Chapter 127
Bai Tu was momentarily stunned before asking, “Where are you going?”
“I don’t know,” Ying Mian shook his head. “I’ll just walk and see. I’m definitely not staying with the group.”
Bai Tu frowned. Ying Mian had taken out five eggs—that was two more than Hei Xiao had.
Hawk tribes had to stay in one place for at least three months for proper incubation. Even with two people, it was difficult; one person incubating so many eggs made success nearly impossible.
Incubating eggs was an exhausting task. Bai Tu had heard from Hei Xiao that even two strong adult hawks would lose a noticeable amount of weight after hatching a clutch. Ying Mian looked about the same age as Bai Tu and Hei Xiao, and since he had laid eggs, Bai Tu assumed he was also a sub-beast like them.
Sub-beasts had almost no ability to protect themselves in the wild. If Bai Tu hadn’t known about this, he might have let it go—but now that he had seen it, there was no way he could allow Ying Mian to leave alone.
“You don’t even have a destination. How will you take care of the eggs? Were you uncomfortable in the tribe before?” Bai Tu questioned. Staying in the White Bear Tribe wasn’t the only option—he could come with them instead. But first, he needed to understand why Ying Mian was leaving.
“We were just temporary partners,” Ying Mian admitted openly. Since Bai Tu was also a sub-beast, he saw no need to hide his desire to leave, nor to exaggerate his importance. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have taken the eggs out in front of him. Of course, he didn’t reveal the deeper truth—that his relationship with Xiong Liao had only been a transaction, not even as stable as a typical temporary partnership.
“Huh?” Bai Tu was surprised and then asked doubtfully, “He doesn’t want the cubs either?”
In any tribe, beastmen adored their offspring. Of course, weirdos like Shi Ken didn’t count. Based on Xiong Liao’s behavior earlier, he had seemed like a decent person. Did Bai Tu misjudge him?
“He won’t want them. The White Bear Tribe only accepts White Bear offspring. The ones I laid are Hawk Tribe.” Ying Mian pointed at the eggs he had just packed up. “It’s already been four days—I have to leave.”
If he waited any longer, the eggs would become dead eggs. Ying Mian had originally planned to sneak away at noon, while the White Bear Tribe was resting. But carrying these eggs was a problem. Eagle sub-beasts were much smaller than regular eagles. He could barely carry five eggs, but any extra weight would make flying impossible. The beast pelts in the tribe were all thick and heavy, including the one he was wearing. He had thought about tearing off a piece of it to wrap the eggs—until he saw Bai Tu.
Bai Tu’s identity wasn’t the most shocking thing—what caught Ying Mian’s attention was Bai Tu’s method of carrying young.
And it turned out his instincts were right. The new pouch was lightweight and durable, perfect for carrying eggs during flight. Although his flying speed was slower than that of ordinary eagles, a few days should be enough to find a suitable incubation spot.
While Ying Mian was thinking about where to incubate the eggs, Bai Tu was thinking about how to send Ying Mian to the Snow Rabbit Tribe.
“What’s your original tribe called?” Bai Tu suddenly asked. If Ying Mian was from the Eagle Tribe, then he should have some connection to the Black Hawk Tribe, right?
Ying Mian glanced around to make sure no one else was listening before replying, “Eagle Five Tribe.”
“…The Parrot Tribe?”
“EAGLE FIVE!” Ying Mian emphasized. “Don’t say parrot, or the Little Chief will curse you out.”
The “Little Chief” was the previous leader of the Eagle Five Tribe. Worried that Bai Tu wouldn’t believe him, Ying Mian added, “The Little Chief has a bad temper and never shuts up. If you provoke him, you’ll get scolded for hours.”
Bai Tu: “…”
He had only asked casually, but this reaction confirmed everything—it was definitely a parrot tribe. The “Little Chief” obviously didn’t want to admit it, or else he wouldn’t have reacted so strongly.
Bai Tu looked at Ying Mian again and asked, “Are you of the same species as them?”
“No,” Ying Mian shook his head. “My father is a Black Eagle, and my mother is a White Eagle. I’m a white-colored sub-beast.”
