Mechanical Alchemist-Chapter 393 - 392 Caught a Big Fish

Having left the Sea Ruins,

they no longer had concerns for their lives.

The heavy stone pressing on the hearts of the Dawn Brigade members had also been lifted.

The "Eternal Night Emperor" sailed cheerfully across the ocean, and the crew resumed their regular seafaring life.

Whether it was the group that joined at the beginning or the Judgement Brigade that joined later, almost everyone remaining in the Dawn Brigade now possessed gifts that were nothing short of remarkable. This great opportunity to go against the current of the "River of the Underworld" provided bountiful gains. Eight or nine out of ten people made progress, and many overcame their rank bottlenecks.

The trip to the "Sea Ruins" had resulted in massive gains, and the Dawn Brigade’s team warehouse was brimming with treasures. Su Lun also brought out the spoils from the interception of the North Sea Fleet, and everyone found some spatial materials for advancement. Within just a few days, the Dawn Brigade had gained twenty or thirty fourth-rank professionals and three fifth-rankers. The team’s overall strength had visibly leaped forward.

The days spent sailing were calm and leisurely, and the people of the Dawn Brigade enjoyed the rare peace and stability.

Su Lun still spent every day holed up in the laboratory.

His two apprentices made rapid progress, advancing by leaps and bounds. Su Lun himself had almost digested the recent gains from battle, inscribed "Ximing Laiwa’s Sea God Runes," and the "Rune Vajra" technique was already strong, greatly stepping up his self-preservation capabilities; the gargoyle was also nearing completion of a set of fifth and sixth-rank solidification techniques...

Before they knew it, the Dawn Brigade had sailed the seas for another six or seven days.

...

On this day, the weather was sunny and bright.

Approaching evening, the sky was already scattered with a crimson sunset.

The ship was as bustling as ever.

"Caught another sea monster, we’re in for a treat today!"

"Wow, a ’Deep Sea Lantern Fish’ isn’t easy to catch, this one’s over a hundred meters long. I’ve never seen one this big in my life."

"Hahaha, it’s time for our Dawn Brigade’s ’First Fisherman’ to step aside for Laihte. He broke our fishing record this time!"

"..."

On deck, the crew were using the lifting arm to reel in a giant lantern fish over a hundred meters long onto the deck.

"Here it comes, who’s free? Come and cut up the fish."

Someone shouted.

At that moment, a figure leaped forward.

With just a flash of several Sword Qi, by the time the figure landed back on the deck, the giant fish already bore several bloody marks. The bloodstains split open in an instant, and pieces of fish meat separated from the fish’s body.

"Thud," "thud," "thud"... a series of muffled sounds.

Hundreds of pounds of tender fish meat landed neatly on the deck.

Seeing this scene, the crew couldn’t help but praise.

"Yo, Lolo Tanni’s swordsmanship has improved again! The Sword Qi can now extend three meters out."

"That knife skill is indeed impressive, separating muscle from bone, not piercing the innards, preserving the fish meat flavor to the greatest extent. Tsk tsk, tonight’s sashimi has great material."

"..."

Lolo Tanni put away his sword, responded to the praise with a smile, and then helped to move the fish meat onto the conveyor belt, sending it to the warship’s kitchen.

This scene was an everyday occurrence for the Dawn Brigade.

The super large deck of the Sea Emperor-class warship provided rich daily activities for the Dawn Brigade.

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Capturing deep-sea behemoths was almost a daily necessity, serving as food and improving teamwork and understanding within the group.

...

As the fish was being transported, everyone suddenly saw several people walking onto the deck.

Someone shouted, "Mr. Su Lun is here!"

It was not only Su Lun, but Qiantiao, Captain Barrett, and Dr. Banks were also by his side.

Several high-ranking individuals who were usually busy gathering on the deck made everyone realize that something significant was about to happen.

Tanni, holding ropes, leaped down from the cockpit like a monkey, asking expectantly, "Mr. Su Lun, is it time?"

Su Lun nodded, "Yes."

They had been wandering around this marine area for a few days, waiting for this very day.

Because the "Tokester Void Royal Alchemy Academy" was in a special spatial realm that was an extremely vast overlapping space.

Getting to that realm required specific wind directions, just like now, with no wind on the sea’s surface.

This situation might occur once a month, or it might only happen a few days every several months.

Patience was necessary to wait.

