The most shameless alchemist in history

Wenli looked out the window at the scenery. The surrounding area was still a vast expanse of barren mountains, with no signs of human habitation. Her conclusion that they had crossed the border was based on what she saw on the map. During this period, no one had come to check on them.

“To be precise, we are still on the border. Only after crossing Harrenburg can we be considered to have truly entered the territory of the Mountain Kingdom. The section of road from Spring Breeze Town to Harrenburg is a no-man's-land that neither country cares about.” Dure patiently explained, holding a map in his hand.

"Huh? Three no-man's-land? What does that mean?" Wen Li had never heard of such a thing before, so she immediately asked.

"Because of the geographical features of the Mountain Country, which is surrounded by mountains, there are a lot of complex buffer zones between the Mountain Country and the Snow Country. It is difficult for large-scale wars to break out in this area. For various reasons, the Mountain Country has arranged its battle line on the northwest side and retreated to the northeast front."

As he spoke, Dure pointed to the map in his hand, which made the situation clearer.

"But why did this happen?" Wenli was puzzled.

"This is also determined by the terrain. The northwest side where the two countries meet is relatively open, suitable for large-scale troop operations. Whether the Mountain Kingdom moves north or south, it will choose to launch an attack from the northwest. The northeast terrain is complex, and the defense lines of both countries avoid the mountainous terrain..."

Du Lei paused here, "There are strategic reasons for this, and it makes sense from that perspective. But to build a railway of this scale on the border between the two countries, it's hard to do it without anyone noticing, isn't it?"

Even Dure himself couldn't figure this out; there were too many unanswered questions.

"Given the current situation between the Snow Country and the Mountain Country, the Snow Country is on the defensive and will not launch an attack on the Mountain Country at all. Moreover, isn't the Mountain Country also deploying heavy troops on its northwestern border, watching us like a hawk?" Wenli shook her head gently.

She was very clear about the current situation in the Land of Snow. If the Land of Snow were not in a weaker position, she would not have been sent to the Land of Mountains for negotiations.

“Those are very complex issues, and only those in higher positions can make decisions about them. Ordinary people can’t interfere.” Du Lei shook his head. He didn’t want to think about the issue any further. The train continued to move slowly.

"Bee Sting, how's Leopard Tail doing?" Tiger Che asked Bee Sting beside him. He was beginning to regret bringing Leopard Tail along this time. Not only had it caused a lot of trouble for the team, but in the end, he also had to send someone to take care of him.

“He woke up once before, but didn’t say anything, and then fell asleep again.” Bee Sting is in charge of taking care of Leopard Tail, and she’s the most suitable person for it.

"Really? We can't just abandon him like this. It's really a headache. Hey, Bailing, what's wrong?" Hu Che patted his head, feeling a headache coming on. At this moment, he noticed Bailing squatting on the ground not far away, looking rather pale.

"I...I'm fine." Bai Ling shook her head, indicating that she was alright, but her pale face was hard to reassure.

"Miss Bailing, you look terrible. Are you sick?" Wenli stepped forward and asked with concern. Bailing had been taking care of her all the way, and now that Bailing was in this state, she definitely needed someone else to take care of her. Wenli was not one to be coy.

"No, it's just... I feel like throwing up." Bailing patted her chest.

"Hey... are you carsick?" Du Lei asked, glancing at him from the side.

"Motion sickness?" Wenli and Kotetsu were both taken aback.

“I’ve read about this symptom in a book. It says that some people are not suited to traveling by car and get carsick. I’d only read about it in books before and hadn’t seen any real cases. I never thought that there would actually be people with this symptom,” Du Lei explained carefully.

"What should we do then?" Wenli was also at a loss. She wasn't a medical student and couldn't make up her mind.

"Bailin, have you never ridden a train before?" Du Lei continued to ask.

“No, this is the first time.” Bailing nodded.

