CHAPTER 440: CHAPTER 440: JI YOU IS HEARTBROKEN

Ji You gave the command, and the Six Strands simultaneously swished their tails in the Spiritual World: [Listening to the Master!]

Thinking of the greatly improved success rate of crafting Soul Devices, Ji You waved his hand magnanimously and declared, "Follow me for the good life of eating and drinking well."

The Six Strands shouted in unison: [Wow! Eating and drinking well!]

Ji You set aside the successfully crafted Companion Stone Soul Device, not touching the remaining pieces of mithril just yet, planning to continue practicing with the more common Companion Stones. So, she looked at her Six Strands with a smile and asked, "Who’s taking this round?" This time, Ji You didn’t intend to be autocratic; she planned to be a democratic Master, seeking public opinion before making decisions...

Fourth shrank back first.

Second and Third looked towards the Boss.

Old Five and Sixth glanced at Fourth and then at the Boss...

After pondering for a moment, the Boss raised his head, straightened his spine, and thumped his chest: [Master! Let me do it!]

Ji You observed the Six Strands’ reactions—knowing exactly who was lazy, indecisive, or a follower... As long as they worked honestly without causing mischief, Ji You wouldn’t fuss over these issues. Hearing the response, she smiled and said, "Boss goes first! There are still 10 pieces left, you will take turns one by one later. Old Five has already worked once, so he only needs to take one turn. The remaining 3 pieces, Boss, Second, and Third, you three are bigger and stronger, so you’ll do one extra turn."

After saying this, Ji You looked at the Boss, Second, and Third with a smile and asked, "You guys don’t have any objections, do you?"

Upon hearing this, how could the Boss, Second, and Third object? They couldn’t outright refuse the Master and lose face in front of her, could they?

The Master certainly cares a lot about face...

So, the Boss, Second, and Third swayed their tails: [No objections, listening to the Master.]

Ji You was even happier.

She immediately took out her tools and started polishing a Companion Stone the size of a fingernail. The material of these stones, peeled from ores, was actually very fragile and prone to crack under little mishandling. Therefore, Ji You relied on meticulous handwork when polishing...

Perhaps due to the 100% purity of the Spiritual Silk, Ji You could quickly immerse herself in this kind of manual labor. During the process of polishing and engraving, her spiritual power was like a precise instrument, monitoring the Companion Stone from all angles. She could adjust in time before any deviations occurred, making every clover she engraved look lifelike.

Of course, such full immersion also consumed a great deal of spiritual power threshold. After finishing one piece, Ji You let out a heavy sigh, raising her hand to rub her eyebrows: "What’s left now, is to engrave the Array Diagram."

What does an Array Diagram look like?

Does it have a basic template? A model? A fixed format?

Or—

Is it actually versatile, depending entirely on the crafter’s spontaneous creativity?

...

What’s the answer to all these questions? Ji You, as an outsider, had no clue, but she personally inclined toward the Array Diagram being flexible, without a fixed format or style, because—each time Ji You crafted a Soul Device, the pattern on the Array Diagram was different, all a result of happy accidents and random inspiration.

This time, Ji You still planned to engrave a clover-shaped Array Diagram, wanting to see if she could stick to a fixed format for mass production of Soul Devices.

After a short rest, Ji You picked up the engraving pen and began her work.

In the bright dormitory, Ji You quietly traced each line and stroke; her face was calm and composed, exuding an ultimate focus...

Suddenly—

Ji You looked at the pattern under her pen and said, "Boss, get ready to start—be mindful of your strength—"

The Boss nodded vigorously: [Okay!]

Just as Ji You’s pen left the Array Diagram for an instant, the next second, the Boss leaped out and dived into the Array Diagram—

Whiz, whiz, whiz...

Despite the Boss’s bulky appearance, he was truly agile. He made a quick loop inside the Array Diagram, and the traces he left behind gradually turned from an ashy dullness to a translucent luster... This was—a sign of imminent success!

Seeing this, Ji You was very comforted and said, "Boss, you’ve set a good example. If we succeed in crafting all of them today, I’ll immediately treat you to the good life."

She was not joking.

These ten Companion Stones, if all turned into soul artifacts successfully, even as low-level ones, would be worth at least 2 to 3 million credit points each, that would be how much for ten? Thinking of this huge number, Ji You was already grinning so broadly that her teeth were showing but her eyes were not.

Then—

Boss had just leaped out from the Array Diagram, and Ji You was waiting to inspect the results when suddenly—

Boom—

With a crisp sound, this soul artifact that was just about to take shape disintegrated into dust...

Ji You: "..."

Ji You’s face darkened: "Boss! What are you doing? Didn’t I tell you to control your strength?"

Boss shrunk its neck and tail, looking innocent: [Master, I did hold back. I only used less than 10% of my strength...]

Ji You: "..."

Ji You cursed: "Are you trying to fool a ghost! Do you think I’m a three-year-old child?"

The soul artifact that Old Five just made had used up to 39% of strength, yet Boss dared to say that it used less than 10%, wasn’t this downright deceitful?

Boss shrank its neck: [Master! Boss isn’t lying! This one you made is too fragile, I was trying my best to tuck in my tail and not damage it, but... but it just broke...]

Boss: [I also don’t know why it broke.]

At this moment, Fourth lightly swished its tail, [Master! Boss isn’t lying to you, it really only used 7% of its strength just now.]

Ji You: "..."

Boss vigorously wagged its tail: [That’s right! That’s right! I only used 7%!]

Ji You couldn’t help but raise her hand and rubbed her forehead, her budding zeal for making a fortune had been thoroughly doused by Boss’s act!

What the heck!

She had just thought that as soon as she started, she would surely be able to craft a soul artifact.

But now—

Ji You felt incredibly frustrated.

Why can Old Five do it?

But Boss can’t?

Could it be—Boss is too powerful, causing the Array Diagram to collapse, or is the Companion Stone’s material too fragile to hold up? Or perhaps, she hasn’t mastered the specific method yet?

Or, should she let Old Five try again?

Ji You suddenly refused to accept defeat, gritted her teeth and tried her best to calm down, saying, "Boss, try again."

This time, Ji You switched to Mithril. Mithril was harder in material, certainly sturdier than Companion Stone. If Boss still shattered it, then maybe Boss just wasn’t cut out for this job.

Upon hearing this, Boss quickly nodded: [Master, I will give it my all.]

Ji You quickly polished the Mithril, following the same steps, and just as she was about to stop writing, Boss timed it perfectly, coordinating with Ji You, making the Mithril shine resplendent with the radiance of a four-leaf clover...

Ji You stared with wide eyes, firmly fixed on the Mithril four-leaf clover on the workbench, not missing any slight change.

Just like Ji You, the Six Strands were also very tense.

Is it—

Success?

Or another failure?