Oops, I became the witch's substitute

Those who can enter the core tower are alchemists with profound experience. In their view, although knowledge is infinite, human energy is limited. Senior alchemists are very deep in both length and breadth in their fields of expertise, and their death would be a huge loss.

Why are immortals so powerful? Because if they live for 500 years, they can read for 500 years. If they continue to live and accumulate knowledge, the knowledge they can transform from accumulated experience is thousands of times stronger than that of ordinary people.

As for humans, if they only had a lifespan of 200 years, they would be considered amazing if they could complete a technology tree. Then they would grow old and die, and the new generation would have to start all over again, in an endless cycle, and overall progress would be very slow.

In fact, the immortal species are also quite admired. Human beings, with their short life span, have pushed knowledge and technology to the current level. Human beings have always envied long lifespans, and it seems that they can do anything as long as they live long.

"Who could be the one outside the tower who did this? According to the intelligence, it doesn't look like the methods used by the other three families. They wouldn't be able to do such a wicked thing."

The cadre in charge of the investigation held several photos, showing the cut and disrupted wires in the machine and the pipes with the labels torn off, and felt a sense of irritation rising in his heart.

"Their plan is not going smoothly, and their progress is almost the same as ours. There is nothing special about the destroyed experiment. The old man is considered honest in the industry, and this method does not seem to be revenge. This method is more like those rebellious mice..."

Thinking of this, the cadres in charge of the investigation turned their attention to the recent resistance organization in Alchemy City.

"How are the spies lurking in those resistance organizations doing lately?"

The atmosphere in the alchemy capital of Bereda is not very good right now. The entertainment tools provided to the lower-level personnel seem unable to ease the conflicts. More and more people realize who is exploiting them, so those in the upper echelons are also paying attention to infiltrating these resistance organizations.

The spy in charge of this matter frowned and said, "According to the intelligence we have collected recently, the situation of the spies is not very good. The days of hiding in those organizations are really hard, and they even don't have enough food to eat."

The cadre thought for a moment and said, "How about this? You can go to the finance department to allocate some money and use various connections to secretly give some subsidies to the spies. Even if they are just a group of rats, as long as they are useful, they must be taken care of. Only when they can barely support their families will they be willing to work for us."

After all, alchemists follow the principle of equal exchange. Although the factories in the city are evil-hearted nowadays, these alchemists still know that they will get rewards only if they pay.

Of course, although the intentions from above are good, the people below may not be so reliable in doing things. Who knows where the allocated money went?

So the person in charge of intelligence said, "Sir, with all due respect, giving money is not safe. Many mice spend all their money in the afternoon after being given money in the morning. They either spend it in casinos or on puppets. When they have extra money, they prefer to go to the nightmare to have a dream."

The cadre felt that the matter was not simple: "Then give us supplies."

The person in charge had a tangled expression: "These resistance organizations all come from poor backgrounds. Our people have extra supplies, and in order to establish our prestige, we have to use them to help others. As a result, we are still struggling on the poverty line. Although we have a certain influence in these organizations, life is still difficult."

The cadre looked incredulous: "Impossible, I remember the funds allocated last month were sufficient."

The person in charge hesitated for a moment, looked outside the door, confirmed that it was closed, and then quietly walked to the person in charge and whispered in his ear: "Sir, this batch of funds has been intercepted, and I have also been threatened. Lord Wolfram forced us to take a portion of it, and he took the biggest share. He said... He said I won't take it, how can he take it? If he doesn't take it, how can that lord take it... You know, the funding for our intelligence department is not considered "serious business" and is often requisitioned."

The cadre was silent for a few seconds. He knew about this, and he even took it, but his subordinates were too embarrassed to say it to their faces. So the cadre put his hands in his pockets and finally threw his hands in annoyance: "Damn it, there are things that money can't solve. Forget it, forget it. How can the information be provided?"

The person in charge took two steps back and stood up obediently: "I can get up, but it's a little difficult. We don't have a clear suspect in the investigation of this incident."

The cadre rubbed his eyebrows and felt a headache.

Seeing this, the person in charge asked in a low voice: "Well, sir, there are also spies in the peripheral factories who often lose contact for some reasons and cannot collect intelligence on time."

"What happened? Betrayal?" The cadre felt a little angry. Even if the subsidy was deducted a little bit, it still existed. How could there be people who took the money without working?

The person in charge hurriedly explained: "That's not the case. The targets given by the farmers and factory owners are getting heavier every month. The spies lurking in the factory are too busy to collect intelligence every day."

The cadre was confused: "No, our spies don't even have this privilege?"

The person in charge said: "They are not working and are passive, but they are also receiving extra subsidies. They are not like real workers at first glance, and cannot get in touch with those organizations that have rebellious intentions. Only by working hard and working harder than ordinary workers can they be absorbed into the corresponding organizations. However, the pressure in the factory is already great, and they are given the mission of propaganda to resist the factory, which makes the daily work pressure even greater."

