The most shameless alchemist in history

“No, that’s not where we’re going.” Dure shook his head, decisively denying it.

524 has an idea

While everyone else was showing off their skills, Du Lei and his group remained on the sidelines. This puzzled not only Kotetsu and Hyobi, but also Kim, who saw them as a thorn in his side. Even after entering the venue, Kim still had people keeping a close eye on Du Lei and his group.

Although only contestants who passed the first three rounds could enter the venue, just as Kotetsu and Hyo-o were fully supporting Du Lei, many of these two hundred people were also Jin's people. Their task was not to compete with Jin, but to cooperate with Jin's actions to attack other contestants.

"How's the investigation going? What's that kid named Redu up to? Has he gotten his hands on any gold leaves?" Jin asked his subordinates about the information they had gathered.

"Reporting to the young master, that boy has been wandering around the streets the whole time. I don't know what he's doing, but one thing is certain: so far, neither he nor the three men with him have a single gold leaf on them," Jin's subordinate reported truthfully.

"What? More than two hours have passed and he hasn't done anything? Has this kid gone mad?" One of Jin's trusted confidants was stunned, surprised by the result, because Jin regarded that kid as a major threat, and he should have done something by now.

Now that he's performing so poorly, doesn't he even qualify to be Kim's rival? This indirectly proves that Kim misjudged him.

"I don't know either. Ever since he came in here, I've been following him and keeping an eye on him. He's been wandering around aimlessly and hasn't done anything." The subordinate was getting a little anxious. He had been working diligently, hoping to satisfy Jin and get a promotion.

"Understood. You can go now. Keep an eye on things, and report back immediately if that kid makes any move!" The confidant waved his hand, signaling the errand boy to leave. He had also noticed that Jin's expression was quite unpleasant at this moment.

“Young Master, I think you’re overthinking it. That kid looks very ordinary. We’ve investigated his background, and it’s nothing special. So he can’t pose any threat to you at all. The final victory will be yours anyway.”

The confidant immediately approached Jin with a grin and said that he had been serving Jin for several years and knew that Jin was a man who did not show his emotions. He dared not be careless at all, because if he accidentally said the wrong word or even the wrong syllable, it would be very troublesome if Jin got angry.

"Do you think that guy Lyon would send someone with no background or connections to stop me for no reason?" Jin said in a deep voice, his face very ugly. Since entering this place, he hadn't needed to do anything at all, because his subordinates would naturally take care of everything for him.

According to the rules, his victory was almost a certainty, but he still couldn't put his mind at ease and felt uneasy.

“Young Master Leon… oh no, did that guy Leon hire someone to snipe you, Young Master? Could it be that kid?” Deep down, the confidant still respected Leon because Leon had a good reputation within the family and was very polite to people, but he quickly realized that he was working for Kim.

King harbored strong hostility towards Leon, which made him immediately change his tune, and he was also shocked by what King had said.

“That’s right. I just got the news that Leon has arrived in Storm City. He met with that kid last night. I’m not entirely clear on what they discussed, but I can guess. So, are you saying that the person even Leon is interested in is really just an ordinary person?”

Jin sternly rebuked his trusted confidant, clearly dissatisfied with his inefficiency.

"I deserve to die, I deserve to die! This was my negligence, please calm down, young master!" The confidant was terrified when he saw Jin's appearance. He had seen Jin's methods before and knew that the consequences of failing to do things properly were very terrible.

"That kid... is he still choosing to hold back? I'd like to see what tricks he has up his sleeve. Only ten people can enter the fifth round from the fourth round, and the top ten will all be taken by my people. He won't be able to get a single spot!" Jin shifted his gaze to the right.

Although he couldn't see Dure from this angle, he knew that the hideous face was in that direction.

Meanwhile, Du Lei, who was still circling the city, suddenly sneezed, and felt a chill run down his back.

"Kid, aren't you being a bit too cowardly? You won't try this, you won't try that. Do you think money will just fall from the sky if you just sit here? That's incredibly naive of you. Don't forget there are only ten spots available to enter the fifth round," Leopard Tail said, clearly dissatisfied.

"Do you know we've been being watched all along?" Du Lei suddenly asked out of the blue.