Bai Tu nodded in understanding and suggested, “How about coming to our tribe first? We have Hawk Tribe members there too—you could have some company.”
The “company” was just an excuse. What Bai Tu really wanted was for Hei Xiao to teach him how to use an incubation box.
Sub-beasts were smaller, and the eggs Ying Mian had were quite large. If he incubated them in beast form, there was a high chance that some eggs wouldn’t be fully covered, leading to failed hatching.
From Ying Mian’s determined stance, he was leaving no matter what. In that case, sending him somewhere safer was the best option. Bai Tu didn’t want to see the eagle cubs lose their chance to hatch just because of a misunderstanding.
“There are hawks in the Snow Rabbit Tribe?” Ying Mian was surprised.
Bai Tu guessed that the Black Eagle Tribe had never flown over the White Bear Tribe’s territory, so he nodded and added something important: “Don’t sneak away—tell Xiong Liao before you leave.”
He suspected that Xiong Liao didn’t know Ying Mian was a sub-beast, let alone that he had laid eggs. If Ying Mian disappeared without a word, Xiong Liao would probably lose his mind.
Originally, Bai Tu hadn’t planned to interfere in their affairs, but this could affect the birth of eagle cubs and which tribe they belonged to. He didn’t want a simple misunderstanding to cause irreversible consequences, so he decided to help where he could.
Ying Mian hesitated for a moment before finally nodding. “Alright.”
Although Xiong Liao wouldn’t actually be worried if he went missing, it was still better to tell him.
“Once you settle things with him, I’ll find an eagle to take you to our tribe,” Bai Tu added. Even though they were both eagles, Ying Mian was still an outsider—without a guide, he wouldn’t be able to enter the tribe.
“Thank you.”
Ying Mian carefully tucked the cloth pouch with the eggs into his chest.
His beast pelt was loose and oversized. Earlier, when he had been carrying eggs, no one had noticed. Now that he had them laid flat, they were even more invisible.
When Lang Qi returned with Bai Tu’s favorite food, the first thing he saw was Bai Tu and the bear tribe beastman chatting amicably. He glanced at the other man before walking over to Bai Tu.
“Time to eat.”
The weather was hot, and being near the fire made it even worse. Unlike in winter, where food was set aside to cool, Lang Qi brought the meal directly over after preparing it.
Bai Tu quickly woke up the wolf pups. Today’s meal was later than usual—he had lulled them back to sleep earlier.
Whether it was the three smaller ones or the two larger ones, all five were incredibly obedient. They probably sensed that everyone was busy, so a little coaxing was enough to get them to close their eyes and go back to sleep, saving Bai Tu a lot of trouble. Since the group was constantly moving, there was no way to stop just for the pups.
Feeling sorry that they had been hungry for so long, Bai Tu asked Lang Ya for a bamboo basket, placed it on a rock, and put the pups inside before beginning to distribute the food. Normally, the adults ate first, and by the time they finished, the pups’ food would be cool enough. But today, Bai Tu didn’t want to make the pups wait any longer.
Ying Mian stayed nearby, watching carefully. He had joined the White Bear Tribe when he was still young, and unlike the Eagle Tribe, they only had one offspring per birth. It had been a long time since he had seen anyone feeding multiple cubs at once.
In the Eagle Tribe, only one chick from a nest typically survived. More than one could hatch, but only the strongest would make it—the rest were lost to natural competition. However, for wolf cubs, their parents did everything possible to raise them all. They would only prioritize the strongest if food was genuinely scarce.
Ying Mian carefully observed Bai Tu’s feeding methods, even memorizing how he cooled the food and the words he used to comfort the pups.
Lang Qi was not happy about Ying Mian watching so intently.
Bai Tu shot Lang Qi a look and quietly reassured him, “He’s a sub-beast, there’s no need to be on guard.”
But Lang Qi still wasn’t convinced. Two sub-beasts together wasn’t unheard of. This man had been staring at Bai Tu the entire time—how could Lang Qi not be wary?
Only when the wolf pups were completely full, burped, curled up together to sleep, and placed back into their carrier did Ying Mian finally reluctantly look away.
