Chapter 183
Lang Qi: “It should be fine.”
Bai Tu: “……” He understood what that meant—adjustments could be made. That made things much easier.
After gathering detailed information from the deceived beastmen, Bai Tu had already come up with a preliminary plan. As the weather grew colder, he didn’t want to waste any time. He immediately called Lang Ze over to assign him a task.
If Bai Tu were assigning work to anyone else, he would start by explaining the job details. But when it came to the little wolves, it was different—he started with the rewards instead.
“There’s something I need you all to do, and only you can do it. If you complete the task, I’ll cook you an entire shelf of canned food.”
The storage shelves in the tribe were huge—each layer could hold dozens of cans, and each shelf had six layers.
Hearing the number of cans, the little wolves’ eyes lit up with excitement, practically glowing green with hunger.
Canned food! A whole shelf full of canned food, all they could eat! Every word was irresistible to them.
Just as they were getting excited, Bai Tu added another incentive:
“But the task is a bit difficult and will take some time. However, once you finish it, you’ll be able to order whatever food you want for three days.”
That meant they could eat whatever they wanted for three days, even the tribe’s rare and valuable foods—as long as it didn’t interfere with crop production, they could have it.
The little wolves immediately shouted: “We’re in! We’ll do it!”
Time didn’t matter—they were already thinking about what they wanted to eat.
Then, Bai Tu revealed his real plan:
“Some people have been impersonating the Black Forest Tribe. You just need to go over there and cause some trouble for them.”
At first, the little wolves thought someone was impersonating their own tribe. But when they heard it was the Black Forest Tribe, they were instantly displeased:
“Why would they impersonate the Black Forest Tribe? Why not impersonate us?”
Bai Tu: “……” Is that really the point here?
Standing nearby, Lang Qi looked skeptical about Bai Tu’s plan.
Bai Tu reassured him: “Trust me, they’re the best choice for this job.”
The little wolves left the tribe with their secret mission.
For them, this was a rare opportunity—they had barely left the tribe since the rainy season, and now they could finally run free.
The journey from the Hundred Beasts Tribe to the impostor camp would normally take ten days, but the little wolves were much faster.
To prevent them from getting lost, Bai Tu arranged for the Eagle Tribe to guide them.
They were given enough food for five days, and Bai Tu sealed each food basket with strict instructions not to open them early.
This method worked—somewhat—but not entirely.
Within half a day of leaving the tribal gate, the little wolves had already finished all their food for the day.
The Eagle Tribe guide hesitated to say anything but was worried—they still had at least four to five days of travel ahead.
The food was barely enough if they rationed it properly. But knowing the wolves’ habit of eating three times the normal amount in one sitting, they might run out in two days and go hungry afterward.
However, what happened next surprised the Eagle guide.
For the rest of the day, the little wolves never stopped moving—they kept running until midnight before finally stopping to rest.
Seeing this, the Eagle guide let out a sigh of relief.
“So they ate everything at once just to build up energy for the journey.”
But in reality…
Lang Zuo: “I’m starving.”
Lang You: “Me too.”
Lang Ze: “Sleep. If you’re asleep, you won’t feel hungry.”
Lang Ze’s strategy worked—or maybe they were just so exhausted from running all day that they passed out immediately.
The Eagle guides, seeing that the wolves had settled down, also prepared to rest.
A younger Eagle hesitated.
“Shouldn’t we check the supplies?”
“Bai Tu said there’s no need.”
The Eagle team leader, Hei Fan, answered.
Since Ying Chun and Hei Yan weren’t around, the responsibility had fallen on him.
Hei Fan was introverted and didn’t interact much with the Wolf Tribe, so he usually just followed Bai Tu’s orders exactly.
“There’s no need to keep watch. Get some rest.”
Hearing this, Hei Fan was startled.
He turned around and saw— Lang Qian.
There was an sub-beastman in the group?!
Hei Fan and the Eagle Tribe members were completely shocked—they had never noticed this before!
“Bai Tu sent me.” Lang Qian explained.
Of course, Bai Tu wouldn’t feel comfortable leaving an introverted Eagle captain with an overly outgoing Wolf captain. No one else could control Lang Ze, so he specifically assigned Lang Qian to accompany them.
