Douluo Continent: God Descends

Chapter 44 Becoming an Apprentice to the Master Craftsman

The top level of the Tianhai City Forging Masters Association.

"In other words, you didn't have a teacher at all; you learned everything on your own."

Duan Xuan stared wide-eyed at the child in front of him, his face full of disbelief. He wondered if he was still half asleep. He quickly reached out and pinched his thigh. The pain in his thigh told him that it was all real.

"Um."

Lu Xingchen sat on the sofa, looking somewhat restrained, like a child who had done something wrong. He said, "I am a child from Tianhai Orphanage. Recently, the orphanage has encountered some problems, so we need a lot of money."

"I heard by chance that high-level blacksmiths can earn a lot of money, so I decided to take the exam to help ease some of the pressure on the orphanage."

"Just for this reason?!"

Upon hearing this, Duan Xuan's expression immediately became somewhat strange, but he also showed a hint of understanding. However, he still asked, "Since you are self-taught, in which workshop did you learn your forging skills?"

"what?"

Lu Xingchen looked at him with a puzzled expression and said, "I saw it on the internet. It was through the videos posted by the forging masters in the association. I watched their forging techniques and then I learned it."

"..."

Duan Xuan opened his mouth, but couldn't utter a word for a long time. Looking at the earnest child in front of him, he suddenly felt that his decades of forging career had been somewhat wasted.

Could this child be the reincarnation of the god of forging?!

Without any teacher's guidance, just by watching videos to learn, he was able to forge Blue Pregnant Copper into a Thousand-Refined Second Grade at the age of six, and even successfully awaken the spiritual light to shine outwards—this is beyond the description of "extraordinary talent," it's simply defying the heavens!

Lu Xingchen looked at him without speaking, then cautiously asked, "Guild Master, this shouldn't affect my forging evaluation, right?"

Duan Xuan regained his composure, leaned slightly forward to meet Lu Xingchen's gaze, his eyes filled with solemnity: "Lu Xingchen, are you willing... to become my disciple?"

Lu Xingchen blinked, seemingly not understanding what "becoming an apprentice" meant: "Becoming an apprentice?"

"right!"

Duan Xuan nodded hurriedly, his tone tinged with urgency, "I will teach you the best forging techniques, find you the most complete forging manuals, and even take you to see the most outstanding blacksmiths on the continent... As long as you become my apprentice, I will teach you all my skills!"

He had never been so eager to take on a disciple, not even when he was teaching Mu Chen.

Because he knew that Lu Xingchen's future was far more than just a seventh-level Saint Craftsman; he might even reach the legendary ninth-level Divine Craftsman position.

If a forging genius of this caliber were to go astray due to a lack of a master's guidance, Duan Xuan felt that even if he died, he would not be able to rest in peace.

Lu Xingchen tilted his head and thought for a moment, seemingly weighing the pros and cons. After a while, he looked at Duan Xuan and said seriously, "If I become your apprentice, can I borrow money from you?"

"Borrow money?" Duan Xuan was slightly taken aback.

"Um."

Lu Xingchen nodded and said, "I really need money right now. If you're willing to lend me some, I'd like to become your apprentice. Don't worry, I'll definitely pay it back later."

Upon hearing this, Duan Xuan was both amused and exasperated. If a master craftsman of his generation wanted to take on a disciple, countless people would be scrambling to do so.

But this little guy in front of me didn't follow the usual path; he wanted to borrow money to become my apprentice.

Even so, he still asked with some curiosity, "How much do you want to borrow?"

"Ten million." Lu Xingchen hesitated for a moment, then tentatively held up one finger.

"no problem."

Duan Xuan immediately waved his hand, took out a black card from his storage soul tool, and handed it to Lu Xingchen, saying, "There is 15 million in here, consider it my donation to you."

"Thank you, but I can't accept something for nothing. I will definitely repay this money. I will follow you to learn forging from now on and I will never be lazy. I will definitely not let you down." Lu Xingchen said solemnly after accepting the black card.

"Okay, then I'll wait for that day."

Duan Xuan smiled slightly. Actually, it didn't matter if Lu Xingchen didn't return the money. Fifteen million was a huge sum for ordinary people, but for a master craftsman, it was just a matter of forging two more pieces.

However, he did not reject Lu Xingchen's insistence, because sometimes appropriate pressure can help geniuses grow faster.

"Then, President..."

"Um?!"

"Teacher," Lu Xingchen immediately changed his address, "how did my forging assessment go? Can I become a forger in the association?"

Upon hearing the word "teacher," Duan Xuan felt a surge of relief, even more so than when he broke through to the seventh level of Saint Craftsman.

He patted Lu Xingchen on the shoulder, his tone tinged with pride: "The Blue-Born Copper you forged in the assessment achieved a grade of Rank 2 in the Thousand Refinements. Based on the results, you are now a Level 3 Blacksmith in the Association."

"Next, the teacher will tell you about the association's rules..."

……

It wasn't until nearly afternoon that Lu Xingchen emerged from the Forging Masters Association, got into a taxi, and headed towards Tianhai Hospital.

"It was really tiring, but thankfully the result was still good."

As Lu Xingchen gazed at the passing scenery outside the window, his thoughts drifted. Being able to become an apprentice of a master craftsman was certainly worthwhile.

As for why they didn't just accept the money directly, but instead took out a loan under the guise of "borrowing money," the reason is simple: to "create a certain persona."

Sequence Zero of the Audience Path: The "Dreamer's" advancement ceremony is to make the development of the times conform to his own expectations, and then, at a key juncture, in the prescribed trend of the times, take the magic potion.

To ensure that the development of the times conforms to expectations, it is necessary to intervene personally. Therefore, Lu Xingchen plans to enter the Federation's system in the future to influence policies.

Therefore, a good public image is bound to be beneficial to him.

While the "audience" approach emphasizes observation, sometimes getting involved directly can help you achieve your goals more effectively.

Back in the world of Lord of Mysteries, he had met Miss Audrey Hall, who subtly influenced the kingdom's decisions through several unintentional reminders.

I remember back then, Audrey used her ability as an "audience" to subtly observe and guide the others, while Lu Xingchen observed Miss Audrey from "behind" and influenced her.

Behind the two, a large golden retriever was also observing them.

Hmm? It feels like something strange has gotten mixed in.

The '0-01' in his arms was shaking. Lu Xingchen took it out, then took out a notebook and pretended to write, but actually let the '0-01' do its thing.

[Duan Xuan, the president of the Tianhai City Blacksmith Association, although he had taken Lu Xingchen as his apprentice, wanted to better understand his disciple. So he had the association retrieve the information from the Tianhai Orphanage to check on his disciple's past...]

This is the ability of '0-01': 'Whatever is said, must be known'. As long as someone has a clear goal to investigate Lu Xingchen's information, '0-01' can sense it.

"An investigation? That's to be expected." Lu Xingchen glanced at it a few times and then closed the book again.

Anyway, he has a clean background and is not afraid of investigation at all.

More important than that are the twins at the hospital. When Cocolia's mother was looking at information at the orphanage, she sent him a message saying that the four children at the hospital were gradually regaining consciousness.

(Image of Audrey Hall.)