"What did you say?" Leopard Tail was startled and immediately looked around.

"No need to look. If it were that easy for you to discover us, you would have noticed long ago that they've been watching our every move from the shadows." Du Lei remained calm and continued walking ahead without changing his expression.

"The person watching us... is it one of Jin's men? That guy is really persistent. By the way, I have an idea." Leopard Tail's hatred for Jin runs deep, and now that Jin is targeting him, he is extremely unhappy.

"What idea? It's really rare that you could come up with a solution." Kotetsu was somewhat surprised by this.

“That Jin must be very rich, right? I mean… he must have a lot of gold leaves. Why don’t we find him and rob him of them? That way we can get the gold leaves and also hurt him at the same time. Isn’t that a win-win situation?” Leopard Tail said excitedly.

"Huh?" Kotetsu was stunned, seemingly not having heard Hyobi's words clearly.

"What 'ha'? Shouldn't they be shocked and excited by my genius plan?" Leopard Tail originally thought he would get a warm response, but the reactions of Kotetsu and Durei were like a bucket of cold water poured on him, especially Durei, who just turned around and glanced at him without changing his expression.

"Hey, I'm telling you, you didn't even bother to read the most basic rules, did you?" Kotetsu asked.

"Rules? What basic rules?" Leopard Tail was completely confused.

"You can't use violence to get gold leaves. That's against the rules and you'll be expelled. So I shouldn't have had any expectations of you after all?" Kotetsu sighed and rubbed his forehead. He had thought Hyo-o had a good plan because he saw how confident Hyo-o looked.

Now it seems he was indeed overthinking things.

525 Finally, Action

Du Lei did not leave in the fourth round, but continued to persist, which drew close attention from Jin. While instructing his subordinates to frantically absorb gold leaves, Jin also sent people to investigate Du Lei's every move, and his subordinates reported on what Du Lei was doing at any time.

For the first hour, Durei and his men did nothing but wander around the city, almost like they were just strolling. Jin assumed that Durei was waiting for an opportunity, so he instructed his men to keep a closer eye on things. For the second hour, Durei continued to do the same thing as the previous hour.

Jin's subordinates were puzzled, wondering if the kid had become addicted to sightseeing and had forgotten whether they had anything to do. Jin, however, stuck to his opinion that the kid must be up to some ulterior motive and did not let his guard down.

By the third hour, Dure finally did something else: he was talking to some local residents. This made Jin nervous, so he sent someone closer to observe what Dure was doing. They discovered that Dure was simply chatting with the locals, and in a way that was completely irrelevant.

This completely baffled Jin. What time is it? How can someone still have time to chat with others? Doesn't this person have any sense of crisis? Until the fourth hour arrived, which was the last hour stipulated by the rules, if no action was taken, they would definitely be finished here!

"Young Master, Young Master, we have now obtained 362 gold leaves. So far, eight of the top ten are our people. We can say that we have won a great victory in this stage." Jin's confidant came over excitedly to report the glorious results to Jin.

"Eight people? Who are the other two?" Jin asked, frowning. He had originally planned to take all ten spots so he could announce his victory in the election early, but now it seemed he was still a little short of his goal.

"One of these two is named Kerry. I've investigated him; he's one of Leon's men. The other is named Lambo. I don't know much about his background, but he only made it into the top ten by chance. Young Master, you don't need to worry about him; he doesn't pose a real threat."

Jin had previously reprimanded his confidant for failing to gather sufficient intelligence, but now he had obtained the information in great detail.

"And one more?" Jin nodded, this time quite satisfied with the information, and continued to inquire.

"Anyone else? Um... Young Master, there are already ten people. The rest are our people. Who else are you asking about?" The confidant carefully went through the list in his mind, counted on his fingers, and after confirming that he had not missed anyone, he cautiously asked Jin.

"Of course it's that kid named Redu, don't tell me you've forgotten about it!" Jin asked, raising his voice.

"Huh? Young master, are you talking about that kid who's been sightseeing all this time? Since they came in, they've just been wandering around, not doing anything productive. So far, they don't even have a single gold leaf. They're no threat at all," the confidant immediately reported.

"Not a single gold leaf? It's already the last half hour." Jin frowned, genuinely puzzled.

