Synthesis-type adventurers

Solution to Chapter 63 "The Alchemist"

"Raise your shields!"

Without Rod's prompting, Avira's body reacted faster than her mind.

She lowered her waist and stood up, the tower shield slamming heavily into the brickwork, her shoulders pressing against the shield's back, her entire body tense.

The murky water jet slammed into the shield, the steel groaned, and the high-pressure jet ground against the steel surface, bursting with a tooth-grinding metallic tearing sound.

The immense impact propelled Ivyra backward, her steel boots scraping against the hard ground, sending sparks flying and leaving two shocking cracks in the earth.

The torrent carried a pungent, sour stench, a mixture of strong acid and putrefactive toxins.

White smoke billowed from the surface of the tower shield, and the hard steel quickly became mottled under the corrosive effects of the venom. The uneven surface was covered with turbid foam, and large chunks of black rusted residue fell to the ground.

"Are these dredging workers?" Rhodes stared at the swollen monsters, his [Analysis Vision] quickly gathering information about them. "To clear the silt, they're equipped with military-grade high-pressure acid jets... Back then, Carlton really didn't care much about human lives when it came to efficiency."

Clusters of light unfolded in his field of vision:

[Mutant Deep-Diving Dredging Corpse]

Status: Mild Ancient God Contamination, Mechanical Flesh Fusion, Resurrection from Death

Entry:

[High-Pressure Internal Circulation (Blue Excellent)]: The alchemical tank on the back provides power to pressurize and spray the venom from the body.

[Rubber Dead Skin (White Ordinary)]: A diving suit that has been hardened over time and soaked in corpse oil, giving it extremely high resistance to deflection of sharp objects.

[Lack of Pain Sensation (White, Normal)]: A body that has already died will not stop moving due to injury.

[Slight Ancient God Contamination (Gray Inferior)]: Revived due to the spread of Ancient God power.

[......]

……

"Extremely high physical resistance, long-range corrosion, and impervious to pain." Rhodes's gaze swept over the labels. "For the average adventurer, this is indeed a tough nut to crack."

But in the eyes of an "alchemist," all constructs have weaknesses.

There is no such thing as a perfect design; there are only structures whose weaknesses have not yet been discovered.

"Avira, hold the line, don't let them spread out!" Rod shouted, his calf muscles tensing suddenly.

With the effects of [Swift Steps] and [Dragon Vein Physique], his speed instantly broke through the limits of his physical body, and his figure turned into a blurry gray shadow, sliding along the wall to the side.

Two of the ghouls twisted their stiff necks, trying to relock onto their target, but their bloated joints couldn't keep up with Rhode's pace.

Rod's gaze was fixed on the gas tanks behind them.

Under the highlighted area of ​​[Analysis View], the rubber sealing ring at the gas tank connection appears as a poor-quality blackish-gray color – [Weakness: Structural Aging].

"This is an antique from two hundred years ago; it's time to scrap it."

Rhodes took off the clay pot he had just made the night before from his belt, swung his arm, and the clay pot drew a deadly arc in the air before falling into the center of the ghouls.

"Special toppings, please enjoy."

The clay pot shattered upon impact with the ground, and a dense, pale green mist erupted instantly, greedily engulfing the figures of several ghouls.

This was a highly concentrated mixture of alchemical acids; the sizzling sound of the acid corroding flesh drowned out the monster's roar.

The strong acid mist is ubiquitous. Although it cannot burn through the thick diving suit in a short time, it penetrates every gap at the connection of the gas tank, quickly corroding the aging rubber. The aging rubber seals quickly bubble and soften, turning into a sticky black glue that falls off.

With the seal failing, the high-pressure gas accumulated inside the tank found an outlet.

"laugh--!"

The sharp gusts of air howled and spread, causing the already cumbersome horde of ghouls to lose their balance.

The leaking airflow generated tremendous thrust, turning them into runaway, chaotic machines.

The ones in the center were the first to fall, their heavy bodies colliding with each other in the narrow space.

The sounds of metal and bone shattering echoed as a ghoul was thrown over by the shockwave and slammed heavily against the cast iron pipe wall.

The other one was knocked into the deep pool by its companion, creating a large black wave.

The perilous battlefield transformed into an absurd farce in just three seconds.

As the last piece of flesh fell to the ground, the sewer returned to silence, leaving only the lingering, suffocating smell of acid in the air.

Avira put down the still-smoking tower shield, her emerald eyes filled with confusion.

Her fingers gripped the sword stiffly; her mind was clearly still adjusting to this unconventional fighting style.

"Is this... over?"

"Otherwise what? Are you going to keep hacking and slashing at each other for three hundred rounds?" Rhodes stepped out of the shadows, waving away the lingering acid mist in front of him. "Remember, we're here to make money, not to risk our lives. Problems that can be solved with brains and alchemy will never be solved with flesh and blood."

Chiba then snapped out of his shock.

She looked at the scattered parts and bits of flesh on the ground, then glanced at the few remaining jars at Rod's waist, and swallowed hard.

"Boss... what's in that jar? The effect... it's even more ferocious than Widow's Kiss, which costs 100 gold coins a bottle on the black market!"

"Rational recycling and utilization of industrial waste."

Rhodes walked straight toward the ghoul remains whose head was embedded in the pipe.

Although the crucial sealing ring was destroyed, the ghoul's heavy diving suit only suffered minor damage in the strong acid mist.

He crouched down, ignoring the slimy, disgusting slime, and placed his hand on the ghoul's tattered breastplate. He probed the corpse with his mental energy and began the final harvest.

[Analysis of Vision] activated, and Rhodes felt a slight stinging sensation in his head as two orbs emitting soft light were forcibly ripped from the ghoul's body.

[Strong and Tough Rubber (White, Ordinary)]: The main material of the diving suit. This special rubber undergoes a qualitative change after long-term immersion in corpse oil, giving it a certain resistance to common acids and alkalis.

[Pain Blocking (White Normal)]: One of the characteristics of the Necromancer, which allows them to ignore any pain originating from the body and nerves.

Among a pile of scrap metal, Rhodes also found a perfectly intact core component.

[Precision Pressure Valve (Blue, Excellent)]: A culmination of ancient industry, still functioning perfectly.

"A great start."

Rhodes stored the extracted word orb into his consciousness space and stuffed the physical parts into his backpack.

This is why he ventured into such a godforsaken place—treasures forgotten by the world are hidden in the garbage dump, provided you have eyes that can see through the truth.

Rhodes stood up and looked into the depths of the passage.

There, an even deeper darkness was surging.

"Don't just stand there, clean up the battlefield and loot any valuable parts." Rhodes kicked away the bits of flesh at his feet. "This is just a warm-up."

Avira sheathed her sword. Although the act of desecrating the corpse made her instinctively uncomfortable, she still obediently began to examine her surroundings.

Chiba instantly transformed into a money-grubbing man, pulling out a knife and rushing towards the wreckage without a care for the dirt.

"The gas cylinder exploded, but this brass nozzle can still be sold... Oh dear, this glass shard is made of crystal!"

Seeing his teammates get into the zone, Rod's lips curled up slightly, but the wariness in his eyes never faded.

He looked up and examined the pipes above him that seemed to wriggle like living things.

"The deep shadows are assimilating the surface matter... This ecological invasion is happening much faster than the reports the guild has released to the public."