"No wonder. Why don't you go over there and rest for a bit? Oh, by the way, I have some calming herb powder here. Mix it with water and drink it later; it might make you feel better." Du Lei found a small medicine bottle in his pocket, filled with green powder.

“But this side…” Bailing was a little worried.

“We’re here, no problem. You can go and rest.” Du Lei pointed to himself and Hu Che and the others.

“That’s right, you need to get some rest so you can perform your job better.” Hu Che also urged Bai Ling to rest.

"Understood. I'll leave this to you then, Miss Wenli. I'm very sorry, but I'm afraid I'll have to leave my post for the time being." Bailing looked at Wenli apologetically, clearly showing that she was very dedicated to her duties.

"Alright, alright, Miss Bailing, you should go and rest. I'll help you over there." Wenli waved her hand.

“How can this be allowed…” Bai Ling reacted quite strongly to this.

“Nothing is impossible. Miss Bailing has been taking care of me all this way, and now it’s my turn to take care of you. Come over here.” Wenli said with a smile, and she insisted on helping Bailing over. The latter could not persuade her otherwise, and the two left quickly.

"Miss Winry is such a kind-hearted person," Kotetsu remarked as he watched Winry's departing figure.

“It’s really strange that someone with such a kind heart would be in a position like an envoy.” Dure frowned at this.

"What did you say?" Kotetsu didn't hear Durei's words clearly and came over to ask him.

"It's nothing. Let's all get some rest before we arrive in Harrenhal. Who knows what might happen then?" Dure waved his hand, as he was planning to go and rest for a while.

"Hey kid, I'm saying the train is just going to run like this, aren't you going to go and keep an eye on it? Is that really okay?" Kotetsu was more concerned about the train.

"Don't worry, nothing will happen, at least not for now." Du Lei waved his hand. Anyway, he didn't actually know how to drive. He had done his best to get the train moving. Based on what he had learned, once the train started, it would continue to run as long as the boiler didn't stop.

After all, trains always travel in a straight line along the tracks.

"Are you really alright? But I still feel a little worried." Kotetsu was still somewhat concerned.

"Alright, you can rest assured and get some rest, absolutely..." Du Lei yawned.

Just as he was about to say "absolutely no problem," someone suddenly rushed towards him from directly in front, shouting anxiously. The most shameless alchemist in history.

Chapter 453 Traffic Accidents

There was no one else on the train besides Kotetsu and his group, so Du Lei wasn't surprised when someone suddenly appeared. It was Ape Arm who rushed over, gesturing wildly at Kotetsu and Du Lei, stammering incessantly. He looked somewhat flustered and spoke very loudly.

"Hey, Ape Arm, weren't you shoveling coal over at the firebox? What are you doing here? The fire in the firebox can't be turned off, otherwise without that steam, the train can't move forward, right, kid? Am I right?" Kotetsu turned to ask Du Lei.

"Mr. Ape Arm, what happened? Don't worry, tell me slowly." After Du Lei started the train, under normal circumstances, as long as Ape Arm continued to add coal to the boiler to ensure combustion, there would be no problem, and there was enough coal on the train.

In his memory, although Yuanbi couldn't speak, he was very steady and shouldn't be so flustered.

"Ugh, ugh, ugh!" Seeing the suspicious looks on Hu Che and Du Lei's faces, Yuan Bi was so anxious that he almost jumped up. He held his head with both hands, his whole body swaying, and his movements looked rather comical.

"Hey, Yuanbi, are you trying to act like a monkey? You should go back to work. I'll rest for a bit and then come over to relieve you, understand?" Hu Che didn't take it seriously, assuming that Yuanbi was just trying to slack off, and urged Yuanbi to go back to work.

“Mr. Ape Arm, you mean... there’s a... gorilla up ahead?” Dure tried to understand what Ape Arm meant. Although communication between them was a bit difficult, he had communicated with an egg before. For him, as long as the method was right, communication was not a problem.

