I woke up to find myself transmigrated into a disabled child.

Chapter 43 Le Zhong's Strange Illness

When asked for his opinion, Lezhi looked at the pot made of metal and stone bubbling with boiling water over the fire and nodded in response: "It should be fine. The stone slab is just a medium. As long as the heat conduction is good enough, it doesn't matter what material it is made of."

“Okay, let’s do it this way.” Having made the decision, Le You clapped his hands and began searching his space for anything he could exchange with Le Zhong.

"Let me look around, but I don't know what I need to replace a gold and stone slab of this size..."

Watching Leyou work over there, Lezhi quietly finished grilling the remaining meat and put it on a plate before the stone slab broke. Leju, on the other hand, had already started putting meatballs into the pot according to Lezhi's instructions.

The tribespeople who came to exchange food had already left. Lezhi sat down next to Leju and asked softly, "Leju, is it difficult to exchange for a piece of metal or stone utensils?"

"That's not the case. Although we don't produce much metal here, it's enough for our needs. However, the process of making metal is quite complicated and requires a lot of skill. So, the best person in the tribe who specializes in making metal utensils is the one I just mentioned, Le Zhong. It's said that he went to other tribes to learn the craft of making metal. The metal utensils made by others are not as good as his, and they can only be used by themselves. Most of the weapons in the hands of the tribesmen, as well as these pots, are made by him."

From clumsy to skilled, Leju mastered the technique after only practicing making a dozen or so dumplings. He quickly finished his work while continuing to talk to Lezhi.

"Le Zhong used to be a very famous warrior in our clan's guard team. In addition, he was an indispensable member of the guard team because of his skill in making metal and stone weapons. However, he had an accident during a battle against an insect swarm. Now he has left the guard team and is focusing on making metal and stone tools for the clan."

Speaking of the unexpected incident, Leju frowned slightly, and a hint of sadness flashed in his eyes. Lezhi, who was listening nearby, certainly didn't miss Leju's sudden change in tone. Hearing that the incident would actually lead to Lezhong's withdrawal from the guard team, Leju couldn't help but feel surprised.

He clearly remembered that Leyou had explained to him before that tree spirits had excellent constitutions, rarely fell ill, and possessed extraordinary self-healing abilities. If they suffered a serious injury that couldn't heal on its own, they could seek help from the mother tree and obtain its sap to drink, which would restore them to full health. So what was going on with Lezhong's accident? Lezhi was filled with doubts and couldn't help but ask.

"Was that accident very serious? Even asking the mother tree for help couldn't help?"

"Hmm." Leju sighed and said with concern, "This is a strange disease that has appeared in our tree spirit clan in recent years. Our clan members are all born from the mother tree, which is considered a privilege in Jormungand. We have never had to worry about diseases or injuries. However, this strange disease is different. Once you are infected, it will slowly erode your body. Even if you seek help from the mother tree and drink its sap, it can only suppress the symptoms, not cure the disease."

"It is said that since Le Zhong contracted this strange disease, he can no longer use his talent, nor can he overwork himself. Therefore, Le Zhong had no choice but to leave the guard team."

Hearing Leju's words, Lezhi frowned. This illness did sound very troublesome. One couldn't use their talent, nor could they exert themselves. How miserable must the sick person be? Lezhong must have been under considerable pressure. The fact that he continued to help the clan make metal and stone artifacts after retiring showed that he was a person with a resilient spirit.

"Lezhi, Leju, what are you talking about? I've almost finished preparing here, and I'm about to go visit Lezhong. Are you coming?" Leyou plopped down next to Lezhi and casually picked up a cooked meatball and swallowed it.

"Mmm, it's so hot! It's a little bland, but otherwise it's perfect. It's delicious."

"This is a semi-finished product. It's a bit bland to eat on its own, since it's not fried."

Helplessly, Lezhi said to Leyou, then looked at the ingredients prepared beside him and suddenly had a good idea.

"Oh, right. Aren't we going to visit Le Zhong? It wouldn't be right to go empty-handed. I'll make him some food as a gift."

Without hesitation, Lezhi jumped up from the stone bench, ran to the workbench, picked and chose the sweetest and sourst berries he had recently tasted, and then took out sweet crystal moss from his space. With ginger and salt, he could easily make a sweet and sour sauce.

Completely bewildered by Lezhi's sudden excitement, Leyou and Leju exchanged a glance. Leyou got up and went to Lezhi's side to watch him busily crush the berries and then put them in a large bowl to adjust the sauce.

"Leyou, you've just arrived. Do you have any extra pots?"

Seeing Leyou standing nearby, Lezhi quickly asked.

"Hmm, I don't have any, but Leju should have some. I'll go get them from him."

"Okay, could you please help me wash the pot clean and render some oil using the extra fat over there?" Le You was familiar with rendering oil, as Le Zhi had specifically taught him.

Having no objection to Lezhi's instructions, Leyou turned around and began operating according to Lezhi's requirements. Although he didn't know what Lezhi wanted to do, he figured that if Lezhi was so excited, the final product wouldn't disappoint them.

After the fatty meat in Leyou's pot shrank and emitted a fragrant aroma of oil, Lezhi brought the prepared sweet and sour sauce to the fire pit to take over the cooking. After removing the cracklings, Lezhi shaped the minced meat into balls by hand and fried them in the oil until they were set. Since animal fat wasn't very suitable for frying, Lezhi had no choice but to make only a small amount, enough for about one plate.

Leave some oil in the pan, add the prepared sauce and simmer briefly. Then add the fried meatballs, stir-fry evenly, and remove from the pan. The not-so-authentic otherworldly version of sweet and sour meatballs is now ready.

Having been waiting for Lezhi's permission, Leyou eagerly picked up a meatball and put it in her mouth. The first taste was a slightly sour and sweet flavor, followed by the crispy fried meatball bursting in her mouth, mixed with the perfectly seasoned sauce, creating a wonderfully delicious flavor.

"Mmm, delicious, super delicious. Leju, you should try it."

"Okay." After being strongly recommended by Leyou, Leju was also eager to try it. He picked up a meatball and took a bite. His eyes narrowed instantly, revealing his amazement.

After swallowing the food in his mouth, Leju nodded and praised Lezhi, "It's really delicious. I've never eaten meat with this flavor before. It's amazing."

"I'm glad you like it. We'll take this to visit Le Zhong; he definitely won't refuse it, right?" Le Zhi smiled, confirming that the tree spirits were very accepting of sweet and sour flavors.

Hearing Lezhi's words, Leju and Leyou exchanged a glance, then said in unison, "Of course not! He'll absolutely love this flavor!"

"Hahaha……"

After laughing, Lezhi plated the food and handed it to Leyou to put in her spatial storage. Leju decided to stay and finish making the remaining dumplings, so only Leyou and Lezhi went to find Lezhong.

Led by the arm by Leyou, they wandered through the square. Leyou seemed to know everyone. They walked and asked questions along the way, and finally found their target on the other side of the square.