Chapter 184
Fake Bai An felt completely overwhelmed. Those people had eaten three days’ worth of food—an amount their entire tribe couldn’t even finish in three days.
It was one thing for them to have eaten everything yesterday, but now, before even starting any work, they were hungry again?
Just thinking about their massive appetites sent chills down Fake Bai An’s spine.
He realized something: even if they only provided food, they couldn’t afford to support so many people!
No, no, no! Fake Bai An hurriedly said, “Chase them away, get rid of them all.”
He couldn’t take them in!
The messenger beastman looked bewildered. “Chief, are you sure you want to drive them out?” It was already winter, and there were fewer tribes wandering outside. If they sent these people away, they might have to wait months before encountering another group.
There wouldn’t be any more naive orcs walking right into their territory!
Fake Bai An hesitated. Indeed, their tribe hadn’t seen any beastmen willingly approach in a long time. Since the last group left, only these people had come.
The beastman beside Fake Bai An added, “Chief, we gave them three days’ worth of food yesterday!” If they chased them away now, that food would be wasted!
Tears welled up in Fake Bai An’s eyes. “Yes… three days’ worth of food.” Eating three days’ worth in a single meal—what kind of people were they? How could any tribe be comfortable letting such beastmen go out to trade for supplies? Weren’t they afraid they’d eat everything?
And now, instead of finishing off their own tribe’s food, they had come here to eat theirs.
The thought of all the food lost yesterday made Fake Bai An’s heart ache. His head hurt, his legs hurt—everything hurt.
“They brought a lot of food…” One of the beastman recalled the backpacks full of supplies they hadn’t checked yet. He was already anticipating how much food they’d find once they took those backpacks for themselves.
“Fine, give it to them,” Fake Bai An took a deep breath. There was no other choice. If they didn’t feed them, yesterday’s loss would be for nothing.
But giving them food still hurt.
Fake Bai An could only console himself by recalling those backpacks. So many of them… Surely there would be enough food inside to make up for what they ate yesterday.
Thinking that way made him feel a little better.
“Go cook the food.”
“The best ones again?”
Fake Bai An nodded. “Yes, the best!” He couldn’t afford to make the same mistake as last time.
Their tribe’s food all came from tricking others. This time, they were using the name of the Hundred Beasts Tribe. Before that, they had impersonated the Black Forest Tribe, the Fierce Tiger Tribe, the Wild Lion Tribe… Any well-known tribe, they had pretended to be at some point.
To avoid being exposed, they changed the tribe name they used every so often, selecting one based on the situation. Since it was winter, and the Hundred Beasts Tribe had recently claimed they traded supplies year-round, Fake Bai An had no hesitation in using that lie to trick these people.
But they only dared to deceive lost beastmen—after all, not everyone would wander into their territory. The amount of food they managed to scam was always limited.
Last time, they had successfully tricked a large group of people and had wanted to keep them in the tribe. Since there were so many of them, Fake Bai An didn’t give them the best food. Instead, he had taken out some slightly off-smelling meat.
He hadn’t expected the meat to be so bad that those people noticed something was wrong. They left that very day, and the tribe only managed to steal a small amount of food—nowhere near enough.
Every meal eaten was one meal less in the tribe’s stores. Fake Bai An couldn’t afford to make the same mistake again!
Even though it pained him, Fake Bai An still brought a large pile of food to find the young beastmen.
The moment he stepped inside, he nearly exploded with rage.
A group of beastmen lounged around—some lying down, some sitting—completely enjoying themselves. Meanwhile, his own people were exhausted from carrying all this food up to them.
Fake Bai An tried to comfort himself: Think about the backpacks… think about the backpacks…
*
After the Meal
Once everyone had finished eating, Fake Bai An tentatively asked, “Isn’t it time for you all to start working?”
He hadn’t brought them here just to lounge around. If they ate his tribe’s food, they had to work for it.
“Later,” Lang Ze waved his hand dismissively. Bai Tu had asked them to come, but he hadn’t said they needed to work. Lang Ze was very clear on this: anything Bai Tu instructed, they would absolutely do; anything his brother or Bai Chen ordered, they could choose to do; but as for others, it depended.
They would consider requests from people in their tribe. But this stranger in front of them? Lang Ze didn’t care about him at all. The food was bad, yet this man still wanted to send them away and take their supplies. Worst of all, he even complained about their appetites!
What was wrong with having a big appetite? Bai Tu had said that eating a lot meant being healthier.
Lang Ze shot a displeased glance at Fake Bai An. This man wasn’t even as good as Bai An, yet he dared to impersonate the leader of the Hundred Beasts Tribe?
And he had even picked the wrong person to impersonate! The actual leaders of the Hundred Beasts Tribe were Bai Chen and Lang Ze’s brother, but the one who truly had the final say was Bai Tu. Fake Bai An hadn’t managed to fool them at all.
Seeing that the group was only eating and not working, a trace of menace flashed in Fake Bai An’s eyes. If that was how they wanted to play it, then they couldn’t blame him for what was coming.
After saying a few more words, he turned and swaggered down the mountain.
