The most shameless alchemist in history

The girl knocking on the door was not an ordinary student; in fact, she wasn't even a student—she was a teacher at the academy.

There are only two teachers of her age at Maple Leaf Academy, and one of them rarely appears during the day, so there is only one answer left.

"Is she awake?" the girl asked the middle-aged woman who opened the door for her after entering the building. The woman was responsible for taking care of the people in the building.

"Miss Muna is awake; she's upstairs now." The woman nodded and gestured for the girl to come in.

"Then I'll go upstairs to find her, Muna, Muna, are you alright?" The girl went up the stairs. The small building was decorated in a unique style, and all the furnishings were very thoughtful. In a situation where most teachers still had to squeeze into the dormitory building, it was natural that someone who could live in a detached two-story building was not an ordinary person.

"It's Nuonuo! You've finally arrived! Where have you been all this time? I haven't seen you at all. They won't let me go out, and I'm so bored. I really want to go out and play." The girl who was gazing at the sunset from the second-floor balcony smiled happily when she saw Nuonuo approaching and immediately came to greet her.

“I had some personal matters to take care of a while ago and went home. Because it was urgent, I didn’t inform you, Muna. I’m very sorry. But it’s all taken care of now. Are you getting used to staying here?” Nono apologized as she explained.

The girl in front of her, Muna, was someone she had brought out from the Ash Tower, and she felt obligated to take good care of Muna.

"Everything else is fine, it's just so boring. I stay in the house all day, it's so stifling." Muna looked a little frustrated.

"Just bear with it a little longer. I'm trying to persuade the academy, and I think it won't be long before I can convince them to let you move around freely." Nono said this with a hint of self-reproach, because she had originally thought she could resolve Muna's matter quickly.

However, firstly, the matter had not been settled for a long time, and some of the higher-ups in the academy firmly disagreed with releasing Muna. Allowing her to live in this small building was already the biggest concession they could make. Secondly, Nuonuo herself had some personal matters to attend to and had been away for more than half a month, causing the matter to drag on without any progress.

"Really?" Muna's eyes finally lit up with anticipation.

"Of course it's true, I wouldn't lie to you," Nono said confidently.

“I know you wouldn’t lie to me, Nuonuo. You’re my only friend here, and I only trust you!” Muna smiled radiantly.

"Tell me if you need anything. Now that I'm back, I'll take care of it for you," Nono asked her.

“I just wanted to go out and clear my head, and… I wanted to see my sister.” Muna’s expression darkened again.

“Your sister? But she’s not…” Nono knew about Muna’s sister, Musa, but Musa was long gone.

“But I always feel like my sister is still watching me from somewhere. The Ash Tower has collapsed, and I want to go there and take a look.” Muna looked at the location of the Ash Tower. Originally, the entire Ash Tower could be seen from this building, but now the Ash Tower has collapsed and fallen into a huge pit.

You can't see anything from here, only patches of fiery clouds in the distance.

"Muna, just bear with it a little longer. I'll take you there to see it soon, so don't worry," Nono comforted her.

“I know, I believe you, Nuonuo… Hmm? Over there…” Muna knew that this was not the time to make unreasonable demands, but just then she looked at the distant sky and a look of surprise appeared on her face.

.

282 Adding insult to injury

Although Lance didn't know where Dure was going, he trusted Dure so much that he didn't say a word and followed closely behind Dure. Due to the large-scale collapse caused by the Ash Tower, the road in the pit was winding and full of obstacles. The two walked for more than ten minutes.

When all that remained was endless darkness, with no light to be seen, Du Lei finally stopped. He groped around and found a brazier. He lit a candle in the brazier, and flames quickly rose up, providing a little light.

"Durey, where is this place? Can you tell me what we're here for?" Lance looked around nervously. There was no one else around except him and Durey, and the surroundings were gloomy, making him feel uneasy in such an environment.

“This is the underground of the Ash Tower. The previous earthquake caused a large-scale collapse, which also exposed the underground palace that was originally hidden underground. As for what we are here for, didn’t I just tell you? We are here to absorb magical elements using extraordinary methods.” Dure lit another brazier.

