Mechanical Alchemist

Albert put away the mechanical Rubik's cube and switched to a pair of black iron mechanical gloves.

Kama did the same.

However, hers were a pair of white ones, finely crafted and taking into account a young girl's aesthetic preferences.

These gloves had been made by Sulenty tailored to their habits for practicing control over thread and puppets as mechanical substitutes. They were more suitable for certain high-strength steel wires.

Caroline peered at the complex gears and mechanisms on their gloves, puzzled about what exactly their professions were.

They looked like close combat gauntlets, yet also something a mechanic might wear.

However, she was more surprised that this sharp-tongued brat had noticed the abnormality before she had?

Caroline's face had already taken on animalistic features like Catwoman. Sniffing, she could smell those monsters approaching.

As she was about to ask, Albert spoke first, "Ma'am, could you please inform those people that those mutated monsters are blood-borne zombies, and if bitten, one will be infected. It's best not to kill them, because conventional means can't kill them. Moreover, after a wound, they will fuse into even more formidable creatures. By then, the people here will face increasingly terrifying monsters..."

Caroline frowned at hearing this, "How do you know that?"

While twisting the spring on his mechanical glove, Albert calmly replied, "My teacher told me."

"..."

Caroline quickly understood what was going on.

Were these young ones putting her in the frontline?

She was well aware that as soon as she revealed this information, she would attract attention from those followers of the outer gods and might immediately be in mortal danger.

So you knew it was too dangerous to speak out, and you let me take the hit?

How could you be so scheming at such a young age?

Caroline's expression grew peculiar.

In any other situation, she would absolutely refuse.

But the current situation had spiraled out of control. If the monsters were as deathly converging as they said, failing to act could lead to an irredeemable situation.

With that thought, Caroline gritted her teeth and agreed, "Fine!"

...

Just as Albert and the others had detected something amiss, trouble inevitably occurred.

"Damn it! There's a monster!"

"Damn! Weren't all passages sealed off, how are there still monsters, check where the defense has failures!"

"Be careful, these mutated beasts might have been man-made!"

"..."

The banquet hall hadn't quieted down for long when several monsters fell from a dark spot on the ceiling, no one knew where they had crawled from.

Before Caroline could even open her mouth to warn, a barrage of gunshots rang out, and the monsters were shot into a sieve.

The corpses heavily fell to the ground, splattered like smashed watermelons, and blood covered the floor.

The shooters were students from the Royal Academy of Ruein, equipped with top-tier firearms and an abundance of alchemical bullets. Marksmanship was also a mandatory course, thus their aim was flawless.

A few shots later, these barely first-level zombie types were immediately shredded.

"Hahaha, these monsters are so weak, they pose no threat at all."

"Exactly, I see no need to block the passages anymore, just let the monsters in, we have enough ammunition to clear the whole ship."

"Tch, no need for alchemy, handguns do the job, all that fuss for nothing, made me worry for nothing. Those commoners really are weak..."

"..."

Having killed a few mutated beasts, these young students were full of confidence.

Initially, they had only heard noises, not expecting the monsters to be so frail.

Everyone breathed a huge sigh of relief.

Even a few bold students approached the corpses of the monsters, using their rods to examine what exactly the creatures were.

Seeing this, Caroline's face drastically changed, she yelled out at once, "Be careful, don't touch those monster corpses!"

Common mutated creatures indeed weren't formidable, but if they were mutated from professionals, they would be much more troublesome. She didn't want these students to get infected.

Her loud shout drew questioning glances from everyone.

Not delaying any further, Caroline hastily relayed the information Albert had previously spoken about, "Everyone, do not kill those monsters, they will merge and revive..."

After listening, everyone in the banquet hall was skeptical.

But soon, someone challenged, "Who are you? How do you know so well?"

Obviously, the outbreak of the mutated contamination on this "Rodrica Queen" cruise was peculiar, spreading rapidly in the lower decks, clearly manipulated by someone behind the scenes.

Suddenly, a person who understood the characteristics of the monsters so well inevitably aroused suspicion.

