Chapter 80: Amu
Crack, crack...
Su Xiao used mana to catalyze the spliced pseudo-bones, he and Bubu Wang were already swamped with work.
At this moment, Su Xiao wore goggles and a loose-fitting one-piece leather suit. Nearby were various tools: hammers, an oversized electric drill, a plasma cutting saw, over a hundred test tubes, and more.
Buzz...
The plasma cutting saw spun at high speed. Su Xiao pulled down his goggles and began processing several materials that needed cutting.
To create an advanced alchemical creature, mere catalysis wasn't enough; some hands-on skill was required.
The tedious creation process began, with the sounds of cutting and hammering echoing from the room. After a full five hours of work, Su Xiao finally completed the preliminary stage.
A three-meter-tall "skeleton" stood upright nearby. The skeleton was covered in large alchemical array diagrams—just one glance made one feel dizzy. Inside the ribs of the skeleton, a crystal core, processed dozens of times, flickered on and off like a slowly beating heart.
Sitting on the ground, Su Xiao held a cigarette in his mouth. In his hand was a blue spike formed entirely from mana. He was using the spike to carve an array diagram, a very precise task.
Bubu Wang was already lying on the floor, snoring loudly. This goofball couldn't help now, so he took a break right there.
Twelve hours later, a sturdy figure stood inside the laboratory, exuding a strong sense of pressure. The figure had two slightly curved horns on its head. The base of the horns was as thick as an arm, and their tips gleamed with a cold light. The horns pointed skyward—if it charged with full force, this thing could definitely pierce through an enemy's body. More importantly, a chill was rising from the two horns.
This figure was the Fierce Winter Minotaur. Although called a minotaur, its classification was magical beast and alchemical creature, having nothing to do with humans.
Su Xiao's eyes were tightly shut. He was using mana to activate the Fierce Winter Minotaur. The mana flowed through the magical energy circuits within the Fierce Winter Minotaur's body, and the array diagrams in its eyes flickered.
Activation: 12%, 15%, 17%, 21%...
This process lasted nearly an hour. During this time, Su Xiao could not afford a moment's distraction.
Activation: 100%! The array diagrams in the Fierce Winter Minotaur's eyes were fully activated.
"Roar!!"
The Fierce Winter Minotaur let out a skyward roar. Bubu Wang, who was sound asleep, was startled into a shiver, his dog body twitching. He immediately got up, his gaze seeming to ask, "What demon is this?!"
After the loud roar, the Fierce Winter Minotaur calmed down. It stared straight at Su Xiao. After a moment, a silly grin spread across its bull-like face.
The Fierce Winter Minotaur's body was covered in brownish-yellow fur. Its form was similar to a human's, with arms and feet indistinguishable from a human's, except that its entire body was covered in fine brownish-yellow fuzz, beneath which muscles were tightly knotted.
Seeing the Fierce Winter Minotaur, Su Xiao's first reaction was that this guy was very simple and extremely durable. If it had a taunt ability, it would be perfect.
When Su Xiao set up the core array diagram, he gave the Fierce Winter Minotaur a small amount of intelligence. Simple communication was no problem. In terms of intelligence, it was worlds apart from Bubu Wang, who had intelligence comparable to a human's.
"Speak."
Su Xiao gave the first command. He had given the Fierce Winter Minotaur basic language abilities, carving three language-related array diagrams in total.
"I am warrior."
The Fierce Winter Minotaur spoke in a deep, rumbling voice. Su Xiao was taken aback. The language array diagrams he had carved should have been fine, but... did this old bull just speak in a dialect??
"Amu."
Su Xiao said. He had originally planned to name the minotaur Amstrong, but for some reason, every time he thought of that name, his mind involuntarily conjured a long string of text: "Amstrong Cyclotron Jet Propulsion Amstrong Cannon."
The name Amstrong was too cursed, so Su Xiao simply named the minotaur Amu. It was convenient to call out. Imagine, during a fight, shouting "Amstrong Cyclotron Jet Propulsion Amstrong Cannon"—before you even finished the name, the enemy would have already charged at you.
"I here, master."
Amu's bull face leaned toward Su Xiao. As it grinned, it revealed flat teeth, looking extremely honest and simple.
Amu's dialect left Su Xiao feeling somewhat helpless. The language was random, but fortunately, he could understand the dialect. Bubu Wang, standing nearby, was very interested in Amu—this would be his future enforcer.
"Woof."
Bubu Wang barked. Amu immediately turned around.
"Second master."
Amu leaned toward Bubu Wang. Bubu Wang's dog face twisted in awkwardness; he felt that the title "second master" was about the same as "second dog."
"Overall, it's fine. It can understand basic commands, and its self-awareness isn't strong."
