The most shameless alchemist in history

He could tell that the person who stepped forward was a thin boy, younger than himself, only thirteen or fourteen years old. This was utterly reckless.

"It's alright, this distance is a bit too long, we need to get closer." The boy, who was none other than Du Lei, ignored the reminders of others and walked across the swaying suspension bridge towards the other side. Because a rope had broken, the suspension bridge was swaying violently, making it difficult to move.

"Is that fat guy over there crazy? Has this guy gone mad too? Does he have a death wish? People could really die like this, or does he think that fat guy is joking and doesn't dare to actually cut the rope?" The students next to him looked at each other, unable to understand what Du Lei was up to.

"I have to say, he really has courage, but whether this is good courage or foolishness remains to be seen." Kelly was also surprised by Dure's actions. She stood on the edge of the suspension bridge watching Dure struggle to move forward. She knew that Dure was not a person who liked to show off.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have been slowly following behind the group instead of vying for the lead. Now that they had no other choice, Du Lei stepped forward. She was starting to wonder just how far this young man could go.

"Huh? Someone's actually walking over there? Are you kidding me? Are you betting that I won't dare to cut the rope? Tch, this bastard is really looking down on me. Is he some young master from a big family who wants me, Bossis, to take a good look at him? He's dressed in rags, he looks like a poor wretch."

The chubby boy also noticed Du Lei, the boy walking over from the other side of the suspension bridge. He squinted at him for a while and confirmed that he was not someone to be trifled with.

"These days, it's perfectly normal for one or two people to die. And this wasn't intentional on my part, it was an accident, an accident. So kid, you asked for it, you can't blame me, hehehehe. Come closer, come closer, let me see your despair up close."

The chubby boy who called himself Bossis was acting like a madman. He excitedly watched as the boy Dure gradually walked to the middle of the suspension bridge. He had already cut the rope on the left side down to the thickness of a thumb. Even if he stopped cutting and let the weight of the suspension bridge tighten on its own, the rope would break.

"This distance is still not enough, it's still a bit short, about ten meters would be enough, but will he really let me get close enough to ten meters? Judging from his expression, he probably will. What a perverse person." Du Lei moved forward cautiously, thankfully he was very thin.

His weight didn't put much pressure on the suspension bridge; if it had been an adult, it probably would have accelerated the bridge's collapse.

"Hey, will that fat guy let him pass? Why did he stop moving?" Someone noticed this and asked.

"How could the fat guy be so kind? He must have deliberately let that guy get close, and then pushed him into the abyss himself."

“But isn’t what he did a violation of the rules? This is murder. Isn’t he afraid of taking responsibility?” a student questioned.

"Are you kidding me? Don't forget where you are. This is the Academy Mountain, where monsters roam. The academy warned us about the dangers before we even enrolled. Besides, adaptability is part of the test, isn't it?" Some students offered opposing opinions.

"No matter what, it's too much for the academy to let that fat guy run wild. Wait, look! The suspension bridge has broken! Oh my god, that kid is going to fall down with the suspension bridge!" At this moment, a student exclaimed.

Under the watchful eyes of everyone, the suspension bridge, which had long been on the verge of collapse, finally broke completely.

117 came to help.

From the moment Du Lei stepped onto the suspension bridge, hundreds of pairs of eyes were watching him nervously. These students who had not yet crossed the suspension bridge were in a dilemma. On the one hand, they were unwilling to be eliminated in this way, but on the other hand, no one dared to easily go up the suspension bridge to challenge Bossis.

After all, no matter how much they longed to enter Maple Leaf Academy, they wouldn't risk their lives. Falling from a height of hundreds of meters, without wings, could really kill them. Everyone had to think twice. Only Du Lei, that reckless guy, chose to rush forward.

The students had placed a glimmer of hope in Dure, because if Dure succeeded, it would mean that their path was not completely blocked and that they also had a chance to succeed. However, this glimmer of hope vanished with the complete collapse of the suspension bridge, and almost at the same time, cries of despair filled the air.

"Damn it, it still doesn't work after all. Oh no, we're going to be completely eliminated this time." A student immediately wailed in despair.

While most people were lamenting their elimination, only Kelly was worried about Dure's situation and exclaimed in surprise.

"Hehehe, kid, you asked for it. It was an accident, so don't blame me. What happened? How did that guy fly over? Does he have wings?" Bossis, on the other side of the suspension bridge, was excited and not saddened by the "accident" that had happened to someone.

There was only an indescribable sense of excitement, but at that moment, he suddenly saw Dure, who should have fallen with the suspension bridge, suddenly "fly" over. This startled Bossis, and he instinctively leaned back, not understanding what was going on for a long time.

