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A group of people exited Ximen and continued westward, walking straight for five days before finally arriving at the main city of the West Lion Empire, Lion King City.
Having overseen the prosperity of Bixi City, there was not much surprise for Qifeng Ge and Liu Guanfeng as they entered Lion King City. The two walked side by side, with three horse-drawn carriages following behind them. Just as they stepped through the city gate, a group of people approached them.
Among the approaching crowd was a man in his thirties with short hair and thick eyebrows. As he walked closer, he carried a gust of warm air with him. Beside him was someone familiar to Liu Guanfeng—Long Huan, who had set out a day earlier. Upon closer inspection, it was evident that Long Huan bore some resemblance to the leader of the group. Liu Guanfeng looked at Qifeng Ge and asked:
"Senior Brother Qi, your disciple looks quite similar to Long Huan."
Qifeng Ge smiled slightly: "Junior Brother, your eyes are indeed discerning. Even though their builds are different, you can still tell they look alike?"
"You're too kind, Senior Brother. Are they really brothers?"
Qifeng Ge nodded: "The person coming over is named Long Huan, the younger brother of Long Ring. They are about ten years apart in age and both have a strong passion for blacksmithing, which is why I took them both as disciples. Although Long Huan has been my disciple for less time than Long Ring, his forging skills surpass those of Long Ring. He is also more composed in dealing with people; otherwise, I wouldn't have entrusted him with managing the guild in the West Lion Empire."
At this moment, Long Huan and Long Ring approached Qifeng Ge with a group of blacksmiths and bowed deeply: "Master, you have arrived."
The blacksmiths behind them also bowed and said: "President Qi, greetings."
Qifeng Ge nodded: "Everyone, please rise. Let's head back to the Blacksmith Guild first; we can discuss matters later." Hearing Qifeng Ge's words, Long Huan glanced at Liu Guanfeng and then made a side step. The blacksmiths also cleared a path for Qifeng Ge and Liu Guanfeng.
By this time, there was already some congestion at the city gate. A few soldiers were about to shoo Qifeng Ge and his companions away when they saw that Long Huan was there to greet them. They stopped in their tracks. Who is Long Huan? Every knight in the West Lion Empire knows him; owning equipment forged by Long Huan is a dream for all knights in the empire.
Even the king of the West Lion Empire must personally visit Long Huan when seeking equipment from him; although it is not a matter of lowering one's status, one must still show proper respect. This illustrates Long Huan's significance within the West Lion Empire. Liu Guanfeng observed all this with delight; the more prominent Long Huan's performance was, the more it indicated his importance. Having such a group of people forge equipment for his private army would be a dream come true for any general from any nation.
After Long Huan led Qifeng Ge and others away, one soldier wiped the sweat from his forehead: "My goodness, I almost chased away Dragon President just now! If that had happened, even if I had several lives, it wouldn't have been enough."
The guard nearby asked, "Brother, what happened to you?"
"Keep it down. I was just about to check who was blocking the door, and guess who I saw?"
"Who? You didn't see a ghost, did you?" the Noble Guard joked.
"Shut up. I saw the Dragon President."
"The Dragon President? Which Dragon President?"
"Are you really that clueless? How many Dragon Presidents do we have in Lion King City?"
"You mean the Long Huan from the Blacksmith Guild?"
"Exactly! I was even thinking of chasing him away. Do you think I'm asking for trouble?"
"Good thing you didn't say anything."
The two soldiers continued their chat, while Qifeng Ge, under Long Huan's lead, arrived at the entrance of the Blacksmith Guild. Everyone from the Blacksmith Guild greeted Long Huan, and some even recognized Qifeng Ge. However, those people lacked the courage to approach Qifeng Ge for a greeting because he was surrounded by high-ranking members of the guild. Soon, a group of people went directly to Long Huan's office, which was comparable in size and structure to Qifeng Ge's office.
After inviting everyone to take a seat, Long Huan dismissed all the high-ranking officials, leaving only the group brought over from Bixi City by Dragon Ring and Liu Guanfeng's party. To shorten the process, Liu Guanfeng gave a subtle signal to Qifeng Ge.
Qifeng Ge cleared his throat and said to Long Huan, "Long Huan, let me introduce you to your Little Master Uncle. Come and pay your respects."
There was no misunderstanding between Long Huan and Liu Guanfeng. Long Huan approached Liu Guanfeng and bowed deeply, saying, "Greetings, Shishu." Although Dragon Ring was significantly older than Liu Guanfeng, there was no sign of discomfort on his face. This further elevated Liu Guanfeng's opinion of Long Huan.
Liu Guanfeng smiled at Long Huan and said, "Please rise."
“Dragon Ring, take your people outside and don't let anyone in.”
“Yes, Master.” Dragon Ring replied and led his four disciples out of the room.
Seeing Dragon Ring leave, Qifeng Ge turned to Long Huan and said, “Long Huan, did your brother tell you why I came to see you today?”
Long Huan shook his head: “No, my brother only mentioned that Master would come in the next few days, but he didn't tell me what it was about.”
Liu Guanfeng and Qifeng Ge both nodded secretly: Dragon Ring is quite reliable when it comes to handling matters. He doesn't say a word more than necessary.