“I’m going back,” he said. He needed to find Xiong Liao and say goodbye.
Bai Tu waved him off, reminding him, “Go ahead, but talk properly—don’t argue.”
He hadn’t known before, but this spring, there had been both courtship attempts and temporary partners breaking up in the tribe. Not every split was peaceful. Some partners disagreed about separating, and fights over mates weren’t uncommon—especially among the lion tribe. Anything involving feelings was always messy.
Ying Mian nodded, though it was unclear if he really took the advice to heart.
When Ying Mian returned to the White Bear Tribe, he found Xiong Liao frantically searching for him, running around like a headless chicken.
The moment Xiong Liao spotted him, he immediately rushed over, grabbed his arm, and dragged him toward the fire pit.
“Hurry, hurry, hurry! Bai An gave me a huge piece of braised meat—it smells amazing!”
Ying Mian recalled the food Bai Tu had been eating earlier—it really had smelled good. Compared to that, the other tribes’ meals seemed to be a lot better than what the White Bear Tribe usually ate.
The White Bear Tribe’s beastmen, especially those who had lived there since childhood, were excellent hunters. Before this year, they had never faced hunger, and even now, when prey was scarcer, no one had starved.
But the White Bear Tribe had one peculiar trait—their food preparation was extremely simple, preserving the original taste of the ingredients as much as possible.
“Smells good, right?”
Xiong Liao pointed at the braised meat heating over the fire and grinned. “I saved it just for you!”
“Mm.” Ying Mian nodded. The closer he got, the better it smelled.
But…
Ying Mian glanced at Xiong Liao.
Forget it. One last time.
The portion Bai An had given was quite large. Xiong Liao hadn’t even touched it—he had saved the whole thing for Ying Mian.
However, Ying Mian’s appetite wasn’t as big as a bear’s. In the end, he could only finish a quarter of it before feeling full.
Xiong Liao rubbed his hands together and hesitantly asked, “Mian, tonight…”
Ying Mian nodded.
The result of the discussion between several tribes and the White Bear Tribe was that they would continue the journey together. Since their speeds were about the same, traveling separately would be inconvenient—they would have to consider whether they would meet again later. If one group was resting while another was preparing a meal, the leading group would inevitably be affected.
By traveling together, this issue was eliminated. They would form one large group, do everything together, and follow the same schedule without worrying about disrupting each other.
In the afternoon, they traveled together for a while. The Snow Rabbit, Blood Wolf, and Leopard tribes passed by a group twice as long as theirs. The Yellow Lion, White Lion, and Deer tribes had already been part of the group for a day, so adding a few dozen more people didn’t make much of a difference. Only the Bear Tribe was experiencing such a long caravan for the first time—it was even larger than their original tribe. However, since all the tribes were well-organized, there were no conflicts despite the large numbers.
It was also possible that everyone was distracted by something else. As dinner approached, the tribes were preparing their meals, but the White Bear Tribe’s beastmen couldn’t take their eyes off the neighboring tribes’ food.
Grilled meat, roasted fish, stewed meat soup, and all kinds of unknown herbs—these were things they had never eaten before. At first, they assumed the grass was being used only because the other delicious food had run out. But when they saw people scrambling to eat it, they realized it must also be tasty.
The White Bear Tribe’s beastmen were drooling at the sight. In the end, Bai An couldn’t stand it anymore and went to discuss with Bai Tu. Their craving was one thing, but more importantly, the rabbit tribe’s beastmen were too intimidated to pick up their chopsticks under the intense gazes of the bear tribe. Even though they had been around the wolf and lion tribes for a long time, their instincts were still influenced by their beast forms. Moreover, these bear tribe members were relatively unfamiliar to them.
At that moment, Bai Tu was holding the wolf cubs and watching the stars. Even though it was the same sky, it felt different from different locations. The wolf cubs loved the change of scenery, especially because no matter where they went, their father was always with them. They nestled quietly in Bai Tu’s embrace. Sometimes, when Bai Tu lay down, they would climb onto him, trying to stay as close to him as possible.
