Forty Millenniums of Cultivation, page 1026
Everybody was astonished by his words.
All of them looked at the unattractive, mysterious girl in surprise, not knowing why such a renowned master of refining like Chu Chongjiu respected her so much!
Chu Chongjiu's attitude toward the mysterious girl, Professor Tang, compared with Sha Yongming and Zhao Tongtian's attitude toward him was almost the same, only slightly less obsequious.
The title 'professor' came rather reluctantly. The more quick-witted folks quickly realized that the girl must be in charge of certain important posts on Firefly and was not simply a 'professor' in a random school.
'Thunder Lion' Zhao Tongtian, who had refused the mysterious girl's offer rudely a moment ago, widened his eyes. Sweat was pouring down from his forehead, and his legs were slightly shaking.
The mysterious girl, Professor Tang, smiled. "You are flattering me, Uncle Chu. Your expertise in refining is extraordinary. There are too many things in you that I should learn from. I was meaning to study more from you while hiding myself in the crowd. It must be my hands that gave me away, right? I should've put on a pair of gloves before I left."
Chu Chongjiu smiled bitterly and said, "Professor Tang, since you were here before, why didn't you come to do him a favor instead of allowing a useless old man like myself to bluff? Of the younger generation of the federation, Wu Yaxuan's works are definitely among the top. This crystal suit is definitely worth seeing."
The mysterious Professor Tang smiled but did not reply.
'Lion Thunder' Zhao Tongtian was sweating even harder, his legs trembling.
Sha Yongming chuckled and replied, "For your information, Master Chu, Professor Tang did offer to help Deputy Captain Zhao check his crystal suit, but she was… turned down."
"Turned down?" Chu Chongjiu was slightly dazed. Dazzling brilliance was beaming out of every wrinkle on his face, and his eyes were as sharp as two scalpels. He stared at Zhao Tongtian and sneered, "As I said just now, Deputy Captain Zhao is indeed very majestic. Even—"
"I—I didn't know!" 'Thunder Lion' Zhao Tongtian could not have known better that he had probably pissed off a big shot whom he absolutely should not have. His legs were shaking, his face was pale, and sweat seemed to be dripping from the tip of his nose.
"Uncle Chu, forget it," the mysterious girl said. "It was an honest mistake. I was too reckless just now. His crystal suit is indeed an incredible one. It was not wrong of him to forbid me from touching it when he did know my identity. Let's just move on."
Chu Chongjiu nodded. He then glared at Zhao Tongtian and said, "Zhao Tongtian, what should I say? So many people on Firefly are waiting in line to ask Professor Tang to help maintain their crystal suit that they often need to wait for two years. You were already unbelievably fortunate to meet Professor Tang, who was willing to help you adjust your crystal suit in her good mood, and yet you rejected it? Professor Tang's knowledge on the arts of refining is at least three times greater than mine. Tell me, are you blind?"
Zhao Tongtian was so embarrassed that he almost wanted to dig a hole in the ground to hide in and so regretful that he wanted to kill himself. "I—I—"
"Hehe!" Chu Chongjiu snorted and turned around, not bothering Zhao Tongtian anymore. His eyes glowing, he said to the mysterious girl even more respectfully, "Professor Tang, since you have seen the whole process of my maintenance and adjustment just now, please do enlighten me if there is any problem or place that is worth improving!"
It was obvious that Chu Chongjiu, as a master of refining, truly admired the mysterious girl's expertise in the arts of refining.
Because he had been appointed to work in Fish Dragon City, opportunities were rare for him to return to Firefly and communicate with the mysterious girl.
Now that they had run into each other by accident, the refiner's occupational disease immediately took place.
"I dare not say that it is enlightenment," the mysterious girl said. "Uncle Chu, you are one of the best experts on Firefly in the arts of maintenance and adjustment. From a purely technical point of view, the adjustment just now was perfect. I really can't find any flaws."
"From purely the technical point of view?" Chu Chongjiu's face was even more solemn. "So, I have made some mistakes that are not on the technical level, huh? That explains a lot. I did feel that something was off, but I couldn't tell what it was exactly. I was rather unconfident!"