Initially, the plan was for Lang Qian to stay hidden the entire journey, but Bai Tu worried that Hei Fan might be overwhelmed by Lang Ze’s team. So, he instructed Lang Qian to check in with Hei Fan and the others along the way.
Hei Fan was silent for a moment before accepting it.
“I’ll grab some food. You guys just rest.” Lang Qian reassured them. “Don’t worry about the wolves. No one will touch their food.”
Hearing this, the Eagle Tribe finally relaxed.
But in the middle of the night, a sudden commotion woke them up.
Hei Fan immediately thought someone was trying to steal their supplies, but when he opened his eyes, he realized—
It was just the wolves gathered around the food, whispering.
“When can we eat?”
“Hungry, hungry, hungry…”
“Me too, I’m starving.”
“Can I just have one bite?”
The Eagle Tribe members: “……”
Even Lang Ze was hungry, especially after hearing the other young wolves complain.
They were genuinely hungry.
But Bai Tu had strict rules—before dawn, it was still considered the previous day, so they weren’t allowed to eat from their next meal’s rations.
The young wolves were full of energy. Even after traveling all day, a half-night’s rest was enough for them. Normally, they would have run off to play by now, but this time, they couldn’t—because they were all too hungry.
Lying awake, Lang Ze absentmindedly poked at his food basket.
Then, suddenly, he noticed something was off.
His was the last basket in the row, and the seal on it was supposed to stay closed until the final day.
So who was secretly eating?
Lang Ze immediately sat up, ready to punish the thief by taking away their food for a day—of course, that confiscated food would go to him.
He poked the basket again, and this time, he found an opening in the middle!
In the dark night, Lang Ze’s eyes gleamed as he prepared to catch the culprit red-handed.
No one steals food on his watch!
Not even his own brother would be spared!
Determined, Lang Ze ripped open the basket— Inside, a tiny wolf pup, no bigger than a palm, was fast asleep.
Lang Ze froze.
Then, pretending he saw nothing, he slowly closed the opening again.
Nothing to see here. No one is watching. There are no rules. No one will snitch.
Lang Ze kept repeating this to himself.
A moment later, he was completely at peace with it.
Everything was just an illusion.
When morning comes, he’ll be a good wolf again!
As soon as the sun rose, it was breakfast time.
All the young wolves’ attention was on eating, so no one noticed Lang Ze quietly placing his basket among the others.
Then, he began swapping the baskets around.
He repeated the process over ten times, until he was finally satisfied.
Then, he casually grabbed a random basket and slung it onto his back.
Now everything was in order.
Feeling accomplished, Lang Ze called for the others to get moving.
After a hearty breakfast, the wolves were full of energy again.
They hoisted their baskets and continued their journey.
Just as Bai Tu predicted, the trip from the Hundred Beasts Tribe to the impostor camp took about the expected time—in fact, they even arrived slightly early.
This time, they only brought food—no animal skins or extra supplies.
They were luckier than the beastmen who had been deceived, because with the Eagle Tribe guiding them, they avoided all the dangerous beast territories.
But even if they had encountered wild animals, the young wolves wouldn’t have been afraid.
In fact, some of them were eyeing the beasts’ fur—imagining how nice it would feel to sleep on it.
Far away, the wild beasts all shivered involuntarily.
Upon reaching the impostor camp, the young wolves followed Bai Tu’s instructions—they wandered around the area, pretending to be lost travelers.
Each of them carried a basket, but the baskets were completely empty—after all, their rations were for five days only, and young wolves never leave food uneaten.
However, to keep up the illusion that they were still carrying supplies, they had added some random objects into their baskets.
This was Lang Qian’s idea—he claimed it was Bai Tu’s order.
Lang Ze looked annoyed—he had switched baskets, but Lang Qian still managed to crawl out of the one on his back!
As expected, someone from the impostor camp finally came out to investigate.
They were cautious at first, since another group had just left, but seeing that this was just a small group of young beastmen, they let their guard down.
With just a few words, they easily tricked the wolves into following them.
The young wolves played along perfectly, pretending to be completely gullible as they followed the impostors into their camp.