Seeing Bai An, Bai Tu picked up the wolf cubs and adjusted his sitting posture. “Does the chief need something?” It was more of a rhetorical question. They were on their way to the market, not in their usual setting. Even though things had already been arranged, Bai An was still too busy to stop for a moment. He wouldn’t have come over unless it was important.
“The White Bear Tribe’s beastmen…” Bai An had come over on impulse, but now that he was actually here, he hesitated for a moment before continuing. “They seem to want to try our food. What do you think—should we give them some pickled vegetables?” Meat was definitely out of the question. No matter how much food they had, it wasn’t enough to just hand out to anyone they met. However, Bai An figured they could share some of the pickled vegetables Bai Tu had recently made. Among the various dishes, that one used the most common ingredients.
“Sure! Let’s give them some meat sauce too. We brought plenty when we came,” Bai Tu said. Pickled vegetables and meat sauce had long shelf lives. Recently, he had taught everyone how to seal food with beeswax to keep out air. Even in summer, the food could be preserved for a while. Both dishes had strong flavors, so they weren’t consumed in large quantities at each meal. Sharing some wouldn’t be an issue.
Moreover, the reason these two foods were so popular was largely due to the limited variety of ingredients available in this region. In reality, they weren’t difficult to make. The pickled vegetables were made with salt, soy sauce, and early spring wild greens like shepherd’s purse. The so-called “meat sauce” was only about one-third meat—the rest was mostly chili peppers, making it more like a chopped chili meat sauce.
Both were staple foods in the communal dining area, available for anyone to take as long as they didn’t waste any. They had also made fermented vegetables, but Bai Tu was worried they wouldn’t keep well on the journey, so they had left them back in the tribe.
Since they had plenty, Bai Tu wasn’t stingy about sharing. Exchanging inexpensive food for good relations with a tribe was definitely a beneficial trade.
With Bai Tu’s approval, Bai An went to fetch the pickled vegetables and meat sauce. Once he had them, he went straight to find Xiong Liao. However, as the leader, Xiong Liao was nowhere to be seen, nor was the young warrior usually by his side.
Since he couldn’t find them, and he didn’t want the Bear Tribe’s people to keep staring longingly, Bai An simply took matters into his own hands and distributed the two jars of pickled vegetables and meat sauce to the White Bear Tribe’s beastmen. Worried they might be hesitant to eat, he even pointed at the nearby wolf tribe members who were already eating. “These are foods we eat in our tribe too. You can eat them with confidence.”
But Bai An quickly realized his reassurance was completely unnecessary. The bear beastmen hadn’t been listening to a word he said—their eyes were locked onto the jars in his hands. The moment he distributed the side dishes, they started eating right away.
They devoured the pickled vegetables at an incredible speed. After watching the others eat earlier, they had already learned how to eat them properly—not on their own, but together with meat.
The pickled vegetables weren’t just salty; they had other unfamiliar but delicious flavors. More importantly, they made the meat taste even better. The bear tribe’s usual grilled meat often had unevenly sprinkled salt—some parts were unbearably salty, while others had no salt at all. With the pickled vegetables, they didn’t even need to add extra salt anymore.
As for the chopped chili meat sauce, they were more cautious. The bear tribe spent most of the winter hibernating, and even when they were awake, they didn’t go out much. They knew about fire fruits (chili peppers), but they had never eaten them before. Trying something completely new always came with a bit of wariness.
After tasting the food, some found it spicy and fragrant and went back for a second bite, while others, their faces flushed red, shook their heads, unable to eat any more.
Since they had departed late in the afternoon, it was already completely dark when they started preparing dinner. The meal took a while, and with all the noise and chatter, dinner didn’t end until late into the night. The tribe leaders didn’t interfere much—as long as it didn’t affect their ability to depart on time the next day, they let things be.
*
Bai Tu waited until the moon was high in the sky before Ying Mian finally arrived. Seeing that he looked tired but unhurt, Bai Tu let out a breath of relief.
He didn’t know what Ying Mian had said to Xiong Liao, but as long as they had reached an agreement, that was good enough. Bai Tu called over a beastman from the Black Hawk Tribe and instructed him to take Ying Mian away. “Don’t fly too fast,” he reminded, since Ying Mian was carrying several eggs.
