The most shameless alchemist in history

132 Flame Lizard

In Lance's view, easily defeating these jungle fairies was the most satisfying thing imaginable. He, who originally held some awe for the Misty Forest, couldn't help but feel a little smug, thinking that the so-called forest infested with magical beasts was nothing special after all.

Even the cautious Kelly showed a relaxed expression at this moment, because the dozen or so jungle sprites in front of them were all terrified and had lost all fighting spirit, and could no longer pose a threat to them. On the contrary, Dure and Hannah still showed no signs of relaxing.

"Hannah, you were just talking about the smell. Is it because these jungle sprites are too pungent? But that's understandable. They don't bathe like us humans. They run around in the forest all day long and get filthy. I really don't know how they can stand it." Kelly didn't seem to care.

"No, no, that's not the smell." Hannah shook her head anxiously, even she became somewhat uneasy, a stark contrast to the fierce fighter she had been just moments before.

"What's wrong? Hey, could it be that that little accident just now, that blow, knocked you out?" Lance felt a little guilty about his reckless actions. He had thought Hannah was going to attack Kelly, so he decisively struck at the back of Hannah's head.

However, upon closer reflection, Hannah was actually attacking the jungle fairy who was preparing to ambush Kelly. It was just that the jungle fairy was too small, and Lance was distracted by his concern, so he didn't notice these details.

“They’re not panicking because of us. Something’s coming up ahead. This is bad. We need to get out of here.” Dure didn’t have Hannah’s keen sense of smell, but he listened carefully and also picked up on something unusual.

"Hey Dure, what's that noise? I can't hear anything, and what's that smell? Are you two hunting dogs? It's the middle of the night, don't startle people like that, you'll scare them to death." Lance sniffed and listened, but didn't notice anything unusual.

"Now is not the time to dawdle, hurry up and go this way!" Du Lei's expression changed drastically, and he shouted, pointing to the right.

At the same time, the trembling jungle sprites ahead began to emit sharp voices. This penetrating sound pierced the deathly silence of the misty forest, and deep within the mist, a huge outline emerged, and a threatening roar that made the air tremble suddenly descended.

"Roar"

With a roar, Lance, who hadn't yet figured out what was happening, lost his footing and was hit by a gust of wind, causing him to fall to the ground.

"What was that sound? My eardrums are about to tear! And that shadow, oh my god, what kind of thing is that? It's so big! And why is the forest on fire?" Lance sat down on the ground with a thud. The sudden roar was like a thunderclap from a clear sky, leaving him completely stunned and unable to come to his senses for a long time.

"This is a high-level magical beast, a fire lizard. This is bad. It's not even in the same league as the jungle fairy. If we encounter it, we're in big trouble. Run!" Kelly immediately recognized the identity of the suddenly appearing magical beast. Her previously calm demeanor turned pale instantly.

"After the red jungle fairy died, it became one of the most powerful magical beasts in the Misty Forest. I can't beat it, so run away quickly!" Hannah seemed to be very familiar with the Misty Forest. She immediately signaled Kelly and the others to escape, which was the most correct decision they could make at the moment.

"Hiss, hiss, roar!" The intense firelight pierced through the thick fog, and Lance soon saw the outline of the behemoth. The fire lizard was nearly two meters tall, and its massive size made it incredibly imposing. Its surface was covered with a layer of hard armor, but that wasn't the most dangerous thing.

Its body was ablaze with flames. As it appeared, the jungle sprites screamed and fled in all directions. However, some jungle sprites were unable to dodge in time and were stomped down by the fire lizard. The miserable howl penetrated to the bone and the surrounding air suddenly heated up.

"Idiot, what are you standing there for? Are you out of your mind? Get out of here!" Kelly saw Lance still standing there and rushed over to pull him up, but Lance was too close to the fire lizard. The fire lizard noticed them and, after crushing a jungle sprite, stepped on Lance.

Fortunately, Kelly pulled him away quickly and managed to drag Lance aside. The spot where he had fallen was instantly trampled down by the fire lizard, creating a large crater. Flames engulfed the nearby weeds, and every move it made was accompanied by burning flames, with the rising steam scorching the skin.

"That was close, I almost died. Kelly, did you save me?" Lance wiped the sweat from his forehead. Although the temperature had risen, his forehead was covered in cold sweat. If he had been even a fraction slower, he would have been trampled to death by the fire lizard.

"Now is not the time to talk about this, let's run!" Kelly shouted. At this moment, the fire lizard raised its foot again. The failure of this attack had undoubtedly angered it. It raised its head again, as if it wanted to burn Lance and the other person with flames.

This terrified Lance, who scrambled forward, flames spreading behind him and even setting his clothes ablaze.