"No, Uncle Chu. You didn't make any mistakes. The crystal suit has been adjusted in the most standard way and achieved perfection. It's just that…"
The mysterious girl hesitated.
"Just what?" Chu Chongjiu pursued.
Zhao Tongtian, Sha Yongming, and most of the bystanders around craned their necks, waiting for the mysterious girl's answer.
Li Yao was the only one who slightly nodded in approval. The little girl is not half bad. She has seen through that?
After pondering for a moment, the mysterious girl looked at Zhao Tongtian gently. He asked again courteously, "Your name is Deputy Captain Zhao, right? I want to ask you three questions. Please answer them truthfully because it concerns the future of your crystal suit.
"Although Uncle Chu has adjusted your crystal suit immaculately today, if we don't figure out the answers to these questions clearly, chances are that your crystal suit will have exactly the same faults after being used at a high intensity for three to six months."
Zhao Tongtian opened his mouth and nodded somewhat in confusion.
"First of all," the mysterious girl said, "your crystal suit is a limited edition crafted by Wu Yaxuan personally. So, you must've sent your combat videos, strength, speed, and all other parameters, maybe even the worn crystal suits that you used before, to Wu Yaxuan so that he could tailor-make the crystal suit for you according to your features, right?"
Zhao Tongtian blinked and nodded quickly.
"How lucky of you," the mysterious girl sighed, "to run into such a master of refining like Wu Yaxuan who has nothing but potential. It's the first time he's devised a crystal suit independently, and he wanted every piece of his work to be perfect. That's why even a guy like you had an opportunity to be offered a tailor-made crystal suit.
"I guarantee that, now that Wu Yaxuan's fame has already soared with the popularity of the Azure Thunder, next time he devises a crystal suit, or even when he crafts the next batch of Azure Thunder crystal suits, the experts of every force will certainly be knocking on his door. Even if you pay ten times as much money, it will be impossible for you to ask Wu Mayan to tailor-make a crystal suit for you again!
"Alright, let's leave him aside for now. Let me ask you the second question. Did your left arm—or more specifically, your left shoulder blade—suffer wounds a long time ago, which has resulted in the rigidity of your left shoulder and the slight hindrance when your spiritual energy flows between your left shoulder and your left arm?"
After hearing that, Zhao Tongtian was even more dumbfounded, not having the vaguest clue how the mysterious girl had seen through it.
His reaction was already the best answer.
The mysterious girl smiled and casually said, "Thirdly, although your left shoulder blade suffered wounds, it has been cured in the last half a year and is functioning as well as before, right?"
"How did you know that?" Zhao Tongtian could not help it any longer. He exclaimed and took a few steps back. He looked at the mysterious girl as if she were a ghost who had been crouching behind him his whole life!
How could she know such a thing if she were not?
The bystanders nearby were all wearing indescribable expressions, and their every pore was oozing disbelief!
"It's simple. I inferred it from the crystal suit." The mysterious girl revealed the answer quickly. "Due to the heavy wounds on your left shoulder blade, your left arm couldn't exert strength normally, and your arms were slightly imbalanced. Although you may have practiced a lot of techniques to make up for the drawback, the influences of the wounds still haunted you.
"You may have mentioned it in the files you sent to Wu Yaxuan. Even if you didn't, Wu Yaxuan was certainly able to notice it from your combat videos.
"Therefore, when Wu Yaxuan helped you to tailor-make a crystal suit, he performed delicate modifications on the armor on the left shoulder. The strength-enhancing rune arrays and the ancillary rune arrays on the left shoulder armor were all carefully adjusted and not exactly the same as the standard versions.
"A crystal suit that was adjusted in such a way would match you perfectly, even though your left side and right side are imbalanced!
"This is perhaps the flawlessness, appropriateness, and comfortableness that Wu Yaxuan has inherited from his mother, Master Xie Anan.