Moreover, when these monsters are so easy to kill, why instruct us not to kill them?

This motive couldn't help but raise doubts.

Caroline also knew she was suspected.

From the moment she spoke, she predicted this outcome.

Her gang lord identity worked well among the ordinary class, but in the eyes of these nobles, she was no different from a sewer cleaner, handling dirty, secretive matters. Speaking out, there was hardly any persuasiveness.

Initially intending to wait until the monsters merged to reveal the truth,

before that could happen,

just then,

someone suddenly shouted.

"Grab her, she knows too much, this mutation contamination definitely relates to her!"

With that, no chance for explanation was given, several figures swiftly charged at her.

Caroline knew these people were probably followers of the outer gods, and there might be others who misunderstood and wanted to help. But at this critical moment, she naturally couldn't afford to be captured and had to fight back.

With a pinch of her sorcerer's seals, her body's muscles bulged, completely entering a beast-like form, and her fingernails turned into sharp blades.

With a leap, her body was as flexible as if boneless, performing a complex backflip, dodging the cold shots fired at her.

At the same time, Caroline's subordinates also stepped forward to help, and the two groups instantly started fighting.

"Hmph! This woman definitely has something up her sleeve!"

"They have accomplices too!"

"Kill them, be careful they might sabotage us!"

"..."

Most people felt the battle had started bizarrely.

It was just a few monsters being killed, so why had internal strife broken out among them?

However, since both parties made sense just now, most people maintained a neutral stance and watched the fight.

...

Meanwhile, in a corner on a sofa, the Kama siblings were checking their gear.

Seeing the sudden fight, they were not surprised at all.

Kama muttered, "Albert, you were right. If we had spoken up just now, we probably would have been the ones attacked."

Albert's young face remained expressionless as he glanced at the beast-transformed Caroline and said, "So it's the 'C-011-Catwoman' talent. This aunt is really strong."

Kama shrugged noncommittally and then looked on, "Albert, should we help out?"

"Can't help."

Albert shook his head and added, "Don't worry, that aunt isn't so easy to kill. Besides, if she really wanted to save that Duke's son, she would have clashed with these people sooner or later. With the situation unclear, it's good for her to draw those people out."

Kama's eyes flickered with agreement and then said, "So what do we do now?"

Although Albert's expression did not change, his eyes were constantly observing the battlefield, and his mind swiftly deduced various scenarios.

After a moment, he said, "We just wait here. It's best to stay away from that Duke's son. Once the monsters rush in, he will definitely be the focus of their attention. Then, try to stay alive until the teacher settles the battle in the cargo hold."

Pausing, he added, "Of course, if the teacher can't handle it, then we'll have to prepare to run."

Kama pursed her lips, "..."

She felt that her brother was really becoming more and more like their teacher.

During battles, he was as calm as a machine.

It seemed like Kama had guessed his thoughts, and Albert continued, "Teacher said that in battle, we need to shed unnecessary emotions. Pity, mercy, reluctance, hesitation... all emotions that will put us in danger."

Kama rolled her eyes and retorted, "Albert, you're really becoming more like the teacher. The problem is you're not as handsome as him. Continuing like this, you might never have a girl like you."

"Girls?"

Listening to this, a look of maturity beyond his years flashed across Albert's face, a smirk of disdain on his lips, "That would only affect my speed in controlling puppets..."

However, what responded to him was a fierce knock on the head from Kama, his elder sister, accompanied by an angry roar, "How could you! Albert, you are meant to carry on the family name for our Boyer family!"

In an instant, Albert's aloof schoolboy demeanor collapsed as he pleaded, "Sis, don't hit my head~ It hurts!"

...

From the bodies on the ground, red parasites were emerging and starting to merge.

However, most people's attention was captured by the increasingly intense fight between the two groups in the banquet hall.

Just when someone noticed the change in the monster bodies,

suddenly,

a new crisis arose!

A large amount of stirring noise came from the storage room behind the banquet hall, as if something was swarming in.