The person in charge carefully observed the cadres' eyes and gritted his teeth, "Sir, to be honest, some spies who monitor the factory wrote to me saying that they really can't stand it anymore. They are exploited by the factory day and night, and they have to participate in resistance activities with only time for eating and sleeping. On this basis, they have to collect intelligence and write reports. It's really too hard. Some people are sick and vomiting blood. But to be honest, those people in the resistance organization treat their companions well. When they saw the spies fall ill, everyone raised money to send them to the hospital, and they didn't pay a penny for the medical expenses."

The cadre could not help but angrily rebuke: "Our spy has become a role model in the resistance organization. It is too unfair that no one cares about him even though he is sick!"

The person in charge sighed and took out the bloody envelope: "Sir, you see, the spies over there asked if they could be given a holiday, a few days every month..."

The cadre immediately interrupted his subordinate: "What are you talking about? Is this human language? They should ask for leave from the factory or the resistance organization."

The person in charge said hurriedly: "Here we ask for leave, but over there you are not allowed to leave the front line even if you are slightly injured. If you ask for leave from the factory, the factory may just lay you off. If you slack off in the resistance organization, you may gradually be marginalized. Look at the spy who wrote the letter. He is the workshop director. On the one hand, he has to tell the boss that he is not allowed to leave the front line even if he is slightly injured, and on the other hand, he has to comfort the resistance organizations to persist in the struggle and wait for liberation, so he has no choice but to ask for leave from us."

The cadre slumped down, feeling that this was outrageous. After thinking it over, he shook his hands and said, "Alright, alright, I got it. Reduce their reporting times by half every month. If there are any serious signs of riots, they must issue warnings immediately. Otherwise... just focus on people."

The reason why cadres treat spies as human beings is that many of them are alchemist students who were eliminated from the academy because of their poor performance. Although they have no ability, they are attached to the life of being superior to others. Therefore, if they are given a little benefit, they are willing to be dogs for the academy.

……

Feilin sent Belinda back to the orphanage. This time he was able to enter the room where Belinda rested. She lived in a room on the third floor. Through the window, the slums were not far away.

In order to get his fiancée to leave earlier, Filin picked out some simple things and told her that he was going to do something dangerous, hoping that Belinda would leave.

Belinda opened her magic eye. In this state, the world in her eyes was not beautiful: "So, you want to fight for the interests of these poor lower-class people?"

This orphanage protected by the goddess is like an oasis in the black ocean. Outside is the colorful swamp where evil spirits are rampant.

"I don't want to tell you in a preachy tone how much food our entertainment cost today, but one thing is certain, across this street, in the slums behind that wall, the people there have to spend 70% of their total income to fill their stomachs." Filin tapped his feet, "This situation cannot be solved by simply opening a relief point and distributing free bread every day. The purpose of my staying here is to make the current Bereda collapse completely. By then, it may be accompanied by the madness of those upper-level alchemists. Their madness will bring war and bloodshed. You are not suitable to stay here."

Belinda simply understood the situation, her eyes a little frustrated: "So you want to stay here and continue your adventure with Miss Carol?"

Philin nodded slowly, and Belinda raised her hands and rubbed them on her head. After a while, she seemed to have an uncertain idea.

Belinda thought of a piece of information: "My family knows a little about this place. There is a highly respected alchemist here. He claims to have discovered an overseas island with abundant resources, gold and silver everywhere, and unlimited business opportunities. As long as you invest in building ocean-going magic ships, you can participate in the development of the island. However, the sea chart is a secret and has not been made public. With this lie, his chamber of commerce established a bank in the empire, and the amount of investment he received soared."

Feilin was a little surprised: "Do you believe it?"

He was surprised that there were many money-making experts among these alchemists, so the trick of passing the parcel was not uncommon. It would not disappear, it would just change its appearance.

Belinda pointed to her magic eye and said, "When I was negotiating with the other party, I saw an atmosphere full of lies, so our family did not invest. But when I go back, I will expose this scam and let the Empire intervene in the investigation and quickly block the bank to prevent the flow of funds there. Can I help you?"

Feilin smiled slightly and gave a thumbs up to express his praise: "Of course, if possible, we can work together inside and outside. The moment you take action, let me know. I will spread rumors in the Alchemy City, which will speed up the economic collapse. By the way, this is for you."

After saying that, Philin handed Belinda a magical device, a water mirror made by Carol that could be used for long-distance communication.

Feilin brought out another piece of good news: "Now that we have this, we can meet at any time."

Belinda was really surprised this time: "Is there such a useful magic device? I thought I had to build an altar and spend a lot of magic stones to communicate remotely."

Feilin smiled and stroked her hair. "Technology will always improve, but now this tool can only do point-to-point. In the future, I want it to be able to store different contacts."

Belinda jumped up, hugged Philin, pecked him on the cheek, then let go and ran away.

"Well, I think I found a way to keep up with you. How about it? Can I help a little?"

"Of course, of course~ You are quite smart. By the way, when you go back, please bring me a letter that Fili wrote to her demon friend..."

"Is Miss Filly here?"

"Shh, it's a secret, don't spread it around. Tell them when the time comes. After the Alchemy City collapses, Fili will go to help them mediate the conflict."

"Okay~ But can I meet Miss Fili?"

"Ah, uh... sure."

Looking at Belinda's eager eyes, Philin couldn't refuse her request. Sure enough, she was happy for a while.