Alchemists do not need self-cultivation

Looking at the scene before him, Dalian said in a low voice, "Material Summoning."

"what?"

“Looks like a magician,” Dalian said. “Not the kind who performs magic tricks, but a magician with real magic.”

"You got it right!"

The old man nodded and smiled happily.

“My name is Marga. In ancient times, I received the title of Earl from a foreign king. I am a researcher who inherited the long memories of the past and is trying to break free from the fate of death. It is my greatest honor to meet you, ‘Black Reader’.”

Dalian, however, remained expressionless as she sized up the magician who called himself Merga.

"I never imagined that there would be such a powerful magician as you in this era."

"It is a great honor to hear your praise."

Marga bowed to Dalian.

"Then, I beg you, Princess, to be lenient about me taking my daughter away."

"Well, this is not something I can interfere with."

"Thank you so much."

Marga shifted his gaze from Dalian to the other survivors, seemingly searching for something.

"stop!"

Aruman had somehow climbed up to the stairwell, holding up the phantom book and shouting at Merga.

"I am... I would never let you do anything to hurt Viola! Magician!"

"Oh?"

Merga looked at the roaring Aruman and the Book of Salamander Marks in his hand.

"A phantom book? Interesting, but too naive."

boom--

"Hot hot hot hot hot!"

The 'illusion book' in Aruman's hand suddenly burst into flames, instantly turning into a cloud of ash that drifted in the wind.

"How could this be..."

He then realized that the book he had found was a fake.

Knowing the truth, he collapsed to his knees, utterly powerless.

"A false love bought with money, and a false book. A fictitious social world—it's the perfect stage for someone like you, Viola, whose life is entirely illusory."

As he said this, he raised his cane and swung it towards Aruman.

A powerful flame emerged from the void and engulfed Aruman.

"No!!"

Viola shouted, and Aruman closed his eyes.

Suddenly, the flames that were shooting forward abruptly changed direction just before they were about to touch Aruman, transforming into a fire dragon that opened its blood-red maw towards Marga.

"What!?"

Although surprised by what he saw, Marga still extinguished the fire dragon in front of him with a flick of his staff.

Immediately afterwards, a piece of paper flew towards his face.

He reached out and caught the piece of paper, but with a flash of light, the paper exploded on his body with a 'boom,' and before he could react, his gloves and sleeves were scorched.

He looked down and saw Isaac standing on the ground, staring at him with blinding electric sparks crackling around his body and a wicked smile playing on his lips.

"Old man, you sent the challenge, didn't you?"

"Finally, you've made your move!"

Marga grinned and laughed heartily.

"Isaac, the alchemist of the early 20th century!"

Chapter 995: The Clash Between Mystery and Science

"I have been looking forward to meeting you, young alchemist."

Marga stood suspended in mid-air, looking down at Isaac who was smiling below.

"There seem to be a lot of rumors about you lately. I'd like to see if there are any real alchemists left in this mysterious and decadent era."

He quickly waved his staff, and hundreds of fireballs rapidly gathered around him, instantly raising the temperature of the entire hall to scorching.

The fireballs hovered in the sky for a moment before raining down on Isaac. The sight of everything burning away startled the guests, who scattered in all directions.

"It's not 'mysterious,' but 'scientific.'"

Isaac laughed and snapped his fingers.

The hundreds of fireballs in front of him froze in mid-air the moment they approached him, and then transformed into hundreds of fire arrows that flew towards Malga in the sky.

"That's interesting."

With a gentle tap of the cane, the thousands of fire arrows before him were extinguished in the blink of an eye.

The two were merely testing each other, yet the guests who hadn't yet collapsed were already wide-eyed with astonishment.

"And who is he...?"

"It seems to be the 'alchemist of the early 20th century,' Lord Isaac, who has recently been rumored to be involved."

"Is he the alchemist?"

"Come to think of it, I saw him just a week ago. I didn't expect him to be so powerful that he could actually fight that monster?"

"Now I understand why Miss Viola wanted to invite him."

"So he was here the whole time. I was so focused on Miss Viola that I forgot he was there."

Apart from Aruman, the other four betrothed individuals present had all met Isaac and tried to invite him, but they did not recognize him this time when they gathered together. The main reason was that he was discreetly hidden in the crowd, and their eyes were only on Viola.

"Now we can only pray that the Alchemist can defeat this monster."

"Don't lose, Lord Isaac!"

These people, having shaken off their initial fear, seemed to have regained their confidence and kept cheering Isaac on.

Although they were all hiding in safe places.

Dalian and Hugh stood relatively close, watching the battle from not far from Isaac.

Hughes frowned and asked, "Darian, is that Earl of Malgar... a user of the Illusion Book?"

“No, he did not use the Phantom Book.”

"Then what is that power of his?"

“Some people possess forbidden knowledge and can use magic without relying on grimoires, just by relying on their knowledge. These people are the orthodox magicians,” Dalian said. “Just like that bastard alchemist, he still possesses great power even without relying on grimoires. He is the kind of person who stands at the highest point in this world because of his knowledge.”

"I see. Does Isaac have a chance against the Earl?"

"I don't know. Judging from the count's own account, he has lived for several hundred years and has studied for far longer than this bastard alchemist. But the bastard alchemist was able to turn his knowledge into a magical book, which proves that its quality is much better than the count's."

"That is, it's uncertain."

“Indeed,” Dalian laughed. “The duel between the two may seem like a duel between an alchemist and a magician, but it is actually a duel between different kinds of knowledge.”

……

The scene returns to the two men facing off.

Looking at Isaac, who was handling the situation with ease, Marga couldn't help but burst into laughter.

"Hahahaha, I'm so happy! I thought I was the last person in this era to have mastered that wisdom, until I met you, young alchemist. It seems I'm not alone."

"So you had Viola ask those suitors to bring me here because you wanted to fight me today."

"That's right, exactly."

Marga raised his cane to the sky and said in a bold tone:

"A hundred years have passed! With the changing times, there are no more alchemists or magicians in this world besides me. How boring! This world has become so boring!"

After saying that, he quickly slid his cane down and began muttering obscure words that most people wouldn't understand.

The Silverwing monsters reappeared, but this time, unlike the four that attacked the guests, there were hundreds of them.

"I've waited a hundred years in this boring world, just waiting for someone like you to appear!" Marga roared. "This is a fateful duel! Young alchemist!"

Hundreds of silver-winged monsters swiftly flew towards Isaac, their sharp wings forming hundreds of blades in the sky, completely surrounding Isaac and cutting off all his escape routes.

Looking at the monsters rushing towards him, Isaac couldn't help but laugh.

"Old man, you're luckier than me."

"what?"

Sizzle————

The lightning bolt sliced ​​through the air, enveloping the entire area around Isaac.

The moment the lightning struck, all the monsters screamed and fell to the ground, their bodies slowly melting away.

"You're very lucky. You can wait hundreds of years to have a match with me," Isaac laughed, looking at the astonished Marga in the sky. "And what about me? How many centuries would I have to wait for a worthy opponent?"

"...Hahahaha, how arrogant you are, young alchemist."

Mairga burst into laughter, then his eyes sharpened.

"Then try to defeat me! Tell me that these hundreds of years have not been in vain."

"As you wish."

The anti-gravity substance in Isaac's mechanical right leg activated, and his body emitted a faint glow as he floated into the air, reaching the same height as Marga.

In the hall, the two stood in mid-air, looking at each other.

Marga was surprised at first, then laughed and pointed his cane forward.

The liquid that the monsters on the ground turned into floated to Merga's side and transformed into various weapons, including swords, spears, and halberds, numbering in the thousands.