After "flying" to Bossis's side, Dure felt no joy of success, nor did he have time to catch his breath. He immediately pulled on a small section of rope in his left hand, and the wrist-thick rope of the suspension bridge that was originally hanging down was pulled by this section of rope and came into Dure's hand.

Du Lei alone could not possibly support the entire suspension bridge, but he quickly wrapped the rope around the wooden stakes of the bridge in the shortest possible time, and the suspension bridge, which had collapsed by half, was brought to a stop. Du Lei alone simply could not keep the suspension bridge from collapsing.

"What are you standing there for, you idiot? Hurry up and come help! I can't do this by myself, hurry up!" Dure shouted. There was only Bossis next to him, which left the latter somewhat bewildered, still not understanding how Dure had flown over.

"Are you kidding me? How could I, Uncle Bossis, possibly help a lowly commoner like you? Are you dreaming?" Bossis decisively rejected Dure. Although he was surprised that Dure was still alive, he would never allow anyone to boss him around.

"If you don't come over here, I'll kill you, just like you did to me, and throw you off the cliff," Du Lei threatened viciously. He managed to reconnect the broken ropes of the suspension bridge, but this only slowed the bridge's descent. He was constantly being pushed back, feeling utterly powerless.

"I really don't believe it. I understand, I'm coming right now." Bossis had initially scoffed at Durei's words, thinking that this poor kid was just trying to scare him, until Durei suddenly threw a dagger at him, grazing his cheek, piercing a strip of skin and pinning it to the ground.

He then realized that the other party was not joking. After being so frightened that he sat down on the ground, he had no choice but to bite the bullet and walk over. He clearly felt a burning pain on his cheek. Obviously, the other party had deliberately missed the target to intimidate him. If he did not cooperate, he would be in trouble.

Who knows if the other party's next blow will really pierce his heart? For someone of his noble status to die here for such a reason would be too much of a loss. Even if he was a hundred or a thousand times unwilling, he could only go over and help Du Lei forcibly pull on the rope.

"What are you doing here?" Just as Dure and Keita were desperately pulling on the rope, someone came over. Dure recognized her as a girl who was also about thirteen or fourteen years old. She was the one who had initially competed with Sterling and Keita for the top group.

While those who had already crossed the suspension bridge and reached their destination were resting, she was the only one who turned back to check on the situation on this side of the suspension bridge. She looked at Du Lei and the other person's actions with suspicion, as she remembered that this had not happened when she crossed the suspension bridge.

"Don't just stand there. Since you're free right now, come and help. Hurry up, we can't hold on any longer, the suspension bridge will be destroyed soon." Dure realized that even with Bosis, the two of them were far from enough, and both of them were being pulled backward by the force of the fall.

With no one to help him, Dure had no choice but to try anything, even if it seemed hopeless. And if the worst happened, he wouldn't actually go down with the suspension bridge; he would simply cut the ropes and let it collapse.

"Although I'm still a little confused about the situation, as long as I hold onto the rope to prevent the suspension bridge from being destroyed, that's fine, right?" The girl tilted her head and asked a series of questions. After receiving an affirmative answer from Durei, she stepped forward and grabbed the end of the rope.

The suspension bridge, which was originally teetering on the brink of collapse, suddenly became stable, which greatly surprised Du Lei, who looked at the incredibly strong girl in astonishment.

"Why are you looking at me? Is there something on my face?" The girl's face was slightly pale. She glared at Du Lei, feeling uncomfortable being stared at.

"No, no, you must hold this position for a moment, I'll secure the ropes right away." Du Lei immediately shook his head. He realized that this girl's strength far exceeded that of ordinary people. After making the request, he was freed and immediately began to secure the ropes. Before, due to the time constraints, he had only secured them hastily.

The suspension bridge wasn't securely fixed, which caused it to keep sag. Now that he had a free hand, he finally breathed a sigh of relief. With his and the girl's cooperation, the suspension bridge was quickly restored to normal. However, there wasn't time to repair the other section of rope that Bosis had cut, causing the suspension bridge to tilt slightly.

"Is this all there is to it?" the girl turned around and asked Dure, unsure of what she was actually doing.

"That's enough. Hey, you guys, stop standing there! There are only fifteen minutes left, so please proceed in order." Du Lei saw a group of students still standing there blankly on the other side, so he shouted at the top of his lungs. The students looked at each other, but no one took the first step.

"Can such a suspension bridge really be crossed?" some students questioned.

“I believe in him, he can definitely do it,” Kelly nodded emphatically. She was the first to step onto the shaky, heavily tilted suspension bridge and cross to the other side.