“Well then, let me tell you the purpose of my visit today.”
“Please speak, Master.” Long Huan stood there quietly listening.
“I came to ask you to come with me.”
“Go? I don't know where you are going, Master.”
Qifeng Ge pointed at Liu Guanfeng: “Your Shishu has a group of private soldiers who are going to an island at sea for training. Their equipment and weapons need to be made, so I decided to take you along.”
Long Huan frowned; he didn't understand why Master would say such a thing. To leave the comfortable life in Bixi City for an unknown Shishu and endure hardships overseas seemed unreasonable.
“Master, as for the equipment, we can just have other guild members forge it. Why do you need to go personally? It will be quite exhausting for you.”
Qifeng Ge appreciated his disciple's concern and shook his head slightly: “My foolish disciple, there is a reason for everything I do. This trip will also allow me to improve my forging skills.”
Upon hearing this, Long Huan was taken aback: “Master, you are already the only divine craftsman in the entire continent. How can you still improve? Is there anyone who can teach you?”
"How could you be so foolish? Who said that a divine craftsman is the highest? And who told you that I am a divine craftsman? My skills are far inferior to those of my master."
"Your master? You have never mentioned Master to Disciple before."
Hearing this, Qifeng Ge could only smile bitterly and shake his head. "It's not that I don't want to talk about it, but I really didn't know your Master's name until you Shishu came along."
"Master, then who is he?"
"Do you know the statue in front of my Blacksmith Guild?"
Long Huan nodded. "Of course I remember. That was the masterpiece of Huang Sanlang and Xiang Sheng, but they didn't even know the name of the person they sculpted. I only heard that the statue represents their master."
Qifeng Ge nodded. "That's right, and I'll tell you that the person depicted in that statue is my master, who is also your Master. His name is Xuanwu. I came here this time at my master's command. He also mentioned that he would guide your skills when he has time."
After hearing Qifeng Ge's words, Long Huan's eyes immediately lit up. "Master, are you saying that if I go with you, I will receive guidance from Master?"
Qifeng Ge nodded. "If you can receive guidance from your Master, I believe the title of divine craftsman will not be too far out of reach for you. Are you willing to follow me now?"
Long Huan nodded eagerly. "Of course, Disciple is willing. When do you plan to set off?"
"The sooner, the better. You need to make arrangements quickly, and like your elder brother, choose three or four talented apprentices to go with you. Make sure everything at home is settled; we don't know when we will return—perhaps it will take several years or even over a decade."
"Please rest assured, Master. Disciple will prepare right away and will be ready within three days."
"That's good. Arrange accommodations for us and then get ready. We will set off in three days."
That evening, after learning of Qifeng Ge's arrival from the gatekeeper, King Karl Peter of the West Lion Empire, accompanied by a group of ministers, personally visited the Blacksmith Guild to see Qifeng Ge. They talked late into the night before reluctantly leaving.
To ensure the safety of Qifeng Ge, Karl Peter arranged for fifty Intermediate Knights, led by a Senior Blazing Lion Knight. The Blazing Lion Knight is a symbol of the West Lion Empire and represents the strongest knight class in the entire empire.
Liu Guanfeng and his companions chose to remain hidden, and Qifeng Ge understood that it was best for Liu Guanfeng to keep a low profile at this time. As a result, others were unaware of the origins of the group of young people accompanying Qifeng Ge.
Three days later in the morning, Qifeng Ge and Liu Guanfeng arrived at Long Huan's office after packing their belongings. At that moment, Long Huan was waiting for them in the room with his four prized disciples.
After discussing some related matters, Long Huan transferred his position as President to a Vice President of the guild and said to him, "I will be going with my master for further training. I expect to return in a few months. I trust you to manage things here."
The Vice President looked excited and replied, "Please rest assured, President. I will ensure everything is well taken care of during your absence."
Seeing that Long Huan had completed all necessary arrangements, Qifeng Ge took out a letter from his pocket and handed it to the leader of the guards sent by Karl Peter to ensure his safety.
"Thank you for your protection over these three days; you have worked hard. When I have time, I will ask Long Huan to craft a suitable weapon for you. Please deliver this letter to your king and express my gratitude for his kindness. I won't trouble him this time; the reasons are all written in the letter."
Upon hearing that Qifeng Ge promised to have Long Huan make him a weapon, the Advanced Knight's face lit up with joy as he repeatedly said, "Yes."
After exiting the Blacksmith Guild, the group made their way directly out of the west gate of Lion King City. This time, there were no obstacles along their route. On the night Liu Guanfeng's group arrived, Jiao Yang also reached Lion King City with his four disciples a day later.
Now Liu Guanfeng's team had grown to nearly thirty people. They had prepared seven or eight carriages, two of which contained gifts from King Karl Peter of the West Lion Empire. Among these gifts were precious ores collected by Karl Peter, knowing that rare minerals would impress any blacksmith.
With these two carriages, the entire group's pace slowed significantly. It took them almost a month to pass through the last kingdom, Red Lion Kingdom, and enter the duchy of Little Lion Kingdom where Young Lion City is located.
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