Chapter 186
Lang Qi nodded. He was certain—he had never heard of this before.
Bai Tu had just completed his initial plan and was eager to share. Seeing that Lang Qi wasn’t busy, he proactively asked, “Do you want to hear the detailed plan?”
Even if Bai Tu hadn’t asked, Lang Qi would have wanted to hear it anyway. He simply sat beside him, waiting for an explanation.
Bai Tu first took out a map of the tribal distribution. He had been drawing it for a long time, incorporating information provided by Hei Xiao in the past, as well as locations recorded by the Eagle Tribe during their promotional travels. By now, Bai Tu had a fairly clear understanding of the overall layout of the Beast God Continent.
The Beast God Continent was also a sphere, but it was different from the one he had lived on in his previous life. Here, one half of the sphere was covered in water, while the other half was land.
Since they could only access the land portion, Bai Tu focused on detailing this area. The landmass was roughly divided into four sections, forming a circular shape split into the East, South, West, and North continents.
Each continent was home to countless tribes, varying in size. The central regions had fewer water sources, whereas tribes near the sea had more access to water—not just seawater, but also greater rainfall.
Historically, the Beast God Continent primarily relied on sea salt, which created a significant issue—tribes located deep inland struggled to obtain salt.
Bai Tu’s tribe was neither too close nor too far from the coast. A trip to the trading market took seven days one way, meaning a round trip took about half a month.
For tribes even further inland, a trip to the market could take an entire month. Considering that the time between the end of the rainy season and the start of winter was only three months, spending one of those months just to obtain salt was a serious challenge. It was already difficult enough to store food for winter—if they had to sacrifice additional resources for a month-long salt trade, their food supply would be even more depleted.
As a result, the further a tribe was from the sea, the less salt they had. Some tribes could only afford to make a salt-trading trip once every one or two years. If they urgently needed salt, they had to borrow from neighboring tribes—but not consuming salt wasn’t an option. Without it, they would lose strength and be unable to hunt.
Bai Tu’s tribe had been trading salt with these inland tribes, helping solve their shortages this year.
However, even though it seemed like Bai Tu’s tribe was trading with many other tribes, in reality, compared to the entirety of the Beast God Continent, their reach was still very limited. Even the biannual trading markets didn’t attract all tribes.
What about the tribes that couldn’t attend the salt markets and had no nearby tribes to trade with?
Some relied on tribes like the Yellow Monkey Tribe, which acted as intermediaries, traveling to trade on their behalf. Others had no choice but to endure the shortage or resort to an alternative method: Extracting salt from the blood of hunted animals. It was a gruesome method, but when survival was at stake, such concerns became irrelevant.
Bai Tu had learned about these hardships from the salt-trading tribes and people like Hei Xiao. However, he knew that some tribes had it even worse than what he had heard.
Bai Tu envisioned a new system:
Deliver salt and food to remote tribes that couldn’t travel to markets or his tribe. Provide them with seeds or young animals for farming and breeding. In return, they would cultivate and raise food, which Bai Tu’s tribe could later purchase. Both sides benefited—the remote tribes gained salt and food, while Bai Tu’s tribe gained new agricultural and livestock suppliers.
But Bai Tu didn’t just want to trade with salt-deprived tribes—he also aimed to engage with resource-rich tribes. Trade markets alone weren’t enough; there needed to be direct and efficient trade routes.
At present, Bai Tu’s negotiation team was extremely limited. Most beastmen were straightforward—they meant what they said and weren’t skilled in complex negotiations. However, once they left their tribe, things didn’t always go as planned. If Bai An and a few others had to personally visit every tribe, it would take an extremely long time to establish connections.
The Yellow Monkey Tribe was already well-connected with various tribes, making them the perfect candidates for this role. If Bai An coordinated them properly, they could quickly establish a vast trade network.
In the long run, Bai Tu envisioned transporting goods for other tribes as well, charging a reasonable delivery fee. This system would: Make trade easier for all tribes. Generate profit for Bai Tu’s tribe.
If it developed successfully, they could even set up transit hubs across the continents.
With strategic rest stops, delivery teams wouldn’t have to fly directly to the final destination in one trip. Instead, they could take breaks or hand off goods to the next team. Every species, no matter how strong, needed rest.
Unlike emergency escapes, cargo transportation wasn’t an urgent task. Rest was necessary. However, stopping randomly in unknown territories was dangerous, as unfamiliar beastmen could attack them.
