Are you sure you don't know the first thing about it?

"How about..."

"I wait outside until you've finished discussing things?"

Chu Ge looked at the two people before him, his face carrying a barely suppressed smile as he asked softly.

He really hadn't expected to arrive at such a convenient moment.

"Well..."

Xian Lin'er fell silent, embarrassment written all over her face. For a moment, she couldn't find the words. It felt like she had been caught red-handed talking about someone behind their back.

The comparison wasn't entirely apt, but the embarrassment was much the same.

Beside her, Fan Yu reacted even more strongly. He stood rooted to the spot, looking little different from Zhou Yi when she had learned of Chu Ge's strength.

Clearly, there was a reason those two had become husband and wife.

"I'll step outside..."

Without waiting for Fan Yu or the awkward-looking Xian Lin'er to respond, Chu Ge shook his head and withdrew on his own, a faint smile on his face.

Honestly.

Plot away if you like, but how did you let the very person you were plotting about overhear you?

Caught between laughter and tears, he couldn't help thinking this.

He had to admit that their idea was sound: first, have the teacher who had done wrong come over and apologize-and apologize properly, with sincerity...

As for the plans that followed, although he hadn't had a chance to hear them, they were probably quite feasible. After all, they had been proposed by the dean of the Soul Tool Department.

But all of it had fallen apart the moment he overheard them. He hadn't expected to stumble upon something like this, either.

"All settled now?"

Before long, Chu Ge walked back inside.

Looking at the still somewhat awkward Xian Lin'er and Fan Yu, who sat stiffly upright, he spoke with a calm expression.

"Yes."

"Well, about what happened earlier..."

With an embarrassed look, Xian Lin'er nodded slightly and prepared to speak.

Her thinking was simple. Since he had already seen through them, she might as well tell him everything outright and spare herself any further concealment.

"There's no need to say anything more about Zhou Yi. She isn't worth my attention, and I didn't come here to discuss her with you."

Chu Ge cut her off and spoke slowly.

An apology from Zhou Yi...

How would that be any different from crocodile tears?

That woman, who had no drive to better herself, had already wasted time by picking on Yudie. He didn't want her wasting another moment in front of him.

"Mm..."

"That's true."

Hearing this, Xian Lin'er nodded thoughtfully. To a Titled Douluo, a useless person like Zhou Yi was nothing more than a clown capering about. Naturally, he wouldn't pay her much attention.

Of course, there was another possibility: she could have provoked a powerful expert and been killed in a single move. Clearly, Zhou Yi hadn't been quite that unlucky.

"May I ask what brings you here, my friend?"

Xian Lin'er asked.

"My name is Chu Ge. I only came to borrow a workshop in the Soul Tool Department. There's no need to be so nervous, Dean Xian."

Chu Ge spoke slowly, his expression composed.

He was only here to borrow something. Why be so frightened, as though he were some terrifying monster?

"Borrow a workshop?"

Hearing those words, Xian Lin'er froze.

Fan Yu beside her did the same. Clearly, he hadn't expected such a request. Could Chu Ge be planning to make a Soul Tool?

"Your Excellency, you know how to make Soul Tools as well?"

Surprised, Fan Yu couldn't help asking. Xian Lin'er was clearly very interested in the answer, too.

This was a big deal.

If a Titled Douluo at the academy also focused on developing Soul Tools, the benefits to their Soul Tool Department would be unimaginable.

If someone like him could join the Soul Tool Department later, it would not only resolve their earlier unpleasantness but also take the department to a whole new level.

"No, I'm just interested."

"I only want to give it a try."

Chu Ge shook his head and replied casually.

Did he know how to make Soul Tools? He most certainly did not.

But now, he could give it a try.

And the inexplicable confidence in his heart told him that his chances might not be low at all.

"Mm-hmm."

"Come with me."

Xian Lin'er paused at his answer, but she didn't particularly mind. She smiled slightly as she spoke.

If he wanted to try, she would simply take him there. He only wanted to use a workshop, after all. As dean of the Soul Tool Department, that was no trouble for her at all.

"This is where I usually make Soul Tools. Have a look and see what you think."

Upon arriving in a high-tech workshop, Xian Lin'er introduced it with a smile. She had brought him to her own usual workshop, a sign of the importance she placed on this Titled Douluo.

"Hmm..."

Chu Ge had been worried about his lack of experience, and as he approached Xian Lin'er's workshop, he had still felt somewhat nervous.

Yet when he reached the piles of metal nearby, his eyes instantly lit up. It felt as though these materials would respond effortlessly in his hands.

A simple thought surfaced in his mind: I've got this.

Designs for all sorts of advanced Soul Tools lay scattered across the workbench, including quite a few of the seventh and eighth classes. Among them, a blueprint titled Infinity Edge caught his eye.

It was a sixth-class Soul Tool.

Its wielder could inflict immense damage, and it even incorporated a luck attribute, giving the wielder a chance of landing a critical hit. It was a fine close-combat Soul Tool.

Yet as he looked at this admittedly detailed blueprint, he felt that it still had plenty of room for improvement...

"Dean Xian, could you lend me an engraving knife?"

His gaze settled on Xian Lin'er, and he held out his hand as he asked with a smile.

"Of course. Here."

Xian Lin'er wasn't surprised. She casually took an engraving knife out of her Soul Tool and handed it to him as naturally as could be.

He had already said he was only here to try. How much could he possibly know about Soul Tools? She had long since prepared herself for that.

The fact that Chu Ge even knew he needed an engraving knife to make a soul-guiding array platform had already surprised her.

"Next..."

"Let's begin the experiment... let's give it a try."

An unusual gleam flickered in Chu Ge's eyes. Holding the engraving knife, he looked down at the workbench before him. The outline of the Soul Tool he had just seen took shape in his vision, and a smile appeared on his face.

It was a confident smile.

Even he didn't know how this first attempt would turn out, but he had a feeling it wouldn't be too bad...

Under Xian Lin'er's calm gaze, Chu Ge began engraving his first Core Array-the Core Array for the Infinity Edge.

And this array, which should by all rights have been an utter mess, brought a look of astonishment to her face.

"This..."

"How can he make such a finely detailed core?"

She stared intently at the scene before her, her mouth falling open as she couldn't help speaking. He was supposed to know absolutely nothing about Soul Tools, but did this look like ignorance?

Such practiced engraving, such precise knife work... and he called this not knowing the first thing about it?

The Infinity Edge's core might not have been especially complicated, but it was still far beyond anything an ordinary creation could compare with. Even she firmly believed that.

Yet right now, why did it feel as though he understood this Soul Tool better than she did?

(End of chapter)