Su Xiao was satisfied with his control over Amu's intelligence. Amu's intelligence wasn't high; it could respond and fight without issue. But asking it to do math problems was out of the question. Addition and subtraction within ten was probably fine, but multiplication? That was too much for Amu. For Amu, multiplication was a nightmare.
"What is 1+1?"
Su Xiao tried asking. Bubu Wang looked at Su Xiao, his small eyes seeming to say, "Master, just how low did you squeeze its intelligence?"
"3."
Amu answered without hesitation, puffing out its broad chest. Su Xiao's mouth twitched. Bubu Wang stood frozen, beginning to doubt his dog life.
1+1 was too hard for Amu. Seeing Su Xiao and Bubu Wang's expressions, Amu scratched its head, plopped down on the ground, grabbed some alchemical materials nearby, and started crunching and munching away, eating with great relish.
Amu's stomach was terrifying. As long as something was organic, it could digest it and convert it into stored energy, thereby extending its existence time.
Su Xiao designated Amu as a summon, so his intelligence attribute could provide a boost to Amu.
As soon as Su Xiao designated Amu as a summon, Amu's blood vessels bulged, and its body became stronger. Noticing this, Su Xiao checked Amu's attributes.
Name: Amu
Type: Alchemical Creature · Fierce Winter Minotaur
Existence Time: 256 Natural Days
Health: 100%
Mana: 600 Points
Strength: 75
Agility: 69
Stamina: 85
Intelligence: 30
Charm: 9
Skill 1, Frostbite (Passive Lv.39): Attacks can inflict a Frostbite effect on enemies, reducing their movement speed by 10% for 3 seconds.
Note: This skill can stack, up to a maximum of 10 stacks. After stacking, the duration increases, but the slow effect remains unchanged at 10%.
Note: Each time the Frostbite effect stacks, its duration doubles, up to a maximum of 25 minutes and 6 seconds.
Skill 2, Fearless Charge (Active Lv.30): The Fierce Winter Minotaur charges forward at a movement speed equal to Agility × 1.5. During the charge, it reduces damage taken by 50%. Upon hitting an enemy, if it successfully impales the enemy with its horns, it deals damage equal to Strength × 2.5 and applies 3 stacks of Frostbite.
Note: This skill has a cooldown of 1 hour and consumes 40 Mana.
Skill 3, Wild Stomp (Active Lv.21): The Fierce Winter Minotaur continuously stomps on enemies. Each stomp deals damage equal to Base Attack × 1.2. It stomps a total of 4 times, and each stomp applies 1 stack of Frostbite.
Note: This skill has a cooldown of 1 hour and consumes 35 Mana.
Skill 4, Fierce Winter War Cry (Active Lv.26): The Fierce Winter Minotaur lets out a loud roar, dealing 30 damage to all enemies within 10 meters and applying 3 stacks of Frostbite.
Note: This skill has a cooldown of 5 hours and consumes 60 Mana.
Skill 5, Fierce Winter Bloodline (Passive Lv.30): Reduces damage taken by 25%, Slow Resistance +70%, Physical Defense +36, Health +1000 points, Mana +300 points.
Skill 6, Fierce Winter's Wrath (Ultimate Skill Lv.5): When an enemy has 10 stacks of Frostbite, the Fierce Winter Minotaur can activate this ability from a distance, forcibly inflicting a Freeze effect on the enemy. The Freeze effect will spread 6 meters to the surroundings.
Note: This skill has a cooldown of 24 hours and consumes 10% of maximum Health.
After reviewing Amu's attributes, a strategy instantly formed in Su Xiao's mind. Amu would first activate the Charge skill. Upon hitting, it would immediately start Stomping, then use the War Cry, instantly stacking the Frostbite effect to 10 layers. Then, it would wait for the right opportunity to activate its ultimate ability to freeze the enemy.
Given Amu's durability, even being focused by a group of enemies was just a drizzle. What did 85 points in Stamina mean? On top of that, it had 25% damage reduction. Withstanding the focus fire of three to five enemies was no problem for Amu.
A smile appeared on Su Xiao's face. Bubu Wang also grinned. The man and the dog exchanged glances, and Bubu Wang raised an eyebrow.
"Bubu, let's discuss the proper way to use Amu."
"Woof."
Bubu Wang understood and gestured for Amu to leave first, so that their discussion wouldn't damage its tender psyche.
The bewildered Amu scratched its head. As soon as it walked out of the laboratory, it saw Su Xiao's bed. Amu stepped forward, broke off a bed leg, and began crunching and munching on it, eating with great enjoyment.
PS: (I wanted to write a few more chapters, but I couldn't get them out. It's already 30°C here, and the heat's got this waste mosquito floating like a fairy.)