Su Lun had previously stripped away the information on this realm and was well-versed in the methods of entry and exit.

He knew that the spatial realm was extremely large. However, entering that spatial realm from the normal southeastern direction almost certainly meant encountering the North Sea Fleet’s patrol outposts. They had taken such a big detour, coming from the desolate northwest, to avoid being discovered as soon as they entered.

But even so, they might still encounter battle.

Barrett also informed everyone through the communicator, "Everyone, prepare for second-level battle readiness!"

"Yes!"

Instantly, everyone sprang into action.

People were also curious about what kind of enemy they would encounter on the calm sea stretching thousands of miles.

...

All members of the Dawn Brigade gathered on the deck, having heard Su Lun say there was a great spectacle, looking out at the ocean as the sky slowly darkened.

The sea remained without wind, calm as a flawless mirror of glass.

Everyone had dinner on the deck. Before long, the last streak of sunset on the horizon turned from red to blue, and then its luster dimmed, gradually blending into the night.

All the lights on the ship went out, and people comfortably gazed at the sparkling stars in the sky.

The brilliant stars were reflected on the sea, extremely beautiful.

With the sea and sky as one color, the Eternal Night floated on the water, as if floating in the starry sky.

Su Lun, not confined to his laboratory for once, leaned against the mast, watching the stars above.

It’s only in the darkness that such dazzling starry skies can be seen.

His gaze became distant in an instant.

By his side, several lads were already very familiar with each other, laughing and frolicking.

Only Aberc seemed a bit out of place; even when Su Lun called him up to the deck, he was still fiddling with his puppet.

Lolota, with her carefree nature, wasn’t a stranger to anyone. Her strength firmly placed her first among the lads, and she was the children’s king on the ship.

Seeing Aberc sitting alone not speaking and just fiddling with his puppet, she sat beside him, nudging his shoulder teasingly, "Little squirt, what are you doing? The starry sky is so beautiful, why are you always holding onto a puppet?"

Aberc, only six years old in physical age and a head shorter than Lolota, replied earnestly, "Sister Lolota, I’m inscribing ’Heavy Shield Runes’. It’s a critical moment now; if I stop in the middle, this puppet will be ruined..."

While speaking, he looked at Lolota, but his hands didn’t stop their work at all, continuing their rustling as he "blindly inscribed" the runes.

Lolota saw his multitasking and couldn’t help but twitch the corner of her eye, immediately seeing the shadow of Su Lun in him.

But after pausing for a moment, as though she had finally understood something, she exclaimed in surprise, "You can even draw second-tier runes now?"

Aberc nodded seriously, "Yeah. Teacher just taught me yesterday."

"..."

Hearing this, Lolota felt as if she had unwittingly bitten into a lemon, her gaze suddenly filled with wistfulness.

She felt her own progress was already quite noticeable, having been praised by everyone before. But compared to this, her accomplishments didn’t seem so exciting anymore.

Just a few days ago, she had heard Aberc had merged with a first-tier augmentation gear, and now he was already delving into second-tier professional skills?

Lolota turned to look at Kama, incredulous, "Kama, your brother... he’s this amazing now?"

Kama smiled and said, "Yeah. The teacher said Aberc will soon surpass me in strength."

Lolota sighed deeply with a dramatic tone, "Oh, then I need to practice my swordsmanship even harder. Otherwise, I feel that in a few months, I won’t even be able to beat your brother."

At these words, everyone on deck burst into laughter.

The studying atmosphere in the Dawn group was just like this, fiercely "internally competitive."

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When a typical pirate crew made money, they would surely indulge in food and drink. But Su Lun, Qian Tiao, Barrett, and Dr. Banks were always engaged in arduous training. With their leaders setting such an example, everyone was infected by this atmosphere, each practicing their own skills with great diligence.

It wasn’t that Lolota wasn’t outstanding; it was that everyone in the Dawn group was working hard, and their progress was rapid.

Encountering someone like Aberc, who had an especially abnormal talent, naturally made her advance less noticeable.

...

The atmosphere on the ship was very harmonious.

Su Lun and Qian Tiao leaned against the side of the ship, looking at the splendid starry sky.

As the stars shifted, one could clearly feel the passage of time and space.

It was nice to have time move a bit slower, and they both enjoyed this peacefulness, as if voyaging through the galaxy.

Qian Tiao pursed her lips and whispered softly, "The void really is boundless."