"Mmm mmm mmm!" The ape-like arm nodded heavily, confirming Du Lei's conjecture.

"What gorilla, little star, what are you talking about?" Kotetsu didn't understand what they meant.

“Ape Arm seems to be saying… there’s a gorilla blocking the tracks ahead,” Du Lei deciphered Ape Arm’s meaning.

"A gorilla? A gorilla saw the train rushing by, and it ran away. What's there to panic and shout about?" Kotetsu still didn't take it seriously. After all, the train was huge. Even if there were ten or a hundred gorillas, it wouldn't make a difference, let alone one.

“I’m afraid things aren’t that simple. Let’s go take a look!” Du Lei knew that if things were only as Hu Che described, Yuan Bi wouldn’t be so panicked. He had a bad feeling and immediately rushed over to check the situation.

"Hey kid, don't be in such a hurry, wait a minute." Hu Che was already exhausted. He had only kept quiet because Wen Li was there. Now that Wen Li had taken Bai Ling to rest, he was finally able to lie down and rest for a while, but he was disturbed by Yuan Bi.

"This kind of thing... no way?" Du Lei, who was the first to rush to the front of the train, couldn't help but tremble after seeing what was in front of him.

"What are you talking about? Are you out of your mind?" Kotetsu was a little annoyed, and he slowly followed.

"No, the train has to stop, or things will go wrong!" Du Lei rushed forward, trying to stop the train.

"Stop? We finally got it started, why stop? Are you kidding me? What could possibly make you like this... Holy crap, what is this thing? How can it be so big?" Hu Che didn't understand why Du Lei had also become flustered.

Just as he was about to stop Du Lei, he glanced ahead and suddenly saw a huge creature blocking his way. He was a man who had traveled all over the world and had seen many high-level magical beasts, but the size of the magical beast blocking his way at this moment frightened him quite a bit.

This monster was over ten meters tall, looking like a small mountain. If it were just tall, that would be one thing, but its physique was extremely strong. Hu Che finally understood why Yuan Bi had been acting like a gorilla and howling earlier, because this monster was a composite of gorillas.

The train was undaunted by the sight of ten or a hundred gorillas, but this gorilla was like a fusion of a thousand gorillas; its arm was as thick as a tree. The train was not moving fast, but the distance between them was constantly closing.

The train was about to crash into it head-on, and it showed no sign of avoiding it!

"No, it's too late to stop, we're about to crash!" Du Lei's face turned pale. He wasn't a well-trained train driver who could handle all kinds of emergencies; he was just someone who was forced into the job to save his own life.

He had been having a smooth journey all along, but now that he was in real trouble, he felt a chill run down his spine and had no idea what to do.

"To run into such a big thing, this kind of thing..." Kotetsu had no idea what to do.

"Boom!" Before they could react, the train crashed straight into them.

The train, which had been moving steadily, began to shake violently. A loud howl and a gasp of surprise came from directly ahead.

The howling came from the gorilla lying on the tracks, its sweet dreams disturbed by the train, while the exclamations came from Winry and the others.

"What's going on, Mr. Dure, Mr. Kotetsu, what happened?" Wen Li came over to ask what was going on. She had just taken Bai Ling to rest, but only a few minutes later she heard this commotion. It seemed that there was no way she could rest.

"Miss Winry, it seems we've hit something really big. The train has slowed down. Hey kid, what should we do now?" Kotetsu was also confused. The train, which had been moving, had slowed down, but hadn't completely stopped.

Kotetsu had no choice but to seek help from Dure, since Dure was in control of the train.

"You ask me what to do? This kind of thing..." Cold sweat kept seeping from Du Lei's forehead. He wanted to give up, but he had no experience, and the others had even less experience. This forced him to stand at the forefront of the storm, feeling like he was being roasted by fire.

"Huh, the train... what's going on? Something seems off." Kotetsu sensed something was wrong with the train, but couldn't pinpoint the problem for a moment.