“Young Master, I think you’re overthinking it. Those people are no threat at all. Besides, Leon’s support for him is all thanks to Kerry. If I were Leon, I would support Kerry too. He’s much better than that kid. That kid has no potential.”

The confidant couldn't help but add that he had never thought highly of Du Lei from the beginning and did not consider Du Lei a threat.

"That's true... but I still feel uneasy. Keep someone watching him, and report to me if anything happens." Normally, Jin would never have taken a small fry like Du Lei seriously, but he couldn't understand why he was acting this way.

Just then, someone came from not far away, and his confidant immediately went over to listen to the person's report. After all, not everyone is qualified to speak with Jin. If information is to be transmitted, it must go through him. Jin doesn't have that much time to manage everything.

Upon hearing the news, the confidant frowned and hurriedly ran to Jin.

"Young Master, that kid has finally made his move." In his own opinion, this wasn't big news, but he still had to tell Jin Zhixiao.

"What?" Jin, who had remained calm for more than three hours, finally couldn't sit still any longer.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the city, Du Lei, who had been wandering around, finally instructed Kotetsu, Hyo-o, and the others to do something. Their actions immediately attracted the attention of Kim's side, and the spies sent by Kim promptly relayed all their intelligence back.

Compared to Jin's confusion and suspicion, Kotetsu and Hyo-o, Du Lei's companions, were more panicked and uneasy, because they only had half an hour left. According to their investigation, the threshold for the top ten had now been raised to forty gold leaves.

In other words, they must obtain forty gold leaves within half an hour to advance to the next round, which is likely to be the final round. This is no easy task, as there are a total of two hundred people entering this unfamiliar city.

It took these two hundred people three and a half hours, and the vast majority of them still had only ten gold leaves left, and it was difficult to even break into single digits.

Kotetsu and the others were already as anxious as ants on a hot pan. They had been wanting to do something to earn gold leaves for a long time, even if it was to exchange for something or to help the natives. At least they couldn't just watch their time go to waste.

But Du Lei remained unmoved. He was extremely calm and composed. He maintained this state until the last half hour. Finally, he quietly gave some instructions to Kotetsu, telling everyone to get moving. Kotetsu and the other two had been waiting for this moment and were about to explode. After receiving the order, they immediately took action.

"Hey, Boss Hu Che, what is that kid thinking? What time is it? Why isn't he in a hurry? There are only twenty minutes left. If we try our luck, we might still have time. But he actually wants us to do this."

Leopard Tail was very confused by Dure's instructions; he really couldn't figure out what the guy was trying to do.

"He must have his reasons for making these arrangements. Don't argue, just do as he says." Hu Che patted Bao Wei's head. He was also confused, but he knew that he had no choice but to follow Du Lei's orders.

526 Rejected the proposal

After remaining silent for half an hour, Dure finally took action, which not only caught Kim's attention but also that of others. With only ten minutes left until the deadline, someone approached Dure and offered him a suggestion.

Generally speaking, this is an irresistible suggestion, as it will help Du Lei pass the level directly. It can be said to be a bug-like existence in this round, providing a way for Du Lei to pass the level directly without a single gold leaf.

"That's the situation. Lyon asked me to support you. As far as I know, you don't have a single gold leaf yet. But that's okay. As long as I transfer all sixty-two gold leaves I have to you, you'll be able to get through this smoothly." The person who approached him was named Kerry.

He introduced himself as a friend of Leon, who had asked him to support Duray's operation. His method of support was straightforward: he would give Duray a gift to help him get through the ordeal. Their conversation was immediately overheard by King, which infuriated the latter.

"What did you say? Kerry met with that guy Redu, and Kerry is even going to give him his gold leaf? Damn, is there such a thing? How could I have missed that? If he gets Kerry's gold leaf, that kid can easily get through this?"

Upon learning this, Jin immediately shouted in a fit of rage, something that had truly taken him by surprise.

"I'm very sorry, it was my oversight! However..." The confidant knew it was his responsibility. He hadn't thought of this beforehand when providing information to Kim, which meant his incompetence. If things went according to plan, Kim would definitely blame him!

