The most shameless alchemist in history

“That’s not right. If we use violence to solve problems, it will only lead to more violence.” Dure frowned. He knew from this that the problem was going to get worse.

“You’re right. Since then, the Southern Front and the Snow Shadow Guard have been at odds, especially the radicals within the Southern Front. They started frequently attacking members of the Snow Shadow Guard, resulting in casualties on both sides.” Liata nodded, confirming this.

"So the frequent attacks later escalated into a large-scale conflict, drawing innocent people into it?" Dure asked after a moment of contemplation.

"That's not true at all. From the very beginning, the Southern Front only wanted to fight for the rights and interests of its people. It never intended to harm innocent civilians. It was all the work of the Snow Shadow Guard. They created many incidents to suppress the Southern Front and then falsely accused the Southern Front of doing them. This gave them an excuse to suppress the Southern Front and create the impression that the Southern Front is a dangerous organization in the country. Such actions are truly despicable!" Liata shook her head and said angrily.

"So, the Snow Shadow Guard was responsible for the bombing of the Winter Bridge?" Dure frowned. After Liata's explanation, he understood the ins and outs of the conflict between the Southern Front and the Snow Shadow Guard.

“It was definitely them who did it. They will stop at nothing to suppress the Southern Front. They caused many innocent people to die before, and this time they created turmoil at the Winter Bridge... Oh no, this train is dangerous!” While denouncing them, Liata suddenly realized a problem and looked up at the train window.

"Bang bang bang!" At this moment, crisp gunshots rang out one after another outside. Although the Winter Bridge was located in a valley between two mountains and the evening wind was howling, the gunshots were still clearly audible.

"What's going on? Why are there gunshots outside? What happened?" A passenger who also heard the commotion asked in a panic.

"No way, how could there be gunshots out of nowhere? Are you kidding me? You must have misheard!" Some people didn't believe it either.

"There's no mistake. I just came back from the battlefield not long ago, so I'm very familiar with this sound. Oh no, someone is attacking the train!" a recently discharged veteran shouted a warning.

Most of the passengers in the carriage were not clear about the current situation of the train. There were all sorts of rumors, and people were in a state of panic. However, Hank, the train conductor, was very clear about the situation the train was facing.

"Train conductor, someone is firing at the train outside! What's going on?" asked Schürrle, the train attendant next to him, in a panic. From his position, he could clearly hear the sound of bullets hitting the train carriages.

"Have we encountered robbers? No, it must be those villains. Immediately gather all the train police officers, and all male staff members should go to the armory to collect firearms. Oh, and find experienced veterans in each carriage and ask them for help." As the train conductor, Hank remained calm and composed. This was not the first time he had encountered an unexpected situation. He had dealt with many emergencies before, but always managed to resolve them perfectly. This incident proved that he was an outstanding and capable train conductor, fully qualified to shoulder the responsibility for the lives of hundreds of people on the train.

"Understood, you, you, come with me, you two stay here and hold the line!" The old train policeman with a big beard, Bud, gave the order, and he hurriedly led two people to gather more people.

The train stood alone in the darkness, battered by the howling wind. The moonlight was dim, making it difficult to see the road ahead. However, the beam of the searchlight from the train's locomotive allowed glimpses of figures flickering in the thick fog ahead. These people, numbering thirty or forty, moved slowly, firing as they advanced. Most of their bullets struck the carriages, leaving dents. While bullets were powerful, hitting the carriages was impractical. They did this not because they had plenty of bullets to waste, but to create psychological pressure. Fear is often a more deadly weapon than a firearm.

As the group approached, it became clear that they were all dressed in bright red combat uniforms. The leader was a young man in his early twenties, very tall and slender, with long blue hair that reached his waist. Compared to his subordinates who were all armed with flintlock pistols, he only had three long swords hanging at his waist, and no other weapons. Clearly, he preferred traditional cold weapons to the new flintlock pistols.