Even though Bai Tu trusted Bai An and the Yellow Monkey Tribe, he couldn’t guarantee that every tribe would be friendly. If someone figured out their delivery routes and ambushed them, the transporters would be in great danger.
Thus, establishing safe and organized trade routes was crucial.
This was no longer just a simple trade idea—it was the foundation for a continental logistics network.
If they build their own transit points, it will not only provide a place to rest but also serve as a deterrent. After all, if the Beasts Tribe has only one base, ambitious beastmen might think that since it’s far away, they won’t be caught as long as they act swiftly. But if there’s a transit point nearby, things would be different—who would dare to provoke the tribe’s couriers at the risk of being discovered by the Beasts Tribe?
Bai Tu shared his various ideas and then asked Lang Qi for his opinion. “This is the current plan. If we actually implement it, we’ll need to refine the details. What do you think?”
“It’s feasible,” Lang Qi replied, looking at the thin piece of paper.
There weren’t many words on it, but just by reading it, one wouldn’t expect such a broad development plan. Bai Tu said they still needed to confirm the details during execution, but Lang Qi felt that Bai Tu had already thought everything through. Whether it was personnel or transit points, everything was clearly divided. Hearing Lang Qi agree, Bai Tu added, “At that time, we can also hire beastmen from other tribes, like the Iron Elephant Tribe.”
Bai Tu had been eyeing the Iron Elephant Tribe for a long time. Those massive creatures would make transportation incredibly convenient. Their tribe raised a lot of cattle, which could also transport goods, but compared to elephants, they were insignificant. In his previous life, the elephants he had seen were already large, but on the Beast God Continent, they were even bigger. They could transport not only food but also coal and other goods.
*
Bai Tu spent a few more days sharing his idea of developing the Hundred Beasts Express with others.
When it came to tribal development, Bai Tu always came up with ideas that others hadn’t considered. Everyone was used to it by now. No one had ever heard of “express delivery” before, but after hearing Bai Tu’s explanation, they could imagine what it would look like in the future.
For example, fruits from the Southern Continent that they couldn’t grow here would be easily available, without having to anxiously wait for the Black Hawk Tribe to bring some each time. Or, various fish from the seaside, especially the boneless ones, would no longer require waiting for Ying Chun’s rare trips. Instead, they could have them whenever they wanted, with just a few days’ wait.
Even prey from the Western Continent, which was currently only acquired when tribes from its borders came to trade, could be brought back along with the salt, eliminating the need to ration it so strictly.
At first, everyone thought this would be too troublesome. Developing it would take a long time and require contacting many tribes. But once they realized how convenient it would be, they all nodded in agreement.
The beastmen’ greatest concerns were food, safety, and offspring. The tribe’s safety was no longer an issue, and the number of offspring was steadily increasing. As for food, they already had plenty—but who would complain about having more delicious food? The more, the better.
However, there was a problem with developing express delivery, just as Bai Tu had anticipated—everyone was worried that the goods might be stolen along the way.
Every year, when the market opened, many tribes were robbed. They had also encountered many wandering beastmen before. The more goods there were and the fewer people transporting them, the easier it was to become a target. If they sent out couriers with large amounts of goods, what if they were ambushed by wandering beastmen and couldn’t even fight back?
“That’s why we need to build transit points,” Bai Tu explained.
Every few dozen tribes, there would be a transit point. They would also clear out the surrounding wandering beastmen. If those beastmen had been forced into wandering because of a lack of food in their tribes, they could be given jobs instead—after all, each transit point would need a lot of workers. But if some still believed that robbing was easier than working hard, then they wouldn’t be shown any mercy.
As for tribes like the Northern Monkey Tribe, who survived by deceiving others out of their food, they wouldn’t be let off either—they would all be captured and put to work until they repaid everything they had stolen.
Bai Tu had already thought of solutions to all possible problems. Apart from nodding in agreement, the others had nothing else to add.
Bai An asked, “Tu, when do we need to contact the Yellow Monkey Tribe?” Since the beastmen from the Yellow Monkey Tribe would soon be working with them, Bai An naturally wanted to get familiar with them as soon as possible.
“As soon as possible—the sooner, the better,” Bai Tu replied.
Now that the snow season had been over for more than a month, they had two months left to prepare. Once spring began, the Yellow Monkey Tribe could start contacting other tribes.
During these two months, they needed to establish connections with the tribes they would be working with, set prices for food and other supplies, and determine the transportation fees for delivering goods.
The overall plan was already clear; what remained were smaller issues—but these details were more complex.