Is 118 praising me?

With the combined efforts of Dure and the unknown girl, Kelly and the others finally managed to cross the suspension bridge. Of course, the bridge was still severely tilted and swaying, and not everyone had the courage to cross it. In addition, due to time constraints, more than a hundred people still failed to cross the suspension bridge.

The only outcome for these people was elimination. However, compared to the situation where nearly 300 people looked at the bridge with despair, at least 100 people managed to get through. These people felt grateful to Dure to some extent. As for the instigator of the incident, Bossis...

He then slunk away while no one was paying attention. If someone had caught him, he would have been beaten up, since his actions were too heinous and had even put Dure in a life-threatening situation. After Dure and his group arrived at their destination, they rested on the spot and did not see Bossis.

"Durex, are you just going to let that awful guy go like that? You could have grabbed him just now, why did you let him go? Aren't you angry?" Kelly couldn't understand Durex's actions. Others might not have seen it clearly, but she saw it very clearly.

As Bossis sneaked away, Dure was watching him closely. At that moment, Kelly reminded Dure not to let Bossis get away with it and to make him receive the punishment he deserved, at least by tying him to a tree stump so that he couldn't pass the test and would be eliminated.

But Dure shook his head and rejected Kelly's suggestion, and it was precisely because he turned a blind eye that Bossis was able to escape successfully.

“Bosis dares to act so recklessly, he must have something to rely on. Before we figure out his background, acting rashly will only bring unknown trouble. Besides, the matter has already been resolved, so what’s the use of getting angry?” Dure shook his head, he didn’t take Bosis seriously at all.

"So, you're saying you're letting Dure go because you're afraid of trouble, afraid that Bossis or his family will retaliate against you?" Kelly frowned. Although Dure had won her favor in most of his actions, she couldn't agree with this point.

“You’re mostly right. I’m very afraid of trouble, especially unknown trouble. So, Kelly, what would you do if you were in my shoes?” Dure readily admitted Kelly’s words, and at the same time, he looked directly into Kelly’s eyes and asked her a question. Her eyes were large, like gemstones.

“If it were me, I would never forgive him and would make Bossis pay for his foolish behavior.” Kelly’s attitude was firm. Although she seemed to be just a gentle girl, in some ways she was more stubborn than her brother Keita.

“That’s because we have different positions, so our choices are different. You think Bossis caused me a lot of trouble, and even almost killed me, but in my opinion, the danger you see is not a danger at all. On the contrary, I should thank Bossis,” Dure continued.

“What do you mean by thanking him?” Kelly looked at Durei in surprise, not understanding what he meant, and thought to herself that this guy must have gone crazy.

“Yes, it was because of Bossis’s trouble that I had the opportunity to shine. I know that at first no one cared whether I lived or died, but after I helped them cross the suspension bridge, quite a few people have remembered my name. That’s a good thing,” Dure said with a smile.

“But Dure, isn’t that contradictory? You clearly said before that you didn’t want to make a name for yourself or attract attention, which is why you didn’t compete for the top group.” Kelly was confused by this, as Dure had said these two sentences less than an hour apart.

"The title you get by competing for first place is different from the title you get by helping others. People have a strange mentality. They both envy and are jealous of those who are first. Some people can't stand seeing others do well and wish that others would stand high, but they fall hard."

Dure shook his head, correcting Kelly's statement. What seemed like a contradictory assertion was actually his own insight.

“I can probably understand that feeling to some extent, because I…” Kelly hesitated for a moment before continuing.

“Because you have this mentality too, right?” Du Lei continued for her, not avoiding this somewhat awkward topic.

"I guess so," Kelly hesitated for a moment, then nodded in agreement.

"It's actually quite normal to have this mentality, because I do too. So when people see others competing for first place, their thought is probably, 'Let them fight it out. Let them fight like dogs and all of them die.' So the thrill of competing for first place isn't a pleasant experience."

Du Lei spoke frankly and without any reservations.

"Then, according to what you said, what's the difference between the titles you get for helping others?" Kelly continued to press.

"The difference between the titles earned by helping others and those earned by bystanders lies in the fact that those who receive tangible benefits feel a sense of gratitude. Of course, there is also the situation where the winner in the competition is related to their own interests."

Dure thought for a moment, trying to make the issue clearer.

"For example, if they get first place, they will all receive some kind of honor or substantial reward. They will definitely be full of wishes and expectations. Getting back to the point, the title obtained in this way will not attract hatred, and it may even have a surprising effect at some crucial moments."

Dure tried his best to express his thoughts, but he wasn't sure if Kelly could understand, because she was staring at him blankly.