"What, quite clever, huh? If only it had stopped a little later, the train could have plunged straight into the Abyss of Winter, saving us a lot of trouble. But it didn't fall in, forcing us to go through all that trouble." The man with a knife at his waist looked at the train standing in the cold wind not far away, and slowly yawned. Even though the wind was biting on the bridge, his hair was blown into disarray by the wind, and even the knife at his waist made a "humming" sound in the cold wind, but this did not change the lazy posture on his face, as if he had just woken up and was about to have breakfast.

"Team leader, what should we do now?" asked a team member holding a gunpowder gun next to the man with the knife.

"You ask me what to do? Isn't this obvious? Our Southern Front meticulously planned to sever the vital transportation route between the South and the North—this Winter Bridge—in order to incite unrest, and to kill all the passengers on the trains passing through here. What a perfect script!" The man slowly drew a long sword from his waist. The blade was jet black, like a pool of autumn water in the night.

"Understood. Then let us, the Snow Shadow Guard... oh no, let us, the Southern Front, begin to punish these fools!" The team members with red headscarves approached the train. In the darkness, twenty or thirty crimson figures moved in single file, like a pack of wolves lurking in the dark forest, baring their ferocious claws at their prey.

.

678 Snow Shadow Guard

The passengers were already anxious because of the explosion, and now the sound of gunfire made them even more frightened. The cries of babies were unusually piercing in the carriage, and the howling wind rushed in through the windows, cold and biting.

In the height of summer, this weather felt like the dead of winter, and even Du Lei, a boy who grew up in the snow-capped mountains, felt a bit cold.

"If these guys were just targeting the Southern Front, that would be one thing, but they're actually attacking innocent civilians. This is absolutely unforgivable, and I must stop them!" Seeing the commotion outside the window, Liata immediately prepared to rush out.

"Wait a minute, what's the difference between blindly rushing out like this and suicide? You need to calm down." Dure grabbed Liata, who was about to climb out of the window. Speaking of which, Liata had climbed in from the same spot when she got on the train.

"Calm down? Innocent people are being hurt and bleeding, how can I calm down?" Liata bit his lip, wishing he could rush out immediately and tear those bastards pretending to be from the Southern Front to pieces.

“Alright, Liata, you go and lead the passengers to the safe carriage at the back. I'll handle the problems at the front.” Dure thought for a moment. He had warned himself not to meddle in other people's business before, but judging from the current situation, it wasn't that he wanted to meddle, but rather that problems and trouble had come knocking on his door. Even if he didn't take action, those guys pretending to be from the Southern Front would kill him anyway.

"What? Redu, you're going to handle this? Do you know how powerful the Snow Shadow Guard is? They have a nickname, Blood Shadow. Their members are all at least Steel-rank magic users, and they're especially difficult to deal with." Liata looked at Redu in surprise. He didn't quite believe that this stranger could solve such a big problem.

"A Steel-rank Magician? Sounds interesting. Don't worry, leave it to me. You go and get the passengers to a safe carriage." Dure didn't give him a clear answer; he simply flipped open the window.

“Brother, I understand. You must be careful!” Liata wanted to say something more, but when he saw Dure’s calm eyes, he had a fleeting feeling that this person he had just met might actually have a way to solve the current trouble. Thinking of this, Liata nodded and watched Dure walk into the misty fog.

Train conductor Hank was having a run of bad luck. He could have taken a proper vacation once he arrived in Winter City, but now that this had happened, not only was his vacation indefinitely postponed, but his safety was also in jeopardy.

“Hank, I’ve gathered more than twenty people, plus the original train police, making a total of thirty. That should be enough to deal with these rebels,” said the veteran train police officer, Bud, who was the only one among the many staff members on the train who didn’t use honorifics when speaking to Hank.

This is not only because he is senior and experienced, but also because he and Hank have a very good personal relationship; the two are very good friends in private.

“We’ll use the train for defense first. With the train as cover, we have an advantage. However, the fog outside is too thick; we can’t see anything at all.” Hank tried to pinpoint the exact location of the rebels, but the fog was getting thicker and thicker, which greatly reduced his visibility. Only when the enemy fired could he see figures moving in the thick fog through the sporadic flashes of light.

