Marvellous Old Deng was lounging on the sofa with his feet up, snoring loudly, making people want to kick him off the floor.
anwhile, Aunt White Owl remained seated in her spot, spreading a piece of velvet cloth on the table before her, holding her tools, and ticulously caring for the parts in her hand.
It was a handgun.
After being maintained, the many components on the velvet cloth reflected the morning sun's rays, sparkling brightly.
This made Ji Jue stop in his tracks, unable to avert his eyes.
At best, it could be described as skillful and ticulous; Ji Jue could do such maintenance too, but it would never have this kind of feel.
As if gently stroking a pet, as carefully as attending to a baby, yet also like ticulously trimming one's nails, maintaining a part of one's body.
A companion, a peer, even a lover.
Without the need for chanical Descent, Ji Jue could hear the soft hymns emanating from the assembled parts, filled with love and trust, deeply loving its owner.
Ji Jue had never thought he would one day perceive such pure love and trust from other tools.
"It's like raising a child with your own hands."
Ji Jue sighed lightly.
"Hmm?" White Owl laughed and said, "Ah Xuan also said sothing similar, but I honestly don't feel it. I just purely like it, nothing so profound."
"That's what makes it precious."
Ji Jue replied, not voicing the unspoken… because that's what's frightening!
At that mont, what Ji Jue perceived from her aura was the ultimate, Ascension!
With rely one's love and hate, she endowed a handgun with such miraculous characteristics; it was rely liking and dedication that elevated a mundane item to a miracle.
Without this, how could she have created such exaggerated feats from so far away?
"Did you sense it?" White Owl laughed, saying nothing more, and looked at the case in his hand: "The item, is it ready?"
"Ready, yes, but among these weapons, I can't really pick the best."
Ji Jue put down the briefcase and slowly said, "As the client, why not choose based on your preference, so no matter which one you pick, at least it's agreeable to the eye, isn't it?"
The case opened, and three well-maintained rifles ca into view.
To be fair, they were purely weapons, disregarding the demands for absolute precision and processing precision, without showing anything miraculous.
But just looking at them, it stirred one's heart.
The instinctive perception told everyone who saw it what it ans to be flawless!
Initial processing, fine processing, running-in, balancing, Integration, followed by spiritual nourishnt with Fluid Alchemy; even the smoothness of the final anti-rust coating had achieved a nanoter level.
Flawless.
He had done his utmost, no, surpassed limits, ensuring precision, perfectly eting the client's requirents.
The only drawback was... of the three, only one was truly complete.
The other two had, more or less, so flaws.
The question was, can you really tell the difference?
"A challenge?"
White Owl's smile beca increasingly joyful, grinning: "No wonder Ah Xuan's student... Back then, your teacher also played the sa ga with ."
Ji Jue was montarily stunned and then watched her extend her hand, her fingers sweeping over the three rifles: "Hmm, the most effort is in this one, possibly the first product, but unfortunately, it still has quite a few flaws. The second one, hmm, not bad, just a bit of an issue with running-in, so is it the third one? Unfortunately, no, the third is the most balanced, neither excellent nor bad, yet still not it.
So—"
In the crisp sound of snapping, White Owl casually disassembled the three rifles into fragnts, then reassembled them from scratch.
In the end, the only complete piece mixed in among the three appeared in front of Ji Jue, not a bit off!
It made Ji Jue fall silent for a mont.
Words failed him.
"How did you see it?"
If Ji Jue wasn't the maker, he probably wouldn't be able to instantly discern which piece and part was truly exquisite.
"Intuition, these things, just go by feel, haha, you craftsn can't understand, can you?"
White Owl chuckled faintly, stroking the weapon in her hands, lost in enchantnt: "What a beautiful little thing... a bit temperantal, always hungry, but rare in its obedience and cleverness, overall perfectly eting the requirents, excellent, very excellent, exceeding my expectations."
"Only eting the requirents?" Ji Jue asked back.
"Depends on the reference point, right?"
White Owl placed the weapon back into the case, "Though I'd love to praise you, compared to Ah Xuan, there's still substantial room for progress."
She pondered for a mont, decisively stating: "At your pace, in ten, no, five years, I probably won't be able to tell at all, will I?"
Ji Jue nodded calmly.
That composed deanor made White Owl slightly surprised:
"You're not even a bit dissatisfied?"
Ji Jue retorted: "As a student, being compared to the teacher, isn't that the best honor and praise?"
"..." White Owl was silent for a mont, shaking her head: "That's one thing unlike Ah Xuan."
"There's no need for everything to be identical, even between teacher and student, is there?"
"Hmm, true." White Owl clapped the case in her hand, her smile suddenly turned mischievous: "However, since you know who I am, and still gave this item, it ans you're sowhat prepared in your heart, aren't you?"
"As a craftsman, completing the client's order and requests is all that matters, other matters are unrelated to ."
Ji Jue picked up a cup of cold strong tea, drinking it all down, indifferent.
Anyone who could enter the workshop was a client acknowledged by Ji Jue.
Clients wanted guns, he made guns; as for who the gun intended to kill, it didn't matter.
Anyone could die!
Looking across the current White Country, whoever had the qualification to be aid at by this gun, Ji Jue would want to light firecrackers and open champagne, no matter who died.
His only regret was that this rifle was a semi-automatic weapon, and the output wasn't enough; if possible, he'd want to include a water-cooled machine gun!
After all, from the Federation to the Empire and then to the Desert Market, they were all a bunch of goddamn scum, may they all just die die die die die!!!!
"Indeed, a Mohist."
White Owl grinned, shouldering the case, kicking the snoring Old Deng awake, "Ti to go."
It was only when she was pushing the door open that she ca back to her senses, slapped her forehead, and looked back at Ji Jue: "As a craftsman, at the very least, give your work a na.
Even if it can't be called alchemy work, so effort was put in, wasn't it?"
"..."
Ji Jue was silent, scratching his head, self-deprecating with a smile: "I'm really not good at this kind of thing, better leave it be."
"Just think of one, anything is fine!" White Owl urged: "At least give yourself a bit of participation."
This participation, better leave it?
Ji Jue sighed, thought for a long ti, "Then let's call it 'Chekov'."
White Owl was montarily confused, seemingly surprised: "Didn't expect you're a fan of drama."
"The designer of the B89 model was nad that." Ji Jue laughed: "Isn't it a coincidence?"
"Indeed."
White Owl nodded, pushed the door, and left.
In drama theory, if a story begins with a gun, then it must fire before the end.
This is the Chekov's Gun.
And what's more coincidental, in the sa drama theory, if this gun that determines the outco did not appear at the start of the story... then its na is called, chanical Descent!
No matter which, there will be a gunshot.
Because soone is going to die.
"Damn nice."
Ji Jue set down the empty teacup, looking out at the sky; a fighter jet sped across the sonic boom, unending.
Carrying the winds of war, headed to faraway places.
Boom!!!
In the distance, amidst the thunderous explosion, rising again were the smoke and flas of Hell in the endless sandstorm.
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