Chapter 324

“Perhaps… you should change the question.”

This open-book exam was naturally a breeze, but the other party was, after all, the second-best anomalous smith in the world. Once Honorable Taurus ascends to the Star Palace, they’ll become the best smith, and there would definitely be many more times in the future when he’d need their help for forging.

And this Third-Generation Bureau Director had a quirky temper, placing immense importance on the art of forging. If he were to try any shortcuts here, it might leave a bad impression, which would be counterproductive.

After briefly weighing the pros and cons, Leon gave an earnest suggestion:

“Third Generation Honorable, I actually have an anomalous item that can forcibly obtain information. For me, this question…”

“No need to change it, let’s stick with this one!”

Without hesitation, the square-headed old man waved his hand dismissively, saying,

“You’re overestimating yourself. The base material of this thing is the tail and weapon of a True God, plus it was forged by my own hands. Its rank is incredibly high! What could someone like you, a Level 3 Cleaner, possibly see?”

“Third Generation Honorable, my anomalous item also has a high rank, so it should…”

“Then use it! If you can directly obtain the information, then I’ll count it as passed!”

“…”

That’s what you said.

Trying to kindly remind him but being ignored, Leon couldn’t help but slightly furrowed his eyebrows. He then touched the palm-sized, crimson-colored small fork in his bosom, which resembled a tuning fork more than a trident, and read aloud from the panel that popped up:

“The item you crafted for me should be called the Desire Dream Infiltrator, quite similar to my previous Holy Spirit Pendant. It possesses three traits: sacredness, interference, and whispering.

The corresponding three abilities are: causing additional damage to targets of evil and chaos; briefly interfering with reality using the power of the Dream Realm; and inducing soul oscillations through contact.”

“Hmm?”

Upon hearing Leon’s words, the square-headed old man raised his eyebrows slightly, looking rather surprised as he commented,

“Not bad, you even figured out the effect of soul oscillation… Looks like this generation’s Taurus has taught you pretty well!”

“…”

What does teaching well or not have anything to do with this? I’m just reading it off! Unable to resist rolling his eyes internally, Leon sped up his speech and continued, “To minimize the impact of changing the main anomalous item, you deliberately kept the characteristics of the Desire Dream Infiltrator similar to the Holy Spirit Pendant during the forging process. However, due to the difference in materials, the effects of the Desire Dream Infiltrator target the soul rather than the flesh.

Once a target is identified by the Desire Dream Infiltrator, any form of contact—whether it be touching my body, conversing with me, or even making eye contact—will cause some degree of soul oscillation. The more contact, the stronger the oscillation.

At that point, the Desire Dream Infiltrator will use the power of the Dream Realm to actively erode the target and the surrounding reality via the oscillating soul, creating scenarios that only appear in dreams.

If the frequency of contact with me is sufficiently tight or if I expend enough strength, it may even summon the power of the Lord of Desire, forcibly dragging the target into a dream generated by their own desires…”

“…”

When Leon continued to speak faster, explaining the effects of the Desire Dream Infiltrator in great detail, more accurately in some parts than even the smith himself, the square-headed old man’s mouth dropped wide open.

Damn it, I’ve seen this generation’s Taurus. Their skill level is just average. Even if she came to the Deathscape and activated the anomalous item without infusing power, judging solely based on experience wouldn’t allow her to make such precise judgments. So what’s going on with this kid? Could he really judge anomalies at the True God level? As the square-headed old man stared in shock, Leon finished explaining the capabilities of the Desire Dream Infiltrator and then raised his hand, pointing at the bubbling pot and said:

“Also, you actually created two anomalous items this time. The Desire Dream Infiltrator you just gave me was made from the weapon of the Lord of Desire. As for the anomalous item made from the tail of the Goddess of Wealth, it should still be hiding at the bottom of the pot.”

“…”

“Furthermore, you noticed I wasn’t there and knew I didn’t observe your forging process, so you deliberately set this question. You originally disliked current smiths and looked down on their forging techniques, so you weren’t really trying to guide juniors.

You proposed guiding me mainly because you heard that I had been guided by the Taurus Director, wanting to use my inability to answer your question as a comparison to mock the Taurus Director’s skills, proving that you are the true first smith and that the Honorable Taurus only surpassed you thanks to the Star Palace’s blessing…”

“Cough… cough cough…”

Afraid that Leon would continue talking and even reveal the color of the underwear he wore while forging, the square-headed old man loudly coughed twice and quickly interrupted,

“That’s enough, enough! Don’t say anymore, you’ve already passed the test!”

With a red face, the Third-Generation Bureau Director hurriedly turned around, fished out a black snakeskin scroll from the pot, and threw it to Leon. He then tried to explain himself,

“One… I actually didn’t want to keep your things, it’s just… just…”

“It was just a joke between us.”

The Red-haired Bureau Director timely took over the conversation, smiling and saying,

“A sharp-eyed smith like you must have noticed our little tricks early on. Probably from the moment I intentionally prevented Leon from speaking to you, you guessed what we were up to.

You were probably upset that we didn’t trust you, borrowing your coffin without telling you, so you held back one anomalous item, planning to play a little joke on us, right?”

“Yes, yes, yes! That’s exactly what I meant!”

Eagerly accepting the Red-haired Bureau Director’s provided excuse, the square-headed old man slid down smoothly and sighed in relief before awkwardly confessing,

“That… I actually enjoy guiding juniors, it’s just that my mood has been a bit off these past seven or eight years.

Mainly because this generation’s Taurus’ forging skills are just average. I originally thought that once she grew old and died, losing the Star Palace’s enhancement, I could duel her soul to prove who the best smith is.

But unexpectedly, she actually ascended to the Star Palace, leaving me no chance to compete, so… uh… I’ve been feeling a bit uncomfortable, thinking about making things a little difficult for you… cough cough… forget it, let’s not talk about this anymore.”

Muddling through this topic vaguely, the square-headed old man turned red-faced to Leon and said, “That… since I have the furnace here, why don’t you just forge an anomalous item right now, and I’ll give you some proper guidance?”

(End of Chapter)