The mad alchemist did have some abilities and had already proposed solutions to many problems, but no matter how many expected outcomes there were, they would not compare to the problems encountered during the implementation. Before taking action, no one knew what kind of difficulties they would encounter.
At present, making the colossal body of this entity out of alloy was not a problem, but the biggest challenges were flexibility and power.
The mad alchemist had already made a plan, breaking these two challenges down into several small problems and assigning them to each teacher to work on collectively, striving to make an early breakthrough and achieve this great feat that would have a significant impact on the history of alchemy.
Ke Zheng also received a list; his problem was the power bridge of the magic reaction furnace.
The power bridge was a device that connected the magic reaction furnace to various parts of the mechanism. Energy was output from the magic reaction furnace and transmitted to the body so that the colossal entity could move.
In the Alchemy Toy Hal, the power bridge was a pipeline made of flexible biological material, and magical energy was input from the pipeline into the various parts of the toy's body, providing energy for the miniature magical devices of each part, allowing the entire body to move.
The problem with the magical devices was someone else's responsibility, so as long as Ke Zheng completed his own task, it would be fine.
It seemed as if the lead mentor was being overlooked. The power bridge was much more secondary compared to the magic reaction furnace and the various miniature magical devices. However, Ke Zheng found it very distressing; he was adept at designing magic reaction furnaces or magical devices, such as increasing the number of layers of magic arrays, refining the purity of magical energy, or designing a special set of magical transmission gears. None of these were a problem for him, but it was precisely this power bridge that gave him a headache.
Just like the equation he had shown to the students, "The Wild, Bound", magical energy was extremely wild, once released, it was extremely difficult to control.
In the case of the Alchemy Toy Hal, with its small body, the power bridge was resilient enough to hoist a magical elephant. It could be imagined how much pressure the power bridge would have to endure in the process of transmitting magical energy.
And this time, what was to be refined was a colossal entity. The power bridge was something Ke Zheng was not good at, and it was a real headache of a problem.
Holding onto that piece of paper, one thought after another flashed through Ke Zheng's mind. When he arrived at the doorstep, he almost walked past without reacting.
Combs handed him a letter, "Sir, Nolodon came to say goodbye to you this afternoon, but you hadn't returned. He was eager to leave and left a letter for you."
Ke Zheng opened the letter. Nolodon informed him that there were some urgent matters in the Roringel City that needed to be dealt with, and he had to go back, but he would be back soon. He had already arranged the business matters with Combs, so nothing unexpected would happen during this time.
Ke Zheng naturally had confidence in his arrangements and put away the letter, saying, "Let's have dinner."
Dinora had already sat down at the dining table, holding onto her tiger shark knife lovingly. Even when she sat down to eat, she placed her "treasure" next to her tableware. A complete set of silver cutlery, with a lustrous azure-coated sharp knife at the very end. Without Solkwivlen, anyone who wanted to compete with her for a seat at the table would have to think carefully about this knife.
On this moonless and windy night, a spirited horse appeared mysteriously on the street, carrying someone on its back. It galloped forward, but apart from the howling wind, not a sound of hoofbeats could be heard. The spirited horse seemed to be running on thin air.
When it got closer, it could be seen that the horse's four hooves were clad in black leather casings, obviously a product of alchemy, as there was no sound when the hooves landed on the cobblestone road.
The person on the spirited horse stood up and stopped the horse, gazing quietly at a magical tower not far away. There was still a light source in a room on the third floor.
He dismounted and intermittently fetched out some objects, clearly carrying a storage ring. After cobbling together these things, a thick iron tube, about the thickness of an arm, was propped up on the ground. Adjusting the angle, he aimed it at the room on the third floor of the magical tower.
After doing all this, the man stood silently next to the spirited horse, looking like a ghost.
Before long, a few figures appeared under the magical tower. A few agile individuals quickly climbed to the roof, positioned about five or six meters apart from each other, surrounding the room on the third floor that still had a light.
One person lit a magic lamp, and the man next to the horse also lit one. After signaling to each other, the people on the roof climbed down, and the phantom next to the horse came to the iron tube.
He inserted a magic crystal into the bottom of the iron tube, and a blue light emerged…
Ke Zheng was not enthusiastic about the mad alchemist's plan. In his opinion, this plan had too many loopholes, and it was too difficult to achieve the expected results. So, his enthusiasm for improving the power bridge was not as strong as his enthusiasm for the alchemical furnace.
It was already late at night, and everyone else had already gone to sleep, leaving him alone in his laboratory. The windows were covered, but the light from inside could still be seen, standing out prominently in the pitch-black night.
