My Computer Leads to an Instance Dungeon-Chapter 147 - 122: Not an Unscrupulous Merchant

Fang Zhen wanted a suit of full-body Alchemy Armor.

The key word was "Alchemy," not "armor."

You could buy armor in the modern world, and it was cheap and high-quality. He could probably even find some made of more advanced, durable metals.

The issue wasn't the armor itself, but its flexibility and weight.

He'd been wanting to upgrade his defensive gear for a while. The protection his riot suit offered was starting to fall behind.

But full plate armor was too heavy and cumbersome, which clashed with his combat style.

Trying to solve this contradiction with modern technology alone felt like taking the long way around.

However, with Alchemy Armor, things would be much simpler.

It didn't even need any amazing alchemical effects. Just a "weight reduction" enchantment would make it more than worth it.

"Alchemy Armor... Let me think," Gwendolyn mused for a moment before speaking. "It can be made, but it's a bit troublesome. First, we'd need to take your measurements. Then we'd have to find a good Armor Craftsman to forge it. It would have to be hammered from the finest refined iron, otherwise it wouldn't be able to withstand the power of the alchemical effects."

"The whole process would take three months at the minimum, or up to half a year. If you want plate armor with decorative engravings, it could take over a year. Can you wait that long?"

Fang Zhen's brow twitched as he grasped the key point.

"Are you saying the Alchemy is applied after the armor is already complete?" he asked.

"Yes, of course. How else would we etch the alchemy patterns?" Gwendolyn replied.

'Alchemy patterns... so basically Alchemy Arrays.'

Fang Zhen immediately relaxed.

"That makes it easy."

"I'll provide the armor myself. You just find someone to etch the alchemy patterns for me."

"What kind of effects can alchemical sublimation provide? How many can be etched? Can you do weight reduction and increased flexibility?"

Gwendolyn nodded. "Those are quite basic. Of course we can do that."

"As for how many alchemy patterns can be etched, that mainly depends on whether the material and quality of your armor are good enough. We'd also need to add some alchemical metal components. And, of course, the skill of the Alchemist."

"But you can rest assured on that point. The Whig Society has plenty of highly skilled Alchemists."

"But are you really going to bring a suit of armor yourself? That's quite expensive. You're a wanderer; it's unlikely you'd be carrying around such a family heirloom, right?"

Gwendolyn wasn't so much suspicious as he was a little perplexed.

Gwendolyn's confusion made sense.

In this era, Knights became nobles because of their martial prowess, and among all a Knight's equipment, armor was definitely one of the most expensive items.

A full suit of armor, especially plate mail, was truly a family heirloom in this age.

In Gwendolyn's eyes, if Fang Zhen possessed such an heirloom, he probably would have worn it here already instead of showing up in his strange clothes.

Fang Zhen nodded.

"How long does it take to etch the alchemy patterns?" he asked.

Gwendolyn said, "An experienced Alchemist can do it in seven days."

Fang Zhen nodded again. "Next time I come, I'll bring two hundred of my exclusive Alchemy Pills. Master, please coordinate with the Whig Society. I need an Alchemist to perform an alchemical sublimation on a suit of armor."

"Also, the Whig Society should prepare some new Curse Seal inheritances. I saw that Flame Curse Seal Maticvia used, and it looked quite good. Prepare some similar ones, and I'll trade for them."

"What? You mean, in exchange for two hundred Alchemy Pills, you want an alchemical sublimation for your armor *and* other things?" Gwendolyn's eyes widened as he stared at Fang Zhen in disbelief.

"Is that so strange?" Fang Zhen also feigned surprise. "Master, my previous offer was for you to prepare the armor *and* perform the alchemical sublimation." 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

"Now that I'm providing the armor myself, it's only reasonable that you make up the difference, right?"

"Besides, even if you were providing the armor, I never said that was the only thing I'd be trading for."

Gwendolyn pressed his lips together and said no more.

Gwendolyn probably felt he was no match for Fang Zhen when it came to negotiating prices.

Fang Zhen was calm, even a little pleased.

'An exclusive formula is just that powerful.'

'I'm the sole supplier, who do I have to fear?'

And having been tempered by a commercial society, even if business wasn't his primary profession before, Fang Zhen's bargaining skills far surpassed Gwendolyn's.

"Master, how about this? Today, let's just agree on the intent. You can discuss it internally with the Whig Society. When I return, we can finalize the price."

"But a suit of full-body Alchemy Armor, plus some Curse Seal inheritances—that's what I must get in this trade. Two hundred Alchemy Pills are worth that much. I won't negotiate for anything less," Fang Zhen stated.

"Very well. The price you're asking is indeed not low, and I can't make the final decision myself. I will write to the Whig Society's leadership to inform them of the situation. A high-ranking member will arrive soon. It won't be too late to discuss the specific price then," Gwendolyn nodded.

"Fine," Fang Zhen said.

As he spoke, he took out 20 potassium permanganate tablets from his backpack and slapped them on the table.

"What's this?" Gwendolyn asked, looking at the tablets.

"A deposit. Ten percent. To show my sincerity," Fang Zhen said.

Hearing this, Gwendolyn's expression softened slightly.

"Heh, I see. You truly are sincere, Fang Zhen. With these samples in hand, it will be easier to explain and prove things to the Whig Society's leadership." Gwendolyn smiled and reached for the tablets on the table.

But Fang Zhen's hand, which was resting on the pills, didn't move.

Gwendolyn frowned slightly and looked at Fang Zhen, his eyes asking, 'What is the meaning of this?'

Fang Zhen smiled. "I still have some time. I'd like to ask for your guidance on a few more matters concerning Curse Seals and Alchemy, Master."

...