Su Lun smiled faintly.

Suddenly.

Qian Tiao, as if sensing something, raised an eyebrow, "The wind you’ve been waiting for has arrived."

Su Lun also realized something and responded lightly, "The secret realm is about to appear."

The lookout on the mast was a second late before he also called out, "Everyone, the wind has picked up!"

The next moment, the sails that were drooping on the mast suddenly "whoooshed" as they were filled by the wind.

With that push, the Eternal Night, which had just been hovering over the starry river, slowly accelerated, gaining speed.

Right then, a very peculiar current also appeared on the sea surface.

Tanni, in the cockpit, had long been told by Su Lun about the method to enter the secret realm, and he immediately notified the sailors on deck, "Control the sails well, activate the alchemy array to speed up, we’re preparing to ’ascend’!"

Under the enhancement of the alchemy sails, the Eternal Night’s speed increased further, its large hull not clumsy but like a speedboat, seemingly about to leap out of the water.

This Sea Emperor level battleship was already the fastest sail warship on the sea.

Most people didn’t know why they were suddenly accelerating and were filled with excitement and anticipation, watching the flow of the starry river in front of them. As the speed increased, they noticed the surroundings were changing; the starry sky and the sea seemed to gradually merge.

Su Lun squinted his eyes, catching Aberc, who had been so focused on inscribing his puppet that he stumbled due to inertia and nearly fell.

Aberc rubbed the back of his head, a bit embarrassed.

Su Lun said lightly, "Take a good look. It’s a spectacle you rarely see in a lifetime, and it would be a pity to miss it."

Through the Eye of Omniscience, he also saw that a layer identified as a "Spatial Barrier" had suddenly appeared in the air that was previously empty.

Just as he finished speaking, the battleship’s acceleration suddenly eased, and everyone on the ship steadied themselves.

But at that moment, they found the view in front of the battleship growing higher and higher; the bow of the Eternal Night rose slightly, as if climbing a wave.

Yet, there were no large waves in this area of the ocean.

As they climbed higher and higher, people then realized that the battleship was actually floating in the air!

The waves underneath turned into rings of transparent ripples, and the entire sea ship was heading towards the stars in the sky.

"My God, we... we’re actually voyaging through the stars?"

"It’s inconceivable, it’s like we could reach out and pluck the stars..."

"Where are we headed? Could it be beyond the void? My God, without the waves to support us, how did our ship take flight?"

"..."

Everyone crowded around the railing, witnessing an unforgettable sight as the battleship truly sailed slowly into the void.

Even Su Lun was unable to comprehend just how it all worked, he only felt that the spatial fluctuations around them were very unique. His eyes shone with a brilliant light as he thought, "Those ancient Great Alchemists really created a magical secret realm."

...

The Eternal Night drifted in the void, surrounded by a dark aquamarine starry sky.

As it floated, the transparent ripples beneath the vessel slowly coalesced into waves, and the sound of breaking water could be heard beside their ears.

It was only then that the crew realized they had reemerged upon the sea’s surface.

The seascape was still a seamless night scene, seemingly no different at a glance, but upon closer observation, there were fish swimming in the water and the hazy shadows of some islets in the distance.

After confirming their surroundings, Su Lun announced, "We’ve entered this secret realm."

They had intentionally made a wide detour, so they didn’t encounter members of the North Sea Fleet in this space. Su Lun estimated that the "Tokester Void Royal Alchemy Academy" was tens of nautical miles away. This area was almost never patrolled, practically a blind spot.

The original plan was for them to familiarize themselves with the environment after entering and then approach the Void Academy to see if there was an opportunity to go in and take a look.

But just as the ship touched the water’s surface, Dr. Banks suddenly approached them.

With a grave expression, he said, "I’ve re-detected the biological markers from that Mafa submarine we left behind! It’s nearby, to the northwest, no more than seven or eight nautical miles away."

Hearing this, Su Lun’s eyes also widened in surprise, "Such a coincidence?"

Previously, when Dr. Banks said he couldn’t sense the biological marker on the submarine, Su Lun knew it was more likely not because the markers had been cleared, but because they had come to this secret realm, which interrupted the sensing.

Now unexpectedly, upon their arrival, the submarine was nearby?

Why wasn’t that submarine with the main North Sea Fleet near the academy, instead laying in these deserted seas?

But a thought flashed across his mind, and Su Lun immediately understood.