He was no stranger to this place, as he had been here once before. However, compared to his last visit, due to the ground collapse, this place was no longer what he had seen before. The once solemn and majestic hall had collapsed, and there were broken walls and ruins everywhere, with hardly any intact ground.

“You seemed to have mentioned this earlier, but I didn’t sense any magic at all… wait, this feeling…” Lance recalled that Dure had indeed said something similar earlier. He was filled with doubts and even wondered if Dure had come to the wrong place. This place was just too creepy.

But the instant he closed his eyes, he suddenly felt a large amount of magical elements flowing through the pores of his body, trying to drill straight into his body. This terrified Lance, and he immediately became alert, not daring to breathe.

"Did you notice? Only at specific times and in specific places is the magic element here extremely concentrated. Even the academy didn't know this. However, there's one thing... the magic element here is extremely dangerous. Lance, what type of magic element are you absorbing?"

Dure seemed to have been fully aware of the situation here, showing no surprise whatsoever. He calmly asked Lance a question in return.

"Attribute... it should be earth attribute." Although Lance wasn't very clear about the theoretical stuff, he wasn't confused either, and he knew his own situation.

"Immediately use magic to seal every pore on your body. We absolutely cannot allow the dangerous elements here to penetrate our bodies!" Dure suddenly shouted a reminder.

“I understand! But Dure, what’s going on with the elements here? Why does it feel so dangerous and violent?” Lance put away his joking thoughts. He knew the situation was very serious. Dure was not joking with him. He immediately focused his attention on blocking the invasion of nearby magical elements.

“As I just said, to solve my problem, we must take extraordinary measures. Normally, even if the surrounding environment is rich in magical elements, we have to actively absorb them and it takes time to accumulate enough magical elements. But it's different here…”

Dure was very clear-headed; he knew where everything he did, every step he took, would lead, and what his reasons were.

"The magical elements here will actively burrow into people's bodies like ferocious beasts. If you're not careful and they manage to slip through, the consequences will be unimaginable," Dure solemnly reminded Lance. He didn't want to cause trouble for his friend.

"How could this be? There's actually such a magical element? But doesn't that mean it's also very dangerous for you, Dure?" Lance initially wondered what way Dure could possibly turn the situation around, but now he gradually realized that Dure was doing something extremely dangerous.

"Danger and reward always go hand in hand. If I didn't take this risk, how could I have absorbed magical elements in just one day that would take others a month or even longer to absorb?" Du Lei shook his head. He had known about the danger all along.

“But that woman said that Du Lei, you’ve already had side effects from taking the drug to forcibly seal the crystal bottle. Now you’re absorbing dangerous magical elements. Isn’t that just making things worse?” Lance was still worried. He couldn’t just stand by and watch his friend fall into a fire pit.

“Lance, I made my choice before I came here. I’m willing to tell you all this, and I’m willing to have you come here with me, not so you could try to persuade me.” Dure refuted Lance’s words; his resolve was not to be challenged.

“Well… okay, I understand, Dure. What do I need to do?” Lance clenched his fist and thought for a moment before letting go. He knew that Dure was the kind of person who seemed easy to talk to, but was actually extremely stubborn. No matter how he tried to persuade him, he wouldn’t change his mind.

"You stay by my side and watch over me. No matter what happens, don't panic. When this hourglass runs out, take me away from here." Dure took out an hourglass from his pocket. He didn't have a pocket watch, so he could only use an hourglass to tell time. He placed the hourglass on the ground.

"That's all?" Lance thought Dure would ask him to do something difficult, but it turned out to be surprisingly simple.

“That’s right, that’s all you need to do, Lance. You’re someone I trust, and I can only entrust this to you. So, please!” Dure’s expression was very serious. He wasn’t sure what would happen next if he were to absorb magical elements here alone.

If something dangerous happens, he will be left lying here alone, without anyone to help him. But if Lance is there to protect him, at least he can take him away if anything goes wrong. This is the best choice he has made after weighing the pros and cons.

