Ordinary observers in fast time travel

Shi Jia picked up the stone he had been looking at for a while, raised it above his head, and the glow of the setting sun shone on it, casting a faint blue hue on the stone's weakest point.

"This stone? Mineral pigment?" Orange couldn't help but reach out and pry at the stone.

Shi Jia dodged, placed the stone on the ground, picked up another stone, and threw it down. With a "bang!", the two stones bounced off, but neither damaged the stone's surface.

Shi Jia frowned, then picked up the stone again and slammed it down hard. "Bang!" This time the stone shattered at its weakest point, but it was still just a dusty, gray stone.

He picked up the stone again and started smashing it, several times in a row, attracting the attention of Lu Tianxue and the others. The stone that he had identified as mineral pigment did not crack at all; instead, it became smooth and round.

"How about I smash it for you?" Dai Yuxuan couldn't stand it anymore.

Shi Jia nodded and handed him the stone. "Bang, bang, bang!" The stone shattered into pieces, its grayish-white interior revealing Shi Jia's misjudgment.

"Huh? It's just a rock. I knew mineral pigments weren't like cabbages, you can't just pick them up anywhere." Cheng Zi was a little disappointed, but when she saw Shi Jia's expression, she quickly comforted him, "Ahem, junior, don't be sad. After all, we didn't come out to look for mineral pigments. Finding a rock is a bonus. If we don't find any, don't be discouraged."

"I'm fine." Shi Jia shook her head, but still stubbornly rummaged through the shattered stones. There was definitely mineral pigment in there!
Why was he so certain? It was because he sensed the energy fluctuations. Although extremely faint, his intuition was unmistakable.

He took out his easel, summoned his brush, and with two quick strokes, a sharp hammer appeared on the paper. A touch of the brush tip, and a burst of colorful light erupted. A delicate, pointed hammer rested in his hand.

The crowd looked at him, some feeling reluctant to advise him. They had been to the Black Zone at least fifty times, if not a hundred, but had never found a single piece of mineral pigment. How could they possibly find mineral pigment while trying to escape with their lives?
Of course, they wouldn't know that some people find mineral pigments on their first trip to the black zone and discover rich deposits on their second trip.

And this person was their new teammate. Shi Jia was currently hammering a rock.

"Huh? What's this!" Shi Jia carefully picked up a sesame-sized blue grain of sand with one finger.

He examined the stone for a while, then took out a plate and carefully placed it on the plate. He then hurriedly picked up a small hammer and began to tap the stone.

His movements caught Cheng Zi's attention. "Huh? Blue gravel? Mineral pigment? Did you find it among the rubble?"

"Yes, there's more in here!" He could still sense energy!

"I'll help you!"

"Okay, Orange, you can knock on this one." Shi Jia picked up a piece of gravel and threw it over.

Cheng Zi quickly took it, "Junior? Where's the hammer?"

“Draw it yourself.” Shi Jia didn’t even look up; he had just discovered another blue sesame seed.

Cheng Zi was both amused and exasperated. "I'm not a spirit weapon master."

"It's not a magical artifact, why would it need a magical artifact craftsman?" Shi Jia said casually. Can't anyone just draw something like this, even a single-use item?

Cheng Zi looked puzzled. "This hammer isn't a spiritual weapon, but it still falls under the category of a weapon. I'm a cultivator, junior. Did you not learn the basics well? You don't even understand such a simple question?" she teased.

Shi Jia looked up, somewhat surprised, but quickly concealed it, "Sorry, I cultivate all four paths, so Senior Sister Wang only knows techniques."

Cheng Zi glared at him. "How can you talk like that?"

"Then wait a moment, senior."

"why?"

"The hammer in my hand will disappear in half an hour, then I'll draw it for you together."

"Disappeared?" Cheng Zi seemed to have heard a new word.

Shi Jia, engrossed in tapping the stones, didn't hear anything. At that moment, she spotted another blue pebble, quickly picked it up with her fingertip, and placed it in a small dish.

"What did you say?"

"What disappeared?" Chengzi asked.

"This hammer? I just drew it randomly, I didn't use any mineral pigments, it won't last long. Don't you know that, senior?" Shi Jia ignored her and continued hammering the ore. Cheng Zi opened her mouth wide and looked at Liu Zhan, "Ah Zhan? Is that so?"

Liu Zhan shook his head. A painter can't create anything beyond the initial image without mineral pigments. He had assumed Shi Jia had painted the hammer with mineral pigments, so he hadn't paid much attention.

Of course, it doesn't mean that it's impossible to create something out of thin air, but rather that the artist must be at least at the purple rank.

Liu Zhan and the others exchanged glances, all seeing shock in each other's eyes. Attention then turned to Shi Jia.

He was so engrossed in the joy of finding the mineral pigments that he didn't notice their gazes.

Half an hour later, they stared wide-eyed as the hammer disappeared, which finally caught Shi Jia's attention. "Why are you all so surprised? Could it be that... such a thing didn't happen?"

Shi Jia was somewhat surprised and regretted her carelessness.

“Well, junior Shi Jia, we’ve never heard of anything a painter can conjure up disappearing, nor have we ever heard of painters below the purple rank being able to create things out of thin air.” Liu Zhan looked at Shi Jia with a complicated expression.

"Junior, you are special."

Shi Jia forced a smile. "Is that so? Perhaps such people exist, but you just don't know it."

"Impossible!" Lu Tianxue said firmly.

"Really? Has the captain read the family histories of those big families in the Blue, Green, and Purple zones?" Shi Jia raised an eyebrow. "Nothing in the world can exist in isolation. Since someone like me has appeared, it means that there are many similar beings in places you don't know about."

Everyone was taken aback by what he said, but it made a lot of sense. After all, such a special existence would certainly not be made public by those people.

Shi Jia laughed and said, "However, I am quite special after all, so it's better if too many people don't know about me, otherwise it would be troublesome, wouldn't it?"

Lu Tianxue nodded, "Keep it a secret!"

"it is good."

Shi Jia breathed a sigh of relief. She had managed to fool them. Well, whether she really fooled them or not didn't matter. As long as she got through today's ordeal, that was fine.

But can't an artist create things out of thin air? He tried hard to recall the books he had read. Unfortunately, they didn't say so. That must be a matter of convention.

"Ahem, never mind, let me draw a hammer for you first."

He thought for a moment and then took out the mineral pigments—the box Cheng Zi had given as a deposit. As for the ones Zi Yue had given him, they were already used up. He had materialized a total of eight swords. The amount used was quite large.

The hammers had a simple design, which Shi Jia drew quickly, and he also drew a sturdy array for each hammer.

"One for each of us," Shi Jia said with a smile.

"Junior Shi Jia? Are you still going to mine for ore here?" Lu Tianxue frowned; she was already planning to leave. After all, it was getting dark, and she needed to find a safe place to rest for the night.

“Of course, if I’m not mistaken, this whole area is made of mineral pigments!” Shi Jia pointed to the surrounding rocks.

"Are you sure?" Lu Tianxue expressed disbelief. According to him, this place was a goldmine, but glancing at the few "sesame seeds" in the small bowl, Lu Tianxue still advised, "Junior, it's getting late, and our mission isn't finished yet..."

"Senior, I think this place should be safe. We can rest here tonight. As for the mission, it's almost dark, so we can do it tomorrow."

Shi Jia struggled to lift a large rock while saying to her, "Whoosh!" He spread his feet apart, shifting his weight downwards. He raised the hammer with both hands and brought it down high!

"Boom~"

The stone cracked open, revealing a deep blue hue to everyone.

Everyone gasped in shock! (End of Chapter)