Lang Qian watched his retreating figure carefully. Before they had set out, Bai Tu had specifically instructed him to keep an eye on this tribe. The young wolves could handle fights well enough, but they weren’t always observant in other matters. Lang Qian suspected Fake Bai An was planning something against them.
As he pondered what method Fake Bai An might use to force them into working or handing over their food, a young wolf suddenly called out from behind the cave.
“Boss! There’s a hole here!” The young wolves let out excited yelps.
There was another exit in the cave!
Bored and unable to fight under Lang Qian’s watchful gaze, Lang Ze instantly perked up. “Where? Where?”
Lang Qian looked at the pack of small wolves crowding around a knee-high opening and sighed.
The hole seemed deep, and it had been blocked by a stone. The wolf who discovered it had only found it because he tried to move a rock to sit on.
But the hole was too small. No matter whether in human or beast form, none of them could squeeze through. After some discussion, they had to give up.
Just as Lang Qian was about to return to keeping watch, he suddenly said, “I’ll go take a look outside.”
“You?” Lang Ze glanced at him. “You won’t fit either.”
“I’ll use my beast form,” Lang Qian explained. As a sub-beastman, his smaller animal form could squeeze through even tighter spaces than this.
Lang Ze’s eyes lit up. “I’ll get a rope!” If they tied Lang Qian up, they could pull him back easily.
Lang Qian nodded—at least this one has some sense.
But when the rope was tied around him, Lang Qian’s approval vanished. Who ties it around the neck?! Even when restraining young cubs, they tied it around the torso. Lang Ze, however, had just straight-up hoisted him.
Unable to speak in his beast form, Lang Qian gave up on arguing and instead maneuvered his legs through the rope. Fortunately, Lang Ze hadn’t tied it too tightly, and it settled snugly around his belly.
He made his way down the narrow passage. The rope ensured his safety, allowing him to descend all the way to the bottom.
It was a vertical shaft leading underground. From the amount of dust, it was clear no one had entered for a long time. The space was pitch dark.
Just as Lang Qian was about to move forward, he heard noises outside.
“Hurry up! Move it over here! We’ll light the fire soon.”
Lang Qian stiffened. He turned to look at the dust-covered ground beside him. No wonder it was so dark—it wasn’t just dust. These were soot stains left from previous burnings!
These people were planning to set the mountain on fire!
The wolves were still on the mountain. Fake Bai An’s plan was obvious—he was trying to force them out because they ate too much and refused to work.
Lang Qian recalled the stone that had been moved earlier. If they hadn’t discovered this tunnel, once the fire was lit, the smoke would have poured through the passage into their cave.
Realizing this, Lang Qian tugged at the rope, signaling for Lang Ze to pull him back up.
Once inside the cave again, he quickly explained the situation. Then he said, “Go down the mountain immediately and tell them we’ll work.”
“Burn us alive?” The young wolves were outraged.
“All this over two meals? And he dares to pretend to be from the Hundred Beasts Tribe?”
“He’s not trying to burn us to death,” Lang Qian corrected. “He just wants to use the smoke to force us to hand over our food or agree to work.”
Fake Bai An had already been upset when he left. But he wouldn’t outright kill them—after all, their supplies were still inside the cave. Instead, he wanted to smoke them out and make them submit to his demands.
Judging by the traces inside the stone passage, people had been threatened this way before. Last time, the victims must have been more numerous and spread out, which was why Fake Bai An hadn’t resorted to this method then.
The young wolves didn’t care whether the fire would kill people or not—setting fires was simply wrong. Impersonating their tribe was bad enough, but setting fires on top of that? That was something no one in their tribe could tolerate.
“Tu said setting fire to the mountains means rotting in prison,” Lang Ze muttered. In their tribe, those who made mistakes had to work as punishment rather than just sit in a cell, but the meaning was clear—fire was strictly forbidden.
The young wolves started shouting, determined to teach this fake tribe a lesson.
Lang Qian quickly stopped them. “Tu also said—no violence!”
The young wolves were hot-tempered, and they had to be kept in check. It wasn’t about sparing the fake tribe—it was about avoiding unnecessary trouble. If they injured people, who would pay the debt? This fake tribe had already tricked many people into working for free, leaving them with barely enough food to trade for salt.
Hearing this, the young wolves held back their anger, sighed, and went down the mountain.
“Leader Bai An, we’re here to work!” they gritted out through clenched teeth.
Fake Bai An hadn’t expected them to come down so suddenly. The beastmen moving logs at the foot of the mountain hadn’t left yet.
To avoid suspicion, Fake Bai An quickly made up an excuse. “Oh, you’re here! I was just about to make food for you. Bring the supplies over here—we’ll cook something warm.”
The young wolves nodded. “Yeah, something warm.”
They wanted hotpot.
Fake Bai An, seeing that they didn’t seem to be lying, relaxed. “Then let’s start working?” As long as they worked properly, he didn’t mind giving them a little food.
“But we haven’t eaten yet,” the young wolves protested. Their breakfast was long gone—how could he expect them to work now?
“The firewood is already here, so just start cooking,” one of them suggested.
“Yeah, exactly,” the others agreed.
