A Conversation with the King of Babylon

But now, having reached the fourth-level wizard, Li Shengjiang gradually faced an awkward dilemma.

"In Elizabeth and the others' eyes, I'm still a third-level wizard. They have no idea I broke through to level four over a year ago. Even providing me with third-level cultivation resources has already strained these level-two witches terribly. As for the fourth-level resources—I can only secretly find another way."

"Elizabeth and her sisters consider my talents outstanding, but their vision is too limited," Li Shengjiang muttered with a bitter smile. "My talent is indeed top-tier, but still not as good as the legendary Three Witches, or even contemporary prodigies like Lilith and Medusa. If I cultivate normally, catching up to them is impossible. But my true strength lies elsewhere: After living in this world for over forty years, I didn't waste my time. I've finally climbed my own tech tree!"

His eyes slowly drifted to the mechanical creature he'd secretly crafted before him.

It was a tall, three-meter humanoid figure with a lean and perfect physique. Its left arm held a curved shield, its right hand an elegant blue staff. The figure had snow-white skin, a noble, handsome face, and wore a long, star-studded blue wizard robe, looking exactly like a deity from Norse mythology.

This seemingly human-like creature was actually assembled from exceptionally sturdy bones of various giant beasts. Complex, rune-covered circuits resembling magic arrays were carved intricately across its body, giving off an eerie yet profound aura of danger.

"In my previous life, I was a world-leading expert in mechanical engineering, founding top technology enterprises by my forties. Although this world is far more complicated, in over thirty years, I've gradually come to understand its spiritual science and the core of mental energy. For me, creating biological alchemy—blending mechanics with life—isn't difficult."

With a gentle leap, Li Shengjiang jumped into the "fire core" chamber located in the mechanical body's chest. His slime-tentacle swiftly activated the air bellows, channeling his mental power into the control system, handling it as easily as a wizard wielding a staff.

Clang!

The chamber sealed shut. Moments later, the tall, flawless humanoid figure gracefully stepped forward, its bearing dignified.

"From now on, few people will ever know my true form is a slime. My name will be Grantham!"

"But should I control this mechanical body and fight monsters myself, hunting for my fourth-level cultivation resources?"

He pondered briefly, then quickly abandoned this exhausting idea. As a casual, peaceful farming-style gamer who hated violence and bloodshed, he naturally rejected it outright. "Looks like I'll have to find someone new to 'rely' on. Time to find someone else to support me."

…

On this day, Li Shengjiang walked confidently into Babylon's royal palace.

He deeply respected this legendary defeated king—Lilith, who had swallowed humiliation, preserved her kingdom at enormous cost, even surrendering her beloved to the enemy, and suffering untold shame.

Over these years, Lilith remained trapped at the threshold of a fifth-level wizard. It wasn't because she'd given up; rather, her inner demons were too strong to overcome. For wizards, who heavily emphasized spiritual cultivation, such mental burdens were devastating. She remained forever stuck at the pinnacle of fifth-level wizardry, unable to ascend to the legendary sixth level.

Meanwhile, in the Rose Kingdom, multiple fifth-level witches had already emerged, each stronger than Lilith herself. Babylon had long lost any power to resist.

"If not for the emergence of those slimes, which alleviated pressure on our men, my kingdom would already have…" Lilith murmured softly, sorrowfully seated upon Babylon's beautiful royal throne, holding a delicate wooden staff.

Suddenly—

Boom!

A mysterious man appeared silently in the throne room.

Tall, flawless, noble, and perfect, he stood over three meters high, armed with a shield and staff, resembling a deity descended from heaven.

"Who are you?! How did you pass through the palace defenses unnoticed? And a three-meter-tall human? Such a tall, majestic race doesn't exist!"

Lilith frowned cautiously, quietly sensing the intruder's strength—fourth-level wizardry. Could it be Babylon still harbored a secretly cultivating fourth-level male wizard, one that had escaped her notice?

Shocked, Lilith rose abruptly from her throne. "How did we overlook a male wizard like you?"

Boom!

Li Shengjiang activated his slime-tentacle, pulling the bellows and instantly releasing his powerful aura, clashing with Lilith's from afar.

"This power... fifth-level wizard strength?!" Lilith's mind went blank. "Impossible! He clearly only radiates the aura of a fourth-level wizard, yet he unleashed fifth-level wizard power?"

Li Shengjiang paused a moment, knowing what he said next would profoundly shake this primitive world's understanding of energy manipulation and wizardry:

"This is the power of Alchemy."

Standing confidently in the throne room, he addressed this tragic, beautiful king who clutched her wooden staff tightly.

"In the era of the Three Witches, Hermes Trismegistus—the thrice-great God of Wisdom—descended as a black crow to communicate with humanity, teaching Babylon three profound secrets: Wizardry, Meditation, and Alchemy. The legendary Three Witches mastered only the first two…but now, I've opened the 'Gate of Alchemy,' revealing the true mysteries of the universe."

Alchemy!!

Lilith's mind reeled in shock.

Alchemy was famously known as the most mysterious and elusive of all knowledge. The God of Wisdom himself had said it represented the true mystery of life and creation, a path to unlocking the deepest secrets of existence. Those who mastered it would possess supreme enlightenment, banishing confusion forever.

"This man possesses infinite wisdom, accomplishing what even the Three Witches could not…?" Lilith stared at Li Shengjiang, her gaze burning with desperate hope, her grip on the staff trembling with excitement.

"Our kingdom… at last…" Lilith's voice quivered, and a hint of madness flashed in her eyes. In this man, she saw Babylon's sole chance to regain freedom and dignity.

He was their one true hope.

At this moment, however, the scene abruptly shifted.

The mechanical body's chest suddenly popped open, and a cute green slime hopped out, bouncing gently onto the floor with a charming squish.

The adorable creature with its innocent, wobbling head-tentacle eagerly declared, "Come, Your Majesty! Entrust the full strength of Babylon to me! I'll replace you and defeat that lofty Empress of Death, Medusa!"

Lilith: "???"

What just jumped out from this man's chest?

Is this his true form?

A slime?!

Lilith stared blankly, her mind completely short-circuited, a final stunned thought echoing in her head:

Some men, though appearing as powerful fourth-level wizards, are secretly nothing more than the weakest creature—a slime!