Becoming a master started with manually rubbing the control panel.

Chapter 026 Gathering Information

Less than three seconds after the message was sent, Shangguan Ling's reply arrived:

You succeeded? So quickly?

Immediately following was another message: 【I'm heading out now! See you at the usual spot!】

"The young rich woman is still as impatient as ever."

Lin Bei made a sarcastic comment and replied with an "OK" emoji.

He changed his clothes, carefully placed the carved star-patterned stone close to his body, and went outside the kitchen to greet his mother, who was preparing lunch.

"Mom, I'm going out for a bit. I won't be home for lunch."

"Why aren't you eating at home all of a sudden? I've already prepared the food."

"A classmate invited me out, I have something to do."

"Then be careful on your way home, and remember to come back early... By the way, son, was it a male or female classmate who invited you?"

"..."

Lin Bei pretended not to hear and dashed out of the house.

When he arrived at the milk tea shop...

A silver-gray flying car descended from the sky and landed steadily in a parking space on the side of the road.

The car door lifted upwards.

A beautiful young woman wearing a white T-shirt jumped out of the driver's seat; it was Shangguan Ling.

She spotted Lin Bei standing by the roadside at a glance, quickly walked up to him, and said impatiently, "Where's the stuff? Let me see it quickly."

"Right here?"

Lin Bei gestured to his surroundings with his eyes.

Shangguan Ling then noticed that many passersby were looking in their direction, and she stuck out her tongue somewhat embarrassedly.

"I was in such a rush. You haven't eaten yet, have you? How about we find a restaurant and eat while we talk?"

"Can."

Lin Bei nodded.

After wandering around for a while, the two finally went into a steak restaurant.

"Two tomahawk steaks, medium-rare, please."

After placing the order.

Shangguan Ling stretched out her small hand to Lin Bei across from her.

Without saying a word, Lin Bei took out the star-patterned stone from his pocket and placed it in her palm.

"What a nice view!"

Shangguan Ling's gaze was instantly drawn to it.

The star-patterned stone was already beautiful enough before it was processed, but after Lin Bei's meticulous micro-carving, its surface gained a warm silver halo, making it look even more magnificent.

After admiring it for a while, Shangguan Ling closed her eyes and sent a wisp of her spiritual energy into it.

Three minutes later.

She suddenly opened her eyes, her gaze filled with surprise and astonishment. "It's perfect! Exactly the same as my design!"

Lin Bei smiled but didn't say anything.

While carving last night, he discovered several obvious flaws in the design, which could be further optimized.

However, he did not overstep his bounds.

Instead, it was sculpted to be 100% accurate based on the design drawings provided by Shangguan Ling.

The final result was exactly the same as the design drawing.

"How did you do that?"

Shangguan Ling turned her gaze to Lin Bei and exclaimed, "Your skills are almost on par with those of a professional mental sculptor!"

"Perhaps... I have a special talent."

Lin Bei shrugged.

"Tch, you're getting all worked up over just a couple of compliments."

Shangguan Ling was sharp-tongued, but she couldn't hide the smile on her face. "I've come to the right person! Oh, by the way, I'll transfer the money to you now."

She took out her phone and transferred 5000 yuan to Lin Bei in person.

Lin Bei tapped the payment button and said with a smile, "Thank you, little...boss."

"Why are you being so polite with me?"

Shangguan Ling held the star-patterned stone in both hands and said with a grin, "Speaking of which, I'm the one who benefited from you."

Seeing the puzzled look on Lin Bei's face.

She explained, "You don't know this, do you? According to market rates, hiring a master micro-sculptor to work on this star-patterned stone would cost at least 20,000 yuan, and you have to make an appointment in advance."

"So expensive!"

Lin Bei was somewhat moved.

The total time he spent carving this star-patterned stone was only about eight hours.

This was his first time doing it, so he wasn't very skilled.

If you get the hang of it, your efficiency can more than double, and you can probably finish it in three or four hours.

"In the entire city of Haicheng, with a population of over 20 million, there are fewer than 20 certified micro-sculptors. Moreover, most of them do not accept orders from the public."

Shangguan Ling sighed softly, "I had already made an appointment with one of the junior mental sculptors, but... I was stood up."

Upon hearing this, Lin Bei raised an eyebrow. "A mere junior mental micro-sculptor dares to act so arrogantly?"

"Why wouldn't I dare? Even my mother has to be very polite to them."

Shangguan Ling curled her lips, her gaze falling on Lin Bei's face. Suddenly, her eyes lit up, "Once you become a mental micro-sculptor, you can also act like a big shot at will."

"I?"

Lin Bei was taken aback at first, then tentatively asked, "Do you think I can do it?"

"Of course."

Shangguan Ling held up the star-patterned stone with both hands. "Facts speak louder than words. This is the best proof."

"But……"

Lin Bei shook his head. "I've heard that the threshold for becoming a mental micro-sculptor is very high, and I don't have any connections in that field."

"That is a problem."

Shangguan Ling frowned. "To become a formal mental micro-sculptor, you must pass the certification exam. Otherwise, you can only be a wild mental micro-sculptor, secretly taking on some side jobs... Not only will you not earn much money, but you'll also get into trouble if the Mental Micro-Sculptor Association finds out."

"What's the trouble?"

"Ban!"

Shangguan Ling said with a serious expression, "Once a ban is issued, you will never be able to join the Spiritual Micro-Sculptor Association again. Moreover, all companies or jewelry stores that cooperate with the association will sever ties with them. Even worse, you may face legal action."

"Playing the monopoly game this ruthlessly..."

"That's how ruthless they are."

Shangguan Ling lowered her voice and said, "This industry is very complicated. When I enrolled in a class to learn mental micro-sculpting, my mother advised me against it."

At this point, she shook her head dejectedly, "It turned out my mother was right. I really don't have a talent for mental sculpting, but you—"

Shangguan Ling stared at Lin Bei with her beautiful eyes, "Your talent in mental micro-sculpting is simply...monster-like."

"What's the use of being talented? You can't put food on the table."

Lin Bei then added, asking Shangguan Ling, "Do you have any connections in this area?"

"I don't."

Shangguan Ling first shook her head, then changed the subject: "However, my mother has a lot of connections, maybe she has some way in this area. I'll ask her for you when we get back."

"Okay, thanks."

Lin Bei felt a warmth in his heart.

Although we haven't seen each other for many years, the young rich woman is still as loyal as ever.

After eating the steak.

The two chatted about embarrassing things that happened when they were young, as well as their current situations.

Lin Bei then learned that Shangguan Ling was actually studying at Qing Teng High School, which was ranked first in Haicheng.

"Congratulations."

Lin Bei said sincerely, "I didn't expect you to go to Qing Teng High School."

"Sigh, it's all because my mom forced me to do this."

Shangguan Ling looked as if she couldn't bear to recall the past. Her gaze fell on Lin Bei, and she said with a regretful tone, "If you hadn't contracted that strange illness back then, and your spiritual talent was still there, you should have been able to enter Qing Teng."

Upon hearing this...

Lin Bei simply smiled.

If we lose our horses, we can't know what a blessing is.

Compared to the [panel] I created myself, what is Qing Teng High School?