"However, after you received the crystal suit, you happened to cure the old wounds on your left arm, and the balance of your body was restored. Therefore, the crystal suit that Wu Yaxuan tailor-made for the 'old you' is no longer suitable for the 'present you'!
"Because the exertion of strength on your left arm is as good as before, some of Wu Yaxuan's adjustments have become redundant, which led to the increased erosion of the left shoulder of the crystal suit. After a few months of high-intensity usage, the left side of the crystal suit has become seriously worn. That's why you brought the crystal suit here for maintenance in the first place, right?
"You thought that it was not a big problem, and there was no need to send it back to Wu Yaxuan for maintenance. In fact, it is not a big problem. Uncle Chu has taken care of it perfectly.
"However, Uncle Chu perhaps did not know that your left arm was heavily wounded before but was cured years later. Therefore, although the faults have been rectified, the source of the faults still exists. The problem is not severe per se, but you'll have to keep sending it for maintenance every couple of months."
As the mysterious girl elaborated, everybody except Li Yao was shocked as if thunder were rumbling right next to their ears!
"You've got to be kidding me!"
"Based on the minor erosions on the crystal suits, she could already infer so many things. Who—who—who is this Professor Tang?"
"No wonder Chu Chongjiu respects her so much. It seems that he was not exaggerating when he said that her knowledge was three times greater than his!"
"Terrifying. Terrifying refining arts and terrifying eyes!"
While everyone was gasping in astonishment, amazement, admiration, and disbelief, Li Yao yawned.
It was a bit boring.
It seemed unnecessary to waste his time watching that folly. He might as well return and polish the first-generation Mystic Skeleton Battlesuit more carefully.
After all, he could foresee what would happen next. The mysterious girl would help readjust the crystal suit and resolve the source of the problem once and for all. Zhao Tongtian would kneel on the ground and slap his own face while weeping.
It was all boring.
Passing through the dumbfounded bystanders, Li Yao walked out of the test field while putting his hands in the pockets of his beach pants.
Right then, tiny vibrations filled his ears.
Long Yangjun and her 'robbery team' had sent a message over!
Chapter 1583: Professor Tang's Aim |
"Got the initial capital?" Li Yao could tell that the job was certainly done from Long Yangjun's lighthearted chuckle.
"Yes. Very smoothly." Long Yangjun's voice was directly vibrating Li Yao's eardrum. "As it turns out, the golden match 'Ace Game', which is held once every three years, is now underway in Fish Dragon City. There are various forms of competitions and gambles, and the wager is unlimited. Many magnates from other places in Fish Dragon City and even from Firefly and the Star Glory Federation have come to have fun. This is exactly the best opportunity for us to make money. We have already earned the bucket of gold."
"Of course." Li Yao smiled. "Nothing can possibly go wrong if Sword Maniac Yan Liren is on the move."
Long Yangjun coughed and said, "You're wrong about this one. Although Yan Liren's sword is aggressive enough, he does not know the first thing about disguise. While he tried to suppress his capabilities to the Core Formation Stage, he failed to conceal his dominating aura, the desire to execute everything in his way be they gods or deities! The people here all know the trade well. Seeing his appearance, and after witnessing his two games, who would ever bet on him losing? As it turned out, he soon became the guy with the highest expectation in the 'Ace Game', and his odds rose time and time again. The games were completely one-sided. There was little advantage that we could make use of!
"Fellow Cultivator Ba Xiaoyu the Beggar, on the other hand, is a natural-born actor. He pretended to be stumbling through every match. He also participated in a competition where he needed secure nine victories in a row.
"Of course, we wagered all the money we had on that he could win nine times. The game alone has earned us enough money for almost five high-level crystal suits. Ha!
"It is a pity that Ba Xiaoyu has revealed his true capabilities after the winning streak. Right now, his odds have already reached the peak. We can barely take any further advantage from them.
"Thankfully, I've done enough investigations and locked onto a few wealthy magnates. We'll do the job when the time is right tonight.
"Send me the dynamic account number of the anonymous crystal card now. I'll transfer the first sum of money to you, and you'll prepare the crystal suits and the magical equipment while waiting for our second harvest later."