The alchemical furnace was placed on the table in the laboratory. Ke Zheng sat not far away, using his hand to support his head, looking at the alchemical furnace. He rubbed his aching forehead, feeling lost in thought in the middle of the night.
At that moment, a sense of foreboding emerged in Ke Zheng's mind. Almost simultaneously, the Matrix Shield was activated. With a swish, a shield protected him.
A dazzling light shot in through the window, and a wave of air pushed Ke Zheng as if a powerful hand suddenly pushed him against the wall.
"Boom!"
The laboratory instantly became a mess, with blue magical light flooding the entire room. This was immediately followed by a bright blue flame rising, encasing the entire building like a hood.
With a resounding shudder, even with the protection of the Matrix Shield, Ke Zheng still felt his internal organs and brain shaking. There was a persistent buzzing in his ears, and he saw flashing lights in front of his eyes.
Before he could recover, after the explosion, several people quickly burst into the damaged wall. They had a clear goal as they headed straight for Ke Zheng.
Although the Matrix Shield was quickly deployed for defense, there were still gaps between each shield, allowing these people to deftly slide through. A hit from behind Ke Zheng's head, and he, already feeling dizzy, slumped over, losing consciousness.
They were about to take Ke Zheng away when, at the opening in the wall, a bright blue light suddenly exploded. Without a sound, the heads of the two people who had been guarding the wall exploded. Dinora, with a piece of wooden thorn still lodged in her left arm, rushed over, brandishing her tiger shark knife and biting back the pain.
There were still four people inside the room, two of them holding Ke Zheng and the other two exchanging glances. With a wave of their hands, sharp and shining steel thorns fell.
Their coordination was skilled, a rain of bright silver showered down towards Dinora.
The female warrior's martial arts were exceedingly domineering. She faced the dazzling offensive without even looking, using a simple slash with the sharp tiger shark knife, easily breaking through the deluge of silver.
"Clang! Clang!" she paused, and the hands of the two, glimmering steel thorns that were created by the dwarf, had already broken into four pieces. Dinora had been confident that this would be the result, having great faith in the strange weapons created by freaks. Brandishing her knife, she charged at the two people who were holding Ke Zheng. As she passed by the two, two points of blue light flew out, and there were sudden sounds from the throats of the two individuals as a jet of blood surged forth. Dinora reached the two people in front, and the bodies of the two that had fallen behind thumped to the ground.
Swoosh! A blue-blade dagger immediately rested on Ke Zheng's neck. With a sudden move, Dinora stopped half of her attack, causing the wound on her left arm to rip open, blood streaming down.
Dinora's room was just below Ge Zheng's laboratory and was hit the hardest by the magical cannon attack. In addition to her left arm, she also suffered serious internal injuries.
She gritted her teeth, and a bright red color stained her lips and teeth as she spoke: "Let him go, and I'll let you go!"
The two people had their faces covered with black cloth, only revealing a pair of eyeballs.
The person on the left was holding a knife, while the person on the right had a fierce look in his eyes, "Put down the knife!" The person on the left pushed forward, and the short knife approached Ge Zheng's throat. As long as it cut the skin, the poisoned knife could take his life.
Dinora clenched her hand tightly on the tiger shark knife. This knife seemed to be in sync with her as it trembled slightly with its blade raised.
"I'll count to three, if you don't obey, I'll kill him! One, two..." The poisoned knife had already touched Ge Zheng's skin.
Dinora's mouth twitched several times in succession, and she spat out a mouthful of blood. Her hand loosened and with a "clang," the tiger shark knife plunged into the floor.
The two men across from her flashed a look of satisfaction in their eyes, and holding Ge Zheng, they slowly moved toward the big hole in the wall. The poisoned knife also moved away from Ge Zheng's neck.
Dinora's ear twitched, and suddenly she kicked the tiger shark knife, and with a sharp "swoosh," the sharply honed blade flew out from the floor, accurately severing the arm of the person holding the poisoned knife.
At the same time, Dinora lunged forward, pulled out the sharp wood splinter from her left arm, and thrust it into the other person's neck.
"Splurt" a jet of blood shot out from Dinora's left arm. The man who had had his arm severed held his stump, wincing in pain, while the other, clutching the wooden splinter on his neck, had bulging eyes, buckled knees, and fell to the ground.
Dinora fell backward, and Ge Zheng happened to fall on top of her.
Miss Feifei's guards finally rushed up at this moment and swarmed to capture the last assassin who had his arm severed.