The eagle beastman nodded and left with Ying Mian to find a suitable takeoff spot.
There were seven or eight beastmen from the Black Hawk Tribe in the group, all sent by Hei Xiao to help Bai Tu relay messages. At first, Bai Tu didn’t think he would need them and hesitated to trouble them, but now he was glad he had listened to Hei Xiao. They were already proving useful on just the second day.
A non-eagle beastman could have taken Ying Mian back, but it would have been much slower—not only because walking was slower in general, but also because they would have had to constantly stay alert for potential ambushes.
Not carrying food didn’t necessarily mean safety. Some wandering beastmen, driven by extreme hunger, would even eat other beastmen. Having spent so much time surviving in the wild, these feral beastmen fought with a reckless abandon, as if they didn’t feel pain. They were just as dangerous as fallen beasts. While they wouldn’t dare attack a large group, they would seize any opportunity to capture both supplies and people from smaller, isolated groups.
Flying, on the other hand, was much safer. The straight-line distance was shorter, and without carrying extra supplies, they could fly even faster. The open sky also provided a clear view of the surroundings—any potential threats could be spotted from afar, greatly reducing the risk of ambush.
Watching Ying Mian leave, Bai Tu carried the wolf cubs and went to find Lang Qi. He had done everything he could to help; now, it was up to them how many of the little eagles would successfully hatch.
On his way past the area where the White Bear Tribe was staying, Bai Tu noticed that Xiong Liao seemed to be in a particularly good mood. Several White Bear beastmen surrounded him, discussing how to handle defense for the night and the coming days.
Bai Tu was a bit surprised. Ying Mian had just left, yet Xiong Liao looked… happy? He didn’t seem like someone who had just been separated from his mate—in fact, he looked more like someone who had finally achieved a long-awaited goal.
It wasn’t just Bai Tu overthinking things—Xiong Liao’s emotions were so obvious that even the usually slow-witted bear beastmen around him could feel it.
One of the bear tribe members, who was about the same age as Xiong Liao, asked after they had finished discussing a topic, “Chief, you seem really happy today?”
“I’m happy, really happy,” Xiong Liao grinned, rubbing his hands together excitedly. Today had been his most exhilarating day in a long time.
The rabbit beastmen were just as good as he had expected! Their chief was great too! And he had heard that the extra food they had tonight was all given by the Rabbit Tribe. This made Xiong Liao even happier. He was determined to protect the Rabbit Tribe. Such a small and weak tribe needed beastmen like his to protect them!
As he was thinking about this, he suddenly spotted Bai Tu. Grinning, Xiong Liao greeted him cheerfully, “Tu! Still not asleep?”
He recognized Bai Tu—this was the mate of the Wolf Tribe’s chief. Seeing Bai Tu holding the little wolf cubs, Xiong Liao couldn’t help but take another look. The wolf cubs were adorable, but he wasn’t the least bit envious—he had a mate too! His mate would be giving him cubs next year!
The thought of having his own cubs next year filled Xiong Liao with excitement.
“Mm, not yet,” Bai Tu nodded. He had planned to leave immediately, but then he remembered that Ying Mian had left the group alone with five eggs. If it weren’t for his help, Ying Mian might have faced trouble. So, after some hesitation, he asked, “Chief Xiong Liao, you knew that Mian was leaving the group?”
“Of course!” Xiong Liao nodded. “He told me himself.”
“Alright.” Bai Tu nodded in response. Since there was no misunderstanding between the two, it seemed he had been overthinking things.
Sure enough, after spending so much time here, his thoughts had become simpler than before. He had actually thought that Xiong Liao… Well, never mind. Bai Tu shook his head. Whoever the Bear Tribe’s chief chose as a mate was none of his business. As long as Ying Mian’s cubs were safe, that was all that mattered.
There were many ways to earn points within the tribe, and even alone in the Snow Rabbit Tribe, Ying Mian was still able to raise several cubs.
Without saying anything more to Xiong Liao, Bai Tu headed toward the Wolf Tribe.