“Then we’ll stay here and let them come over. As soon as they show their heads, we’ll shoot them in the head and make them regret what they’ve done!” Bud raised his gun and aimed at the wisps of fog ahead.

"Let's do it this way! But what's going on over there? Who's over there?" Hank thought for a moment. This was the best solution at the moment, but then he noticed a figure flash in front of him. A man wearing glasses appeared not far ahead.

"That uniform belongs to the Southern Front. It was definitely those guys who did this. Everyone, listen to my command, aim at him, and fire!" Bard was no stranger to the Southern Front. After all, there had been several vicious attacks in the Snow Country recently, all of which were said to be carried out by the Southern Front. Moreover, not long ago, the local sheriff had specifically instructed them about the Southern Front.

At Bard's command, the assembled volunteers picked up the gunpowder guns they had just retrieved from the armory and fired at the South Front man, with more than a dozen bullets flying toward him in an instant.

"Did you take care of him?" Hank glanced to the outside. In his opinion, standing still and taking so many shots would definitely turn him into a sieve.

"Tch, these people are incredibly stupid. Do they think the Snow Shadow Guard is all pushovers? They think they can take us out with this little firepower? That's just wishful thinking. Oh wait, the team leader has already given the order. Tonight we are from the Southern Front, not the Snow Shadow Guard. So who should we start with?" The fog in front of them dissipated slightly, and the man who had been shot at by more than a dozen gunpowder guns was still standing motionless.

"What, what's going on? Is he a monster? How come he's completely unharmed?" someone exclaimed. With so many gunshots, a normal person would have been riddled with bullets long ago. How could he be completely unscathed?

"Don't just stand there, this person is dangerous, we absolutely can't let him get close!" someone nearby reminded him.

They immediately loaded their bullets, preparing for a second round of firing.

"You can't even figure out your own situation, you're hopelessly stupid. Well then... let's start by dealing with you!"

The bespectacled man continued forward, pulled out several throwing knives from his pocket, and hurled them at the train police officer!

"puff!"

The throwing knife struck the two police officers precisely in the chest, and they collapsed to the ground before they could react.

"Hey, are you guys alright? You bastard... hurry up and kill him!"

The remaining train police officers panicked and shouted urging, realizing the danger was approaching.

"It's useless. These bullets are like a tickle, utterly insignificant. So who's next? Hmm? Who's over there?" He prepared to launch another attack. In his eyes, these train police officers were just ordinary people, not worth mentioning.

But at that moment, he suddenly noticed someone approaching him from not far away.

If it were an ordinary person, it would be fine, but he wouldn't take ordinary people seriously.

However, this person exuded a strong sense of pressure, forcing him to frown and treat the situation with caution.

.

679 Catch the Spy

After saying goodbye to Liata, Dure walked toward the front of the train, but he hadn't gone far when he was stopped by a young train attendant named Schürrle.

"Hey kid, stop right there! Where are you going?" The train attendant shouted at him. He was responsible for maintaining order in the carriage, and when he saw someone running towards the outside, he immediately rushed over to stop him.

“The train seems to be in trouble, and I’m going to fix it,” Dure replied calmly.

"Solve the trouble? You? You'd better just go back inside the carriage and everything will be fine." Schürrle blocked his way, gesturing for him to retreat.

Dure was not the kind of person who would back down after listening to a few words from others, and he also realized that the troubles the train was facing were not something that these train police officers could solve. He chose to ignore the train attendants and continue walking forward.

"Stop right there! Can't you hear what I just said? Or are you an inside man for those rebels, and you're rushing to meet them and report the train's status?" A thought suddenly flashed through Schürrle's mind, and he immediately raised the muzzle of his gun, aiming it at the boy in front of him.

The evening wind blew blew blew blew in the valley, and the boy's clothes fluttered in the wind. Facing the dark muzzle of a gun not far away, he stopped in his tracks.

“I’m not an inside man; I’m just here to solve problems you can’t solve.” Dure frowned as he tried to persuade the flight attendant.

