Magnifying Glass!? No, Check Out the Sunlight Cheat!

Lin Xia's heart leaped with joy as he led Bulbasaur inside.

The air was thick with the smell of old dust, mirror metal, and faint medicinal potion.

There was only one person in the shop: an elderly craftsman with graying hair and a monocle, carefully polishing a lens in his hand with a whetstone.

Hearing someone enter, he did not even raise his head.

"Feel free to look around, customer."

Lin Xia did not waste time admiring the finished products. He went straight to the counter and got right to the point.

"Sir, do you have any unpolished, flat, transparent lens materials? Preferably pure crystal or transparent quartz, with a suitable size and thickness."

The old craftsman finally looked up, adjusting his monocle as his somewhat cloudy eyes examined the young man before him. Lin Xia wore a brand-new Spirit Hall deacon's robe, yet carried an unusually calm, even faintly cold aura. At his feet stood a strange frog-like spirit beast he had never seen before, with a seed growing from its back.

Both this combination and the blunt request were clearly unusual.

Still, someone who had attained the status of a Spirit Hall deacon at such a young age could not possibly have ordinary talent. The old man immediately set down his work.

"Unpolished materials?"

"I do have some. There are a few cut crystal blanks piled up in the back courtyard. But what do you need them for, customer? We have ready-made mirrors in the shop..."

"What I need is material that can transmit and focus light, not something for making mirrors."

Lin Xia calmly interrupted him and pointed at the blanks.

"Could you bring them out for me to see? I need the type with the best light transmission."

The old craftsman was even more puzzled, but he still nodded and turned to lift the curtain leading to the back courtyard.

Before long, he returned carrying a small stack of translucent crystal sheets. Their surfaces were rough and their edges irregular, but their interiors were relatively clear. He spread them across the counter.

Lin Xia picked up one of the sheets and carefully examined it beneath one of the brighter lights in the shop.

He adjusted its angle and focused, sensing the subtle refraction and focusing effect produced as light passed through the crystal.

Though the uneven surface of the blank hindered its light transmission, the texture and thickness of the material were exactly what he needed.

Bulbasaur curiously leaned closer as well, its large red eyes staring at the blurry refracted light within the crystal sheet.

"Bulba?"

"That's right. This is the kind."

Lin Xia set down the crystal sheet, certain now, and looked at the old craftsman.

"Sir, I'd like to buy several of these materials—preferably about the size of Bulbasaur. Also, could you polish a special... device according to my requirements?"

"A special device?"

The old craftsman frowned.

"Yes, I want a... magnifying glass."

Lin Xia chose his words carefully. Such a name clearly did not exist on the Douluo Continent.

"A magnifying glass?"

The old craftsman looked utterly baffled.

"A mirror? A mirror that magnifies? Wouldn't that be a funhouse mirror?"

"Not the kind that changes the shape of things."

Lin Xia patiently explained, gesturing as he spoke.

"I mean a convex lens, something with the curve of a flattened sphere."

Lin Xia made an arcing gesture with both hands before him.

"Convex? Light-transmitting?"

The old craftsman fell into thought.

"A little like the lenses used for presbyopia?"

"Yes! Similar to reading glasses!"

Lin Xia's eyes lit up. Since the old craftsman had experience, this would be much easier.

"But the curve needs to be greater, and its ability to focus light needs to be stronger. The lens surface must also be extremely smooth and flat, without impurities."

"Its purpose is not to help people see small print clearly. It is to gather sunlight or intense light at a single point, making the heat or energy at that point extremely high."

Lin Xia picked up a crystal blank and walked to the entrance, where sunlight shone directly into the shop.

He tilted the crystal sheet toward the sunlight. Though its rough surface scattered the light badly, it still formed a faint patch of light on the ground that was brighter than the original beam.

"Look. If the surface is polished smooth enough and shaped into a convex curve, it can concentrate this patch of light into something very small and very bright. The temperature will be extremely high as well."

The old craftsman stared at the blurry patch of light on the ground, and his eyes gradually brightened.

He had made mirrors all his life and polished countless lenses, yet he had never considered that a lens's light-focusing ability could be used to amplify light.

He picked up a crystal sheet and held it toward the sunlight, his mind rapidly calculating the curve and focal point.

"Mm... mm... I understand now!"

The old craftsman suddenly slapped his thigh, and his cloudy eyes burst with the excitement of a craftsman discovering a new technique.

"You want to make something that concentrates sunlight into a single point, as scorching as a core flame! Brilliant! What an ingenious idea! Customer, what do you plan to use this for...?"

Lin Xia did not explain its purpose further. He merely nodded in confirmation.

"Yes. So the lens curve must be precisely designed, the polishing must be perfectly smooth and free of marks, and the higher its light transmission, the better. Also, I need a sturdy metal bracket that will not deform, so it can be fixed onto Bulbasaur's back and its angle can be adjusted easily. Can you make that?"

"I can!"

The old craftsman patted his chest, his face full of eagerness.

"I've polished lenses my entire life, but I've never made a Sun-Gathering Mirror like this!"

"Don't worry, leave it to me! Give me two days, and I'll make it exactly as you requested. I guarantee you'll be satisfied!"

"As for these crystal sheets... I'll pick out the two best blanks for you. Leave the rest to me!"

He pointed at the remaining blanks.

A weight lifted from Lin Xia's heart, and he readily paid the deposit—thanks to the gifts his colleagues had given him upon meeting.

Lin Xia carefully wrapped up the two crystal sheets with the best light transmission and took them with him as well, so he would have backups in case anything went wrong later.

The transaction concluded pleasantly, and the old craftsman even gave Lin Xia a small piece of low-quality scrap material to test with.

After bidding farewell to the energized old craftsman, Lin Xia left the dim mirror shop with Bulbasaur and returned to the sunny yet potentially dangerous streets of Star Luo City.

He weighed the rough lens in his hand, feeling its heft as anticipation flashed through his mismatched eyes.

With this magnifying glass that the old craftsman had called a "Sun-Gathering Mirror," combined with his understanding of how Bulbasaur absorbed life energy, a crude yet potentially highly effective Sunlight Cheat training plan had already taken shape in his mind.

As long as Bulbasaur could safely and steadily absorb the concentrated sunlight energy, its cultivation speed might increase by a great deal.

The future was unknown, but the thought of using knowledge from his previous life to create tools also made Lin Xia feel somewhat proud.

"Bulbasaur."

Lin Xia lowered his head to look at his companion faithfully following at his feet and spoke softly.

"Our current conditions may be crude, but paths are made by those who walk them. In the future, I'll definitely create better cultivation conditions for you."

"Bulba!"

Sensing the seriousness in Lin Xia's heart, Bulbasaur nodded vigorously. The miraculous seed on its back seemed to reflect an even more lustrous glow beneath the light.