So stingy?

Chapter 32: So Stingy?

In a corner of the sewers, a large number of Slimes were cornered.

Amber Xiu stood before a freshly drawn magic circle, waiting for these disgusting, wriggling monsters to walk into his trap.

As soon as one appeared, it was instantly teleported away.

Cages had long been prepared in Amber Xiu's Ancient Castle. These Slimes would be specifically teleported inside and securely confined.

The location Naomi had marked was correct; it was indeed a gathering point for a large number of Slimes.

Amber Xiu captured more than half of this group of Slimes but didn't overdo it, stopping after catching forty to fifty. He then prepared to leave a hidden teleportation array in the area, which would teleport any Slime that passed by.

Although this method was less efficient, it might continuously supply experimental materials.

After resolving the Slime issue, Amber Xiu returned to Alchemy City and consigned the equipment received from the Druid. Based on current market prices, it would likely take half a month for everything to sell.

Returning to his Ancient Castle in good spirits, Amber Xiu once again immersed himself in his experiments.

Amber Xiu had no desire to get involved in the so-called prophecy in the Alchemy City sewers. His intuition told him it was a scheme by those lunatics, and anyone venturing into the sewers now would likely be like a rabbit running headfirst into a trap.

Once in an experimental state, Amber Xiu was completely focused.

Furthermore, thanks to the extra income from this trip, Amber Xiu incorporated several luxurious designs into his experimental plans.

This made the experiments proceed much more smoothly.

Slimes were, after all, low-level monsters. As scavengers, their body structures were relatively simple, consisting of little more than their muddy bodies, basic digestive organs, and nervous systems. Slimes had very low intelligence, mostly driven by the instincts to hunt and reproduce through fission.

However, these Slimes captured from the Alchemy City sewers were slightly different. Their intelligence was higher than that of their peers, and their muddy bodies exhibited varying degrees of metallic mutation.

This was likely related to Alchemy City's indiscriminate dumping of Alchemy waste. After consuming this waste, the Slimes had developed a "disease."

Yes, this wasn't evolution; they had contracted a serious, potentially fatal illness.

The Slimes' lifespans shortened, their temperaments became more violent, and instances of cannibalism even occurred within the species.

This presented a minor problem for Amber Xiu, as he needed to first eliminate the effects of the mutation before studying the physiological state of Slimes under normal conditions.

Although it took some time, after dissecting over a hundred Slimes, Amber Xiu finally advanced his experiment to the second stage—modifying the Living Mercury.

Living Mercury was a mutated Slime that had gained powerful magic resistance but lost many vital organs and even a soul. Thus, from the moment it was created, its fate was a slow and agonizing death.

Amber Xiu's current task was to provide the Living Mercury with the missing organs, transforming it into a perfect vessel for the "synthetic soul" he had created.

Amber Xiu carefully studied the characteristics of this mercury-like mutation and found that the lunatics in Alchemy City were indeed brilliant and utterly insane in their research. The Alchemy techniques employed astonished him.

Had it not failed, it would undoubtedly have been a groundbreaking invention, comparable to a Legendary spell.

Innovation was difficult, but replication was much simpler. Amber Xiu quickly discovered the method for mercury-like mutation through reverse-engineering.

While not a 100% restoration of the original, he had managed to restore the missing organs.

The entire experiment did not take long, but the cost was truly high.

In total, it cost over 120,000 Gold Coins. Several bottles of Living Mercury potion were used, and although they were all imitations, they still pained Amber Xiu greatly.

If not for the high price fetched by the potion refined from the Hag's scalp, Amber Xiu wouldn't have had enough money to complete this experiment.

This was why even Legendaries were poor. If they simply lived idly, Legendaries could certainly live affluent lives. However, for scholars focused on research like Amber Xiu, the cost of each experiment was astronomical; no amount of earnings was enough to cover it.

In the Laboratory, Amber Xiu solemnly placed a Memory Crystal and began recording.

"Experiment to Optimize the Manufacturing Technology of New Grave Golems, Session 46.

"Following multiple previous experiments, I have successfully created a relatively complete Grave Golem body. The modified Living Mercury has not only had its missing organs restored, allowing it to remain alive for extended periods, but it has also gained a new talent—Transformation Spell.

"This inspiration came from a shapeshifter. By imitating its talent, I have granted the Living Mercury the ability to change its appearance. After all, we need to create Grave Golem warriors, and a simple Slime form lacks sufficient combat power.

"Now, I will proceed to fuse the synthetic soul with the Living Mercury body and see if the creation of the Grave Golem can be successfully completed..."

As Amber Xiu narrated, he took out the prepared synthetic soul and placed it upon the Living Mercury's body.

With the chanting of incantations, the synthetic soul rapidly merged into the Living Mercury. The previously still mercury body began to ripple slightly, followed by continuous shaking. After about one to two minutes, two black dots finally appeared on the smooth mercury surface, resembling a pair of eyes.

Then, the Living Mercury began to wriggle inside the glass jar, like a newborn infant eager to escape its confinement and explore the world.

Amber Xiu quickly released the little fellow. The Living Mercury happily wriggled on the table, swallowing everything metallic it encountered.

After consuming all the metal on the table, the Living Mercury cheerfully hopped into Amber Xiu's arms, its heavy body nearly breaking his ribs.

Amber Xiu petted the little guy's head, feeling the connection between their souls.

As his creation, Amber Xiu had naturally added some safeguards to its soul. This little fellow would be particularly close to Amber Xiu and maintain maximum loyalty.

Just as he was about to continue testing the Living Mercury's abilities, Isabelle suddenly knocked urgently on the Laboratory door. Isabelle's anxious voice came through, "Lich Master, something terrible has happened! An army has appeared outside the Ancient Castle. There are many of them."

Amber Xiu was only slightly annoyed upon hearing this but not overly surprised.

So many days had passed; it was about time for some movement.

Amber Xiu knew that the local Lords would certainly be displeased after he took in so many Freemen. He was surprised they had tolerated it for so long.

"It's time to settle this once and for all."

Amber Xiu left the Laboratory. As he stepped out of the Ancient Castle's main gate, he saw a scene that surprised him.

The Lyne Empire Paladin, whom he had swindled out of several thousand Gold Coins previously, was standing within this army.

No way, was this Paladin that stingy? Was he really bringing an army to attack?

(End of Chapter)