"If even we can't solve this problem, you certainly can't, kid. If I see you're acting suspiciously, put your hands up right now, or I'll shoot!" Schürrle shouted. The more he looked at the guy, the more suspicious he became. He raised his gun and cautiously approached.

“I don’t have much time to deal with you. If you insist on this, then I…” Du Lei glanced at the figures flickering in the thick fog ahead and the flames shooting from the gun barrels. He knew he couldn’t delay any longer. He solemnly reminded the flight attendant, intending to take the necessary measures to get rid of his entanglement.

"What happened over here?" Just then, someone shouted from not far away. Everyone involved looked in the direction of the voice. The one who shouted was a middle-aged man who was about forty years old. He was not tall, but he was very strong. He had a thick beard and was wearing a railway police uniform. He walked over quickly to check the situation.

“Inspector Bard, you’ve come at the right time. I’ve caught a spy here. He must be an inside man for the rebels. He’s been sneaking around here, and he won’t come back no matter what I tell him. It’s really suspicious!” Schürrle recognized the middle-aged man who was walking over and immediately reported the situation to him.

After all, he was just a train attendant. It was only because of the emergency that he got the gunpowder gun to join the operation to protect the train. And the person with the most say on the entire train, besides the train conductor Hank, was Sergeant Bud, who was in charge of managing the train police.

"A spy? They actually caught a spy? Schürrle, if that's true, that's a real achievement. I didn't expect you to be so capable." Sergeant Bard brought two train police officers over to check the situation. He didn't usually think highly of Schürrle because he was a guy who only knew how to curry favor, but now it seemed that this sycophant had actually done something worthwhile.

"What are you saying, Inspector Bud? You flatter me. I'm just a member of the train crew, doing my duty. Kid, see this? This is Inspector Bud. I'm warning you, you better behave yourself and answer Inspector Bud's questions honestly." Schürrle felt smug when he heard Bud praise him like this. He pushed the boy he had caught forward, intending to hand him over to Bud.

“I’ve already said, I’m not a suspicious person, I just want to solve the problem. If you insist on misunderstanding me like this…” Du Lei frowned. He didn’t want to waste too much time here. If necessary, he would take forceful measures to get rid of these people.

"Kid, as for whether you're a spy or not, we'll investigate thoroughly. We'll never wrong an innocent person, nor will we let a bad one go. So... wait, isn't this Brother Du Lei?" Just as the old sheriff Bud was about to take the suspicious kid back for questioning, Bud took a closer look at him and couldn't help but exclaim in surprise, because he clearly recognized the boy.

"Strange, how do you know me?" Du Lei was somewhat surprised, because when he was out on missions, he always claimed to be called Lei Du and rarely revealed his real name. But now a train police officer had called out his name, so it was no wonder he was surprised.

“Hey buddy, it’s me, Bard. Look closely at me. We met on the train to Maple Leaf City.” Bard, who had been looking very serious just moments before, immediately reminded Dure.

“That train from before… I remember now, it was you, Mr. Bard. What a coincidence, were you on this train too?” Du Lai thought carefully and quickly remembered Bard. It was when he had just left Snow Eagle Town. At that time, he was traveling by train to Maple City. While passing through the snowfield, he was attacked by snowfield wolves. They had to exert a lot of effort to save the situation. The sheriff on the train at that time was the middle-aged man Bard in front of him.

“That’s right. The previous train was damaged and sent to the repair shop. It’s still not fixed. Hank and I were transferred to this train to continue working,” Bud nodded and explained.

“Um… Sheriff Bud, this kid is a spy, you mustn’t be fooled by him.” Schürrle, who was standing next to him, stared blankly at Bud and Dure’s conversation. He was a little confused about the situation, so he solemnly reminded Bud.

"What spy? Schürrle, have you lost your mind? I thought you could do something decent, but you're just messing around. Dure has helped us a lot before, how could he be a spy?" Sheriff Bard scolded Schürrle. He trusted Dure a lot.

"Huh? This, this, I don't know. I just saw him sneaking around here, and he kept saying he wanted to go and resolve some trouble. I thought he was a spy, so I arrested him. I didn't expect it to be a misunderstanding. Yes, it must be a misunderstanding!" Schürrle was a little flustered. He quickly explained, his words stammering.