Immediately, several extremely panicked security personnel ran out of the kitchen, "It's bad! Someone opened the vent of the prep room, and a lot of monsters have rushed in; we can't hold them off!"

Following their words, several swiftly moving aberrant monsters had burst out behind them.

No sooner had their words fallen than someone shouted, "Damn it, it must have been that woman's sabotage. We must kill her first!"

Another person bellowed, "Open fire, kill those monsters, don't let them in!"

Bang!

Bang!

Bang!

The sound of gunfire erupted instantly.

It proved that humans tend to exhibit conformist behavior in panic.

During this critical juncture, the disciples of the outer gods didn't give people a chance to think and judge, continuously leading everyone in the banquet hall to fight.
Experience tales at My Virtual Library Empire

Seeing the tide-like monsters continuously pouring out of the kitchen, once someone fired the first shot, then everyone started shooting.

Crisp like rain, the gunfire was dense.

The air was filled with splattering blood plasma, and various bodily fluids floated in the air.

Seeing this scene, Albert quietly put on his gas mask and muttered softly, "I knew this would happen."

"Ah..."

Kama also sighed lightly and put on her gas mask.

After a round of gunfire, the entire kitchen had been shattered by alchemy bullets.

The cadets from the Royal Academy had studied emergency tactics; at this moment, they took out shields and a variety of firearms and set them up.

This round of firepower was mostly contributed by them.

Such focused firing, even high-ranked professionals could not withstand it, let alone a group of low-level monsters that were instantly extinguished.

After a moment, the gunfire ceased.

Looking around, the sight was gruesome.

The area around the kitchen was covered with crimson blood plasma and scattered limbs. Like meat mush in a grinder several meters thick, it was impossible to tell how many monster bodies were piled up there.

Seeing the monsters being repelled again, the cadets were somewhat excited, feeling a great sense of achievement.

"We drove the monsters away?"

"Hahaha... I told you so, that's all there is to these monsters. I don't think we should hide here any longer, let's go and clear out the monsters below."

"..."

But before they could celebrate further, someone noticed something odd.

"No, look! Something is wriggling in the bodies!"

"Damn it, these things won't really fuse together, will they?"

"..."

In an instant, they vaguely guessed that the woman just now hadn't been lying.

Unfortunately, it was too late.

...

Caroline was still tangled up with several people when suddenly, countless red thread-like parasites emerged from the bloody flesh on the ground.

The more flesh and blood from the corpses, the quicker the monsters fused together.

Then, the several hundred people in the banquet hall watched as one after another "multi-faced monster" revived and stood up again.

Everyone then realized that these monsters truly couldn't be killed.

"Physical attacks are useless! Quickly use the Fire System Spell and burn them all!"

Someone quickly realized something and executed the Fire System Technique.

But ordinary flames were utterly useless.

Then came freezing, lightning strikes... all sorts of methods were deployed.

All to minimal effect.

It was only then that people realized, what the woman said was right; if these bugs didn't die, the mutated monsters wouldn't die either.

"Don't shoot, these monsters become more dangerous the more you kill them!"

"If we don't kill them, what do we do, just watch them infect us?"

"Damn it, what should we do now! Someone save us..."

"Don't jump into the sea, there are monsters there too!"

"..."

When people realized the monsters couldn't be killed, despair spread instantly.

What's more terrifying, they destroyed several "multi-faced monsters," but the pools of their flesh instantly fused again into an even more terrifying "Hundred-Face Meat Mountain."

That monster was like a mountain of flesh, ten meters tall with human skin faces and eyes that looked like tumors, making everyone's scalp tingle.

Several hundred people in the banquet hall gradually became infected one after another; even those who jumped into the sea saw massive blood worms in the water, resembling gigantic sea anemones.

To jump from the ship meant death, and not jumping was waiting for death.

The attendees from the royal academy who previously thought they were well-armed and confident were now just frantically huddling together in terror. The meat mountain monster was slow, allowing them to hold it off for a while. But, as more and more people got infected around them, they realized that death had descended upon this cruise ship, and there was no escape.