The cubs had slept a lot during the day and were now full of energy. The nighttime temperature was lower than during the day, making them even more active. As Bai Tu held them, everything they saw seemed new and exciting.
Lang Qi was busy assigning tasks to the wolf beastmen. Since spring, he had developed the habit of handling tribe affairs after meals or once Bai Tu and the cubs were asleep. Now that they were traveling, and Bai Tu hadn’t gone to sleep yet, Lang Qi took the opportunity to deal with things first. The Wolf Tribe had a large population, and even though Lang Ze and Lang Ya were helping to oversee matters, some issues still required Lang Qi’s approval, such as security and defense.
Nighttime defense was handled in shifts by multiple tribes, and with the White Bear Tribe now joining them, adjustments had to be made to the patrol teams. Although this seemed like a simple task, Lang Qi had to carefully select the right people and relay instructions to each squad leader, who would then pass them on to their teams.
As the chief, Lang Qi needed to have a deep understanding of every tribe member’s strengths and personalities to form the most effective teams. By combining the skills of the wolf beastmen with those from other tribes, they could maximize their defensive capabilities.
Standing guard at night wasn’t just about staying awake. Some had excellent hearing and could pick up sounds from half a day’s journey away. Others had keen senses of smell and could detect unfamiliar scents in the surroundings.
A competent leader knew how to use the fewest people to achieve the best results—ensuring the tribe wasn’t ambushed while also allowing the rest of the group to rest properly and stay in peak condition.
Lang Qi worked meticulously, his expression serious and focused. Bai Tu didn’t disturb them, instead finding a place to sit while gently soothing the cubs. As he glanced at Lang Qi, who was still giving orders, he was momentarily reminded of their first meeting a year ago. At that time, his first thought had been how intimidating Lang Qi was—truly fitting for a wolf beastman.
Even later, when they went to the market together, Bai Tu had interacted more with Lang Ze, while Lang Qi mostly remained silent, simply listening to their conversation. A glance from him was rare enough.
It wasn’t until Lang Qi was affected by the medicinal herbs that his personality began to change. After he sobered up, he was no longer the same as before. But now, Bai Tu once again saw that old version of Lang Qi.
When he first realized Lang Qi was clear-headed, Bai Tu thought he would leave immediately. After all, just as the Wolf Tribe respected their leader, their leader also prioritized the tribe above all else. Bai Tu had no illusions about where he stood compared to the tribe. However, Lang Qi’s eventual choice had completely surprised him.
Bai Tu quietly watched Lang Qi for a long time until he finally finished his work and returned. By then, the wolf cubs had curled up on Bai Tu’s lap, fast asleep. From time to time, they smacked their lips, as if dreaming of something delicious.
Lang Qi hadn’t noticed Bai Tu’s presence. Bai Tu’s footsteps were lighter than most, and though Lang Qi had briefly sensed his scent earlier, he dismissed it as his imagination. It wasn’t until now that he truly saw him.
“How long have you been waiting?” Lang Qi waved the others away so they could return to their duties, then walked over to Bai Tu. Seeing that he was only wearing a short-sleeved cotton shirt, Lang Qi frowned and said, “It’s windy at night.”
“The wind is hot, not cold,” Bai Tu replied. He didn’t feel cold at all. Summer winds were completely different from winter winds—they only made things hotter.
Lang Qi didn’t argue. He carefully picked up the wolf cubs and placed them in a bag, carrying them in one hand while using the other to shield Bai Tu as they headed to rest.
Their resting place was closer to the front. Since they had the cubs, Bai Tu had set up a tent despite the high temperatures. He left part of it open while sleeping to avoid it becoming too stuffy.
Once inside, Bai Tu released the cubs. While traveling, he had been sleeping in his human form at night. During the day, he sometimes shifted into his beast form to carry the cubs on Lang Qi’s back, but other times he remained human. Since everyone already knew about their relationship, Bai Tu had no intention of walking through the mountains again—last time, the round trip had taken half a month, and his feet had hurt for days afterward.
One advantage of his human form was that it made caring for the cubs easier. Bai Tu placed them inside a bamboo basket. They were fully capable of climbing out, but by the time they did, Lang Qi would wake up and put them back in.
