This Lich is a Better Landlord Chapter 53

The City of Alchemy moved quickly. The formulas and blueprints Ambrose required were all prepared and delivered to him in less than a day.

Gustavo Flynn understood Ambrose's capabilities well, so he hadn't tampered with these formulas; it could be said he showed great sincerity.

In addition to this, Gustavo Flynn brought news.

The Knights of Judgment had already sent envoys. They would officially arrive at the City of Alchemy in three days. Adding various diplomatic procedures, Ambrose might only have about five days left before the Knights of Judgment obtained intelligence on Alan Watson.

Ambrose sat in his laboratory for several hours, roughly scanning through all the blueprints and data, then drew a large pile of drafts on parchment.

Fortunately, Liches didn't need to eat, drink, or sleep, allowing Ambrose to utilize every second without waste.

Looking at the large pile of drafts in front of him, Ambrose frowned and said, "Five days, a bit tight. I hope Isabel won't let me down."

With that, Ambrose picked up a large pile of items and found Isabel, who was currently concocting potions.

"Put everything in your hands aside," Ambrose said to Isabel.

Isabel was startled, and the glass bottle in her hand instantly exploded into a puff of smoke, ruining all the materials inside.

But before Isabel could apologize, Ambrose had already placed two glass boxes and several sheets of parchment in front of her.

"Don't speak, listen carefully. The next task is very dangerous. If you make any mistakes, you're dead."

Ambrose spoke gravely, and Isabel immediately became nervous, hurriedly taking out a small notebook to take notes.

Ambrose pointed to the two glass boxes and said, "Inside here is the Osteo-Colony Virus Prime. Have you heard of this thing?"

Isabel shook her head. "No."

"Sigh, read more books. This is a failed product of alchemy..."

Ambrose had to patiently explain to Isabel.

The Osteo-Colony Virus was originally supposed to be called the Bone Healing Biological Agent. It was intended to treat patients with fractures or disabilities, promoting rapid bone regeneration. The experiments were initially successful, but later they discovered they were *too* successful.

People infected with this biological virus would have any bone injury heal rapidly. Broken bones would mend in seconds, and disabled people could regrow the corresponding skeletal limbs in minutes.

But the effect was simply too good. A few days later, all patients injected with this agent began to suffer severe side effects.

This virus couldn't understand what constituted "reasonable wear and tear."

The human body has over three hundred bones. Even lying still, breathing and heartbeats cause slight bone movement, naturally producing microscopic wear. Just like running too much can hurt knees, it shouldn't be a big deal, but the Osteo-Colony Virus didn't care.

As long as there was damage, it would grow and heal, and this growth had no restraint.

Patients initially just felt joint pain, like rheumatism, but over time the joints would become stiff. Countless bone spurs would grow from within the body, piercing through muscle and skin, eventually turning the human body completely calcified into a bone statue.

This process was irreversible and brought extreme agony.

A perfectly good healing drug turned into a lethal poison. If not for the high cost and somewhat harsh infection conditions, this thing would definitely have become a must-have for home travel and murder.

"Your task is to cultivate more of the Osteo-Colony Virus for me."

"I've written down the improved cultivation process for the virus. Follow the steps, and do not make mistakes. Be especially careful when transferring the culture dishes. If you accidentally get infected, there's no saving you."

Isabel's hands were trembling. She was just an apprentice; did she have to face such a terrifying experiment so soon?

Seeing Isabel's expression, Ambrose comforted her, "Don't be nervous. This virus isn't highly infectious; just pay attention and you'll be fine. Even if you get infected, don't be afraid. Just come find me directly."

Isabel was touched for a moment, but then felt something was wrong and asked, "My Lord, didn't you say there's no cure for this virus?"

"That's right, there's no cure, but it doesn't matter. I can help turn you into an undead. It won't hurt then. As for the bone proliferation issue, once you're thoroughly dead and lose the nutrient supply, the virus will die quickly too."

Isabel: ...

Ambrose patted Isabel on the shoulder and added, "Relax. Skeleton, zombie, wraith, or some other type—take your pick. Even if you want to be a Death Knight, I can think of a way."