At this moment, Alex remained relatively calmer than his fellow students.

He didn't reveal his guard but coldly observed everything around him. The situation was becoming increasingly complex, appearing to involve several factions, making it hard to identify who the real "mastermind" was.

Moreover, his guard also suggested his judgment: today, the situation was far more likely to end badly than well.

Alex, after all, was the heir to a top noble family, possessed a level of rationality and thoughtfulness beyond his age.

The Tarot cards in his hand continued to turn, his divination unceasing.

Suddenly, his gaze shifted to the other side of the banquet hall.

He hadn't forgotten someone had passed him a message earlier.

With that look, Alex's gaze instantly froze there.

...

The number of monsters in the banquet hall only kept increasing.

Albert and the Kama siblings couldn't stay out of it either.

They could only fight while dodging.

They clearly had a definite route for evading; wherever the royal academy students went, they went the opposite direction, staying as far away as possible.

The siblings' method of fighting was also completely different from others.

They didn't shoot or slash.

The mechanical gloves in their hands drew out slender rune steel wires, then they wrapped up all the mutated monsters that came their way and hung them in the air.

Since these were just lower-tier mutated monsters, they weren't much trouble, just numerous.

In no time, this corner of the banquet hall resembled a spider's lair, with twenty or thirty monsters hanging mid-air on wires. Although they struggled constantly, they were utterly unable to act viciously.

This truly set an example for everyone in the banquet hall.

So this was how to deal with the monsters?

Could it really be that simple?!

After all, the banquet hall was only so large; even if the two were low-key, the commotion there drew everyone's attention.

The students from the royal academy looked over one after another.

"Look over there! My God, those two actually got the monsters under control."

"Eh... isn't that the country girl who sent Alex a love letter? Apparently, she's incredibly capable."

"Yes, these solid fundamentals couldn't possibly be the product of those second-rate academies. No, not even our academy perhaps..."

"Eh... what professions are they, using threads as weapons?"

"..."

People then realized that those they thought were simple country folks were actually experts whom even these elite had to look up to.

Watching that method seemed simple, just using a few steel wires to tie the monsters up. But anyone knowledgeable immediately saw that the siblings' skill in controlling the threads was extremely proficient.

Such skilled maneuvers couldn't be achieved without ten or eight years of rigorous practice.

....

But regardless of the surprise, the monsters didn't give the people in the banquet hall any time to breathe.

Luckily, following the example set by the Kama siblings, the other students also came up with ideas on how to cope.

Even though they didn't know how to control threads, they thought of various Alchemy techniques: Vine Technique, Swamp Technique, Freezing Technique, Quicksand Technique...

The results were good.

But that didn't include the "Hundred-Face Meat Mountain."

If everyone had started out by controlling monsters this way instead of killing them, we would not have ended up being so passive.

Now, the "Hundred-Face Meat Mountain" has become unstoppable, and it's essentially unkillable at this point.

The attacks of lower-rank professionals are like mere scrapes; even the attacks from third or fourth-rank professionals can be healed in an instant.

Moreover, it keeps devouring other monsters and merging into an even larger mass of flesh.

Albert's performance was so "excellent" that it even caused the terrified noblemen and ladies in the banquet hall to run towards him and his sister for safety.

Seeking refuge is one thing, but they also noticed that there were the fewest monsters near Albert and his sister.

Some people vaguely realized that these monsters seemed to be specifically targeting those from the Royal Academy.

...

Albert frowned as he looked at the people suddenly rushing over for refuge and cautioned the Kama siblings, "Sister, be careful, there might be cultists of the Outer Gods among them."

Kama nodded and carefully scrutinized the group that had run over.

At that moment, one guy in the crowd, showing a blatant will to survive, swiftly darted out from among them and hid behind the siblings first.

Kama looked at the cowardly expression on Keith's face and muttered softly, "Senior, is this really a good look for you?"

She had always thought this senior was quite charming, but now this...

"You're still young and don't understand. This way those ladies won't bother me anymore."