Li Yao nodded. "Alright."
He took out an anonymous crystal card issued by the underground bank of the Dragon Snake Space Zone. After a stream of spiritual energy was inputted, the colorful surface of the crystal card immediately glittered glamorously. A random number of more than twenty digits that was changing all the time popped up.
In such a lawless place as the Dragon Snake Space Zone, many people did not want other people to trace the source and the investment of their capital. Therefore, the commonly used 'anonymous crystal cards' did not require any real-life files. They did not even have a fixed number. Otherwise, the account number would be leave traces for the enemies or the headhunters from the federation to follow.
Such anonymous crystal cards adopted very advanced dynamic account technology. Every crystal card was generating a new account number randomly, which was only effective for one minute. It meant that the user had a brand-new, traceless card unconditionally, anytime, anywhere.
The deposit and withdrawal through such cards naturally meant a high commission charge from the underground bank that possessed such a dynamic account algorithm. But such cards were safe, secret, and convenient enough, which made them the best tools for stealing and robbery.
As it turned out, not a moment after Li Yao had sent over the randomly generated account number, the anonymous crystal card shivered. A number that was huge enough for someone to whistle popped up.
The Dragon Snake Space Zone indeed has a lot of rich people! Li Yao thought to himself.
For him right now, however much money it was, and even if it was a few digits longer, it was nothing more than a number.
"Right. Try to keep a low profile in the magical equipment store, and be careful when you're outside," Long Yangjun suddenly reminded him in the communication channel. "When we were doing the reconnaissance, we felt that the atmosphere wasn't right. Something big will happen soon. It seems that a few other forces are planning some secret operations besides our gang.
"I have tried to learn a thing or two about them. Such cases have happened before. This is a once-in-three-years super game after all. All the experts and capital of the Dragon Snake Space Zone are concentrated in this place. It's only natural that something is wrong. Tranquility is the last thing we can expect.
"However, how should I put it? I still don't feel good. The forces lurking in the darkness do not seem to have come for money.
"All in all, just pay attention and keep a low profile."
"Got it," Li Yao said. "Up till now, I have been keeping a very low profile."
He cut off the communication and waved his hands at a worker of the test field who was standing on his toes eagerly watching the performance of the mysterious Professor Tang from Firefly.
"I want to check the special materials and components on the front part of your product catalog. But for me to check the goods, it seems I'm obliged to transfer a security deposit to the account of the magical equipment center. Can you help me arrange it?"
The worker was already dumbfounded after watching the marvelous operations that Professor Tang performed on the Azure Thunder. He did not notice that Li Yao was waving his hands at all.
"Hey!" Li Yao frowned. He snapped his fingers three times in a row in front of the worker's nose, finally making the guy wake up. "Did you hear what I said?"
"Huh?" In a trance, the worker wiped his saliva, not entirely awakened from the shock of the incredible, extraordinary methods of adjustment performed by Professor Tang.
Li Yao sighed. "I want to submit the security deposit so that I can directly check a few pieces of magical equipment and materials in your warehouse."
"N—now?"
"Yes. Now. Is there a problem?"
…
Half an hour later, in a VIP refining workshop at the Four Sectors Magical Equipment Center, Chu Chongjiu was talking with the mysterious Professor Tang.
Now that nobody was around, Chu Chongjiu was even more respectful than before. He changed his form of address toward the mysterious girl, too. "Miss, why are you out here? The Dragon Snake Space Zone is truly a mess. I—cough, cough—I shouldn't have pointed out your identity just now!"
"It doesn't matter, Uncle Chu." The mysterious Professor Tang smiled and said, "I didn't intend to conceal my identity on my trip this time in the first place. I'm going to the Star Glory Federation to observe their election as a member of the 'Election Observation Delegation'. It's best that I leave some traces everywhere I go in order to show our frankness, in case… those guys spread unnecessary rumors. That's why I took the initiative to stand out. It was really not your fault, Uncle Chu."