The price of goods would be slightly lower than if traded in person, but with the added delivery fee, it would be more expensive than traveling to exchange goods directly. This way, beastmen from other tribes could compare and decide whether it was more cost-effective to come themselves or to have the Beasts Tribe deliver the goods. There was also another type of trade—when two tribes wanted to exchange goods with each other but found it inconvenient to travel, the Beasts Tribe could transport the items for a fee.
After finalizing the initial plan, Bai Tu discussed it with Hei Xiao. In the end, Hei Yan took Hei Xiao to negotiate with the Yellow Monkey Tribe.
The Yellow Monkey Tribe was a bit disappointed at first when they heard that the Hundred Beasts Tribe would not be handing over food to them. However, they understood—after all, the food from the Hundred Beasts Tribe was rare, and even if they only traded within their own tribe, it would still be in high demand.
But before they could dwell on their disappointment, Hei Xiao brought up another matter—Hundred Beasts Express.
The Yellow Monkey Tribe would be responsible for contacting other tribes, inquiring about how much food and supplies each one needed, and collecting a small deposit. Then, the Hundred Beasts Tribe would send people to deliver the goods to these tribes and bring back the exchanged materials.
The more the Yellow Monkey beastmen listened, the wider their eyes grew. This kind of trade system actually existed? It was their first time hearing about it. In the past, most trades happened at markets, and even taking the initiative to bring salt to other tribes for exchanges was already uncommon. But now, the Hundred Beasts Tribe was going a step further—by asking each tribe what they needed in advance, there would be no wasted trips.
The Yellow Monkey Tribe had been traveling between tribes with salt for years, so they understood how convenient this method was. They only needed to ask the tribes what they required, without having to carry goods themselves. A trip that used to take three or four days could now be completed in just one.
Their tribe had survived by borrowing salt in exchange for food and repaying the food later. If they no longer had to carry salt, they could visit even more tribes. Plus, the Hundred Beasts Tribe would reward them based on the amount of food they helped trade, meaning they would earn even more!
Despite their excitement, they remained cautious. After discussing it overnight, they finally gave Hei Xiao their answer—they agreed to cooperate with the Hundred Beasts Tribe and follow their proposed method.
With their confirmation, Hei Xiao knew he could report back to his brother. He also finalized the departure schedule, confirmed the goods that the Hundred Beasts Tribe was willing to exchange, and handed over several identity cards that had been prepared in advance.
“The tribes that have previously interacted with the Hundred Beasts Tribe all have these identity cards, but only the chiefs possess them. Since so many of you are involved now, it’s best to divide into teams and visit different tribes separately. Each team will have one identity card.”
The Yellow Monkey beastmen quickly nodded and accepted the cards. They understood their importance—having an identity card proved their connection with the Hundred Beasts Tribe, and other tribes familiar with the Hundred Beasts Tribe would naturally treat them with respect.
After receiving the Yellow Monkey Tribe’s response, Bai Tu soon welcomed an unexpected guest—Ma Xin.
The Horse Tribe was already quite familiar with them. The two tribes had been cooperating for over a year, and their collaborations had only increased. Since this new business didn’t require Hei Xiao to negotiate, Bai Tu assigned another Eagle Tribe member to handle it.
Logically, this kind of matter only required a simple yes or no response, so Bai Tu was quite surprised that Ma Xin had come all the way in such weather.
Fortunately, although Ma Xin was from the Horse Tribe, the Eagle Tribe members were strong enough to carry him in his humanoid form. This way, he didn’t have to travel on foot. Heavy snowfall was harsh for beastmen—just a few steps would freeze their feet, let alone making a long journey.
After landing, Ma Xin explained his reason for coming: “Tu, do you need more members from the Horse Tribe?”
There was more than one Horse Tribe in their area—there were two or three others with good relations.
Upon hearing that the Beasts Tribe needed people for long-term cargo transportation, the Horse Tribe’s chief immediately agreed. However, at that time, the chiefs of two other Horse Tribes happened to be visiting. After seeing the food the Horse Tribe had brought back from the Beasts Tribe and learning about the transport work, they proactively asked if they could also send people.
Since the Eagle Tribe member sent to negotiate didn’t have as much authority as Hei Xiao, they couldn’t give an immediate answer and only promised to ask Bai Tu back at the tribe.
But the two visiting chiefs couldn’t wait. As soon as they heard the news, they pleaded with Ma Xin, who was familiar with the Hundred Beasts Tribe, hoping he could put in a good word for them.