"Durey, don't worry. Although I don't agree with you doing this, since it's your request, I will fulfill it. We're friends, after all!" Lance nodded heavily. In his memory, Durey had never asked him for anything before.

This was the first time Dure had asked him for a favor, and he was determined that no matter what happened or what dangers he might face, he would protect his friend.

“In that case, let’s begin.” Dure knew Lance was being sincere, and he nodded gently.

"Be very careful," Lance reminded Dure again, realizing that the area was extremely dangerous.

"I understand." Du Lei crossed his legs, closed his eyes, and there was only one night left until the level assessment.

.

283 Like a stray dog

In this pitch-black ruin, all around was as silent as death. If viewed from the outside, the sky would be filled with countless stars, and moonlight would slant down. But in this ruin where it was pitch black and only the fire in the brazier provided a faint light, the only light was a faint glow from the flames burning in the fire pit.

There was no starlight or moonlight to be seen here. With the help of the faint firelight, Lance could see ancient and complex patterns on the floor. At this moment, Dure seemed to be sitting in the middle of some ancient barrier. He didn't know where he was.

But based on his promise to Dure, he stayed nearby, not leaving for even a moment. Beside Dure, the hourglass slowly leaked out fine white sand. At this point, less than a fifth of the sand had leaked out, and there was still a long time before the end that Dure had mentioned.

Normally, Lance would have been exhausted after a day of training and would have gone straight to bed in his dorm. But this time, he was wide awake. He used his magic energy to cover his body and prevent nearby magical elements from penetrating his pores, while keeping an eye on Dure's changes.

"Although Dure said it was his only way... the atmosphere here, and these unknown magical elements that seem like ferocious beasts, are really unsettling. I remember Teacher Nono saying that each person can only be compatible with one magical element, and absolutely cannot absorb multiple ones at the same time..."

Lance recalled what Nono had taught in class. Although he had slept most of the time and hadn't listened much, he had not only listened to this lesson but also memorized it. So even though the magic elements here were so concentrated that they made one's mouth water.

However, he dared not have the slightest desire to absorb it. Firstly, these magical elements were very different from the magical elements in the academy, and had a strong desire to attack. Secondly, he could clearly feel that the earth-attribute magical elements in his body were very resistant to the nearby elements and rejected their entry.

"For example, fire-attribute magic elements and ice-attribute magic elements are conflicting. If you greedily absorb too many magic elements of different attributes, causing them to conflict with each other in your body, it will damage the crystal bottle inside your body. Such consequences would be a great loss..." Lance said worriedly.

He is usually very lazy and doesn't like to think about problems, but that doesn't mean he's really an idiot.

"I hope there won't be any problems with what Dure is doing... I guess." Lance sighed. He knew that persuading Dure was pointless. All he could do was stay nearby and wait for the time to run out. Dure's situation had changed somewhat compared to before.

If Du Lei was relatively calm at the beginning, he was clearly getting restless now. His eyes were still closed, but he was frowning and beads of sweat began to drip from his forehead. In just a short time, large patches of cold sweat had dripped onto the floor around him.

Moreover, his body surface began to feel extremely hot, so hot that his skin turned red and emitted scalding heat. Even Lance could clearly feel the tangible steam. It should be noted that in this place, where the evening breeze was cool, the heat emitted was far beyond what was normal.

Lance wanted to go over and check on Dure's condition, but he remembered what Dure had said before: no matter what happened before the sand in the hourglass ran out, he should not be disturbed. This made Lance stop his plan to help him and he could only watch anxiously from the side.

Dure's expression grew increasingly pained. Lance had no idea what he was going through, but Dure himself knew perfectly well what was happening.

Although he was sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed, his mind had already entered a pitch-black place, a place even darker than the ruins where he and Lance were. The reason it was dark there was not because there was no light; in fact, there was light there.

There was a circle of braziers around, with eerie green flames burning in them. The darkness here carried a suffocating sense of heaviness.

Dure was no stranger to this place; it was the underground palace he had visited before the Ash Tower completely collapsed, and it was exactly what the ruins where he was sitting cross-legged looked like a month ago.