As they entered the camp, an elderly man with graying whiskers greeted them warmly.
“You must be here to trade for supplies? I am Bai An, the leader of the Hundred Beasts Tribe.”
The young wolves: “!!!”
You’re the leader of the Hundred Beasts Tribe? Then what are we?!
Their shock was mistaken for delight, and the elder continued speaking.
“Normally, we don’t allow trading after winter, but since you’ve come all this way, we’ll make an exception for you.”
The young wolves: “Sure, sure!”
The fake Bai An was pleased by their eagerness—young people were always so easy to fool.
“Now, about your supplies…” He rubbed his hands excitedly.
Last time, a group had taken all their food in exchange for labor. Though it had benefited them, he still felt it was a loss. This time, he wouldn’t let them walk away with their own rations.
“Where are your supplies?” the fake Bai An asked.
The young wolves immediately shielded their battered baskets, which had been perfectly fine when they left their tribe, but after days of travel, rolling around, and roughhousing, they were now falling apart.
Still, the fact that they could carry them at all was a miracle.
The wolves looked a little wary, but not too defensive, which further reassured the fake Bai An.
If they had handed over their food too easily, that would’ve been suspicious.
Compared to the previous group, these kids were way easier to deceive.
The fake Bai An was thrilled—not only could they be tricked, but they looked strong enough to work!
With a kind smile, he asked, “Which tribe are you from? How did you find this place?”
They usually targeted lost beastmen, but he preferred to gather some intel first before fabricating a convincing lie.
“The Red Wolf Tribe. We got lost on our way to the market.” Lang Ze replied.
“The market ended long ago. It’d be better for you to trade with our tribe.” The fake Bai An quickly started selling his pitch.
“You’ve heard about the Black Hawk Tribe’s messages, right? Our tribe can trade supplies at any time. We also offer shelter—just help out with some work each day, and you’ll be taken care of.”
“Do you provide food?” The young wolves asked immediately.
Food was their biggest concern.
“Of course, of course! You’ll definitely get food!” The fake Bai An was delighted—since they were already asking about conditions, that meant they were considering staying.
“We’ve also rescued many sub-beastmen, you know?” The fake Bai An continued, scanning the young men before him.
“In our tribe, you can find partners freely—two or three if you like!”
The young wolves frowned.
Sharing food with partners? And not just one, but two or three?!
They quickly did the math in their heads—if they had to split their food, how much would each of them have left?
Their expressions grew even more serious as they stared into the distance, contemplating life’s most difficult questions.
It was a major life decision.
But their concerns were completely different from what the fake Bai An assumed.
After careful deliberation, the young wolves shook their heads firmly.
No. Absolutely not.
That would leave them hungry!
The fake Bai An watched them all shake their heads and stroked his beard.
So greedy, these youngsters.
Of course, there were no real sub-beastmen here, but it was useful to plant certain ideas in advance.
He smiled slyly and added, “If you want more, it’s not impossible—you just have to prove yourselves first.”
The young wolves’ faces darkened.
Even having two or three partners wasn’t enough?! Now they had to earn extra?!
Then what would they eat?!
The fake Bai An felt uneasy—something wasn’t right.
These kids had big appetites… too big.
“Young people, having too big an appetite isn’t a good thing.”
That single sentence set off the wolves.
What’s wrong with having a big appetite?!
They bristled, ready to argue.
But then they remembered Bai Tu’s instructions and held back—barely.
Bai Tu had been very clear:
No matter what they heard, they must neither agree nor refuse.
The young wolves’ silence made the fake Bai An believe his words had worked, so he took it upon himself to arrange their rest.
“Tomorrow, everyone can start working!” he said excitedly. The thought of having new beastmen to labor for his tribe filled him with joy.
With more and more people joining, the workload for his tribe would lighten, and food production would increase!
“We haven’t had dinner.” The young wolves shouted.
“Are you not going to feed us?”
Thinking about how this old man had criticized their appetites earlier, the wolves grew annoyed—they’d show him what a big appetite really was!
“Of course, of course!” Fake Bai An hurriedly reassured them.
“I’ve already prepared food! Just needs a little cooking.”
He immediately ordered someone to start preparing the meal.