"Lance, Kelly, are you alright? This can't go on. I'll distract it. Hannah, you take them ahead and wait for me. I'll catch up with you soon." Dure raised his crossbow and fired at the fire lizard. The sharp arrow struck its body.

Even the steel arrow only made a "clang" sound and did not pierce its body. Dure's expression was solemn. He loudly reminded Hannah to take the people away. He wanted to stay and deal with the fire lizard.

"What? You're staying behind to distract Dure? That's too reckless. I can't let you take that risk." Lance was stunned. He shook his head heavily, disapproving of Dure's actions.

“It’s better for one person to take the risk than for four. It’s faster. If we don’t do it this way, all four of us will be in trouble. This is the way to minimize the losses. Stop talking and let’s go!” Dure shouted and moved to the left, nocking the arrow onto the mechanism as he went and continuing to fire.

His actions successfully attracted the salamander's attention, and the salamander charged at him.

"Durey" Lance tried to go over and fight alongside him, but Kelly grabbed him.

“Don’t let what he did turn out in vain. Let’s go quickly and trust him,” Kelly decided immediately. She and Hannah grabbed Lance and left quickly.

The moonlight was dim, the firelight flickered in the misty fog, and the roar of a giant beast startled the birds in the forest.

The darkness still lingered and spread.

133 There is no way out

The once desolate forest became restless with the appearance of the fire lizard. The surrounding mist was mostly dispelled by the scorching flames. Dure decisively led the fire lizard to the left, while Lance, Kelly, and the others ran to the right. Dure fired crossbow bolts as he ran.

This crossbow, specially crafted for him by Tongshan, is one of his most powerful weapons as he traverses the snowy mountains. Countless prey have perished under its sharp arrows to date. However, its sharpness is only enough to penetrate the fur of ordinary wild animals, and it has no effect on magical beasts like fire lizards.

He fired six crossbow bolts in succession. Although they all hit the salamander's vital points with precision, the arrowheads bounced off with a "clang" and left no mark. Although Dure was fast, his vision was severely obstructed by the complex terrain of the forest.

Enraged by him, the fire lizard charged wildly, spewing pillars of fire as it ran. The billowing air made Dure feel as if he were being steamed in a pot. He dodged several attacks from the fire pillars, but his movements were affected, his agility was greatly reduced, and he became slower and slower.

"This won't do, we'll be doomed sooner or later. No, I have to think of something. Oh no, there's no way forward!" Du Lei realized his precarious situation. Just as he was trying to calm down and find a solution, his vision suddenly opened up. It wasn't that the fog had been cleared.

Instead, he found himself facing a sheer cliff. Affected by the thick fog and unfamiliar with the terrain, he had unknowingly wandered onto a dead end.

"Hiss hiss hiss hiss, roar!" The roar of the fire lizard came from behind Dure. Its shaking caused quite a commotion. It pressed closer and closer, and under its pressure, Dure was forced back to the edge of the cliff. He tried to escape from the side, but the fire lizard suddenly spewed flames.

The blazing wall of fire completely blocked his retreat, forcing Dure to stand on the edge of a cliff, narrowly avoiding a fatal fall.

"Looks like my luck isn't so good today. Oh well, there's no other way. Since there's no way out, this is the only option." Du Lei looked behind him. As he moved, some pebbles fell down the cliff. The sound of them falling was followed by silence.

He had already sketched out the entire terrain of Academy Mountain in his mind, because before coming to Academy Mountain, he had been climbing mountains. After the first round of tests began, they crossed the suspension bridge, which was more than 100 meters high. From there, they continued to climb up the slope to Maple Leaf Lake.

He could roughly estimate that the drop was at least two hundred meters. If he jumped off the cliff, he would definitely die without wings.

But the fire lizard pressed on relentlessly, shooting it several times with its crossbow bolts. Although these bolts weren't enough to break its defenses, the feeling of being bitten by a mosquito repeatedly infuriated it. It was determined to swat the mosquito to death to vent its anger.

Seeing the fire lizard unleash another breath of flame powerful enough to incinerate him, Dure gritted his teeth and leaped down the cliff.

Meanwhile, some people in the nearby forest heard the commotion. These were several test students competing to leave the Misty Forest as soon as possible.

"What's that sound over there? And is that fire-attribute magical energy fluctuation a high-level fire-attribute magical beast?" It was Keita, Kelly's brother. She frowned and looked behind her. The sweltering heat wave caused by the fire lizard spread over a large area, and could be felt even from dozens of meters away.

"A high-level magical beast? If it were any other time, I wouldn't mind hunting it down and getting its core, but for now, I'd better leave the Misty Forest as soon as possible to avoid any further complications." Sterling also glanced at the location of the explosion; he was quite thin.