"What, did I not explain myself clearly enough?" Du Lei asked.

“No, no, I’m just surprised.” Kelly quickly shook her head.

"What's so surprising?" Dure asked, somewhat puzzled.

“Durey, you’re about my age, but I didn’t expect you to think so much. I mean, I’ve thought about quite a lot, but compared to you, Durey, I’m still far behind.” Kelly added, afraid that her expression wasn’t accurate enough.

"Really?" Du Lei was somewhat surprised.

“Of course there is. Compared to Dure, my brother is practically an idiot.” Kelly looked at Keita not far away, her expression one of exasperation at his lack of ambition.

"Achoo! I think I heard someone praising me, Kelly. Was it you praising me?" Keita sneezed for no reason. He walked over and looked at Kelly, who was talking to Dure, scratching his head and asking in confusion.

"Yes, yes, yes, I was just praising you," Kelly rolled her eyes at him and said dismissively.

119 Maple Leaf Lake

Apart from the more than one hundred people who were blocked on the suspension bridge, nearly three hundred people successfully passed the first round of testing. Those who were eliminated felt both unwilling and ashamed. They were unwilling because they had not yet shown their true talents and were blocked by the suspension bridge, and ashamed because they could not even cross the suspension bridge.

These people could only slink back home in disgrace. Of course, some would choose to stay, just like Hassan and his group. Dure had no sympathy for those people. After a short rest, the second round of testing began. When the examiner Charlotte slowly announced it, there was an uproar.

"What? The second round of testing is running twenty laps around Maple Leaf Lake? Are you kidding me? First of all, Maple Leaf Lake is huge, and it would take at least half an hour to run one lap. We came to Maple Leaf Academy to learn magic power, not to exercise!" a student immediately protested.

"What, are you questioning my decision? Let me tell you, this test was developed by the Maple Leaf Academy's Academic Affairs Office and is very scientific. Questioning me is questioning the Academy's Academic Affairs Office, and questioning the Academy's Academic Affairs Office is questioning the Dean." Charlotte's face fell.

Maple Leaf Lake is located near the back mountain. Maple trees are planted on both sides of the lake. The lake is spacious and has a lakeside path. The environment is quiet and peaceful. For ordinary people, running around the lake is indeed a good way to exercise, but most people can only manage two laps at most.

Charlotte is now making these students, who have just climbed hundreds of steps and barely caught their breath, run twenty laps again. It's like taking their lives. Complaints are pouring in, and some are even questioning her, but Charlotte's attitude remains firm.

"The second round of testing is running? That's quite unexpected. But to run twenty laps, it would take at least seven or eight hours. Just thinking about it is terrifying." Kelly looked at the wide lake, and even someone like her who was mentally prepared felt a jolt in her heart.

"It's just twenty laps, it's no big deal. I lost to you in the first round, but I won't lose to you again this time. Let's run, go go go!" As Kelly's brother, Keita didn't hear his sister's complaints at all and immediately took off running with great enthusiasm.

The person he was referring to as "losing" was none other than Sterling, who had come in first place in the first round of testing. Sterling hadn't even given him a second glance. After Keita and a small group of people started running, he slowly ran over, and they once again led the leading group in the second round of testing.

"Damn it, there's no other way. Even though we know Charlotte is deliberately messing with us, we have no choice but to keep up. It's only twenty laps, let's all run together!" Although the students were unwilling, they had no choice but to start running, after all, no one wanted to fall behind.

"That's right, that's the spirit we need. That's the kind of good student Maple Leaf Academy wants. Hehe, run, run. You don't have any recommendation letters or even a token of appreciation, so just keep running. I'm going to take a nap and see how many of you can finish."

Charlotte, the examiner, yawned. She had no interest in watching the students run around the lake and left immediately. Clearly, the students running around here were the type who had neither letters of recommendation nor bribes, since the former would skip this step and move on to the next round.

"Although I had heard that the chief examiner of Maple Leaf Academy was a bastard, I never thought he would be this much of a bastard. Du Lei, look over there. Those people who stopped to rest and watch our show are the ones we met in the first round. They are the ones with recommendation letters and bribes, right?"

Although Kelly was extremely unwilling, she had no choice but to run as fast as she could for the test. She kept close to Durei and looked to the left into the maple forest where many noble students were resting comfortably. They pointed and chuckled at the running crowd.

"It's okay. As long as you finish the twenty laps and successfully achieve your goal, Charlotte will have nothing to say. I heard that Maple Leaf Academy only recruits about one hundred students each year, but we have three hundred here now. That means at least two hundred of them will be eliminated."