anything..." Hu Che walked over to Feng Ci and, with the help of his flashlight, he could actually see the outline of a train, but the light was too dim to see the whole picture.