Underneath Ge Zheng, Dinora took a deep breath and angrily scolded, "Damn it, why hasn't anyone come to move this guy off me? Weirdo, when did you become so heavy..."
With a cry of surprise, Feifei pounced in, "Teacher, Sister Dinora, are you okay?" Dinora's face turned pale, her gaze a bit scattered, blood kept flowing from the wound on her left arm, which Feifei couldn't cover with her two hands. She wanted to control herself, but tears just wouldn't stop streaming down her face. "You'll be fine, you must hang in there, please go find a priest quickly, sister, you have to hold on..."
Dinora looked disdainfully at Feifei and wanted to reprimand the little princess. The reason women were looked down upon by men was because women liked to cry. But as she spoke, she coughed up blood, and Feifei let out a sharp scream, "Ah! Why hasn't the priest arrived yet..."
Dinora squinted, and in her line of sight, Feifei's smiling face slowly blurred, and the sound of Feifei's screams in her ears became more and more distant. She thought to herself, "What's there to be so alarmed about? I have a hardy constitution..."
A faint smile hung on her lips as Dinora's world plunged into darkness.
The explosion alerted the entire Dongsheng Academy, and soon people rushed to the scene. The person who had placed the small magical cannon on the ground had already left, glancing at Ge Zheng's small building with some reluctance before disappearing quickly from all corners on a swift horse.
...
Dinora and Ge Zheng had not yet woken up, and the three-story magic tower had been blasted open by the magical cannon, rendering it uninhabitable. Solgweilin was not there, nor was Norodon, leaving only the young Feifei and the indecisive Kang Mingsi and Dunk at home.
Grunia arrived promptly, bringing a priest from the Temple of the Dark Gods to treat Ge Zheng and Dinora. She held the crying Feifei and comforted her, but her eyes were constantly concerned about Ge Zheng, who was being treated under the magical aid of the priest.
Dean Ramil was furious; someone dared to sneak into the mentor's residence area of Dongsheng Academy, attempt murder, and use a powerful magical device like a magical cannon. The senior law god immediately issued a task, offering a reward of fifty thousand gold coins to capture the culprit. The director of the school's security department was also stripped of his badge - fired.
Elgado and Anar organized the warrior and mage mentors of the Academy to patrol, searching for any clues.
Dean Ramil originally wanted to bring Ge Zheng and the others to his own home, but Grunia insisted on personally protecting Ge Zheng. With the protection of the Temple of the Dark Gods, it was safer than staying at Ramil's house.
In the morning, the Temple of the Dark Gods sent over a dozen carriages to quietly take Ge Zheng and his family away.
Dean Ramil angrily waved his hand, "Elgado, seal off this place, no one is allowed near. The rest of you, follow me back to the Academy!"
In the office at the top of the nine-story magic tower, the head of the Academy, the sun god of law, Dean Ramil, convened all the heads of the six departments of the Academy. Even those with poor eyesight could clearly see the anger on the dean's face. Regardless of his anger, everyone else in the room was also furious.
Someone had broken into the mentors' residence area and attempted murder, putting everyone's safety at risk. This person was incredibly audacious and completely disregarded Dongsheng Academy.
The assassin had used a magical cannon, and if it went off, aside from a few people, most would not have ended well.
"Everyone saw it," Ramil said in a deep voice, "this time it's Ge, who's next?" The dean's eyes swept over everyone present, "In the thousand-year history of the Dongsheng Academy, nothing like this has ever happened."
"Dean, leave it to me. I promise to track down the culprit within half a month!" Victoria stood up straight, speaking loudly.
Ramil looked at his granddaughter, "All right, the comprehensive department has many talents and is well-suited to handle this kind of thing. But are you really confident in finding out the truth within half a month?"
"Rest assured, Dean!" Victoria stood straight, her snowy face exuding unparalleled confidence.
"All right, I authorize you. If you need anything, you can directly seek support from various departments," promised Ramil. The other departments also quickly expressed their cooperation, as this incident had genuinely endangered the safety of all mentors. Everyone was truly cooperating.
Victoria only brought two people to the scene to investigate: an animal trainer and a witch.
The animal trainer released a small white-gray mouse with wavy patterns on its body, which sniffed the body and then followed the scent onto the roof. The animal trainer inquired, "Victoria, shall we track now?"
Victoria looked at the witch standing in front of the damaged wall and said, "Wait a moment and see what Nia discovers." The witch's eyes had a filmy white layer, and she extended her finger, her voice ethereal, "It's here."