But his voice carried unparalleled confidence and strength. He quickly withdrew his gaze and examined the road ahead.

"It looks like someone over there was attacked by fire lizards." Another girl chimed in. Besides Keita and Sterling, she was the only one nearby. She and the other two maintained a triangular formation, all remaining vigilant.

In fact, the three of them were also the top three in the previous two tests, and now they are going to have a fierce competition for the top spot in the third round of tests.

"Someone's been attacked! Oh no, could it be Kelly?" Keita suddenly remembered she had a younger sister and slapped her forehead.

"What, are you going to go save her? If you're going, hurry up, or it'll be too late," Sterling said coldly, with a hint of mockery in his voice.

"What nonsense are you talking about? Do you think I would miss this chance to fight for first place? It won't be Kelly's. She's so clever. Even if she encounters a high-level magical beast, she'll stay far away. Who do you think she is? She's my sister, Keita's sister. So keep going." Keita shook her head heavily.

For him, winning or losing was more important than anything else, so even if there was a possibility that his sister Kelly was attacked, he would not give up the opportunity to fight for first place. He resolutely turned his gaze away and stared intently at Sterling, who was the biggest obstacle to his competition for first place.

“He doesn’t even care about his own sister’s safety. What a heartless man. But your choice is right. Now that’s a little more interesting. Come on, let’s see who wins in the end.” Sterling didn’t stop and moved forward quickly. The mist was thick, and countless pairs of eerie green eyes were visible in the mist.

But this was not enough to stop him from moving forward. He had been prepared for this ever since he chose to come to Maple Leaf Academy.

On the other side of the forest, Kelly, Lance, and Hannah ran wildly, holding their breath for more than ten minutes until they finally left the fire lizard far behind. After confirming that the fire lizard was not chasing them, they slowed down and stopped to catch their breath.

"That was really dangerous. I never expected there to be such a high-level magical beast as a fire lizard in the Misty Forest. The academy didn't even try to drive it away beforehand. Are they planning to treat the students as food for magical beasts?" Kelly recalled the scene just now, still feeling lingering fear, with large beads of cold sweat on her forehead.

"Is Dure alright?" Lance turned to look in the direction of the pillar of fire. Although they had shaken off the fire lizards, they could still see pillars of fire shooting into the air, which were particularly conspicuous in the night sky.

“Since he told us to hurry up, he probably won’t do anything, right? Don’t worry, Dure is no ordinary person, and he’s a man of his word. He said he would catch up, and I think he definitely will.” Kelly hesitated for a moment before gently comforting Lance.

134. A close call, but no real danger.

There are many differences between humans and birds, the most significant of which is that humans do not have wings, while birds can soar through the sky. So when Dure jumped off the cliff, he could not glide down like a bird because he had no wings. If anyone had seen him jump, they would have been astonished.

Because what he did was practically suicide. But anyone who knew Dure even slightly, like his companions in the hot spring village, Black Wind and Copper Mountain, knew that Dure cherished his life and would never do anything he wasn't sure of. At first glance, it seemed like he was trying to die.

But in reality, it was a case of being put in a life-or-death situation. The heavy fog obscured its vision, and the enraged fire lizard walked all the way to the edge of the cliff and looked around. After confirming that it did not see the whereabouts of the foolish person who had offended it, it howled twice and finally turned around and slowly left.

For it, venting its anger was enough; it wouldn't jump down with Dure. It wanted to stay in the Misty Forest and remain its overlord. Many eerie green eyes were watching the fire lizard in the dense forest, but they dispersed after the fire lizard turned its head away.

"Finally out of here? That was close. I almost lost my life. I wanted to say that, but this isn't the first time I've done something like this. It's about time I climbed back up." Du Lei, who should have fallen to the bottom of the cliff, was now hanging at the bottom. He wasn't the type to commit suicide.

Clearly, he deliberately jumped off the cliff to escape the fire lizards' pursuit. In the instant of his fall, he fired the last crossbow bolt. Unlike the bolts that attacked the fire lizards before, the last bolt that hit the mechanism had a rope tied to it, which was used to traverse the terrain.

Now it came in handy. The barbed arrowheads easily pierced the rock and successfully secured themselves. After falling more than ten meters, Dure managed to regain his balance with the help of the rope. Once he confirmed that the fire lizard had left, he planned to climb back up by pulling on the rope.

“Wait a minute, those vines over there look a bit strange. Although there are large patches of vines nearby, only there…” Du Lei stopped his plan to climb up. Although the light was dim all around, especially below the cliff, where the fog was thick, it looked like he was in the clouds.

But he noticed a light near the vines clinging to the lower side of the cliff. The light was flickering, like stars in the night sky. However, stars in the sky could not fall to the ground. This caught Dure's attention, and he keenly sensed that something was there.

