Mechanical Alchemist

"Indeed, it is the famous Blind Detective..."

Su Lun looked at the person sitting in the chair, and for a moment doubted if it was just a figment of his imagination, but he immediately dismissed the idea. He was sure he had imagined various cute things before, but never this old man.

Moreover, the appearance of Blind Detective Bill had made things even more confusing.

A guy suspected to be a major from the "Umbrella Organization," what was he doing here?

Additionally, according to intelligence, this fellow had rented the property at 88 Ginkgo Street months ago.

Was the blind man appearing before him now dead or alive?

.....

Blind Detective Bill was blind in both eyes, so his senses were extremely sharp.

As soon as Su Lun had come down, he noticed Old Cowboy's ear twitch slightly.

In front of a real "Gun Master," Su Lun didn't dare to be careless. His hands were always on the gun handle at his waist, but he did not make any misleading movements of drawing his gun.

Bill, however, showed no malice and was the first to speak, asking, "Are you human?"

"Yes."

Su Lun responded and let out a sigh of relief.

Not having a fight upon meeting was good news.

Moreover, being able to talk, even if this was a "weird" situation, the level of danger had dropped significantly.

It was then that Su Lun noticed a pool of crimson blood flowing under Bill's feet, it appeared he was wounded.

Far from underestimating the man's abilities, he grew even more cautious.

Given the terrifying fantasy manifestation rules of the third floor, if it wasn't for using some tricks, Su Lun found it hard to imagine anyone coming out alive. Yet, this fellow seemed to have survived through combat and only sustained some not-so-fatal injuries, which was enough to prove his strength was extraordinary.

However, Su Lun glanced at the corridor, which showed no signs of fighting, and a hint of confusion crossed his eyes.

Just then, Bill spoke again, asking, "Who are you?"

As he spoke, he looked toward Su Lun. His eyes, white as if with cataracts, though blind, were accurately directed at Su Lun.

Su Lun replied, "I'm the tenant of 88 Ginkgo Street, and somehow I've inexplicably been swept up into this."

After a pause, he went straight to the point, "Sir, do you know what's going on here?"

He hoped to get some information out of Old Cowboy's mouth.

After all, he was the legendary detective, and he must know something for coming to Ginkgo Street.

Bill keenly caught a detail in Su Lun's words, and counter-asked, "A new tenant? How long have I been gone?"

Su Lun silently praised his astuteness but didn't plan to reveal everything, "Ah? I don't understand what you mean. I just moved in today."

"..."

Bill's expression remained calm, clearly sensing Su Lun was holding back, but he said nothing more.

There's no way out, there's no sense in talking about this.

He didn't hide his detective identity and said, "As you can see, this is a cursed space left from ancient times. I am a detective because I accepted a 'search commission' and followed the clues here to the building on Ginkgo Street… By the way, how did you come in?"

There was nothing to hide about this issue, and Su Lun truthfully said, "I'm a new tenant; I heard that people had died in the house before. I carefully checked the house and somehow got swept in."

Through the conversation, Su Lun also caught some key information.

Following the clues here and then getting trapped seemed to suggest... was 88 Ginkgo Street itself a "trap"?

Who went to such great lengths to use a cursed space to scheme against others?

"Oh, I see..."

Bill seemed unsurprised as he listened; if he could get in, he naturally knew the special triggering conditions of this cursed space.

At this moment, he spoke an inexplicable sentence, "The one eternally asleep is not the deceased. In the mysterious eternity, even death itself will dissipate."

"..."

Having been involved with gangs for so long, Su Lun immediately realized it was either a code or some sort of secret catchphrase.

And most likely, it was an "Umbrella Organization" code.

This fellow was trying to confirm his identity!

Su Lun wanted to reply, but he couldn't quite catch on, so he could only say, "Sir, what did you just say?"

At this, Bill looked somewhat disappointed and muttered to himself, "That clue has already been broken, there probably won't be anyone else coming after this."

After a pause, he continued, "The monster upstairs is very strong; were you actually able to survive? From your breath, it seems you've just advanced your profession recently."

Since the code didn't match but he hadn't suddenly turned hostile, Su Lun also breathed a sigh of relief.

Monster upstairs?

There were no monsters upstairs!