Ma Xin also wanted to help the neighboring tribes, so he discussed it with the Eagle Tribe members and asked if he could travel to the Hundred Beasts Tribe himself.
For a tribe that had cooperated with them for years, Bai Tu wouldn’t refuse such a small request, and the Eagle Tribe knew this, so they agreed right away.
After explaining his purpose, Ma Xin added, “The chiefs of the other two tribes are already on their way.”
All the tribes knew how prosperous the Hundred Beasts Tribe had become. They had seen how the Snow Rabbit Tribe transformed from a small settlement into what it was now. Even the Blood Wolf Tribe, which used to struggle, was now living far more comfortably. Naturally, everyone hoped their own tribe could develop in the same way.
The closer a tribe was to the Hundred Beasts Tribe, the better its prospects. This was obvious just by looking at the tribes surrounding them.
Now that the Hundred Beasts Tribe needed people, they didn’t want to miss the opportunity. Not only could they strengthen their relationship with the Hundred Beasts Tribe, but even if their status remained the same, their warriors would at least have more food. After all, the Hundred Beasts Tribe treated their transport workers as well as their own tribe members—providing free meals, a fixed points system, and yearly bonuses. Their benefits were practically the same as officially joining the Hundred Beasts Tribe.
Staying in their own tribe while enjoying the perks of being in the Hundred Beasts Tribe—who wouldn’t be tempted?
Fearing they might be too late, the other two tribes immediately sent their strongest warriors along with the Eagle Tribe members when they left the Horse Tribe.
Bai Tu did indeed lack manpower. After winter, his tribe’s beastmen would be busy building livestock enclosures and handling other tasks, leaving few available for transport work. Having extra tribes helping out was a great advantage, so he agreed without hesitation.
The day after the Horse Tribe warriors left, Bai Tu saw Shi Su.
Bai Tu: “……”
At this point, he was starting to suspect that Shi Su either had clairvoyance or super hearing. Every time something happened in the Beasts Tribe, Shi Su always managed to show up immediately.
But even if Shi Su hadn’t come this time, Bai Tu would have contacted him anyway.
For the initial stage of the express delivery business, Bai Tu planned to establish a transit point near the tribes Bai An had previously helped. This transit point would also function as a warehouse, storing food and other goods. Naturally, guards would be needed, and both the Lion Tribe and the Wolf Tribe were excellent choices for the job.
Shi Su had only come to ask for a mission. What the mission was didn’t matter—whether it was transporting goods or protecting them, the Lion Tribe could handle it. Upon receiving the assignment, Shi Su left in high spirits.
Meanwhile, Lang Qian looked at the list in his hand, a little puzzled.
“Wasn’t the first transit point supposed to need a hundred people?”
Just now, Bai Tu had only asked Shi Su to provide ten people. Seeing that the remaining ninety were all to be selected from his Wolf Tribe, he was a bit confused.
Bai Tu sighed, “You’ll find out tomorrow.”
But they didn’t have to wait until the next day—by that evening, the other tribes had already arrived.
Lang Qian watched as the chiefs immediately started arguing upon arrival and silently took a step back.
He really wanted to tell them there was no need to fight—Bai Tu had already assigned all the slots, and no matter how much they argued, the final distribution would remain the same. But seeing the chaotic scene before him, he knew there was no way to get a word in.
Bai Tu simply waved his hand, unfazed. He had seen this countless times before.
Just get used to it.
Sure enough, after some back-and-forth bickering, the chiefs finally settled down, each taking their seat as if they hadn’t just been squabbling like a bunch of cubs.
Bai Tu handed over the list and let them pass it around.
*
With winter over and many tribes beginning to build livestock enclosures, the Hundred Beasts Tribe’s express delivery service officially launched.
The beastmen of the Hundred Beasts Tribe had never heard of such a concept before, let alone those from other tribes.
But the name didn’t really matter—what truly excited everyone was the fact that, from now on, they could simply say what they wanted, and someone would deliver it right to them. All they had to do was prepare their trade goods or points cards in exchange.
This was too good to be true!
Just saying what they wanted and having someone bring it to them—wasn’t this basically a dream?
For a time, whether they actually needed anything or not, everyone wanted to try out the Hundred Beasts Tribe’s new service.
As a result, the first batch of delivery orders was a chaotic mix of requests—people wanted to trade for all sorts of things, especially those who had points cards in hand.
“Will you deliver a single bud sugar?” A young cub held up ten candy cards and asked the Yellow Monkey Tribe beastman who had come to make deliveries.
The monkey beastman: “……” Are you messing with me?
