Chapter 28

Zhou Lu settled down at the Zhenhuo Pavilion.

He didn’t ask anyone to send a message to his grandfather, but he knew that with his grandfather’s connections, he would certainly hear about such a big event as soon as it happened.

Zhou Lu, who had been an ordinary hunter, suddenly became a noble and mysterious weapon smith. He guessed that his grandfather must be so surprised that his mouth would drop open, and he would be extremely pleased, praising his grandson for the first time in his life.

Zhou Lu was so engrossed in the Zhenhuo Pavilion that he didn’t want to leave. He had beautiful women by his side, could learn the coveted art of weapon smithing, and had brought glory to his grandfather and the Thirty-Seventh Hunting Ground. In the future, when he returned to the hunting ground as a noble weapon smith, he imagined how many beautiful women would cheer for him...

For days, Zhou Lu’s chubby face glowed with happiness.

Xiao Luan didn’t mention the life-saving favor of subduing the fiery beast, but the gratitude was deeply etched in her heart. After becoming Zhou Lu’s guide, Xiao Luan meticulously shared everything she knew, gradually immersing Zhou Lu in the knowledge through诱导trigger-style explanations.

Seeing Zhou Lu’s understanding, she was even more delighted than when she herself solved a difficult problem.

Zhou Lu learned enthusiastically in the gentle and soft-spoken environment, effortlessly opening the door to a whole new world.

The two women taught with such enthusiasm and meticulousness, hoping to impart all they knew to this chubby boy. They taught him thirty-six fire control techniques, one hundred and eight material chapters, and the specific fire control methods required for each material...

To prevent Zhou Lu from forgetting what they taught, Xiao Luan and Ke Ling even gave him their own notes and insights, so he could study them in his spare time.

Zhou Lu absorbed these new things like a sponge, integrating them into his thoughts.

As he progressed, Xiao Luan solemnly presented him with a set of weapon design secrets, which she had specially selected from the clan’s treasure library. It contained explanations of over one thousand three hundred types of weapon design ideas from predecessors. Just the section on swords alone included over seventy types, covering material science, center of gravity design, curvature design, and the design of various sword shapes suitable for different martial techniques...

Such a set of weapon smithing secrets was like having over one thousand three hundred excellent weapon smiths personally teaching you, with extremely high reference value. In the clan, one needed very high authority to access such secrets.

Xiao Luan quietly gave this set of secrets to Zhou Lu.

Such treatment made Ke Ling envious, scolding this fat boy for his good fortune.

Zhou Lu was so engrossed in learning that the only thing that made him feel incomplete was that every night, when it was time to rest, they would send him back, and he never had the chance to spend “morning and evening” with the two of them.

Zhou Lu made a reluctant expression, turning back every few steps. In the stone cave behind him, Xiao Luan and Ke Ling were both amused and exasperated, spitting in disgust and slamming the cave door shut in front of Zhou Lu.

Looking at the tightly closed door, Zhou Lu laughed heartily. Teasing the two senior sisters was like living a life of a celestial being.

With a smile on his face, Zhou Lu swayed back to his own cave, closing the door with a creak. In that instant, it was as if all the joy was shut outside. Zhou Lu leaned against the stone door, and time seemed to freeze. The smile on his face slowly faded.

A hint of sorrow appeared in the eyes of this chubby boy.

Was his current life really that happy? Was it really that fulfilling?

Did he really not care about certain things?

Zhou Lu thought of the clear and beautiful figure of Meng Tian during the sacrifice, and his heart ached fiercely.

From the failed sacrifice to joining the Eagle Wing Army and then entering the Zhenhuo Pavilion, it had been more than two months. During this time, he seemed to be having a great time, but the pain Meng Tian had brought him on the day of the sacrifice still lingered in his heart, never fading—though he always hid it with laughter, never letting others see his sadness.

Meng Tian’s coldness had taken away Zhou Lu’s childhood memories and the deepest longing in his heart—the desire for “love.” Not romantic love, but the desire for friendship and the feeling of being needed.

Zhou Lu bit his lip tightly, his mind filled with many thoughts. The light in the stone cave seemed to distort, and a bright light ignited. Zhou Lu’s memory suddenly returned to nine years ago, when he was just a seven-year-old child.

Zhou Lu remembered that he was already a chubby boy back then, mischievous and carefree, running and playing with the other children on the grassland.

In their hunting ground, Zhou Lu had a group of regular playmates, one of whom was a girl named Mei Duo, the prettiest of them all. She had fair, tender skin and over thirty braids tied with pink ribbons. When Mei Duo bounced around, it was as if a mountain of flowers had bloomed behind her head.

All the boys in the group liked to be close to Mei Duo.

One day, while the children were laughing and playing, two older boys, about eight or nine years old, led a large wolf dog to the grassland where the children were playing. These two older boys were from another hunting ground, and they were fierce and domineering. They threatened to let the dog bite the children, saying they wanted to play a game of kidnapping, and they would take Mei Duo away to be their wife. If the children refused, the dog would bite everyone.

Seeing the barking dog, the children were terrified and cried. The boys hurriedly backed away, leaving Mei Duo alone.

Mei Duo was so scared that she could only wipe her tears, too frightened to run.

When the two older boys approached with a sinister smile, grabbing Mei Duo’s hand to take her away, the trembling Zhou Lu, despite his fear, mustered the courage to face the two large, fierce dogs that were as tall as he was. His legs were shaking, but his eyes were red, and he stepped forward.

Zhou Lu pulled out a bone knife he had stolen from home and held it fiercely, confronting the two older boys like a madman.

In the end, Zhou Lu’s fierce appearance scared the two older boys so much that they fled, leaving a threat behind.

Mei Duo was saved.

Little Zhou Lu was trembling all over, but he was still very proud. He turned around, wiping his nose, and smiled at the prettiest little girl, asking, “I saved Mei Duo, so now Mei Duo should marry me, right?” Mei Duo looked at the dirty Zhou Lu with disdain, shook her head, and pulled a handsome boy named Lu Yan, saying:

“You are fat and ugly, I won’t marry you. I want to marry Lu Yan.”

The children cheered and surrounded Mei Duo, excitedly playing the wedding game.

Little Zhou Lu stood there alone, suddenly feeling extremely sad.

Even now, he still remembered the pain and hurt he felt that afternoon.

For the entire afternoon, the chubby little Zhou Lu sat alone in a grassy slope, watching the clouds come and go.

Behind the slope, the children’s joyful laughter echoed, but that day, Zhou Lu felt the entire grassland was so lonely.

In his young heart, Zhou Lu experienced for the first time the bitterness and injustice of wanting “love” but being unneeded, unwanted, and being coldly discarded no matter how hard he tried.