"It's probably around midnight now. The academy requires us to arrive at the academy by dawn to pass the test. Before that, I have enough time to do something else. Lance and the others aren't here right now, so I'm free to do whatever I want. Let's go check it out."

After a moment's thought, Du Lei decided to investigate. He swung forward on the rope, trying to get closer to the vine. After several attempts, he swung onto a vine as thick as an arm, successfully pulled himself up, and landed. He then drew the dagger from his waist.

He skillfully used his dagger to cut the vines that were blocking the light. As he got closer, he noticed that the light was getting brighter and brighter, like the brilliance of a gemstone. This made Du Lei, who was initially just curious, gradually excited. This was an unexpected delight for him.

"Just a little more, let me see what this glittering thing really looks like. Oh, there's a cave!" Du Lei originally thought that as long as he cut the vines, he could find something like a gemstone. But after a lot of effort, he finally managed to cut the vines.

However, what appeared before him was not a gemstone, but a cave that was about the height of a person, with light emanating from inside.

"This really increases the difficulty of my mission. The light is coming from the cave, which means there's something inside. Should I go in or not?" Du Lei hesitated. After all, passing the Maple Leaf Academy test was his top priority, and he wanted to avoid any unforeseen complications.

"It's obvious there's something good ahead. It would be such a shame to miss it. Besides, the Misty Forest is said to be shrouded in fog all year round, and this place is below a cliff where few people go, with vines providing cover. If it weren't for the fact that I fell right here..."

Du Lei carefully observed his surroundings. From his position, he couldn't see the top of the cliff at all. Below him, there were wisps of mist like a sea of ​​clouds, and on both sides were thick, green vines. Only someone as bold and meticulous as him would come to explore this place. If it were anyone else...

The thought that they would never notice the existence of the cave only made Dure more convinced that there was something attractive enough inside.

"I've decided. Let me see what good stuff is hidden inside. If things look bad, I'll just make a quick getaway." Du Lei made up his mind. Just to be on the safe side, he secured the rope he was swinging across so that he could retreat immediately if anything unexpected happened.

Having made preparations, he took out a tinderbox from his pocket, twisted it, lit a candle, and went into the cave. Although there were occasional flashes of light that were enough to illuminate the way forward, Durei was well aware that such caves had a serious problem of insufficient air.

He needed to use a candle to ensure that there was enough air ahead for him to breathe. Once the candle went out, he had to retreat immediately. The unknown light ahead was certainly attractive, but that was only on the premise that he was safe enough. If there was a certain death risk ahead.

Even if there were priceless treasures, he would give them up without hesitation, because there is nothing more precious than his life.

Du Lei's figure quickly disappeared into the cave. At the same time, on the clock tower of Maple Leaf Academy, someone was gazing towards the direction of the Misty Forest.

"That magical energy fluctuation has reappeared." Owl, the youngest lecturer at Maple Leaf Academy, frowned. During the day, she always seemed sleepy and dozed off, but at night she was very energetic. A worried look appeared on her face, which was rare for her.

"Teacher Owl, is the magical energy fluctuation you mentioned the fire lizard?" Behind Owl, a tall young woman walked over. She was six or seven years older than Owl and was another female teacher at Maple Leaf Academy, Deer, who was very popular among the students.

The "fire salamander" owl paused, looking over with a puzzled expression.

“That’s right, it’s the highest-level magical beast in the Misty Forest right now, well, it’s only high-level.” The deer said with a smile.

As a new teacher at the academy, she was quite familiar with the situation in the Misty Forest.

135 Old Spider Web

The unknown is always full of mystery, attracting curious people to explore it one after another. Du Lei never thought his curiosity was particularly strong, but he knew the principle that once you miss this opportunity, it will be gone forever. This was something that the man taught him when he was a child.

After a brief preparation, he lit a candle and proceeded into the depths of the cave along the passage. Before entering, he had made a rough judgment, because he realized that the cave existed because of the light outside. Based on the conductivity of light, the light source could not be hidden too deep.

But once Dure entered the cave, he realized he was terribly wrong. The cave was winding and narrow in many places, and even someone as small as him had to curl up to squeeze through. It was extremely difficult, and an adult would definitely not be able to get through.

As for the lights emanating from inside the cave, they kept flashing. From the moment he took his first step into the cave, he had been silently counting his steps. When he had already walked two thousand and fifty steps, the originally narrow cave finally became a little more spacious.

"Where exactly is this place? There's absolutely no sign of human intervention. Is it a naturally formed crevice between rock layers? Luckily, I'm small enough to squeeze in, otherwise I really wouldn't be able to get through here. But that stench of decay up ahead is definitely real. Did something die here?"