()

680 Come and go as you please

"Alright, let's leave it at that. Sheriff Bud, now that the train has had an accident, I'd like to go and help resolve it. Is that alright?" Dure waved his hand, not wanting to linger here any longer, as he had already wasted a lot of time.

“Well… it would be great if you could help, but the situation we are facing is no small matter. It may be even worse than what happened four months ago. I’m afraid…” Sheriff Bard hesitated. Although he trusted Dure, he also knew the seriousness of the situation.

"Don't worry, I can handle any problem. I'll head over now. Sheriff Bard, please make sure to protect the passengers on the bus." Durelai didn't seem to care. He suddenly frowned because he clearly sensed an approaching pressure, a signal that a magic user had appeared.

“Understood. Well then, Mr. Dure, you can go ahead without worry. We will do our duty and protect everyone in the carriage.” Sheriff Bud nodded heavily and readily agreed.

Dure quickly continued forward, his figure disappearing into the misty fog. Bader and Schürrle watched his retreating figure disappear.

"Sheriff Bud, is that kid alright? The ones attacking us are those vicious rebels. Can he really handle them all by himself?" Schürrle asked worriedly.

“I’m not entirely sure about that either, but… since he said that, he must have his reasons. Let’s just listen to him and keep watch around the carriages.” Although Sheriff Bud had some doubts, he still trusted Dure, because Dure had been a great help when the train encountered problems last time.

Bader and Schürrle couldn't see their backs clearly, but Dure, the person involved, appeared in front of a man wearing glasses. The man was dressed in a bright red outfit, which was the uniform of the Yugoslav Front. If Dure hadn't heard what Liata said before, he probably would have really thought that the people who attacked the train were from the Yugoslav Front.

"Finally, someone who can fight? That's good. One-sided slaughter is really boring. We need an evenly matched opponent to keep things from getting so dull. Kid, I'm White, a three-star Steel-rank Magic Power user. My Magic Power Weapon is a throwing knife that comes and goes freely, made from the bones of the Flying Beast, which is also a Steel-rank Magic Beast. Do you know why it's called 'Coming and Going Freely'?" The man named White scrutinized the boy who emerged from the misty fog. Although the boy looked to be only fourteen or fifteen years old, very young, White sensed a powerful magical energy fluctuation emanating from him, indicating that the boy was a Magic Power user, and a very high-level one at that.

"Coming and going as they please?" Dure frowned, standing still and keeping a distance from White.

"Yes, let me tell you. The reason it's called 'Free to Come and Go' is because even if I throw it, it can fly back. So kid, you'll die from this 'Free to Come and Go' move!" White's expression suddenly turned ferocious, and his outstretched right hand suddenly pulled inward from a distance!

The throwing knives that were supposed to be stuck in the chests of the two train police officers suddenly pulled out on their own, with the tips pointing at the boy's back. Before the boy could react, the throwing knives flew over and aimed straight at his back!

"A throwing knife that comes and goes at will? That sounds interesting. Well, out of basic politeness, I think I should answer you. My name is Dure, a two-star Steel-rank Magician. In terms of rank, I'm one star lower than you. As for my magic weapon, I have a crossbow, but I kept it in a box and didn't bring it with me. But that's not important." Dure seemed completely unaware of the threat coming from behind him, which made White laugh. White was very confident in killing the boy in one blow, not only because his magic rank was one star higher than the boy's, but also because he had a magic weapon. Without a magic weapon, how could the boy parry his attack be any different from suicide?

"Not important? It seems you don't care about your life at all. In that case, then I'll... What? What's going on?" White was about to pierce the boy's back with the throwing knife, but at that moment, he exclaimed in surprise, because the throwing knife, which should have pierced the boy's back, was strangely stopped just inches away from the boy's back. The throwing knife was trembling and making a buzzing sound, but it could not go any further.

"Why do you look so surprised? Have you run into some trouble?" Dure asked White calmly.