"No, the train isn't slowing down, it's... going backwards?" Dure noticed this too, but he found the reason earlier than Kotetsu.

"What? Regression? How is this possible?" Kotetsu was utterly astonished; this was simply too unbelievable. The most shameless alchemist in history.

Chapter 454 Train Derailment

Both Du Lei and Kotetsu found the train reversing utterly baffling. Although the train did have the ability to reverse, no one was operating it. The train was shaking violently. After a brief moment of shock, Du Lei and the others came to their senses and figured out what was going on.

"No way, that gorilla... it's actually pushing the whole train backwards? How heavy must that train be? How can it even move it? This is really..." Kotetsu broke out in a cold sweat. He had traveled all over the country for many years and had seen all kinds of things. He had also seen many magical beasts with superhuman strength.

However, he had never heard of a monster like the gorilla in front of him that could shake a train by itself. Through the window, he could clearly see that the gorilla was pushing the train backwards along the tracks, with rocks falling from both sides. The situation was extremely dangerous.

"Now is not the time to marvel at its strength. We must think of a solution as soon as possible. We can't let it continue like this, or we'll all be doomed!" Du Lei knew the seriousness of the problem. His forehead was covered in cold sweat. He wasn't sure how much longer the train could hold on.

"Then hurry up and think of something!" Kotetsu threw the question back into Dure's hands, urging him loudly.

"Oh dear, what's going on? The train is reversing, and behind it... it's blocked!" Wen Li was startled by the commotion. The whole train was making a rumbling sound and shaking violently. She glanced back at the back of the train and saw a large number of boulders falling down.

The boulder fell onto the narrow railway tracks, completely blocking them, and the train crashed into the obstructing boulder!

"No, it's too late, everyone lie down!" Du Lei tried to do something to change the situation, but time didn't give him the chance. With a loud "boom", the carriage made "crack" and "crack" sounds. Du Lei felt his feet lose their balance and his body was thrown upwards.

After he crashed heavily into the ceiling, he fell to the ground, curling up into a ball to lessen the impact, but his body was still badly scraped. The others were in no better shape; Kotetsu and the others were thrown to the other side of the carriage and stuck in a corner.

"The carriage is... deformed? No way, this is a steel plate, and it was completely crushed through? What kind of joke is this?" Kotetsu struggled to get up from the ground. The scene just now happened too fast, at most ten seconds, but the carriage was already completely different.

He stared in disbelief at the distorted and mangled carriage, all the seats inside broken and not a single one intact.

"Miss Winry, cough cough, Miss Winry." Dure didn't have time to pay attention to anything else; he pulled out the broken chair and searched for Winry's whereabouts.

The impact had twisted and tilted the entire carriage from the middle upwards. Both he and Kotetsu were covered in injuries. He knew that his injuries were not a big deal, but if anything happened to Winnie, then all their efforts would have been in vain!

"I, I'm here, I'm fine." Just then, Wenli's voice came. Dure quickly went forward to find the sound and moved the broken wooden plank, revealing Wenli's figure underneath.

“Miss Winry, it’s so good that you’re alright. Hmm? Yuanbi, you…” Du Lei was overjoyed to see that Winry was alright. Just as he was wondering how Winry could have survived the impact, he noticed that there was another person to Winry’s right.

The man was holding a large wooden plank. He threw the plank aside, grinned, and saw splinters embedded in his arm, drawing blood. His shoulders and back were also covered in bright red spots, clearly indicating that he had shielded Wenli from the impact during the attack.

"Mmm, mmm." The ape-like arm waved its hand, indicating that it was fine.

“Mr. Ape Arm, you are injured, and badly injured…” Wen Li was startled when she saw his blood-soaked appearance.

“Miss Winry, and everyone else, are you all alright?” Nightingale, who was supposed to be resting, also came over.

"Where's Bee Sting? Have you seen her?" Kotetsu looked around at everyone, but couldn't find Bee Sting anywhere.