Fake Bai An’s smile faltered for a moment. “Let’s take care of some other tasks first. Food will be brought over soon.”
Of course, he had no intention of using his own tribe’s food. No matter what, he was going to use their supplies this time. Now that everyone was down the mountain, it was the perfect chance to take their food away.
Fake Bai An discreetly signaled to his subordinate—the same beastman who had passed messages for him earlier. The subordinate nodded in understanding.
Meanwhile, Fake Bai An continued to distract the young beastmen.
“Start cooking!” Lang Ze wasn’t falling for his tricks. No food, no work. In their tribe, they always ate their fill!
As if receiving a command, the young wolves all started chanting, “Cook! Cook! Cook!” Their voices were perfectly synchronized, and Fake Bai An felt another headache coming on.
Why did we trick these people into coming here in the first place?
But it was too late for regrets. He could only hope his orders were being carried out properly. He pointed to another area. “Why don’t you all wait over there? I’ll arrange for food to be cooked right away.”
With that, he hurried to a corner, intending to check whether his people had successfully gathered the tribe members and moved the supplies.
However, when he reached the corner—where were they?
Fake Bai An looked toward a group of young beastmen chatting and laughing in the distance. Now was not the time for him to leave, so he could only watch anxiously.
Moments later, the sound of approaching footsteps startled him.
Why is there so much noise? He had meant for them to secretly take the food. This was supposed to be done quietly! With this much commotion, they would be exposed immediately!
Just as he was worrying, the approaching beastmen came into view—carrying stone pots, food, and other supplies.
Fake Bai An was shocked.
They already moved everything?
The operation had been so fast he hadn’t even realized it.
He walked up to his trusted aide and asked in a low voice, “Did you get it all?”
The subordinate nodded solemnly. “All of it. Everything.”
“Good,” Fake Bai An nodded. Since they had taken all of these people’s food, he didn’t mind letting them have a little.
Everyone always said his nephew was foolish, but he didn’t think so. Just look at how efficient he was!
The food this group had brought was plentiful—so many baskets, all packed to the brim. It was enough to feed his tribe for a month or two. Fake Bai An was delighted. As he watched his people carrying the food, he felt a strange sense of familiarity. However, he brushed it aside—there was no time to think about that now. The outsiders were still making a ruckus, and their noise was giving him a headache. He quickly waved his hand, ordering his people to start cooking.
His priority was to shut them up.
The beastmen got to work—some setting up pots, some lighting fires, others cutting meat.
Yesterday and this morning, the young wolves had eaten ready-made food, so they hadn’t paid much attention to the cooking process. But now that they saw how the fake tribe was preparing their food, they began to nitpick.
“This meat is dirty. Wash it properly before using it.”
“This part won’t do—cut it off!”
“Can’t you see the sand on it? Change it! Change it now…”
Nothing was up to their standards.
After all, these young wolves had been raised in the Hundred Beasts Tribe and had developed picky tastes. Bai Tu was especially strict about hygiene, so their tribe’s food was always impeccably clean—not a single stray hair in sight. But here? The meat was filthy, and of course, they weren’t going to accept that. They demanded that it be washed and scraped clean.
Fake Bai An, who had been in a good mood about acquiring their food, almost choked in frustration.
Where did these unbearably annoying beastmen come from?!
He had never met anyone more troublesome than these young ones. Absolutely not.
The beastmen cooking the food were being criticized left and right, and these outsiders weren’t just complaining—they were loud. Worse still, if their demands weren’t met, they looked ready to throw punches. The nervous cooks had no choice but to turn to Fake Bai An for help.
Fake Bai An clutched his chest. “Wash it! Wash it again! Cut it! Cut it the way they want! Change it! Give them new pieces!”
For the sake of all those food baskets, he would let them eat this meal. He could deal with them later.
“But there’s no good meat left,” one of the beastmen said hesitantly. Washing was fine—they had a hot spring on the mountain, so water wasn’t a problem. Cutting the bad parts off was also manageable—they could keep the scraps for themselves. But replacing the meat? That was impossible.
They had already taken everything.
“What do you mean, there’s nothing left?” Fake Bai An froze.
He took another look at the food and finally realized why it had seemed so familiar.
It was their own tribe’s food!
The very food they had worked so hard to steal!
“There’s no good meat left. Only the stuff with a strong smell,” the cook explained further. If they served the bad meat, the outsiders would definitely notice something was wrong.
Fake Bai An felt his heart stop for a moment. Clenching his teeth, he forced out a few words: “Go get some of their food.”
“Their food is still on the mountain. How are we supposed to get it?” The cook was baffled. Was their leader deliberately making things difficult? How could they risk sneaking back up there?
“You didn’t bring their food down?!” Fake Bai An was in utter disbelief.
He turned to his trusted nephew, his voice sharp. “What did you bring?!”
“I brought this,” the nephew proudly pointed to the food cooking in the pot. “It’s almost done.”
He had followed orders perfectly, working diligently the entire time. Every single good ingredient from their tribe had been transported here.
Fake Bai An’s vision darkened.
In the next moment, he was so furious that he passed out on the spot.