This time, the journey was far more dangerous than before. Otherwise, the tribe leaders wouldn’t be so meticulous about defensive measures and patrols. Because of this, they couldn’t find a separate place to rest like last time. Lang Qi still remembered what had happened back then. He glanced down at the cubs, his gaze lingering on the little gray one.
Bai Tu didn’t know what he was thinking. After settling the cubs, he asked softly, “Shall we sleep now?”
Lang Qi nodded. Looking at the cubs between them, he hesitated, then finally moved them to the far side of the tent before pulling Bai Tu into his arms.
“Isn’t it too hot?” Bai Tu sighed at his insistence on holding him even in the middle of summer. Lang Qi’s body was naturally warm—being wrapped in his embrace was like being surrounded by a furnace.
Lang Qi didn’t respond. He simply nuzzled Bai Tu’s face and said with a hint of regret, “I can only hold you.”
This trip was dangerous, and they weren’t outside the main group like last time. There wasn’t even an opportunity to do anything more.
Bai Tu instantly covered Lang Qi’s mouth. Even though he knew the nearest beastman was more than ten meters away, he still felt like someone might hear them. In the end, he decided to ignore it. “If you like hugging, then just hug.” After all this time, he had gotten used to it. It was a little warm, but not unbearable.
Feeling triumphant, Lang Qi rubbed against him lightly before finally placing a kiss on his forehead. “Sleep.”
That night passed without dreams.
The next morning, when Bai Tu woke up, only he and the cubs remained in the tent—Lang Qi was already gone.
He reached out and touched the nearby animal pelt; it was still slightly warm. Lang Qi must have woken up not long ago and was probably preparing food.
Thinking of this, Bai Tu yawned, got up, and carried the basket of cubs to wash up.
Outside the tent, there was a basin of water, a covered cup filled with drinking water, and six towels—one large and five small. It was obvious that Lang Qi had prepared everything.
Bai Tu wet a towel and began wiping the cubs’ faces. As soon as the damp towel touched them, the still-drowsy wolf cubs immediately perked up. Their round eyes blinked up at Bai Tu before glancing around, searching for their other father. When they didn’t see him, they made questioning sounds at Bai Tu. However, their voices were so soft and adorable that their meaning was difficult to decipher—it could only be guessed.
“Your father went to make breakfast.” Bai Tu naturally couldn’t understand the cubs’ language, but he could guess most of it. Their thoughts were simple, unlike Lang Qi, who was good at hiding his emotions. It wasn’t hard to figure out what they were asking.
Hearing the key words “father” and “breakfast,” the cubs stopped looking around and instead reached out their paws toward Bai Tu, wanting to be held.
“Wait a moment, let me wash up first.” Bai Tu gathered the cubs in the middle and quickly freshened up while they tried to climb their way out.
By the time Bai Tu put down the towel, the fastest cub, Lang Ying, was only one step away from escaping.
Just as he was about to succeed, he suddenly tumbled forward and landed with a soft “plop” onto something warm and familiar. Looking to the side, he saw that it was Bai Tu’s hand and immediately became excited.
“Alright, alright, don’t squirm so much.” The two larger cubs were no longer as small as before. Each weighed nearly two kilograms now, and while carrying them with one hand was still manageable, it became difficult when they moved too much.
After placing Lang Ying back inside, Bai Tu turned to remove the other cubs who were clinging to the edge. He tapped each of them on the head. “Not listening, are you?”
The cubs thought he was playing with them and treated his hand like prey, pouncing on it and nibbling playfully.
The two bigger cubs had sharper teeth, so Bai Tu made sure they didn’t bite too hard. As for the three smaller ones, their bites and scratches were gentle, so he let them play as they pleased.
While playing, Bai Tu also observed their reflexes. Among the two larger cubs, Lang Sui was the steadier one, while Lang Ying was faster. The three smaller ones had their own traits too—the largest black cub was calm and composed, the gray cub was talkative, and the white cub was particularly agile.
Looking at them, Bai Tu couldn’t help but think of Lang Qi and Lang Ze. Did all wolf siblings share these characteristics?
