Chapter 1420: Special Time Subclass Stone
"This is the latest model of ore analyzer independently developed by Platinum Eye. It can detect whether there are any special attributes." The young woman turned back to explain to Xu Huo, "The light emitted by the instrument won't have any effect on the ore."
"Hello, my name is Xu Zhi." Xu Huo introduced himself.
"Fang Jie, I'm Teacher Lu's assistant, responsible for taking care of her daily needs." Fang Jie smiled and added, "It might take a few minutes. Please have a seat first."
She nodded and went about her own business.
Xu Huo picked up the specially made metal teacup.
Platinum Eye had an almost obsessive fascination with metal items, even using metal for everyday utensils. He had seen this type of cup used for tea in a shop before; it was said to release various trace elements beneficial to the human body when steeping water, and it was sold alongside multiple beverage packets designed to increase those elements.
He took a sip and set the cup down.
Sure enough, masters with a persistent pursuit in certain areas often didn't pay much attention to the details of daily life.
Before long, the instrument's test results came out. The old lady lifted her glasses to look at Xu Huo. "This subclass stone has a time attribute, and it's very special."
"Special?"
"You should know that subclass stones are ores that slowly change their attributes due to long-term attachment to a primordial stone, influenced by it. Although forming a subclass stone takes a considerable amount of time, it's also common to excavate a primordial stone and then use it to manufacture subclass stones."
"However, for quick results, artificially intervened subclass stones are generally not as high in quality as naturally formed ones."
"This stone of yours has a time attribute. Judging by its formation time, it should be an artificially intervened subclass stone, but its quality is very good, almost indistinguishable from a naturally formed one."
"Under what circumstances would this result occur?" Xu Huo asked.
"I'm not sure about that. This is the first time I've encountered such a situation." Old Lady Lu took the subclass stone out again and brought it closer for observation. "But the only primordial stone capable of producing subclass stones with special attributes is the 'Time Origin.' The 'Time Origin' isn't just an ore; it's also a product of multidimensional space creation that humans have yet to fully study. Even the subclass stones influenced by it can simply alter the rules of time and space, let alone the 'Time Origin' itself."
"Perhaps it's an even more special 'Time Origin.'"
"There aren't many 'Time Origin' primordial stones publicly disclosed in the game so far." Xu Huo said. These materials could be purchased on the game's bounty platform.
"Not just not many—currently, fewer than ten have been publicly disclosed, and they're all in higher-level wormhole points. There isn't a single one in C-level wormhole points." Old Lady Lu became more talkative and began discussing the 'Time Origins' she knew about, adding, "This kind of subclass stone with special attributes rarely circulates on the open market, especially artificially accelerated ones. They have fixed sales channels and rarely leak out. In contrast, naturally formed ones might be obtained by players through certain accidental factors."
Xu Huo understood. Just looking at the mineral vein in Fresh Flower City that produced special ores capable of creating prediction-type props made it clear: the holder would never allow such resources to flow out easily. Top-tier resources like artificially produced special-attribute subclass stones would definitely be in the hands of an even smaller number of people—perhaps some forces with game permissions, some game districts that entered the game early and accumulated substantial wealth, or the game itself.
"With such accelerated technology and possession of a 'Time Origin,' which districts do you know of?"
Old Lady Lu still didn't take her eyes off the subclass stone. "All districts that publicly hold a 'Time Origin' have accelerated technology."
Xu Huo paused. "It seems that in the game, even if humans can easily ascend to higher dimensions, they still cannot penetrate the mysteries of natural evolution."
Only then did Old Lady Lu put down the subclass stone and return to the original topic. "If you plan to use this subclass stone, I can waive the crafting fee."
"I don't intend to use this stone for now." Xu Huo retrieved the subclass stone left by He Pu and pushed the one from the laboratory forward. "This one also has a time attribute; it should be naturally formed."
But it didn't look as good as He Pu's, and it was smaller in size.
Old Lady Lu had a natural fondness for special ores. She turned and placed the other one inside, adding, "Small as it is, it can still make a decent prop."
At this point, her attitude toward Xu Huo had noticeably improved. She even invited him to drink tea, leaning back in her chair with evident pleasure and gently rocking, saying out of the blue, "This is the good life."
A moment later, the appraisal results for the other subclass stone came out. The old lady nodded. "Its formation time isn't long, but it's still above A-grade."
"See what grade prop you want to make." She looked at Xu Huo. "If you use subclass stones for both the main and auxiliary materials, and in sufficient quantity, you can make an A-grade prop. But I suggest you don't be too picky about the type, so as not to waste such good materials."
Xu Huo smiled. "As I said, as long as it maximizes the use of the subclass stone, I'll leave it to your discretion."
The old lady was very satisfied. "This will take a bit longer—one to three months. Come pick it up when you have time. I'll still waive the crafting fee, and we'll settle the bill for the other auxiliary materials later."
Xu Huo indicated no problem, then hesitated for a moment before saying, "Actually, I have another ore, but I'm not sure if I should bring it out."
The old lady glared at him. "Don't be so indecisive like a woman. Are you afraid I'll misjudge the material with my old eyes?"
Taking out a sealed box that had been stored in the luggage compartment, Xu Huo explained, "This stone came from a high-risk instance. I'm afraid it might be harmful to people."
Hearing it was from a high-risk instance, the old lady perked up immediately and called out repeatedly, "Fang Jie! Fang Jie! Open the testing room inside quickly! I want to use it!"
Fang Jie, who was busy, responded and hurried over to open another door, while the old lady directed the robot to move the box inside.
A few steps past the door was a room with a window, but both the room and the glass had been specially reinforced. People didn't need to enter; the agile robot would handle the operations. Inside and outside could be projected in real-time, and the machine would transmit all data about the ore to the outside. Technological advancement almost perfectly reproduced the sizable ore.
"This looks very much like a subclass stone." Before the results from the testing room came out, Old Lady Lu put on her glasses to examine it. "But for a subclass stone of this size, it should be close to a primordial stone. If you found it in a high-risk instance, the primordial stone should be nearby."
Thinking of Jiang Wenzhang, whom he had let go, Xu Huo narrowed his eyes and said, "If it really is a subclass stone, then the primordial stone has probably already been taken."