Mechanical Alchemist

Chapter 34: Tool man

It was expected that the high-level members of the Cross Society would actively recruit the "Red Devil" Gelong, which was also within Su'en's expectations.

After all, such a highly skilled expert who was expelled from the inner city would be a great help to any gang in the outer city.

It's possible that not only the Cross Society, but also the Raven Gang and the Steam Party are in contact. Otherwise, the guild leader Chuck would not have personally visited the Cross Society's core member, Qiantiao.

Now Su'en probably understands the difference between professionals in the inner city and the outer city.

Although it is not absolute that professionals in the inner city are stronger than those in the outer city, the inner city, which concentrates more than 90% of the resources of Old Lingdun, cannot deny that the average combat power of professionals of the same level is much higher than that of the outer city.

Rare silver blueprint for plant installation and employment materials that are rarely seen in the outer city often appear in the inner city's auction, and there are even rarer ancient cursed objects.

After all, only those wealthy and powerful figures can afford the good things that hunters find in ruins.

Over time, the major conglomerates have certainly accumulated a lot of rare alchemical resources.

And the difference in resources is the fundamental reason for the difference in combat power between professionals in the inner city and the outer city.

Just like the "Red Devil" Gelong, a bodyguard can obtain top-level resources, which is unimaginable in the outer city.

......

In the Elephant Tavern, heavy metal music was deafening.

Su'en followed Qiantiao and Kay and found a booth to sit down.

Qiantiao waved her hand and shouted, "Hey, bartender, bring us three glasses of 'Golden Wheat'!"

As a gambling addict who won money, Qiantiao didn't hesitate to order the most expensive Golden Wheat beer in the tavern.

Each person had a large pitcher.

Because this "Golden Wheat Black Beer" was a high-quality product directly from the inner city brewery, it was also expensive. A pitcher cost about 1,000 lisuo, equivalent to half a month's salary for an ordinary worker.

Su'en didn't taste anything special about this beer. Its taste was similar to the blended whisky he had in his previous life.

But when he looked at the ingredients of the beer, he understood that the reason why this beer was expensive was mainly because of its water.

Old Lingdun's water source was not actually scarce, but it lacked clean water sources. The underground water sources were mixed with a large amount of dark energy substances, and drinking them directly could easily cause distortion.

To deal with these pollutants, large-scale filtering water plants were needed. It was said that the filtering cost was high, and it was also because of the monopoly of the conglomerates. Only residents of the inner city were eligible to enjoy truly pure drinking water.

In the outer city, ordinary people could only enjoy inferior drinking water, and the prices were not cheap either. The cost of daily drinking water was the biggest expense for most ordinary people.

......

Su'en had just joined the gang, and although he felt that Captain Kay and Qiantiao were quite appetizing, he wasn't too familiar with them.

After sitting down, he silently drank his beer and listened to their conversation.

"Qiantiao, you said that the guy who escaped ran to our Green Street and disappeared?"

"Yeah... The tracking expert of the guild followed him all the way to the next block, and then the traces disappeared. But whether it's that item or the 'forbidden item,' they can't be put into the storage ring. It's not easy for that guy to escape. We suspect that he is hiding in one of the sewers nearby..."

"Also, Kay, be careful when you and the brothers are doing things lately. It seems that something has happened in the Black Tower, and there is some internal turmoil among the top conglomerates in the inner city. The Steam Party and the Raven Gang are supported by major corporations, so there may be some actions recently..."

"I understand, Qiantiao."

"..."

Su'en listened on the side, but the two of them didn't mention what exactly "that thing" was.

Perhaps it was tacit understanding, or maybe they themselves didn't know what they had lost.

But Su'en understood that it should be that "manuscript."

As for the news of turmoil in the inner city, it seemed to be something from another world and had nothing to do with him.

What interested Su'en more was something else, the special items called "forbidden items" mentioned by them.

He also understood that the forbidden item seemed to be a large black scythe of about two meters. And those intruders used the scythe to cut open the door of the guild's vault.

Su'en didn't bother to ask what the forbidden item was. It sounded like a cursed object with special effects, similar to the "Rune Puppet" in his previous life.