However, compared to Lang Ze, Lang Ya was much more mature. Bai Tu sighed, wondering how Lang Ze was doing back at the tribe now that Lang Qi and Lang Ya were both away.
Meanwhile, at the edge of the Snow Rabbit Tribe’s territory, Lang Ze—who was busy digging with a group of wolf cubs—suddenly sneezed and, before he could control it, shifted into his human form.
“Who’s badmouthing me?” he muttered. Bai Tu had once said that sneezing meant someone was talking about you.
The young wolf cubs around him shifted into their human forms one by one, shaking their heads to declare their innocence.
“No.”
“It wasn’t me.”
“Not me either.”
“I didn’t do it. We were all digging. How could we have time to curse at you?”
“Did I guess wrong?” Lang Ze rubbed his nose. Since he couldn’t find the culprit, he decided not to dwell on it. Looking down at the dirt beneath his feet, he frowned. “This soil doesn’t look right either.”
Lately, several tribes had sent people to the market, reducing the number of people in the settlement. A previously uncontacted tribe to the north of the Lion Tribe was starting to act suspiciously. Lang Ze had caught people trying to sneak in twice while on patrol, but none of them had escaped his sharp eyes.
When Lang Qi was around, they didn’t dare make a move. But the moment Lang Qi left, they started sneaking in—wasn’t this just blatant disrespect toward him, Lang Ze?
Annoyed that they underestimated him, Lang Ze decided to make a cement statue of himself in his beast form and place it at the tribe’s border. He’d mark the area as his territory, making it clear to outsiders that this place was under his protection.
However, when he went to request cement, he was rejected. The construction team’s squad leader sternly told him that construction projects were the tribe’s top priority. All cement use had to wait until the builders were done, unless Bai Tu gave special approval. But Bai Tu had left two days ago, and it would take half a month before he returned.
Lang Ze was not the kind of person to give up when faced with difficulties. If anything, being told “no” only made him more determined. Since they refused to give him materials, he decided to make everything himself—from building a clay kiln to making bricks, then constructing a brick kiln, and finally producing his own lime.
When he went to get bricks and limestone, he was refused again. The reason remained the same: the construction team had first priority.
Was Lang Ze the type to back down? Absolutely not. The more they said he couldn’t, the more he wanted to do it. Since he couldn’t get the materials, he would start from scratch.
First, he needed clay. The land near the residential area was off-limits—some areas were used for livestock grazing, while others were reserved for harvesting grass. So he set his sights on the land previously occupied by the Mad Lion Tribe.
This area was a bit farther from the settlement, and when the Lion Tribe had divided the land, they had dismissed this place for having too few plants. Even back when the Mad Lion Tribe occupied it, they rarely stayed here, which spoke volumes about how barren it was.
For Lang Ze, that was great news—since no one else used it, he could dig as much as he wanted. But after digging for half a day without finding the clay he needed, his patience started wearing thin.
Suddenly, a young wolf called out, “Boss, we found something!”
The other wolf cubs immediately turned to look at Lang Ze’s stomach.
Lang Ze, however, only cared about the clay. “Found what?”
“This! It’s a different color.” The young wolf handed him a handful of whitish-gray soil.
“This isn’t clay.” Lang Ze was disappointed. “What the hell is this?” He tossed the soil aside. “Forget it, I’m done digging!”
“Pfft! Pfft!” A wolf cub who had just shifted into human form accidentally got a mouthful of the soil and spat repeatedly. “It’s so bitter…”
———
Bai Tu was completely unaware of what was happening back at the tribe. Right now, he was watching Xiong Liao running around anxiously.
Xiong Liao was holding a bag of food he had just traded from Bai An, sweating profusely as he searched everywhere. “Where’s Mian? Have you seen Mian?”
Seeing him like this, Bai Tu couldn’t help but reply, “Didn’t Mian leave yesterday? He even told you.”
“But he always comes back in the morning after his rounds!” Xiong Liao became even more anxious. “I’m here, so he should definitely return. If he hasn’t, that means something bad happened to him!”
Bai Tu: “???”
Thanks for the chapter!