Deputy Director, Where's My Barrett Cannon? Hurry Up and Build It!

While the other Soul Arena Beasts were handing over their duties, You Chen walked straight into the research institute.

He went directly to the deputy director he had appointed and tossed him a ring-shaped Storage Soul Tool: "Lin Zhi, this is a record of the Black Fire Crossbow's performance data from this trip. It's all in here."

"Yes, Chief."

The young man called Lin Zhi, whose head was noticeably larger than average and appeared somewhat bloated, simply nodded blankly as if accepting the storage ring, looking rather dazed and silly.

But You Chen knew that this guy's Wisdom God Position in some areas was by no means inferior to his own!

Lin Zhi is 18 years old this year, Martial Soul Wisdom Forest Owl.

What exactly is this Wisdom Forest Owl? You can simply understand it as a "clever owl".

Their most prominent strength or characteristic is their extraordinary intelligence and mental strength.

Before You Chen helped him solve the problem of the beast transformation mutation, Lin Zhi's head was so big it was almost frightening, and even his daily life was obviously affected.

Even after he was able to cultivate normally and his symptoms were greatly reduced, his brain was still significantly more affected than that of an ordinary person. This impact on his mobility made it difficult for Lin Zhi to achieve great things in the field of Battle Soul Master.

Lin Zhi is 18 years old, which is considered one of the older ones among the Soul Arena Beasts.

However, considering his relatively advanced age, even after investing a significant amount of cultivation resources, his Soul Power Level has only just reached level 33. While this seems quite good, it's the result of a massive influx of resources—no less than You Chen's previous investment—yet he's only reached this level. Any normal investor would feel that the return is insufficient.

However, You Chen didn't care about Lin Zhi's combat strength. Improving his cultivation level would only raise the upper limit of the mental power he could normally bear, indirectly improving his research ability.

The fact is, without Lin Zhi's help, You Chen wouldn't have been able to develop the Black Firearm in such a short time, given that his energy was spread across multiple projects.

Next, You Chen plans to entrust the subsequent development of the Black Firearm entirely to Lin Zhi, while he will devote his time and energy to the development of the Two-Ring Borrowing Method of Soul Power Borrowing Method.

"How is it? Although it's just the most rudimentary Black Firearm, it has already proven that it has the ability to kill Soul Emperor and even Soul Sage." You Chen praised Lin Zhi as he reviewed the data.

In a sense, Lin Zhi is half the biological father of the Black Fire Crossbow.

Despite You Chen's exaggerated praise, Lin Zhi remained calm and composed, saying, "The bearing design cannot withstand the impact of the crossbow bolts; the wear is too severe. After two reloadings, a Black Fire Crossbow risks exploding upon further use. In other words, after six shots, it's basically unusable. Its efficiency... is too low."

Don't worry about it too much.

You Chen patted Lin Zhi on the shoulder. Even though Lin Zhi's tone was indifferent, You Chen had spent many years with the original Soul Arena Beasts and treated them like his own children. He could clearly see the hidden disappointment in Lin Zhi's voice.

He comforted you, saying, "To be honest, this thing is just a transitional piece of equipment for you to practice with and test its feasibility. Take a look at this."

As he spoke, You Chen handed over a stack of brand-new blueprints.

That was the initial draft of Black Firearm designed based on the structure of a modern rifle.

At first glance, Lin Zhi was captivated by the ingenious mechanical structure. Forgetting all about politeness, he grabbed the blueprints You Chen handed him and began examining them rapidly.

With Lin Zhi's incredibly fast thinking speed, he completed the initial browsing in just a few minutes.

He suddenly looked up, his gaze towards You Chen as if he were facing a god. "Leader, these... you designed them all? I will definitely do my best to help you bring them into this world!"

"No, it won't be us together anymore, it'll be you. Lin Zhi, from now on, you will be in charge of developing all of these things."

"Um?"

Lin Zhi rarely showed a look of panic, waving his hands repeatedly. "No, I can't do it! Without you as the original designer, if I were to develop it myself, it would definitely lead to errors—"

"It seems you still don't have a clear understanding of your own abilities."

You Chen interrupted Lin Zhi, saying, "Lin Zhi, you're great in every way, but you have one problem—you lack confidence!"

Upon hearing this, Lin Zhi merely murmured and remained silent. Clearly, even if You Chen said that, his mind wouldn't change.

You Chen was neither discouraged nor helpless. He simply smiled and patted Lin Zhi on the shoulder, saying, "If you can't believe in yourself, then believe in me! Lin Zhi, I believe you have that ability!"

"'Believe in me, believe in yourself'..."

Upon hearing this, Lin Zhi was briefly dazed. Coming back to his senses and seeing You Chen's encouraging gaze, he finally nodded forcefully. "Chief, although I still don't think I'm qualified, I will... I will try my best! I will, and I believe in you!"

"Haha, that's way too convoluted! How could an average person understand what you're saying?"

Looking at Lin Zhi's wooden yet determined appearance, You Chen couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Then, with a serious expression, he instructed, "You should have already reviewed the blueprints I sent you. All the other 'firearms' can be put aside for now. First, get that 'Barrett Sniper Rifle' out of the way! Don't worry about cost or consumables; I only ask that you produce a qualified product within three years if possible! Can you do that?"

"'Barrett Sniper Rifle'..."

Lin Zhi suddenly recalled the design drawings he had just browsed, his pupils contracted, and he abruptly pulled one out from the stack of drawings.

He carefully traced the lines of text with his fingers, muttering to himself in shock, "I knew it. This is... this thing is the ultimate weapon designed to assassinate Titled Douluo- level powerhouse!"

Later, Lin Zhi imagined an ordinary Soul Master Barrett rifle to shoot down a supreme Titled Douluo, and he couldn't help but feel fear, trembling, and... a restless urge to do the same!

My hands are shaking!

His hands, holding the blueprints, trembled violently!

It was as if what he held in his hand was not a thin piece of paper, but a time bomb that was about to explode at any moment!

"Ultimate weapon?"

You Chen shook his head, too lazy to explain further.

After all, for a Soul Elder, a weapon capable of killing Titled Douluo can indeed be called "ultimate".

So he simply asked, "Are you confident?"

Lin Zhi swallowed hard, instinctively wanting to say "no" as usual, but recalling You Chen's trusting gaze just now, he finally gritted his teeth and nodded, saying, "I'll try my best!"