To make the Cross Society, one of the three major gangs in the outer city, go to such lengths to find it, Su'en became even more curious about the magical properties of these so-called "forbidden items."

The only information he knew now was that the scythe was large and sharp, and could easily cut through metal doors. And the guy who escaped with the treasure was suspected to be hiding in the sewer near Green Street...

Drinking his beer, a thought suddenly flashed in Su'en's mind, "Huh... In the memory I stripped from the 'Scorpion' Abok, it was said that a forbidden item was hidden in the 'Moon Inn,' I wonder what it is."

Thinking about it, he became somewhat absent-minded.

......

Because he didn't have the opportunity to interject, Su'en was either drinking or playing with the coin in his hand out of boredom.

At this moment, the copper coin on the back of his hand was flipping between his fingers, from the base to the gap between his little finger and then flipping back. No matter how his hand moved, there was no sign of the coin falling.

This was a direct manifestation of his greatly improved skills after joining the gang.

He could now precisely control almost every muscle in his fingers. The coin seemed to stick to his skin, rolling skillfully, but it wouldn't fall.

Of course, this wasn't just for fun.

Su'en was actually practicing a basic skill of a Puppeteer - the Ten-Finger Manipulation Technique.

It was the most basic operation technique for manipulating string puppets.

It required the operator's fingers to be flexible and versatile, using subtle finger movements to make precise movements with the puppet's limbs.

Now that he had learned the technique, but his muscle memory was still a bit awkward, he needed to practice continuously.

And just at this moment, Qiantiao seemed to have noticed that Su'en was bored. She raised her glass again and said boldly, "Cheers!"

"Cheers."

Su'en clinked glasses with her and took a big gulp of beer.

Qiantiao drank boldly, gulping down the beer, and the beer stains flowed down her mouth and neck.

She also noticed Su'en playing with the coin and raised an eyebrow, casually asking, "Are you on the gunslinger career path?"

Su'en nodded, "Yeah."

There was no need to hide this, and he even intentionally did so.

Although he had already joined the gang, Su'en had no intention of revealing his special Puppeteer profession.

Occasionally showing some skills that were in demand in the profession would make people think he was a gunslinger.

On the contrary, the more secretive he was, the more curious people would become.

Qiantiao became interested and asked casually, "Are you interested in learning knife skills from me? Your hands are very dexterous, so you should learn quickly."

Su'en shook his head and politely declined, "Thank you, Qiantiao, but my awakened talent is 'Hawkeye,' so gunslinging might be more suitable for me."

Before he had self-defense abilities, he planned to continue being inconspicuous. Besides, "knife user" was not his career plan.

"Oh, that's a pity..."

Qiantiao pouted and didn't say much.

After a moment of contemplation, she suddenly said something that sounded somewhat melancholic, "Kid, don't die so easily. There will definitely be a place for you in the gang in the future."

This gang leader seemed to be accustomed to farewells and said the most sentimental expectation in the most indifferent tone.

Don't die...

In the gang, this was the best expectation.

Su'en listened and smiled, nodding slightly, "Yeah."

He felt that this gang leader's temperament was quite to his liking, and he was slightly moved.

But sometimes, plot twists could catch people off guard.

Just as the serious atmosphere was building up, Qiantiao suddenly leaned her arm on his shoulder and leaned in mysteriously, "There's one more thing..."

"???"

Su'en's expression became serious, thinking it was something important.

But in the next moment, the dignified image of this gang leader suddenly collapsed.

Qiantiao's eyes suddenly emitted the same green light as before in the casino, and she excitedly said, "Hahaha... It's rare to encounter someone with such good luck as you. Let me tell you, this kind of good luck usually lasts for several days. We'll meet at the arena tomorrow, don't be late!"

"..."

Su'en's eyes twitched as he listened.

So, when she said not to die easily, it wasn't because she valued his talent, but because she was afraid of losing her "lucky tool"?

"Plfft~"

Unable to hold back, Captain Kay, who was beside them, also sprayed out his drink and burst into laughter.