Keith smiled and naturally slipped into a corner.

Kama: "..."

Albert: "..."

The siblings knew very well that although it seemed like Keith came to seek protection, in reality, this senior from the Dawn Group was protecting them.

The cultists of the Evil God would definitely eliminate anyone who tried to obstruct their plans.

Sure enough, one guy in the crowd suddenly raised a gun and pulled the trigger on the twenty-odd disfigured monsters that were bound by silk threads.

This guy's shooting was accurate; almost one bullet per creature, and he quickly destroyed all the monsters that Kama and her brother had barely managed to contain.

Blood splattered everywhere.

With that, everyone understood that the person who was shouting and encouraging the fight earlier was the "hidden mastermind."

Albert reacted extremely quickly. As the man started shooting, he yanked at the steel wire in his hand and instantly decapitated him.

Meanwhile, among the crowd, there were also cultists trying to assassinate the siblings, but before they could make their move, Keith, hidden in the shadows, flicked a card and silently pierced the man's heart.

As the suspended monsters were killed, blood parasites began to spread.

Kama and Albert's previous efforts were in vain.

The real tough battle had begun.

Both siblings simultaneously took out a sealing scroll and tore it apart.

Dozens of puppets formed a guard around them.

Before those "multi-faced monsters" could approach, the puppets formed a barrier of silk threads.

Their puppet controlling skills, having been perfected by Su Lun's teachings and their hard practice these days, now came into play.

Binding arms and legs separately, using various anti-joint control techniques, and manipulating the silk down to the fingers and toes... none of the approaching monsters got close before being suspended once again.

This scene left everyone in the banquet hall astonished.

No one had expected that the previously unremarkable siblings were actually two Puppet Masters.

And moreover, their move involved dozens of puppets, which was no small feat!

The students from the Royal Academy were gobsmacked.

Under the siblings' aura of genius, their pride and superiority as noble students completely vanished.

The chubby student who had previously mocked Albert felt a chill at his neck.

He now understood that the others were not just taunting back then, but genuinely disdaining a duel.

If it really came to a fight, his own head might have been cut off by the steel wire just like that gunman's was.

Caroline, who was still struggling in the fight, finally realized, thinking, "So they had this kind of strength, no wonder they were so composed."

Meanwhile, she looked forward to meeting "Mr. Nicholas" with a bit more anticipation.

If the disciples were this formidable, the teacher must be extraordinary as well.

...

Meanwhile, in the cruise ship's cargo area.

While the banquet hall was engaged in a fierce battle, Su Lun had already eliminated several rooms of Outer God cultists.

After reaping some fragmented souls, he discovered that the cultists' goal was not only to kill the young master Alex but indeed to secretly sacrifice almost five thousand people on the cruise ship.

It was all merely to restore strength to that Outer God.

Following the magical arrays set up by these people, Su Lun made his way to the cargo area below deck.

At this moment, thousands of passengers in the lower deck compartments were almost completely infected.

Only then did Su Lun realize that it was more than just an infection.

The passengers' souls and flesh were also converging together.

In the cargo area, a huge, horrifying space had formed. The ship's walls were covered with red worms like blood vessels, densely packed and enough to make one's scalp tingle.

These worms were transferring energy to the center of the cargo hold, which had turned into a blood pool.

A massive, blood-red Crystal Core was floating above the blood pool, emitting a sinister glow.

"Thousand-Men Blood Refining Crystal Core"

Details: "In the eyes of some evil deities, humans are just lower creatures that supplement nutrients for flesh; this is a crystal formed from an evil flesh-refining ritual, containing a large amount of vital blood and energy, capable of helping some flesh-related deities regain some strength."

Su Lun looked on, his gaze as sharp as a knife.

And opposite him stood a black-skinned woman who had hurriedly come to intercept him.

It was none other than the team leader professor from this Royal Academy, a sixth-rank professional, Virginia.

This woman was puzzled to see Su Lun suddenly appear here.

She couldn't understand how someone could have discovered the hidden blood-refining altar in such a short time.