This Lich Requests More Remuneration
Chapter 664 - 581: All Alchemists Are Madmen

Chapter 664: Chapter 581: All Alchemists Are Madmen

As the art of alchemy continued to develop, the divine power of the God of Alchemy kept increasing. Not long ago, he even acquired the technology from Hell and has now almost thoroughly researched it, significantly expanding the knowledge of alchemy with many exotic flavors.

However, just adding this knowledge was not enough, since the world’s understanding of alchemy determined the strength of the God of Alchemy. It’s not enough for the deities to know these secrets alone; special means were needed to promote them.

At first, the Alchemist Association seemed a good choice, as it had many alchemists and spreading the knowledge to them would surely ensure a rapid propagation.

Yet, the God of Alchemy decisively rejected Amberser’s suggestion.

"This knowledge cannot be handed over to the profit-driven Alchemist Association, or Ogma will intervene again."

That was the God of Alchemy’s reminder to Amberser.

The technology involving the Hell Engine contained an abundance of biological transformation and soul manipulation techniques; although the God of Alchemy had refined it to be less bloody and cruel, the danger level of this knowledge remained extremely high.

If it were given to the Alchemist Association, they might well repeat that cruel Underworld deific project. At that time, Ogma might not be so lenient - perhaps he might completely obliterate them without offering another chance.

So the important task of promoting the new alchemy fell onto Amberser’s shoulders, the only student the God of Alchemy truly trusted.

Although Amberser was quite avaricious, he also possessed strong restraint, and he alone could handle the balance.

This left Amberser quite perplexed. How could he promote this technology on his own? When would such an endeavor come to an end?

But Amberser had no choice; this was a matter that could lead to the promotion of the God of Alchemy. With some luck, he might ascend to a more potent divine power.

For the sake of his patron, Amberser had to bite the bullet and proceed.

The revamped alchemy knowledge that the God of Alchemy had reorganized was extensive, filling several cities if it had to be written down in detail. After all, it was the technology that Hell had been using for countless years, iterated over many generations, and the new knowledge gained from reverse-engineering it was immense.

These new technologies, if simply classified, could be divided into three main parts.

Firstly, the Hell Engine, which burns souls as fuel to provide a comprehensive enhancement to the host. It seems similar to the power core of the Magipuppet Automatons, but the magic that the power core generates can only operate in pre-designed circuits, whereas the Hell Engine can act directly on any living being.

Whether it’s an insect or a human, a devil or a demon, any living thing can be strengthened by the energy produced by the Hell Engine, and the enhancement is comprehensive.

After modifications by the God of Alchemy, the soul engine’s effectiveness was not only undiminished but also improved in efficiency and could even perfectly replace the power core of the Magipuppet Automatons. The engine now worked on inanimate objects as well, truly an upgrade.

The battleships created with Pseudo-Soul technology by Amberser were perfectly suited for this new engine, though the cost was somewhat high and it could only burn Soul Fragments.

This first technology was merely an improvement, while the second truly had a more extreme flavor, concerning the transformation techniques for life forms.

Amberser had witnessed the implantation of the Hell Engine once, an operation that couldn’t really be called surgery but rather resembled a deranged killer slicing someone open and forcibly inserting the Hell Engine.

This brute-force approach could be carried out by any ogre; logically, you’d expect death upon evisceration and organ removal, but somehow, the implantation operations in Hell had a very high success rate.

That’s because of the unique biological transformation technology of Hell, a special potion that granted living organisms powerful regeneration abilities within a short time. It acted like a rule effect, providing the individuals undergoing transformation with an extraordinary capacity for self-adaptation. Though it was short-lived, this was enough to ensure the recipients of the Hell Engine could survive.

The God of Alchemy had conducted an experiment where a modified mouse was thrown into boiling magma. While the vitality enhancement and self-adaptive effects persisted, the mouse, although scalded and squeaking, quickly grew a layer of insulating fur.

This demonstrates the strength of Hell’s biological technology - self-evolution and adaptation, capable of developing resistance to the harshest environments until the effects of the biological transformation dissipate.

Usually, devils supported by this effect could survive the engine implantation surgery. Once the body "adapted" to the implant, flesh and membranes integrated perfectly with the Hell Engine.

Of course, there’s a limit to this adaptive ability; it’s not like in this state you could withstand a slap from a deity. But you wouldn’t fear being thrown into magma, wouldn’t fear the cold on a snowfield, and upon encountering swords and spears, could grow tough scales. These were all achievable, although the adaptation usually only ensured you wouldn’t die, and your final appearance was left to fortune.

Thus, in Hell, all who had the Hell Engine installed were elites. Ordinary devils found it difficult to attain a Hell Engine; those who did often became grotesquely shaped, the result of this "self-adaptation."