"Who are you? Why have you come here?" A voice rang out in the darkness, hoarse yet authoritative.

"I need your help," Dure said, neither humble nor arrogant.

"They are nothing but insignificant humans, yet they dare to attempt to use our power. They are far too arrogant!" The voice was somewhat angry. In the darkness, a huge outline pounded the ground hard, causing the space to tremble. Of course, this was only the space in Du Lei's mind.

“It’s not just me who needs to rely on you, you also need to rely on my power, right?” Dure was neither angry nor afraid because of the other party’s anger; he spoke calmly.

"Use you? What do you have that we can rely on? How ridiculous!" The other party scoffed at this.

“This space will soon completely collapse, and you will lose your home and return to where you belong.” Du Lei was well aware of their predicament, which was why he chose to come here.

"So what?" After a long silence, the other person finally responded.

"You've come to this world with such scheming and painstaking efforts, are you really willing to retreat back empty-handed?" Du Lei retorted.

"I remember now, you were the one who sealed us away with that despicable man. I don't trust you!" After a moment of hesitation, the voice suddenly became more forceful, and the speaker shouted angrily.

"This isn't a matter of trust, but a matter of whether or not to make a deal. And I can tell you with certainty that this is an unequal deal." Du Lei remained unmoved by the other party's anger, negotiating with confidence and composure.

"A trade? An unequal trade?" The other party verbally berated Du Lei, but when Du Lei proposed a trade, he did not refuse.

“Yes, you lent me your power, and I will allow you to survive here, but you must accept my restrictions. You must not cause any trouble, or I will take you all down with me,” Du Lei said firmly.

"Ridiculous! A mere human whose crystal bottle is shattered dares to make such an insolent request of me? Aren't you afraid I'll kill you?" The other party rebuked loudly as if he had heard the biggest joke in the world.

“Even if you kill me, it won’t change your fate of being driven back. It’s already fast enough, isn’t it? In three days at most, you’ll be driven back like a stray dog, back to that despicable Void Abyss,” Du Lei said softly.

He dared to stand on the opposite side of such a dangerous entity and negotiate with it precisely because he had firmly grasped its Achilles' heel.

.

284 Gifts from friends

Although Lance was standing guard beside Dure, in his eyes, apart from Dure's pained expression and the intense heat emanating from his body, there was nothing strange about the surrounding environment. He neither heard any hoarse voices nor saw any massive outlines.

But if we go back more than half a month, there is one thing he remembers. It was a day more than half a month ago. After training as usual, he returned to the dormitory and took a nice shower. At that time, he saw Du Lei sitting by the window, flipping through a book.

"Hey, Dure, it's rare that you didn't go to the library. You're actually reading in your dorm. Did you borrow it from the library?" In Lance's memory, Dure usually read in the library because he reads very fast and can read several books a day on average.

This pace meant he had to stay in the library; otherwise, he would borrow a book in the morning and finish reading it by the afternoon, wasting a lot of time. Du Lei would never do something so inefficient, yet he clearly had a book in his hand.

“It wasn’t borrowed from the library, it was… a gift from a friend.” Du Lei shook his head, pondered for a moment, and gave an answer.

"Friends? Dure, do you even have any friends? Um... I don't mean to look down on people, I just mean, Dure, you're always alone, I haven't seen you with anyone." Lance was a little confused about Dure's so-called "friends," Dure should be hard to approach.

At least in his memory, he couldn't recall anyone else besides himself and Kelly being close to Dure, except for Nono, of course.

"We were friends, I guess. We'd only known each other for a short time, and now he's gone. Anyway, none of that matters." Dure didn't intend to continue. He couldn't possibly tell Lance that the "friend" he was talking about was actually the guy he'd met underground in the Ash Tower who had died hundreds of years ago.

“If it’s not important, then I won’t ask. I’ve met a few interesting guys at the training ground recently. How about I introduce them to you, Dure?” Lance had praised Dure highly in front of his new friends, and the other party was indeed willing to befriend Dure.