The submarine was moored here probably for safety reasons.

Previously on the sea, when Dr. Banks and his group had wanted to leave the fleet, Princess Stika, thinking she could capture them, revealed the submarine to ambush them.

However, they hadn’t anticipated running into Su Lun and his group causing a disturbance, and after a standoff where neither side could do much to the other, the submarine was exposed.

Moreover, Su Lun had used a mechanical octopus at the time.

This made Princess Stika even more cautious.

The submarine was her dowry and a crucial part of the Mafa Empire’s technological support for Oleg.

Knowing that various powers were watching her, looking to kill her and break the alliance, Princess Stika was very aware that even within the North Sea Fleet, it wasn’t absolutely safe. After all, the pirate crew was a mixed bag, possibly including spies from Ruying or pirates that had been turned against her.

If a group of battleships guarded her at sea, the target was too large, and anyone would guess the submarine might be nearby.

Once the target was confirmed, who knew what extreme measures the enemies from Ruying might resort to.

After all, Princess Stika had already survived several assassination attempts and had seen the ruthless lengths to which her enemies would go.

In contrast, hiding the submarine alone in the sea made it less likely to be discovered, and thus safer.

Battleships could be annihilated, but the submarine absolutely could not be lost.

This secret realm was known only to the North Sea Fleet besides them, and moreover, it was situated in such a remote location...

Anyone would probably think it was utterly secure.

But they didn’t expect to encounter the "unexpected" Dawn Group.

Su Lun knew exactly how to enter the secret realm, and Dr. Banks could pinpoint the location of the submarine.

...

"Prepare for battle."

After hearing what Dr. Banks said, Su Lun weighed the options for a moment and then made his decision.

"Dr. Banks, Miss Pandora, and I will go on a stealth attack against those submarines. Sister Qiantiao and Captain Barrett, you take everyone to this ambush position. First, to prevent the submarines from escaping, and secondly, to intercept any possible reinforcements. I will end the battle as quickly as possible. If we encounter any unexpected situations, we’ll head here..."

While speaking, Su Lun marked several routes on the secret realm map he had previously sketched out by hand.

Having killed that so-called "Void Fleet" deputy fleet commander ’Demon Hand’ Dorosel, a high-ranking member of the North Sea Fleet, Su Lun had a clear understanding of the fleet’s various outposts in the secret realm. These arrangements could also possibly avoid leading the Dawn Group into danger.

Hearing Su Lun’s tactical arrangement, Barrett nodded in agreement, feeling that Su Lun had considered everything thoroughly, "All right!"

However, Qiantiao asked, "Are you sure? Shouldn’t we leave more people here?"

"I’m about seventy to eighty percent sure. The main uncertainty is how many submarines there are."

Su Lun nodded and added, "We don’t need too many people. The aim this time is to capture the submarine, so having too many might scare them off. If they realize they cannot overpower us, those guys might self-destruct. Moreover, if we encounter an overwhelming force, such as a seventh-tier professional, it’s better to have fewer people so we can escape and plan for the long term."

Another reason was that the Eternal Night had no cannons or other equipment, and he certainly didn’t want to engage in a naval battle with a submarine equipped with cutting-edge torpedoes.

Hearing this, Qiantiao didn’t insist further and said, "Fine! Keep in touch if anything happens."

Su Lun nodded.

He took out an assault boat and placed it on the water’s surface, with Pandora and Dr. Banks accompanying him.

The two boats, one headed east and the other west, began to slowly move away.

The Eternal Night, the black sail battleship, had a special alchemic coating that gave it a natural camouflage in the night. In the blink of an eye, it had completely merged into the darkness.

...

Aboard the small boat, Su Lun and the other two were silent, the atmosphere somewhat tense.

Because he had touched upon it once before, Su Lun had been able to say he was "seventy to eighty percent sure."

At this time, he looked at the distant sea and said, "Miss Pandora, I’ll be tying up the combat personnel shortly. When the submarine surfaces and opens its hatch, it’ll be up to you. It should be easy to control the Mafa soldiers without their combat armor—try not to kill them if possible, especially the researchers and mechanics."

The Mafa’s mechanical combat suits were indeed very strong, but their weakness was also very clear, which was that the physical bodies of the operators were very weak (relatively).

Although almost all of Mafa’s mechanical combat suits were equipped with helmets that protected against psychic attacks, they were quite "weak" without the suits.