Upon hearing this, a flash of insight crossed Su Lun's mind, and he suddenly became certain of a few things. He quickly added, "I encountered a few zombies that weren't very strong, and I discovered..."

He intended to warn the Blind Detective not to jump to conclusions, but he was interrupted.

Thoughts always outrun words!

Just like you can stop someone from speaking, but you can't stop them from thinking.

Bill seemed to have realized something, his expression suddenly stern, he shook his head and interrupted, "Your tone tells me you are hiding something. But, it doesn't matter anymore. We probably won't make it out alive…"

"..."

Su Lun stared at that wax-yellow face carved by knife and axe, slightly startled.

At the same time, he suddenly grasped the meaning behind those words and inwardly cursed, realizing it was bad.

But it was already too late to stop him.

Just then, Old Cowboy's ears twitched, and he exclaimed, "That monster is coming again, watch your own back!"

As he spoke, his hand had already reached for the blunderbuss hanging at his waist.

Upon hearing this, Su Lun knew it was too late.

At that moment, he suddenly heard a sound like rushing water, as if a water tank had burst and was furiously pouring in. When he focused, he saw at the end of the second-floor corridor, blood water surged like a broken dam, and a terrifying monster emerged.

A red humanoid aberration, its features blurred, like a gorilla that had been skinned.

Just from that damnable oppressive feeling, Su Lun immediately realized this was definitely not a level one strange occurrence!

He immediately realized that this monster was a terrifying manifestation conjured by Old Cowboy's imagination.

Blind people cannot see the precise appearance of monsters, but they can use other senses to sketch a rough outline in their minds. This abstract, skinless blood-gorilla wasn't exactly a blind man's inner manifestation?

....

No sooner had the monster appeared than Bill reacted swiftly.

He stood up and with a flick of his body, he suddenly held what seemed like a "Chicago Typewriter" with an extra-large magazine, a submachine gun. His finger pulled the trigger, and flames burst forth, emitting a "tat-tat-tat-tat..." sound, rapid and clear.

Su Lun, looking at the gun, immediately recognized it: "A high fire-rate famous gun, [The Woodpecker]!"

Though he was blind, his volley impressively hit the blood-gorilla's legs, exploding in a burst of bloodlight.

Su Lun discerned some mechanics: "Listening for position?!"

The gorilla, its leg wounded by the bullet, staggered, its head hitting the wall.

At the sound of the collision, Bill's left hand suddenly produced a black revolver the size of a forearm, firing three shots.

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

The gunshots were deafening, the three shots almost sounding as one.

Su Lun, a firearms expert himself, could appreciate the brilliance in Bill's marksmanship.

The three shots were fired in rapid succession, the bullets seemingly chained, perfectly overlapping at the same point on the monster's head.

"Advanced firearms artistry—[Multiple Overlapping Shots]!"

Su Lun's pupils shrank slightly as he inwardly exclaimed, A master truly is a master.

Even with alchemical bullets, an ordinary gunman facing at least a level two aberration would hardly break through its defenses. But if three shots hit the same spot in a very short span, they could breach the defense before it had time to recover.

One shot to shock, a second to breach the armor, and a third to penetrate!

This technique was something he still couldn't match, requiring extremely high skill, precision, and... a rune blunderbuss.

The heavy revolver in Bill's hand was also the key to firing, notably the famous rune blunderbuss—[Kiss of the Poison Snake]!

One shot, one hit, and this is a blind man?

In that brief span of a second or two, Su Lun witnessed how this "Blind Detective" Bill severely wounded a level two aberration.

But, it wasn't over yet.

Human thinking is active, especially in terrifying situations.

Su Lun, seeing the first monster appear, knew things were going to get worse.

As expected, while the blood-gorilla hadn't yet died completely, two huge "Floating Head Monsters" suddenly emerged from both ends of the corridor, nearly blocking it. Their human facial features were as blurry as plaster statues, but the hair on their heads was comprised of living black snakes.

Looking at the form of these monsters, they clearly were also a product of the blind man's sensory world, surely fabricated by Old Cowboy's imagination.

There weren't any horror movies in this world to provide material; what he thought likely stemmed from experiences or realities he had faced.

Just how many terrifying events had this man experienced?

If he stayed any longer, he'd inevitably be dragged to death by this man!

Seeing this, Su Lun didn't hesitate at all and turned, retreating back up the staircase to the third floor.