For the sake of food, the young wolves decided to endure for now.
Perhaps learning from past mistakes, the tribe presented decent-looking dishes, including some jerky, obviously meant for winter storage.
The young wolves, who hadn’t eaten for half a day, stared at the food with glowing eyes but didn’t move—they waited for Lang Ze’s signal.
Lang Ze glanced to the side.
Lang Gan, who had been silent the whole time, was the first to pick up some food and take a bite. He nodded slightly.
That was all Lang Ze needed. He picked up a piece of roasted meat and said, “Eat.”
The young wolves immediately pounced on the food.
Fake Bai An nodded in satisfaction.
Obedient, very obedient.
If they were willing to listen to just one person, then all he needed to do was deceive that leader, and the others would surely follow.
After the wolves finished eating, all that remained were bare bones, picked clean.
Lang Ze turned to the old man.
“Where’s the rest? Bring it out.”
“What?” Fake Bai An was stunned.
“The food! Where’s the rest? Hurry up and bring it over!”
The wolves, impatient, started pressuring him one after another.
“You… still aren’t full?” Fake Bai An couldn’t believe it.
This was enough to feed fifty people for an entire day—and there were only a little over thirty of them.
And this was just one meal?!
“Of course, we’re not full!”
Lang Ze slammed the table.
“More food, now!”
The young wolves joined in, pounding the table.
“Food! Food! Food!”
The loud chanting made Fake Bai An’s head throb.
But thinking about how keeping these people meant less work for his own tribe, he gritted his teeth and reluctantly ordered:
“Go cook more!”
After the second round, the wolves slammed the table again.
“Food! Food! Food!”
The sturdy stone table trembled under their relentless pounding, as if it might shatter at any moment.
Fake Bai An took a deep breath, clenched his fists, and forced himself to give in again.
“Cook more!”
By the third round, the wolves were finally starting to slow down.
Though still not completely satisfied, the food here wasn’t as tasty as what they had back in their own tribe.
So they decided a half-full stomach would suffice.
The young wolves wiped their mouths, rubbed their stomachs, and began looking for a place to rest.
“Where do we sleep?” Lang Ze asked.
“Here, here!”
Fake Bai An was far more enthusiastic now than before—these people had finally finished eating!
That was three days’ worth of food for their tribe—just thinking about it made his heart ache.
If he had known earlier, he never would have promised them food.
But it was always the easiest way to lure people in.
Tomorrow. Tomorrow, they’ll work.
And they’ll do the heaviest labor.
Fake Bai An, determined, led them up a hill.
“This is where you’ll stay. Don’t wander at night. And remember—you’re not allowed in our living area.”
The young wolves looked toward the direction he pointed—all they saw was a pile of straw.
Seeing that they didn’t question him, Fake Bai An let out a sigh of relief.
Another group successfully fooled.
The Hundred Beasts Tribe was said to have better living conditions than most.
They didn’t, of course, but throwing together some random structures usually fooled people.
After all, these outsiders wouldn’t know any better.
Fake Bai An continued, “Tomorrow morning, I’ll assign you tasks. Oh, and—”
“I can help store your belongings.”
Before he could finish his sentence, the young wolves immediately clutched their baskets, their expressions darkening.
It was clear—if he touched their things, they’d make him regret it.
“Chief Bai An.”
Lang Qian, who had been silent, stepped forward and said calmly,
“We’ll only trade after we see your tribe’s supplies.”
“Of course, of course!”
Fake Bai An waved his hand dismissively.
“We’ll bring out the supplies tomorrow. We have plenty of salt.”
Lang Qian seemed reassured and nodded.
The young wolves didn’t make any extra moves, but they kept a watchful eye on Fake Bai An.
He could tell they were still wary, and regretfully glanced at their baskets.
Guess I’ll have to wait until tomorrow.
*
The Next Morning
Before Fake Bai An had even woken up, a commotion erupted outside.
“What’s going on?”
He sat up groggily, listening to the noisy disturbance outside.
As he walked out, a panicked beastman rushed over.
“Chief! The ones we brought back yesterday…
They’re hungry again!”
Fake Bai An’s legs nearly gave out.
They ate that much yesterday… and they’re still hungry?!