Pandora, the "Great God of Moon Reading," excelled at psychic tactics. Once she gained control, they wouldn’t be able to choose self-destruction.

This was also the most important reason they had chosen to take the risk of cooperating with Pandora previously.

It was the only method Su Lun could think of to capture the submarine in one piece!

Cloaked and masked, Pandora listened silently to the tactical arrangements. Without saying much, she uttered only one word, "Okay."

Su Lun politely added, "Thank you for the trouble."

He felt that after helping her obtain the faith in the Sea Ruins last time, Pandora’s attitude had improved a great deal. Even if not by contract, they were more or less friends now.

Speaking of which, Su Lun turned to Dr. Banks and said, "Dr. Banks, please keep an eye on the other submarines in the sea. As soon as you spot that ’secret research base,’ mark it immediately. If things go south, we’ll retreat first."

Dr. Banks also nodded, "Okay."

In this wild and desolate sea, not a single person could be seen. Mafa’s submarines were equipped with advanced life detection and perception devices, making it nearly impossible to approach silently.

Therefore, the assault boat ridden by Su Lun and his party didn’t even bother to reduce noise as they headed straight for the coordinates of that submarine.

When they were one or two nautical miles away, Dr. Banks and Pandora disembarked and submerged into the water.

Su Lun once studied some technical parameters of Mafa’s military equipment, and he knew that the detection range of the instruments was limited—this distance was about the limit.

Then, Su Lun alone continued forward on the assault boat.

He didn’t expect to go undetected because he was certain that even if those on the submarine knew that a small boat was approaching from above, they would most likely think it was a patrol boat from the North Sea Fleet.

....

True enough, while Su Lun’s assault boat sped across the sea’s surface.

The observers on the submarine immediately noticed the commotion.

"Excellency Admiral, a speedboat has been spotted heading in our direction," someone reported.

"How many life forms have been detected?"

"The instrument isn’t quite certain, but it should be fewer than five."

"Ignore it, it’s probably a patrol boat from the North Sea Fleet."

"Yes."

"..."

The people on the submarine didn’t pay much attention to the assault boat, letting it approach the vicinity of several submarines.

But at that moment, the detection systems suddenly lit up with a metal response. The observer exclaimed sharply, "Excellency Admiral, something’s wrong—there’s a metal-response life form approaching! It might be the mechanical octopuses we encountered before!"

This caused immediate tension throughout the large submarine.

Although they didn’t know why the mechanical octopuses would appear in the secret realm, there was no doubt about the accuracy of the instruments.

...

Meanwhile, above the sea, Su Lun steered the speedboat successfully above the submarine.

Without stopping the boat, he formed the sorcerer’s seals with his hands, dispelled his gear, and a black void appeared in his palm. Over fifty mechanical octopuses spilled into the water like a cascade of beans.

With one hand wielding a black scythe and the other holding a Rune Umbrella, Su Lun didn’t give the enemy any time to react and leaped into the sea.

Using the force of the water, he took several darting steps. Like a grenade explosion in the water, his whole body shot downward like a sharp sword.

After descending several dozens of meters, he could already sense the soul fluctuations of people.

"Three submarines?"

Su Lun discerned the locations of those soul fluctuations. Between the three vessels, there were no more than five hundred people.

This was not far from his expectations.

The moment they hadn’t used torpedoes to sink him, those guys had lost their chance at the upper hand.

Su Lun pinpointed their position and directed over fifty mechanical octopuses straight toward them.

Seeing an enemy, the three warships suddenly changed formation—one quickly surfaced, heading straight for Su Lun, while the other two seemed to be attempting to flee.

Seeing a submarine trying to escape didn’t surprise Su Lun—instead, it pleased him.

Because if it were a combat vessel, upon encountering an attack, they would certainly unite to eliminate the enemy.

The fact that they were trying to flee meant the "secret mechanical research base" was very likely among those two submarines!

...

"This is definitely catching a big fish!"

Su Lun was not polite; he raised his hand and pulled out his personally modified underwater rocket launcher, firing it in the direction of the detected soul fluctuations.

The explosives blasted apart, not with fire, but with a splash of black liquid like ink.

That was Dr. Banks’s biological marker!

Now, there was no chance of escaping.

Su Lun did not back down; he took control of the mechanical octopus army and charged straight toward those three submarines.