"But what? What else do you have to say?" Jin glared at his confidant with a gloomy face. He had been keeping a close watch on Du Lei, trying to keep this upstart out of the way, but he had tried everything he could but still failed, which made him extremely annoyed.

"However, that kid rejected Kerry's offer; he didn't accept Kerry's gold leaf." The confidant reported in a low voice. He knew this was his lifeline, even though it seemed unbelievable to him. He had thought about it over and over again on his way here but still couldn't figure it out.

"He refused? He actually refused?" Jin was stunned. This result was truly unexpected and somewhat unbelievable.

"Yes, I also find it strange. Such a good thing was offered to him, and he actually refused. Heaven knows what he was thinking. Maybe he got his brain caught in a door." The confidant took out a handkerchief to wipe the cold sweat from his forehead. He once thought that he was definitely doomed.

However, Dure proved to him with his actions that when an opponent's stupidity reaches a certain level of confusion, it's difficult for him to suffer any misfortune.

“No, something feels off. No normal person would do something like this. No one would refuse a good thing that comes their way. The reason he did this is either because he is abnormal or an absolute idiot... But Leon supports him, so it can’t be that.”

Unlike his confidant, Jin Ke didn't harbor any wishful thinking. He thought carefully, considered several possibilities, and then shook his head, eliminating them one by one. After a series of eliminations, the possibilities remaining in his mind became fewer and fewer.

"So there's only one other possibility left, which is that he has some other way to get enough gold leaves in a very short time..." Jin said the only result he guessed, which was the only possibility left after a series of eliminations.

"No, no matter what he's up to, we can't let him succeed. Get everyone moving. No matter who he's trying to talk to, what he's going to exchange, or what business he's going to do, disrupt it all, as long as it doesn't break the rules, understand?" Jin immediately gave the order.

Although he couldn't think of any other way for Du Lei to turn the situation around, he had an innate keen sense of the impending crisis. His intuition told him that things were not simple. A low-key and confident person can always deliver a fatal blow like a venomous snake when the opponent is careless.

At the same time, Kotetsu and the others had already done what Dure had instructed them to do. They returned in time and happened to see Kerry leaving. They found out that Kerry had come to deliver gold leaves and that Dure had refused the offer.

"Hey, what were you thinking? You actually refused? He came all the way here to give you gold leaves! If you had just accepted his gold leaves, you would have gotten through this smoothly. How could you turn down such a good opportunity? No way, I have to go and get him back!" Leopard Tail turned around and was about to leave.

"Don't bother chasing it. It's pointless now. Can't you calm down?" Kotetsu grabbed Leopard Tail and pulled him back.

"Hey, Tiger Chetsu, you're really good at keeping your cool. The deadline is almost here, and we only have three gold leaves so far. How am I supposed to stay calm?" Leopard Tail was furious. These three gold leaves were the ones they had obtained earlier.

"There's always a way, right, right, Dure?" Although Hu Che had a lot of confidence in Dure, he really couldn't think of any other way to turn the situation around. At least, the only effective possibility—Kerry coming to deliver the gold leaves—had already been eliminated by Dure himself.

In situations beyond his control, he could only pin his hopes on Dure, since the latter had remained remarkably relaxed and carefree until now.

"Why are you asking him? Look at him, what time is it? He's still scribbling on the ground. Ugh!" Leopard Tail replied irritably. Normally, he wouldn't dare to openly contradict Kotetsu, as that would definitely get him beaten up, but he couldn't care less about that now.

"How much longer until the deadline?" Du Lei, who was drawing something on the ground with chalk, finally stopped. He looked up at Hyo-o and Kotetsu, as well as Ape Arm, who had been standing nearby trying to persuade Kotetsu and Hyo-o, and asked about the time.

"So you finally realized that time is almost up? There are only five minutes left until the deadline. We only have three gold leaves, while the threshold for the top ten is now around sixty. Can you conjure them out of thin air?" Kotetsu said irritably.

"Change is definitely not going to happen." Du Lei had a clear understanding of the current situation.

"So you might as well just honestly get eliminated. I only believed your nonsense." Leopard Tail was already prepared to be eliminated.

“But if it’s for refining, that’s not necessarily true,” Du Lei suddenly said.