「Three hours later.」

A completely satisfied Fang Zhen left Gwendolyn's small courtyard with Jilenna.

The moment Fang Zhen was out the door, Gwendolyn stepped out of his room.

Listening to the sound of the motorcycle starting up outside, Gwendolyn was clearly emotional, muttering repeatedly, "Profiteer! Profiteer!"

Mark, who had just closed the courtyard gate and was walking back, heard Gwendolyn's words and looked a little confused.

"Master, who are you talking about? Is it Fang Zhen?"

"What did he do?"

Gwendolyn let out a long breath and tried to calm himself before saying, "Heh, what did he do?"

"With just twenty Alchemy Pills, he traded for three of my other basic seal techniques, besides the Gang Zan Seal, and the secret formula for Alchemy Healing Medicine!"

"Is that all?" Mark said, unconvinced.

Gwendolyn glared at Mark.

Seeing Gwendolyn's look, Mark felt a little sheepish but still spoke up. "Master, didn't you also set a condition back then, making Fang Zhen bring back the cerebrospinal fluid of an Abnormal Ghost before you would teach him a Curse Seal?"

"You're the one who started it. Besides, your trades were all mutually agreed upon. No one used force. I think it's unfair to call him a profiteer."

"Er..." Gwendolyn was at a loss for words.

Mark continued, "I think Fang Zhen is a pretty good guy. I saw it back in the Underground Cave. He was willing to use the Gang Zan Seal to help me block that alchemical explosion. That says a lot about his character. And he's plenty strong, too."

"I think you just value Curse Seals too highly, Master. You're being a bit too tense about it."

For a moment, Gwendolyn really didn't know what to say.

A moment later, Gwendolyn shook his head slightly.

"Perhaps... you have a point."

"Let's not dwell on it. Mark, I need to write a letter to the Whig Society leadership. I need you to deliver it to Yonah County."

"With the Blood Burst Secret Medicine, it won't be long before we can seriously consider killing Ellick."

While Gwendolyn plotted how to get rid of Ellick in his courtyard, Fang Zhen and Jilenna were already heading out of town.

Fang Zhen now felt both relaxed and pleased.

Using the deposit, and the excuse of it being an advance payment for the Alchemist who would craft his exclusive Alchemy Pills, he had managed to trade for three more basic Curse Seals from Gwendolyn.

He had also gotten his hands on the formula for the Alchemy Healing Medicine, which he felt would be useful.

More importantly, he now had a solid plan for upgrading his armor.

He'd felt for a while that his riot suit's defense couldn't keep up with the pace of the instances. But full-body armor was too heavy, hampering his flexibility and carrying capacity, so he didn't know what to switch to.

Now, he had a path to a solution.

His plan was to commission a custom suit of high-quality, full-body armor—preferably heavy armor—as soon as he returned to the modern world. Then, if the second act of the Curse Seal World's storyline opened up, he would bring it over for alchemical sublimation.

Fang Zhen's expectations weren't actually that high. He didn't need the alchemical sublimation to be incredibly powerful. If it could just reduce the armor's weight by half, or even a bit more, say two-thirds, he would be satisfied.

Having other alchemical effects would be great, but it would be fine even without them.

After all, the alchemical crafting fee was just two hundred potassium permanganate tablets. The total cost wasn't even enough for Fang Zhen to buy a decent takeout meal.

'Indeed, combining industry and science with Alchemy is the way to go.'

By now, Fang Zhen had left the town.

He glanced at Jilenna, who was following him, and asked, "Are you still going to run?"

"Yes, I'm fine. Back in the highlands, the air is much thinner than here. I'm used to running through the mountains in my armor to build my stamina," Jilenna said. "Running in a place like this is much easier."

Fang Zhen nodded. "Then let's go."

He revved the engine.

In less than twenty minutes, Fang Zhen and Jilenna returned to the Light Gate.

Fang Zhen stopped his motorcycle in front of the Light Gate.

He turned to look at Jilenna. The High Mountain Female Knight's stamina was truly incredible. After running all this way in her armor, only a light sheen of sweat was visible on her forehead.

Fang Zhen took two cans of Red Bull from his travel backpack.

He had bought the blue cans. Supposedly, this version of Red Bull had a higher caffeine content and was better for a mental boost.

"Here, have one." Fang Zhen handed a can to Jilenna.

Jilenna's eyes showed a hint of confusion, but she took it anyway.

Fang Zhen paid her no mind, pulling the tab on his own can and taking a big gulp.

He had to admit, after drinking it, he instantly felt more alert—whether it was a placebo effect, a psychological suggestion, or the real deal.

Jilenna copied him, opening her can with slightly clumsy movements, and took a small sip.

"Huh?" After one sip, Jilenna's expression changed. She glanced at the small blue can in her hand, then raised it again and GULPED it all down.

Fang Zhen chuckled as he watched her. It was clear the High Mountain Female Knight quite liked the drink.

After finishing one can, Jilenna still looked like she wanted more, her eyes fixed on the can in Fang Zhen's hand.

Fang Zhen opened his backpack, took out two more cans, and handed them to Jilenna.

"Take them with you," Fang Zhen said. "You were a great help this time. If there's another opportunity, let's work together again."

"Okay." Jilenna didn't stand on ceremony and accepted the drinks.

Fang Zhen watched Jilenna for a moment before saying, "Have you ever thought about replacing your armor or weapons? If we have a chance to cooperate in the future and you perform well, I might consider giving you a new set."

Hearing this, Jilenna's body suddenly went slightly rigid, and she looked at Fang Zhen.

Her gaze held no surprise, nor was it one of delight. Instead... it was a very peculiar look.

"What do you mean by that?" Jilenna asked.