Unfortunately, the drug resistance of such potions is very pronounced. Most devils can at most use them two or three times and cannot evolve indefinitely.

As for the third technology, it seems pretty useless. It’s Hell’s soul modification technique. Reading memory, creating false memories, brainwashing, merging, and so on... these are merely modifications, not like what Amberser can do, which is to create souls out of thin air.

Amberser just skimmed the catalog of these technologies, and immediately pointed to the second item and said, "This is good stuff right here. You could sell it directly as an alchemical potion. Who wouldn’t want to drink it and become invulnerable?"

But the God of Alchemy said, "If it’s just another alchemical potion, it doesn’t affect me much. I’ve synthesized these technologies and designed this."

The God of Alchemy spread out a huge blueprint, with countless lines and numbers projecting from it, making Amberser’s eyes swim.

However, Amberser quickly found familiar things within it.

"Mercury Avatars, flesh piles of the Giant Tribe, Equipment Enchantment..."

Amberser read out the relevant knowledge he recognized as he looked. The document involved more than a dozen different alchemy products and hundreds of alchemy principles, ultimately converging into an entirely new species.

At the end, Amberser couldn’t help but curse, "Teacher, you’re crazier than the gods from the sewer!"

This new species looked like an ordinary Mercury Avatar, but with several more innate abilities than the original version.

The original Mercury Avatar had strong magic resistance, could devour metal, and could mimic transformation, which were already extremely formidable abilities.

The modified mercury monster, however, possessed the abilities of unlimited stacking, Enchantment Effect absorption, and berserk.

Unlimited stacking was originally a divine art of the Ancient Giant Clan, a blessing from Talos, which could infinitely merge the corpses of warriors until they became an indestructible special material, used to forge city gates or battle puppets. This stuff is exceptionally hard; even Arthur Laine’s Holy Slash could only leave a small cut.

Now the modified Mercury Avatar also possessed this ability, allowing it to infinitely stack by devouring its own kind, simultaneously enhancing its magic resistance and physical resistance. Theoretically, as long as it doesn’t overeat, it could continue to strengthen indefinitely, until deities themselves would be unable to cause it harm.

As for the Enchantment Effect absorption, that’s even more outrageous. If you give this monster a Magic Equipment, it can replicate the Enchantment Effect after devouring it.

Theoretically, if the Mercury Avatar were to devour the Blood of Rosanda, a Divine Artifact, then it would possess the power of the artifact, summon Holy Light, Resurrection Technique, and the heaven-defying ability to strip perception from the Undead.

If it devours a Magic-Breaking Weapon, the Mercury Avatar’s transformed attacks would also include the Magic-Breaking Effect. And so on, combining that with the effect of unlimited stacking, if it eats enough, this Mercury Avatar could possess countless magical effects. Five Enchantment Effects are already considered a Divine Artifact, but this monster could theoretically have an unlimited number of special effects.

Compared to these two outrageous abilities, the last one, berserk, seems not so exaggerated—it’s a full enhancement by burning the soul, equivalent to the effect of the Hell Engine, only when activated, the Mercury Avatar also gains the ability to devour souls, sustaining itself indefinitely.

And in its berserk...no, when it’s in its berserk state, this Mercury Avatar could indeed be ten times stronger.

Imagine that, a monster with maxed magic and physical resistance, radiating dozens of magical glows and weighing dozens of tons, charging at you. After it bites you, it becomes ten times stronger.

"Teacher, this creation really is too outrageous, how are you different from those madmen?"

The God of Alchemy knew that this design was a bit too much, which is why Ogma had taken the initiative to warn him. Therefore, the God of Alchemy said to Amberser, "I called you here to help me weaken it. We can’t create this thing without cutting it back, but once it’s reduced to where it doesn’t violate any bottom lines, this new Race will become my followers, their existence will be the highest emblem of alchemy."

Amberser understood the God of Alchemy’s point, which was that the technology could not spread, but the products could.

Alone, Amberser could not compare with the production capabilities of the whole Alchemist Association, so his personal promotion was too slow. But if it were a self-reproducing race, it would be like pig farming. They could be allowed to grow and reproduce, which would make them very efficient in output.

The more there are of this highest achievement of alchemy, the greater the influence of alchemy would be, and the God of Alchemy would ascend faster.

It’s a good plan, but how to weaken this creature?

With alchemy, Pseudo-Souls, Spirit Statue Manufacturing, Talos’s divine art, and Hell’s biological modification techniques blended in...Amberser didn’t even know where to start with reductions.

After much thought, Amberser suggested, "Shall we create a prototype in the Divine Realm first? Then see if there’s a degradation of abilities after reproduction. If degradation does occur, that would simplify things a lot."