With that, leaving Isabel alone, Ambrose quickly left the laboratory.

Time was short; he had many things to attend to.

Using *Fly*, he went directly to another laboratory. This one wasn't filled with bones or herbs, but a pile of mechanical parts of various sizes.

Ambrose took out a thick stack of blueprints and began selecting parts for assembly.

Originally, this was a new Portable Magic Cannon from the City of Alchemy. Based on the principle of wind pressure, it could use stones directly as cannonballs. Once fired, it was a pure physical attack, capable of bypassing many magical types of protective shields. Its siege effect was top-notch.

Ambrose had known about this thing for a long time, but the magic cannons he bought were tampered with anti-reverse-engineering measures, so they would break if dismantled. Now with the blueprints in hand, Ambrose quickly found the key component. The core of the magic cannon was the magic array that condensed air. This magic array was exquisitely designed with low consumption, amazing air compression efficiency, and most importantly, stability—it wasn't prone to exploding in the chamber.

Just this magic array structure alone could sell for millions of gold coins. If the City of Alchemy hadn't been at a dead end, they absolutely wouldn't have released this core technology.

With detailed diagrams of the magic array, it was simple for Ambrose to modify it. Within just a few minutes, he assembled a long, tubular device. A slender metal barrel replaced the original cannon barrel, turning the magic cannon into a strangely shaped Magitech Gun.

With a snap of his fingers, a Kha'Zix Model II skeleton appeared at Ambrose's feet.

He skillfully dismantled the scythe-claws of this alien-like skeleton and attached the Magitech Gun, which fit perfectly into the pre-made clasps on the bone.

Under Ambrose's control, the skeleton, having successfully changed gear, activated the barrel towards him.

*Phew!*

With a soft sound, powerful air pressure pushed the Bone Bullet out of the barrel, striking Ambrose's shield.

The bullet spun madly, finally hovering in mid-air.

The alien skeleton emptied the clip, and Ambrose intercepted all the bullets. Although they failed to break Ambrose's shield, he was very satisfied with the effect.

"The power is quite good, stronger than ordinary crossbow bolts. It's simple to operate and easy to aim, requiring no need to create arms for the skeleton to wind a string... The consumption is a bit high, though. The magic array can fire at most nine bullets before running out of energy. Pity, no time to design a swappable magic magazine."

Time was too short. It was impossible to turn all the alien skeletons into riflemen, but selecting a portion to equip with these Magitech Guns would create a surprise force. Unfortunately, time was still too scarce. To deal with these Paladins, any type of undead was easily countered. The most suitable unit would be the Quicksilver Effigy.

But even with all the data on the Living Quicksilver in hand, creating that thing was impossible in such a short time.

Ambrose nimbly began assembling more Magitech Guns. Besides these, he had many things to prepare, determined to ensure those Paladins couldn't even enter the castle gate.

At this moment, the Headless Knight walked in with a face full of smiles and said to Ambrose, "Brother Tiga, I've settled things with Ona. The bar is transferred directly to you, and she's ready to move... Hmm, what are you busy with?"

Ambrose said without looking up, "The Knights of Judgment are about to arrive. Shouldn't I be preparing countermeasures?"

The Headless Knight said confidently, "What are you afraid of? I'm here."

Ambrose said speechlessly, "Of course I know you're here. You definitely wouldn't watch someone kill me, right?"

The Headless Knight patted his chest. "Naturally. A mere few Paladins, I don't even put them in my eyes."

Ambrose, however, said, "But even if you protect me with all your might, I'll still end up as just a head."

The Headless Knight fell silent immediately. That prophecy was indeed quite frightening, and he quickly put away his contempt.

"That pale-skinned woman is very likely one of these Paladins. Gareth, even if the future is destined and my head must be taken, I hope my phylactery can be preserved. You are my greatest hope and guarantee, but I don't want an accident to happen because of your negligence."

Ambrose put down the parts in his hand, placed both hands on the Headless Knight's shoulders, and said very seriously, "Gareth, I leave my phylactery in your hands. Please, give it your all!"