Eye of Platinum.

After finishing her homework, Xiao Yuan went to the workshop that Elder Lu had prepared for them to continue carving stones. Shortly after, Tan Qi came over to call her for dinner. Without looking up, she said: "You go ahead, I’ll wait a bit."

Tan Qi didn’t leave, standing in place he said: "You should eat first, it’s harder to focus on an empty stomach."

"I’m actually not hungry yet." Xiao Yuan’s hands didn’t stop, "I don’t have your talent, so I have to work a little harder."

Tan Qi simply sat down to wait for her.

"You should go eat first." Xiao Yuan said, "You don’t need to wait for me." 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

Reluctantly, Tan Qi picked up a book beside him, "I’m not hungry either."

Xiao Yuan, seeing he refused to leave, said nothing more, just focused harder on carving the stone in her hand. But due to her mediocre talent, even after practicing for so long, she ended up cutting herself due to exhaustion.

The engraving knife fell onto the table, and she held her hand back, suppressing a sound.

Tan Qi immediately got up and came over, and seeing the wound wasn’t serious, got the medical kit to treat it.

"If you really can’t learn, you could try something else." He suggested while treating her wound, "Besides artifact making, potion making could also be helpful."

Xiao Yuan, however, was somewhat saddened, "I’m not very smart. I can’t even carve stones properly, how could I learn to make potions? A classmate brought a pharmacology book to school a few days ago, I borrowed it, and I couldn’t even pronounce the names of those potions."

Tan Qi couldn’t think of a better response, so he remained silent.

At this moment, the door opened, and a voice followed, "Then learn something else instead."

The familiar voice made both children’s eyes light up, Xiao Yuan jumped off the stool and quickly ran to Xu Huo, "Uncle, Sister Li Chun!"

Xu Huo nodded, "Go eat first."

Fang Jie, who had already prepared the meal on the table, couldn’t help but smile when she saw the two children come out, "It’s enough having one teacher at home working without rest, now there are two more."

Xiao Yuan, a bit embarrassed, apologized to her. Fang Jie pinched her cheek, "Hurry, wash your hands and eat."

Xu Huo and Li Chun also sat at the dining table. Elder Lu seemed quite welcoming to them, and after a few bites, she started talking about minerals, eagerly anticipating the good minerals Xu Huo might bring.

The best piece in Xu Huo’s current collection was a mineral he had obtained from Zone 014, which seemed to accumulate Time Force. The concentrated energy dispersed in the form of rays, somewhat similar to the "Angel’s Eye" left by Dr. Wu. However, "Angel’s Eye" had already been made into a prop, and since it was a part detached from other props, its usage frequency in combat was not high.

Primeval Stones with special properties can gradually transform surrounding minerals into Secondary Stones. Similarly, Secondary Stones with special attributes are excellent materials for crafting props and instruments. Therefore, the high price of Secondary Stones has remained, not to mention Primeval Stones, which once even led to rumors of one being traded for a whole district.

The mineral that contained Time Force was not shown to anyone else since Xu Huo obtained it. Taking it out to craft props was obviously not possible, as there wasn’t a suitable Artifact Maker available, and he didn’t want to leak the news.

Furthermore, after delving deeper into understanding Time Force, he was more curious about why Time Force could accumulate in a piece of mineral. Based on the experience of Super Evolvers, Time Force can only be borrowed and cannot be fixed.

Of course, the existence of Pumpkin City seems to have already shattered this understanding, but Xu Huo didn’t know the principle. Perhaps observing that stone is a way since it’s also the only possible super-dimensional existence he could touch.

He certainly wasn’t lacking in Secondary Stones either; besides the ones Yan Jiayu gave him at Rose Castle last time, he had found quite a few in other players’ cargo holds later on.

"I’ve paid the tuition." Xu Huo smiled at the elderly woman across.

"I’m not taking it for free." Elder Lu said, "You give me Secondary Stones, and I help you make props. I don’t charge a labor fee for good Secondary Stones and even handle the game certification fee for you."

Xu Huo seemed quite tempted and then asked, "Is there any prop that can be used without restriction and doesn’t require game certification?"

"There is." Elderly Lu immediately said, "Aren’t instruments like that?"

She stared into his eyes, "I know what you’re thinking. While game certification increases restrictions on props, it also acknowledges their value. After dividing props into levels, it’s easier for them to circulate across various channels. Treating props as consumables, how much money do you think you can afford to spend?"

"It’s not just about that. Game certification is also a process to reinforce props," Fang Jie said, "For example, the paper contracts players often use. Although the material they’re made from is special, they’re still so thin, very easy to destroy, and don’t have the power to bind players. Only through game certification can the contract’s effectiveness be assured."

"These are the contracts we sign during trades."

"Also, the naturally occurring props that have been preserved, the vast majority of them have been game certified, or else they would have perished due to unrestrained consumption right after they were born."

"When a new instance is born, it’s often accompanied by some props in the dungeon venue. Without human intervention at the outset, how does the game impose restriction conditions on these props?" Xu Huo asked.

Fang Jie shook her head, "Such super-dimensional products are beyond my understanding."

"Alright." Elder Lu lightly tapped the table, "Focus on eating during meals; discuss things afterward."

After the meal, the two children took Li Chun to the courtyard to play with the robot Fang Jie had just made, while Elder Lu and Xu Huo stayed indoors chatting.

"You young folks, running and jumping aren’t enough; you want to fly by gazing at the sky, and you want to arm-wrestle with the game. Become a Super Player first." The elderly woman had lived long enough to have seen many with their own ideas.

Xu Huo smiled, "Curiosity is one of the driving forces for human progress."

The elderly woman took a sip of tea, wearing an expression of "you can’t fool me," and added, "Players are using the game’s products while trying to find trouble with the game using these things. I don’t know whether to call this wishful thinking or overestimation of their abilities."

Xu Huo was unconcerned, "Well, for people, life gets hopeful when there’s an unattainable dream."

He then asked about Xiao Yuan and Tan Qi’s studies.

Both children were doing well in academic subjects. As for artifact making, Tan Qi was more talented, while Xiao Yuan wasn’t actually bad. It was just that having someone talented beside her made her seem a bit clumsy.

"Diligence can make up for lack of talent. Since you’ve paid tuition, I’ll teach everything that needs to be taught." Elder Lu obviously liked the two children; talking about them, her demeanor softened significantly.

However, this smile didn’t last long before it was interrupted by a loud shout from outside:

"Auntie! I’ve come to see you!"