After agreeing to join Screwllum's Divergent universe project, Bai Luan slightly accelerated the production of wall-e.
After all, developing the simulated universe wasn't easy, and Bai Luan didn't intend to reduce the intensity of creating curios.
However, human energy is limited; if one aspect rises, another must fall. He didn't plan to push all three things simultaneously.
Rather than being flustered and putting pressure on himself, it would be better to quickly finish Wall-E during Screwllum's brief preparation time.
That way, he would be calm and have plenty of leeway when the time came.
After making this decision, Bai Luan assigned a reasonable portion of the workload to Clock Studio's Animators, then took on the rest of the work himself.
When the Studio's Animators first received the news, they were a bit confused.
What do you mean we only need to be responsible for five percent of the content?
Then they saw Bai Luan's work efficiency after he got serious.
No! How can he still speed up?!
Don't do so much by yourself!
This will make us seem useless!
Besides Clock Studio's Animators being terrified by this incredible speed, the other one who was shocked was Stelle.
In fact, ever since Stelle took over the director's role from Bai Luan and discovered that Bai Luan was also directing, she had intentionally wanted to compete with him.
After making this decision, she felt pressured by Bai Luan every day.
But Stelle didn't back down; instead, she felt it was a challenge worth taking.
Uncle is indeed extraordinary; his production speed is so fast. Uncle is truly a genius.
Facing the formidable Bai Luan, Stelle chose to redouble her efforts, trying her best to keep up with Uncle's pace.
Under Stelle's efforts, the progress of Clockie had always been on par with Bai Luan's Wall-E.
But now, the situation suddenly changed.
Bai Luan suddenly put pressure on her.
The progress was advancing at an astonishing speed.
Was Uncle just playing with me before?
Had he not used his full strength until now?
After Bai Luan suddenly put pressure on her, Stelle had only two choices: one was to give up the competition and honestly accept the fact that she wasn't as fast as Bai Luan, and the other was to continue persevering and die standing.
Stelle hesitated for 0.1 seconds, then immediately chose option two!
My baseball bat is not without its advantages, Uncle!
She found the Animators who had fallen into self-doubt because Bai Luan was doing too much alone, cheered them up, and cured their mental exhaustion with motivational talks.
Subsequently, the entire Studio stood against Bai Luan (of course, they still finished the five percent Bai Luan left for them before doing so), vowing to resist the genius with mortal bodies.
They really needed to prove their worth to Bai Luan.
For a time, under Stelle's leadership, all of Clock Studio entered a state of burning passion.
The studio was brightly lit, with the sounds of keyboard clacking, drawing pens rubbing against graphics tablets, and discussions rising and falling, and the air was filled with a scent of struggle.
This was evident from the rapidly increasing progress bar of the Clockie project.
In stark contrast to Clock Studio, where everyone was hyped up as if fighting a holy war, Bai Luan's side was exceptionally calm.
Although from Clock Studio's perspective, his terrifying work efficiency was enough to scare any peer, for a true genius, this was just everyday life.
What's more, Bai Luan had a cheat; he had truly seen the finished product, and the system helped him watch the original footage at all times.
He didn't have to worry about not remembering the original footage; with a greeting to the system, he could go back to the Little Black Room and watch it again.
He could even pull Herta to cuddle up and watch it together.
Bai Luan was now completely immersed in his art.
He really loved this movie, so he had become meticulous to the point of nitpicking, even upgrading some aspects of the film based on Honkai: Star Rail World's technology.
When the last shot was rendered and the entire movie was completely finished, Bai Luan didn't feel any burnout or exhaustion; instead, a strong and irresistible desire to share surged within him.
"Oh my god! I must share such a beautiful thing immediately!"
With this feeling, Bai Luan sent the finished Wall-E to Piers.
Bai Luan: Sending you a file.
Piers: ?
Piers: What are you sending?
Piers: You haven't finished it, have you?
Bai Luan: Yes, yes.
Bai Luan: [Animator proudly puffing out chest.jpg]
Bai Luan: I'm done.
Bai Luan: [Animator proudly puffing out chest again.jpg]
Piers: ...
Piers, in the Clock Studio office, looked at the message popping up on the screen, his fingers stiffened, and he couldn't help but let out a long, desperate wail:
"It's over—! Mister Animator... he has finished Wall-E!!!"
This cry, like pressing a mute button, made all the Animators who were still working overtime, trying to close the gap, stop their work in unison and look up in astonishment.
"R-really? How much time has passed?!"
"How did he do it... Is he really human?"
"He's cheating! He's definitely cheating!"
"He never stopped!"
"Did we ultimately... fail to contend?"
"Encountering a super talented Animator, trying our best but unable to defeat him... Is this the cruelty of reality?"
Piers's words, like a needle pricking a balloon, directly deflated the unyielding spirit that all the employees of Clock Studio had been holding in.
A thick sense of loss and emptiness spread, as if all their efforts seemed so pale and powerless in the face of absolute talent.
It felt like everything was meaningless; no matter how hard they tried, they couldn't defeat these talent monsters... Stelle sighed as she looked at the disheartened crowd. They had rushed and rushed, but only completed sixty-five percent.
Stelle: Uncle, you're way too over the top.
Stelle: We're only a little over halfway done, and you've already finished.
Bai Luan: H-how much!?
Bai Luan: Are you trying to kill yourselves working so fast?
Bai Luan: Are you even human!?
Stelle scratched her head, somewhat perplexed.
Huh, no, why are you so shocked?
Stelle: There's nothing to be surprised about, right?
Stelle: After all, for you, Uncle, these things can be done casually.
Bai Luan: What does me being able to do it casually have to do with you working so hard and doing so well?
Bai Luan: Isn't the important thing that you did your best and did it well?
Bai Luan: You worked very hard!
Bai Luan: You are all amazing!
Bai Luan: If you keep belittling yourselves, I'll beat you up! [Animator raises fist.jpg]
Stelle looked at Bai Luan's reply and paused, realizing he had a point.
Then Stelle looked at the disheartened crowd and immediately repeated what Bai Luan had said.
"You mean, Mister Animator thinks we did a good job? And he praised us?"
Stelle nodded.
"Yes."
"He really said that?"
"Yes, and he also said he'd beat us up if we kept belittling ourselves."
This latter half, a joking threat, made many previously dejected Animators unable to hold back, and they burst out laughing.
The laughter spread like ripples, and the previous heavy, lost atmosphere quietly faded away amidst the laughter, replaced by a sense of relief and warmth after being acknowledged.
It turned out they never needed to prove anything to Bai Luan; he wasn't an unfeeling genius, and he could see their efforts.
Stelle's phone notification rang again; Bai Luan had sent her another message.
Bai Luan: Hardworking people should be rewarded.
Bai Luan: A raise!!!
Upon seeing this message, Stelle's lips curved upward uncontrollably.
She immediately jumped onto an empty workstation, raised her arms high, and with all her might, announced to the entire studio:
"Everyone! Uncle sent a message! He said he's giving everyone—a raise!!!"
The scene was silent for a few seconds, then erupted into enthusiastic cheers.
"Yay—!"
"Long live Mister Animator!!!"
At this moment, everyone at Clockwork Studio felt an incredibly warm human touch—both material and spiritual.
Credit Points are cold, but they warm the heart when they arrive in the account.
Nothing warms the heart more than Credit Points...