Victoria had already flown away like a large bird, as her grandfather was the sun god. But Victoria was exceptionally agile and far superior to ordinary warriors.
When Nia and the animal trainer arrived, Victoria had already surveyed the area extensively. She concluded, "This should be the location where the magical cannon was set up; this hole is the result of the recoil of the magical cannon. The hole is not big, and it's very likely that it was an assembled portable magical cannon. There aren't many people on the continent who can make this kind of cannon."
"The perpetrator is most likely a mage like Ge or an alchemist," Victoria stated.
Nia asked curiously, "Why?"
Victoria pointed to a long string of tracks on the ground, "From the cannon pit to here, there are only two sets of footprints back and forth. Obviously, the assassin is very skilled at assembling the cannon, and warriors are definitely not as proficient as alchemists or mages."
"I can tell that these are footprints, but can any of you tell me what sort of footprints these are?" Victoria pointed to a long row of marks on the ground.
The animal trainer said, "Judging from the stride, it's likely from a large animal like a horse, but these prints are much larger than horseshoes…"
After rechecking, Victoria didn't find anything else. She said, "All right, Kewil, summon your little creature, let's go check out the old nest of these assassins."
Nia looked at Victoria and asked, "Shouldn't we seek some help from the warrior department?" Victoria adjusted her upper garment, rearranged her belt, and said icily, "There is no need for that!"
It was clear that this was Nia's first time working with Victoria, and she didn't know her well. Kewil, on the other hand, was different. He winked at Nia, indicating that he would tell her later.
They returned to the side of the damaged magic tower, and Kewil summoned his small mouse, which sniffed the air and then ran off to the north.
Guided by the small mouse, the three of them arrived at an inn. The owner was about to come forward to inquire when Victoria gestured with her hand and revealed a strange badge on her palm. The owner closed his mouth, obediently returning to the counter and crouching under it, holding his head.
Nia looked surprised at the owner, who looked like a snow chicken hiding under the counter, and then at Kewil, who winked at her as if to say he would explain later.
Three people went upstairs, and at the door of a room on the second floor, a small rat-man stood up and squeaked wildly.
Victoria whispered, "Keville, protect Niya." The beast tamer called back the little mouse, and asked, "Big sister, do you need me to guard the perimeter?" "Not necessary! There are only two people inside, and I can handle it."
Niya was astonished to see a watery light emerge from Victoria's fist with a black leather glove on it. "Magic Energy! So, big sister is a magic warrior..."
Before she could finish speaking, with a bang, Victoria, standing several meters away, punched open the door.
The shattered door flew into the room, and before it could hit the ground, two bright flashes of blades rushed out from inside. Victoria rushed in, arms enveloped in two layers of light blue glow, clashing and deflecting the two swords. She was incredibly agile, elbows striking, a mass of ice shield flying out, knocking one person several meters away. Then, another hand conjured a flaming whip, wrapping around the other person's neck.
"Ah!" the person with the wrapped neck saw the flames inching towards his face, petrified and unable to move.
The one who had been knocked away now swung his sword and rushed back. Victoria stood on one leg, kicked and sent out three crescent-shaped wind blades. With a roar, he fiercely wielded his sword to deflect the wind blades, but Victoria was already upon him, palm outstretched, conjuring dozens of ice spikes in the air, pinning his limbs to the wall.
"Ah—" a scream pierced the air, as the ice spikes not only pierced into the flesh but also froze the wounds shut, causing excruciating pain without endangering life.
Under the entwining flames of the whip, the person, witnessing the fate of his companion, was now shaking in fear, his teeth chattering wildly.
Victoria turned her cold face towards him, devoid of any pity: "Speak!"
"We don't know who he is, he posted a mission at the Adventurer's Guild, we just accepted the mission. He left the gold coins on the counter downstairs, and we took the coins to complete the mission..."
"The gold coins?"
The man glanced at the bedside.
Victoria shouted, "Keville!" A whistle sounded outside, and the small mouse jumped over the threshold and onto the bedside.
Later, this is a large magical tower commonly seen in the Royal City of Delson. Most of the city's residents live in such towers. The size of the towers is huge, generally only seven floors, but can accommodate thousands of people.
The homeowner does not have much knowledge of the tenants here. Anyone can live here as long as they pay him ten gold coins per month.
"It seems we're too late," Keville looked at the chaotic room with regret. The small mouse below kept scratching its whiskers, sneezing one after another. Keville recalled his summon, while Victoria squatted down, rubbing her fingers on the ground and finding a fine powdery substance on her black gloves. "This powder disguises the scent, this guy is an alchemist!"